what’a big project without a little (or a LOT) of agonizing, eh??
well, i might be exaggerating . . . agony is not a word i like to use around my wool; after all, it’s knitting.
ok, so here goes—i’m going to try to explain my “process”. it’s probably gonna sound like a lot of guessing, cuz, you know what?? i DO do a lot of guessing. educated guessing, maybe, but most times there is a lot of trial and error in the process of coming up with the right cohesion of yarn, stitches, scale, and sequence that make up a shawl design. and even then? it might be crap . . .
i started with a bunch of stitchbooks that i was browsing through, and noticed that there were several bee-themed stitches in them. i thought it would be cool to design a shawl around them maybe . . . if i could find the right yarn.
fast-forward about 10 months and anne approaches me about designing something to go with her hand-dyed yarn. she is willing to dye something to match my idea. she sends me samples
so i got started, using all the colors to swatch with
i took a stitch that to me, looks like the texture of a hive . . .
followed it with a swarm of bees, heading out from the hive for the fields
all the while, i am totally enamored of this dainty edge
after the bee swarm, i added a third tier of alternating panels. i worked three different combinations, because i’m still not completely decided on which pairing is best
there is bee and honeycomb
bee and flower
or, bee and grass waving in the wind
here are some composite shots
i like the progression from the center out in this first one, just not sure of the panel combo . . .
i like the progression here too, but i’m pretty sure i don’t like the honeyb mesh in between the bee panels.
it’s very light and pretty in the sunlight, but doesn’t allow the bee panel edges to hold their shape . . . (i KNOW!! so many things to consider!)
then there is this one. the progression is wrong, but i like the panel combination. only thing is, that alternating fern pattern has been used in several other shawls, and i don’t like to be repetitive.
so, here’s what i’ve decided on the yarn colors
i’ll be knitting it in the greeny-yellow, and the kit will also be offered in the honey-gold.
question for you: what size do you like in a triangle shawl? i am always torn about shawl size. i notice that a lot of patterns in magazines are quite small, but is that what you prefer? or do you like something that is a little larger and stays onthe shoulders better?
i usually write my patterns for a larger shawl, and figure that the knitter can make it smaller by using finer yarn and smaller needles. also, i often include two sizes.
but are they still too big? tell me what size is your favorite . . .
74 thoughts on “swatch-o-rama”
I’ve knit huge shawls and small shawls and I love ’em all. This one seems like it would be too complex to be too small.
I definitely like the larger shawl patterns. It gives you the option to make it smaller if you want. I like a shawl that I can actually wrap around me – not just position on my back.
Also – I love the bee pattern! My favorite second stitch pattern is actually the honeycomb mesh pattern. Too bad it distorts the bees. I wonder if there is a way to reinforce around them?
Oh my! Oh my! Oh my! It was worth the wait for the pics today. 🙂
I like the bee and the honeycomb and the bee and the flower motifs best (not that this really narrows it down or anything, just opinionated me piping up!)
And you know, I am even more enamored of that darker color now that I see it knit up.
Larger shawl, I think. You’d hate to futz with the thing all night. Besides, you have more drape and fastening options.
BTW, love the swarm of bees. And is that beehive lace with faggoting I spy?
So pretty, and thank you for sharing your process, it’s fascinating to see how things get put together and chosen.
When I saw ‘bee shawl’ my first reaction wasn’t ‘oooh’, but a quick scroll through showed me I was very wrong.
I actually really like the honeycomb section, I think just b/c it looks so lovely in the variegated yarn.
My personal preference for shawls is to have the option to do both sizes, one in a laceweight & on smaller needles & one more substantial that will come out larger.
If you need a test knitter for one version or the other…
I can’t wait! I’m definitely going to buy the kit with the honey colored yarn. The green is pretty too, it’s just not me.
As for size, both are good, but I think there’s a lot going on for a small shawl, bigger is better.
I like the mesh pattern, maybe it could be used before the dainty edge? I love the swarming bees!
It’s going to be hard to patient.
Size DOES matter and for me, well, bigger is ALWAYS better. 😉
Definitely a larger shawl. Gives you more room to design, but also gives more room for the wearer to play with. I’m a size 18 and love to knit shawls – and I love triangular shawls – but find the smaller ones unattractive on a larger frame. They tend to look pulled and stretched – there’s nothing like the luxury of a large shawl in lovely fibre in beautiful stitches.
And I could kill for that green – give me a green with a bit of a sharp edge any day! Tho’ I do love the honey, reminds me of sponge toffee.
Ann, you’re a great designer. Your Morning Glories wrap made me love a stitch I’ve never liked – the one you used in the centre. Now that’s quite a coup!
I knitted BW’s Honeybee Lace pattern up for my mom after my folks recently moved, after 45 years, out of the home they’d built on Honeybee Lane. I had all kinds of ideas of how I was going to use it, but it was so open and so easy to catch and snag on things that I finally just made the simplest scarf with the basic pattern and let it go at that.
