2020: two knitting charts to celebrate the new year

Happy New Year! (A couple of days early, but I’ll be posting a Patreon word on Wednesday.)

I turn the digits of the year into a knitting chart each year. This is one of those times that the design is such that turning a given set of numbers into a chart produces a traditional design.

This year’s chart was easily converted into a mosaic knitting chart so you get both this time! (I don’t think the mosaic design is a traditional pattern, though it could easily be.)

2020: a needlework chart for any craft, stranded knitting example
2020: a needlework chart for any craft, by Naomi Parkhurst

This stitch pattern is a traditional one. It’s an amusing coincidence that it came out this way!

Here’s how this chart was laid out:

chart that shows how I laid out "2020" on graph paper

Starting in the bottom right corner, and pretending I was knitting in the round, I counted two squares on the first row and marked the next. I put an extra square to the left to make the whole chart square. On the second row, I counted no squares and then marked the next available square. Since the first half of 2020 is the same as the second half, the next two rows are the same as the first two rows.

2020: the halfway point between the needlwork chart and the mosaic chart

To make the mosaic knitting chart, I mirrored the needlework chart, replaced each black square mentally with a slip stitch symbol, and then made the mosaic chart using the process described in this post.

The nice thing about mosaic knitting is that the charts are similar to the final appearance of the knitting, so I’m not going to provide a swatch. Mosaic knitting looks difficult, but it’s not as hard as it looks! Basically, knit two-row stripes, and slip stitches from the row below to make the contrasting pattern.

Here’s a detailed blog post I wrote about how it works.

2020: a mosaic chart for any craft, by Naomi Parkhurst
2020: a mosaic knitting chart, by Naomi Parkhurst
  • Designers, please feel free to use this mosaic knitting design in your patterns (no need to ask). I’d like credit but won’t be offended if people don’t give it.
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