Delphine

Delphine Shawl by Stella Ackroyd

What is Being Made

Delphine is a knitted shawl designed by independent designer Stella Ackroyd. This intermediate-level project creates a generous triangular shawl with a blocked wingspan of approximately 152 centimeters (60 inches) and a depth of 76 centimeters (30 inches), making it a substantial accessory suitable for layering or wrapping.

Craft and Technique

This shawl is constructed using the knitting craft with a specialized approach to shawl construction. The design employs the two-needle lace method, which is a foundational technique for creating openwork patterns in shawl knitting. The pattern begins with a small cast-on of just 2 stitches, and the shawl is worked in rows using a garter stitch tab as the foundation before transitioning into the main lace pattern. This method allows for gradual increases that shape the shawl into its triangular form while maintaining structural integrity.

Stitches and Pattern Details

Delphine features a sophisticated lace pattern that forms the visual interest of the finished piece. The stitch work incorporates several key knitting techniques:

• Knit (K) stitches form the base structure
• Purl (P) stitches add texture and definition
• Yarn forward (yfwd) creates the characteristic eyelets and openwork typical of lace shawls
• Knit two together (K2tog) and knit two together through back of loops (K2tog tbl) decrease stitches to balance the yarn overs and maintain shaping
• Slip stitch (sl 1) and pass slipped stitch over (psso) techniques for additional decreasing options
• Knit into back of strand (m1) for strategic increases

The foundation pattern is worked in rows across the right side and wrong side, with the lace pattern repeating throughout the body of the shawl to create an elegant, openwork design.

Materials and Specifications

The Delphine shawl is designed to be worked in Isager Highland Wool in a 3-ply yarn weight, with the photographed sample shown in the Sand colorway. The pattern requires 3 x 50 gram balls of yarn, totaling 150 grams of material.

The project calls for an 80 centimeter circular needle in size 3.5mm (US 4). The circular needle format allows for the smooth, continuous knitting required when working a large shawl with many stitches, and the 80-centimeter length provides ample space for the expanding stitch count as the shawl grows.

The recommended tension is 22 stitches and 40 rows to 10 centimeters (4 inches) when measured over the lace pattern and blocked using the specified 3.5mm needle size. Achieving proper tension and blocking the finished shawl is essential to open up the lace pattern and achieve the intended finished dimensions.