Papagena Shawl — pattern and pictures

I finished this a few weeks ago, and I’m finally sharing both pictures and a free pattern for my new favorite shawl (and, hopefully, I might even be able to figure out ravelry posting)! I love shawls because they go with everything, and this one combines rainbow colors, a feathery border, and beautiful drapeiness. 

I am an opera geek, in case you didn’t know that about me, and one of my favorite characters in opera is Papagena, from Mozart’s The Magic Flute. She only has one reason to be in the play, which is to test and then marry Papageno (wow, Mozart wasn’t creative with names), a bird-catcher dressed in feathers; I don’t like that she’s got no choice in the matter and she doesn’t have any character development or anything, but she sings a beautiful duet and usually has a beautiful feathery costume. 

This shawl sat unfinished in my stash for a year and a half, so I originally called it the Perennial Shawl or the Procrastination Shawl (depending on my mood), but I finally finished it as part of my decision to finish old projects, rather than starting new ones, during Lent this year. 

When I finished it, I knew it needed a new name, and I began to debate what it looked like. A friend suggested that it looked like bird wings when I was twirling it around, and I agreed heartily. So I named it after my favorite bird-girl, Papagena. It’s shown here on my dressmaker’s mannequin, standing in my garden (to take advantage of the spring). I love how I can wear it so many ways! 

If you have questions or concerns or corrections to the pattern, please contact me about it (here in the comments is fine)!

Yes, it’s held closed by a sprig of oxalis here. I don’t have a good shawl pin.

Spread out to see the wing-like look. 

The pattern (in US crochet terms)

This is my first free pattern! With luck I can figure out how to put it on Ravelry too (I’m BardicWizard there). Here’s a downloadable pdf (on google drive), and the ravelry link. 

Worked in rows using mostly treble crochet, this half-circular shawl is a fairly simple project, allowing the beauty of the yarn to shine through. The offset increases (caused by not alternating the increase placements) creates a feathery sort of feel, which the edging continues. The feathery and loose feel, as well as the rainbow of colors in the yarn, made me think of the character Papagena from Mozart’s The Magic Flute, so it’s called the Papagena Shawl. 

Notes about this pattern: Usually, when working an increase pattern like this one, it’s worked in rounds so the increases line up; if it’s worked in rows, the increases are often alternated so that on the wrong side rows, the increases are worked before the un increased stitches and the increases are made to line up. I deliberately chose not to do so here, because the alternating placement felt more feathery to me. When starting a row, the turning chain does not count as a stitch; this is because it makes the edge stitches of the shawl thicker (matching the increase at the end of each row) and because it fudges the stitch count to add an extra stitch on the last body row, so the edging pattern needs no adjustment. 

Materials:

• Yarn: 2 balls Red Heart Unforgettable (you need about 1.5 balls worth of yarn), in the same colorway and dye lot (mine is in Stained Glass). 

• Hook: I/5.50mm or size needed to obtain gauge. 

• Tapestry needle for weaving in ends. 

Gauge: 3 tc / 1 row per inch, 12 tc/4 rows to 4 inches. It’s not super important here though. 

Finished measurements: 57 inches across top edge, 21 inches long at center back (radius ranges between 20 inches and 28.5 inches due to the method of construction). 

Abbreviations: tc = treble crochet, sc = single crochet, ch = chain, dc = double crochet

Row 1: ch 7, sc in second chain from hook, sc across. 

Row 2: ch 4 (DOES NOT COUNT AS STITCH, here and throughout), 2 tc in each stitch across. (12 stitches)

Row 3: ch 4, 2 tc in each stitch across. (24 stitches)

Row 4: ch 4, *tc in next stitch, 2 tc in next stitch* across. (36 stitches)

Row 5: ch 4, *tc in next 2 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (48 stitches).

Row 6: ch 4, *tc in next 3 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (60 stitches).

Row 7: ch 4, *tc in next 4 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (72 stitches).

Row 8: ch 4, *tc in next 5 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (84 stitches).

Row 9: ch 4, *tc in next 6 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (96 stitches).

Row 10: ch 4, *tc in next 7 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (108 stitches).

Row 11: ch 4, *tc in next 8 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (120 stitches).

Row 12: ch 4, *tc in next 9 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (132 stitches).

Row 13: ch 4, *tc in next 10 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (144 stitches).

Row 14: ch 4, *tc in next 11 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (156 stitches).

Row 15: ch 4, *tc in next 12 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (168 stitches).

Row 16: ch 4, *tc in next 13 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (180 stitches).

Row 17: ch 4, *tc in next 14 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (192 stitches).

Row 18: ch 4, *tc in next 15 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (204 stitches).

Row 19: ch 4, *tc in next 16 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (216 stitches).

Row 20: ch 4, *tc in next 17 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (228 stitches).

Row 21: ch 4, *tc in next 18 stitches, 2 tc in next stitch* across (240 stitches).

Row 22 (edging): ch 1, sc into first stitch, ch 1, skip next stitch, (dc, ch 4, slip stitch into first chain, ch 1, dc) into next stitch, ch 1, skip next stitch, *sc into next stitch, ch 1, skip next stitch, (dc, ch 4, slip stitch into first chain, ch 1, dc) into next stitch, ch 1, skip next stitch, repeat from * across, sc into turning chain from prior row. Finish off, cut yarn, and weave in ends.