Sargaço is the Portuguese word for sargasso, the type of seaweed for which the Sargasso Sea is famous. The Sargasso Sea sits in a still part of the ocean, providing the plants a place to grow and develop “a central point at which the floating bodies unite.” (from chapter 11 of Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys) The central panel of this shawl provides the point of stillness, while around it swirls the foam of the ocean. Slowly one begins to see the stems of seaweed emerging until the plants fully form along the bottom edge. Sparkling out from among the fronds are beads, highlighting the movement of the seaweed among the waves.

Pattern is 16 pages. Written instructions for charts are on pages 7-11. Charts are on pages 12-16.

Skills Required:

• Increasing and decreasing
• Following charts
• Lace
• Blocking

Finished Size (blocked):
Regular - 56”/142.24 cm wide by 22”/55.88 cm centre depth
Large - 78”/198.12 cm wide by 33”/83.82 cm centre depth

Other Tools:

• Stitch markers (4)
• 210 (310) size 8/0 (hole size approximately 1 mm) Japanese seed beads
• 1 Crochet hook 0.6-0.7 mm, small enough to fit through holes in beads
• Glow line tape (to mark current row on charts/instructions).
• Fine cotton thread in contrasting colour for life-lines
• Tapestry needle
• Blocking wires and pins

Skill Level: Intermediate

Yarn:
800 (1,200) yards/730 (869) meters of merino fingering weight yarn that knits up to 8 sts/inch.

Shown In:
Medium – Indigodragonfly ‘MCS Sock’, (400 yards/365 meters; 75% merino, 15% cashmere, 10% silk; 4.06 oz/115 grams per skein). 2 skeins in Bunnies, Bunnies, It Must be Bunnies (Anya) and 8/0 Toho seed beads, Lt. Amythest AB (tb8r166).

Large - Indigodragonfly ‘MerGoat Sock’, (400 yards/365 meters; 80% merino, 10% cashmere, 10% nylon; 4.06 oz/115 grams per skein). 3 skeins in 20,000 Lawyers Under the Sea and 8/0 Toho seed beads, Frosted Transparent Teal (tb8r7bdf).

Other Possible Yarns:

• String Theory Hand Dyed Yarn ‘Caper Sock’, (400 yds/366 meters; 80% merino, 10% cashmere, 10% nylon; 4 oz/113 grams per skein).
• Handmaiden Fine Yarns ‘Cashbah’, (355 yds/325 meters; 80% merino, 10% cashmere, 10% nylon; 4.06 oz/115 grams per skein).
• Shalimar Yarns ‘Breathless’, (420 yds/384 meters; 75% merino, 15% cashmere, 10% silk; 3.55 oz, 100 grams per skein).
• The Plucky Knitter ‘Primo Fingering’, (385 yds/352 meters; 75% merino, 20% cashmere, 5% nylon; 3.56 oz/101 grams per skein).
• Tanis Fiber Arts ‘Purple Label Cashmere Sock’, (400 yds/366 meters; 70% merino, 20% cashmere, 10% nylon; 4.06 oz/115 grams per skein).

ERRATA (July 17, 2014):
Pattern v1.01: A new version of Chart D (Medium) is included in this version, along with new written stitch pattern instructions for this chart. A column of stitches on the left side of the chart were missing in the previous version.

Hard (paper) copies of this pattern may be available from your local yarn shop. Please contact them for more details.

For more information, see: http://eclecticcloset.ca/my-patterns/sargaco-shawl/