In the Knitting Bag - July

This project has been such a fun learning experience!
I knew that I wanted to knit this shawl as soon as I saw the Thurmont Shawl by Dee O'Keefe, and I knew the perfect recipient.

The next step was to find the yarn.
I didn't seem to have anything suitable . . .  or did I?

I pulled out the sweater I bought at the thrift store - a beautiful coral cotton men's sweater that still had the new tags on it.  And off we go!

First to unravel, wrap into skeins and wash . . . then onto the ball winder . .

The unexpected "surprise" was that the yarn basically was threads, so once I spun it on my homemade drop spindle, I knew it was going to have to spun once again so it was double thick -

That did the trick!

 
I am approximately half done with the shawl, and though I typically get bored with a large project, this pattern has held my interest throughout.

Once blocked, so the pattern lays nicer, I think overall I will be really pleased with it.
I will update when finished :)  Thanks for taking a peek!

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/thurmont