It’s been a little while since I put out a new pattern, but the continuing lockdown is keeping me occupied with my ever-growing list of creative pursuits. I alluded to this pattern in a couple of previous posts, and now it’s time for a proper announcement.
This is a new hat pattern, but it’s not alone: it’s part 1 of a serial collection that will be released over the next several months as patterns are ready. So the price ($11.95) may seem steep for a single hat pattern, but rest assured that the other 4 will make it well worth your while. The collection is called Wuxing: 5 Elements, and the hats are themed for the Chinese 5 elements (Fire, Earth, Metal, Water and Wood) that figure prominently in Taoism and other Chinese philosophies. Agni Deus is, clearly, the Fire hat.
Each of the 5 patterns is going to be pushing the envelope on double-knitting in some new and interesting way. The patterns have a structural motif in common — a kind of teardrop shape that manifests in different ways, using the off-the-grid style to great effect. In Agni Deus, the shape is reminiscent of a flame — and at the heart of the flame there are beads! Of course, since it’s double-knit, there are two different colors of beads on either layer. And yes, the pattern does explain how to achieve the beading.
You can get the hat pattern as the first installment of the Wuxing collection here, or you can order a kit from BeadBiz — your choice of 10 different combinations of A Hundred Ravens Yaksha yarn and appropriate beads, along with a bead hook to apply them.
Curious about what the next patterns might look like? Stay tuned: the Honey Locust hat is test-knitted and the pattern just needs to be written up. The others will make stealthy appearances on my Instagram and Facebook feeds, so follow me and you might just catch a peek.
In other news
This actually warrants higher billing, but the pattern announcement took priority. A couple of months ago, before the pandemic hit properly, I spent a number of hours talking to Andrea of the Fruity Knitting podcast. The podcast was finally released today and I hear it’s really good! I have been busy today (and I am always a little nervous to see myself on screen) but I will check it out before too long. Meanwhile, you should go take a look at it, and share it with your friends too. There’s a blog post and (of course) a YouTube video.
While we’re on podcasts, I was on a livestream with Suzanne Bryan in late January, and that recording is also up if you’re interested.
Finally, I have been working on revamping some portions of my website. Feel free to go poke around — especially the patterns area — and see if you can see what’s new. There will be more changes coming as I have time.
P.S.: As I’m sure you were expecting, given the demise of my teaching opportunities this year, I am working on a video instruction solution; I needed to iron out some technical details and reclaim some space before I could properly work on this. But now that I can, I hope to have some news for you on that front soon.
Stay tuned! More to come sooner than usual.