Keyhole Shawl

Knitwear designer Cheryl Oberle tells the story of how knitter Carol Sanders deciphered the pattern to a shawl from the 1880’s. She generously includes a free PDF of the shawl (this one) on her website. Cheryl calls it “Carol’s Clever Little Shawl.” Carol has decided that Mrytle originally knitted the shawl. This one is my version, which is very true to the original. I knitted it in Brown Sheep Lamb’s Pride Worsted, in their color M-140 Aran. Brown Sheep is often my “go to” yarn. At 85% wool, 15% mohair, it is warm as can be. It can sometimes be a tad thick and thin, but never too thick and never too thin. It is very reasonably priced and comes in wonderful saturated colors.

This was a fun knit. The three regular readers of my blog know that I’m a big fan of garter stitch. Some experienced knitters find it very boring. I find it very calming. This shawl uses a bit of short row shaping to give it a nice drape. The keyhole is a wonderful feature. No need for a shawl pin or for fussing with a knot. And the touch of lace is a touch of inspiration.

Thank you Carol and Cheryl. Oh yes, Mrytle too. (That’s Hoover in Elizabeth Paige Smith’s  kittypod in the background.)