A Rose By Any Other Name

Gardens are a form of autobiography. -Sydney Edison

Thanks for all the lovely comments yesterday. I promise I will get photos soon, but part of the delay is that I don't actually have them yet because they were still too big to email. So maybe Roomie will see all the comments and send me some photos?

Yesterday we waxed nostalgic about the weddings of two of my dearest friends. Roomie and her husband just celebrated their one year anniversary and are carefully storing their chuppah with all the care an heirloom deserves. Flitgirl is running around the Mid-Atlantic states meeting with rabbis, deacons, caterers, and what-have-you. Anyone who knows exactly (and I mean exactly) what kind of centerpieces she wants to best compliment the gardens on the grounds a solid year and a half before the wedding, well, . . . let's just say I wasn't surprised when she asked me what color ribbons should be tied around the poles supporting the chuppah.

No, siree, not surprised at all. But it does inspire one to start creating this currently-theoretical chuppah.

Let's recall our parameters: Size: 4.5 x 6 ft. White or ivory. Lace. That's about it.

Let's talk options.

Yarn: I'm thinking a wool-silk blend. Roomie's was 100% silk from Henry's Attic, Cascade Petite, I believe. It had a gorgeous sheen, but it was awfully heavy. I knit it on US3s at a gauge of 7-8 spi unblocked, about 6 spi blocked.
For flitgirl, perhaps Silk and Ivory. Would that be too ivory, not enough white? I like the sheen from the silk, but I'm thinking of something airier and more delicate in appearance, knit on larger needles and blocked within an inch of it's life. Perhaps even a 100% wool? I'm aiming for fingering weight on US6-7s, I think. Laceweight would be nice and delicate, but most people will be viewing it from a distance, so I think fingering would be better. Suggestions welcome.

Pattern: From the first moment flitgirl asked me to knit her chuppah, I knew what I wanted for the center pattern: Rose Trellis pattern from Barbara Walker's Treasury (examples here and here). June Oshiro used it to great effect in her wedding veil. [Pause in respect for a great work of art.] But then we need border patterns. Something similarly dainty and delicate, Romantic in every sense of the word, if you will. So I turn to my favorite online collection of lace edgings: Homework, from 1891. We are probably looking for two borders - an inside border with a straight edging and then an outside border with a scalloped or pointed edge.

Here are some contenders:

• Dotted Lace Insertion
• Torchon Lace - love the diamonds
• Wide English Lace - maybe too angular, but the bride is an Anglophile
• Rose Leaf Lace - I love this one, but too many roses? Can you even have too many roses?
• Double Rose Leaf Lace - double your pleasure?
• Grantley Insertion - I think this looks like candleflames, which is nice

Of course, I still have to consult my books for an edging, and any suggestions are most welcome. I learned on the first chuppah that it is desirable to plan your edging before casting on for the center. It does not take care of itself later on. No, you have to take care of it instead.

Please comment. Especially if it's your chuppah.