Lorna's Laces Free & Easy Pie Wedge Shawl

Thanks so much for all your comments on our sunset photos at the beach! I had been knitting 24/7 for about 3 days, staying up late at night to finish (you know how that goes, those of you who are brave enough to attempt holiday knitting). It was a fun way to celebrate finally being done, and having a summer FO!

  click to enlarge

Pattern: Lorna's Laces Free & Easy Pie Wedge Shawl, free on the ball band of...

Yarn: Lorna's Laces Helen's Lace, Tickled Pink

Needles: Susan Bates Crystallites size 8, to keep the yarn from sliding off

Finished Size: approx. 56" x 28" (mine is probably more like 60"x 30")

Modifications: None

Notes: This pattern should be easy [and it is, mostly], given that it's all garter stitch, but some of the details are confusing, and having no printed photo (just a scant diagram) on the ball band doesn't help. Here are some things I wish I'd known when I started:

1. When you begin knitting, right-side facing you, the center of the shawl and point of the wedge is on the left. The knife-edge border forms on the right.

2. Yes, the seams in between the wedges are big garter stitch. They looked funny to me and I ripped out the first one, fearing I'd done something wrong with the short-row instructions, but they are in fact just big garter stitch.

A close up of the garter stitch seam and the knife edges

3. Only count your stitches when you complete row 10 of each knife-edge. To make sure you have the correct number of stitches for the short rows, you should have two more stitches to the left of the marker than where you are on the numbered row. So, if you are on row 32, you should have 34 stitches to the left of the marker, after you turn the work. If you are on row 64, you should have 66 stitches to the left of the marker, when you have turned the work.

4. The cast on edge is different from the bind off edge. Rows 109 & 110, which make the big garter stitch seams in between the wedges, are the last two rows of the shawl. So, one side has the big seam and the other doesn't, leaving the shawl asymmetrical. I bound off as I knitted row 110 [rather than after row 110], to minimize this, but it's still there. If you bind off at row 108, you would lose part of the knife-edge point. So I'm not sure how to get around that!

5. The yarn bled a little when I blocked it, but it wasn't bad. I dried & pinned it on black trash bags, which I removed before Chris took the photos for me.

For those wanting to try lace, this is a great introduction, as it's made with lace weight yarn, but knitted on larger needles than most lace projects. There's no complicated pattern chart to follow, only a few yarn overs in each knife edge (one per row) to keep track of. Because of numbers 2 & 4 above, I'm a little disappointed in the way this turned out; it's not as refined as some of the other patterns I've done. It will look nice, though, tucked inside my w-nt-r coat. This project was definitely all about the yarn and the colorway. :)

Next post: updates on Oceane, a knitting prize, and Charlie...Have a wonderful weekend!

Comments

[Robin]

Looks great!! Thanks for the helpful hints - I am sure anyone making this will appreciate it - but sorry you had to find out "the hard way"!

[Sheepish Annie]

Looks great! I am always grateful when people discuss the things that gave them fits rather than just breezily say, "here it is!!!" (which I tend to do...) It's a beautiful shawl and one that I'm sure you will wear with pride. Not today, though. If your weather is anything like mine right now it is waaaaay too hot!!!!

[Jessica]

Beautiful job! You worked through the problems really well. Too bad they didn't have more detail, but I suppose that can only be expected in some ways.

[Chris]

Lovely! And I'll have to bookmark this, in case I do that shawl sometime...

[Amy Artisan]

So lovely - it will definitely bring you cheer when tucked into the heavier coats in months to come. :)

[2paw]

The Pie Wedge looks great!! I'm sorry it makes you think of W*nt*r!!! We are all Springy here!!

[Jenn]

Very pretty!

[Sydney]

It's a lovely shawl! Thanks for the notes too. I usually forget to do that but they're such a good idea.

[Brigitte]

Oh wow, it turned out beautifully! Congrats!

Summer FO... hmmmm, what's that?!

[Valerie]

Beautiful shawl! You'll love wearing it : )

[Deb]

It makes the beach pictures even prettier now that I know what the shawl looks like! I love the color...

[Beth]

Your shawl is very pretty! That's a lot of knitting!

[wendy g]

Your shawl is beautiful and I know you will enjoy wearing it!

[Sonya]

Just beautiful! I just love Lorna's laces yarn. Lovely colors and so soft.

[Laura]

I probably don't have to tell you that I love the color. :) I think it looks wonderful in every other way, too.

I'm not familiar enough with the pattern to know why the seams are so prominent. Could you have used a smaller needle on that row to make it less big? (However, I like the seams because they do define the wedges.)

[Dotty]

The shawl looks lovely! Thanks for visiting my blog and leaving a comment about Ricky. He's a tough little kitty. He'll probably have a little scar under his eye but it'll match the other scars (on his nose, ears, etc.) that Phoebe's given him.

[tiennie]

It is a lovely shawl!

[Kyle]

you can try using the sewn bind off method and it looks pretty much like a cast on next time - it looks beautiful though - congrats on getting it done! (I'm still stuck at wedge #2!

[Felicia]

Wow! Double Wow! What a beautiful shawl that looks like strong yet delicate wings.

[Kristen]

It sounds like the shawl was quite the learning experience, and your tips will help others planning to make it. It came out beautifully! The gorgeous yarn really does complement the (supposedly) simple pattern.

[Patty]

That is one gorgeous shawl! I would love it even if it wasn't tickled pink.
You do great work!

[Meredith]

It's beautiful, and I love the beach photos!

[Rebekah]

What a beautiful shawl. I really love just simple forms. They really show pure beauty (in my opinion anyway).