Tricosceles

A triangular shawl made up of two types of triangle conjoined. A large isosceles triangle is worked in a lace stitch that I devised to resemble crochet at first glance. Made up of stitch clusters, which form triangles and tear shaped holes, it is knitted using large needles for a nice open gauge. This is edged by a smaller right-angled triangle in good old garter stitch worked straight into the lacy triangle by picking up stitches along one side. Again knitted slightly loose to additionally show off the drape of linen. It has simple short rows – no wrapping, only turning – as the holes are used to form a special decorative edge.

I first cooked up the lace stitch used in this pattern for the oversized drapey tee called Sceles which appeared in PomPom Quarterly, Issue 9 in Summer 2014. As it’s an unfamiliar stitch pattern it is clearly illustrated both in written instructions and as a chart. Once you get your head around it, it’s very addictive. Sceles is now available as an individual pattern and you can purchase Sceles along with your Tricosceles as a bundle for a little discount.

MEASUREMENTS
across top edge:142cm / 55¾”
depth down centre to tip: 81cm / 31¾”’

Tips given to scale shawl up or down depending on the size you want.

ADDITIONAL TENSION/GAUGE
20 sts x 36 rows = 10cm / 4” over garter stitch using smaller needles

YARN COLOURS (pictured)
A: Natur; 1 skein
B: Syrén; 1 skein
C: Silvergrå; 1 skein

Note on choosing colours: When choosing colours for the main triangle of your Tricosceles, use the darker of the shades as A and the lighter for B. The gathering that happens in the formation of the stitch pattern creates an optical shadow that is enhanced by using the colours in this way. You can go for a very striking difference or a more subtle one. The stronger the contrast, the easier it will be to tell which row you are on in the pattern. As for the colour of the edge triangle, that choice is all yours!

Mix & match colours: Knit it in two or three colours – the lacy triangle is striped with two colours and you can knit the solid garter stitch triangle in one of those colours or introduce a third shade. Equally, you could skip striping the lacy triangle and use your second colour for the edge…the possibilities are many!

Choosing fibre: Working the whole shawl in linen gives it beautiful drape. If you wish to substitute fibre type, DK linen blends, cotton or cotton blends will work a treat to keep this a wonderful summer holiday knit.