Signum Shawlette

Signum Shawlette by Corrine Walcher

What is Being Made

The Signum Shawlette is a lacy, lightweight shawl designed as a versatile accessory piece. This shawlette measures 17 x 64 inches once blocked, making it an elegant wrap suitable for layering or draping. The design is intentionally created to use most of a single skein of yarn, making it an excellent stash-busting project for knitters with leftover yardage from other projects.

Design Approach and Construction

Signum is worked from side to side in a simple lacy pattern, offering an intuitive knitting experience for intermediate-level crafters. The shawlette features a unique construction method based on yarn weight rather than row counting. Knitters weigh their yarn at the start and work the increase portion of the shawl until approximately half the yarn has been used, then transition to the decrease portion to complete the piece. This approach allows the design to adapt to various yarn quantities and weights, making it highly customizable.

Stitches and Techniques

The Signum Shawlette incorporates lacy stitch patterns that create an open, delicate fabric. The sample was worked in stockinette stitch as the base structure, with the lace elements integrated throughout. The shawl is knit flat on a circular needle working from one end to the other in a side-to-side direction. This construction method creates a natural flow to the finished piece and allows for easy adjustments based on yarn availability.

Yarn and Materials

The sample shawlette was knit using Awenydd Yarn and Fiber Elemental Sock, a 100% Superwash Merino yarn with 438 yards per 100 grams. The sample was worked in the colorway Signum Magnum. While the pattern was designed with fingering weight yarn in mind, it is adaptable to any yarn weight and any gauge, offering flexibility for knitters working with different fiber types and thicknesses.

Needles and Gauge

The Signum Shawlette is worked on a 24-inch circular needle in size 5 US (3.75 mm), or a size appropriate to obtain the recommended gauge. The target gauge is 18 stitches and 28 rows per 4 inches in wet-blocked stockinette stitch. However, gauge is not critical for this project; variations in gauge will affect the drape and the total amount of yarn consumed, but the shawlette will still be successful. This flexibility makes the pattern accessible to knitters with different tension and needle preferences.

Yarn Weight Considerations

Although Signum was originally designed with fingering weight yarn, the pattern's adaptive nature means it can be successfully knit with any yarn weight. The key to success is using a scale to measure yarn consumption, dividing your total yardage in half, and adjusting your knitting accordingly. This makes the shawlette an excellent choice for using up partial skeins or experimenting with different fiber weights while maintaining the intended proportions and drape of the finished piece.