Lindy’s Shawl

Lindy is a member of my spinning group. She’s also an incredibly talented spinner, knitter, crocheter, weaver, and the list goes on. She’s also extremely generous when it comes to sharing her knowledge and skills. Lindy is also an Ashford rep and dyes her own wool which we get to buy in copious amounts!

One of Lindy’s latest creations was some beautifully gradient dyed merino/bamboo which she used to knit a shawl using a pattern she made up along the way. Club members absolutely loved the yarn and pattern so we asked Lindy to write down the pattern and she kindly obliged.

I’ve just finished my first shawl and I am absolutely over the moon at the end result.

I love the gradient effect of lighter to darker. You can also choose to go darker to lighter. Lindy dyes two skeins of 8ply merino/bamboo and once caked, the idea is to make sure you knit both cakes making sure you select either the inside or outside tail to ensure the colour flows.

This is the first time I’ve knitted the Cluster 5 Knit stitch and it took me ages to get it right. I frogged the start of this section four times before I took a quick look on YouTube and found this video which made it so much easier to understand.

It’s a beautiful stitch and the effect is amazing.

The shawl blocked beautifully as the bamboo gives it a lovely drape.

I’ve nearly finished another of these shawls in merino and when I see Lindy tomorrow at spinning, I hope to buy a couple more skeins of her dyed merino/bamboo blend as I am quite enamoured with this pattern.

On a personal note, I have been quite busy lately destashing my spinning wheel collection to bring it to a more manageable number. I now have seven wheels and will probably try to move a couple more. I’ve also reduced my yarn stash as I realised I will not be able to use what I’d had in a lifetime. It’s quite liberating moving bits and pieces to new homes and reclaiming space in my home.

Until next time…

Melanie