The second word I drew from the words suggested on Patreon last month is Haven, suggested by Emma B, a Patreon supporter.

Each month, my Patreon backers have the chance to suggest words for me to encode as knitting stitches. I make three of these into knitting stitches each month: the second and third (posted on the first day of the next month) are drawn from the collection of new words; the first is drawn from the collection of unused words. A random number generator helps me choose these, and then I get to work, first turning the letters into numbers, then charting the numbers onto grids in various ways. Finally, when I make the chart into lace, I turn the marked squares into yarnovers and work out where to place the corresponding decreases. (I usually make lace; occasionally I make cables instead.) I also make a chart for any craft that uses a square grid for designing; this goes in a separate post.

The stitch patterns are not meant in any way to look like the original words; the words are the seeds of my creativity.

The first word I drew from the words suggested on my Patreon this month is Yacht, suggested by Cathy D, a Patreon supporter.

Each month, my Patreon backers have the chance to suggest words for me to encode as knitting stitches. I make three of these into knitting stitches each month: the second and third (posted on the first day of the next month) are drawn from the collection of new words; the first is drawn from the collection of unused words. A random number generator helps me choose these, and then I get to work, first turning the letters into numbers, then charting the numbers onto grids in various ways. Finally, when I make the chart into lace, I turn the marked squares into yarnovers and work out where to place the corresponding decreases. (I usually make lace; occasionally I make cables instead.) I also make a chart for any craft that uses a square grid for designing; this goes in a separate post.

The stitch patterns are not meant in any way to look like the original words; the words are the seeds of my creativity.

The second word I drew from the words suggested on Patreon last month is Junco, suggested by Enting, a Patreon supporter. Juncos are cute little birds that I associate with wintertime. (Not so much where I live, but where I grew up.)

I really liked the way version 1 was coming out, but then I was pleasantly surprised when I turned it into version 2 by how much it looks like a non-secret code stitch pattern. I like my stitch patterns that look like arrangements of plant cells, but I think it’s fun when they turn out looking nothing like that.

Each month, my Patreon backers have the chance to suggest words for me to encode as knitting stitches. I make three of these into knitting stitches each month: the second and third (posted on the first day of the next month) are drawn from the collection of new words; the first is drawn from the collection of unused words. A random number generator helps me choose these, and then I get to work, first turning the letters into numbers, then charting the numbers onto grids in various ways. Finally, when I make the chart into lace, I turn the marked squares into yarnovers and work out where to place the corresponding decreases. (I usually make lace; occasionally I make cables instead.) I also make a chart for any craft that uses a square grid for designing; this goes in a separate post. (I’ll be publishing this next week.)

The stitch patterns are not meant in any way to look like the original words; the words are the seeds of my creativity.

The first word I drew from the words suggested on Patreon this month is Zaftig, suggested by Kate, a Patreon supporter. It’s a rather tall and skinny stitch pattern for the word, but at least the motifs within it are beautifully round and voluptuous.

Each month, my Patreon backers have the chance to suggest words for me to encode as knitting stitches. I make three of these into knitting stitches each month: the second and third (posted on the first day of the next month) are drawn from the collection of new words; the first is drawn from the collection of unused words. A random number generator helps me choose these, and then I get to work, first turning the letters into numbers, then charting the numbers onto grids in various ways. Finally, when I make the chart into lace, I turn the marked squares into yarnovers and work out where to place the corresponding decreases. (I usually make lace; occasionally I make cables instead.) I also make a chart for any craft that uses a square grid for designing; this goes in a separate post.

The stitch patterns are not meant in any way to look like the original words; the words are the seeds of my creativity.

The word I drew from my word hoard for this stitch pattern is Bake, suggested by Lara, a Patreon supporter.

This lace is a bit of a departure for me—usually I focus on the decrease lines, but this time I was really interested in the basic motif: two double yarnovers with a diagonal line of three single yarnovers. (This is more visible from what is most commonly thought of as the back of the knitting, so I have included a photo of that below.) I am not yet certain if I think this is successful; I think it would be more visible with a lot more plain knitting between each motif. However, they would lose the code aspect in that case.

