Summer Eyelet Shawl

This summer we have a new cotton blend yarn from Rico. Summer Sprinkles is a lightweight DK yarn perfect for summer tops and wraps.  It’s super soft to touch and has a lovely drape. 

The yarn is made up of 4 strands of different colours twisted together to give a variegated look. We've got all 8 shades and a range of Rico patterns too.

Each 100g ball has 320m which is perfect for a one ball accessory - my favourite kind of project and since it's been a while since we've had a new Eyelet Shawl in the shop I thought I'd combine the new with the old to make a lightweight and cooling shawl to keep the drafts away in summer.

I made the first version of this shawl in 2013. As a top down triangle shawl you start with a few stitches and increase at each edge and either side of a centre stitch.

Over the years I've made several versions in different shop yarns cumulating in our 2020 Eyelet Shawl Collection - a free knitting pattern available in the Pittenweem shop and to download online.

The eyelets are simple to make with paired yarn overs and decreases.

The base pattern is very easy to modify. You can use any thickness of yarn - just change the needle size and quantity to give you the feel and size of shawl you want. The Eyelet Shawl collection includes instructions for small and large 4ply versions and a DK one with ideas on how to modify the pattern.

This latest shawl in Rico Summer Sprinkles features a garter stitch eyelet section and an Icelandic cast off. 

Garter stitch eyelets just means that on the wrong side row I knitted the stitches instead of purling like I did in other versions. This gives a bit more texture to the shawl. 

The Icelandic cast off mimics the garter stitch ridges but is still stretchy enough to allow the shawl to form it's triangle shape. You can see a tutorial here.

This pattern is a good beginner shawl project.

• You'll learn how to make a top down triangle shape.
• You'll practice using a circular needle for flat knitting (80 or 100cm is a good length).
• It's great practice for making yarn overs, i.e. making holes on purpose.
• It's a good introduction to learning how to read your knitting, aka should there be a hole there?
• And you'll learn to use a stitch marker.

I've written a pattern specifically for this summer version and included extra advice on using a stitch marker. A stitch marker will help protect the centre stitch that runs down the spine of the shawl and stop it wandering as you make increases. If you've struggled with this in the past, check out the pattern for some advice on spotting mistakes before they get too complex to fix.

Measures - approx 170cm long, 55cm at deepest

Yarn - 1 ball of Rico Summer Sprinkles we used shade 003