Well, well, well...what do we have here?
Carmelita! Can you believe it? Mim, are you in shock? This must have been the longest shawl-in-progress...ever! All my own doing, of course. I would highly recommend this pattern to anyone! Said pattern, of course, being Miriam Felton's Icarus Shawl, originally published in the Summer 2006 issue of Interweave Knits. The pattern is also available in the upcoming The Best of Interweave Knits book, and through Miriam's shop. I used Misti Alpaca Lace in 7300 Maize and US3 needles.You may remember that I started this shawl last summer as part of The Amazing Lace...if you can remember that far back, that is. So, while this shawl was technically on the needles since last June, I would approximate the actual knitting time at around 4 months (still pretty pathetic, I know).
This was all new territory for me- my first lace project, my first shawl. And I will admit it took me longer than I anticipated for me to get into the swing of things and get my lace knitting rhythm. There were good times and bad along the way, but the journey was a great learning experience from start to finish. Even when I thought I knew what I was doing, I found mistakes along the way. Some I could live with, some I could not. I lost count of how many times I ripped and restarted this shawl and how many times I backtracked and re-knitted some sections. Once it was so bad, a friend had to rip for me. Thanks again, Julia!
Even after I was done with the knitting, it was hard to picture what I had on my hands until blocking began. Thanks to Dis and Nasus and a velour blanket at Casa Malibu for their assistance during this process. While us girls indulged ourselves silly all day on Saturday, Carmelita was busy getting her block on.
Blocking is fun! I was thrilled to see the details emerge and take shape.
This was an admittedly (and somewhat embarrassingly) frustrating process for at times, but I was determined to finish this shawl one day...even if it killed me. Especially once I saw Andrea's shawl in person, I knew mine wouldn't be in the WIP pile forever.Thank you all for your encouragement along the way. I know it's just a little lace shawl, but it's a pretty big deal to me. Now that all is said and done, I am able to look back on the journey with fondness and a great sense of accomplishment.
The end result is so rewarding. I love this shawl. Leftover proof of mistakes and all. I'll wear it with pride.
And now, with my love of lace firmly in place, I look forward to starting my next shawl! I may or may not already have my yarn and pattern picked out...
25 comments:
Beautiful! K may need to borrow your shawl for Halloween (ha!) I was so inspired by you and Dis this weekend that I finally bought the pattern for the Lightweight Mountain Peaks Shawl :)
Gorgeous! I remember when you started it.. and I'm so happy that you've made it through the shawl. I haven't figured out if I'm a "shawl girl" yet or not but I have bought a few "simple" (they say this..) lace shawl patterns for this fall (whenever it comes to Georgia).
I know I've already said this 1000 times but - YAY!!!
"Just a little shawl". Pish-tosh! That is gorgeous!
WOW! that looks phenomenal! I love the last picture of you wearing it. Brava!!!!
(I don't think I could ever knit lace...)
Well done! It's really a beautiful shawl. You did a great job at blocking without wires; your edge is amazingly straight.
A beautiful shawl! I love the color and i Love the way it looks on you!!! GREAT JOB!!
Beautiful! It was worth the wait. If it makes you feel better I haven't finished my Amazing Lace project yet!
You totally SHOULD be proud of it. You persevered through it! I always knew you would finish it eventually since you kept asking questions. You weren't willing to just let your temporary confusions shut down the whole project.
Go you! It's so beautiful!
Well, bless my stars. What a beautiful lace shawl you have there. Congrats on sticking with it and finishing!
P.S. Knitting lace is totally S&M. You hate it, you love it, it beats you, you beat it...and when you're done, you can't wait to do it again. Kinky, I tell ya, but oh so good.
P.P.S. Isn't blocking lace COOL?
So gorgeous on you! It looks like you and Carmelita have come a long way together, but I think you are have a long, beutiful relationship ahead of you.
Absolutely beautiful! Isn't blocking lace so cool? I love the last shot of you with the shawl
Yay for finishing! Your shawl is lovely - great job!
Your shawl is such an inspiration to me. I have one partially done and I just set it aside because I got bored with it. Now, I may pick it up again. Yours is gorgeous!
Wow!! it's absolutely gorgeous! I love the color and I think it shows off the pattern really well. Very good job!
soooo pretty!!
and you look ever so lovely in it!
It looks gorgeous! I've seen it in person, although only half-finished, and I remember what an unexpected and really cool color it was. You look so elegant with it.
So what's your next project?
- MJ
P.S.: Just read the retreat post. Try Bacara Resort in Santa Barbara next year. It is amazing!
It's those projects that really challenge us that are the most rewarding. The shawl is gorgeous!
Your shawl is gorgeous!
OMG it is such a spectacular shawl! :)
I love it!
Beautiful!! You should be proud! You did an amazing job on your 1st lace project!! :) Well done!
Carmelita is gorgeous! Way to persevere... and I'm very curious to know what your next shawl project is!
Gorgeous! It's just beautiful. You Loopy girls are on fire with the lace knits. I may be joining you in the lace knitting soon. I just have to get one of my WIP's to a benchmark point...
what a beautiful shawl!! a carmelita to be very proud of ;)
i haven't knit any lace since my icarus from last summer - so touched you remember it ;) - but you've inspired me to dig around in my stash for some new lace fun.
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