The Mara shawl is done, at long last. Actually, I finished it at the end of January but I’ve been slow to get it photographed. It’s my first shawl for the 10 shawls in 2010 challenge.

Staring into the distance enigmatically a la Virginia Woolf

I used 4 skeins of blue faced leicester aran in ‘To the Lighthouse’ from Violet Green and 4.5mm circulars (essential, as the rows get very long). I had 48g of yarn left (approx 85-90m, I think) from 400g (720m), so this comfortably counts as one of the larger 500m+ shawls for the challenge.

Mara at full wing span

The pattern is really straightforward – a garter stitch triangle, 1″ of 1×1 rib, then 4″ of 2×2 rib. The main problem I had was with the yarn. I was concerned about pooling in the ribbed section, although now the shawl is finished, I like the effect (it makes me think of waves rippling on the shore… *ahem*). One of the skeins also had several breaks, so I ended up with more joins than I was anticipating. However, they aren’t visible now the shawl has been wet blocked.

I was concerned that ‘ Mara’ would be too heavy, but actually it’s fine and now the weather has turned cold again, it’s a perfect weight. I wore it to work yesterday and got several compliments! It’s perfect for keeping out the chills in my office.

So all in all, it’s a big thumbs up for ‘Mara’, as long as you’re not averse to long rows of mindless knitting.