EarthBound Misfits:TUS Colorways: In Stock Kits

Price: $97.50
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The Arda yarn set.
The Arda yarn set.
An example of the bead mix for Arda
An example of the bead mix for Arda
And the shawl as knit in the Arda set.
And the shawl as knit in the Arda set.

 We currently have two in-stock kits in the colorway sets of Arda + Vulcan.

This is a beautiful beaded shawl, in a gorgeous TUS colorway and lots and lots of beads. 


The Design

This is a beautiful new shawl by Barbara Benson, whom you might recall from her gorgeous BitterBlue Shawl.  Here is how Barbara came up with this piece:

After the wonderful collaborative experience that produced BitterBlue Barbara dreamed up another shawl combining gradient yarn and beads.

In an attempt to spread her wings she chose to work with a random assortment of beads that compliment the colors that make up the gradient. When designing lace precision is required so allowing herself to just take the beads as they came was an exercise in release of control. To allow the beads to shine they are placed on a contrasting band of lace that recurs down the length of the shawl.

The resulting shawl is one of the largest that Barbara has designed and it wraps you in an beautiful embrace.

Since this shawl was a meditation in learning to let go and fly away she chose to name it after a classic Pink Floyd song "Learning to Fly". We might all be earthbound misfits, but this shawl will give you sparkling wings.

Yarn, Colorways, and Bead Mixes

Kelly, Barbara, and I had a wonderful time dreaming up names for these colorways.  We went deep into mythologies and legends to come up with these, wanting to make them descriptive and also in keeping with the magic that is Earth Faire. 

Each set includes about 150 grams  in the Gradiance colorway plus 100 grams in a solid color to contrast.  

 The Gradiance colorway set will give about 600 yards; the contrast skein will have about 400 yards.  


1. Arda + Vulcan:  Arda is an amazingly rich and vibrant colorway, the colors of a field of flowers in full bloom mid-summer.  Magenta goes into purple goes into blue goes into green.  Gorgeous!  We borrowed the name from JRR Tolkein's imagination; he had Arda as a word that signified the World and all that is in it.  The contrast skein is a medium gray.  (Named Vulcan for the Greek of fire.)

Note that this set had originally been dyed in Luxe but that yarn is no longer available.  That had been a 25% Tussah Silk/ 75% Superwash Merino fingering weight yarn. Kelly and Laura have brought in another yarn, which they have named Kiri.  It is 80% superwash merino/ 20% silk and has four plies instead of 2.  I felt it and love it and many test knitters prefer it to the "old" Luxe.

2. Sylph + Persephone:  Sylph is a lovely pastel blend, delicate pinks going into soft sage.  Here again we went into the myths of olden times for the name, a sylph being a spirit of the air and this is so beautifully ethereal.  The contrast skein is a slightly deeper rose color.  (We named it Persephone for the beautiful maiden in Greek mythology who accidentally ate 6 pomegranate seeds and was bound to Hades for one-third of the year.)  

  This set is dyed in Tinsel Toes, which is a 50% Superwash Merino/ 50% Tencel  blend that takes dyes in a somewhat muted fashion.  Each 150 gram set has about 552 yards; plus the solid color will give you an additonal 368 yds. 


Each set has its own specially created individual mix of 6/0 beads that was put together specifically for that Gradiance colorway.    The beads reflect and highlight the colors of the yarn. 

And each kit will include well over the needed 75 grams (about 900 beads) that you need for the shawl.  


The pattern is not automatically part of the kit.

You will be able to get the pattern on Barbara's Ravelry page.   This will give you a copy in your Ravelry library and you will automatically get any updates. In this case, set the drop-down menu above to "No Pattern Needed."


Quite lovely indeed indeed indeed!

