I wish there were just the fun parts...

 

I wish there were just the fun parts...

This week has been all about pattern writing which is not my favourite part of the design process but is obviously very important, so if I am to keep on track with the 2021 schedule I have set myself, I needed to get this patterns written up by the end of this week … that is that box ticked. 
I do tend to wish designing could be all about sourcing lovely yarns and just being immersed in the stitches but there is the more colder side like writing up patterns. I used to write each row as I knit it with a pencil and large foolscap worth of paper, but now I tend to type those rows down instead on a rough Word doc draft so at least I don't have to start, like I used to, with having to type up every faintly scrawled in pencil word, which was definitely worse than the new system. Now it's mainly copying everything over, lots of just fixing any quick typing errors, making sure everything that should be in lower / upper case is, putting everything in the right place within the pattern layout (templates are my friend), choosing/prepping/placing the pictures, and then all the technical things like measurements, gauge figures, drawing up charts... which is a drag, for me personally, and I'm probably not as quick as it as I should be, so 2 hat patterns have taken me nearly 3 days work 😒
But all draggy things do eventually come to an end!

Design in Progress...

I have recently finished the 'Ancient Spirals Hat' which was a little bit of a challenge. Whenever I'm making a hat that has it's matching piece, stripes are easy, but other than that converting charts, what direction the stitches work from, scaling everything down to size that can be a little trickier. I also want to take as many elements from the parent piece as I can and combine them into a scaled down mini representation. 

So the large spiral design that is the main focus of the 'Ancient Spirals Shawl' had to be re-drawn for the hat to make it smaller yet still distinct … A couple of attempts later and I think I have it as I want it now. But before knitting those spirals I wanted to make sure the hat had plenty of easy relaxing bands of Garter stitch as I really don't want anything too complicated and not knitting-with-company friendly when I want to knit a hat, and a little bit of interest,  though still not very taxing, brought in by way of the simple textured scales pattern and the easy mesh lacework. For this hat I really wanted to stay simple for the brim and so I went for a Garter stitch brim, that whilst it looks quite wide as it lays flat, compared to the pulled in look of a ribbed brim, it fits really nicely, very cosy and comfortable, so very pleased with that choice indeed. So happy these sumptuous leftovers have now grown up to be something, I really do think The Wool Barn's Cashmere Sock base has to be one of my top favourite yarns, it's just so plump and soft and silky, equally gorgeous to work with and to wear!

With these two hats out of the way, and the patterns for them nearly written and to be out to the testers by middle of next week, I plan to spend some serious time back on my big woolly DK shawl that I had started but then put aside to get these hats finished, so I am looking forward to that now!

Tests in Progress...

And here we have a collection of the 'Gift Of Honey' cowls and hats that have emerged from the test knitting process …

And a few early finishers showing up from the 'Squish Factor Cowl' test...

Until next time! …