Grunge ruined Wrap

I have been sitting here wondering about the knitted shawl/wrap. Here’s my problem. I kinda love them, but only when they are simple (i.e. Glampyre’s City Shawl). When they are this confection of laciness, I think of sweet little grannies all wrapped up in their shawls ready for church. I can’t shake the granny image of these lacy things. To be sure, they are masterful pieces of knitting…but they do seem a bit…old. Perhaps it’s me…I’ve had an aversion to all things lace since I was able to make fashion choices. It always seemed contrived and most of the girls I knew who wore lacy things were always trying a bit too hard. I can’t do it, even to this day when I see lacy blouses I can’t help but pair it with shoulder pads, big hair and the 80’s when all prom dresses had fountains of lace. (A co-worker frequently wears a black acrylic lacy ruffled blouse that smacks of white trash; not in a good “tongue in cheek/kitsch is fashion” kind of way, but in a “this is seriously what I wear” kind of way.) The second part to this is the fact that I’m just not sure I could pull it off even if I wanted to. I have a pashmina, I love it, I bought it in Italy, but when I wear it, I fiddle. I fiddle with the arrangement of it, so that it has the “I just fashionably threw this on” look to it like then women in Europe had. But then after I throw it on it inevitably slips down one shoulder or I feel as though I am being pretentious. (I’m a snob, but not a pretentious one.) This uncomfortability keeps me from a few projects that I love, such as the City Shawl or the Clementine Shawlette, both of which I admire (and own the patterns for), but neither of which I am sure that (a) I can pull off or (b) would even wear. I’ve always been a cardi girl. It’s chilly out? No problem, throw on a cardigan, no biggie. Maybe it comes from being part of the grunge generation (Nirvana hit mainstream when I was either in 8th grade or a Freshman in highschool)? Having kept my flannel tied to my hips and throwing it on when there was a chill in the air reminds me of throwing a stylish cardi over the handbag and putting it on when the chill sets in. Anyway, just to sum up, I won’t be knitting a shawl or wrap anytime soon, unless it’s requested as a gift for someone…it’s just not me. (yet)