Spider Queen

It’s done!
I know it’s been very quiet here but there is a good reason. I really wanted to have the “Spider Queen” off the needles before the start of 2008.


Pattern: Spider Queen by Hazel Carter – heavily modified
Started: July 2007
Finished: December 2007
Yarn: Henry's Attic 2/20 Spun silk
Needles: Inox 3.25 mm straights (centre) , Knit Picks Options 3.25 mm circular (border), 3.25 mm double points for edging.

I really don’t know if I can still call it the Spider Queen since I’ve changed so much. You can see that it still bears a very strong resemblance to the original but clearly there have been many modifications. This shawl would have been finished much sooner but there were many stops and starts. Initially I wanted to knit each border separately as instructed but after joining three of the four borders I hated the look. I just could not get a neat seam. So I frogged the three completed borders and the partially knitted fourth! I decided to knit the border circularly. However instead of doing “yarn-over” increases for the corners, I did “make 1” increases. So it still looks like I knitted the borders separately and then seamed. I don’t think I like knitting the border circularly. I really think it took me much less time to knit the borders individually than to knit all four at the same time. Plus I didn’t like purling every other row. It might be that I just prefer knitting with straight needles (??). Anyway it was a really fun knit and I learnt a lot, so it’s all good.

I used Fleegle’s method for grafting the edging and it worked perfectly.

Thanks Fleegle!

Here are a few more picks. I’m still not sure if I’ll dye it or not. I kind of like the natural colour.










Happy knitting everyone. Thanks for all your wonderful comments. They really are apreciated.
I wish you all the best for 2008!