Purse Stitch crescent selvedges

Thinking about Purse Stitch made me think about how to incorporate it into crescent shawl selvedges. Understanding its structure helped me figure out how to mirror it along the two edges.

I like the result. It’s a bit unusual in how it’s worked, so I hope my instructions are clear enough. I’ve phrased it in three different ways. Please comment if you have trouble!

Purse stitch crescent selvedges

Purse Stitch crescent shawl selvedges
click to enlarge

The most important thing to know here is that the double yarnovers are worked differently on each row. One loop of each double yarnover from row 1 is always dropped to provide a little extra slack. One loop of each double yarnover from row 2 is decreased away; the other has a kyok worked in it.

Cast on 4 stitches for each selvedge, and however many stitches are needed for the rest of the shawl pattern.

Setup:

Row 1: k1, yo x 2, ssk, kyok, work shawl pattern to last 4 stitches, kyok, k2tog, yo x 2, k1.
Row 2: k1, drop the first loop of the double YO from row 1, k2tog, yo x 2, work shawl pattern to last 4 stitches (counting the double YO as 2 stitches), yo x 2, ssk, dropping the second loop of the double YO from row 1, k1.

Selvedges for the rest of the shawl:

Row 3: k1, yo x 2, ssk, leaving the second loop of the double YO on the needle, kyok in the second loop of the double YO, work shawl pattern to last 4 stitches, kyok in the first loop of the double YO, leaving the second loop on the needle, k2tog, yo x 2, k1.
Row 4: k1, drop the first loop of the double YO from row 1, k2tog, yo x 2, work shawl pattern to last 4 stitches (counting the double YO as 2 stitches), yo x 2, ssk, dropping the second loop of the double YO from row 1, k1.

Repeat rows 3 and 4 to end of shawl.

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