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Monday, August 11, 2008

I Made It!

I am so, so proud of this shawl, so I hope you'll all forgive my indulging in a photo-heavy post.

Pattern: Shetland Triangle by Evelyn Clark in Wrap Style
Yarn: my own handspun (merino/corriedale), approximately 400 yards
Needles: 32" US 6 (4.0 mm) Addi Turbo circular
Started/Completed: August 8, 8 a.m. est/August 10, 4 p.m. est
Mods: added one body chart repeat, for a total of nine repeats
Dimensions: 57" x 29"

Knitting with my own handspun was truly an incredible experience. On the one hand, I got a very good look at how inconsistent my spinning was (this yarn was only, I think, the third I finished on my wheel), but I love the rustic look it has knitted up. There was definitely a different feeling to the process of knitting this shawl knowing that I made not only the finished garment but the yarn I was using. I can see why spinners often wind up knitting with nothing but their own handspun.

And yes, this is the fastest I've ever knit a shawl -- although keep in mind that (a) it's a very easy pattern, (b) it's a smaller shawl than others I've knit, and (c) I did knit for about eight solid hours on Saturday. Had the Olympics started on a Monday, it would have taken me much longer. Still, I'm thrilled with the results and kind of amazed that I was the third person to finish in my Ravelympics event, the Shawl Relay. (I guess that makes me a bronze medalist?)






16 comments:

  1. Gorgeous! And YAY bronze medalist!

    (And I have to know, who were the two people who finished before you and what did they knit? Ankle socks?)

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  2. I'm very proud of you! It must be awesome knitting with yarn you have spun yourself. I love the color, too. One of these days I'm going to break down and buy that book :-)

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  3. The Bronze?!!
    It came out beautifully. Although I am not in the competition, I certainly got a lot of knitting done with the Olympics on this weekend!
    It seems the perfect companion.

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  4. It's just lovely! I'm sure it'll be a prize knit given it's first spun and knit up status. Great pictures too!

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  5. Anonymous12:54 AM

    Oh, what a lovely shawl. Of course that's a silver, at least. ;-)

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  6. I think your headline should be "I made it FAST" Citius, Altius, Fortius and all that. Glad your first handspun/handknit experience went so well!

    And yeah. Jen totally had you pegged. :)

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  7. Anonymous2:44 AM

    That is seriously stunning and very motivating. What an amazing feeling you must have knowing that you spun and knit that. It's so beautiful! Congratulations.

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  8. Anonymous6:30 AM

    Gorgeous!

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  9. Hooray for handspun shawls.

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  10. It turned out just as beautiful as I thought it would. Yay for your handspun!

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  11. Anonymous9:14 AM

    Girl, that is absolutely insane!!!! 2 days?

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  12. Anonymous11:30 AM

    That is gorgeous. I hope to knit one up soon. What inspiration!!

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  13. Anonymous12:20 PM

    Nice job! I haven't knit much on my chosen project for Olympic watching. I have a day off tomorrow so I'm going to run through all my Tivo'd olympics and knit.

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  14. Umm, you knit that in a 48 hour period? SO IMPRESSED!!

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  15. You should be proud, it's absolutely beautiful!

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  16. The shawl is stunning!! I'm working on my first lace shawl, so I totally understand how proud you must be. You did an incredible job!!

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