I’m pleased to say that I have a pattern in Knitty!
Longwing is a double garter stitch crescent shawl with two chevrons inserted in the middle. The result sometimes reminds me of part of a star shape, but more often makes me think of a butterfly’s wings. There’s something fun about wearing butterfly wings without it being obvious.
If you like my stitch patterns, but you don’t want to figure out your own pattern for a finished object, you’re in luck! There are several designers who’ve used them in patterns you can buy, including me.
All my patterns except Suffrage (which is a fundraiser) are free until midnight EDT on 11/11, with coupon code bethechange.
Please pay it forward – consider donating to an organization like MSF or the Southern Poverty Law Center. Thank you!
Nim Teasdale and I collaborated together on Helianthe. She suggested sunflower to me and I encoded it as stitch patterns to suit the sorts of designs she likes to make. This is a pattern that will suit a variety of weights of yarns and can be worked to more than one size. Here’s more information on Ravelry. (No Ravelry account required for purchase.)
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When I decided to knit a shawl based on sunflowers, I really had no idea what I wanted to call it. Shortly after starting work on this shawl, it was International Women’s Day, and I was reminded that my great-grandmother had been a suffragist in Kansas as a teenager. While looking around on the internet for information about Kansas suffragists, I happened across the information that they used the Kansas sunflower as a symbol. The name for my shawl became obvious, as did its purpose.
I’m donating all my profits from this shawl to organizations concerned with voting rights. Half will go to the League of Women Voters (the successor to the women’s suffrage movement) and half to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which works for voting rights, among many other civil rights issues.
The shawl is shaped like a letter C: cast on a somewhat long inner edge, work honeycomb mesh outward for a while with some shaping, work a mildly complicated transition (with some patterning on two wrong side rows), finishing up with chevron petals. The outer edges have some garter stitch to counter curling. The petals can easily be made longer or shorter to accommodate different quantities of yarn.
I’m making good progress on the big project that’s got my attention at the moment. I thought I’d take a few moments to spotlight the patterns I’ve published for sale this year (and an extra). Here is a link to all my patterns.
These top-down mitts are designed to make a matching pair from a yarn that would otherwise make fraternal mitts. The secret? Knitting them in one piece, then cutting them apart and sewing a seam in each mitt. This is good practice for learning to use steeks before trying them in a larger project. See more information, and buy here.
New Hope Creek
This unusual, not exactly a crescent, shawl is made from five triangles which hug the shoulders nicely. The pattern is planned to work well with a wild yarn in combination with a mild yarn to make a more subtle fabric. See more information, and buy here.
This deep crescent shawl is all garter stitch with a few yarnovers. It starts at the center top and works outward, making it a great way to use up your stash. See more information, and buy here.
And a pattern from 2014 that uses one of my code stitches:
This top-down hat for any size head, in any weight yarn, is a simple knit-purl combination that encodes the word onward. See more information, and buy here.
It occurs to me to mention that I have a bundle on Ravelry that lists all the patterns I know of that use my stitch patterns: Naomi’s stitch patterns in use. So far, it’s just nine patterns, but I know of four more that will be coming in the next few months.
If you have a Ravelry account, you can click the “add to favorites” button on the bundle to find it easily in the future.
Here’s a screenshot of what you’ll find right now (see bundle for working links):
New Hope Creek is designed to be knit with two skeins of yarn that coordinate with each other but that don’t match exactly. The shape is crescent-like – formed by knitting five triangles pointing in alternating directions.
The sample is knit with one muted skein and one that’s wildly variegated with short runs of color; I think of this as one mild and one wild. Many variations are possible: one gradient and one wildly variegated yarn, two self-striping yarns with different length stripes, multiple scrap yarns left over from other projects, even two solid yarns. Instructions are also provided for working with a single yarn.
If you’re on Ravelry, you’re invited to join me in a knitalong of Ellerbe hat and mitts. Pick one, or maybe try both? They’d make a good gift for friends or family or yourself.
I’m trying something new to me this time: prizes. I’ll be randomly giving away a coupon for a free pattern and a custom secret code stitch pattern. Each will be given to a randomly chosen person who posts a finished project on Ravelry and tells us about it in the Ravelry group. Deadline is the end of December 2015, Eastern Standard Time.
Please, join the fun!
