Today’s post is a two-fer: a yarn review and a new pattern that I have released (and that you can get for free!)
A few months ago I was offered the opportunity to knit something out of Manos del Uruguay’s newest yarn, Alma. Alma is a fingering-weight single dyed in Manos del Uruguay’s signature dying methods creating 15 gorgeous colorways on soft, fluffy yarn. Alma is an 100% superwash merino and comes in 100g skeins with a whopping 546 yards/500 meters apiece.
I selected the colors Mercy (dark orange) and Inspiration (light melon) and knew I wanted to create a squishy garter stitch shawl to keep me warm this fall. At the same time, I was asked by Eucalan if I had any interest in designing a pattern for them to give away this fall!
It took me a few weeks of brainstorming and sketching, but I settled on a crescent shawl, shaped with short rows in wedges or chunks. I wanted to play with solid blocks of color and make a highly contrasting shawl. I think this shawl would also work with a solid and a multi as well.
The yarn was luscious. When I first wound it, I was afraid that it was going to be too delicate for design work. What I mean is that I knew I would have to rip (three times!) to get what I wanted and I was afraid that the singles just wouldn’t stand up to the task. I was absolutely thrilled that they did! Even though I re-knit certain sections multiple times, the yarn still looks absolutely perfect. And oh so soft and squishy!
Salmon Run is suitable for advanced beginners. If you know how to make increases (m1R and m1L) and wrap & turn, you can do this shawl! The shawl is worked back and forth, but a circular needle is recommended to hold the large number of stitches near the end.
The best part is this pattern is available to you for free! Salmon Run is exclusive to Eucalan for the first six months and you can get a free copy by signing up for their newsletter! The pattern will be free through Eucalan forever, but after six months it will also be available for purchase in my Ravelry store if you’re hesitant to sign up for another newsletter.
I hope you enjoy knitting Salmon Run!
Yarn
Manos Del Uruguay Alma (100% Superwash Merino, 546 yards/100 grams per skein), 2 skeins.
Shown in MC: Mercy and CC: Inspiration.
Needles
US 6 (4 mm), 32” circular needle or length desired, or size to obtain gauge.
Notions
Tapestry needle for weaving in ends, stitch markers (optional, for marking short rows)
Gauge
24 sts x 48 rows in 4”/10 cm, in Garter Stitch, very lightly blocked
Finished Size
Wingspan: 80”/203 cm
Depth: 14”/36 cm
A special thank you to the folks at Fairmount Fibers for yarn support; they sent me two skeins of Alma (retail: $60.00) for free.
Also thank you to my tech editor Lisa Beth Houchins and my photographer Ana Reinert!