This isn’t what you were expecting, were you? I’ve shown you sneak peeks of other designs (which I promise are coming) but this one kind of snuck out of nowhere. The Sarasota Shrug has a long and storied history, but suffice to say it is now available to you!

This is a counterpane shrug, which means the back is worked in the round as a giant lace piece and then you attach sleeves and ribbing. If you are familiar with working shawls or lace in the round this will be a piece of cake. And because you know me and my love of shawls this felt comfortable and easy to me as well.

This is worked up in a Yak/Bamboo blend from Bijou Basin – their Bijou Spun. The fibers combine for a soft and luxurious fabric, but it does have unusual drape, so blocking a swatch is your friend and a real necessity in this case. Heather over at Stitch Sprouts did an awesome blog post about swatching and how to make sure your swatches aren’t dirty rotten liars!

The Sarasota Shrug is worked completely in the round so you will need appropriate circulars and/or dpns. I’m a magic loop girl myself so I used 40″ circulars for the sleeves and worked them that way!

Needles: Size 5 needles (3.75 mm)

Yarn: Bijou Spun by Bijou Basin Lhasa Wilderness, 75% Yak, 25% Bamboo, 180 yards to 56g, Teal, 2 (3, 3, 4, 5, 5) skeins.

Gauge: 16 stitches and 22 rows = 4 inches in blocked counterpane lace pattern

To Fit Bust: 32-34 (36-38, 40-42, 44-46, 48-50, 52-54)”/81.5-86.5 (91.5-96.5, 101.5-106.5, 112-117, 122-127, 132-162.5) cm

The Sarasota Shrug is available on Ravelry for $6.00 USD