Aureate – New Loop Shawl Pattern with Lesley Anne Robinson!

Far from your conventional shawl pattern, Loop is very excited to introduce you to this new take on a classic. Aureate is our stunning new shawl pattern designed by the remarkably talented Lesley Anne Robinson, and knit in Uncommon Thread’s BFL Singles.

When Susan saw Lesley’s Sizzle Pop Shawl she knew Lesley would be the perfect designer to come up with something outstanding for this gorgeous yarn. It’s a really fun knit that uses garter stitch, two colour brioche, and garter mesh lace stitch, and is sure to keep you captured throughout the knitting process. The innovative design means the shawl has an interesting asymmetric shape that allows you to wear it as a conventional shawl, as a wrap, or really, whichever way you fancy.

The pattern uses three different colours, put together in such a way that would make it almost impossible not to get excited, even for the most colour shy.

We caught up with Lesley for a chat about the pattern and the yarn.

Hi Lesley! We absolutely love this shawl. Tell us a bit about your thoughts behind the design?

The design for Aureate has been an idea in my head for a long time. I have always been fascinated by reflections, especially those found in metal. The distortions create such interesting shapes and patterns, as well as texture. The color scheme was very important as well, I wanted to use pink golds, and stainless steel grays to create a subtle contrast.  In combination with the deep plum, the colors in the original shawl sample together create an appealing sense of metallic reflection that is both soothing and bold.  The stitch patterns used were also meant to emulate metal: two-color brioche is very reflective itself, while garter stitch and garter mesh resemble interesting metallic structures. The Uncommon Thread BFL singles used seem to have been created for this design.  Their softness and stitch definition helped in keeping the metal theme alive!  The name of the shawl itself, Aureate, was born during the actual knitting and designing of the shawl, meaning “ornate, golden, or gilded”.  

One of my goals with this design was to break through the typical shawl construction methods and create a new shape! The process was so fun and exciting for me, and actually surprised me a bit in the end.  My main goal really was to create a piece that would also represent Loop, and the loveliness that has inspired me since I first found this beautiful shop. Using a local-to-them yarn, and colors that integrate seamlessly into the shop truly helped this design come to life. 

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not designing?

Knitting always keeps my hands and mind busy, but I am also an Interior Designer by trade.  I worked for a time in New York, designing corporate offices and retail spaces for a small firm in Manhattan, Spin Design. I continue to work for them remotely from my small studio in Corpus Christi, Texas, working in AutoCAD to create space plans, construction documents, and design presentations from afar.  I do all of this from home, while also taking care of our two young boys!  It is quite the balancing act sometimes, but I love every minute of it.  I enjoy introducing my children to crafting techniques, and try to include them in my processes as much as I can. 

Do you have a dream project that you’d like to do?

I know this might sound a bit cheesy, but working with Loop has been an incredible dream come true!!  Ever since I listened to Susan’s interview with Woolful, and found her delightful shop on Instagram, I have been longing to visit and get involved in any way I could!  But to look to the future, I would say my biggest dream would be to create a Fiber Arts Collaborative, where other fiber artists could come for retreats, to create, and also to teach. 

What’s on your needles right now?

Is this a trick question?  ;)  I almost always have multiple projects going on at one time, I love extreme diversity.  I currently have 3 different designs in the works: one sweater, one hat, and one new shawl (all of which incorporate brioche knitting)!  They are all very different, and so I can pick one up depending on what mood I am in that day.  I also like to have some simple projects on my needles, like a simple top-down raglan sweater that I am knitting as a gift to my mom.  I am following Carrie Bostick Hoge’s pattern for Louise Light, using Quince and Co. Finch in Crow. 

You can get the printed pattern and the yarn through Loop, and you can get a PDF copy of the pattern through Lesley on Ravelry.

Huge thanks to Kristin Perers (@kristinperers) for the beautiful photography. Many thanks to The Elk In The Woods for letting us shoot in their beautiful dining room, our very own Loopette Camille Auclair (@camille.auclair) for modelling, and to Emma Mitchell (@silverpebble2) for making the wreath used in the photos. Thank you also to Chris Hindle (@chrishindle213) for knitting the Robin’s Egg blue version, and of course Ce Persiano of The Uncommon Thread for dyeing such beautiful yarns.

We love this shawl so much we’ve decided to giveaway a whole three copies of the pattern to three lucky readers! All you have to do is repost our picture on Instagram (@looplondonloves) using the hashtag #LoopLovesAureate and tell us which colours you’d make it in. And for an extra chance of winning, leave a comment below with your answer. Winners will be drawn on Wednesday 9th November so make sure you get your entries in before then.

UPDATE: Many congratulations to our winners Andre, @knitgizmo and @sabine_drachenherz who have all been sent a copy of the pattern.

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We will be at the Edinburgh Yarn Fair in March and we are just over the moon about it. We hope to see you there!

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Until next week beautiful friends, happy knitting!

 

PS. We have been nominated for the British Craft Awards 2017! Please show us your support by clicking on the image above to vote for Loop as the Knitting and Crochet Retailer Of The Year. Voting is open until 20th December 2016. Everyone* who votes will be entered into a prize draw to win one of 5 £100 Amazon Vouchers (*Prize eligible to UK Residents only but anyone can vote!)