Handwoven Lace Shawl

I’ve finished an order that I took in at a show in December. I feel really badly that it took so long. Yes, the customer assured me she wasn’t in a hurry, and yes, I told her I wouldn’t get it done before the end of the year, but February?! How the heck did I make it take this long?

Well, I ordered the yarn in early January, but it was out of stock, not scheduled to arrive till late January. Ok. Then they sent it, and I waited a few days to open the box till I was ready to put it on the loom. Uh oh. Not the right color. I looked at my notes, and I’d put the correct color number in my notes, but it was wrong on the order form. Did I tell the woman the wrong color number, or did she write it down wrong? I don’t know, and it doesn’t really matter. If I hadn’t had an order for it, I would have used the color they sent me, since it was close, but my customer specifically ordered a color, and that’s what I was going to make.

So what was the order? A huck lace shawl in 5/2 natural/eggshell pearl cotton.

I knew that not only would this customer like it, but others would, too. So I warped the loom for three shawls. I wove them, twisted the fringe, wet finished, and pressed all three shawls.

Here’s a closeup of a section of the finished shawl…

…and a section of the draft.

Such an easy threading and treadling! And this all-over huck pattern is nice and soft, even in 5/2 pearl cotton. As always, I made this handwoven lace on my little counterbalance loom. The loom, and these shawls, make me happy. As does the snow that’s softly falling outside my window.

Your turn: what made you smile today?