River

My first lace project - River - is finished! First, let me showcase the whole shawl with its rippling water pattern (photos courtesy of Husband):

The pattern is an easy one. I got the hang of it after the 3rd repeat and not too much frogging was needed. However, since I didn't use the knitted (lace) cast on, the beginning of the shawl tends to stretch more than the end, for which I used the ordinary cast off. When going through the pattern of Kiri, I found that Polly suggested a cast off method which I suppose would be better. But anyway, I have already cut off the yarn by that time, and it is not too bad as is, so I didn't redo the cast off.

Right from the beginning, I already decided that I was not going to knit that knotty thing. I didn't think I was going to wear the shawl in the way modelled in the magazine. How would I wear it?



I am not a shawl girl (yet) ... but I think I would start with wearing it the most common way. Perhaps I would look for a small pin to tie one end to the other side ... but definitely I don't like the idea of the knot. Besides, I would prefer the shawl to be wider, say having 5 repeats per row instead of 3. Maybe 2 balls of KSH was the limitation to the designer. I am already thinking if I have the time to spare, I would knit another River, a wider one, for my grandmother-in-law, using the same lace yarn I am now using for Kiri.

Details:
Pattern: River from Rowan 38
Yarn: Karabella Lace Mohair (61% Superkid Mohair, 8% Wool, 31% Polyamid) Col: 175 Charcoal
How does Karabella LM compare to Rowan KSH? I would say KSH is unique ... I have yet to find another mohair yarn that feels that soft and airy and halo-y. That being said, Karabella LM is also a very very soft one. Would I use it again? Sure ... because of the beautiful colour range and the "crazy yardage". Each 50g ball has 540 yards! And you guess how much I have as leftover?
Gauge and Needle: US7
One thing I like about this project is that I don't really have to care too much about the gauge. My shawl measures 13.5" wide and 50" long ... which is 2" narrower than specified in the pattern.

Finally, let me show you the magic of blocking:



However, I think I still have to learn how to pin out the end to achieve that pointed effect ... it seems all those points have disappeared by now!