Leafy Columns: two lace knitting stitch patterns

Last week, I posted Leafy Blocks, and remarked that it inspired something I preferred. Here is Leafy Columns (versions 1 & 2), which is like a compressed version of Leafy Blocks. I think these work much better: they have cleaner lines and they look less blobby. I think it’s more interesting and attractive.

I’m not looking for affirmation here; I’m confident about the quality of my designs. I have two points that I’m trying to make with these recent blog posts:

  1. Personal taste is subjective, and it’s okay to like different things. Though my original planned point was
  2. part of the process of making things is to make mistakes and try things that it turns out you might not like personally. Imperfection is part of the creative process. I’m going to link again to a post from Tien Chu that expands upon this.
    I’m sharing the results of these experiments that I don’t like because I feel like it’s easy to look at designers and bloggers and Instagrammers and so on who only share the things that satisfy them, and think that all their things are perfect, and then feel that if your own work isn’t perfect, there’s something flawed about you. But really it’s just that they don’t ever share their imperfect work.

Posts in this series of stitch patterns based on Bunny Ears Yarnover

sample knitting for Leafy Columns lace

Notes:

  • These are stitch patterns such as might be found in a stitch dictionary. They are not a pattern for a finished object. You will need to add selvedges or some other form of knitted stitches to either side.
  • Leafy columns, version 1 is a multiple of 4 + 1 stitches and 6 rows. Version 2 is a multiple of 4 + 5 stitches and either 12 or 12 + 6 rows (end after either row 6 or row 12).
  • I’ve made stitch maps for version 1 and version 2.
  • Designers, please feel free to use these in your patterns. I’d like credit but won’t be offended if people don’t give it.
  • My blog posts and free stitch patterns are supported by subscriptions on Patreon or donations to my Paypal tip jar in the sidebar. If you appreciate my work, please consider helping out. Thanks!

Abbreviations:

  • bunny ears yarnover: This is a variant on the bunny ears decrease, with a yarnover added in the middle. It turns three stitches into three stitches. Knit 2 together, but only remove the first stitch from the needle; yarn over, then work ssk with the second and third stitches. The middle stitch of the original three has been knit together with each of its neighbors. Blog post about bunny ears yarnover.
  • CDD: centered double decrease: slip the next 2 stitches as if to knit 2 together, knit the next stitch, then pass the 2 slipped stitches over the third.
  • k: knit.
  • p: purl.

Leafy Columns, version 1

chart with symbols that show how to knit version 1 of Leafy Columns
click chart to enlarge

Row 1 (RS): *k1, BEY; work from *, k1. [5 sts]

Row 2 (WS): purl.

Row 3: knit.

Row 4: purl.

Row 5: *k1, yo, CDD, yo; work from *, k1.

Row 6: purl.

Leafy Columns, version 2

chart with symbols that show how to knit version 2 of Leafy Columns
click chart to enlarge

Row 1 (RS): k1, *BEY, k1; work from *, BEY, k1.

Row 2 (WS): purl.

Row 3: knit.

Row 4: purl.

Row 5: k1, *yo, CDD, yo, k1; work from *, yo, CDD, yo, k1.

Row 6: purl.

Row 7: k3, *BEY, k1; work from *, k2.

Row 8: purl.

Row 9: knit.

Row 10: purl.

Row 11: k2tog, yo, k1, *yo, CDD, yo, k1; work from *, yo, ssk.

Row 12: purl.