I like the interplay of patterns you have there, it’s much more adventurous than I was with it. Your fifth photo down, as it came up I went, Oh! It’s a honeycomb! And so it is. Very cool to see that one in a new light. Thank you!
My faves are bee/honeycomb and bee/grass. So pretty! Can’t wait to see how it all meshes (hee!) together.
Oh Anne! I’m swooning with desire over here. You should knit insect-themed patterns all the time! First Moth and now Bee. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful! Especially in the honey-gold… oh, I MUST have it. 🙂
I prefer a nice big shawl. Little ones like Swallowtail are pretty, but not really all that useful, you know? I want something I can wrap around myself properly on a cold day. But that’s just me.
Oh, biggenate it, please! Sign me up as another who would asbolutely love to make this, and I like to – ehrm, wrap a wrap, if you know what I mean.
Lovely, lovely. You must knit a mile a minute! Or you have found a way to get more hours into the day. If so, will you share? 😉
Oh, man. Want now. 🙂
triangular? ack! ::sigh:: i was thinking this would be a luxuriant rectangular stole like the morning glories one…
but whatever the shape, i’m for big.
Whatever design you choose, I’m sure it will be gorgeous. I think larger shawls are almost always better. I love layers and things that I can just sling on, and it would be way too annoying to always be repositioning it.
Pretty! I love a busy shawl like that. As for size, it’s not so important.
Oh, I’m really glad those are the two colors you picked. I think they suit the theme best.
Hmmmm, I’m having trouble picturing a triangular shawl from these swatches. But how would it look if the honeycomb surrounded the bees?
Well, I’m very tall, so I like really big, or small enough to be a scarf like Swallowtail. I agree with the many comments though that this has a lot going on and may not lend itself to being a very small shawl. Your swatches are fingering wt, right? So switching to laceweight could reduce the size quite a bit with a correspondingly smaller needle. So many people are afraid of them, but I like bees, maybe I’m strange.
Wow! How wonderful for us that you are so methodical and experiment in such a way that brings us such wonderful creations. I like all 3 variations…If I had to narrow it down I would go with either the grass or the flower. I am liking the grass with the green/yellow yarn. Very pretty:)
Please design a large enough shawl so that it can be worn easily without having to tug and stretch it around you and always have to be mindful that it isn’t falling off.
I like the designs and the colorways you have chosen.
Beautiful stitch patterns! The Bee theme is very cool. I like bigger shawls which are even longer than my wingspan. You can really wrap up in those and they stay on better. That said, I have no problem with patterns for small shawls because it’s usually pretty easy to use those patterns to make a larger shawl. You don’t lose anything by knitting more pattern repeats.
Wow!
I love it! Thanks for sharing your genius!
I am a fan of large shawls in very fine lace weight, the best of both worlds I think.
I like the flower and bees but I must confess that I am in love with the waving grass.
I always love all of your shawls the sizes they are. You always have the option of making something smaller on your own. Continue on the way you have been. And your swatches are all beautiful. I marvel at the amount of work you put into each of your designs, and the thought that and care you take with them as well. No wonder all of your patterns are so wonderful.
I prefer larger also. I love your ideas! I love the progression in the green swatch, especially the bee surrounded by the grass waving in the wind. But y’know, I think you might be right about the fern pattern having been done before and in my opinion it doesn’t really look like a beehive. Can it maybe be rounded a bit more? Like maybe something more like the end lace arches in Swallowtail? Whatever you come up with though, I’m sure it will be beautiful. And I’ll be right there to pony up for the pattern. 🙂
this is the first shawl i have ever fallen in love with…hurry! 🙂
Personally, I like bigger shawls. I’m a fluffy gal and I like a shawl that I can get wrapped around me! Love the color choices!!!
Wow…..
I love the panel with all the bees in the honey-toned swatch. It’s unbelievable.
I definitely vote for the larger shawl and the honey-colored yarn. I want something to wrap myself in.
I really like how this is turning out! Some shawls with picture motifs turn out a bit cartoony or odd but this looks great. and it has bees!
by the way, I understand the structural difficulties with the honeycomb stitch but maybe it could be incorporated somewhere–it’s lovely and certainly reinforces the bee idea.
finally–large is good, or maybe a large and a very small, simplified shoulder shawl–like maybe just a simple triangle with the first bee swarm motif and the cute edging. I think shawls are best in those two sizes. in between is less useful.
I love Anne’s stuff and had to come see what you are up to… the bee theme is really great!
I prefer smaller, but that’s because I’m only 5’2″ (and shrinking, I think). Have you given any consideration to a Faroese style shawl? The honeycomb mesh (which looks great) might be nice for the center panel. You know, with the bees headed in that direction after visiting the flowers.
WOw you’ve been a busy bee! Hahahahahaha!! Okay, that was lame.
You know I like a nice big shawl.
I like it! A bit larger is, I think, good for shawls. I hate when they don’t stay on, and that’s usually because they’re a little small. The option to scarf-size-it is nice though.
