INTRODUCTION

Two for Joy

by Bristol Ivy

One for sorrow,
Two for joy,
Three for a girl,
Four for a boy,
Five for silver,
Six for gold,
Seven for a secret,
Never to be told.
Eight for a wish,
Nine for a kiss,
Ten for a bird,
You must not miss.

Inspired by the graphic lines and swoops of a magpie wing, this shawl highlights the complexities of a tonal gradient to create unexpected curves and angles in two-color brioche.

model: Bristol Ivy

photos: Leah B. Thibault

SIZE

One

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS

Width: 62 inches/158cm
Height: 10.5 inches/26.5 cm

MATERIALS

Yarn
Fiberstory Gradient Yarn Set Fave Sock [100% merino wool; 80 yd/73 m per .7oz skein; 560 yd/512 m per 4.9 oz total]; color: Smudge
Note: You can work this project with 80yds each of six colors of fingering weight yarn.

Recommended needle size
[always use a needle size that gives you the gauge listed below - every knitter's gauge is unique]
2 32 inch/80cm US #4/3.5mm circular needles

Notions
stitch holders and/or waste yarn
stitch markers
yarn needle

GAUGE

17 sts/ 46 rows = 4 inches/10cm in two-color brioche, after blocking

Yarn is a standard fingering weight sock yarn, worked on slightly larger needles for a drapey effect.

PATTERN NOTES

[Knitty's list of standard abbreviations and techniques can be found here.]

Shawl is constructed in sections, with stitches held after the completion of each section. Short rows will be worked over the remaining stitches, as well as increases along the top edge. The border is worked across all held stitches, with increases and decreases to shape the points.

Abbreviations
C1-C6: Color 1 to Color 6
FC: foreground color
BC: background color

Which color is used for Foreground and Background changes throughout the pattern. Pay careful attention to the color assignments for each section. In each, what was the Background Color in the preceding section will become the Foreground Color in the following section.

Sl1-yo: slip the next st purlwise, while creating a yarnover.
Between knit stitches: bring the yarn to the front, slip the next st purlwise; leave the yarn in front, ready to work the following stitch. When you knit the following st, the yarn will drape over the needle to create the yarnover, which will sit ‘over’ the stitch that you slipped.

BRK: Brioche knit: knit the stitch and its accompanying yarnover together.
BRP: Brioche purl: purl the stitch and its accompanying yarnover together.

BR-k3tog: Brioche knit 3 together: knit a stitch and its accompanying yarnover together with the next purl stitch and the stitch and its accompanying yarnover following. 2 sts dec’d; leans right.

BR-sssk: Brioche slip, slip, slip knit: slip a stitch and its accompanying yarnover together knitwise to the right needle, then slip the next purl stitch knitwise to the right needle, then slip the next stitch and its accompanying yarnover to the right needle. Return all sts and their accompanying yarnovers to the left needle and knit together through the back loop. 2 sts dec’d; leans left.

K1-yo-k1: Knit into the next stitch and pull the loop through, but do not remove the old stitch from the left needle. Yarnover around the right needle, then knit through the stitch on the left needle once more and drop from left needle. 2 sts inc’d. Note: when performing this increase, on the following row treat each of the three loops created as their own separate stitches and incorporate them into brioche as established. The expectation will be that each of the knit columns will have accompanying yarnovers, but when creating new stitches with this increase, the stitches won’t have yarnovers until the next row worked in the color used to create them.

When working brioche in two colors, each row will be worked twice in succession, once with each color, before turning to work the opposite side. On one side, you will work the knit columns and slip the purl columns with the BC, and then work the purl columns and slip the knit columns with the FC. You will then turn your work, and work the purl columns and slip the knit columns with the BC, and then work the knit columns and slip the purl columns with the FC. In this way, both sets of columns gain a row in total of height, and are worked as knits on one side and purls on the other while not mixing the colors. This also means that once you get into the swing of the pattern, you’ll be working two rows in a row where you work the knits and slip the purls, and two rows in a row where you work the purls and slip the knits. The directions will indicate when to repeat these rows, and when to turn or not turn your work.

