Shawl Progress and Pattern

As you can see, Waves on the Beach is coming along nicely. And, I found my card reader (hooray!), so I can show off my knitting again. This is the most yarn intensive project I've ever undertaken (6 balls) and I can't help but wonder, what am I going to do when I move on to sweaters? One step at a time, I guess, for this attention-span-challenged knitter. Here's another, closer, view of the shawl-in-progress, followed by the pattern (in case anyone's interested--it's pretty standard and easy to do):

Waves on the Beach

YARN : MicroSpun (Lion Brand Yarns) in Lilac 15 ozs; 1008 yds; 6 balls

NEEDLES : US 7 straight or circular (shown on Inox greys)

GAGE : 4" = 22 sts/24 rows

FINISHED SIZE : 24" x 60", unblocked

* like in scarves, gage isn't terribly critical, as long as you match your yarn with your needle to get the length and width you want *

PATTERN : multiple of 18 sts + 6

R 1 : Ktbl all

R 2 : Ktbl 3, P to last 3 sts, Ktbl 3

R 3 : Ktbl 3, *(K2togtbl) 3x's, (yo, Ktbl) 6x's, (K2togtbl) 3x's, repeat from * to last 3 sts, Ktbl 3

R 4 : Ktbl all

CO 132 sts. Work 84 pattern repeats or until shawl is desired length.

Ktbl -- Knit through the back loop to form a twisted knit stitch

K2togtbl -- Knit 2 stitches together through the back loop to form a twisted decrease stitch

This is an easy beginning lace version of Feather and Fan stitch even novice knitters can do. If you use acrylic yarn, blocking will not dramatically change the look of the shawl as it will if you use wool, cotton, silk, or alpaca yarn. I've noticed the MicroSpun develops a haze fairly quickly, so if you aren't allergic to wool, mohair, or alpaca like I am, I suggest substituting one of these natural fiber yarns instead. Since this was my first lace project (and one I might still give away), I found MicroSpun to be easiest on my pocketbook (at $2.49 a skein at my local JoAnns, it still beats even KnitPicks cheapest Merino DK weight)