Faroese Shawl

Utilitarian Faroese Shawl in progress
October 2015

Three years ago, I purchased three HUGE skeins from this vendor at the Knit and Crochet Show in Reno, NV.

I knit a caplet and an eternity scarf from one of the skeins, but the other two have been waiting, not so patiently, in my sewing room for the perfect project to reveal itself.

Just for the record, these skeins contain over 800 yards of superwash wool, and there are no breaks in the yarn. Winding the wool into balls on my small ball winder is out of the question, so I had to wind the yarn by hand. At times the ball was too large to handle comfortably, but I persisted.

Presently, the shawl measures 14 inches at center back. The pattern recommends knitting 26 inches, so I'll keep knitting.

measurement of yarn ball after knitting 14 inches, which is
over half of the length required. 

There is no doubt that I will have enough yarn for this project, as the photo is a bit deceiving. Here the circumference of the yarn ball in that bowl: 16 inches. How big was the ball when I started?

circumference of an unused ball of the same size skein

While I was punishing myself rolling the green yarn, I decided to roll the mauve one, too. Eight hundred yards of superwash wool makes a ball with a circumference of 21 inches.

This shawl is knit entirely in garter stitch and will make a wonderful shawl to wear around the house or to the mailbox on chilly days. If you are unfamiliar with Faroese shawls, they are shaped to stay on the shoulders: they do not bunch up or gap at the neck.

source
click on the link to see other photos of this
beautiful, red Faroese Shawl

Like shown in this photo, many Faroese shawls have lovely lace panels, but my yarn would not show the lace well, so I am knitting for function rather than decoration.

Pattern: Utilitarian Faroese Shawl by Melissa Hahn (Ravelry link)

Needles: US 11

Yarn: 100% superwash merino wool (800 yards) - pattern calls for 555 yards