How To Knit A Shawl

If you are new to knitting and you are wondering how to knit a shawl, look no further, as it is both simple and quick. In no time at all, you will have yourself a new and highly desirable fashion item.

How To Knit A Shawl

For this shawl, a soft mohair yarn is used, and three strands are used together to produce a thick, but lightweight fabric. This shawl also has fringing and tassels that trim the outer edge, which in turn make this shawl so chic.

What Will I Need To Knit This Shawl?

You will need:

6 x balls of Angel Mohair (32% acrylic, 24% mohair and 44% polyamide)

4.5 mm Knitting Needles

This shawl is knitted in stocking stitch and the finished size is 93 x 143 cm.

Tension:

15 sts x 19 rows in stocking stitch using 4.5 mm needles = 10 cm square.

Note:

Use 3 strands of yarn together throughout the shawl. Wind three balls together before using to obtain an even finish.

Let’s Begin:

Using 4.5 mm needles and your 3 strands of yarn together, cast on 3 sts.

Work in st st, inc 1 st at each edge (1 st in from the edge) on every rs row 68 times until you have 139 sts.

Cont in st st, Dec 1 st at each edge of every rs row 68 times as foll: k1, k2tog, work to last 3 sts, sl 1, k1, psso, k1.

Cast off rem 3 sts.

Easy Peezy way on how to knit a shawl.

Tassels:

To make a tassel of 8cm, wrap the yarn around some cardboard 33 times. Attach to one corner of the shawl. Make 4 tassels in all for each corner of the shawl.

How To Make A Tassel:

Cut a piece of cardboard that is 2cm longer than the intended tassel. Wind or wrap the yarn lengthways 20 to 40 times around the cardboard, depending on the thickness of the tassel you need. Thread a length of yarn onto a tapestry needle and slip the needle under the loops along the top edge.

Remove the needle and tie the ends of the yarn firmly, gathering the loops of yarn together. Wind a length of yarn about 1cm from the tied-off end of the tassel, tie firmly and hide the ends on the inside of the tassel.

Finish your tassel off by cutting through the yarn loops at the bottom of the tassel, then trim the ends even.

The book above is great for anyone who wants to learn how to make decorative tassels for all sorts of projects. You can purchase it online by simply clicking on the picture of the book.

Fringe:

To make a 4cm fringe which goes all the way around the scarf, wrap yarn around the cardboard 12 times. On each side of the shawl, between the tassels, tie 30 fringes at approximately 2cm intervals.

How To Make a Fringe:

Cut a piece of cardboard that is 2cm longer than the intended fringe length.

Wind or wrap the yarn around the cardboard, then slip some scissors between the yarn and the cardboard and cut through the base of the loops.  This will ensure that all the strands are the same length.

To attach the fringe to the shawl, insert a crochet hook from the wrong side of the shawl to the right side through the knitted edge.

Fold a bunch of the cut strands in half and place them over the hook. Pull from the wrong side through the fabric to form a loop.

Next, pass the remaining ends of the yarn through the loop and pull them firmly.

Do this for each fringe piece at regular intervals and don’t forget to trim the ends so they are even.

There you have it – how to knit a shawl, that will come in useful for years to come.

Here is a video that will help you to understand the process of making tassels a little better.