Meet Lyra!...a two month project

My knitting friend from Houston, Kenny, called me up one day and said, "Let's knit Lyra!" And that's how this started.

I had no idea what Lyra was (I believe it is pronounced "Lie-rah"), so after we talked about knitting this pattern, I tried to find out about Lyra, and the designer, Herbert Niebling. I have been unable to find much about him, but from what I gather, he was German, and designed doilies and tablecloths and the like sometime during the 1920s and 1930s. I am not quite sure of the time period, so if anyone has more information, please let me know.

Click on pics for larger view.

First pic is Lyra right after blocking. Top right pic is on the dining room table. Other pics are closeups of the corner and mid points.

With the advent of the knitters online group Ravelry.com, patterns, ideas, and feedback and information about yarn, along with social and political fun, have flourished worldwide, and is shared at the fastest pace ever!

So, I got the pattern, and during January and February spent about 200 hours knitting this lace. While the original patterns are mostly done with size 00, 0 and 1 US size needles (quite small in diameter) and knit with thin cotton thread, I decided to knit Lyra with Grignascu merino/silk (75/25 blend in a pewter gray color) that Kenny bought for me on his visit to Vermont last October (thanks Kenny!). I used size 5 US needles.

The knit piece has been washed and blocked--two hours of stretching it out and pinning it with lots of pins over a blanket topped with a sheet on the living room floor. It was not the most fun I've had in old age, and my butt and calves were very sore for 3 days afterward from squatting and sitting on my heels!

This Lyra is 60x60 inches.

Enjoy! Also, click HERE for pics of Niebling's design mastery!