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Sunflower of Hope is a fingering/sock-weight crescent-shaped shawl that was inspired by the special colorway “Sunflower” by Carla Hanson of Purple Lamb Fiber Arts. Carla designed the Sunflower colorway in solidarity with Ukraine, inspired by their national flower, and the sunflower shape is evoked by the simple lace stitch patterns and border of the shawl.

Also in solidarity with the people of Ukraine, 25% of pattern sales will be donated to Nova Ukraine, which provides humanitarian aid to Ukrainians displaced by war; provides medical care and supplies; repairs and upgrades medical facilities; provides educational supplies and connectivity in order to keep students learning despite the war; and more. See more about Nova Ukraine here.

This pattern has been tech edited and test knitted.

Difficulty: Advanced beginner. The instructions are fully written out, not charted; they have very short repeats. There are detailed pictures of each stitch pattern.

Skills to have (or enjoy learning) for this pattern: k2tog, p2tog, yarn over, slipped stitches, kfb, pfb.

Yarn: Approximately 160 grams/ 720 yards/ 660 meters fingering/ sock weight yarn. The sample was worked with Purple Lamb Fiber Arts Sock Perfection, an 80% superwash Merino/ 20% nylon blend with 450 yards/411 meters per 3.5 oz/ 100-gram hank. The sample color is Sunflower. Other wool or wool-blend yarns would also work well for this design.

Finished dimensions: Approximately 60”/150 cm inside edge, 96”/240 cm outside edge, with a 17”/42.5 cm drop, after blocking. There are options in the pattern to increase or decrease the size of the shawl if desired.

Gauge: 24 sts and 28 rows to 4”/ 10 cm in stockinette stitch, unblocked. Gauge is not tremendously important, but if your gauge differs, the finished size and yarn usage may vary.

Needles: US 7/ 4.5 mm or size needed to achieve gauge. The shawl is worked flat.
It is possible to knit the shawl entirely on straight needles, but it will be more comfortable to use a long circular needle so that the stitches can spread out as the shawl grows. The sample was worked initially on a 40”/100 cm needle, switching to a 60”/150 cm long needle towards the end.

Questions? Please ask! Designer email is included in the pattern.

Thank you to tech editor Bonnie Davis and to the fabulous test knitters of this shawl. If you might be interested in test knitting, join the Softyarn Designs newsletter list, where all of my tests are announced. When you sign up for the newsletter, you also get a free pattern that’s not available elsewhere (Simple Hat Worked Flat) plus subscriber-only promotions and other fun stuff. Join the list here.