Knots and bobbles add texture and interest to knitted garments and accessories, but there is no denying the fact that making them interrupts the flow of knitting. Bobbles, with their multi-row construction, can be such a distraction that people avoid adding them, which is a shame as they do look fabulous particularly tucked in amidst cables and other textured stitches. I find knots, however, are much easier to knit and look just as effective as bobbles, whilst taking less time to make and cause less disruption to the flow of knitting.
Knots can be made in any size, just use an odd number of stitches – 3 for small, 5 for medium, 7 for enormous (depending upon your yarn weight). They can be placed in the body of a garment or used as a type of picot along a cast off edge to add stretch and interest. Here I describe how I make the small cast off variety, followed by the larger surface detail knots. The basic principal is the same for any size of knot, edge or body.
Small Knots on a Cast Off Edge
Cast off up to the point where the small knot will be made, marked with a calabash pin. The cast off stitch on the RH needle, here, waits its turn.
Purl, knit, purl into the marked stitch (you could used k, p, k depending on the pattern, but purl first and last helps the knot to “sit” on the RS surface)
Reading from the left, pass the 2nd stitch on the RH needle over the 1st
Pass the 3rd stitch over the 1st
Pass the cast off stitch over the remaining knot stitch
The completed small edge knot, with the cast off stitches tucked behind it to enhance its prominence
The completed edge showing a small 3-stitch knot in the centre of the curved edge, flanked by two 5-stitch knots
Close-up of the small 3-stitch knot, an unobtrusive but neat detail on the edge of a cape
Large Knots as Surface Detail
Large knots add texture and interest on the surface of a garment, and I find they are easier to make than bobbles.
At the point where the knot is to be made, (purl, knit, purl, knit, purl) into the stitch designated (you could used (k, p, k, p, k) depending on the pattern, but purl first and last helps the knot to “sit” on the RS surface). Here I am working into a slipped knit stitch.
A clearer view of the five stitches in one
Reading from the left, pass the 2nd stitch on the RH needle over the 1st
Pass the 3rd stitch over the 1st
Pass the 4th stitch over the 1st
Pass the 5th and last stitch over the 1st
The completed large knot
The completed knot after working a few more rows/rounds of the fabric
The samples shown here are of the Yule cape, second in the Wheel of the Year collection of shawls and accessories. The pattern will be published in December 2024.
In the Samhain shawl/cowl pattern, two variations of the lifted increase are used to achieve invisible shaping. Normally, lifted increases are designated either left- or right-leaning; but in Samhain I have chosen a slightly different approach, and this is fully described in the pattern itself. The photo tutorial here is in support of the pattern and is not a substitute for the detailed description given in the pattern. I have named the two increases as m1k and m1p; both are shown here.
M1K
I have reached the increase marker for the i-cord edge, the last stitch I worked was a slip stitch
Lift the purl bump of the i-cord edge stitch with RH needle
Place the stitch untwisted onto the LH needle
Knit into the purl bump through the back loop
M1P
I have reached my increase marker, this time, the last stitch worked was a knit stitch
Lift the purl bump of the i-cord edge stitch with RH needle
Place the stitch onto the LH needle without twisting
I-cord makes a stretchy and effective edging to a shawl, especially when it carries on from an i-cord edge along one side of said shawl. I use this bind off in my Samhain shawl/cowl, and I like the way it curves around to blunt and shape the corner of the shawl. Samhain is a double-layered accessory and for the cast off, in order to avoid flaring, the two layers are treated as one.
This is how it is worked
Knit the first two i-cord edge stitches, slip the third i-cord edge stitch knitwise
The three i-cord edge stitches are now on the RH needle. The next stitch is a knit, so I will slip that also knitwise.
The third i-cord edge stitch and the first (knit) stitch have been knitted together through the back loop – a standard ssk
Pass the three stitches from RH to LH needle without twisting them
Knit the first two i-cord edge stitches again, slip the third knitwise, then treating the next two stitches as one unit, slip them also knitwise
Knit the three slipped stitches together through the back loop
The three stitches on the RH needle are now the i-cord cast off, and the curve of the corner is already evident
Pass the three i-cord stitches back to the LH needle
A few more stitches cast off and the corner has taken shape with a smooth curve
For over a year now, I have been working on a collection of shawls and related accessories inspired by the Yorkshire countryside in which I live. It has been a magical experience, exploring my surroundings and being enthused by the landscape. The first two shawls in this collection, Harden Moss and Whitley Common, are available now, with more to come.
