I posted about finishing my “Garbage” version of Veera Valimaki’s “Color Affectation” shawl. Here are more photos and details about knitting it. This shawl was created, entirely, from a bag of leftover yarns from multiple projects. There was no specific color scheme. Many of the yarns looked a lot alike, and I wasn’t sure how they would work together. They are all of the same fingering weight, but are of different (unknown, at this point!) materials. So, I wet-blocked the shawl and let it air-dry.
The yarns that are similar in color add a subtle depth and richness. The color change isn’t apparent unless you look closely.
I labeled the remnants “garbage” in my head, and promised myself that if it looked awful when finished that I would be fine with that. I could throw it away, or use it wrap around something for protection – knitted fabric is always useful for something. But, of course, stripes are magic and make everything look interesting. The power of color should never be under-estimated. Even though I teach on the subject, and have knit countless projects with striping, I marvel at the magic that it has, every single time.
I used every scrap up, and attached the next random color with the Russian join technique. There only a few ends to bury, after blocking. Note the Darker blue, above, joined to the lighter blue in mid-row
I wore the shawl to work, and got tons of compliments. If I had tried to coordinate colors, this shawl wouldn’t exist, and I already know this is going to be a favorite! From a distance, this shawl absolutely glows. Some colors dominate, but the subtle colors are supporting the entire effect.
Color Affectation, by Veera Valimaki, made entirely of small amounts of leftovers from other projects, in random stripes.