Oshara Shawl Mystery KAL: Week 1

Hello Adventurous Knitters!

Several months ago, I reached out to Susanna IC with an idea for a mystery shawl knitalong. Susanna is known for her beautiful, knitter-friendly, and trendy shawl designs. Pairing a designer of her caliber with a mystery KAL was a dream come true, and after several enthusiastic exchanges, a plan for the Oshara Shawl Mystery KAL was born.

Thank you to both Susanna and Cascade Yarns, our fabulous sponsor, for joining forces with us to create this intriguing and fun kickoff to summer!

Without further ado, Susanna take it way!

With Love,
Meghan Babin

Welcome to the Oshara Shawl Mystery Knitalong! Let’s get started on this knitting adventure together. Below is the pattern portion you will need for this first week. After that, I’ve provided some visuals, tips, and tricks that will help you get through our mystery!

Over the next 4 weeks, we’ll create a versatile crescent shawl using 4 beautiful colors of Sorata by Cascade Yarns. This yarn has a luscious hand and wonderful drape thanks to the baby llama and silk fiber content, which makes it a perfect choice for a shawl. All the techniques we will be using are easy enough for an advanced beginner, and I will be here weekly to explain the methods used in the pattern and to share helpful hints.

So, get ready, get set, and cast on!

The second blog for this MKAL can be found here. Read the third post here.The final post can be found here.

Pattern Details

Skill level Intermediate

Yarn Weight #1

Finished Size 65″ wide and 26″ deep at center.

Yarn Cascade Yarns Sorata (70% baby llama, 30% silk; 437 yd [400 m]/3½ oz [100 g]): #17 midnight blue (A), #03 silver (B), and #04 charcoal (C), 1 skein each; #12 dusky teal (D), #18 antique moss (E), or #16 scarlet (F), 1 skein of any one of these 3 colors.

Needles Size 5 (3.75 mm): 32″ circular (cir). Adjust needle size if necessary to obtain the correct gauge.

Notions Markers (m); tapestry needle; blocking pins.

Gauge 19 sts and 32 rows = 4″ in garter st, after blocking.

For techniques you don’t know, please visit our online knitting glossary.

Notes

A firm cast-on is important because the curved shape needs to be supported during blocking to allow the lace points to stretch fully. See below under “Tips and Tricks to Get You Going!” for information about my preferred method, the knitted cast-on.

Be sure to keep the yarn floats loose on the wrong side to prevent puckering during blocking.

Do not break yarn at color changes unless otherwise indicated. Carry unused color up side of work until it is needed again. Bring new color under color just used.

When working short-rows in garter stitch, it is not necessary to work the wraps together with the stitches they wrap because the wraps will be hidden in the garter ridges.

A circular needle is used to accommodate the large number of stitches.

Stitch Guide

KOK: (K1, yo, k1) in same st—2 sts inc’d.

Oshara Shawl, WEEK #1

With A, CO 145 sts. Do not join.
Next row (WS) *K1tbl; rep from * to end.
Eyelet row (RS) K1, *yo, k2tog; rep from * to end.
Next row (WS) Knit.

Work short-rows as foll:
Short-row 1 (RS) K3, place marker (pm), knit to last 3 sts, wrap next st, turn.
Short-row 2 (WS) K3, pm, knit to m, remove m, wrap next st, turn.
Short-rows 3 and 4 K3, pm, knit to m, remove m, wrap next st, turn.
Rep Short-rows 3 and 4 21 more times—7 sts between wrapped sts at center. Next row (RS) Knit to m, remove m, knit to end. Next row Knit.
Inc row (RS) K7, [KOK (see Stitch Guide), k9] 13 times, KOK, k7—173 sts. Knit 3 rows, ending with a WS row.

Tips and Tricks to Get You Going!

The Cast-On

First things first: let’s talk about the cast-on. The pattern tells you that a firm cast-on is critical to the success of this project; that’s because the crescent shape needs to be supported during blocking to allow the lace points to stretch fully. I prefer to use the knitted cast-on—it’s simple to work, it’s firm, and unlike a long-tail cast-on, the knitted cast-on doesn’t need an estimated tail length.

Knitted Cast-On

• Place slipknot on left needle if there are no established stitches. *With right needle, knit into first stitch (or slipknot) on left needle (Figure 1).

• Place new stitch onto left needle (Figure 2). Repeat from *, always knitting into last stitch made.

If you find your cast-on is a bit too stretchy, use a smaller needle—but remember to switch to the recommended needle size to work the next row. If you still find that your cast-on is stretching, work an applied I-cord or a row of reverse single crochet stitch before blocking to add strength to the edge. A stretchy cast-on will result in less depth to the project, so it is important to avoid inherently elastic cast-ons, such as the backward-loop cast-on or the magic cast-on method.

Short-Rows in Garter Stitch

The Oshara Shawl begins with engaging techniques. After a decorative row of eyelets, you’ll start working the short-rows, which create the crescent shape. For simplicity’s sake, this section is worked in garter stitch; this allows you to wrap the stitches the same way on both sides so that later on, there is no need to work the wraps with stitches, which can be fiddly in thinner yarns.

How to Wrap and Turn

To wrap a stitch, slip the next stitch purlwise with the yarn in back, then bring the yarn to the front of the work. Return the slipped stitch to the left needle, then turn your work to begin the next row (Figures 3 and 4). That’s it!

Work to turning point, slip next stitch purlwise with yarn in back (Figure 3).

Bring the yarn to the front, then slip the same stitch back to the left needle (Figure 4). Turn the work around and bring the yarn in position for the next stitch—one stitch has been wrapped and the yarn is correctly positioned to work the next stitch.

If you’d like to create a printable set of instructions for the shawl, copy and paste the URL for this blog into the box at the top of this page. Your print version will be generated in a jiffy!

Worry-Free Knitting

When the short-rows are complete, there should be 7 stitches left between the wraps. If you have a different number, don’t panic! As long as the number of stitches between the final wraps is 10 or fewer and you still have 145 stitches on the needle, move on to the next step.

It’s essential that you have the correct number of stitches to work the next section, so double-check your stitch count at this point. If you are missing a stitch or have an extra one, make an adjustment by increasing or decreasing along the edge of the last knit row.

That’s all for my tips and tricks for Week 1! You should have a cute garter-stitch crescent on your needle ready for some easy colorwork.

Happy knitting!
Susanna IC
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