Cyclamen in the Moss

Cyclamen in the Moss is a rectangular shawl, and you will reach for it just about any day. You start with a foundation row along the short edge and work in rows until it is as long as you want, so the whole thing grows straight and even. That makes it the kind of project you can pick up tired and still get right.

Here is the quiet secret of it. The whole wrap is chain and double crochet, nothing more, and yet the open pattern reads as far more involved than it is. The spaces and rows line up into a mesh that looks intricate from across the room, while under your hands it stays simple and quick. Only you will know how easily it came together.

It wears like a rectangle should, which is to say every way you want. Blocked, it runs 16 inches wide and 69 inches long, enough to wrap twice at the neck, drape long down the front, or sit loose across the shoulders. The lace keeps it light, so it layers over almost anything without weighing you down.

Yarn: 

875 yards / 800m of lace weight yarn.

The sample uses West Yorkshire Spinners Exquisite (80% Falkland wool, 20% mulberry silk, 875 yards / 800m = 3.5 oz / 100g) in the color #585 Belgravia.

Hook: 

US size D/3 (3.25 mm), or the size needed for gauge. Make sure you take the time to check it before you start.

Notions: 

Tapestry needle

Gauge: 

In pattern, 23 stitches and 9 rows = 4 inches / 10 cm, blocked. Check your gauge before you begin. It sets both the width and length and tells you whether your yardage will carry the full wrap.

Finished Size: 

Blocked, the wrap is approximately 16 inches / 40.5 cm wide and 69 inches / 152.5 cm long. Blocking opens the mesh and sets the drape, so plan for it.