It was one of those fiber festival impulse purchases – I walked by the tent and a vibrant braid of fiber caught my eye. But it was only 2 ounces. How could I showcase a small amount of handspun yarn while still making a larger project? Commercial yarn to the rescue (of course, you can use handspun for both yarns!). The handspun yarn is the star in this shawl. The rainbow was dyed on a bi-color Corriedale top – a top that contained stripes of both white and brown Corriedale – which lent an earthy richness to the dyed fiber and resulting yarn. I split the fiber down the middle and spun two singles, then plied them together, allowing a small amount of barber-poling when the color stretches didn’t line up.

Handspun can be tricky – how far will that yardage actually stretch? In many cases you can’t get more fibre to spin – you have what you have, and that’s it. I didn’t want to get caught short so I designed a pattern that is completely flexible with the amount of showcase yarn.

Vaunt is a modified heart-shaped shawl made with alternating stripes of vibrant handspun and a tonal main color, finished with a simple lace trellis edging. It looks best with the background yarn slightly thinner than your handspun yarn. Make sure the colours contrast well.

Wingspan: 56 inches / 142 cm
Depth: 23 inches / 58 cm
Yardage used: MC: 378 y/346 m / CC: 138 y/125 m