Begonia Swirl by Carfield Ma is a dramatic lace shawl with a flowing asymmetric shape and a beautiful swirling floral effect.
Designed for lace-weight yarn, the shawl gradually expands into a sweeping curved edge that makes the lace motif particularly striking after blocking.
The original pattern remains available as a free Ravelry download and has been translated into many languages.
✓ Free Pattern Availability
Begonia Swirl by Carfield Ma is currently available as a free Ravelry download. Because the designer has published pattern clarifications over time, use the current Ravelry version rather than an older copied PDF.
Begonia Swirl at a Glance
Pattern: Begonia Swirl
Designer: Carfield Ma
Published: August 2013
Category: Shawl / Wrap
Yarn Weight: Lace
Suggested Yarn: Fischer Wolle Merino Lace
Needles: US 4 / 3.5 mm
Yardage: Approx. 822 yd / 752 m
Construction: Worked flat
Shape: Asymmetric lace shawl
Instructions: Written pattern and chart
Availability: Free Ravelry download
About Begonia Swirl
Begonia Swirl was designed by Carfield Ma and first published in August 2013.
It is an asymmetric lace shawl whose expanding construction creates the distinctive swirling appearance suggested by its name.
The open lace becomes increasingly dramatic as the shawl grows, and careful blocking at the end helps reveal the full shape of the design.
A Lace-Weight Shawl
Begonia Swirl was designed for lace-weight yarn.
The suggested yarn is Fischer Wolle Merino Lace, a fine blend of merino wool and cashmere.
A fine yarn allows the openwork to remain light and helps emphasize the curved lines of the lace.
Published Yardage
The pattern lists approximately:
822 yards / 752 meters
Actual yarn use can vary with your yarn choice, tension and any modifications you make.
For a lace project, it is sensible to leave yourself some extra yarn rather than planning to use every last meter.
Needles
The suggested needle size is:
US 4 / 3.5 mm
Needle size should be treated as a starting point. Lace fabric is strongly affected by the combination of yarn, needle and blocking, so choose the needle that gives you the fabric you want.
Gauge and Shawl Knitting
Ravelry does not list a conventional gauge requirement for Begonia Swirl.
That does not mean tension is irrelevant.
A looser or tighter fabric can change the finished dimensions and the amount of yarn required, so a small lace swatch is still useful when substituting yarn.
The Swirling Lace Effect
The most distinctive feature of Begonia Swirl is the way the lace appears to sweep outward as the shawl expands.
Increases and decreases shape both the openwork and the overall form of the shawl.
This makes stitch-count accuracy particularly important. A missing increase or decrease may affect not only one lace motif but the alignment of later sections.
Use Stitch Markers
Stitch markers can make a large lace project much easier to manage.
Where appropriate, use them to identify repeating sections so that you can check smaller groups of stitches instead of recounting an entire long row.
If one section has the wrong count, investigate it immediately before continuing.
Use Lifelines
Begonia Swirl is also a good project for using lifelines.
Run a contrasting thread through a known-correct row periodically. If you later discover a serious mistake, the lifeline provides a safe point to return to.
This becomes increasingly valuable as the shawl grows and the rows contain many more stitches.
Reading the Lace
Try to understand what the increases and decreases are creating rather than treating every row as an isolated sequence of symbols.
As the motif becomes established, the knitted fabric itself can help you recognize whether the next increase or decrease is correctly positioned.
Learning to read lace this way makes it much easier to catch errors early.
Written Instructions and Charts
Ravelry identifies Begonia Swirl as having both charted and written instructions.
Some knitters find charts much easier for visualizing the developing lace, while others prefer written directions.
If both formats are available in your chosen language, use whichever makes it easiest for you to track your place accurately.
Pattern Corrections and Clarifications
Important Pattern Note
The designer has posted corrections and clarifications to Begonia Swirl over time. For this reason, download the current pattern from the designer's Ravelry page rather than relying on an old copy from another website.
