Mystery Shawl 16 - Finished

 

I finished this up last night and blocked it this morning before going to work.  I have become completely addicted to Renee's shawls.  The Spring Mystery Shawl starts on March 6.  I already have the yarn and need to pick out some beads.

Mystery Shawl 16 - Clue 3

 

Finished up clue 3 this morning.  The shawl is too big now to spread out completely on my needles, so I only spread out a little over one-half.

Mystery Shawl 16 - Clue 2

 

I finished up clue 2 tonight.  I am really liking how this shawl is turning out.  But I couldn't have made it this far without the assistance of Frederica von Fish.  To keep track of my place on the chart I use a magnetic board.  I have a long magnetic strip that so far has been long enough for all the charts I have used in lace knitting and I place it above the line that I am currently knitting.  This lets me see how the row that I am currently working fits in with the pattern that I've already completed.  But this pattern is a bit complex, and I was having trouble keeping my place in the line.  Enter Frederica von Fish.

  

I picked up a set of these cute little fish magnets last summer at Bead & Button and they have been schooling on our magnetic message board in the kitchen.  Aha, says I, perhaps I can have Fred here point out my place on the line, like a bouncing ball in a sing along.  So now she sits above the lace motif that I am working on the magnetic strip I use to mark my place in the chart.  As I finish a motif I shift her to the next one.  No more losing my place, and not having to worry about that frees my attention so I can concentrate on making sure the lace pattern is correct.

 

Other tips for lace knitting - write in the number of knit stitches for any stretch over 4, and highlight anything unusual.  For triangular shawls it is the practice to repeat the chart around a center stitch.  Sometimes the chart is not symmetric.  Depending upon the asymmetry I may make a new chart for the repeat.  In this case the asymmetry was minor so I simply highlighted the motif to remind myself to flip it.

Mystery Shawl 16 Knit Along

Another lace project?  What am I thinking?  And a mystery shawl knit along.  I've never done a mystery shawl, or a knit along, but this one is done by Goddess Knits and I am just head over heels about her lace shawls (although the pictures on Ravelry are generally better than the ones on her web site).  What is a mystery shawl knit along?  Well, you join up by buying the "pattern" and in Goddess Knits case, joining the yahoo group.  Then you buy the yarn.  I bought the suggested yarn, trusting in the designer to pick something appropriate, plus it is a great way to try new things.  Then you wait.  The clues (in the form of lace charts with some directions) come out once a week, and at the end of it all you have a shawl, and you get the complete pattern.  The yarn is Winter Mountain Fibers Fingering, 100% wool.