Half Pi Shawl Math Basics

Designing a half pi shawl is a great way to begin your shawl design journey. In this video, shawl designer Michele Lee Bernstein explains half pi shawl basics so you can design a half pi shawl of your own that is uniquely yours.

Pi shawls were invented by Elizabeth Zimmermann and are a fun way to knit shawls, blankets, and tablecloths. Half pi shawls use the same calculations to determine where the increases occur, but a half-circle shape is made instead of a complete circle. The rate of increasing is the same for both shawl shapes.

Michele begins with a garter tab cast on by knitting three stitches and working six rows for the tab. She works the garter tab cast on to 9 stitches. She works the next row, which is the Wrong Side, by knitting all the stitches and placing her stitch markers.

She begins working increases on the next row. These first set of increases are different than the rest of the shawl. She takes three stitches in the body of the shawl and triples them to 9 stitches. In the remainder of the shawl the stitches in the body of the shawl between the stitch markers will be doubled on the increase rows. She works an increase row after she’s knit double the number of rows. Michele explains how different stitch patterns can be worked into this shawl construction.

Get the PDF instructions for half pi shawl basics here.