It’s finally Spring here in the UK and it’s amazing how much different I feel after a few days of sunshine! It’s been grey for so long and now we are seeing snowdrops and signs of life everywhere, I feel like it’s time for a cute lace pattern release in celebration.
Harlyn Bay is a very quick knit shortie socks pattern that was originally released in Knitting Magazine last year as part of their summer portable patterns collection. Now I’ve got my rights back, I’ve restyled it and and had it retested to make sure everything is as it should be. I’m also in the process of reformatting all of my patterns to make them more accessible and running it through a bunch of knitters is great for this!
You begin at the cuff with a German Twisted cast on, then after the rib you go straight into the heel flap. As the socks are only ankle length, there’s no chance of second sock syndrome (hopefully) and you should be done in no time. It’s even possible to get two pairs from one ball on the smaller sizes.
For the sample I used super-soft Colour Wheel from Peak District Yarns in Dusk. The yarn base is a high twist semi solid 4ply in 80% merino, 20% nylon. This was my first time working with PDY and I would love to try more of their colours as there are so many lovely shades to choose from!
Use the code PENHALE15 at checkout on Ravelry or Payhip for 15% off until the 26th Feb.
2024 was a BUSY year for knitwear design work for me, which was great as it really challenged me to get some ideas out there and I had a pattern deadline nearly every month. This on top of my regular tech editing work, plus some collections and new clients made for a fun year for my brain and my needles!
This year is exciting as I am now getting the rights back on many of those 2024 patterns and I get to release them all in my own format on various platforms. Alongside this I have a few patterns I’ve been working on for self release but got distracted by all the commissions, so they went on the back burner for a bit.
The first of these patterns is my Penhale shawl. I first went round to chat yarn with Rachael AKA Cat and Sparrow in November 2022, and I chose this colour of Oh So Fine! because I was feeling warm Autumn vibes. We are now approaching Spring, the pattern has just come out of testing and I’m so pleased to finally have it up for sale! I really wanted to create a simple shape that was fun to make and could show off a single skein of hand dyed yarn (which I am an absolute sucker for!)
The shawl is worked from the bottom up, beginning with the German twisted cast on. Three lace patterns are both written and charted and flow nicely off the needles. The top of the shawl is then shaped gently using short rows in the garter stitch section before being cast off with the Russian bind off. Tutorials for techniques can be found here
I’ve tweaked my pattern layout recently to use a clearer font, increase the size and spacing and rearrange some of the pattern elements. I’m listing everything in metric and inches and all garments will be size inclusive. I’ll be going back in to my older patterns eventually to update them to the new format as and when I get the time to do so.
I’m also now selling on Payhip, Ravelry, Etsy and Lovecrafts to try and make patterns more accessible for people and maximise where they can be discovered.
I’ve been wanting to share this pattern for so long! It is released in collaboration with Blacker Yarns and is now available on their website as a kit. Alternatively you can buy the pattern sans yarn on Ravelry, Lovecrafts and Payhip.
I played around with this stitch pattern for a while before finding something I was happy with, and paired with Blacker’s Bam-boozle 4ply it works beautifully. The yarn is light and airy and lends itself well to the geometric lace pattern, which is such a fun knit!
I’ve written this knitting pattern so there is are options to work a beanie or a slouch hat. You cast on at the cuff and then work upwards in the lace pattern after the rib, before decreasing over the final 3cm.
The result is a hat which is fine, yet warm, it tucks nicely into a pocket in case a chill should arrive in the air and will also fit under a cycle helmet!
Sizing is to fit a 53-65cm head and the pattern is both written and charted.
I have finally cast off my new shawl design today and thought I would share some tips on how to wet block lace. This is a very important finishing step for lace work and will really make your work shine to its full potential!
There are several types of methods to block your knits. If you are working lace then the best results will come from natural fibres such as wool and silk, which can be wet blocked (shown here), steamed, or using a hap stretcher.
Apologies for the quality of these photos, they are taken from a video so they aren’t the best!
Soak your work
Before you wet block you will need to soak your project in cool water with a little blob of wool wash, if you have it. Regular washing soap is a bit too harsh for hand dyed yarn and would need to be rinsed afterwards, so it is best to avoid it. Leave your hand-knit immersed in the water for 20-30 mins until the water is fully absorbed.
Squeeze out excess water
When it comes to drying your work, remove it from the water and gently squeeze the excess water out (never wring it as it will damage the fibres.) Then lay the piece out on a towel and roll it up. I like to walk over my towel at this point to get as much water out as possible but depending on your project another squeeze might do the job.
Lay the work out flat on a blocking mat or yoga mat. I like to also use kids interlocking foam pads sometimes as you can alter the shape to fit your work.
Blocking
Blocking wires work well with shawls as they help to create a long, straight edge that can’t be done with pins alone, so it’s worth investing in a set if you can make use of them.
Thread the wires along a row of stitches, going beneath both legs of the stitch every three to four stitches until you reach the end. If it’s a long row you will likely have to use two or more wires to cover the whole area. It’s important to make sure you stay within the same row when threading the wire through.
Repeat for the shorter edges of the shawl too, staying within the same stitch column and making your way down the row. For triangular shawls you can wiggle your way along the diagonal as best you can, even if you have scalloped edges, which will be pinned out after the inital triangle shape is in place.
My shawl in the example is a crescent shape, so I have placed wires along the two short vertical edges and along the horizontal top edge. I’ve then used T-pins to pull out the point of each scallop, making sure that these are straight. Ordinary dressmaking pins would also do the job just fine, T-pins are just a little bit stronger and will help to secure the blocking wires in place.
You might find after you’ve started blocking that you can adjust your work and stretch it even further, but make sure not to overstretch it as the yarn could break. Measure here if you are blocking to dimensions.
Stand back and check the work is symmetrical (if it is supposed to be) and all looks good. It should take about 24 hours to fully dry and hold it’s shape properly.
I’ve been working on this lace shawl pattern recently and I can’t get enough of it! The stitch pattern evolved for a hat, but this yarn, Oh So Fine! from Cat and Sparrow is so beautiful I wanted to make the most of the skein. It’s knitting up really quickly, despite the cast on being 275 stitches. I’m approaching the end of the lace section and will be working short rows in garter stitch next to create a crescent shape. I’m excited to see how it looks all finished and blocked!
I’ve been intending to make some video tutorials for a while and I’m wondering what sort of content people would like to see? Do you prefer to watch people knitting continental or English style?
This is a pattern I designed for my son last year when he was one. I always had the intention of grading it up to adult sizes and now it’s finished! If you’re interested to test the pattern, please get in touch. The deadline is the end of November 2023.
It feels like forever since I last released a pattern. Having two kids, starting a business in between them and lack of sleep didn’t leave much time for design work! The good news is I am back on track and I now have ideas spilling out of me now the littles are out of the house a bit more in the daytime.
I’m really pleased with this one, the pattern was such a joy to knit and it grew really quickly. I love knitting lace and working with 4ply for hats, it’s always much warmer than you think. The pattern is made up of a series of intricate yarn overs and decreases, forming an offset stacking arch effect. Decreases are worked into the pattern in the crown, creating a star on the top.
I was swatching for this hat last year but I couldn’t work out what I was going to do with it. I really love how the pattern looks in Coopknits Socks Yeah! as the stitch definition is amazing. However one of my testers Carola (@Poachtna) worked it in a mohair blend which looks equally fantastic:
