New Lace Project Revealed

Posted on January 25, 2008 by knittingpatterns4you | 6 Comments

I've alluded to a new big lace project several times already . . . and here it is:

Another Frost Flowers & Leaves shawl! Remember I made this already? Well, to this day I'm still in absolute AWE of it. It's almost like I can't believe I really made it! Although I do remember how painful that edging was . . . so it's not like I'm in complete denial about how much work it was and how long it took to finish.

So why am I making it again, you ask?

This one will be the chuppah at our wedding, that's why. I have until July 26th (did I mention we set a date?) to finish it, and it's already over 3 feet square, so I think I'll more than make it. I think I'm aiming for about 6 feet square in total, although I may stop earlier depending on how much yarn it takes, since I don't want it to end up too heavy.

I wanted something off-white that had great yardage for the weight and an interesting texture and wasn't too thin. I ended up with Green Mountain Spinnery's Sylvan Spirit, a wool/tencel blend that has amazing yardage (180 yds/2 oz) for its gauge (dk). I'm knitting it up on size 6 needles so the holes don't end up too big, and the yarn is yielding exactly the look I was going for. This is my first time knitting with this stuff and while I probably wouldn't want to wear a sweater knit with it, it has great stitch definition and is easy to work with, although it isn't very elastic. My hands do get tired if I work on it too long due to all the stitch manipulation.

Here's a shot of all of it on the needles:

It's gotten so big it outgrew the 47" needle and I was forced to start knitting with 2 needles at the same time -- that's a 47" and a 32" you see there, in an attempt to photograph it spread out a little. This is the one problem with knitting this pattern on thicker yarn: it's impossible to squish all those stitches onto your needle because each stitch is so thick! I've already done 3.5 repeats of the main body pattern and I think I'm going to do 7 total, so I'm getting there.

Ever since I got engaged people have been making cracks about whether I'm planning to knit my wedding dress, and I have to keep insisting that I will NOT be knitting my dress. But I did want to make something for the wedding, and this seemed like not only the perfect item but also something that will become a family heirloom and can be passed down through the generations. Now whenever someone teases me about knitting the dress I tell them about the chuppah and that seems to satisfy them!

Posted in knitting


6 Responses

gleek
gleek

January 26, 2008

oh my, i love it! it’s going to be the perfect handmade addition to your wedding :)

Leslie
Leslie

January 28, 2008

Unbelievable!!!! by the way, wanted to come by saturday to give you big kisses but never made it…hope all goes well..good luck!~

Anne
Anne

February 14, 2008

Hi, I bounced here from the KBTH list. How lovely! Your dress could be knitted, did you see the lace dress in Lace Style (Interweave Press)? I immediately thought wedding dress for that one.
Best wishes to you! Anne in Nebraska

Edith
Edith

January 25, 2008

Oh wow! It’s beautiful!! What a great idea!

Sandy
Sandy

January 25, 2008

Spiritual and knitting. It will be lovely

Gina
Gina

January 25, 2008

Absolutely gorgeous!

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