Going very smoothly, the charts are so much better! This is through chart row 120, I've also included my sketch that I used.

I started working with the Tencel and the Cotton, and I just wasn't liking the cotton, it wasn't giving the shawl my required "drape" that I wanted, the cotton was just a bit too stiff for me.  So I have black Capretta which was scheduled for a different project that I stole for this project.  It is working up absolutely amazing. The drape is simply brilliant and the Tencel sheen in the blue is exactly what I was planning.  Here is an image when I was 80 chart rows in. The rolling of the straight edge isn't happening with this fiber combination either. So win win.

​Much Luv ❤️🦋

Not for the faint at heart! I decided that I wanted to use Tencel fiber for the "bright blue" that I desperately wanted to use for my model, I wanted the extreme shimmer that Tencel fiber brings to the table, however this is 8/2 which is very thin, most commonly used for weaving.  This meant that I need to use this fiber with three (3) threads. Now for the "black" I am using 8/2 again, but to get that "butterfly" look, I went with cotton, this way the "bright blue" Tencel will pop.
Now I took the "tube" of each fiber, and used my cake winder to get it all into one cake to get an accurate weight without the cardboard tube which is inside and divided that number by 3, and used my scale to get three (3) cakes of equal weight, to then wind those 3 threads another time together which you see in the picture of what I started with and what I ended up with, which is depicted on the wool genie spools.  This took about 2-1/2 hours total.  Whew, glad that is over!

Below is the image of what the Butterfly Illusion Shawl will look like all of the black will be done in black everything else in the bright blue.  I have come to find out that when I produce my charts they turn out WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get), which is brilliant! 
I will be starting this new pattern up tomorrow morning, as well as making the videos. The chart has been done for a few weeks now.

Oh, this is the first chart using my new program for making the charts, the clarity and crispness of the chart is outstanding, it also comes with a print version and computer/tablet version included with each purchase. I have decided to include a partial image of the graph, now this image is just a screen shot, the computer/tablet version you can make it any size you want, the print version is nice and big, so no need to struggle as each page are all the same size. Also, I included the different colored lines already embedded in the chart, believe me the colored lines make working the chart super easy, as long as you use colored markers.

Much Luv ❤️

Sorry everyone for such a long delay, I promise I had the pattern and charts done a long time ago, just had to wait for the wind to cooperate with the photography shoot.

Remember a percentage of the proceeds will be sent to the Australian Koala Foundation.

Patterns are available on Etsy~LoveKnitting~Raverly
Lewis the Koala Illusion Shawl 🐨

I'm so sorry folks, Lewis the Koala will have to be delayed due to high winds, that even rocks couldn't overcome.  Below are a few images that I was barely able to shoot.  But the images are just not good enough for print.  Never mind that the video was never going to happen. 😢

​But the illusion looks just like my sketch, doesn't it!

The pattern will be released Aug 16, 2021!
I have some parts of the website disabled right now, getting ready to install the pattern images on the "Patterns" page, the Video Tutorials for Lewis the Koala are uploaded and ready to go.

So hopefully I have a sunny day to be able to take the shawl out for his first big day, slight breeze will be ok, but lately we have strong winds, tomorrow doesn't have winds in the forecast, so fingers crossed.

Some of you may know this, some of you may not.  I am a computer programmer, along with being a CPA, which is very uncommon to say the least! So this gives me a very wide range of skills that I can use with my fiber arts.  One of which is design and maintaining my own website, video tutorials and pattern writing.

Some of you may have noticed that I have gotten hot and heavy into illusion/shadow knitting, YES...it has gotten ahold of me in a very big way. But it is so very time consuming to make the pattern charts.

So I paused working/knitting on the Lewis the Koala Illusion Shawl, to see if I could write a program to make it easier and quicker. Normally charting up an already made design will take me about 20-30 days to chart, now I have gotten it down to less then one day!  Hurray!

Not only to have it quicker, but a much better quality, I have programmed a way that I can print the chart in 50 chart row increments, 60 stitches wide for those of whom prefer an easy to read print version, and I have a one page full pattern for those that like to use a computer or tablet to work from. Lots of other little things that make it easier to knit as well. 

I'm very pleased with the program, with it's ease of use, now I just need to be able to knit faster! 😂

Unfortunately, Lewis the Koala has already been charted, but I have made changes on the printed version and the computer/tablet version, it looks much better, but I would rather not redo the entire chart with my new program.

Yesterday as a test of my program, I made the Butterfly Illusion Shawl, below is a scaled down version of it.  💯 improvement.

Let me know what you think. 
Now back to knitting!
Much Luv ❤️