Berroco Shutter Shade Shawl Wrap Knitting Pattern

Berroco Shutter Shade Shawl

What Is Being Made

The Berroco Shutter Shade Shawl is a rectangular stole-style wrap designed by Mary Lou Egan from Portfolio Vol. 5. This seamless knit project produces a finished piece measuring approximately 25 inches wide by 72 inches long, making it an elegant accessory suitable for layering or draping. The design features a distinctive slip-stitch colorwork pattern that creates visual texture and interest across the fabric.

Craft and Skill Level

This is a knitting project classified as beginner difficulty, making it an excellent choice for knitters who have mastered basic stitches and are ready to explore simple colorwork techniques. The straightforward construction and repetitive stitch pattern make this an approachable introduction to multi-color knitting without requiring complex shaping or advanced techniques.

Techniques Used

The Shutter Shade Shawl employs several fundamental knitting techniques:

• Bottom-up construction: The shawl is worked from the cast-on edge upward to the desired length, allowing for easy adjustments to the final dimensions
• Seamless, flat knitting: The entire piece is worked in one continuous section without seaming, maintaining a clean, finished appearance
• Slip-stitch colorwork: The pattern uses slipped stitches to create color changes without carrying yarn across large sections, a technique that adds visual texture while remaining manageable for beginners
• Color carrying: The pattern instructs knitters to carry the unused color up the side edge, a practical method for managing multiple yarns in a two-color design

Stitches and Stitch Patterns

The Shutter Shade Shawl utilizes a limited but effective stitch vocabulary:

• Garter stitch: The foundational stitch throughout the project, created by knitting every row. This produces a reversible, textured fabric with excellent drape and is the basis for the gauge measurement of 16 stitches and 16 rows per 4 inches after blocking
• Slip-stitch colorwork pattern: A four-row repeat that alternates between two colors (Earth and Smoke). The pattern incorporates knit and purl stitches combined with slipped stitches worked with yarn in back (wyib) on right-side rows and yarn in front (wyif) on wrong-side rows. This creates vertical slip-stitch columns at regular intervals that give the shawl its characteristic shutter-like appearance
• Selvage edge treatment: The slip-stitch columns at the edges intentionally curl slightly even after blocking, creating a naturally finished selvage without additional finishing techniques

Materials: Yarn and Needles

The pattern calls for specific materials to achieve the intended finished product:

• Yarn: Berroco Remix Light, a yarn weight suitable for creating fabric with good drape. The project requires 2 balls each of two colorways: #6975 Earth (C1) and #6930 Smoke (C2), for a total of 4 balls. Each ball weighs 100 grams, providing sufficient yardage for the 72-inch length
• Needles: Size 7 (4.50 mm) straight needles or a 29-inch circular needle. The choice between straight and circular needles is left to the knitter's preference, though circular needles may reduce strain during the extended knitting required to reach 72 inches in length
• Gauge: Achieving the correct gauge of 16 stitches and 16 rows over 4 inches in garter stitch after blocking is essential for obtaining the specified finished dimensions. The pattern emphasizes checking gauge before beginning to ensure accurate results

Construction Overview

The shawl begins with casting on 136 stitches in Earth (C1), followed by a single knit row on the wrong side. The knitter then transitions to Smoke (C2) and begins the four-row slip-stitch colorwork repeat, alternating between the two colors. This pattern repeats until the piece reaches approximately 72 inches in length or the desired finished measurement. The project concludes with two final rows in Earth (C1) before binding off, creating a balanced color finish.