Progress on the Noro Kureyon Swallowtail Shawl

In-progress shot as I was about to change yarn horses, so to speak. I tried finishing off the edging with some Blue Sky Alpaca in my stash, but the color and weight of the yarn were both too light.

Yesterday I met my friend Christine at String Theory in Glen Ellyn. A really lovely knitting shop: great product and wonderful, enthusiastic yet low-key service. Janet, who was working when I came in out of the slush and cold and slippery sidewalks (there were actually Janet-working, Janet-shopping for multiple colors for a Fair Isle sweater, and me all in the store at the same time) kept playing with different choices. She'd wander around the shop, grab a skein of yarn, and bring it over to the table where I had what I was calling a "dog" project: a shawl sitting in my workbasket for months, almost finished, but so rough in feel. We'd look, vote, and then she'd wander off again, quietly examining more green yarns for the right match.

Here's what I ended up with:

Tahki Donegal Tweed Homespun in Lime. Sufficiently acid green to match to a shade in the Noro. Sufficiently itchy and a weight that varies between thick and thin, like the Noro. Christine said that neither yarn felt itchy to her, so maybe it's just me and my affection for really soft yarns, like Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk and Malabrigo.

I'm enjoying working on a shawl so much that I'm looking for a pattern for about 1200 yds. of lace-weight silk-wool in a beautiful mix of roses and pinks and greens, given to me by the Fairy Godknitter. Suggestions welcomed, including ideas that would let me combine the lace-weight with something a bit warmer, say an alpaca, so that the shawl works for a Chicago winter. It's gonna be below zero tomorrow. . .