Ladybird Shrug
I wanted to try my hand at making a roomier, lace bolero, perfect for transitional weather such as spring and autumn. When I came across a lace pattern called Ladybird Pattern in “The Haapsalu Shawl', the name really appealed to me. Thus, the Ladybird Shawl was born!
Materials
Approx 270m of any DK yarn (I used Bendigo Woollen Mills Cotton 8 ply in Latte) 4.5mm (US 7), 60cm long circular needle Tapestry needle
Instructions
CO 126 Purl the first row, then begin pattern (feel free to follow the lace chart or the written pattern). Be sure to purl every even row. Lace chart
| 0 | o | 7 | |||||||||||||
| o | o | / | o | 5 | |||||||||||
| 0 | 7 | o | o | 3 | |||||||||||
| o | / | o | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Written pattern Row 1: k, k, k2tog, yo, \*k, yo, ssk, k, k2tog, yo; rep \* to last two sts, k, k. Row 3: k, ssk, yo, k, \*k, k, yo, (sl st, k2tog, psso), yo, k; rep \* to last two sts, k, k. Row 5: k, k, yo, ssk, \*k, k2tog, yo, k, yo, ssk; rep \* to last two sts, k, k. Row 7: k, k, k, yo, \*(sl st, k2tog, psso), yo, k, k, k, yo; rep \* to last two sts, ssk, k. Repeat the lace pattern 12 times, and finish on the 8th row, which is a knit row. Bind off on the wrong side, using a super-stretchy method. If you choose to, you could follow my bind off method: purl the first stitch, transfer the stitch from the right needle to the left needle, and p2tog - continue this step to the 2nd last stitch. Aggressively block the finished piece. I blocked mine 80cm x 36cm. Once the piece is dry, fold the piece in half, inside out. Sew the cast on and cast off sides together - I sewed in 21 stitches on each side. I picked up 210 stitches around the centre of the piece, but whatever the number of stitches you pick up, just make sure that it's an even number. Knit a 1x1 twisted rib (i.e., k1 tbl, p1) around the piece, using a stitch marker to mark the start of the round. Continue for as tall as you like before binding off (I did about 20 rows) - make sure that you use a super stretchy bind off method - and you're done!