To work a row again after the first pass, you will slide all the sts back to the beginning of the circular needle. Because this shawl also employs short rows within the two-color brioche, you will use a second circular needle to hold the stitches to be short rowed so that you can slide the working stitches back to the beginning unencumbered.

Kitchener Stitch
Instructions for grafting can be found here.

DIRECTIONS

Garter Tab CO
With C1, and using Long-Tail CO method, CO 3 sts.

Knit 8 rows. Do not turn at end of last row.

Rotate work 90 degrees and with C1, pick up 3 sts along side edge. Rotate work a further 90 degrees and with C1, pick up 3 sts along CO edge. 9 sts on needle.

Next Row [WS]: K3, [yo, k1] 3 times, yo, k3. 13 sts.

Section 1
For BC use C1.
For FC use C2.

Set-Up Row [FC, RS]: K3, yo, [k1, sl1-yo] to 4 sts before end, k1, yo, k3. 15 sts. Slide work back to other end of needle.

Row 1 [BC, RS]: P3, yo, p1, [sl1-yo, BRP] to 5 sts before end, sl1-yo, p1, yo, p3. 2 sts increased. Turn work.
Row 2 [FC, WS]: P3, yo, p1, [sl1-yo, BRP] to 5 sts before end, sl1-yo, p1, yo, p3. 2 sts increased. Slide work back to other end of needle.
Row 3 [BC, WS]: K3, yo, k1, [sl1-yo, BRK] to 5 sts before end, sl1-yo, k1, yo, k3. 2 sts increased. Turn work.
Row 4 [FC, RS]: K3, yo, k1, [sl1-yo, BRK] to 5 sts before end, sl1-yo, k1, yo, k3. 2 sts increased. Slide work back to other end of needle.
Repeat Rows 1-4 12 more times, then work Row 1 once more. (98 sts inc’d)—121 sts. Do not turn; break BC. With RS facing and working edge at the top, place first 57 sts at the right edge of the row on holder or waste yarn.

Section 2

For BC use C2.
For FC use C3.

64 sts on needle. Turn so that WS is facing, and join new yarn at start of these sts. BC remains attached from its use as FC in the previous section.
Row 1 [FC, WS]: With second needle, p3, yo, p1, [sl1-yo, BRP] twice, pm, slide work back to other end of needle.
Row 2 [BC, WS]: K3, yo, k1, [sl1-yo, BRK] twice, sl1-yo, turn work.
Row 3 [FC, RS]: [BRK, sl1-yo] 3 times, k1, yo, k3. Slide work back to other end of needle.
Row 4 [BC, RS]: [Sl1-yo, BRP] 3 times, sl1-yo, p1, yo, p3. As viewed from the RS with working edge at the top, 12 sts to the left of m in Section 2. Turn work.
Row 5 [FC, WS]: P3, yo, p1, [sl1-yo, BRP] to m, remove m, [sl1-yo, BRP] twice, pm, slide work back to other end of needle.
Row 6 [BC, WS]: K3, yo, k1, [sl1-yo, BRK] to 1 st before m, sl1-yo, turn work.
Row 7 [FC, RS]: [BRK, sl1-yo] to 4 sts before end, k1, yo, k3. Slide work back to other end of needle.
Row 8 [BC, RS]: [Sl1-yo, BRP] to 5 sts before end, sl1-yo, p1, yo, p3. As viewed from the RS with working edge at the top, 8 sts added to to the left of m in Section 2. Turn work.

Repeat Rows 5-8 13 more times. No live stitches remain unworked from Section 1; 124 sts in Section 2. Do not turn; break BC. With RS facing and working edge at the top, place first 72 sts at the right edge of Section 2 on holder or waste yarn.

Section 3
For BC use C3.
For FC use C4.

52 sts on needle. Turn so that WS is facing, and join new yarn at start of these sts. BC remains attached from its use as FC in the previous section.

Work Rows 1-8 of Section 2, then Repeat Rows 5-8 10 more times. No live stitches remain unworked from Section 2; 100 sts in Section 3. Do not turn; break BC. With RS facing and working edge at the top, place first 64 sts at the right edge of Section 3 on holder or waste yarn.

