I’ve always been fascinated by folklore and fairy tales. I grew up thinking there were trolls in every rock and little gnomes and fairies in the forests. Some were good and helpful, of course, and others not so much. Huldran, or Skogsrået as she’s more commonly known in Sweden, is a sort of temptress who lives in the woods. She’s the most beautiful woman you have ever seen, and she tempts men away from their families. As they follow her deeper and deeper into the woods they can get lost, and succumb to her beauty. She can wear them out during lovemaking and enchant them such that they never return to their families. No man seems to be able to tell the Huldra from a regular woman, except that she is extraordinarily attractive, but if you do manage to see her back, she’s supposed to have a tail. Or possibly a back that looks like a rotten tree trunk. The stories vary. Perhaps because the men who have seen her have not been focused on her back exactly. 😉
When I was designing the Huldran shawl, I knew I wanted to have leafy motifs for the forest, representing how the Huldra was hiding between the trees. And I wanted a braided cable to remind us of beautiful, long, braided hair.
The yarn I picked was Serenity Silk from Zen Yarn Garden in a green colour called Queen Bee. Queen Bee has proven to be a pain to photograph, and no matter how I do it, it seems to sharpen the contrasts. In person, the yarn looks like an almost living green, shifting shades in subtle ways. In the pictures, the dark green is darker and the light green is lighter.
Anyhow, as I was designing the shawl, I kept thinking that it would be fun to add something extra. And the “extra” that the Huldra has is….. her tail. So I designed the shawl to have a Huldra tail peeking out on the bottom.
For the more conservative knitters, the shawl includes finishing instructions both with and without a tail. But I have to say, I really like the tail. The shawl can also be made bigger (with more yarn), or smaller, depending on your preferences.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the knit along, and would like to thank all the participants. I know you’re still working on it, since the last part of the pattern was released today. But nonetheless, thanks everyone for knitting along with me. Hope you’ve enjoyed it. I’d love to see pictures when you’re done. The progress pictures I’ve seen to date have been amazing. Keep ’em coming. And…. hope to see you in the next KAL.
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