When I teach people to knit, they're always terribly disappointed when they go into a yarn store and find that yarn is on the expensive side: "I thought it would be cheaper to make things than to buy them". I sympathize, and try to point out that if they were to buy a well made item of clothing, from nice materials that it may well cost more (this Anthropologie cardigan is a case in point). I also try to point out that knitting is about more than this. I mean, if I desperately need something, I go out and buy it, I'm not going to sit down and knit it. For me knitting is about process. Still, occasionally, I come across a bargain, and when I do I find it hard not to get excited. When I saw Misti Alpaca Lace (the suggested yarn for the Swallowtail shawl featured in the Fall 2006 issue of Interweave Knits) in Windsor Button for a mere $7 a skein (you can find it online for similar prices), I knew I was onto something. I mean, how often is it that you buy a beautiful lace alpaca shawl for just $7?
I'm actually making a complete copy of the Swallowtail Shawl in the magazine. Not only is the yarn the same, but it's the same color, too (although the color in real life is very different from the color as printed in the magazine). I'm having a lot of fun knitting this. The first few repeats of the lace pattern were a little trying, but this is always the case for me. Now that I've got the pattern in my head and understand how it works the shawl is just zooming along.
I think I'll give this to my Dad's mother. It's been a while since I knit her something, and I think she uses the other shawls I've made for her. The Sea Mist color will look wonderful on her, too.
Cross-posted on What Katie Did.
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