The Sållväv shawl finished

This really seems to be the week when I catch up on blogging this past months projects..now the time comes to my sållväv shawl that I finished in the beginning of march.

The shawl before hemming and washing

This was a wonderful project, and I am very satisfied! Sometimes things you make turn out awkward, no matter how well you plan, but this one was the opposite - It turned out better than expected.

I had seen several linen towels woven in this technique that after wash gave them a fluffy and interesting structure due to how the material shrinks, and I always wanted to do it in wool in some way. I also very much wanted a super big shawl that could double as a lap blanket and keep the cold winds out, so I designed this one.

It was a joy to weave! Weaving can be a bit similar to knitting in the way that if it is simple enough you just ..do. Your mind wanders and suddenly you have a fabric.

It is large - 0,85x2,2m after hemming and washing, and I love it! The warp yarn is Mora redgarn from Borgs vävgarner (9500m/kg) and the weft is a single thread yarn from Filtmakeriet, made from swedish finull, gotland and leicester-wool (450m /kg).The ýarn is perfect for me, but if you are a wool-is-itchy-kind of person it might not be right for you.

As expected, it changed a lot after wash, the long floats (dark squares) shrinking more than the rest, giving it a fluffy surface. I don't remember exactly, but I think the shrinking after wash (handwash, a bit rough) was about 5 percent.

Now I have no special weaving planned, but I'm afraid next project also will be a shawl.. I can never get enough. And the bigger I make them, the bigger I want to make them next time. Big shawls is my ultimate luxury! (together with a single malt, some chocolate, a footbath, a fire and licorice..) But then I need to use thinner yarn, otherwise people will think I'm wearing a blanket :)

A happy weaver

Before wash

After wash