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Next!

There are now two Ashton shawls completed -- Mare and Pink.  Both have turned out IMHO to be real head turners.  And I know I said if only I made three shawls I could perhaps add lace shawls to my knitting skill set, but honestly, I need a break from lace.  A third was started, but my heart wasn't into it the way it should be.

Lace knitting requires concentration and for my next project I want something mindless.  Having said that I don't want to be bored.  So I've been on the lookout for the pattern able to accomplish both simplicity but not boring.  Tah dah I found it in my LYS - Black Sheep Yarns.  Jeweled Cowl.


Jeweled Cowl by Sachiko Uemura
The look is quite something. There is a whole whack of stockinette (170 stitches) separated by 30 stitches using YOs and SKKPs to create the design element you see in the photo above.  This simple stitch pattern leaves room to add beads, lots of beads, 728 beads to be exact.  So even though this is not a lace shawl, Jeweled Cowl allows me to continue to practice some lace elements and placing beads.  I thought it was a pretty good diversion.

Let's take a look at the colour and beads I am in the process of using.


Meet Sulka Legato's fine merino, baby alpaca and silk blend in the colour Plum.  If you look closely you can see bits of blue and the nice sheen it has.  As for the beads, have a closer look at them too.

My 800 or so beads
The beads are #8 (meaning they are one size smaller than the ones used on the Ashton shawls) made in Japan by Matsuno.  They are the perfect highlight to the plum coloured yarn I'm using.  It is on the needles, but not far enough along to show.  Let me explain.  The stockinette stitch does curl and the design takes advantage of this curl, but I am not yet far enough along to get out of the curl.  So instead of seeing what I have done so far take a peek at the photo the designer, Sachiko Uemura, took of her completed cowl.  It has been enlarged so you can see the beads.



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This pattern is pushing all the right buttons for me and things are moving along fabulously as well.  So for the moment I have moved away from lace knitting, sort of.






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