Harden Moss was inspired by the shapes of reservoirs in the High Peak District of Derbyshire and West Yorkshire. These typically have a distinct wide dam wall at one end gradually narrowing to a point, reflecting the shape of the valley that was flooded to create them. There are many such reservoirs dotted about all over the Peak District, varying in size from a small tarn to an entire rift such as Longdendale, flooded to provide water to local communities. This simple scrunchy garter shawl, worked sideways in a hazy laceweight yarn on very large needles, is quick to work, and the allover pattern of eyelets is easy to memorise. The pattern is available in the Granary Knits Payhip store and on Ravelry.
Whitley Common is a light capelet perfect for a summer wedding shawl. It’s shape is three-quarters-pi, and is covered in a graduated pattern of zigzags which mimics the many becks, streams, and rivulets that cover the heathery landscape. These lacy rivulets culminate in a border of flower motifs to represent the beautiful cotton grass that covers the common in summer. The pattern is available in the Granary Knits Payhip store and on Ravelry.
Today I have published two new free patterns. They are part of my ongoing quest to find useful things to knit from leftover sock yarn. Both can be knit in plain, self-patterning or self-striping yarns, or you can create your own unique stripes from scraps or mini-skein sets.
Fingerless Sock Yarn Mittens
These full mittens can be made in any sock yarn, leftover scraps are ideal for striping or colour blocking. It is written to fit child (8-12yrs) (teen, small adult, medium adult). Finished sizes (palm circumference) 16 (19, 21, 23.5) cm / 6½” (7 ½”, 8 ½”, 9 ½”). The samples shown are all sized for a teen/small adult. The pattern can be easily adapted to fit larger hands.
The mittens are knitted finger-tip to cuff on circular needles/DPNs, and feature a gusseted thumb and a ribbed cuff.
The samples shown were knit in West Yorkshire Spinners Signature 4ply: Fingering/4ply; 400 m / 460 yds in 100 g / 3.53 oz; shown in Zara’s Rainbow (stripes) and Woodland Awakening (variegated); and in Debbie Bliss Rialto Luxury Sock; Fingering/4ply; 400 m / 460 yds in 100 g / 3.53 oz; shown in Coachella.
The pattern features lots of ideas for you to create unique mittens. It has been tech edited but not test knit, except by me.
This beanie can be made in any size, from newborn to adult, and is knit in the round from the crown down to the brim. There are two options for the crown: knotted I-cord or a plain flat circle; and two options for the brim, either rolled or ribbed.
The samples shown were knit in West Yorkshire Spinners Signature 4ply shown in Zara’s Rainbow (stripes); Regia 4-fadig in a discontinued self-patterning shade; A Little Bit Sheepish graduated hand-dyed mini-skein set in shades of purple.
Sizes given are for Newborn, 6 mths, Toddler/Child, Teen, Adult, Large Adult (head circumference 35 cm / 14”, 40 cm / 16”, 44.5 cm / 18”, 52 cm / 20 ¾”, 54 cm / 21 ½”, 59 cm / 22 ½”.
The pattern features lots of ideas for you to create unique beanies. It has been tech edited but not test knit, except by me.
Inspiration for a design can strike at any time! I was watching the TV series Bones one day, when the background to the current scene suddenly struck me as more interesting than the dialogue. Two characters were holding a conversation in front of a trellis room divider. Luckily, I was watching a DVD and could pause and rewind so that I could start scribbling ideas.
And just like that, the Trellis pattern was born. Trellis is a warm and roomy tam, featuring a radiating all-over pattern of curves and straight lines. It is knit in two colours of Jamieson’s Spindrift 4ply yarn (shown here in Sky and Purple Heather).
Papaver rhoeasis the botanical name for this weed; common names for it include common poppy, corn poppy, corn rose, field poppy, Flanders poppy, or red poppy. It is a notable annual agricultural weed, appearing in cultivated fields during the summer all over Europe.
By Franz Eugen Köhler, Köhler’s Medizinal-Pflanzen – https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=255420
The leaves, stems and bud coverings are a blue-green, the four-petalled flowers are a rich scarlet with a purple base to each petal, and the seed capsule is an intriguing shape, a bulbous cup with a little cap to keep the rain away from the seeds and to help distribute them in the wind..
The
field poppy produces an enormous amount of pollen, one of the highest
pollen-producing plants in the UK, and is therefore an important food
source for pollen-collecting/consuming insects, such
as many species of beetle.
As far as human consumption goes, the poppy’s black seeds are
edible, and can be eaten either on their own or as an ingredient in
bread; oil made from the seed is highly regarded in France. The
petals contain a red dye which is used in some medicines and wines;
in traditional folk medicine, it was used for gout, aches, and pains.
