A Year In The Making

In January 2020, the world's attention was focussed on the devastating wildfires in Australia. Our TV screens were filled with newsreel featuring widespread destruction of people's property and precious wildlife habitat. It made my heart sad.

For eight months in 1991, Geoff and I had travelled extensively through Western Australia, Northern Territories, Queensland and New South Wales, driving, camping and bushwalking through Australia's vast interior. I've more chance of pointing to the Hamersley Range on a map than distinguishing Gairloch from Garelochhead. I'm a little shamefaced to admit there are parts of Australia I know better than the West Coast of Scotland.

The craft community was quick to step up with fundraising initiatives to help the firefighting effort. Australian knitwear designer Ambah O'Brien donated 100% of the sales of her Sunshower Shawl for 10 days last January and raised a whopping AUS$33,970.22 (£19,412.45) for three bush fire relief charities. Red Cross Australia, Wildlife Victoria and the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation benefitted equally from this incredible fundraiser.

I was one of the very many knitters who purchased Ambah's Sunshower Shawl Pattern this time last year. Here's Ambah's description: Sunshower shawl was created with the 4 seasons in mind; moving though Winter, Spring, Summer and finally Autumn with the original colour scheme. Worked from the top down, with short row shaping, gorgeous lace edging and neatly finished off with i-cord and the lovely eyelet pattern evoking the gentle drops of a Sunshower.

Looking through my stash of woolly leftovers, I realised I could create my own version of the four season effect described in the pattern blurb as I'd plenty of part-used skeins stored up from previous knitting projects. There are twelve sections in the pattern and I chose to knit one section each month in 2020.

As I was choosing my yarn, I felt nostalgic for these past knits. There are so many memories imbued into crafts which pass through our hands over the course of many hours.

The gorgeous grey Ripples Crafts yarn for the start of the Sunshower Shawl last January, for example, had been part of two other shawls I'd made previously. Firstly, the Therapy Shawl I knit in 2017 from this pattern by Laura Aylor.

Paired with equally soft yarn from The Fabulous Mr G (who no longer dyes yarn but makes beautiful project bags) and a glorious pink from The Border Tart, it's still a wardrobe staple of mine.

February's yarn was hand dyed Rusty Ferret left over after I knit my Nurmilintu Shawl from Heidi Alander's free pattern, another much-worn make.

I loved the pops of neon colour so much I determined to use every last scrap so, as well as creating February's stripe in the Sunshower Shawl, the remainder was crocheted into my spring lockdown cushion cover!

In March and May, I used yarn remaining after I knitted another Therapy Shawl. I gave this one to my friend Carol as a birthday gift in 2019. I've happy memories of knitting it in the sunshine in Caroline's Perthshire garden that summer.

April, May, July and January's input to the Sunshower Shawl were leftover after I took part in my first mystery crochet along to create the Skimming Stones Shawl by The Crochet Project in 2018. All the yarns I used were dyed by my friend Helen of Ripples Crafts so I gave it to her as a stall sample to take to yarn events and show off her beautiful colours.

The sunny section I knitted in June from Henny Penny Makes hand dyed yarn had formed the moons and stars in the Ixchel sweater I knitted for my daughter Eilidh. She was wowed by the design on the cover of Pompom Magazine.

It's a wonderful pattern by Catherine Clark but I gave myself a headache by combining Erin's sparkly gold merino wool with skin-soft but non-stretchy cotton. The neck was a challenge to say the least which I re-knitted three times. Time one and time two didn't go so well...

but three, they say, is a charm and my daughter wears her jumper, despite the slightly wonky neck (which is all that really matters, right?)

July's turquoise addition to the Sunshower Shawl was left over after I knit these socks for myself in 2016. Geoff gave me a three month subscription of sock wool from Helen at Ripples Crafts as a Christmas present. The colours are all inspired by Assynt where Helen lives and dyes.

The same yarn gift subscription provided August's start to the lacey border of the Sunshower Shawl. I used more beautiful Ripples Crafts yarn to knit these socks earlier this year and had some left. The socks became a Christmas present for sister-in-law, Carol. I remember knitting them whilst waiting for Mum at the eye clinic during lockdown and noted how they matched the hospital decor!

In September I added Shilasdair leftovers I've had for the longest time. I made these fingerless mitts for my sister-in-law, Fiona, in 2015, but forgot to photograph the finished hummel doddies, as we call them hereabouts. Here they are as a work in progress.

October's addition to the Sunshower Shawl is the only skein which had not been made into something else previously. It was a prize from independent yarn store Lucylocketland a few years ago and I've yet to find the perfect project for it. I still have plenty left and it's too beautiful to languish. The pattern search continues...

November's lacey edging yarn has the joyous colour name 'Tomato Hibiscus Pumpkin' dyed by Coastal Colours. I crocheted Fortunes Shawlette by Tamara Kelly as a gift for a treasured work colleague in 2016. This yarn was chosen by me but was a gift from another friend in 2014 - high time it was used and loved.

Finally, the Sunshower Shawl has an edge which goes all the way round. Like piping round a cushion, the sumptuous alpaca blend from Cookston Crafts surrounds all the other colours. I'd used this very beautiful yarn originaly to make the Winter Wander Shawl by Helen Stewart which I sent to a dear friend last year for her 60th birthday.

So many memories of knitting for myself, and creating handmade gifts for others, throughout the months of 2020.