A Tale of Two Icarus

I'm working on two Icarus shawls at the same time.  That must be an odditiy among knitters, but it just kind of happened.  

I've had the Best of Interweave Knits for quite a while. It is one af very few books that I bought for just one pattern.  It contains the beauteous thing that is the Forest Path Stole  (scroll down and see the modeled version to get a real feel for it from October 1 post).  On the cover was a shawl everyone and his mother has knit, the Icarus shawl.  

When I bought the book, I thought meh.  All I really wanted was the stole.  I really thought that was the only thing I would ever knit from the book.  Along came a cobweb skein of cotton candy pink Merino Lace and Icarus became much more than meh.

For some reason, the Icarus became the subject of desire, nay even obsession.  I began the shawl just before summer, knit a couple of days and then it sat, lost and forlorn, till the Olympics.  

Considering all the things I finished in my Olympic challenge, and where I was when I began working on it in those heady days of February, I did well.  

I love everything about the delicate beauty of this shawl.  I love the tiny lace needles I am knitting the shawl with.  I love how delicate and fine the yarn is. I love the idea of wee pearl beads, or pink beads or the glassy pink lined beads.   I am tickled to be having the internal debate about which beads will go best on this shawl.   This soft and dainty pink is every little girls fairy tale come true.

One Icarus was enough.  Till I got the Zauberball Lace Ball.  

The Zauberball Lace Ball is fantastically, magically coloured, with every colour of the rainbow showing up sometime or other.  Lovely as the strong colours are, they pose a challenge when it comes to pattern.  

Lace shows up well but no matter how fine the lace, this shawl will have a casual cachet.  The strong vibrant colours mean it isn't going everywhere.  Date dressy, yes.  Game day dressy, sure.  Shopping for groceries in your jeans dressy, heck yeah, but not black tie dinner dressy.  The power of its tones shouts pick a lace that shows up the colour.  

I looked at so many different patterns.  Beyond the Revontuli shawl, there was little that drew me till I saw a shawl very similar to an Icarus.  It had the same long columns but was edged in a completely different lace.  I only saw it once but I knew that was the look I wanted.  

I debated while the games were on.  Two Icarus?  No.  I would try to find the other pattern. I looked.  I checked. I wasted many an hour.  I never did find it.  Icarus sort of decided itself.  I was meant to knit two.

The Zauberball lace is distinctly different to work on.  It has a completely different feel.  It's a single.  It's a little toothy. It doesn't even know the meaning of fairy tale delicate.  It has a heft and a depth beyond the richness of  its crayon brights.  To top it off, I am knitting this version in garter stitch.    (please forgive the fuzzy photo)

So here I am am, with a fairy princess shawl and a tomboy shawl and I. Am. Loving. It. 

I only have one question left.  Is the plural of Icarus, Icarii?  Icarusses?