Tuesday 18 September 2007

Finished

At last, just in time for the cooler autumn evenings, I've finally finished my shawl. It is knitted from handspun shetland. I have already knitted a cardigan from this fleece and wanted a project that would make use of some finer spun yarn. This weekend I finally got round to sewing in all the ends and blocking it.

The pattern (Birch from Rowan Magazine 34) used Kidsilk Haze and 5mm needles. I used smaller needles and spun the yarn thicker than Kidsilk so that I ended up with a less lacy shawl.


I am really pleased with the result. Handspun pure shetland yarn is always very soft and light. The flock that the fleece came from was not registered organic but the sheep were kept under organic conditions, I washed the fleece in Ecover washing liquid and obviously spun and knitted it by hand so I think that its environmental impact was pretty small. Added to that, as it took just under a quarter of the original fleece which including postage I paid £12 for, then the shawl has cost me just under £3 - a bargain!

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a lovely shawl. How I wish I could knit. Enjoy the cooler Fall weather.

barefoot gardener said...

Oh, that is just beautiful!

You should be very proud.

AC said...

It is really beautiful!
Alison

Lis said...

Awesome! I so wish I could knit too Nicole!

Jenny said...

That is just beautiful. You should be very pleased with it, it's just lovely.

Anonymous said...

Wow, it's stunning. When on homeymoon in Dorset we came across a group of spinners who were really, really lovely when I asked questions. My mother used to spin using one of the hand-drop spinners and enjoyed it - she used to forage wool from fences on walks etc. I love the Shetland patterns, they are in a class of their own, and so delicate. You must be a very dedicated knitter!

Where did you get your wool from?

Heather L. said...

It's beautiful!

ginny said...

It's beautiful Willow.. you are an inspiration!
ginny
x