The Āio Shawl - Free Lace Knitting Pattern
"Properly practiced, knitting soothes the troubled spirit, and it doesn’t hurt the untroubled spirit either," observed Elizabeth Zimmerman.
The Aio Shawl (pronounced AH-yoh) embodies this philosophy through its serene, leaf-like lace patterning—a tribute to the Maori concept of aio, the peaceful unity between land and sky (redo this section). As your needles work the chart repeats, you’ll find the same quiet harmony that comes from walking through sun-dappled forests or resting in green pastures. Designed for knitters of all levels, the pattern offers adventurous beginners an accessible lace introduction while providing seasoned crafters with soothing familiarity. Its easily adjustable size makes it equally suited for a single 400-yard skein or larger yardages, inviting you to wrap yourself in nature’s stillness with every wear. Whether you seek creative challenge or mindful repetition, this shawl becomes a meditation in yarn—one stitch at a time.*
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Pattern Information
Needle
US size 5 (3.75mm) 32” (60cm) circular needle.
A long circular needle is recommended in order to accommodate large number of stitches.
Yarns Used
Circus Tonic Handmade, Revelry Sock (Fingering / 4 ply ; 409 yards / 100 grams ; Merino / Nylon).
Yardage
400 - 640 yards. Yardage is dependent on gauge and amount of chart repeats worked.
Gauge
24 sts and 38 rows = 4” / 10cm after blocking.
Gauge is not crucial to the project but different gauges will affect yardage and final size.
Other Notions
Stitch markers
Darning needle
Final Measurements
Measurements taken after aggressive blocking. Sample was worked over eight chart repeats.
Abbreviations
K - knit
P - purl
Yo - yarn over
K2tog - knit two together
Ssk - slip slip knit
Sl1, k2tog, psso - slip one stitch, knit two together, pass the slipped stitch over
Pattern Instructions
Construction
About the Written and Charted Instructions: both sets of instructions do not include the k3 border at the beginning and end of the rows, as well as the center “spine” stitch. The stitch pattern is repeated on each side for the shawl body (there is no mirroring). Additionally, the WS rows have been removed as you just purl all the shawl body stitches.
For RS rows: K3,*work the stitch pattern*, k1, *work the stitch pattern*, k3.
For WS rows: K3, purl body stitches, k3.
At least four stitch markers to mark the border and the center stitch is recommended.
The shawl is easily adjustable in size. To make it smaller or larger, just work less or more repeats of the Leaf Lace Pattern rows [1-20].
Casting On
CO on 3 sts. Knit 14 rows. Turn work 90 degrees, place marker 1 and pick up 3 sts, place marker 2, pick up 1 st,
place marker 3, and pick up 3 sts (these picked up sts will be along the 14 row edge). Turn work 90 degrees
again, place marker 4 and pick up 3 sts (these picked up sts will be at the cast on edge). You have 13 sts on the
needle.
Body
Work Leaf Lace Pattern Set-Up rows [1-22] once (57 sts).
Work Leaf Lace Pattern rows [1-20] 8 times (or as many or/few times as you like; 377 sts).
Finishing
Use the Picot BO to finish: Cast on three stitches using the cable cast-on method and bind off six stitches. Slip the one stitch on the right needle back onto the left and repeat from cast-on. Continue until you have two sts rem.
Cast on four stitches using the cable cast-on method and bind off five stitches. Clip yarn and pull tail through rem st. Weave in ends and block. Note: doing a different number of Lace Leaf Pattern reps may affect your final picot row.
Stitch Patterns & Charts
Leaf Lace Pattern Set-Up
Row 1 (RS): Yo, k3, yo.
Row 2 (WS): P all stitches.
Row 3: Yo, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 5: Yo, k2tog, yo, k3, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 7: Yo, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, k1, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 9: Yo, k2tog, yo, k7, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 11: Yo, k3, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, k1, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, k3, yo.
Row 13: Yo, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, k3, sl1, k2tog, psso, k3, yo, k1, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 15: Yo, k2tog, yo, k3, yo, k2, sl1, k2tog, psso, k2, yo, k3, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 17: Yo, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, (yo, k1) x 2, sl1, k2tog, psso, (k1, yo) x 2, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, k1, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 19: Yo, k2tog, yo, k7, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, k7, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 21: (Yo, k3, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, k1, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso) x 2, yo, k3, yo.
Leaf Lace Pattern (10 STS + 15)
Use stitch markers to mark off the repeats.
Row 1 (RS): Yo, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, k3, sl1, k2tog, psso, *k3, yo, k1, yo, k3, sl1, k2tog, psso; rep from *, k3, yo, k1, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 2 (WS): P all stitches.
Row 3: Yo, k2tog, yo, k3, yo, k2, sl1, k2tog, psso, *k2, yo, k3, yo, k2, sl1, k2tog, psso; rep from *, k2, yo, k3, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 5: Yo, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, (yo, k1) x 2, sl1, k2tog, psso, *(k1, yo) x 2, sl1, k2tog, psso, (yo, k1) x 2, sl1, k2tog, psso; rep from *, (k1, yo) x 2, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, k1, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 7: Yo, k2tog, yo, k7, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, *yo, k7, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso ; work from *, yo, k7, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 9: Yo, k3, (yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, k1) x 2, k1, *(k1, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo) x 2, k2; rep from *, k1, yo.
Row 11: Yo, k2tog, yo, k1, *(yo, k3, sl1, k2tog, psso, k3, yo, k1); rep from * yo, ssk, yo.
Row 13: Yo, k2tog, yo, k2, *k1, yo, k2, sl1, k2tog, psso, k2, yo, k2; rep from *, k1, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 15: Yo, k2tog, yo, *k1, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, k1, yo, k1, sl1, k2tog, psso, k1, yo, rep from *, k1, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, k1, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 17: Yo, k2tog, yo, *k7, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, rep from *, k7, yo, ssk, yo.
Row 19: Yo, *k3, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo, k1, yo, sl1, k2tog, psso, yo,; rep from *, k3, yo.
Thank you!
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