The motif reminds me of bees.

Each month, my Patreon backers have the chance to suggest words for me to encode as knitting stitches. I make three of these into knitting stitches each month: the second and third (posted on the first day of the next month) are drawn from the collection of new words; the first is drawn from the collection of unused words. A random number generator helps me choose these, and then I get to work, first turning the letters into numbers, then charting the numbers onto grids in various ways. Finally, when I make the chart into lace, I turn the marked squares into yarnovers and work out where to place the corresponding decreases. (I usually make lace; occasionally I make cables instead.) I also usually make a chart for any craft that uses a square grid for designing; this goes in a separate post. (I hope to get this up soon for Bake, but it is not yet ready.)

The stitch patterns are not meant in any way to look like the original words; the words are the seeds of my creativity.

The second word I drew from the words suggested on Patreon last month is palm, suggested by Lara D., a Patreon supporter. She was thinking of palm trees, which is a cheerful topic for the dark time of the year (which it is, where I am).

Each month, my Patreon backers have the chance to suggest words for me to encode as knitting stitches. I make three of these into knitting stitches each month: the second and third (posted on the first day of the next month) are drawn from the collection of new words; the first is drawn from the collection of unused words. A random number generator helps me choose these, and then I get to work, first turning the letters into numbers, then charting the numbers onto grids in various ways. Finally, when I make the chart into lace, I turn the marked squares into yarnovers and work out where to place the corresponding decreases. (I usually make lace; occasionally I make cables instead.) I also make a chart for any craft that uses a square grid for designing; this goes in a separate post.

The stitch patterns are not meant in any way to look like the original words; the words are the seeds of my creativity.

First, something I’m very pleased by! Brenda Dayne asked me to talk about my stitch design progress on her podcast. I had a great time; she’s a lot of fun to talk to. I really recommend her podcast, Cast On. Also, Brenda has a Patreon, where you can support her, and maybe get early access (depending on pledge level).

On to normal business! The first word I drew from the words suggested on Patreon this month is Sister, suggested by Natasha and Linette, both Patreon supporters. This one

Each month, my Patreon backers have the chance to suggest words for me to encode as knitting stitches. I make three of these into knitting stitches each month: the second and third (posted on the first day of the next month) are drawn from the collection of new words; the first is drawn from the collection of unused words. A random number generator helps me choose these, and then I get to work, first turning the letters into numbers, then charting the numbers onto grids in various ways. Finally, when I make the chart into lace, I turn the marked squares into yarnovers and work out where to place the corresponding decreases. (I usually make lace; occasionally I make cables instead.) I also make a chart for any craft that uses a square grid for designing; this goes in a separate post.

The stitch patterns are not meant in any way to look like the original words; the words are the seeds of my creativity.

The word I drew from my word hoard for this stitch pattern is Quetzal, suggested by Ange, a Patreon supporter. Quetzals are a group of gloriously beautiful birds from Central America. I wish I had yarn in the iridescent blue-green that seems to be characteristic of all the quetzals, but I had to make do with this blue.

The top edge has irregular points because the stitch pattern doesn’t have mirror symmetry. I like it this way, but putting a different stitch pattern on the outer edge would solve that if it’s not to your taste.

Each month, my Patreon backers have the chance to suggest words for me to encode as knitting stitches. I make three of these into knitting stitches each month: the second and third (posted on the first day of the next month) are drawn from the collection of new words; the first is drawn from the collection of unused words. A random number generator helps me choose these, and then I get to work, first turning the letters into numbers, then charting the numbers onto grids in various ways. Finally, when I make the chart into lace, I turn the marked squares into yarnovers and work out where to place the corresponding decreases. (I usually make lace; occasionally I make cables instead.) I also make a chart for any craft that uses a square grid for designing; this goes in a separate post.

The stitch patterns are not meant in any way to look like the original words; the words are the seeds of my creativity.