Section 4
For BC use C4.
For FC use C5.

36 sts on needle. Turn so that WS is facing, and join new yarn at start of these sts. BC remains attached from its use as FC in the previous section.

Repeat Rows 1-8 of Section 2, then Repeat Rows 5-8 6 more times. No live stitches remain unworked from Section 3; 68 sts in Section 4. Do not turn; break BC. With RS facing and working edge at the top, place first 48 sts at the right edge of Section 4 on holder or waste yarn.

Section 5
For BC use C5.
For FC use C6.

20 sts on needle. Turn so that WS is facing, and join new yarn at start of these sts. BC remains attached from its use as FC in the previous section.
Repeat Rows 1-8 of Section 2, then Repeat Rows 5-8 2 more times. No live stitches remain unworked from Section 4; 36 sts in Section 5.

Border
BC: C5.
FC: C6.

With RS facing and working edge at the top, replace all held sts on needle, placing two sets of markers as follows, working from the right edge of Section 1 to the left edge of Section 5: 27 sts from Section 1, place increase marker, 30 sts from Section 1, place decrease m, 36 sts from Section 2, place increase m, 36 sts from Section 2, place decrease m, 32 sts from Section 3, place increase m, 32 sts from Section 3, place decrease m, 24 sts from Section 4, place increase m, 24 sts from Section 4, place decrease m, 16 sts from Section 5, place increase marker, 20 sts from Section 5. 277 sts.

Row 1 [BC, WS]: P3, yo, k1, [sl1-yo, BRK] to last 5 sts, sl1-yo, k1, yo, k3. 279 sts. Slide work back to other end of needle.
Row 2 [FC, WS]: K3, yo, p1, [sl1-yo, BRP] to last 5 sts, sl1-yo, p1, yo, p3. 281 sts. Turn work.
Row 3 [BC, RS]: P3, yo, p1, [sl1-yo, BRP] to last 5 sts, sl1-yo, p1, yo, k3. 283 sts. Slide work back to other end of needle.
Row 4 [FC, RS]: K3, yo, k1, sl1-yo, BRK, *sl1-yo, BR-k3tog, [sl1-yo, BRK] to 1 st before increase m, (k1-yo-k1) into next st, sm, sl1-yo, (k1-yo-k1) into next st, [sl1-yo, BRK] to 6 sts before decrease m, sl1-yo, BR-sssk, sl1-yo, BRK, sm; Repeat from * 3 more times, sl1-yo, BR-k3tog, [sl1-yo, BRK] to 1 st before increase m, (k1-yo-k1) into next st, sm, sl1-yo, (k1-yo-k1) into next st, [sl1-yo, BRK] to 11 sts before end, sl1-yo, BR-sssk, sl1-yo, BRK, sl1-yo, k1, yo, p3. 285 sts. Turn work.

Repeat these 4 rows 4 more times, then Repeat Rows 1-2 once more. 321 sts. Break BC.

Next Row [FC, WS]: P3, yo, [p1, k1] to 5 sts before end, p1, yo, k3. Break yarn, leaving a 72-inch/183cm tail. Turn work.

Tubular BO (optional; if desired, use a sewn or stretchy BO instead):
With RS facing and working edge at top, hold first and second needles parallel and slip stitches alternately to either as follows: *slip 1 st purlwise to front needle, slip 1 st purlwise to back needle; rep from * to end. With RS facing, the front needle should correspond to the knit columns of the brioche, and the back needle to the purl columns of the brioche.
Thread yarn onto tapestry needle and graft front needle to back needle using Kitchener stitch.

FINISHING

Weave in all ends and block.

ABOUT THE DESIGNER

Bristol Ivy is a knitting designer and teacher from Portland, Maine. Her design work focuses on the intersection between innovative technique and classic tailoring, and her classes focus on creativity, technique, and understanding the nuts and bolts of knitting.

Find more from Bristol here.

Pattern & images © 2016 Bristol Ivy. Contact Bristol