Wheelwright Shawl
Our Wheelwright Shawl borrows its engineering from the hand-makers across the town square to create a circular sweep of soft-as-can-be fabric!
An engaging construction, you form each spoke of the Wheelwright Shawl with short rows that, twenty-four spokes later, create a circle and a half with a rounded opening in the middle, all designed to swing around your body with beauty, grace, and a bit of drama, too.
If short rows are new to you, now is the time to get over that hurdle! Simple stockinette stitch clears the plate for focusing on a new technique, while 24 wedges offer enough practice that, by the end, short rows will be just one more arrow in your quiver.
When a gorgeous swath of fabric is the goal, our Cashmere Merino Bloom is a wonderful choice. Seventy-five percent extra fine merino and 25% cashmere, it is incredibly soft with a lovely glow that comes from the halo of cashmere fiber hovering over its surface. It comes in over two dozen inspiring colors, including this Golden Green, like a rare gem grown deep in a field of lichen!
Designed for Purl Soho by Jake Canton.
Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoWheelwrightShawl and #PurlSohoCashmereMerinoBloom. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
- 5 skeins of Purl Soho’s Cashmere Merino Bloom, 75% extra fine merino and 25% cashmere. Each skein is 218 yards/ 100 grams; approximately 1090 yards required. We used the color Golden Green.
- US 6 (4mm), straight or 24-inch circular needles
Gauge
20 stitches and 32 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch
NOTE: We used nearly 5 full skeins to make this wrap. To avoid running short, please double check your gauge and be conservative with tails!
Size
- Finished Outer Circumference: 168 inches
- Finished Inner (Neckhole) Circumference: 24¼ inches
- Finished Width from Inner to Outer Edge: 15¼ inches
Notes
CONSTRUCTION
You will cast on at a short end of this shawl and use short rows to create 24 pie-shaped wedges, which form a circle and a half with a rounded inner edge.
SHORT ROW SHAPING: WRP-T (WRAP AND TURN)
Keeping yarn in back, slip next stitch purlwise from left needle to right needle. Bring yarn to front. Return slipped stitch to left needle. Bring yarn to back. Turn work so wrong side is facing you.
For a step-by-step video and photo tutorial of how to work this technique, please visit our Short Rows: Wrap + Turn Tutorial tutorial.
Pattern
Cast on 76 stitches. We used a basic Long Tail Cast On.
Set-Up Row (wrong side): K1, p1, knit to last 2 stitches, p1, k1.
SHORT-ROW WEDGE
Row 1 (right side): K2, p1, knit to last 3 stitches, p1, k2.
Row 2 (wrong side): K1, p1, k1, purl to last 3 stitches, k1, p1, k1.
Rows 3–6: Repeat Rows 1 and 2 two more times.
Row 7: K2, p1, knit to last 4 stitches, wrp-t (see Note).
Row 8: Purl to last 3 stitches, k1, p1, k1.
Row 9: K2, p1, knit to 3 stitches before wrap, wrp-t.
Rows 10–53: Repeat Rows 8 and 9 twenty-two more times. [3 stitches remain to the left of the final wrap]
Row 54: K1, p1, k1.
Row 55: K2, p1, knit to last 3 stitches, knitting wrapped stitches with their wraps, p1, k2.
Row 56: K1, p1, k1, purl to last 3 stitches, k1, p1, k1.
CONTINUE
Repeat Short-Row Wedge 23 more times, ending with Row 55 on the last repeat.
Next Row (wrong side): K1, p1, knit to last 2 stitches, p1, k1.
With right side facing you, bind off in knit stitch.
FINISHING
Weave in the ends and gently wet block.
Well, now I’ve gone and done it.
My daughter wants a Wheelwright shall that has a 126 st cast on.
I have to do more row 8 and 9 repeats, but I have no idea how many more need to be made.
PULLING MY HAIR OUT!!!
Thank you for your help. YOU ARE A LIFE SAVER!!!
Hi MJ,
Unfortunately, 126 stitches will not work for this pattern, as it is not a multiple of 3 + 1. You will need to use either 124 stitches or 127 stitches instead!
The easiest way to keep track of your repeats of Rows 8 and 9 actually is to not count them! Instead, you can simply keep repeating them until you have only 3 stitches to the left of the final wrap. Once you have cast on a multiple of 3 + 1 stitches (either 124 or 127 stitches), this will work out perfectly! So instead of repeating Rows 8 and 9 just 22 more times, you will need to continue repeating them until there are only 3 stitches left.
All the best,
Lili
NOT A GOOD WAY TO START MY DAY.
