I joined the Ravellenic Games for the first time this year and I went all out for Team Sasquatch! My main event was Event Shawl, but I also signed up for Event Charity, Event Single Skein and Event Modular (which was a huge mistake but more on that another day).
My main event was to knit a shawl. Since my disgrace with the Fiori Autunalli by Rosemary Hill I have been downright scared of knitting lace. Did I mention the disgrace came from 1. Reading the wrong chart 2. knitting the wrong chart 3. switching rows while knitting the wrong chart and 4. frogging about 1,000 sts in tears at my LYS? Word to the wise friends and neighbors, don’t knit when you’re too tired to remember your middle name!
Anyway, here I am rambling again! I choose for my Games piece a shawl knitted in worsted, I felt like it was my knitting equivalent of a nightlight. So The Lonely Tree Shawl by Silvia Bolvia (which is not only amazing fun to knit but FREE on Ravelry) seemed like the perfect choice. I gathered up some Caron Simply Soft in Dark Sage from my yarn stash and was off!
I was going really slow until the leaves started to emerge, trying to remember that lace knitting is only as hard as I let it be in my head. Once I got to this point I felt kinda confident.
(Disclaimer: Some lace knitting really is freakishly difficult, my problem lies in my lack of confidence after mucking up the same pattern so many times.)
Before I knew it, it was time to bind the bad boy off. I felt bad for not picking a harder, more involved project at this point though. I know that point of the games is/was to challenge yourself, and I stand by my reasoning that I had to conquer my fear of lace – otherwise the Fiori is never going to get done.
But my shawl is done!
So there you have it friends and neighbors, the first leg of my Ravellenic journey came to an end. I’ve already given the shawl to a friend. I forgot to take a picture on the mannequin but I gotta tell you – giving away something that gave me a little confidence was pretty epic!
Happy Tuesday!
I love that shawl, I’m still at the Knit and purl stage of my knitting. Follow your blog because you always do something that looks great and encourages me to pick up my needles again.
– Nicky
It’s beautiful, and the leaves really work well in that lovely sage green.
Thank you! *BLUSHING*
I had a terrible time learning lace, I sometimes still do. Like a knitting Worzel Gummidge, I had to find my ‘lace head’. I suffered from lace phobia too, until I found it.
I don’t know why I let it get so bad – it’s my mental lace block I suppose! 😉
If I were a judge, you’d get a 10, looks class.
Seriously, the photos of it blocking are so impressive, it doesn’t look like there’s a stitch out of place.. I’ve always wanted to knit a shawl, but I’d be afraid I’d never wear it, but they just look SO PRETTY.
I wear mine like wrapped scarves. The longer ones I give away, I just love making them!
If I were a judge, you’d get a 10, looks class.
Seriously, the photos of it blocking are so impressive, it doesn’t look like there’s a stitch out of place.. I’ve always wanted to knit a shawl, but I’d be afraid I’d never wear it, but they just look SO PRETTY.
Epic indeed! Excellent job!
Quite lovely!
That’s awesome, I’m going to knit one for my wife.
She’ll love it!
Lovely, and conquering a fear is definitely part of challenging yourself!
I think we need action shots stat!!
You can pull off action shots – I cannot 🙂
Awww girl, don’t even front, we all know how cute you are 😛
That is really beautiful.
It looks really lovely. I find with lacey knitting that it is hard going until you can recognise what you need to do from looking at the previous row.
Great job! Often the lace gets easier once you get going and can ‘read’ your knitting and it starts resembling the charts!
It’s strange, I can read my knitting all the time EXCEPT with lace. I have the “it’s too hard” brain block I suppose 😉
Maybe you just need to keep “practising” and knit more lovely lacey shawls 😉
Beautiful shawl!! Well done 🙂
Thank you!
Brilliant! Congrats.