The petals were used to create a syrup that was fed to children to
help them sleep, although there is no opioid content.
My design for this tam ignores the beautiful but overly-familiar flower and instead uses the nodding flower buds, the seed capsules and the tiny black seeds. The wheel of the tam is a representation of the cap sheltering the seeds in their capsule. The seeds can be worked as just colour, or you can add small black beads making this an unusual and interesting tam.
Autumn Leaves celebrates the turning of the seasons, the end of summer in a blaze of glorious colour. It is an elongated crescent shawl knit in a fingering/4ply yarn with a long(ish) colour change. The edging features a simple repeating pattern of stylised drooping leaves and is worked first; the body of the crescent is then filled in with scrunchy garter stitch using short row shaping to achieve the crescent shape. Beading on the edge section, which is optional, emphasises the leaf shaping.
The Autumnal sample shown was knitted in Rowan Sock; singles fingering/4ply; 75% wool 25% nylon; 400 m/ 437 yds per 100g / 3.53 oz ball; 1 ball; shade 00001 Jewel. As yardage is very tight, you may need 2 balls. A second, unbeaded, sample is also shown, which used Schoppel-wolle Zauberball in 2244 Zauberwald; this gave a very light and open fabric.
The pattern consists of 9 small charts for the edging, and suggestions are given for customising the shawl to different sizes.
The beads are optional; the sample shown used 500 4mm beads in #562 Gold from Debbie Abrahams.
It’s a week to go until the summer Solstice here in the Northern Hemisphere, and Knit Picks have today published their new summer pattern collection, called Botanic: Nature-Inspired Lace.
The collection contains six lovely laceweight patterns, and I am delighted that my pattern, Solstice, has been included. Solstice is a light coverup for warm sunny days and languid summer nights. A lovely floaty shawl, with a wide neck that makes it easy to slip over the head on cooler evenings. It is knit in Voliere, their brand new laceweight yarn, a mix of 30% Mulberry Silk, 40% Linen and 30% Baby Alpaca.
Solstice, photo courtesy of Knit Picks
The pattern book, in both hard copy and eBook forms, can be purchased from the Knit Picks Website.
Wild oats, (genus Avena),
are a variety of tufted annual grasses of the family Poaceae, native
to Eurasia and Africa. Wild oats are sometimes cut for hay, and young
plants provide forage for grazing animals. All species have edible
seeds, and domesticated oats (Avena sativa) are an important
cereal crop in temperate climates around the world; several other
species are locally important food crops. A number of wild oat
species are considered weeds in agricultural fields and can be
difficult to eradicate.
By Alvesgaspar – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10353691
Wild
oats are erect grasses with long flat linear leaves. The
inflorescences are typically large and loose and bear minute bisexual
flowers. The ovary is characteristically hairy, and some species
feature long awns (bristles) on the seeds.
One
of the best-known species is the common wild oat (A. fatua),
which has become a common field and roadside weed; originally native
to Europe and C and SW Asia, it has now spread throughout temperate
regions of the world. It grows in small tufts about 0.9 to 1.2 metres
(3 to 4 feet) tall. Mature spikelets are bell-shaped, with bent
bristle-like projections.
Wild oats grow with abandon all over
my garden, popping up in borders and vegetable beds alike. I love
seeing their feathery heads dancing in a summer breeze. Some heads
are long and narrow, others, where the individual seeds within the
seed head have started to separate and mature, are wide and
bell-shaped.
By Kurt Stueber – www.biolib.de, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6294
As a food for humans, the seeds are
particularly valuable. The seed ripens in the latter half of summer
and, when harvested and dried, can be stored for several years. It
has a floury texture and a mild, creamy flavour. It can be
used as a staple food crop in either savoury or sweet dishes.
The seed can be cooked whole, though it is more commonly ground into
a flour and used as a cereal in all the ways that oats are
used, especially as a porridge but also to make biscuits,
sourdough bread, etc. The seed can also be sprouted and eaten raw or
cooked in salads, stews, etc. Roasted, the seed can be used as
a coffee substitute.
Birds love the seeds once they are
ripe, my chickens can strip a plant of its seedheads in seconds.
Medicinally, it is considered a diuretic. Cosmetically, a meal made from oats can be added to bathwater or used as a facial scrub. The straw has a wide range of uses such as for bio-mass, fibre, mulch, paper-making and thatching.
My design for this tam uses several elements of the wild oat plant; the three-part seedhead on its drooping stem, the leaves, and the opening head revealing the three seeds themselves. The interlocking elements create another fortuitous motif, heart shapes in different sizes.
