October Nursing Shawl
I knit this shawl for a friend who is pregnant. Her due date is in October 2008. A nursing shawl is the best gift for a mom because she needs some warmth and privacy when friends and family are visiting. And she can wrap her baby in it, too. Ichose very soft, hardwearing and easy care yarn in DK weight from my stash and played with the colors. Iadded a ruffle because a mom is still a girl too, and I bound off in contrasting color. (I love that!)
You need:
6-8 skeins of DK/worsted yarn in two (or more) colors. I guess you can adapt this pattern to any weight of yarn. Needles: 4, 5 and $5\,\mathrm{mm}$ (adapt to the yarn) Gauge: not critical; measure your shawl as you go. But knit a swatch to test the colors you plan to use. I used 3 different yarns: Cashmerino baby (Debbie Bliss) purple / 2 skeins Pure Laine 3.5 (Phildar) pink/ 2 skeins Soft Shetland (Lang) green/ 3 skeins
October stripes
Worked with one (or more) strand(s) of yarn A and one (or more) strand(s) of yarn B. With yarn A: 2 rows stockinette, then with yarn B: 2 rows garter. You change color every other row.
Notes
Nice edge: RS always slip yarn A under yarn B and yarn B under yarn A; WS:swyf Tf you add a new yarn on the beginning of the row: RS knit the 1st st with both yarns Center st.: RS: K; WS: P
Casting on
With smaller needles, CO 2 st. using backward loop. K 6 rows. K 1 row and pick up 1 st. in every garter ridge (3) and in the 2 cast on st. You have 7 st.
Shawl
Row 1: RS (yarn A) K2, YO, K1, YO, K1, YO, K1, YO, K 2 (In bold: the 2 border st. and the center st. You will always add a YO after the 2 first st and before the 2 last st. You will also add a YO before and after the center st. $\rightarrow4$ st increased on every RS row.)
Row 2: WS (yarn $A_{\cdot}$ ) slip 1 st wyf (as if to purl), K1, P to last 2 st., K2. Row 3 $:$ RS (yarn B) repeat row 1 $\mathbb{Q}\mathbf{ow}\;4:\mathbf{WS}$ (yarn B) slip 1 st wyf (as if to purl), K1, K to center st., P center st., K to the end of the row. Repeat rows 1-4. When shawl is big enough work the border.
Border with a ruffle
This garter ruffle is from Knitting on the Edge, by Nicky Epstein Rows 1 - 3: K Row 4: $^{*}\mathrm{K}1$ $\Upsilon{\ O^{*}}$ repeat to the end of the row Row 5: K Row 6: change to one size larger needles $\mathrm{K}\,9$ rows (or as many as you like) Bind off loosely. Block very gently (steam).
Try the pattern:
with only one color to create a solid center and after 30 rows add an other color keeping the same color for the stockinette and changing the garter ridge color (or inversely: changing only the background) With a solid yarn and a self striping one. With a solid yarn and a variegated one. with handspun yarn using only one solid color
