Perfect Retreat Shawl ~ Pattern Release Sale!

Hi, Knitters,

I have a new shawl pattern releasing today and I am offering a $2.00 discount! It is on sale starting today for $4.00 and ending when I get back from SSK on July 19th, 2015. On July 20, 2015, the shawl will be $6.00. There is no code needed, the price has already been lowered for you!

Click here to find out more or to purchase the Perfect Retreat Shawl pattern!

I am super excited about it. Jeanette from Sun Valley Fibers and I are both going to the SSK Retreat this coming week in Nashville, TN. Jeanette is vending and I am teaching (I have developed two brand new workshops debuting at SSK!). Jeanette asked me quite awhile ago if I would design a shawl out of her exclusive SSK colorway called Labyrinth. Jeanette's farm is local to me and she works right in Madison so she just drops yarn off on my doorstep on her way to work. It is a pretty good deal and I love working with another Madison fiberista.

There is a labyrinth at the center where we are staying in Nashville thus the fitting color name. The yarn is SunValley's MCN (merino/cashmere/nylon) fingering weight yarn and it is a delight! I could not get over the mossy green combined with a golden hue. The yarn glows in the most subtle and beautiful way. It is mystifying. I don't know how she did it but the effect is stunning. I don't know if the colorway is available for everyone after the retreat but I'll find out and let you know.  Or you could ask Jeanette directly: Click here to contact Jeanette of Sun Valley Fibers! Updated to add: Jeanette let me know that she does have the color Labyrinth available in her shop and you can get it dyed to order on any of her bases. It is a beautiful color. 

The Perfect Retreat Shawl is big and squishy and just the right size to wrap around your shoulders or neck. 

Click here for Sun Valley Fibers!

My son and I headed out to my favorite nearby nature conservancy to take photos of the shawl and it was just a beautiful day in the woods. There was almost a hazy quality to the air, an after rainfall-type feel. The setting reminded me of many of the retreats I have been on where nature and landscape play a major role in the mood of the retreat. 

The shawl is written in two sizes, 1-skein and 2-skein. I am wearing the 2-skein size and it is generous and cozy.

Here is some pattern information you might like to know and the reason for the name of the shawl:

The Perfect Retreat Shawl was designed for the Super Summer Knitogether or SSK Retreat so with the retreat knitting-theme specifically in mind I designed this shawl.

After the simple set-up rows, the body of the shawl is mindless garter stitch with a two-row repeat, one simple increase row and one knit row. After 99 rows of garter stitch you are ready to add some simple lace to the edge.

The shawl is designed to start the 6 set-up rows at home, head off to the retreat. Then you are set to relax and knit garter stitch to your heart’s content. By the time you get home you’ll be ready to add the final lace edging. While working on the lace you can remember the fun and friends from the retreat.

Another fun idea would be to start the Perfect Retreat Shawl with a yarn you have in your stash. Work the body of the shawl at the retreat. Then purchase a coordinating skein of fingering weight yarn at the retreat to use for the lace sections when you get home. You will instantly have created a memory shawl from your retreat!

The Perfect Retreat Shawl is actually just as perfect for non-retreat knitting, relaxing at home, travel, watching your kids’ sports or activities, waiting for appointments or for the water to boil while cooking pasta for dinner, etc. It’s a perfect shawl for your everyday life knitting.

Finished measurements after blocking:
1 skein shawl: 50-inch wingspan, 24-inch depth
2 skein shawl: 63-inch wingspan, 31-inch depth

Yarn: Sun Valley Fibers, 75% Merino, 15% Cashmere, 10% Nylon, 400 yards, fingering weight, 1 or 2 skeins in Labyrinth for selected size

Yarn amount notes:
The 1 Skein size will use most all of 400 yards.
The 2 Skein size finished shawl weighs 199 grams.
The Sun Valley MCN skeins are generous and only go by yardage, not weight. For the 2 Skein shawl I did have 37 grams left over from the second skein.

Needles: US size 6/4mm, 32-inch circular or size to obtain gauge

Gauge: 5.5 stitches per inch in stockinette stitch before blocking

Materials:
Stitch markers
Yarn needle
Optional: Blocking wires and pins

I hope you enjoy this new shawl pattern! One or two skeins of fingering weight is all you need. The Perfect Retreat Shawl is full of simple, mindless knitting with a simple lace pattern pattern to finish things off. It's an enjoyable knit suitable for beginners.

Thanks for the support, as always. I hope you are able to knit and retreat a little bit this summer even if it is only to your back yard.
xo ~ susan