Garden parties and *HUGS*

Little baby Foxglove and Canterbury Bells....

....sprigs of English Lavender (and promises of others!)....

....my favorite, the happy Forget-Me-Nots (dressed in a blue too hard to capture)....

....the remaining Irises, frilly all over....

....and my peppermint, to reenact my delicious Oxford tea....

....all together issuing a plea for an Edwardian garden party.

I have an obsession with the Edwardian style.  I once-upon-a-time believed that Victorian was prime in my eyes, except when the Regency fashions drew my attention.  But that was only until I noticed the ferns and the flowers draped on the simple silhouettes of the Edwardians.

So, don your Beech Leaf Shawl and your favorite maxi, and please come to my imaginary garden party, held under the golden birches among a bed of ferns.

I thoroughly enjoyed knitting the shawl.  In fact, more and more I am realizing how fun shawl knitting is!  Lace is very rewarding to knit, and since it is usually (extremely) repetitive, I find it easy knitting after the first few rounds.

The shawl I made is obviously not a shawl, but rather more like a scarf.  I only had one ball of lace (Debbie Bliss Rialto, which is merino wool), which is not even the DK called for, so I modified the pattern:

• My needles were size 4
• I cast on 40 more sts than the largest size.
• Then, I did not follow the pattern for the shaping, but did my own
• I also included shaping in the garter st section

In the end, the scarf is no more than 6 inches wide in the middle, but the length must be approximately 6 feet....or likely more.

But I should mention:  this scarf is just a **hug** for a friend far away, who needs hugs and prayers!  One of the most wonderful parts of knitting is that, when friends are far away, we can send hugs and love to them.  I find it imperative to use my love of knitting as Jesus and my heart call me to, so while I make an awful lot for myself (yikes), I make it a priority to knit for others as I see/feel need.

I can knit all day long, but if it never means anything to anyone but myself, what is the use of it?  Just leaves me as the selfish little fish, who couldn't share his pretty rainbow scales.

These are things I constantly remind myself of.  There is work, there are enjoyments, and there is working toward the joy of others.  To be able to create and give, with the reward of glad appreciation:  I can think of nothing greater.

Friends of mine who do not knit:  if you ever see a need and want something personal (and woolly!) to give, contact me!  I have knit fine alpaca hats by request, and am game for just about anything else.

So what about all of you, my friends?  What do any of you like to knit or do for others?

I hope you have a wonderful next couple of weeks.  I am retreating back into silence again, due to foreseeable hecticness.  I look forward to catching up with you when I can, whether in blog or in person!

Toodle-ooo!