As I mentioned earlier, I don't know when my round shawl will be big enough and I can't hold it up against myself because it's all scrunched up on circular needles.
But I think I can work it out from the following,
I'll stretch out part of the shawl on one of the needles and measure several inches worth. Gauge is often expressed in terms of how many stitches in four inches of knitting, so I'll try to measure four inches worth.
With a straight spiral shawl, you start with a number of sections separated by yarn overs. (I started with eight sections.) You then alternate knitting with yarn overs to keep adding stitches with regular knitting with no increases.
I did it a little differently in that I periodically added additional sections with yarn overs. So at this point, I have eight sections that spiral out from the very center, plus sixteen additional sections that spiral out, but not from the center, for a total of twenty-four sections.
Each of the twenty-four sections has an equal number of stitches. So, I know how many stitches are in the total garment. (Count the stitches in one section, multiply by 24.)
So if I establish how many stitches are in four inches worth, I can easily work out the circumference of the shawl.
Once I have the circumference, I can use this handy tool to find out the diameter. I've heard people say that for a nice, comfy shawl, the ends should be fingertip to fingertip.
Sound like a plan?
Truth to tell, I'm getting bored with this shawl. There's enough stitches in it right now that it takes forever to add a single row. I just hope I finish this thing while it's still cold enough to appreciate it.
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