It’s the best knitting month of the year…WestKnits Mystery MKAL!
I said NO to this project many times, to many people. In yarn shops, on Facebook, in text messages. I denied it every time, with many excuses. The threat of brioche, a lack of yarn, a lack of time.
Me thinks thou doth protest too much.
No October Surprise here…I can’t resist Stephen West!
Clue One. No Brioche. Game On.
I joined the lovely ladies at Uncommon Threads for their Shawl-tober Fest kickoff! Getting in the car and driving 40 miles to a yarn shop wasn’t even the first sign that this was happening. I brought Color A with me. Hard to deny when I’m clenching the yarn in my grubby fists!
It wasn’t long before I’d picked 3 more colors and cast on!
Counter Clockwise from the Lower Left
Color A — Tosh Merino Light, Jasper (green)
Color B – Tosh Merino Light, Court & Spark (the neutral, inspired by joni mitchell. I love this color!)
Color C – Tosh Merino Light, Plunge (blue!!)
Color D – Koigu Kpppm, P479 (neutral speckles)
P479 isn’t a very sexy name but it’s the lynch pin of this shawl! It’s exactly what I needed to tie the room together.
I’m loving it so far!
I’m calling this an Exploration Station/Boardwalk mashup. We’ve got a long way to go. Anything can happen but right now, it seems to be mimicking Boardwalk construction with bands of varied color & textures a la Exploration Station.
Just to re-iterate, I love it.
Clue 2 comes out just as I get on the plane to Rhinebeck! Not even screaming babies, chatty neighbors or turbulence will be able to ruin this flight! Happy Knitting, Indeed!!
FogKnits 
It’s very pretty thus far. I’ve never finished a West shawl. I also bought and battled with that squishy shawl brioche pattern until I almost cried. Instead I dropped it on the floor in the corner of my craft room. Good luck
LikeLiked by 1 person
Brioche is for crazy people! He’s got lots of great non-brioche shawls! You should frog it and try something else!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I frogged it and dyed more yarn to go with it. I’m going to knit a Jojo sweater with it… hopefully
LikeLike
I love those colors together and can’t wait to see the FO!
LikeLiked by 1 person
The shawl looks beautiful. Love the pattern and colors. Question: Can you write an article about “blocking?” I’d like to know about steam blocking a scarf that is Baby Alpaca Grande. Looking forward to your stories about Rhinebeck. I just read that it is a little Dutch town.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Steam blocking is pretty simple. Unfortunately, I keep thinking I own an iron and yet when I look for it, there is no iron to be found! Makes it hard to steam things! The quick answer is: you steam block your knits just like you’d steam any other garment. Here’s a youtube video from Very Pink Knits, she does an excellent job with her videos and is where I send people when referring to youtube! This is her steam blocking demo! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIpXoT5vg1I
LikeLiked by 1 person
THANK YOU!
LikeLike
Re: Rhinebeck & the Dutch. I’m currently in San Francisco but I grew up near Rhinebeck. The whole area was populated with Dutch settlers. I went to a ‘Dutch Reformed’ church as a kid. I’m not even certain what that means. I’ve always thought of it as a generic Protestant off-shoot but yes.
If I’m remembering my history properly, the local indian tribes were of the peaceful variety and they built trust with the Dutch explorers. Eventually, the indians invited the Dutch to settle near them and they benefitted from each other.
And then the rest of Europe showed up, started a war and chased the indians out :( The Dutch roots remain though!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for a bit of the history lesson. Have fun being in your home town.
LikeLike
Your West MKALs are the best looking ones in my feed. You’ve got a great eye for colour. #jealousmuch? #yes #yesiam
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks :) it’s always such a crap shoot…you never know what shops are going to have in stock. I’m pretty pleased with how I did too!
LikeLike
Beautiful. Isn’t Stephen so inspiring!? I am a big swants fan!
LikeLiked by 1 person
LOL! I haven’t done the swants dance yet but I love that it exists! :) I think I know the general direction this MKAL is heading so I’m sure that means it’s going to go the exact opposite direction! It’s exciting to find out, in any case!
LikeLiked by 1 person
those colors are so pretty – LOVE the jasper. Cant; go wrong with either company and color, although I think Koigu needs to work on their color names. :-)
LikeLike
It’s absolutely beautiful and of course I adore the colors.
LikeLike