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My adventure into design sparks from novels; this one is from George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series. When Martin’s high-spirited, headstrong character Lady Lyanna Stark of Winterfell catches the eye of Prince Rhaegar Targaryen at a tournament, the prince crowns her the Queen of Love and Beauty, scandalizing the court and Princess Ella Martell, Rhaegar’s wife. Lyanna and Rhaegar run away together; Lyanna’s betrothed, Robert Baratheon, rises in rebellion; Rhaegar dies by Robert’s war hammer; and Lyanna succumbs to a fever after extracting a promise from her brother Eddard amid the smell of blood and roses. This Orenburg warm shawl, whose construction I learned from Galina Khmeleva, uses Snowflake and Strawberry motifs to reflect Lyanna’s northern heritage
and love of blue roses. The neutral shade of yarn reflects House Stark’s colors of Gray and White. I added Ice-Blue beads for Lyanna and Ruby beads as a nod both to House
Targaryen’s colors of Red and Black and to the rubies that stud Rhaegar’s breastplate.
Grignasco Knits Merinosilk 25, 75% merino/25% silk yarn, laceweight,
384 yards, (351.1 m)/25 gram (0.8 oz) skein, 8 skeins of
#309 Silver; www.yarn.com
Signature Needle Arts Needles, 40 inches (101.6 cm), circular,
size 1 (2.25 mm) or size needed to obtain gauge;
www.signatureneedlearts.com; extra circular, 2; double pointed,
size 1 (2.25 mm) for border sections (optional)
Knitter’s Pride crochet hook, size 14 (.50 mm); www.knitterspride
.com
Preciosa, Czech glass seed beads, size 11/0, 1 hank/package, 1 package
each of silver-lined Ruby Red (180 beads required for this
project) and copper-lined Light Blue (1,040 beads required for
this project); www.firemountaingems.com
Stitch holders or waste yarn
Nylon cord and T-pins or blocking wires
Tapestry needle
Finished size: 58 inches (147.3 cm) wide and 60 inches (152.4 cm) tall
Gauge: 24 sts and 44 rows = 4 inches (10.2 cm) in garter st