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In early 2008, a friend asked me to make her a shawl; the finished piece combines black mohair yarn with a flat multicolored yarn, an intense color combination that perfectly reflects her wonderfully vivid personality. That project inspired me to make a similar type of shawl in quieter colors for myself and resulted in this Subtle Shawl. Knit on a size 15 circular needle in garter stitch to achieve a lacey effect, it combines Rowan kidsilk haze (a blend of silk and mohair) in dove gray with Bali bamboo tape yarn in ivory. Together, the yarns produce a soft, subtle color effect and a beautiful drape. The single crochet edging using just the ivory bamboo provides a neatly finished edge while subtly highlighting the tiny threads of gray looping through every stitch in the body. 

Subtle Shawl, Detail
This photo shows the plain ivory edging against the shawl's gray and ivory body. Note the fine threads of gray against the wide ivory tape yarn and the fuzzy, softening quality they provide. 

This shawl began as a mandarin style jacket made from Karabella Yarns lace mohair (a blend of mostly mohair plus a little wool and about 1/3 polyamid). Bought in 2003, the yarn's rich ruby color attracted me immediately with dreams of creating a lacey jacket with a Chinese flair. Setting to work with a J crochet hook, my eager heart started by designing a border fashioned from triple crochet crosses that formed a row of large Xs across the back hem; the width was based on that of an unlined linen jacket from my closet that had styling similar to that envisioned for the lace mohair project. After the border followed endless rows of double crochet and the usual decreases and increases to shape the armholes and shoulders. After nearly completing the back, other projects beckoned and this one was set aside. In autumn 2007, as part of my massive effort to finish all my outstanding yarn efforts and use up my stash, the time had finally come to do something with "the red project." By then, the idea of a jacket no longer appealed to me, and my restless spirit sorely needed something simple and repetitive to calm my mind and emotions and give me something beautiful yet useful to occupy my hands while watching movies at home with my husband. So the jacket became this Valentine Shawl, named for its first wearing at a local press event on Valentine's Day 2008. 

Valentine Shawl, Detail
This photo shows the triple crochet crosses that edge both ends of this long shawl and the rows of double crochet that make up the rest of the piece. Note the yarn's sheen, which reflects light even through the mohair's fuzzy texture. 

One morning late in July 2009, my husband's parents were visiting us and his mother, Jean, saw some of my blankets crocheted for the Linus Project, which had been finished and awaited delivery to our local Linus contact. Unlike the full size knitted blanket she received from me in the early 2000s, these blankets were for young children and so measured about the size of a throw. After examining them, she asked me to make her a shawl sometime, as the blanket made for her was too big to use comfortably to cover her shoulders while sitting in her favorite chair and watching television. When questioned about yarn, she said she didn't want anything requiring special care--just something simple that could be machine washed and dried. A few days later, while out on one of our regular date nights, my husband stopped at a local craft store so we could buy yarn. My choice: Caron's Simply Soft acrylic yarn, which combines easy care with buttery softness. And because Jean had worn light blue at our wedding 23 years ago, my heart felt inspired to use that color for her shawl along with some ivory for contrast. Crocheted horizontally with an N hook, this piece features segments of blue double crochet alternating with bands of ivory triple crochet crosses; together, they form Os and Xs to wrap my quite wonderful mother-in-law in hugs and kisses and keep her warm. From the start, my vision included soft ruffles at the ends instead of fringe to give the shawl a pretty finish and eliminate any tangles that might occur with washing; a row of single crochet edging in blue completes the look and gives the ruffles the same color balance seen in the shawl's body. 

Jean's Shawl, Detail 1
This view shows the lace effect achieved by using a large hook and the length obtained from a long (150 stitches) foundation chain. The lightweight acrylic and open weave effect make this shawl suitable for use in summer, when air conditioning proves too drafty, as well as every other season. 

Jean's Shawl, Detail 2
This photo shows the gentle ruffle created over several rows of double crochet by increasing gradually at first and then more densely in the final two rows. Note the row of blue single crochet edging and how harmoniously is combines with the ivory yarn.  

This scarf grew out of my desire in late 2007 to use up my stash of small amounts of elegant yarns purchased in 2003. The gray yarn featured here is Berroco's Mohair Classic, a combination of mostly mohair with a dash of nylon and a splash of wool. It drew my attention immediately for its dove color and enticing softness. A visit to a local yarn shop in late 2007 yielded a suggestion from the owner to combine this yarn with something a little flashy to make a scarf; the result was this piece's combination of mohair with Plymouth Yarn's Eros Extreme, an exceptionally wide, railroad or ribbon style yarn. Sitting down with both yarns one cold winter day in early 2008, it occurred to me to alternate variously sized segments of each yarn by itself with areas that combined the two in order to showcase all their possible looks. Using size 17 knitting needles and garter stitch throughout, this scarf worked up quickly and produced a long accessory that can be wrapped around the neck twice for extra warmth. Enough of the gray remained to allow me to edge one long side of the piece and both ends with single crochet; the other side has a "default edging" resulting from carrying the two yarns up the side and twisting them at the end of each row rather than cutting them at the end of each color segment. 

Mohair and Ribbon Scarf, Detail
This photo clearly shows the contrast among the different segments of gray only, ribbon only, and gray and ribbon combined. Note the gray edging, which reached just a little into the second long side (to the left in the photo) before the yarn ran out; despite this "imperfection," that little bit of extra edging pleased me too much to remove it. And so this scarf stands as testimony to my penchant for plunging in when inspired to make up patterns and combine yarns (and sometimes letting the yarn have the final say). 

This stole came to life in 2003, shortly after the yarn arts re-entered my life after a long absence. In late 2002, a trip to a local yarn shop introduced me to the luxurious yarns and wealth of inventive patterns that had become available since my early knitting days had petered out in the early 1980s. That day, the variety of mohair blends especially attracted my hands and eyes, and my purchases included an elegant brand in autumn hues plus a crochet pattern for making a fringed stole for an artist friend. When that initial effort proved successful (and very well received by my friend), it was time to create something for myself. Early 2003 found me adapting the stole pattern by using a different yarn (Rowan kidsilk haze in ivory) and a much smaller hook (on the order of F or perhaps G rather than the P used for my friend's stole). After finishing the body, which was made horizontally in single crochet with borders of triple crochet crosses, the whole thing felt too short; adding panels to the ends, worked vertically in alternating triple crochet crosses and double crochet, added so much length that this piece works best when wrapped twice around the neck or body or used as a very long scarf. Faux pearls in two sizes anchor the delicate fringe at either end. 

Pearl Stole, Detail 1
This back view highlights the stole's long rows of single crochet bordered by triple crochet crosses. As seen here, the relatively small number of rows means a shallow piece that functions best as a light stole rather than a full coverage shawl. 

Pearl Stole, Detail 2
The stole's elegant, ladylike ivory yarn harmonizes well with pearls. This photo demonstrates how every stitch along both ends was finished by threading a small faux pearl, a larger pearl, and another small pearl onto a single length of mohair yarn and then knotting the yarn onto the stitch. Much of the fringe was applied during a driving vacation we took to Louisville in March 2003 to visit one of my cousins; at one point during our stay, while sitting in the backseat of my cousin's car, the bag holding the pearls fell off my lap and most of the contents scattered into the opening between the seat and the back. On returning to her house, my first order of business became retrieving all those lost pearls in order to finish the stole.