Maple Leaf Shawl

The leaves are falling and as we’re gearing up for rainstorms and cozy fires, the days are slowly getting shorter. While it’s not quite winter yet, the weather is getting chilly and that means that you can’t go out without a shawl to keep you warm. The Maple Leaf Shawl is long and reasonably wide, the perfect size to wrap around your neck and tuck away in your jacket. The pattern is suitable for beginning crocheters and has an accompanying crochet chart.

Crochet hook

4.0mm (US size G/6).

Measurements

275 x 25 cm (108 x 8.5in).

Gauge/tension

4 shells and 11 rows measure 10 x 10cm (4 x 4in), before blocking.

Notes

• There is no wrong or right side as the pattern is reversible

Ch49, turn.

Row 1 Ch2, starting in sixth ch from hook *(2dc, ch2, 2dc) in ch, skip 4 ch; repeat from * another 8 times, (2dc, ch1, 1dc) in final ch, turn. [9 shells, 1 half shell, 1 starting ch2]

Row 2 Ch1, 1sc in ch-1 sp, *(2dc, ch2, 2dc) in space between shells of previous row, 1sc in ch-2 sp; repeat from * another 8 times, (2dc, ch1, 1dc) in top of beg-ch2, turn. [9 shells, 1 half shell, 10 sc]

If you feel your ends are puckering too much, you might consider making 2 chains instead of 1 chain in each half shell at either side.

Row 3 Ch1, 1sc in ch-1 sp, *(2dc, ch2, 2dc) in sc between shells of previous row, 1sc in ch-2 sp; repeat from * another 8 times, (2dc, ch1, 1dc) in last sc, turn. [9 shells, 1 half shell, 10 sc]

Repeat Row 3 until you have enough yarn left for 1 more row, this should approximately be 2-3 meter.

For the next row: If the 3 chains in between each sc look baggy, you can also instead make 2 chains. This is heavily dependent on your gauge, so just try both options and see what looks best.

Final Row Ch1, 1sc in ch-1 sp, *ch3, 1sc in sc between shells of previous row, ch3, 1sc in ch-2 sp of next shell; repeat from * another 8 times, ch3, 1sc in last sc of previous row, fasten off. [19 ch3, 20 sc]

To finish

Weave in your ends and block your shawl to size.

Adjusting Measurements

If you want your shawl to be wider, add multiples of 5 to the beginning chain (so for example, crochet 56 (49 + 5) or 79 (49 + 30) chains). Every 5 chains correspond with one extra shell. Each shell adds approximately 2.5cm (1in) to the width of your shawl, after blocking. Note that your shawl will get shorter as you make it wider, assuming you’re still only using one ball of Scheepjes Whirl.

If you want to know the length of your shawl, simply crochet 10 rows and weigh the amount of yarn you’ve used. Divide the total ball weight by this number and this is the amount of 10-row repeats you can make with your particular width. So for example, if 10 rows weigh 12 grams, you can make (225/12 =) 18.75 times these 10 rows. Measure the length of your 10 rows and then simply multiply this by 18.75, that’s your (unblocked!) length of the shawl.

Diagram