Sunday shawl making

August 29th 


The main body of the Sunday shawl

During July the Internet within the crochet world was a buzz with road trip scarves and shawls.  There were four patterns that took my particular fancy and I decided that before the end of the year I would have made all four.  Two are now complete and I have almost finished the third.  These patterns are quick to make and fun to watch grow, plus you have something to wear at the end of it, what is not to like?

So my first foray into clothing was the Sunday Shawl by the talented Alia Bland. (Link below)  Apt too as I was beginning it on a Sunday, the flaw here being, I woke up on the day in question, decided I wanted to begin, but no yarn shops near me were open!  So it was to be a stash busting shawl then.  This left me with no choice but the burgundy red within my stores as the only yarn that would be enough for the main body of the shawl.  This too dictated that it was to be an autumn/winter shawl as the yarn was of a chunky weight.

The pattern is clear to follow and my first bought pattern at that!  Normally I trawl the Internet or use one of the numerous pattern books I have, but I wanted to jump on the band waggon and join in the discussions of how I was getting along with blog land acquaintances.  Within no time at all the main body was complete, perhaps a couple of three hours?

This did leave me to a dilemma as I don't know about you but once Sunday was finished with and it was back to work on the Monday, end of school term busyness set in,  how does it become so fraught and manic, the Sunday shawl was put to one side and forgotten...

Until that was as I was thinking about packing for holiday, when I realised that I would not have space for it and all the yarn needed to complete it and so it would have to stay behind.  So what to crochet whilst on holiday?  A different shawl pattern of course!  But that will be a future posting...

So I came home to a shawl that needed finishing but it was not until today, when I awoke to the most glorious of sun rises that I thought, that's it, today is the day.

The sky at 0600 this morning

So following on from the fantastic photographed pattern tutorial, I was able to complete the colour trim of the shawl in about 3 ish hours.  So the Sunday shawl is an apt name, as you could complete it on a Sunday, clever!

Using my new free gift blocking pins from Simply Crochet magazine this month, I am a sucker for anything with hearts, I set to blocking the shawl.  Kind advice was given through various crochet on line groups as how best to go about it and Alia (the designer) also agreed that she had blocked her picot stitches (the little jutty out bits on the end of the shawl)

Free with Simply Crochet magazine

Before blocking



Close up of picot stitches and how they were pinned for blocking

Left picot is blocked the right is not

The difference between blocking and not

Blocking was definitely worth it and transformed the shawl, I was in two minds as I liked it the way it was, but having blocked it, the whole garment seems somehow more finished and complete.

The finished shawl

The colourful Sunday shawl

Think the crocheted shawl matches my dress well!

I have loved making this shawl, the colours are not those that I would have chosen, but apart from buying the pattern, which I will use again, this shawl has only cost me time, and not so much of that.  I call that a win win.  So this will be my autumn/winter shawl as the yarn is chunky and will keep the evening chill off my shoulders.  The colours I think are quite suited to those seasons. 

 

The Sunday shawl pattern can be found  here or here

 



Have any of you made a shawl, what pattern did you use?