Finished: Pi Shawl

I finished knitting the Pi Shawl I started in March.

It was a big project that took a little more than a month to knit. I wasn’t providing updates along the way because they would have mainly been, “Still knitting!” LOL

Here is the unblocked shawl. You probably can’t tell from this picture, but it is very big! About 49″ across.

I was able to knit the entire shawl using just one, massive ball of Ella Rae brand “Rustic Lace Quad” yarn, which is 75% Lambs Wool and 25% Silk. Each 200 gram ball has 1,257 yards. I finished my shawl with 1 gram of yarn to spare. phew! I don’t know how many yards I have left, but the ball is about the size of a chocolate truffle.

The pattern is in the Elizabeth Zimmermann book “Knitters Almanac”; it is one of the projects for July. I followed the “Pi Shawl with Three Lace Patterns” version of the design. I only deviated a little toward the end of the shawl.

The pattern calls for two repeats of the diamond design and then you work the edging. As you can see, I finished the second row of diamonds and hadn’t even reached the final dark brown section of my ball of “Rustic Lace Quad”.

At first I tried to knit a third row of diamonds, but quickly realized I wouldn’t have enough yarn. Instead I closed them of to a zigzag pattern, which echoes the zigzag earlier in the shawl.

I left myself 33 grams of yarn to knit the edging. I’m glad I was able to finish it on the first  attempt. That would have been a lot of knitting to rip out!

The shawl might be a little crocked after I blocked it, but it is still fine to wear! The fabric is very lightweight, but still warm. Everyone who has seen the shawl in person has been enchanted.

This was such a fun project, and I’m so pleased with the results, that I’ve cast on for another Pi Shawl. This time I’m using a ball of Queensland Collection “United Foursome“. This 50% Lambs Wool, 50% Cotton blend yarn has 1,531 yards per 200 gram ball.

I shouldn’t have to bite my nails as much when I’m knitting the edging for this second shawl!