Rudbeckia hirta (or Black-eyed Susans) are beautiful golden flowers in the sunflower family, native to Eastern and Central North America. It is a traditional medicinal herb, used by Native American tribes to treat colds, flu, infections, swelling, and snake bite. Rudbeckia is also commonly planted in butterfly gardens.

As a natural dye, Rudbeckia is used to make an olive green color when boiled and steeped with mordanted wool or silk.

This triangular shawl starts with a garter tab cast on, and steadily increases around a center stitch. If you follow the color instructions as written, you’ll use approximately 300 yards (271m/65g) of your MC and 225 yards (203m/50g) of your CC. Alternatively, you can experiment with color mixing, or use up scraps. Each section is easy to modify to be wider or shorter, to use up all of your bits and pieces of yarn.

Yarn

• 2 skeins (463 yds, 100g) of Steel City Fiber Collective Yinzer Sock or fingering weight yarn of your choice in contrasting colors. I used “Greenfield” and “Birmingham Bridge”.

Materials

• 1 set US size 4 (3.5mm) 32” circular needles, or size needed to obtain gauge

• 4 stitch markers

• Darning needle to weave in ends

Gauge

• 20 stitches x 36 rows over 4” (10 cm) in blocked stockinette.