Thanks for all the well wishes on Monday you guys. I’m still sick and I think this cough is going to linger for a bit but I’m hanging in there. I took the day off of work on Monday but still had class that afternoon. Fortunately for me I had a guest speaker, the Global Digital Communications Director for Christian Louboutin. I met her years ago with my old blog and we’ve always stayed in touch and when I asked her if she’d be willing to talk to my class she quickly said ‘sure!’ She gave a great talk to my students, they asked insightful questions and it was a strong finish to my series of guest lectures for the semester. And since she came all the way down from NY I knew I wanted to knit her something as a thank you for doing this for me. So I made her the Rain Outside Shawl.
It’s funny, I was kind of nervous to make this for my friend. We’re internet friends who haven’t seen each other face to face for years so I don’t know her like I would my BFF Jess, but I know she’s stylish and cool but I worried she wouldn’t like it. And then my BFF Jess reminded me, everyone loves a beautiful hand knit item. And she was right. She loved it.
For this shawl I did one thing different than I did before, I made a swatch. LOL The previous two came out smaller than I expected, they still work but I wanted this to be a bigger shawl and I got that but think I’m still slightly off on gauge. It’s not as big as some but this one definitely was bigger than my previous two versions (shawl one and shawl two).
For the main color I used two skeins of the Madelinetosh DK Twist in Clap Your Hands I still had in my stash (I’ve got one skein left…what will it become?). And for the contrast color I went with Berroco Weekend DK in black. In my first version I loved the contrast of the metallic yarn with the matte grey yarn so I wanted to play with the matte black and vibrant rainbow of the Clap Your Hands. And with the rainbow and all of the black, it kind of makes this shawl a neutral in my book but it also has a great striking contrast so it’s still a bold accessory.
I really do love this shawl and the pattern. The lace panels break up a lot of garter stitch to give it interest and it just has a unique look and feel to it. It’s not an old school shawl, it’s kind of like a work of art. I’m sure I’ll make another as a gift for someone in the future.
And in the end I’m just happy I was able to give a great gift to a friend.
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Yards of Happiness 
Gorgeous!! I love the bright colors with the black.
Thanks, I wanted something that has a really strong contrast and this was the best combo.
Okay – you’ve pushed me over the edge. I’ve got to make this. LOL It’s stunning!!
It’s such a good shawl, I mean I’ve now made 3 of them. So clearly I’m a fan.
Wow, I love this!
Me, too! I had no idea, seeing the starting point, how gorgeous this would be when finished! What a great gift!
Thank you.
What a great friend you are! It turned out very well! 🙂 Maybe she’ll put it on and then send you a pic so you can post her happiness in the blog when you do your monthly roundup?
Stunning! I love the contrast.
What a cool mix of speckled with that dramatic black setting it off.
When do you need me to be a guest speaker in your class? Hah! Such a nice way to thank someone, and I like the colour combo of the shawl.
Hey if you came all the way down to present of course you’d get a knit gift!
Alrighty then! Always looking for a reason to get back to DC.