Regular readers have seen photos of this project as I make my suggestions for how to handle quarantine. Here’s a little more detail.

Just before COVID-19 isolation rules hit my area I was picked for another test knit with Ms. Ambah O’Brien. I had done a few in the past but I had taken a long break because I was always so busy. This came up just as I was returning from a trip so I thought it was a good time to try again. I saw her sample of the project on her Instagram while I was away, so I watched her Ravelry page very closely to make sure that I was ready when the call went out. And, I was picked!

That afternoon I went to my local yarn store to pick out some colours. After some quick Insta messages with my fellow knitting ladies I came up with one colour combination, plus a few extras ;).

I got started right away. Here’s how it went.

Yarn:
Leo & Roxy, you can never go wrong. I have gone into my LYS multiple times looking to buy something new and different that I haven’t tried before, and I almost always come out with more of this yarn. It is so lovely to work with, the colours are so fantastic, and the ladies are just so wonderful.

I was a little concerned with my colour choice at the start, not with the combination, just how the first set of colours were interacting. The two contrast colours were so similar that the signature Ambah stripes weren’t as clear as I thought they might be (maybe the Dew should have been a white?). I wasn’t so worried that I was going to stop, just needed to get used to the idea that it might be a different look from what I had initially invisioned. Luckily, the yarn had better plans. The yarn with the speckles (Canyon) started gradually building more and more speckles as I got closer to the lace, so it almost appears like a gradient/fade towards the bright red section. I am so happy with it!

The shock of red in the lace is everything! I have been playing around with trying to get a teal/red combo into one of my projects but it never really worked out. I saw this red, the last one in the store, and it was perfect to round out the trio. It’s not super conventional, but it also means that it goes with everything!

My biggest suggestion when picking yarn for this project is to make sure that your lace colour has a very high contrast to your stripes. A lot of the test knitters were finding the mosaic coming out a little muddy when their stripes fought with the colour of the lace. Don’t be afraid here, go bold!

Pattern:
You can never go wrong with an Ambah pattern. Her writing style is so clear and accessible. She is able to turn simple stitches into gorgeous works of art. This pattern is no exception. I always enjoy her build up of stripes, it makes for great TV/social group knitting, and it gives that variegated yarn in your stash an opportunity to shine.

Her way of writing lace is wonderful too. As I mentioned the stitches aren’t overly complicated, but you always come out with something beautiful. Ambah patterns were my first intro to large laces sections and she does a wonderful job of taking the immediate intimidation out of it.

I obviously won’t be giving any details on the pattern itself, you can buy it here. But one thing I did try this time around, and I highly recommend, is the yarn over after the I-cord edging. She makes mention of this in her notes. It is meant to make the edging looser. First, I love the I-cord edge, so polished, so lovely, but I do fall victim to it being a little tight. So I tried adding the extra yarn over and dropping it when I came back. It’s a whole different edge now! Nice and stretchy, and I wasn’t limited by my edge when I was blocking. I’d definitely recommend giving this a try.

Overall, this is a great experience. So give it a try! You can find this pattern here, or here. And you can find all of Ambah’s patterns here or here. I am completely in love with the final result on this one and I always look forward to wearing it.