When my mind drifts back to May of 2014 it is filled with frolicking lambs, large waves, a guild meeting with new friends, plus my first visit to Jamieson & Smith in Lerwick, Shetland.
Our typical travel luggage for international vacations is one backpack and one small daypack each. This accommodates the essential clothing for two-three weeks, an extra pair of shoes, a ditty bag, a small knitting project (for me), a journal, and not much in the way of souvenirs.
What I wanted to bring home from J&S had to fit in my backpack. It couldn’t add a lot of weight as the pack was already heavy and I am small.
I spent plenty of time deciding between several patterns and took this booklet to the desk where Sandra, the shop manager, patiently waited.
It’s been seven years and I’ve perused this pattern many times in the intervening years. I’ve set it aside for this reason or that reason. So when my friend Holly mentioned wanting to knit the Lerwick Lace Shawl I decided to join her in the epic adventure.
I’ve knit (and designed!) a Shetland shawl from edging to center with plenty of grafting. I’ve knit with Shetland cobweb. This time I’m going with the comfort of J&S 2 ply Shetland Supreme in natural white on a cone (there are a few available on our website) and working the shawl from the center outward.
This week I cast on. I posed my few rows of 182 stitches on a 3mm needle beside the hibiscus that is currently blooming on our deck. This project will take months and several seasons to knit. Hours and hours of deck knitting – and I’m really looking forward to the adventure. It’s been entirely too long since I’ve done this!
Also happening this summer is another session of STITCHES at Home. In July I’ll be teaching Invested Interest: The How-To of Knitting A Vest.
In this short video I give a quick preview of what the class entails. I hope you’ll join me for Invested Interest!
