Desiderata

Was her name Desiderata? Maybe it was Ermengarda? Or it could have been something ending in -perga, like her sisters Anselperga, Adelperga and Liutperga? Regardless of what he called her, Charlemagne (who was also known as Karolus Maximus, Karl der Große, and Charles the Great) called his first queen “wife” for only a short time. One thing is certain: she was known to be a true beauty. Because she was beautiful, her name must have been as well. It had to have been. Well, I hope so, anyway, because I refuse to name this lovely lace shawl Ermengarda.

Shawl starts at the center top with a tab cast on. The number of stitches increases with every row from there to the bind off edge. There’s a bit of stockinette at the top, but not all that much, as I’m easily bored when I know the fun lace work is coming, so most of this design’s 117 rows are lace. The lace pattern is easy to knit, every wrong-side row throughout the design is the same, and the overall pattern easy to work, especially once you find your rhythm.

• Yarn: Fingering weight; 500 yards.
• Model: The Sheepwalk Fiber Arts Studio Merino 600 in Boy King; 600 yards in 170 grams; 100% merino wool.
• Gauge: 24 sts and 28 rows to 4 inches in stitch pattern, blocked.
• Needles: US 6 (4 mm).
• Finished size: (measured across top x maximum height): 16 x 65 inches.
• Stitch instructions: Charted and written.