I chose to make this shawl longer. I already knit everything up to this point.
The last row I knit was a right-side row, followed up by the wrong side row: “WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.”
What am I missing?
Hi MJ,
If you still have more short rows to work in the wedge, then it sounds like you’re in the correct spot! After working a repeat of Row 9 (right side), then you will repeat Row 8 (wrong side) again.
All the best,
Lili
Lili, I AM LOST. Would you please make more sense of the instructions you gave me?
Thank you in advance for your help, and my apologies for being such a pain in the neck.
Hi MJ,
Thanks so much for writing in! It sounds like from your last comment that you’ve just finished a Row 9 (Right Side) repeat and followed that up with Row 8 (wrong side). You just need to keep repeating these 2 rows until you have 3 stitches remaining to the left of the final wrap. You should be on Row 54 (a wrong side row) at this point. Proceed with the instructions for Rows 54 to 56, and you’ll have a completed wedge! This shawl is made up of multiple wedges, so you will continue making wedges until you’ve completed 23 of them in total, ending with Row 55 on the last repeat. Then, you’ll just have one more wrong side row to do before binding off!
I hope this helps! Feel free to reach out to us at customerservice@purlsoho.com if you’d like to send any photos of your work and we’d be more than happy to keep looking into this over there!
All the best,
Cat
I am dyslexic, and now suffer from dementia, so my recall is a problem.
I do remember when I first started knitting this pattern there was something about wrap and turns, where the first one was supposed to be worked… but not all of the others.
I hope I have explained this well enough that you will understand what I am talking about.
It seems like there were three situations that were not explained in the pattern itself, but like after thoughts. I have started knitting this pattern more times than I can remember.
I am desperate to be successful knitting this pattern. It is to be a gift for my second daughter, as she liked the shawl as much as I do.
I hope and pray you have the answers to my questions.
Thank you in advance.
Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours.
Hi MJ,
I’m always happy to answer any questions you have on this project! However, I’m afraid that I’m not quite understanding what you’re asking about this time. But here’s something that might help! If you scroll back through the comments, you’ll be able to find all the previous questions you asked, as well as all of my previous answers. (You can get to the previous comments by clicking the “Older Comments” button and then scrolling down until you see your name.) Hopefully this helps you access all the advice I’ve given in the past!
All the best,
Lili
I am tall and the modeled pic looks shorter than I’d like for myself so I just placed my order for 7 skeins. Would you be willing to make a recommendation for how many (maximum) CO stiches I can make and still have enough to finish a longer version of the project?
Hi Terry,
Thanks for writing in, and apologies for not answering your question sooner! It’s a really great question, but it required a lot of complex calculations, so I didn’t want to provide a rushed solution. In any case, I have an answer for you now! I would recommend casting on 91 stitches, which will extend the shawl by 3 inches in length and use up your 7th skein.
One thing you can do to double check this number on your end is knit up one wedge of the shawl with a cast-on of 91! Then, weigh the wedge in grams and multiply this number by 24. If the resulting number is less than 700g (the weight of 7 skeins of Cashmere Merino Bloom), then 91 stitches will definitely work as a cast-on number!
I hope this helps, and please let me know if you have any other questions!
All the best,
Lili
Thank you! Your timing is just perfect. I am just finishing up the Striped Triangle Garter Wrap so I’ll get started on this project this weekend and your calculations and detailed answer is much appreciated! I will take the approach you suggest and please know that the time and effort you take to help with Q&A’s…..really does add value to my purchase!
Thanks again!
Terry
You’re very welcome, Terry! Happy knitting!
All the best,
Lili
FINALLY!!! (Even though you answered my question February 8, 2022) GAH!
Your answer was “Yes, this row means to K every wrapped st along with its wrap! And, only the first one. ”
I KNEW I was missing something, but couldn’t give it a name.
I CANNOT THANK YOU ENOUGH for all your help, even though I BLEW IT MYSELF.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Your friend, MJ
I’m so glad to hear that you found the answer you needed!
All the best,
Lili
I am finished with row 118 of what I have knit, and received your latest message. I am at a total loss with how to pick up where I left off, and am WORRIED TO DEATH that I may have to pull all my work (118 rows) and begin again.
An example is: Row 54, where there is only knit 1, purl 1, knit one.
Rows 55 and 56 look good to go… but time and your response will make all the difference.
