Thursday, June 28, 2007

Dragon Scales Shawl

Ideally, I would have made this shawl with a green/yellow/brown, lace-weight wool or wool-blend. Unfortunately, being on a yarn diet means I have to use what I have. I found this yarn at a thrift store about a year ago for roughly $1 per ball, and I haven't been able to find any information about it online. So, substitute at will.

Materials:
Unger Jewel (50% cotton/50%rayon viscose, 1.7oz/48g) six balls in Color #1 (cream/ecru/off-white)
US4 (3.5mm) 24in (61cm) circular needle
Tapestry needle

Gauge:
21sts by 33rows = 4in (10cm) in lace pattern on US4 (3.5mm)

Finished Size:
30in (76cm) from top to bottom and 60in (152cm) from tip to tip


Pattern:
CO 3 sts on circ.
Rows 1-9: kfb, k to end.
There should now be 12 sts.
Row 10 and all even rows: kfb, k4, p to last 6 sts, k6.

If you would prefer working from a chart, Shae of twitchyknits has created one.

Row 11: kfb, k to end.
Row 13: kfb, k4, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, skp, k5.
Row 15: kfb, k4, k2tog, yo, k3, yo, skp, k5.
Row 17: kfb, k4, (k2tog, yo) twice, k1, (yo, skp) twice, k5.
Row 19: kfb, k4, (k2tog, yo) twice, k3, (yo, skp) twice, k5.
Row 21: kfb, k4, (k2tog, yo) twice, k5, (yo, skp) twice, k5.
Row 23: kfb, k5, yo, *k1, yo, skp, k7, k2tog, yo*; rep between *s to last 7 sts, k1, yo, k6.
Row 25: kfb, k4, *k2tog, yo, k3, yo, skp, k5*; rep between *s to end.
Row 27: kfb, k4, *(k2tog, yo) twice, k1, (yo, skp) twice, k3*; rep between *s to last 2 sts, k2.
Row 29: kfb, k4, *(k2tog, yo) twice, k3, (yo, skp) twice, k1*; rep between *s to last 4 sts, k4.
Row 31: kfb, k4, (k2tog, yo) twice, *k5, yo, skp, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, k2tog, yo*; rep between *s to last 14 sts, k5, (yo, skp) twice, k5.
Rep Rows 23-32 to desired size, ending with Row 24.
Next row, kfb, k to end.
Rep this row 9 more times. BO all sts. Weave in ends. Block if desired.

Feel free to comment here with questions.

This pattern is intended for personal use only. Please do not try to sell it or any product made from it. Thank you.

45 comments:

  1. Any idea on how many yards of yarn you used and what weight is it? I'd like to post a link to your shawl pattern on my blog. I'm collecting a list of triangle shawl patterns.
    http://simpleknits.blogspot.com
    Thanks!
    Vicki

    ReplyDelete
  2. Not really. Like I said I found the yarn at a thrift store. The yardage wasn't on the ball band, and I can't find any information about it online.

    That said, based on the gauge and area, I'd guess around 850-900 yds, but that's purely an educated guess using Ann Budd's "A Knitter's Handy Guide to Yarn Requirements" and some math.

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  3. Beautiful pattern. I love dragons anyway, I will spin some yarn up to make this one :).

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  4. I'd love to see it in a handspun yarn. Please let me know if you have any questions.

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  5. I am looking for a pattern similiar to this but to make a retangular stole. Any tips on modifying your pattern?

    Thanks---this is beautiful----I saw this knit up in my local yarn store with linen---it was lovely!

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  6. The basic stitch pattern is the bit between the *'s on rows 23-32. I think you could just cast on a multiple of 12, plus any border stitches you want, and use this lace pattern with a garter stitch or some other border. Hope that helps!

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  7. Have you considered overdying it? Kool Aid dying is pretty cheap, and I'm sure you could figure out how to make a nice, dragon scaley brown/green out of the rainbow of Kool Aid colors.

    Plus, it would taste nice to nibble on. :-)

    BTW, when you slip stitches, do you slip purlwise or knitwise? I was originally taught to always do so knitwise on knit rows and purlwise on purl rows, but then someone else told me that was wrong. I'm just new enough, I really don't want to completely mess it up....

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  8. Unfortunately, Kool-Aid wouldn't saturate the rayon half. I've got a tiny bit leftover so I may try it, but I'm not sure it would look good.

    I always slip purlwise, unless told by the pattern to do otherwise. That way, the stitches stay positioned correctly on the needles for later knitting or purling.

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  9. You said idealy you would have used a lace wieght yarn, what weight yarn did you use? Would a worsted wieght yarn work and have it still look nice? How about bulky, so it would be nice and warm for our alaskan winters (which aren't as bad as is roumored in the lower 48). Would a bulky yarn make the "scales" disappear?
    Thanks so much for this pattern! my best friend and I love dragons. Any ideas on how to make this in to a cloak like thing?

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  10. The yarn I used is closer to a sport weight. I think it could still look great in a worsted or even bulky weight yarn, and be more appropriate for your climate, but you'll probably have to go up several needle sizes. I would swatch to see what gauge works best with your yarn. And with this shawl, gauge really isn't important since you just keep knitting until it's as big as you want it. Hope that helps.

