My little sister is newly engaged, so it only makes sense to learn lace knitting and make her veil. (Don’t worry, I won’t come back in a year with a resentment post if she hates it). Currently my lace experience is one very simple triangle shawl.
So far, my plan is to do a bit of mix/match from the motifs in the following pi Shawls, as they’re designed to play nicely together:
https://ravel.me/ez-100th-anniversary-pi-shawl-camping
https://ravel.me/ez-100th-anniversary-pi-shawl-gull-wings
https://ravel.me/ez-100th-anniversary-pi-shawl-hearts
I’ve got knit picks bare luminance, an undyed ivory silk to work with.
Am I setting myself up for frustration? Am I absolutely bonkers for this? I have about a year before the wedding deadline and I’m pretty sure she’ll still be my sister even if I fail. Ive also signed myself up for a Shetland lace course in case that turns out to be a better (worse?) decision. Feel free to roast me, pls, I’m sure my fam already is.
2 things:
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Does she want a knit veil? I knit and crochet lace and I don’t want either in my wedding outfit. Also, be sure what kind of veil she wants - there’s different lengths, alone with a current trend for wearing capes made of gauze/tulle instead. Maybe ask her opinion on those motifs too.
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What color is her dress? That yarn will probably look ok with ivory, and will definitely go with cream, champagne, etc. It won’t match a bright white dress, nor the sort of sparkle tulle princess thing my sister picked out.
I think you can do it though. Lace knitting isn’t that different from regular knitting, just more counting and yarn overs. Learn how to read lace charts before starting - I went in with a “how hard can it be, I do crochet charts” mentality and whoops, had to stop and look it up. Good luck :)
I appreciate the questions! This has been discussed with the bride, and her dress was picked out first so that motifs and color might be derived thereafter. The dress is ivory, has some leaf/flower motifs, and my sister is also a knitter. So we’re on the same page about what this means. She sent detail pics of the bodice so I could work in similar motifs.
And I’m truly, truly aware that this could be a “take a couple pictures, have a moment, put it away forever” type piece.
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Look into lifelines for lace, a year is enough time if you are patient with yourself. Use markers for each repeat and frequent life lines. This way it is much easier to unravel a mistake you cannot fix by laddering down. Practice each new repeat on spare yarn, so you know what to look out for and don’t frazzle your actual yarn too much.
Yeah not to be a total downer but I really do want to reiterate @[email protected]’s first question especially. Don’t do something like this as a surprise, please I beg of you.
With that out of the way, it’s totally doable in a year but weddings are weird and brides are under ridiculous amounts of pressure and you’d need to know exactly what she wants. What shade of white she’s wearing (and you will need to see it with the yarn to make sure), what style of dress and therefore what kind of veil if any would go with it. And that’s before you can even get started.
It’s definitely a discussion and not something you can just make and then gift to her the day before (apologies if this sounds too negative, it’s actually a very lovely thing you’re doing, but I got married 3 months ago and remember how much extra stress came from people trying to “help” lol).
If you (both, together) decide to go ahead with it you’ll want to do a bit of practise of the various stitch patterns, using lifelines etc. Have you worked with laceweight yarn before? It’s a big step up from something like sock weight.
Again, absolutely a lovely thought I don’t want to come across as a nag here. Just don’t want to see you put your heart and soul into something that ultimately disappoints both of you!
I very much appreciate the concern and I agree! My hobby does not need to be part of her big day. But I do think that given the discussion, the details, and that my sister originally taught me to knit this could be something special… Even if it just makes it into a photo or two.
I think I feel a bit more confident, actually, with the advice I’ve been given so far. I’m seeing the bride this weekend, and I can show her the fiber in person (so far she’s only seen it via video) and my earliest swatches. But I’m also going to hold just a little back for now… Because I don’t want to over promise :)
Excellent! Sounds like you’re approaching it all right and our dire warnings weren’t necessary, but better safe than sorry and all that 😄
Lace can be incredibly frustrating but also incredibly satisfying. Good luck, and post all your progress so we can go “ooh”!
You can definitely do this. Before you choose a final pattern and yarn, I’d definitely coordinate with your sister to make sure she likes the choices, and they match her dress/theme. Matching it to her dress choice is actually an opportunity to make the item even more unique and special for her…like adding some bead edging accents that match a sparkle or pearl accent on her dress.
For the knitting itself, a few pieces of advice:
-Do a small test piece with the yarn/needles you’re planning to use. This will teach you how to start a pi shawl (fiddly if your first time), if you want more slippery/sticky/blunt/pointy needles, and let you see how it blocks out. This can be your memory doily for your sister’s big day, or perhaps give it to your mother (if you’re close) or to the bride as an additional memory.
-Lifelines, lifelines, lifelines. I’m pretty cherry about dropping down and fixing complex patterns, but lace is extra challenging because of the fine yarn and the fact that the stitches are often harder to read before blocking.
-I love Elizabeth Zimmerman’s Pi shawls. But be aware that the outer rounds take FOREVER. So when you’ve got half the radius done, you are not halfway through. You still have lots and lots (and lots) to go. Just be aware of that from a time management perspective.
Good luck, and I hope your sister and you both love the pattern and yarn that you choose!