I am SOOO SORRY to do this to you again, but I would like to post what I have completed already. HERE IT IS:
1. WS SET-UP ROW: K1, P1, K to last 2, P1, K1.
2. RS Row 1: K2, P1, K to last 3, P1, K2.
3. WS Row 2: K1, P1, K1, P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
4. RS Row 3: K2, P1, K to last 3, P1, K2.
5. WS Row 4: K1, P1, K1, P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
6. RS Row 5: K2, P1, K to last 3, P1, K2.
7. WS Row 6: K1, P1, K1, P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
8. RS Row 3: K2, P1, K to last 3, P1, K2.
9. WS Row 4: K1, P1, K1, P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
10. RS Row 5: K2, P1, K to last 3, P1, K2.
11. WS Row 6: K1, P1, K1, P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
Rows 3–6: REP Rows 1 and 2 two more Xs.
12. RS Row 3: K2, P1, K to last 3, P1, K2.
13. WS Row 4: K1, P1, K1, P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
14. RS Row 5: K2, P1, K to last 3, P1, K2.
15. WS Row 6: K1, P1, K1, P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
16. RS Row 3: K2, P1, K to last 3, P1, K2.
17. WS Row 4: K1, P1, K1, P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
18. RS Row 5: K2, P1, K to last 3, P1, K2.
19. WS Row 6: K1, P1, K1, P to last 3, K1, P1, K1
20. RS Row 7: K2, P1, K to last 4, wrp-t K ONLY the first wrapped st along with its wrap!
21. Yarn FRONT, SL next st P-wise from left to right needle.
22. YARN BACK. TURN P-SIDE FACING, READY TO PURL
23. RS Row 53: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t.)
24. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
25. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK
26. WS row: continue to Row 54 is a WS row, so everything works out!
REP Rows 10–53: REP Rows 8 and 9 22 more X. [3 REM left of final wrap]
27. 8. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
28. 9. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 1
29. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
30. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
31. 10. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
32. 11. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 2
33. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
34. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
35. 12. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
36. 13. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 3
37. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
38. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
39. 14. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
40. 15. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 4
41. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
42. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
43. 16. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
44. 17. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 5
45. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
46. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
47. 18. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
48. 19. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 6
49. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
50. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
51. 20. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
52. 21. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 7
53. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
54. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
55. 22. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
56. 23. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 8
57. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
58. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
59. 24. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
60. 25. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 9
61. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
62. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
63. 26. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
64. 27. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 10
65. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
66. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
67. 28. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
68. 29. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 11
69. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
70. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
71. 30. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
72. 31. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 12
73. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
74. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
75. 32. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
76. 33. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 13
77. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
78. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
79. 34. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
80. 35. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 14
81. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
82. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
83. 36. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
84. 37. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 15
85. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
86. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
87. 38. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
88. 39. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 16
89. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
90. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
91. 40. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
92. 41. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 17
93. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
94. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
95. 42. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
96. 43. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 18
97. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
98. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
99. 44. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
100. 45. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 19
101. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
102. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
103. 46. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
104. 47. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 20
105. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
106. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
107. 48. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
108. 49. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t. 21
109. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
110. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
111. 50. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
112. 51. RS Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t 22
113. YARN BACK, SL next st Pwise from left to right needle.
114. 52. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK.
115. WS Row 8: P to last 3, K1, P1, K1.
116. RS ROW 53. Row 9: K2, P1, K to last 3 before wrap, wrp-t).
117. YARN BACK, SL next st P-wise from left to right needle.
118. YARN FRONT. Return SL’d st to left needle. YARN BACK. Praying this is right so you don’t have to go crazy!!!
As always, I sincerely appreciate all your assistance. You truly ROCK!!!
Hi MJ,
I’m a bit confused about how you’re numbering the rows, but I think that you’re doing everything correctly! Have you completed Rows 55 and 56 yet? You mention in your comment that “Rows 55 and 56 look good to go,” so it sounds like you may have just finished knitting these! If so, then you can move onto the instructions under the heading CONTINUE, in which all you’ll be doing is repeating what you just knit 23 more times, to create the rest of the wedges!
All the best,
Lili
I’m having a terrible time with this pattern!!!
Regarding: Row 7: K2, p1, knit to last 4 stitches, wrp-t (see Note).
It would be really nice if you included the information for the (see Note) in the pattern itself.
My yarn is tattered from being pulled sooo many times… and I have broken down and cried sooo many times over it.
Please set me straing again.
In the meantime, I am praying again for this to finally make sense to me.
My apologies for the rant.
P.S. it’s snowing. Must mean Christmas is CLOSE.
Have a blessed day.
