Icelandic Spring shawl

“This lovely shawl takes into consideration the unique characteristics of the Icelandic wool: knitted on rather big needles, you will be able to stretch it extensively when blocking and it will hold the shape! It is knitted from the top down with one simple pattern repeat used in different ways to give the shawl its shape, and a very easy lacy border. The pattern becomes more effective by playing with the colors, just like in the typical Old Icelandic shawls. I chose some refreshing colors from the Istex large palette: they remind me of spring!”

One year later, it’s spring again… and it’s raining! Raining so much that’s it’s muddy! The new color combinations “It”s raining” (grey, blue, black) and “It’s muddy!” (browns, beige and a tiny bit of green) and the “Love” variation using cobweb Love Story yarn, illustrate how colors and their arrangement can dramatically change the allure of a shawl!

And in 2014, of course I have to knit the shawl using my own Icelandic lace yarn, Grýla: a four color combination with the Colors of Iceland is born!

The designer

Hélène Magnússon likes to put a new spin on old Icelandic knitting traditions. She enjoys designs with strong ties to Iceland and that tell a story. She is best known for her research into the traditional Icelandic intarsia that was mostly seen in knitted insoles in the past centuries. Her book, Icelandic knitting: using Rose Patterns is available in three languages. She is a French native but a true Icelandic knitter and has an Icelandic family. Hélène abandoned a law career in Paris for the love of Icelandic nature. She worked as a mountain guide for many years in Iceland and studied textile and fashion design at the Iceland Academy of the Arts. She is the head and designer behind The Icelandic Knitter.

Size: one size. Shawl fits a square ca 95×95 cm / 37×37”

Needles: cicular needle 5 mm / 8 US, crochet hook 2 mm (B/1 US)

Gauge: 10×10 cm / 4”x 4” = 16 sts x 22 rows in stocking st on needles 5 mm. Gauge is not essential but you may run short of yarn if your gauge is too loose.

Yarn: Total yardage: about 450 m Einband-Loðband from Ístex, 70% Icelandic wool, 30% wool, fine lace-weight, 1-ply worsted, 50gr/skein, 50g = ca. 225m/246 yds

Color scheme spring

MC: shade 0851 (white) 1 skein
CC1: shade 1765 (yellow) 1 skein
CC2: shade 9268 (green) 20 g
CC3: shade 9990 (orange) 20 g
Color scheme “It’s raining !”: 0008 (blue), 1026 (grey), 0151 (black), 1 skein each

Color scheme “It’s muddy!”: 1038 (beige), 0853 (brown), 0852 (dark brown), 1 skein each; a few grams in 9268 (green) to cast off.

Love: It’s raining knitted with Love Story yarn, 100% pure Icelandic virgin wool, 25g/skein=160m: natural sheep colors black, white and brown, 1 skein each

Techniques: provisional cast-on, top down, lace, crocheted bind-off

Pattern: once you’ve made your payment, you will receive an email with instructions on how to download the pattern. It comes as a PDF file. We don’t send pattern by snail mail.

Errata: no mistake was found in this pattern but there were a few updates:

24.04.2012: instructions for color combinations “It’s raining” and “It’s muddy” and “Love” variation added to the pattern.

10.11.2014: Grýla color combination added. Written instructions added.