Land ho!

My shawl is done!
I made several mistakes along the way, such is life.  Being human I've had my share of crisis and struggles.  So my shawl shows the points during the voyage when I was adrift.  But like any good sailor, I was able to weather the storm, check my navigation and bring her to shore.
The blues remind me of a sunny day and clear waters.  But as evening approaches, you see dusk, with the threat of a storm approaching in the purple skies.  The ship is tossed during that storm with several dropped stitches.  I recover and try to find the my lost stitches though not always successfully.  Once I reach the shore, even in the night, I can see the remnants of sea glass and shells that have washed ashore.  And I smile because I still made it to the end.

This shawl was definitely a whole lot easier than I expected it to be.  I'd say the hardest part was starting the circle.  After deciding to go with Emily Ocker's Circular Cast-on it was easier.  Of course starting anything with so few stitches is going to be bothersome to start so be prepared for some rough waters.  Find a quiet place to start your circle and work the first 4-5 rounds.  After that, you've got something to work with and life gets a little easier.

You can hardly see them but those little glints around the edges are the few beads I scattered.  The things that flicker in the night when the moonlight hits them.
Hopefully the ruffles will lay flat once the shawl is blocked.  The patterned leaves are beautiful and I am able to see some hearts.  I want all of that to show after blocking.  All in all I did enjoy making this and just may make another one next year.

Keep stitchin'

We're sailing now!

I totally killed the middle section of this beautiful and now I'm on to the the part that will test my resolve.  Round after round of the same two stitches again and again and again.i believe I've already made a couple of mistakes but can't figure out where.  I think putting the stitch markers back in every 20 to 30 stitches will help me stay on track.   I could definitely see myself making another one of these one day.

I added the extension cables and laid it out on my resistant ball to get a better shot.  I love the colors!

My ship sunk but I had a life preserve

Things did go well with my Shipwreak shawl.  After starting over 2, 3, 4 times I decided to put the yarn in the corner to think about the way she's been acting.  I picked a different color called Blue Dream and so far it has been a dream to work with.  I haven't had to do any ripping and I will get caught up this weekend and be ready to start the netting.  

Shipwreck fun

This shawl is so much fun! Lace looks so intricate and intimidating but I'm finding that it really isn't at all.  A series of strategic placed yo, ssk and k2tog, for the most part, turns into the most incredible piece of work. As you work through, and I can only speak for myself, I start to notice the pattern.  This makes it easier to catch a mistake when I’m paying attention.  I start to see that on the current row, for instance, the ssk should fall right before the yo of the previous row. Or maybe, that (yo, k1, yo)  be right over a ssk on the previous row.

I don’t necessarily use stitch markers, don’t have enough.  What I do instead is used about 5-6 scraps of yarn, each about 3-4 inches in length.  I rotate these markers as I go along by simply sliding the farthest one out and placing it at the new starting point along the round. So my markers just move with my work. Stop to count in between the sections before moving on.  Often, just like typing, I can tell when my count is off and can easily correct it that way.

One of the biggest things I’ve come to discover about lace or knitting and crocheting a pattern in general is that I need a bit of noise. Even though I’ve read books and blogs that say find a quiet place if it’s too quiet I make more mistakes.  If there is no music or tv, not folk talking incessantly, I start thinking and daydreaming which leads to more mistakes.  However, having other sounds cause me to focus in order to stay on track. My be odd to others but works well for me since I now know that’s what I need.
Is there another Shipwreck in my future...who knows.  My goal is to continue to try creating my lace pieces that are just as gorgeous as this.

Keep stitchin'

Shipwreck

Now why would something so pretty has such a name.

I fell in love with this shawl as soon as I saw, and what a surprise to find out that it's free!  The pattern is on the knitty web site, and on ravelry of course.

This is one of the beautys that made me gasp. Mine is off to a pretty good start though it have made a couple of mistakes.  Hopefully they won't show too much.