On designing

Wow, have I been absent on this blog! Hopefully that will change going forward. I have so much I want to talk about, starting with my own designing. I am in no way a real knitwear designer, but I have released a couple of knitting patterns on Ravelry over the last year. I am learning as I go, picking up bits and pieces of knowledge here and there. My pay-for patterns have been thoroughly test knitted and that was a new experience for me, hosting a test knit. I have been really fortunate to have found excellent test knitters just out of the blue, thanks to all of you!

My first sock pattern came to life a year ago, in October 2017. I had had an idea in my head for a long time, ever since I knitted a headband and wanted to transfer the pattern onto a pair of socks. That went surprisingly well and I even managed to calculate the pattern into two different sizes. This is the Sea Breeze Socks pattern and it is free on Ravelry. It has over 500 downloads so far and a few have even knitted it!

Next up was the Pollen Socks. I was totally inspired by the yarn here, I had bought a golden yellow skein of wool and bamboo blend and at the time I had bees on my mind, longing for summer. So in March this year I published the Pollen Socks, covered in flower-like lace with bobbles, resembling the little bags full of pollen and nectar that the bees are carrying home.

I have several ideas for shawl designs brewing in the back of my head and first out to be published is the Heights and valleys shawl. I had three skeins of rustic, woolen spun yarn from a Swedish mill, Östergötlands ullspinneri, that I was desperate to knit into a shawl. The yarn is a dream to knit with due to its natural qualities and really provided me with calmness in times of both distress and happiness, hence the name. The pattern is simple enough to be easliy remembered but at the same time provides some interest and beauty. I think that this is a path I will continue to follow; I want my patterns to be easy and not intimidating, but at the same time turn out to be something you can be really proud of.

Let´s see what comes up next, definitely on my bucket list is to design a sweater or cardigan. I have a few ideas for those too, I just have to start working on it!