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  11. Greetings,
    I made this patten from a beautiful salmon colored yarn I got while on vacation in Peru. It turned out wonderful and I am sure the person who is going to recieve it will love it. She adores dragons so this is going to fit into her personality very well.
    Thanks for the pattern!
    Rev. Draigh Lunara
    check me out on ravelry to see the pics!

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  12. OK Stupid question here:

    Do I purl the even rows in the beginning?

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  13. No, the tip of the triangle is all garter stitch, so you'll want to knit every row at first. For Rows 1-9, you will knit through the front and back of the first stitch, and then knit all other stitches. You won't start purling at all until Row 10.

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  14. I LOVE this shawl! I have admired its beautiful scales from afar, and now would like to make a small square with the pattern! what pattern did you use for the scales? (I just want the scales pattern, not the shawl) It would be great if I could get this!
    Cimorine

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  15. The stitch pattern is a modification of one I found in a Barbara Walker Treasury, though I've forgotten which one. It's basically what you see between the asterisks on Rows 23-32.

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  16. I have knit this shawl three times already, once with Noro Silk Garden in blues and greens (beautiful!), once with some gorgeous cherry red hand dyed worsted, and another with some variegated blue sock yarn from my stash. Absolutely gorgeous, and I find that it lends me some "cred" when I walk into a new knitting store! People go nuts over it, and I always refer them back to you. One lady yesterday even said, "Did you knit that? I hate you!" :-D I would recommend that the first time someone knits this to use a lifeline (thread some contrasting yarn through the loops on the needles, then work the stitches as usual. Pull it out, and thread it through again as you move up.) every "Row 11." This saved me once or twice when I got hopelessly lost and had to rip back to the lifeline. By the third time I knit it, I didn't need it, but the first time was essential. LOVE this pattern!

    I see that you are a Lord of the Rings fan, are you knitting "Evenstar"?

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  17. I love this pattern, I promised to make my 5yo a shawl ended on this pattern and am not really sure if she'll get it I want it for my self.

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  18. Finished my version in handspun moorit bond 2 ply. Some pix here. Love the shawl, my first lace ever.

    http://www.ravelry.com/projects/oogiem/dragon-scales-shawl-2

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    Replies
    1. Wow! That is absolutely gorgeous! And you said it was your first lace project? Kudos to you!!

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  19. Just out of interest, I've got a 900m skein of laceweight in beautiful shades of blue that I'd love to use for this shawl, and I was wondering how many times you repeated the main part of the pattern. That way I either won't run out of yarn, or be left with a load and wishing 'I wish I'd knitted more'.
    Many thanks :)

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  20. I worked about 11 pattern repeats total with 810 yds of DK/sport weight yarn. However, I could stand for the shawl to be a bit bigger, so if you have extra yardage, I'd probably just keep going until it's the size you want.

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  21. Hey, could use some help on abbreviations- could u plz explain?

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  22. There is a link at the top of the pattern for a list of all my frequently-used abbreviations. Let me know if there are any specific terms that don't make sense.

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  23. Very nice pattern. Could you help me with the skp

    I have the yo before I skp so yarn is in front, so I slip knit wise, when I go to knit next stitch, I put yarn in back and then I pass slip stitch over. Is this correct? Thank you

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  24. Rep Rows 23-32 to desired size, ending with Row 24.
    row 24, is it the same with row 10?

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    Replies
    1. Yes, that's correct. All the even rows will be the same as row 10.

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  25. Hi Carissa!

    Your Dragon Scales Shawl pattern is absolutely gorgeous! I am one of the editors of AllFreeKnitting and would love to feature this pattern on our site with full credit to you. Please contact me for further information.

    Happy knitting!
    Julie

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    Replies
    1. Hi, Julie! I'd love to hear more details, but I can't find any contact information on your Google+ profile. You can email me at CarissaKnits@gmail.com if you'd like.

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  26. I just started this pattern and it's already a dream to work up! Well written and very clear! I am using Bernat Baby Yarn in Lilac, (I had a couple of the big one pound skeins lying around that I picked up from Wal-Mart when they were on clearance for whatever reason) and size 7 needles because I wanted a nice light summer shawl and it's gorgeous! The fine yarn with the slightly larger needles are showing the stitches beautifully, making it even more pleasurable to work up! Will link some pictures once I get some more progress on it!

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    Replies
    1. So glad to hear that, Sandi! I would love to see pics when you've got some. Let me know if you have any questions about the pattern.

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  27. How did you do the gauge swatch? I can't figure it out.

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    Replies
    1. Since the shawl begins with the point at the bottom, I just started knitting the shawl as the gauge swatch. Then if you're gauge is good, you can just keep going, and if your gauge is off, you haven't wasted any more time than you would have done knitting a regular swatch.

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  28. I would love to knit some preemie hats but I don't know how to use dpn's. Is there patterns that don't require these? Thank you

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  29. Sharon in Landen1/30/17, 7:18 PM

    Use Size 1 or 2 9" circular hiya hiya sharps.

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  30. I like the pattern. Could this be done as a rectangular scarf? What is the pattern repeat?

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  31. Hi, are all the even rows wrong side or right side?

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  32. i'm one stitch off when i get to row 25, every time i've tried working this up. i always only have four left instead of five. any clue what i could be doing wrong?

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    Replies
    1. I had this issue second time through (I had to rip out at row 32 the first time) but the first time was fine. I think I had dropped the stitch where it was the yo on the previous row. Maybe it was the s part of the skp? So perhaps that's it for you?

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    ReplyDelete