Hi MJ,
Goodness, I’m so sorry to hear that this pattern has become so frustrating! The reason that we do not include the instructions for how to work a wrp-t in the pattern itself is because that would become very repetitive and take up a lot of space in the pattern itself. The wrp-t is done on Row 9 as well, and all the subsequent repeats of Row 9, so we opted to put those instructions in the NOTES section for reference, instead of writing them out each time a wrp-t is used.
If you’d like a refresher on how to work wrap + turn short rows, I’d recommend checking out our tutorial!
All the best,
Lili
Lord, my mind is gone!!!
How many rows is one short-row wedge?
Hi MJ,
Each wedge has a total of 56 rows!
All the best,
Lili
I have pulled out yet another attempt at knitting the Wheelwright shawl. Looking at the written pattern, I am gravely concerned about the number of rows it will take to complete this project. What I am looking at is alarming, to say the least.
Thank you in advance for your help, yet again.
Your weary friend, MJ.
Oh no, I’m so sorry to hear that you’ve hit another stopping point in your project! Can you let me know what your concern is regarding the number of rows? I’ll keep an eye out for your reply, and then I’ll do my very best to answer your question!
All the best,
Lili
It’s Lili to the rescue… but I figured out that NOT EVERY LINE is a “ROW TO COUNT”
My row count now is only 1,288. MUCH LOWER than what the count was with everything that wasn’t a real row to knit. WHEW!!!
It has rained most of the day and windy and rainy tonight, so I didn’t get to do my “double time” walk. My poor brain is droning in useless thoughts…
God bless you, as always.
Oh, and I am on a great roll knitting tonight.
Hi MJ,
I’m not quite sure where you’re getting the number 1288 from! Since you’re knitting this shawl with a cast-on of 91 stitches, there will be 66 rows per wedge (instead of 56). Since you knit 24 wedges total, you multiply that number (24) by the number of rows in 1 wedge (66) to find the total number of rows. 24 * 66 = 1584, so there will be 1584 total rows in this shawl if you cast on 91 stitches!
All the best,
Lili
The good LORD has heard my prayers. After several days knitting, my brain is where it should be, and I finally understand my stumbling point on working short rows, and am on a roll.
God bless you for your patience with me. You will never understand how much I appreciate your standing by me through my “bad brain” days!!!!
Have a blessed Christmas and a happy, healthy New Year.
Hi MJ,
Oh I’m so glad to hear that you’re on a roll now! I hope you have fun continuing your project, and please don’t hesitate to reach out if anything else comes up along the way!
All the best,
Lili
Good morning! I am wondering if I can use Linen Quill for this pattern. I have 6 skeins that I ordered with no particular pattern in mind. Do you think this one would work without too much adjustment? Thanks!
Hi Christina,
Thanks so much for your comment! I’m afraid Linen Quill is much thinner than the yarn featured in this pattern, Cashmere Merino Bloom, since it’s a fingering weight yarn and Cashmere Merino Bloom is a DK weight yarn, so it would not work by itself for this particular pattern. You could potentially knit this shawl using your Linen Quill, though, if you hold two strands of this yarn together and knit with them in that way! This pattern calls for 1090 yards of yarn and 6 skeins of Linen Quill held double would provide 1317 yards, so you would have plenty of yardage. I would really recommend doing a gauge swatch though, if you decide to use Linen Quill held double, in case you need to adjust your needle size at all! Here’s our guide on swatching in case you’d like more information (https://www.purlsoho.com/create/2020/08/20/all-about-gauge/)!
Lastly, if you’d like to use your Linen Quill held single, here are all our patterns that feature this yarn if you’d like to take a look (https://www.purlsoho.com/shop?q=linen+quill#results:projects)!
Hope this helps!
All the best,
Cat
I am giving in to this pattern, yet once again.
Is it unreasonable for this pattern to have 2537 rows?
This is how desperate I am to have this lovely shawl for my daughter.
Thank you in advance once again.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Your biggest pest,
MJ
Hi MJ,
I’m sorry that you’ve run into more trouble with this pattern! However, I’m not sure if I’m understanding your question. Since you’re casting on 91 stitches, in order to create a shawl that’s 18 inches long (instead of 15 inches long), the total number of rows in the entire pattern will only be 1584. Hope this helps clarify things, but please let me know if I misinterpreted your question!
All the best,
Lili
Si può avere anche il video grazie
Hi Francesca,
Thanks for reaching out. If you’d like to visualize how to do the wrap + turn short rows used in this pattern, I’d recommend taking a look at our Short Rows: Wrap + Turn tutorial!
All the best,
Lili