Wow! I need a new lace project, and I'm having trouble figuring out what to knit next. I was so enthusiastic about the Norwegian Lace Doilies, but after doing this first one I don't have an immediate urge to do another. Maybe I'll feel differently after I get it blocked again. For some reason I'm putting that off.
I've also had a shawl project in mind, testing out some of the shapes that are designed to hang well on human bodies. I am nearly finished with JoAnn Besold's "More than Circular" shawl from the XRX, Inc. book, The Best of Knitter's Shawls and Scarves (the pattern was originally published in Knitters 38). In fact, with the exception of the final bind-off row, the shawl is done. I need to order some beads for the last row (to weight the shawl so it hangs better), and then finish that up. I can't really know what I think about the success of this project with it lumped in a pile in my knitting basket!
This shawl uses a doily pattern knit with progressively larger needles as you work outward to make a circumference that is "more than circular," i.e. more than 360-degrees. This extra circumference makes the shawl curve around the shoulders and stay on. I like this idea a lot, but I'm not crazy about the loose knitting towards the end of the shawl. I was having more fun knitting when the needle was smaller, and I liked the look of it better too.
I think my next experiment is going to be to start with more than a circle's worth of stitches at the beginning (cast on ten or eleven repeats of a doily design with 8 repeats, for example), and then work the whole shawl with the smaller needles. I'm not sure if the neck will lie smoothly with those extra stitches, or if I'll need to do some sort of adaptation there, but I do know that I won't ever find out just by thinking about it!
And I'm ultimately putting off a shawl for my mother that I really want to be my priority. But it's complicated (I'm adapting the pattern), and I have a lot to figure out before I can really get going on it. Or I think I do, and so consequently I move slowly.
But maybe I could actually combine these projects. For instance, I could use another of the Norwegian lace doilies as the basis for my shawl experiment with "more points than the average doily," and at the same time I could set myself a weekly goal for working on my mother's shawl. That would feed my immediate "lace jones" and still get me going on the other project as well. It even sounds workable!
And by plotting the progress - even without pix - we will send you encouragement & both will zoom along at a rapid pace. I was amazed at how fast that doily was run up :-)
Posted by: peter at June 1, 2003 06:48 PMThanks for the encouragement, Peter! Writing about my quandry does seem to have gotten me focused again. I ordered the beads I will need to finish the "More than Circular" shawl, and today I hope to pick a pattern for the new shawl/doily and go over some notes to decide on the first steps for the more complicated project.
Posted by: Shelda at June 2, 2003 11:56 AMYour lace is so beautiful. I've done a lot of knitting but not lace. Could you recommend some beginner patterns or a book? And what kind of yarn do you usually use?
You might want to put these recommendations on a web page. Surely I'm not the only knitter you're inspiring! CM
Posted by: C at June 2, 2003 01:26 PM