Get Ready for the Autumn Dahlias Mystery Knit-Along

**Note: This post was edited on July 25th to add a circular needle length and a tip about wet blocking your sock blank**

The abundant swath of dahlias sway against the skyline, seeming to wave their last farewells to the summer sun. At the height of their bloom, autumn seeps into the air like a whisper and the landscape takes on a richer hue. Dahlia’s soft petals, perfect and vibrant, beckon us into the season… and on to SweetGeorgia Yarn’s 5th Annual Mystery Knit-Along (MKAL).

“Every dahlia is love’s perfection in bloom.”

This year’s MKAL is playful and colourful, evoking a delightful sense of abundance. Delicate lines and subtle patterns let the colours take over, like when autumn dahlias overtake the garden at the close of summer. With gradient sock blanks and contrasting skeins, you’ll reveal, clue by clue, a beautiful, wearable shawl at the end of five weeks. This is a mystery knit you won’t want to miss.

HOW DO I PARTICIPATE IN THE MKAL?

Simply purchasing the Autumn Dahlias MKAL Pattern automatically ensures you’ll receive every clue update, as well as the full pattern once it is launched.

All the fun and camaraderie of the MKAL will take place on the SweetGeorgia Yarns Blog and, for School of SweetGeorgia members, the Autumn Dahlias MKAL Group. Be sure to check either of these spots for commentary, chat, tutorials, and announcements.

HOW DO I PURCHASE THE PATTERN?

The Autumn Dahlias MKAL Pattern is available on the SweetGeorgia Yarns website and on Ravelry as a pre-sale pattern at the discounted early-bird price of $6.50 CAD. No coupon code is needed, but you only have until Monday, Aug 1 to snag it at the special discounted price.

WHEN ARE THE CLUES RELEASED?

Five weekly clues will be released on the following dates:

• Clue 1: Aug 2
• Clue 2: Aug 9
• Clue 3: Aug 16
• Clue 4: Aug 23
• Clue 5: Aug 30
• Final Pattern: Sept 13

If you purchased via Ravelry, you’ll need to hit “update” in your library on Clue Day. If you purchased via woocommerce-414791-4028440.cloudwaysapps.com, you’ll receive a notification that the pattern has been updated; follow the link to download the updated Clue.

CAST-ON ZOOM PARTY

We hope you’ll join us on Aug 2 at 3pm EST (12 PST) for a fun Cast-On Party! Get to know your fellow knit-alongers and knit together for an hour. Link can be found in the Planning PDF upon purchase.

PATTERN DETAILS

Designer: Tabetha Hedrick

Skill Level: Intermediate
Knitters will need to know how to work: left, right, and centered decreases; knit front & back and yarn over increases; slipped stitches; picking up stitches; and cable and long-tail cast on.

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS

94 ½” / 240 cm wingspan
24” / 61 cm at the deepest point

YARN

Autumn Dahlias is worked with three gently (minimal) contrasting colours, using one skein of CashLuxe Spark, one skein of Tough Love Sock, and one Sock Blank. The total yardage used is 1270 yds of fingering-weight yarn.
We’ve put the following sets together to help take some of the guesswork out, available HERE from our SweetGeorgia shop, as well as at local yarn shops: Earth Faire​, Maker Savvy​, and Northfield Yarn. The original sample was knit in Antique Blush.

1 SweetGeorgia Yarns Mystery Knit-Along Set in Antique Blush. The set contains:

• 1 skein SweetGeorgia Yarns Tough Love Sock in Blue Canoe (MC) (425 yd / 388 m per 4 oz / 115 g skein; 80% Superwash Merino, 20% Nylon).
• 1 skein SweetGeorgia Yarns Cash Luxe Spark in Haze (CC1) (420 yd / 384 m per 4 oz / 115 g skein; 80% Superwash Merino, 10% Cashmere,
  10% Silver Stellina).
• 1 SweetGeorgia Yarns Sock Blank in Bloom & Blossom (CC2) (425 yd / 388 m per 4 oz / 115 g blank; 80% Superwash Merino, 20% Nylon).

NEEDLES & NOTIONS

Size 6 US / 4 mm circular needles, 24” / 60 cm long
Size 6 US / 4 mm circular needles, 32” / 80 cm long
Adjust needle size if necessary to obtain the correct gauge.
Yarn needle

GAUGE

26 sts and 48 rows = 4” / 10 cm in Garter st, unblocked and unstretched.
23 sts and 34 rows = 4” / 10 cm in Garter st, after blocking.
21 sts and 29 rows = 4” / 10 cm in Lace Swatch patt, after blocking.
Please note that changes in gauge will affect yardage used and final measurements.

PATTERN NOTES

The shawl is knit flat from side to side.

Knitters may find it helpful to unwind the sock blank into a skein and wet finish it to remove kinks. This will help with consistency in some of the patterning.

SweetGeorgia Yarns wants to ensure you have everything you need for your crafting success, so be sure to check out our growing library of knitting (and more) courses at schoolofsweetgeorgia.com.