Wave Shawl

Wave Shawl by Karen Burnett

Project Overview

The Wave Shawl is an intermediate-level knitted shawl designed by Karen Burnett. This downloadable PDF pattern creates a finished shawl measuring 68 inches wide by 13.5 inches deep (172 cm x 34 cm), making it a generous triangular or crescent-shaped accessory suitable for layering or wearing as a wrap.

What Is Being Made

This pattern produces a decorative shawl with wave-like stitch patterns. The generous dimensions and intermediate difficulty level indicate a project that combines basic knitting techniques with more advanced shaping methods to create visual interest and movement in the finished fabric.

Materials Required

• Yarn: 4 ply weight yarn totaling approximately 150g. The pattern specifies Cherry Drops and Polly yarn for this project.
• Needles: 3.5mm circular or straight needles, sized to accommodate the 4 ply yarn weight and achieve proper gauge.

Gauge and Sizing

The pattern is worked to a gauge of 24 stitches by 40 rows over 4 inches (10 cm) in stockinette stitch when blocked. Achieving proper gauge is essential for obtaining the correct finished dimensions of 68 inches wide by 13.5 inches deep.

Knitting Techniques and Stitches

The Wave Shawl employs several intermediate knitting techniques to create its distinctive appearance:

• Stockinette Stitch: The foundation stitch used throughout the project, created by alternating knit and purl rows.
• Yarn Overs (yo): Used to create decorative eyelets and lace elements that contribute to the wave pattern.
• Knit Increases (kfb): Increases worked by knitting into the front and back of a single stitch to add stitches for shaping.
• Decreases: Both knit two together (k2tog) and slip-slip-knit (ssk) decreases are used to shape the shawl and create stitch pattern definition.
• German Short Rows with Make Double Stitch (mds): An advanced shaping technique employed to create the wave contours. The make double stitch is a specialized method where a stitch is slipped purlwise with the yarn positioned at the front, then the working yarn is pulled tightly and lifted over the needle to create a double stitch. This technique is worked at the turning points of short rows, with subsequent rows knitting or purling the double stitch as instructed.

Pattern Structure

The pattern uses standard knitting abbreviations and instructions including repeats (rpt/rpts), make one increases (m1), and slip-slip-knit decreases (s2k1ps). The inclusion of German short row techniques with make double stitches indicates a sophisticated construction method that creates the wave shaping while maintaining stitch integrity throughout the project.

Skill Level Considerations

Rated as intermediate difficulty, this pattern assumes knitters are comfortable with basic stitches and shaping but may be encountering German short rows and make double stitch techniques for the first time. The pattern provides detailed abbreviations and special stitch instructions to guide knitters through these more advanced techniques.