Valley Yarns Smitten Knitting Pattern

Valley Yarns Smitten Knit Shawl

Project Overview

The Valley Yarns Smitten is an intermediate-level knit shawl designed by Julie Turjoman. This long wrap features a luxurious cashmere and wool blend fiber and showcases a stunning scalloped lace border paired with an eyelet field. The finished piece measures approximately 17½ inches deep by 72 inches wide, making it an elegant accessory suitable for layering or draping.

What Is Being Made

Smitten is a seamless, worked-flat wrap-style shawl constructed in one piece. The design begins with a decorative scalloped lace border that runs along the length of the piece, followed by an eyelet field that extends the depth of the wrap. The shawl features an asymmetrical shape created through strategic decrease shaping worked into the edges of the eyelet field, giving the finished garment a distinctive silhouette.

Techniques Used

This pattern employs several key knitting techniques to achieve its elegant finished appearance:

• Bottom-up construction: The shawl begins with a cast-on edge and is worked upward, allowing knitters to try on and adjust the length as needed
• Seamless, worked-flat method: Stitches are worked back and forth in rows on a circular needle rather than in the round, creating a flat fabric without seams
• Lace knitting: The scalloped border and eyelet field both utilize lace techniques, incorporating yarn overs and decreases to create openwork patterns
• Stitch pickup: Stitches are picked up from the long edge of the lace border to transition into the eyelet field, eliminating the need for seaming
• Decrease shaping: Strategic decreases worked at each end of the eyelet field rows create the asymmetrical shape characteristic of this wrap design
• Slipped stitch edges: The first stitch of every row is slipped to create a smooth, finished edge on the sides of the shawl

Stitches and Stitch Patterns

The Smitten pattern incorporates two primary stitch patterns:

• Lace Border Pattern: A 17-stitch by 12-row repeating lace pattern that creates the scalloped edge. The pattern is worked 21 times across the cast-on edge, with five complete 12-row repeats creating the initial border depth of approximately 8½ inches
• Eyelet Field Stitch: The main body of the shawl features an eyelet pattern worked in rows. Row 1 (right side) alternates knit two together and yarn over stitches across the row. Row 2 (wrong side) incorporates slip-slip-purl decreases at the edges and standard purl stitches in the field, with decreases worked to shape the asymmetrical silhouette. This pattern is repeated until the eyelet field reaches 9 inches in depth

Additional stitches used throughout include the long-tail cast-on method for the initial 363 stitches, slip stitches for edge definition, and a knitwise bind-off to finish the piece.

Materials and Gauge

The Smitten pattern calls for Valley Yarns Wachusett, a premium blend of 70% Merino Wool and 30% Cashmere. The yarn is worked at 163 yards per 50-gram ball, and six balls are required to complete the shawl in the specified colorway (Moss Green, color number 200743). A US size 6 (4.0 millimeter) 40-inch circular needle is used to achieve the specified gauge of 20 stitches and 28 rows over 4 inches in the eyelet field stitch, measured after blocking. Additional materials include stitch markers for pattern tracking and a tapestry needle for weaving in yarn ends.

Skill Level and Construction Notes

This pattern is rated at the intermediate skill level, making it suitable for knitters with foundational knowledge of basic stitches and techniques who are ready to explore lace knitting and shaping. The entire shawl is worked in one piece back and forth in rows on a circular needle, beginning with the lace border and continuing with the eyelet field. The pattern provides a video tutorial reference for the long-tail cast-on method to assist knitters. Blocking is recommended to achieve the specified gauge and to enhance the lace pattern definition.