My Crochet Project Northmoor Lock Shawl

I’m feeling very pleased with myself today as I’ve finished a crochet project! And one from The Crochet Project no less… This fab shawl is one of several patterns produced by Joanna and Kat as part of the project – more about that later.

Too many WIPS too little time

I have so many projects on the go its ridiculous. I’ve been doing a lot of Craftsy and other tutorials for various blogs so my workbag is full of bits of projects that may never go anywhere, or that will one day but just no time at the mo to progress them. I’ve also got my seascape ripple blanket in progress, although I’m sure the word progress is not the best to use as I’ve not done anything on it since April!

So today, as I scooped up my newly blocked effort to take some photos, I was very happy. It actually didn’t take me long as I only bought the book with the shawl pattern in it at Yarndale a couple of weeks ago.

The Crochet Project Northmoor Lock shawl in all its glory

I did buy some beautiful variegated 4ply yarn for one of the shawls – a handpainted glorious skein by EasyKnits but decided to do the first one using some Patons Extra Fine Merino Yarn that I had bought from Deramores a while ago. I just bought some to try, with no particular project in mind so I  had to do a bit of juggling with the colours. I didn’t have enough of the variegated one – Oslo Mix – to do the entire shawl. But I did have an orangey red plain shade – Cyclamen I think (the yarn labels didn’t have the names on :o) – that matched the red in the Oslo Mix very closely.

The Shawl Project is the brainchild of Joanna Scrace and Kat Goldin – better known as Not so Granny and Slugs on the Refridgerator. I bought the first of two books on shawls produced as part of The Crochet Project. This first book has shawl patterns that take 400 metres of yarn – a skein of 4ply while the second book has larger shawls that take two skeins – about 800 metres of yarn.

I chose the Northmoor Lock shawl because it was a) easy – I wanted some relaxing evening crochet with not too many ends! and b) it could be done in any weight of yarn. The lovely Merino should be very warm around my neck when the cold weather arrives. Apparently its called this because the pattern was devised while Joanna was camping at Northmoor Lock – the idea of crocheting around a campfire seems very romantic.

It hasn’t taken long…

The pattern was very easy to follow and quick to learn and I started at one end with one of the two balls of Oslo Mix that I had. This is a symmetrical shawl, so you increase to the mid point and then decrease again to form a wide flat triangle. Although it looks complicated, its actually only half trebles!

So relaxing and I love working with variegated yarns as you still get the interest of working with different colours and seeing how they play together – but you don’t have all the ends to weave in! Sorry I keep going on about that don’t I. Spent an hour yesterday sewing in ends…. still scarred by the experience as I hadn’t done them as I went along 🙁

Anyway, I zipped along with the first half of the shawl in one evening, using one ball of plain red and then deciding that would be the central point. The next evening I used the second plain ball of yarn and started decreasing, returning to the Oslo Mix at the correct point so that number of red rows was even. The finished shawl was suddenly done! The last part is a lot of fun as you are decreasing, so each row takes less and less time!

After I blocked the shawl this morning to ease out the lovely little points, I took loads of pictures. I’ll have to do a modelling shot soon to show what it looks like on but I’m otherwise having a slob-at-home-work day today so not very glamorous could crack the camera…

Better to concentrate on the lovely shawl…

Although its described as a shawl it is worn like the road trip scarf – with the thickest part at the front of your neck and the two tails looped back over your shoulders and to the front. I’m hoping the variegation will work well and I think it will look great in the neck of a black jacket or coat… If I am brave I will show you soon…