Finally, finally starting to knit!

I've been working on adapting Marianne Kinzel's "Springtime" tablecloth pattern for a Faroese shawl for what seems like nearly forever! This will be a gift for my mother, and I think I started planning this at least four years ago, maybe longer.

I kept putting this project aside for the latest thing to catch my eye, mostly because I tend to avoid things that I don't quite understand, and I set myself quite a task with re-charting and re-imagining this pattern into a very different shape. I had my charts all "mostly" ready to go, but that last 10-20% of the work kept getting put off. And every time I would start working again, I would have to reorient myself to the project.

In late July, I had myself a "talking to," and decided that if I was ever going to knit this shawl, now would be a good time! So I made a promise to myself that I'd work on the project 15 minutes every day. Some days I set a little timer, and worked only 15 minutes; other days I got engaged and worked for two hours. I charted and charted, checked stitch counts, "figgered" and am now (FINALLY!) reasonably sure that I have the charts I need to knit this shawl. Hurray, hurray, hurray! The tortoise really does finish the race eventually!

Because of a recent discussion on my list, Ample-Knitters, I really want to try a shaping experiment, so I've decided to first knit a small shoulder "shawlette" instead of embarking on the full shawl. If it works, I think this shaping idea has potential to make a really well-fitting shawl for larger bodies (me and my mother both qualify). So I think a prototype is not a detour but a smart move. And besides, this way I get to test out my charts before I start the "real" shawl. Good rationalizations, no?

Last night I cast on the band for my shawl, and started knitting! It's very nice to be at this stage. Here's a little photo of my (as yet miniscule) progress:

I'm knitting my prototype in Jaggerspun Zephyr, which is a lace weight 50% merino, 50% silk yarn. I used it for my "Elizabeth" shawl, so it's a familiar yarn. I'm using a 3.25mm Holz & Stein ebony needle, and it feels yummy. The color is "Ladyslipper" which is a kind of old rose pink.

Listening to: Shoot the Moon by Billie Letts.