The last one of my year long goal.
At first, I wasn't sure what pattern to do. I wanted it to be special. Something to really end the year with a bang.
I thought about designing something original again. But that would have been too much to do with Christmas and the massive amount of dogsitting I was doing.
I thought about just using the scraps from all the other shawls I made to make a basic wrap. But I would have hated doing it, honestly.
So, I went hunting through my favorites on ravelry, waiting for something to call to me.
I rediscovered Ashton.
What better way to end this journey than making my namesake? I'm nothing if not vain.
The next struggle was picking what yarn to use.
See, I've had this in my favorites for forever. My name isn't exactly common, especially with my spelling. So I've always held off on making it because I wanted it to be perfect. I wanted it to reflect me as a person. I had a legacy to uphold. I had to show my name off well.
The obvious choice was to use green. I mean, it's what always expected of me, right? But my heart was pulling me in the opposite direction. I surprisingly went with a deep cranberry red.
Actually, maybe it's not that surprising. My library, my resting place from the world, is swathed in all shades of red. Garnet, ruby, scarlet, cranberry... they're all here, surrounding me in fire. This yarn, this beautiful flame, was the perfect choice.
And let's not forget... red is a perfect folio for green. This shawl was going to make my green glow.
I ended up choosing MadelineTosh Feather in a club exclusive color called Soft Fury. (Not going to lie, the name was part of the reason why I went with this choice.)
I also decided to add some beads to the body of the shawl. If this shawl was going to be a reflection of me, I couldn't forget the shiny bits.
I had intended on adding them throughout the whole thing, but as the month went by and things got more and more stressful, I made the decision to not use any on the edgings. I just wanted to get this done and beading was only going to slow me down.
Which, coincidentally, ended up being another reflection of myself. I'm not perfect and sparkly and golden all the time. When things get overwhelming, or my mental illnesses kick in, the shine is dulled down and muddied.
And that's okay. Everything needs balance.
You already know about my struggles to get her done in time. But I did it. I finished her. I set out and accomplished my goal. And she is everything I could hope for as the conclusion to this journey.
Not the most complicated shawl I've done. Not the biggest. Not the most ornate.
But still beautiful and wonderful and warm.
Leaves and lace. Beads. Perfect points.
A reminder of warmth in the crystalline cold.
A soft fire for my emerald self.
A conclusion. And a starting point. A lesson learned and one to be taught. A beginning and an end.
It's a new year. It's the end of a year. It's both the twilight and the dawn.
This journey is over.
But the next one is just starting.
Let's jump into the next adventure, friends.
We've got a whole new world of possibilities.
***************
Fun Little Post Script
It was roughly as cold as a polar bear's arse today. And I knew that I wanted to wear my white lace dress to take pictures with this shawl. I thought it'd look great against it, especially with the snow we've had.
Did I mention that the dress is EXTREMELY THIN COTTON and SLEEVELESS?!
All the pics in my shawl up there? Yeah, I was FREEZING my arse off just to get decent pics.
Y'all better appreciate what I do for you. <3
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