I was sent a link to this reflective yarn by a friend and it was one of those yarns that exited and inspired me as soon as I saw it. It was perfect for something you can wear at night as it sparkles when light hits it. It also needed to be an item that isn’t worn too close to the skin, as the yarns is a bit scratchy with the reflective fibre in it. I decided to make a large shawl to wear over a coat that can be pulled up over the head if it gets cold or starts to rain.

To create the design I alternated stripes and colours to make a geometric shape combining two different yarns.

• Rowan Valley Tweed (https://knitrowan.com/en/products/valley-tweed)

• Hobbi Starlight (https://hobbii.co.uk/hobbii-starlight)

To create the shape it is basic increasing and decreasing while changing colour thread to make a giant triangular shawl.

As it was a great project I wanted to share the method, which can be used with any type and colour of yarn. The knitting pattern can be viewed and downloaded from below with links to the fibres I used.

(I also did a mini photoshoot so yes that is my face in the pattern photos)

I love to talk all things knitting so if you have any feedback on this pattern, patterns to share or tips and interesting methods please get in touch - info@amberjames.co.uk

“There are old socks, and then there are old socks. This stripy sock, discarded around the 3rd or 4th century, falls into the latter category. Fished out of a landfill during the 1913-1914 excavation of the Egyptian city of Antinooupolis led by English papyrologist John de Monins Johnson on behalf the Egypt Exploration Fund, the sock ended up in the collections of the British Museum in London.”

— Smithsonian Magazine

“The UK has more breeds of sheep than any other country in the world, but wool has gone from being so valuable that the Speaker of the House of Lords still sits upon a wool sack – symbolic of the historic significance of wool to the wealth of the nation – to a throwaway by-product of the meat industry.”

“Most farmers don’t value their wool because the price is so low, sheep flocks have become much larger and it’s not easy to process and market wool yourself. As a result, most sheep don’t get sheared.“

“By the 1980s the use of wool (and other natural fibres) crashed as synthetic fabrics, derived from oil, saturated the markets with cheap, quickly produced clothing and other domestic and industrial products. Almost overnight wool, upon which so much of our national wealth had been built, became practically valueless in mainstream markets.”

“Processing options for wool are limited and current outlets typically fall into the ‘niche’ or ‘craft’ categories.”