Sophie shawl by PetiteKnit

made with vintage Japanese silk yarn

This project was a yarn-first affair. The type where you’re gifted, or thrift, some yarn, and you try to find a project to match. If I’m honest, it’s not my favourite way to plan a project, it can sometimes be quite difficult to find a pattern to match both the weight and length of yarn, especially if both are a bit of a guessing game. On the other hand, it can be so satisfying when you nail it with the pattern/yarn combo, especially when the yarn is thrifted or destashed. For me, it’s so much more gratifying than buying yarn, which feels like less of a challenge, less of a creative adventure. I love that feeling of creating something beautiful or useful, from something discarded or unloved.

Having said all that, I had a bit of a false start with this project. The yarn is a beautiful vintage Japanese silk, brought back from Japan by my friend Moira in the 1980s. She very kindly passed it onto me, having had it sitting in her stash for all those years. I got a bit hung up on picking a pattern that really featured the yarn, something that would allow the wool to be the star of the show. Initially I settled on the Umbria Summer Top, by Cookie the Knitter, thinking I could make the whole top from the yarn I had available, and a silk top would be a lovely, light item for my summer wardrobe.

It’s not immediately obvious from the photo above, of the yarn in it’s original cakes, but it’s more on the dusky pink end of the spectrum, rather than the burgundy red I prefer. It’s a very subtle distinction, but as I started knitting the Umbria top, I realised with every growing inch, that the colour just wasn’t right for me. I debated continuing regardless, maybe over-dying the resulting top, but it felt too forced, too difficult. The aim of this project was to enjoy and use this beautiful yarn, to do it justice and allow it to be finally worn and loved. It seemed ridiculous to spend hours knitting something in a yarn colour I wouldn’t wear, only to then risk dying it, with the possibility of shrinkage along the way.

In the end, I decided to go with a more simple, straightforward pattern, the Sophie Shawl from PetiteKnit. The other thing I learned, from my failed Umbria experiment, was that I really dislike the squeaky nature of knitting with silk. I’ve had this issue with cotton yarn in the past as well, the feeling of the yarn squeaking as you handle it gives me goosebumps, similar to the nail-on-a-blackboard feeling. I turned to my tried and true yarn store, Knitted Home, and chose their Drops Brushed Alpaca Silk, to hold double with my silk yarn.

The resultant fabric is beautiful; soft and airy, warm and comforting. I think I may have lost track of how long my shawl was becoming, it is a slightly comedic length, but it goes round my neck three times and gives me the option to wear it as a hood. It’s the kind of pattern that is quite meditative, so it’s easy to loose track if you’re not careful. I’m not complaining though, it’s been perfect for the recent sub-zero weather!

I love how the tails look, casually knotted. It’s nice to wear a scarf like this, knowing it’s not going to unravel and poke out of the bottom of your coat.

I haven’t been brave enough to wear it as a head covering for much more than the walk from the gym to the car, when my hair is wet and the air is cold. According to the Guardian Fashion Statement, my weekly fashion email newsletter, hoods are very trendy at the moment (that article actually namechecks PetiteKnit) so clearly I need to branch out of my comfort zone and try wearing it like this into town.

This project has been a success so far! I’ve worn it almost daily since finishing it, and I’m hoping I’ll have another few weeks of use out of it before the weather becomes too warm and it’ll be packed away until the autumn. It’s also one of my knitting goals for 2025 ticked off the list! I love the colour, it goes with so many things in my wardrobe, I’m very grateful to Moira for this beautiful yarn gift.