I’m having another Brooklyn Tweed fangirl moment, guys. I’ve posted about Jared Flood’s design company for Inspiration Saturday twice before: here and here. He recently released the Winter 2014 lookbook and it contained one design that I just have not been able to get out of my head all week.

Copyright Brooklyn Tweed/Jared Flood. Click for pattern page.

This shawl is called Kelpie and it involves some of my favorite things: garter stitch, rustic elegance, colorful gradient stripes, and wavy edgings— all in one lovely, casual shawl. I’m not usually gripped with the desire to knit a pattern in the exact yarn it calls for, but this time, I am. Brooklyn Tweed Loft is a rather unique, woolen-spun yarn (click for a review by Clara Parkes) sourced from sheep in Wyoming and spun in a mill in New Hampshire. I’m coveting that shawl in this yarn so much that I ordered a BT shade card to better choose colors.  (Yes, it’s only January 18th and I am, indeed, already planning to abort my knit-only-from-stash goal for the year. That was always less of a rule and more of a guideline, anyway, and sometimes exceptions need to be made. Justified.)

Lovely, lovely colors.

For my shawl, I think I would do 6 stripes, 2 in each of 3 different colors, rather than a 5-color gradient (to use up the yarn a bit more). The biggest issue I’m having is deciding which way I want the shawl to go!

BT color combos 1, 2, and 3. (Each row across is a different combo.)

I like the idea of a light neutral paired with a gradient of contrast colors. For combo #1, I’ve paired Fossil (a nice, neutral cream) with a series of greens: Tent, Birdbook, and Artifact. For combo #2 I went the purple-y route with Postcard (an almost pinky-purplish neutral) and Thistle, Plume, and Old World. For combo #3, I chose a relaxed, denim palette pairing Sweatshirt (my favorite light, silvery grey) with Faded Quilt, Soot, and Almanac.

BT color combos #4, 5, and 6. (Each row across is a different color combo).

For combo #4, I ventured into warmer color territory pairing Woodsmoke (a light tan/beige) with Camper, Long Johns, and Homemade Jam (my favorite deep, burgundy red). I switched things up a bit with combo #5, choosing an entirely neutral gradient and making the main color darker than the contrasts: Pumpernickel (a deep, chocolate-y brown) with Fossil, Barn Owl, and Nest. For the final combo #6, I paired the nearly-black Cast Iron with the lightest shades of all my favorite hues: Foothills (green), Faded Quilt (blue), and Blanket Fort (purple).

Clearly, I will just need to knit 6 Kelpie shawls. That sounds reasonable, yes? There are so many more ways you could go with choosing these colors, too! How would you knit your Kelpie shawl? What colors would you pick? Has something been obsessing inspiring you this week? Please share with us in the comments below!