I generally like to knit my own samples. Sometimes, though, timewise, that just doesn’t work out, and I have a sample knitter do the samples for me.
A good sample knitter — one who knits the pattern as written, doesn’t make assumptions, gets gauge, works to the agreed deadline, etc — is worth their weight in gold. An awesome sample knitter — such as Annette, who’s done quite a few samples (Revetment, Caridwen, Breakwater, to name a few) for me recently — is priceless. She does the above plus catches mistakes I’ve missed, she’s fast as lightning, and she’s an incredible knitter. Â I trust her to block the finished objects – not something I’d generally ask a sample knitter!
I was planning on doing a companion shawl to Estuarine (currently in testing here), shown to the left, that would be a little more approachable yet still have some of the same features. The Morro Shawl is a sideways-knit, crescent-shaped shawl, offered in two sizes (two different yarn weights) (but is also extremely customizable to your gauge and yarn quantity). It has the same dot knit textured pattern and the same cable-y wavy lace and cable edging, but both are worked at the same time (no knitted on edging, no picking up stitches).
Here are the two swatches. Â The first is in Fibre Company Meadow in Hydrangea; the second is Fibre Company Knightsbridge in Skyworth.
It should be up for testing soon! Keep an eye on the Ravelry group, here, and in the newsletter.