Finishing

This past weekend I accomplished a lot. I finished my Camo Tuscany Wrap and my Strawberry Flutter Sleeve Cardi. Flutter sleeve will be posted later so Camo will have center stage.


The yarn is Glacier Bay Sock Yarn - 3 ply merino, hand dyed. When I purchased the yarn at Marin Fiber Arts a couple of weeks ago, I immediately fell in love with the dye. I was concerned that the final knit up would be too stiff and scratchy for a wrap since it was sock yarn and the variegated dye would be too overwhelming for a lace shawl. When I was finished knitting it and after a 10 minute soak in the sink, the fiber bloomed deliciously soft and supple . When I took it off the needles it was so "springy" and "tiny" but after blocking it grew almost twice its size.


There are a lot of different opinions circulating out there in the knitting world about what type of yarn should be used to knit lace shawls or lace in general. In particular some think that variegated yarn will complete distract from the lovely intricate lace details...well, I will have to say I don't agree with that completely. Yes, this shawl would have been beautiful in a plain yarn and the lace detail would taken center stage, but with Camo, I think the yarn works extremely well in harmony with the pattern. I will have to add that Tuscany is a very simple pattern repeat and its simplicity lends a balance to the richness of the yarn. Some lace shawls have way too much pattern going on with them that a plain yarn would only be the way to go to show off all that hard work. In this case I think it works well and I am so pleased with the way it turned out.


This detail really shows the beauty of the dye with the light parts juxtaposed to the dark creating an almost 3 dimensional quality.

I can't wait to wrap myself up in this.
Off the needle size 25" x 55"
Blocked size 27" x 80"