After my last blog entry where I said I was just too impatient to take my shawl prototype off the needles to block and see what was going on, I realized that what I was really feeling was a touch of fear. I wasn't sure how it was going to come out, and I was avoiding finding out. So I metaphorically "bit the bullet," threaded the shawl onto a thread and off the needles, got it wet, and blocked it. And first I'll just say that's it truly lovely lace! I am just as enamored with this pattern as I was when I first encountered it.
That's the back panel. So far, so good! But, um... here are the fronts, merrily crossing over one another. Holy Toledo, Batman, I believe I went too far with my additional rays! I do like the way the shawl is approaching a circular shape, without too much additional length in the back. That's pretty neat. (Although it may also be an artifact of blocking it with the "wings" curving around the front. If I had blocked it more like a standard Faroese shawl, with the wings outstretched, it would be different. I'm just not sure how different!)
Here is just one front, photographed without the cross-over, allowing you to see how far the additional fabric extends past the center front line. Because of the angle of the photo, I think it appears a little less dramatic than it actually is.
Even seeing the blocked layout, I couldn't be sure until I tried on the shawl how it would hang. Unfortunately I can't manage to photograph myself very well, but I turned this way and that in front of the mirror. There is definitely too much fabric, and it ripples around my shoulders. Not a bad look, but not the look I wanted on this shawlette as I want the lace to show as clearly as possible. I found myself folding back the excess into lapels, and laughing to myself. This is why I started with a prototype, after all!
At this point, I have several options. I could go back to the "standard" two diamond start, or I could only do one vertical repeat before closing off the "rays" (see discussion here about rays and darts). I went as far in the direction of additional fabric as I could in this prototype (i.e. I used three diamonds to begin, and I ended my darts after two vertical repeats). That gives me a total of 6 lace diamonds after the first vertical repeat, and a total of 7 diamonds after the second repeat.
I made a little chart and determined that there are several possible ways to configure this.
If you start with 2 diamonds (Myrna's "standard" shawl configuration), and end the rays after one vertical repeat, you end up with 2/3/4 diamonds on the first three rows. Starting with two diamonds, and ending the rays after two vertical repeats, you have 2/4/5 diamonds on the first three rows.
If you start with 3 diamonds (the theory I was testing), and end the rays after one vertical repeat, you have 3/4/5 diamonds (the same as 2 diamonds, two vertical repeats, except for the extra diamond on the first row). You could end the front ray after the first vertical repeat, but continue the back ray until after the second repeat). That staggered plan would give you 3/5/6. Or you could do what I did, and max it out at 3/6/7. (I truly hope that might make sense to someone besides me!)
With that in mind, my first thought was that I should have stopped my "rays" after that first repeat. So I folded the shawlette strategically, and sure enough, the folding drew those front "wings" into a more reasonable line:
As I folded and tried on, it seemed to me that the two best options are the 2/4/5 and 3/4/5 ones. Since they're very close to the same result, I don't know that it matters a whole lot which I choose. I do like the look of the third set of leaf motifs at the shoulder. The diamonds seem to curve very gracefully in that configuration, so I think I'll go with the 3/4/5 option. I held my blocked swatch in the Merino Fine (the yarn I'm knitting the real shawl in) up to the blocked Jaggerspun Zephyr of the prototype, and the Merino Fine is the same width, but less deep.
I would love to distract myself, and play with another two or three prototypes to test out these theories, but I'm pretty sure I now have the information I need. I can always come back to this question later. I think I will eventually go ahead and finish this shawlette without frogging. I've already done the bulk of the knitting, and it can serve as a concrete illustration of an experiment I tried that wasn't entirely successful.
So there's nothing stopping me from picking up my needles and casting on my "Sallie June" Faroese shawl! Except for winding the yarn into a ball:
Listening to: Silas Marner by George Eliot, read by Margaret Hilton.
Shelda, it's breathtakingly lovely!! I am sooo impressed!
And very serious about test knitting for you if you like :)
Gorgeous! I am so impressed with your work, both the mental and physical efforts that you have put into this project. If you ever decide to sell the pattern, I'm buying!
STUNNING! It's so beautiful! Silas Marner...I remember reading that in high school English.
My head is spinning trying to understand. It hurts from thinking too hard and my brain is like when the light is flashing on the computer continually and everything is all locked up while it is trying to figure out what to do! LOL I am hoping to get the Stahman book in the next few weeks and read it and then maybe this will make more sense to me. It does look really nice in the picture where you folded the shawlette and let it flow naturally.
Is the shawl going to be white? I couldn't tell from the picture if it had a little variegation in it or if that is shadow. I am just amazed still at how beautiful this pattern is working out! Can't wait to see an updated photo of the "real thing"!