Knitworthy 5 round-up

Today I released all 8 patterns in the Knitworthy 5 collection for individual purchase. Of course, if you like more than a couple of them, purchasing the complete collection represents the best value for money.

I'm so proud of the designs in this year's collection, especially the way that all of the designs reference elements in the others while simultaneously including a wide range of styles and techniques. We have all the yarns featured in stock too so I've included links to those in case you've fallen in love with a sample and have to have it. Where a pattern uses multiple colours we've made ordering super easy with yarn packs.

Radost

Perfect for keeping your neck warm on windy days without having to worry about the ends of a shawl or scarf coming loose. Radost is worked from the top down, starting with a neat folded edge worked using a provisional cast on. It knits up quickly with small sections of garter and brioche stitch and makes a great first brioche project. Increases at the centre front create a flattering and cosy bandana shape — it looks a bit strange flat but drapes perfectly when worn. Shown in Cyrano from De Rerum Natura, a round, 5ply structure that creates well-defined stitches and deeply textured ribs.

Öröm

Super cosy pull on boot shaped slippers worked from the sole up with geometric colourwork on the cuffs. I absolutely love the way the marling and colourwork combination worked on these. The grey is super effective, but I've also seen some amazing vibrant versions. The sole uses 3 colours held together for a firm, durable fabric. The darkest of these colours is dropped for the foot and then used as the contrast colour for the stranded colour work cuff. Yarn packs in the grey combo shown are available here. 

Gleði

A slightly slouchy beanie that combines patterns inspired by Nordic round yoked sweaters and the crowns of fair isle tams. The bold design around the bottom is worked using three colours at once — I promise it is completely worth the hassle, and a small project like a hat is a great way to practice a challenging technique. The use of negative space highlights the trees, and features a fun way of managing long floats invisibly. This technique, called ladderback jacquard is more commonly found in machine knitting, and essentially creates a free-floating chain of stitches in the pattern colour behind the background colour. Yarn packs in both colour palettes of Tukuwool shown are available here. 

Ilo

Ilo is a classic cabled hat with two styling options: a neat beanie or a watchcap with folded brim. I couldn't resist adding a pom-pom to the cream version for ski-hat cuteness. 

Ilo is worked from the bottom up with shaping worked into the cables for a beautiful crown. We used Julie Asselin Nurtured which might create the most pleasingly 3-dimensional cables ever. It's a sturdy, rounded three ply with an almost cottony feel. Bobbles can be divisive, but I'm in love with them on this hat, in this yarn. They give such great texture and are really fun to work.

Ilo uses just two skeins of Nurtured from Julie Asselin. This squishy, heathered yarn is one of my very favourites.

Llawenydd

 

Looking at the collection as a whole this shawl, to me, is the one that ties everything together. Ribbing, zig-zags, diamonds, texture and small motifs scattered over the fabric are the common design elements that all come togeher here. I love the simple, classic shawl shape combined with less common stitch patterns - the cables and texture make for a rather rugged shawl for wearing on daring adventures, or your daily commute. 

The shawl uses 3 skeins of Garthenor No. 2 in Shetland Pebble. 

Poza

Make the most of a single skein of a luxurious yarn. The Poza cowl is worked in the round from the bottom up with gentle shaping to taper it towards the neck. It’s long enough to drape in beautiful, soft folds or to pull up on the coldest days

Poza is worked in A Verb For Keeping Warm Floating, and to go with the pattern we have their holiday collection of colours. Naturally dyed in their California studio on a luxurious base these are seriously beautiful skeins. One of the things I love about natural dyeing is that each colour reflects a broader spectrum of light than the same colour would in a synthetic dye. On this subtly shimmery base the effect is hightened. The colours are lively and constantly shifting depending on the light. Absolutely impossible to truly convey in photos, but I promise they're all beautiful. You need only one skein for Poza!

Joy

This year’s theme for Knitworthy 5 pattern names was Joy (in different languages) and these pictures of the final pattern certainly bring me joy. 

Fingerless mitts featuring a simple stranded colourwork pattern and a cute flag detail on the cuffs — we’ve shown three colour options, but there are lots of other pride flags you could easily sub in to customise them for your gift recipient. Design-wise these were a challenge. I really wanted to make something that explicitly featured the flags, and not just something that might be read as a cute rainbow. The thing is... everything I swatched was more cheesy and garish than cute. I eventually ended up here, with a small detail that combines a provisional cast on, intarsia, a folded hem, and double knitting within a few rounds. You’ll want to pay attention but the results are totally worth the effort. The colourwork echoes the striping of your chosen flag and increases are worked in a single column to shape the thumb. The mitts are completed with a ribbed cuff that’s long enough to fold up over cold fingers.

Someone on your gift list is sure to appreciate these. Receiving them might be a welcome acknowledgement of their own identity (do be sensitive about outing someone at a family gathering though!), or perhaps you know someone in a position like healthcare or teaching where wearing them will be a subtle way to signal that everyone is welcome.

Kits are available for the bi, trans and classic pride rainbow flags shown in two shades of grey.