Amazing Knitting intentionally does not reproduce those corrected rows here. The designer's current pattern page should remain the reference for the knitting instructions.
Available in Multiple Languages
One particularly useful feature of Begonia Swirl is the number of translations that have been contributed over the years.
Ravelry currently lists the pattern in numerous languages, including English, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Polish, Spanish and Turkish, among others.
Check the current Ravelry download options to see which language versions are presently available.
Choosing Yarn for Begonia Swirl
Lace shawls benefit from yarn with enough stitch definition to show the openwork clearly.
When choosing a substitute, consider:
- Lace-weight or a similarly fine yarn
- Good stitch definition
- Comfortable drape
- Fiber that responds well to blocking
- Enough yardage to finish without changing dye lots
Wool and wool blends are popular choices because blocking can help open the lace and establish the final shape.
Solid or Variegated Yarn?
A solid or gently tonal yarn makes it easy to see the intricate lace structure.
Gradient yarn can also work beautifully because the expanding shawl gives the changing color room to develop.
With strongly variegated yarn, make a swatch first. Very rapid color changes can sometimes compete visually with detailed lace motifs.
Worked Flat
Begonia Swirl is worked flat.
As the shawl expands, a circular needle can still be convenient because its cable can accommodate the growing number of stitches even though you are knitting back and forth rather than in the round.
The Rows Become Much Longer
One thing to expect with an expanding lace shawl is that later rows can take considerably longer than the early rows.
Do not judge your total project time from how quickly the first section grows.
As the stitch count increases, careful counting becomes more important and each completed row represents substantially more knitting.
Binding Off a Lace Shawl
The final edge of a lace shawl needs enough flexibility to open during blocking.
A bind-off that is too tight can prevent the outer edge from reaching its intended shape.
Follow the current designer instructions for the recommended finishing method rather than substituting a tight standard bind-off automatically.
Blocking Begonia Swirl
Blocking is one of the most important finishing steps for this project.
Freshly knitted lace can look compressed and the motifs may be difficult to appreciate before blocking.
After washing according to your yarn's care instructions, arrange the shawl carefully to reveal its sweeping shape and open the lace evenly.
Allow it to dry completely before removing pins or blocking wires.
Skills Used in Begonia Swirl
- Knitting and purling
- Yarn overs
- Lace increases and decreases
- Following repeating lace motifs
- Reading written lace instructions
- Reading charts
- Maintaining accurate stitch counts
- Working increasingly long rows
- Flexible lace finishing
- Blocking lace
Is Begonia Swirl Still Free?
Yes.
Begonia Swirl by Carfield Ma is currently available as a free Ravelry download.
Amazing Knitting does not reproduce Carfield Ma's complete copyrighted knitting instructions. Use the designer's Ravelry page for the current pattern and its latest corrections.
Get the Free Begonia Swirl Pattern
Visit Carfield Ma's Ravelry pattern page for the current free download:
Get the Free Begonia Swirl Pattern →
More Free Lace Shawl Patterns
If you enjoy intricate lace shawls, another verified free pattern already restored in the Amazing Knitting archive is Birds Nest Shawl by Athanasia Andritsou.
See the Free Birds Nest Shawl →
You can also explore:
Before You Start
Download the current pattern directly from Carfield Ma's Ravelry page so that you have access to the latest corrections and clarifications.
Prepare enough lace-weight yarn, use stitch markers where helpful and consider adding regular lifelines as the shawl grows.
Most importantly, check your stitch count frequently. Correcting one lace repeat immediately is much easier than discovering the same error after several increasingly long rows.
Pattern credit: Begonia Swirl was designed by Carfield Ma and first published in 2013. The existing project photographs on this Amazing Knitting page are credited to jane510 and Sylkre. Amazing Knitting provides an independent project guide and does not reproduce the designer's complete copyrighted knitting instructions.







