The Gratitude Shawl is designed to evoke the feelings of peaceful, calming contentment that come when I think of the things I am grateful for. The pattern motifs remind me of experiences that I am thankful for: situations that open my mind; paths that don’t go as planned; heart-enlarging experiences; and simple, everyday life. (Learn more about "behind the design" in my Behind the Design: Gratitude Shawl blog post!)
I used Plymouth Yarn Company yarn in Reserve Sport and Reserve Sport Solid for this design (I purchased it at my LYS), but really any sport weight yarn would work perfectly for this design! (In this post I will provide some color suggestions for some affordable yarn options and some indie dyed yarn options!) I think this design would look beautiful as one color, two colors, or three colors (such that each of my purple sections were knit in a different color). I highly recommend knitting with tonal or lightly speckled colorways so you can see the design properly.
Color Suggestions
The colors that I used are Fig and Grey Mix from Plymouth Yarn Company. I believe that this yarn has to be purchased from a vendor/yarn shop. Any of their yarns would be beautiful as a one-color Gratitude Shawl. Some other 2-color recommendations that I have are:
Silver + Teal
Olive + Cork
Naturale + Carbon
A couple of 3-color recommendations:
Olive + Teal + Fig
Saffron+ Olive + Cork
Yarn Recommendations
In this section I've included both hand-dyed and commercially-dyed yarn. I've organized these yarn recommendations from cheapest to most expensive, per gram.
Note: I am not affiliated with any of the yarns that I suggest; I am only providing a reference of suggestions for the knitters who wish to knit my pattern. All photos are from the websites I have linked in this post.
For the sake of comparison:
Plymouth Yarn Company's Reserve Solid Sport base:
Fiber Content: 45% Extra Fine Merino Wool, 35% Mulberry Silk, 20% Bamboo
Weight: 100 grams/348 yards
Fiber Content: 100% Wool
Weight: 50 grams/164 yards
Price: $5.25
Goldenrod
Mystic + Charcoal Gra
Blue Moon + Marmalade
Fiber Content: 90% Cotton/10% Wool
Weight: 50 grams/167 yards
Price: $5.49
Raspberry Sorbet
Dark Teal + Coral
Kelp + Mulberry
Fiber Content: 100% Wool
Weight: 100 grams/335 yarnds
Price: $19.20
Purpuras
Diana
Azules + Greenish Blue
These Illinois-based dyers have a HUGE collection of bright and sassy colors.
Callback base Fiber Content: 100% Wool Weight: 100 grams/328 yards
Price: $25.00
Tainted Love
Achieve Grapeness + London Fog
Gothic Queen + Grapes of Wrath
This Colorado-based indie yarn dyer has a fun collection of muted and vibrant colorways - both tonal and variegated!
Alfalfa base
Fiber Content: 80% Wool/10% Cashmere/10% Nylon
Weight: 100 grams/382 yards
Price: $26.00
Verden's Ende
Blossom 006
Arctic + Penelope
This Colorado-based indie yarn dyer has a gorgeous palette of softly variegated and beautiful tonal colors that would be absolutely perfect for the Gratitude Shawl! (Note: This is a fingering weight yarn base, so either you will have a shawl with more drape or a smaller shawl)
Single Ply Super Sock base
Fiber Content: 100% Wool
Weight: 100 grams/415 yards
Price: $26.00
Old-Fashioned Romance
Royal Rose
Olive Branch + Old-Fashioned Romance
Fiber Content: 80% Wool/20% Cashmere
Weight: 50 grams/164 yards
Price: $18.00
Arco Iris
Poipu + Teal Feather
Anniversario + Sabiduria
Have you chosen your yarn and color(s)?! I'd love to hear all about it on Instagram, Ravelry, and/or the comments below! Let me know if you found this resource helpful, and tag me in your makes online!
To perform your own search for affordable yarns, here are a couple places to start your search:
Interested in seeing more Gratitude Shawl finished projects? Be sure to check out the projects made by other knitters here on Ravelry!
Interested in purchasing/downloading the pattern? The pattern is available for purchase on Ravelry, PatternVine, and LoveCrafts! Happy Knitting!!