The Imbolc shawl, the third pattern in the Knitted Wheel of the Year, is out now! The two previous shawls, Samhain and Yule were released in October and December last year.
Imbolc, as a seasonal festival, bridges the gap between winter and spring. It feels lighter and brighter than the coldest months of the year and you can feel that in the shawl as well, yet it is still very cosy and comforting. The cable pattern was inspired by candle flames – those little fires that remind us of the brighter and warmer seasons that are just around the corner.
The Imbolc shawl is worked in two different yarn weights: sport and DK. This allows for cosy and relatively quick-to-knit shawl yet still gives room for intricate cables. Best of both worlds, I would say!
Are you wondering how to combine different yarn weights in a pattern? The main thing to account for is the different gauges the yarns have. This particular shawl shawl begins with the sport-weight cable section and after that the stitches are decreased for a simple textured pattern worked in DK-weight yarns. What then are the benefits of combining yarn weights? In this shawl, working the cables in a lighter weight meant there were more stitches to work with. This allowed for a more cables across the shawl width and more intricate looking cables in general.
The different weights and blocks in the shawl also offer the perfect opportunity for coming up with your own colour combinations. I chose colours that I felt represented the season well, but the shape and textures work for a variety of colour schemes. For the sport-weight yarn, I recommend choosing a solid colour, becuase then the cable pattern shows up the best.
You can watch a video of the shawl in my YouTube channel!
