The Garden is My Muse: Crocheting A Lacy Shawl

Each Spring and Summer, I glory in the richness and splendor of my husbands garden.  It is hard to imagine that there could be so many shades of green from the deepest blue-green, to to rich pine colored solids, yellow and chartreuse , and muted shades that boast an irredescent sheen. Words can not begin to describe the splendor, nor can photos or yarn capture the shades and hues.  Last week,  I guided my knitting friends through the garden path as I created a striped, hooded sweater in rich lime that is meant for my granddaughter's fall wardrobe.
(http://www.lilcreates.com/lillians-blog/graden-inspriations-for-knitting-a-toddler-striped-hooded-cardigan  ) Today I am inspired by a different muse.  These plants are the muted houkeras.The greens are sage-like with sight brown and tawny colors as the threads vary and change.  This garden is my husbands work of art.  The canvas is 2+ acres of wooded land that he has converted to a Hosta paradise.  In addition to the 1000+ different varieties of Hostas, he has supplemented with grasses, Japanese Maples, Heukeras, Epemedia, and a variety of Flowering Perennials.  As I explained in my last post, my husband, Bert, is mostly recovered from a broken leg that he suffered in January when he was doing maintenance work on the yard with a friend  As soon as he was off the crutches he began the arduous preparations for this years display with spreading yards and yards of compost and mulch, followed by spraying to keep away the deer and unwanted insects. This is my own personal park, and each time I walk along the paths, I take photos in the hope that I can replicate the interesting colors and patterns.

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For spring and summer I wanted a lacy cover that would drape over a top or dress.  Bert's newest garden enclave featured 3 heukera with delicately hued leaves.   I chose the last plant for my inspiration because I remembered 3 skeins of Unforgettable  (Red Heart) varied sage light green with subtle overtones of tan in places. Unforgettable is a classified as a #4 (Worsted weight) yarn,  but it seems to be lighter in places.  When I used the J (6.00 mm) hook I was sure to get that lacy effect.

I searched my pattern collection until I found the right lacy shawl.  Kaleidoscope is a downloadable pattern from Red Heart (#LM5992) When finished the shawl measures 64 inches wide by 32 inches deep at the center point.  As I used the J 6.00mm hook instead of the H 4.0hood noted in the pattern, and  my wingspan (width) was 72 inches. The pattern began with several rows of cluster stitches.  Next was a 5 row band of open mesh.  This pattern repeated itself 3 more times.  I only had enough yarn for 2 of the 5 final rows of mesh before adding a foundation row of single crochet before crocheting a border row.  I made another change here.  The pattern called for single crochet and picot stitch sequence.  I found the directions confusing, and did not like the result. Painstakenly, I frogged about a foot of Unforgettable yarn.  This is one drawback of this lovely fiber, The threads seem to stick together, making it very difficult to separate and undo.  When I was done, I settled on the border shown in the photos below.  Starting with a coupe of single crochets, I make one HDC, one DC, and one TC, all in the same stitch.  I single crocheted in the next 3stitches and repeated the pattern around

Next week, Bert and I will be attending the 2018 national convention for the American Hosta Association.  My lacy green shawl will be just the perfect cover for the air-conditioned halls at this meeting of Hosta Enthusiasts from all over the country.