Hi I’m Barbara Benson and I am so excited to be able to introduce y’all to my new summer shawl in Silken! Argyroneta is a fast and easy knit that is super flexible when it comes to yardage and gauge. It is the perfect pattern to carry along on your summer adventures or simply to knit night when you want to do a bit more chatting than paying attention to your pattern.

As a designer I have a wee hoard of yarns that are “on my list”. Beautiful yarns that spoke to me when I saw them and I just had to acquire them even if I didn’t have an immediate idea what their special purpose would be. This summer I decided that I had to realize the potential of several of these skeins, mostly because I really, really wanted to knit with them.

This skein of Silken (color Lapis) was calling to me and couldn’t wait to become … something. But luckily I had an idea, and a rather simple one at that. What would happen if I moved the lace that typically trims the bottom of a shawl up to the top where it could frame the wearer’s face? The more I thought on it the more ideas I had that simply had to be pursued.

Lace along the top edge, "face framing lace!"

Also contributing to the design was the fact that it is summer and I wanted simple knitting. Once I started swatching with the beautiful 50% silk/50% merino blend that Silken brings to the table I knew that it was a perfect match for my plans. Some squooshy garter paired perfectly with the openwork created with double yarn overs in this straightforward lace.

And when I say straightforward I mean it. After you finish the set-up (which is pretty short) there is literally a two row repeat! By working the shawl on the bias the shaping does all of the heavy lifting. The stitches added to the right side increase just enough to offset the lace pattern so that you are working the same two rows over and over again until you’ve had enough or a fixin' to run out of yarn.

I chose to knit my sample for Argyroneta with only one skein and I was pleasantly surprised at my end size. But if you would like a larger shawl it would simply be a matter of adding on another skein and continuing to knit!

Now that this shawl is done I have started looking towards the Fall and knitting something that is a bit … snugglier. The lovely people at Anzula have said that it is OK for me to give y’all a little sneak peek at something I am working on in their decadent new 100% cashmere yarn Serenity.

Sneak peek: fingerless mitts in Serenity! — Sneak peek: fingerless mitts in Serenity!

I do like things easy so I am working on a pair of fingerless mitts that look like stranded knitting but are actually created using a slip stitch technique. No carrying multiple yarns along a row - simply knitting stripes and slipping stitches. I don’t have a name yet but be on the lookout! You can follow me on Instagram to make sure you don’t miss anything new!

You can find Silken at the following shops, all of which would be happy to ship to you:

Knitting Off Broadway - Fort Wayne, IN
Twisted Ewe - Garden City, ID
Knitorious - St Louis, MO
Knit 1 - Chicago, IL
Stitch Niche - Lexington, KY
Fancywork - Bend, OR

You can find Serenity at these shops:
McKnittey.com - Online only
Woolly & Co - Birmingham, IL and online
Knitting to Know Ewe - Newton, PA
Yarn Garden - Charlotte, MI

We have more Serenity in the dye pots for Amazing Threads and Yarn Kandy, and more shops so check back for updates.

As always, you can place a special order at your local Anzula shop for any of our yarns, we will dye it just for you and send it to your LYS.

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