top of page
Search

Project Corner: Perfect Plumage with the Pincha Shawl

AKA - my Awesome Tiny Bird Cape!


A knitted shawl in feathery design, with orange and turquoise colours

Right from the moment I first dyed up Halcyon, I knew I needed to find a bird-themed pattern that would allow its plumage to shine, just like the feathers of the kingfisher that inspired the colourway. Enter the Pincha - a deceptively simple scarf that uses garter stitch and short rows to create a swirling stack of feather motifs. ‘Pincha’ comes from the Sanskrit for ‘peacock feather’, so combined with Halcyon - Greek for ‘kingfisher’ - it’s a match made in avian heaven. What’s more, this beautiful one-skein knitting pattern is FREE to download! Designer Pinpilan Wangsai has published the step by step instructions on Knitty.com, so there’s no reason not to get stuck right into this birdy bonanza!




This unusual shawl pattern also solves the eternal question of what to do with one skein of variegated yarn. Many people buy that one special hand dyed skein of fingering weight yarn because they love the way the colours look together, but are then daunted by the potential for pooling and the lack of colour control. This very colour chaos is a positive boon with the Pincha. As the designer herself says:


"This shawl uses only one skein of any sock yarn of your choice but it looks best when the color is variegated"

And she is so right. The backwards-and-forwards shaping given by the short rows allows varying lengths of colour runs to play next to each other and break up any pooling. My own skein of Halcyon even created a subtle gradient as the inner part of this particular hank, when caked, must have had more orange than the outer - see how it goes from darker turquoise to golden orange towards the tip. I adore this inadvertent effect and it’s a wonderful example of letting the skein speak for itself, embracing its uniqueness and using the unpredictability to its best advantage:


A hand knitted shawl forms a spiral shape pinned to a blocking mat
Swirling on the blocking mat

On to the knitting itself, and oh, this was a joy. I really do recommend this pattern for any beginner looking to practise their wrap and turns, or even the more experienced knitter who wants a zen, meditative knitting experience. Each feather probably took me about an hour - far less for those not as easily distracted - and you can make the scarf as long or short as you wish. There’s a ‘save point’ at the end of every feather where you could choose to cast off or carry on. If you’re anything like me you’ll be saying ‘just one more’ every time you hit one of these points! My shawl used all but the tiniest scrap of my 100g (400m) skein of 4ply, and the final count was 24 feathers. So it’s a satisfyingly waste-free project, too!


I wasn’t quite sure how I was going to wear the finished item, but once it was off the needles and blocked I flung it round my neck and - well, turns out it isn’t just a scarf, it’s an AWESOME TINY BIRD CAPE! I love how you can style this as a kind of collar, almost like a feathery knitted armour (I appreciate how useless that combination would be as actual armour, but you get the idea).



I can’t wait to cast on another, possibly in Basilisk for a bit of a dragon vibe. Oooh, or imagine the fiery badassery of one knitted in Didn’t You Have A Flaming Sword? I’ve even got half a mind to see if I can do a scrappy one with a different colour for each feather.


What do we think, yarnfans? Will you be casting on your own Awesome Tiny Bird Cape? If you do, I’d love to see it. We can be a team of cool feathery warriors together. Squawk!


Project Details:

Yarn used: 1 x100g skein of Skeinhawk Yarns 4ply Luxury Sock (85% Merino, 15% Nylon), in 'Halcyon' colourway

Pattern: Pincha Shawl by Pinpilan Wangsai, from Knitty.com (free at time of writing)

My Ravelry project page: https://ravel.me/Skeinhawk/ps



Project Corner: White Cats In The Black Lodge: Twin Peaks with a side of Yarn Chicken

I've long been a fan of Marna Gilligan (aka An Caitin Beag) and her cat-themed designs. When a website's tagline is "if you like it then you oughta knit a cat on it", you know you're in a good place. The Spacecat Invaders jumper has been on my project list for ages but was bumped unceremoniously to second cat-place when Marna released the Twin Peaks inspired White Cats In The Black Lodge top-down sweater pattern.



The yoke of a black knitted jumper, with colourwork in chevrons of red alternated with white cat faces
The cats are not what they seem

Black, red, white and covered in cats? Be still my beating goth heart. Add to that the inspiration of some classic 90's cult TV and this seamless knit rocketed to the top of my list.


