The Swallowtail Shawl

While mum was here recently, we sat down together and perused page after page of shawl patterns on Ravelry (why do I always feel the need to give that a capital R?) and she short-listed around half a dozen patterns before whittling the huge choice down to just one: The Swallowtail Shawl. I didn't have the magazine that it was originally published in - Interweave Knits Autumn 2006 - so I looked online to see about backordering it and unfortunately found that particular issue to be SOLD OUT. It looked like mum was going to end up with her second choice before Interweave released the pattern for free the very next day! Talk about perfect timing!

This pattern was released along with four other Interweave patterns that were apparently chosen by readers as the all-time top 5 Interweave patterns. Also included was the Sunrise Circle Jacket, which I really like and perhaps someday might get around to making. Someday.

But anyway, back to the main event: mum's Swallowtail Shawl.

Pattern: Swallowtail Shawl (Ravelry link), originally published in Interweave Knits Autumn 2006, now available for free here until the 14th of May, 2008, after which it shall disappear into Interweave sold-out-back-issue territory. I think that in order to download the pdf file, one needs an account of sorts on the interweave site.

Yarn details:

• Pirkanmaan kotityö ohut pirkkalanka
• 100gr = 400m
• 100% pure new wool
• colour # 214
• about 85-90gr used

Needles: 4.5mm
Measurements: hmmm, good question. I'm feeling too lazy to go and measure it now :-)

The original pattern calls for sixteen repeats of the first chart, but as it uses thinner yarn and smaller needles, I just did eleven repeats before heading onto the next chart. Those p5togs really slowed me down! I used a 2mm needle to help with them, but I was often tempted just to leave them out altogether. Of course, now I think they look great and am happy that I persevered.

Our lounge room window happens to be just about the same width as this shawl and I somehow managed to rig the shawl up in front of the window, so the pictures you see have the sun and sky in the background, which shows off the pattern nicely but makes the yarn appear darker than it really is. Enter the last foto, which shows the colour in a more true-to-life form.

I'll post this shawl off to mum tomorrow, along with the shortpaper mitts. I'll probably end up making another one of these for myself someday. Someday.