You can now choose the downloadable PDF version of the pattern or the hard copy printed out and mailed -- it is your choice.  

*****

Wow.

That is all I have to say.

Actually I mean that almost literally. This is a real beauty. I am going to quote Dee, the amazing designer of this beauty, and let her tell you about it:

Nadira means “rare” or “precious” in Persian, two words that aptly describe the wonder that is lace knitting.

I have always loved Persian carpets, particularly the more minimalist Kurdish designs where diamonds and other simplified geometric and fanciful shapes abound. The artistry required to create these intricate works of art is mind boggling, to say the least. Because I used the structure of these carpets as an inspiration for this design, I thought it fitting that it should have a beautiful Persian name. The infinity sign motifs on the border represent the infinite number of lace designs made possible by the mathematical pairing of yarn overs and decreases that—like magic—turns plain fabric into exquisite lace.

Nadira is a lace top-down triangular shawl that was designed to be knitted with lace weight yarn, although fingering weight would certainly be appropriate to use as well. Solid or tonal hand dyed yarn will best showcase the intricacy of the lace design. The pattern will look lovely with variegated hand dyed yarns, too, because there is quite a bit of stockinette in the design.

Nadira is offered as a charted pattern with large, easy-to-read charts and detailed instructions on how to use them. A new feature that I’ve added is a “Design Your Own Shawl” section that will allow you to customize the size and design of the shawl body and smaller border band. Also included are detailed blocking instructions. Enjoy!

Awesome indeed! I had emailed Dee when we got in our latest shipment of Miss Babs' Alpacacita to find out if she thought this would be a good yarn for the design. Her response? A most enthusiastic "Yes!"

Beyond Alpacacita, there are other stunning lace weight yarns on our Lace section of Earth Faire. Check out Tosh Lace as well as Mountain Colors' Winter Lace Jr, to just name two.

Skill Level: Intermediate

Blocked Size: Shawl 66” x 33” for medium size shawl as shown

Needles: US Size 3 (3.25 mm) – 32” circulars

Gauge: 5 ½ st = 1 inch blocked

Yardage: Approximately 730-830 yards of lace weight yarn (the range used by test knitters for the medium size shawl), although yardage may vary based on individual knitting style, needle size and yarn weight

Note that Nadira starts at the center back of the neck and is knit down to the bottom edge. There is a three-stitch garter border on each side, four yarn over increases on each right side row and a center stitch separating each half.

Patterning is done on the right side rows only, with all wrong side rows being purled between the garter stitch borders.

Note that what we offer here is the hard copy printed version of this pattern, with twenty pages (!!) printed out on heavy weight paper and put into a sheet protector.

And you know, even though Dee put no beads into this beauty, I can see where they could enhance the borders most beautifully. So if you'd like suggestions for beads to go with the yarn you choose, just ask.

This is a real beauty.