Voluminous hidden sand cables in a tweed mixture made of Rowan Lima and Rowan Fine Tweed, creates a divine texture that is reversible. First I made a scarf that was initially intended for the Nordic Vintage series published in Made by Me in September 2014, but did not fit the color scheme and was taken out. I took it out again last autumn and figured out it would definitely fit with my neutrals in the wedding gown series. But even at a winter wedding the bride will need more than a scarf to go over the wedding gown hence I thought a shrug with bell sleeves would do the job. Maybe even with a loose back panel to cover a bare or partly bare back too. The result is a shrug with a loose back panel and a scarf for collar or just make the scarf, or just the shrug. I plan to publish the Norwegian pattern on Ravelry in February and the English one after it has been test knitted in my group, early this autumn. Grete Jenssen, aka ma9, knitted the shrug magnificently and with the usual speed to which I slowed her down by having to send her more yarn…

By holding Rowan Lima made of 84% baby alpaca, 8% merino, 8% nylon, on 50 g balls with a put up of 110 meters/120 yards together with Rowan Fine Tweed of 100% wool on 25 gram balls with 90 m/98 yds put up, I made a dense tweedy and soft texture. I decided to knit on the recommended needles for Lima; 5.5 mm/US 9 to avoid the garment dropping and to make the cables pop. The result is a gauge of 16 stitches and 27 rows in garter stitch. The shrug is knitted from cuff to cuff, sideways in one piece. The first sleeve is knitted in the round, to the flat back and is then joined again for the second sleeve. I decided to keep the back piece loose so that it can be used around the neck too if desired, or pinned with an earring or a brooch to the back of the shrug and the scarf, see below (where I used safety pins). The yarn was kindly sponsored by Permin, Rowan Yarns’ Scandinavian agent.

The scarf come in one size but can easily be adjusted by in width by adding repeats or edge stitches in garter stitch, while the shrug comes in 3 sizes: XS/S as I am wearing above, M/L and XL/2XL. The only variation on the shrug is the width of it and the width of the back panel. The cables do look complicated but all stitches are worked in either garter stitch or 1/1 rib all along, including in the cable crossings.

All these photos were taken by my husband a few days before the photoshoot in October. I tried it over the wedding gowns I had borrowed from designer Judith Bech and guess what? The color did not match at all, hence I ended up choosing a pair of silk trouser in taupe to go with it instead. The photos of Alexandria wearing it made by jaw drop and my head spin.  You wait and see!