I’m with you on your trial & error and conclusions. Can’t wait to see (and maybe try) the fo.
Oh, my gosh! I’m blown away by your talent. I think a bedspread size would be about right for this pattern! Seriously, I think larger for this. yOu have to have room to experience the bees in their journey, wherever they’re going. The color choices are perfect. Oh, and I can see everything in this design!!
This design/kit is going to be wonderful. I’d prefer a large shawl, so that the ends can be tied in front. With triangular shawls, the ends hang oddly–that is probably why they are nearly always photographed from the back.
freakin’ gorgeous!
bowing to your creative genius – they all look like lovely ideas! Big or small?? hmm, must I choose? Personally, I like to have both options.
You just can’t go wrong with those lovely yarns combined with your designing skill.
Lovely samples!
I want my shawls to be big!
You are making fabulous progress! Large shawl. Your stitch selections are excellent. Third swatch from the end is wonderful, but I also like the large flower in 5th from the end. The honeycomb is great, perhaps as a division between other patterns? The honey color isn’t as great as I had expected and I like the green more than I thought I would. The shawl is going to be a keeper (pun not intended)! I hope Anne is starting to dye her yarns now. This is going to be in high demand.
I love those bee-themed stitches. You have some very cool pattern books.
I like my triangular shawls to be about medium length… something that covers my back, crosses over my chest sufficiently, too. Usually if a triangular shawl is a little wider than my wing-span I’m happy with it… I’m 5’7″, so a shawl that’s around 6′ across works well, is long enough in back to cover nicely.
I LOVE the alternating fern!!!!! It makes it look like there’s a breeze…with the bees….. And I prefer larger shawls. Maybe not quite as big as Wing of the Moth, but maybe Casino-ish? Or a little teensy bit bigger??? The pattern in the bottom picture looks like wheat to me! I really like that! Can’t wait to see this done Anne. You have REALLY been a busy girl!
You want us to vote don’t you ? Well I’m afraid I won’t be much of a help to you, because I like them all except the honeycomb mesh panel in between the bees maybe.
I do like the mesh pattern though, maybe you can incorporate it in the edging ? It just belongs in the shawl I believe. As far as size I vote for bigger so you wrap it around. Colors are both beautiful, honey is a really beelike warm color of a summerevening, the green is more like a sunny spring/summer one.
Beautiful! I like the final combination (in the order you said earlier, though) with the “bee and grass waving in the wind”…however, the bees in that section seem so close together to me. Would it be possible to put a little more space between them? 2 rows, perhaps?
I LOVE the brownish color – it looks like honey from a honeycomb to me.
As far as your question goes, I have not tried knitting a shawl yet (I knit while chasing my 4 year old, and tend to need portable, durable projects, and have not attempted lace outside of dishcloths) but I prefer the larger sizes. There is just so much you can do with them!
I like the idea someone had of a Faroese shawl. Or an uneven shawl – wider than half a square, if that makes sense. I’m never very keen on the perfectly even triangle. But then i’m not very tall, but like the width…
Generally, loving the bees. Look forward to seeing it complete.
It is really important for those of us who have considered designing our own projects to see the process that established designers use. Thank you for giving us a look into that process.
I am a large woman and prefer to make my shawls on the bigger side. However, I don’t usually make triangular shawls because the point comes so far passed my bottom that I am constantly sitting on it. My preference is for faroese shawls or longer, more narrow triangular shawls.
For the panel sections, would it be possible to have the bees flying away from the hives toward the flowers?
I definitely like bigger shawls. Not huge…but bigger than most patterns are.
I go for larger too. Even though I’m not tall (5’2″), a recent triangular shawl ended up being 40+” from the neck to the point of the triangle, and I feel very glamorous when I wear it. Until then, I thought 36″ would be the maximum depth I’d want.
I still like the small scarf-size shawls, but to wear differently–over a pretty T-style top or with a jacket or coat.
Thanks for sharing your design process. Sometimes when I swatch and swatch and swatch, I think I must be doing something wrong and that if I were a better designer, the result would spring fully formed from my brain.
I’m going to have to go with the crowd and say larger as well. I love the bee theme and the honey gold color is perfect. Should the honeycomb bee (bad pun) in the middle with the bees flying to and fro between the vegetation and hive? I’m taking the Starlight wrap with me to my first ever weekend knitting retreat. There I hope to enlist the help and advice of more advanced knitters. You always make the most intricate and lovely patterns. Heck, I’d frame the swatches if I produced something that beautiful! Knit on Fiber Godess, knit on.
The bees are awesome. They really look like bees. I like the larger shawls myself – more to wrap around me. And like Carole said, there’s a lot going on here that may be too much for a small shawl.
I vote for larger shawl patterns. I find it easier to shrink (if I’m knitting for a smaller framed person) a pattern by knitting on smaller needles then to enlarge a pattern by going up a needle size. When enlarging I always worry about running out of yarn.
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