The majority of this design is solid black. This can be a tricksy colour to get right with hand-dyed yarn. If you want an expanse of solid, even colour - especially a dark colour - hand dyed is probably not your first choice. The joy of hand dyed yarn is in the variation so you are likely to get areas of light and dark within one skein, let alone in a sweater's worth. However, I had recently developed my semisolid blue-undertoned 'Quoth' colourway and I took a punt, thinking it would be more interesting than a plain black void of colour.


Turns out this was an excellent choice. When knitting with hand dyed yarn, it's advised that you alternate skeins every few rows in order to prevent pooling. Did I do this? Did I buffalo. I winged it. And you know what? The batch I dyed up merged perfectly. I know where the joins are, and even I can't tell by looking at the right side.



A hand knitted jumper displayed on a dressmakers dummy
The knits are wondrous here, but strange


I did, however, get into a pickle with the sleeves.


I'd dyed up 4 skeins because that was exactly what I would need for my size and I live on the edge. Readers, do not do this. Always allow a bit extra - especially if you're using hand dyed, because the chances of dyeing up one more skein to match an original batch are, well, about the same as keeping a grip on what's going on throughout all seasons of Twin Peaks.


I finished the first sleeve with precisely the weight of yarn remaining that I would need for the second one. Which of course, magically became not-enough-yarn by the time I got to the cuff. A bit of unravelling - and a lot of swearing - saw me cannibalising the previously cast-off first sleeve to give me enough 'Quoth' to get through to the decreases, then I used what was left of my red alternate colour to add jaunty scarlet cuffs in place of the intended black ones. Phew.


After a record FOUR DAYS of blocking (the weather here is WET, y'all), I was able to declare 'White Cats in the Black Lodge (red cuff edition)' complete.


10/10 for the pattern, 2/10 for the completely avoidable yarn chicken peril I put myself in over Christmas.


Fancy making your own?


Pattern: 'White Cats In The Black Lodge' by Marna Gilligan at www.caitinbeag.com

Yarns: Skeinhawk Yarns Polwarth Lustre DK in 'Quoth' (specially dyed batch), and undyed, along with DK Romney in 'Raspberry Red Cochineal' by Folkestone Harbour Yarn

Ravelry Project Link: Click here (opens in Ravelry)





PS If you're better at yarn chicken than me you can show off about it with the Yarn Chicken Champion tin and stitch marker set. I haven't earned this badge just yet.....



Project Corner - Venomous Cowl and a lesson in contrast


I finished this cowl a little late for Halloween, but it's always spooky season here at Skeinhawk Towers!


Stephanie Lotven of Tellybean Knits designs fabulously fun colorwork patterns, including a range of ingeniously shaped cowls. Knit in the round, central increases create a longer front than back, giving a pointed bandana effect. This is not only comfy to wear but also shows off the intricate designs beautifully. The Venomous Cowl is the first one I’ve knitted, and I’m sure it won’t be my last.



A pink and grey knitted cowl with a spiderweb design, modelled on a dressmakers dummy
The Venomous Cowl pattern by Tellybean Knits


I actually started this cowl twice. Originally, I was using a skein of purple ‘Beauregarde’ along with the grey ‘Maxim', but they just weren’t doing it for me. While obviously very different when sat next to each other in the skeins, they did not give the requisite ‘pop’ when translated into colorwork. So I switched up to magenta and POW! Spiderama!


A lesson in contrast

The mistake I made was not checking my contrast first - and I don’t mean the setting on old TVs that those of us of a certain age remember having to twiddle about with so your nan could watch the snooker. While hues can be very different, if they are too similar in depth of shade, two completely different colors of yarn can blend together when used for colorwork. This can give a lovely subtle effect, but if you’re after clear sharp patterns, it’s a bit disappointing.


A good way to check the contrast between yarn is to take a photo of them together and turn it into black and white (we’re back to the 1980s telly again). If they both look like similar shades of grey, there’s not enough contrast. If one is noticeably darker than the other, you’re in business.


Compare my two attempts. See how much more defined the shades are against each other in the pink version?




Fancy making your own?

Luckily, my bright pink and grey worked splendidly together, and I am loving the result. In fact, it looks so good and was so much fun to knit, I’ve put together a bundle listing so you can pick up the same yarns that I used in one no-brainer click. The pattern is not included, so if you want to be twinsies with me and knit yourself a Venomous Cowl, you’ll need to pop over to https://www.tellybeanknits.com/ and buy one. I am in no way responsible for what other patterns may fall into your basket while you’re there; I’ve got a Bonehead Sweater on my list next!




bottom of page