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Tag: free knitting patterns

A Checked Knitting Pattern with a Difference

Knit and purl ridged check swatch

The end is here! Stitch No 33, Striped Check is the final stitch in my knitting stitchathon!

Another knit and purl stitch, I think this one would look particularly nice in a yarn that has a little texture to it like a fine bouclé. In a plain, smooth yarn, an nice project for this stitch would be to make squares in Striped Check and stitch 28b and join them together with bands of garter stitch to make a large afghan with a thick border of garter stitch all the way around. Very cosy 🙂

I hope you’ve enjoyed this series of 19th century and 1930’s knitting stitches. I have a lot of new additions planned for knitters, my fellow embroiderers and more, so if you’d like to keep notified whenever I post something new, subscribe over on the left (on desktop), or underneath this post of you’re using a tablet or on mobile.

Happy stitching!

Sarah

The Penultimate Stitch

Knitted swatch in lattice stitch

We’ve reached the penultimate stitch in our little series of knitting stitches! In my opinion, it’s also one of the most understated and beautiful.

Lattice stitch has been around for a very, very long time. In Victorian times it was used as the centre of baby shawls, and in strips that were sewn together to make afghans and knitted quilts. It enjoyed renewed popularity in the 1930’s as a stitch used to knit short sleeved tops, whether in an all-over stitch or worked in panels.

When worked in a smooth, fingering weight yarn, lattice stitch is particularly lovely. I’d also really like to see it worked in mohair with larger than normal needles for a super cosy stole.

Whatever you choose to use it for, I hope you enjoy knitted lattice stitch.

Sarah

Crossing Over

Knitted swatch in crossover stitch

Crossover stitch is the latest of my new stitch patterns. Another stitch from the 1930’s, Crossover stitch has lovely columns of faux twisted stitches between columns of eyelets. You can see my swatch biases a little to the left, but if you use needles a couple of sizes larger than you normally would for your chosen yarn, the stitches become stable and won’t lean.

With only two rows, this stitch is super easy to memorise for on-the-go knitting and would be beautiful worked in a panel up the centre front on a top, as an all-over pattern on a stole, or in an afghan square, surrounded by seed stitch.

Sarah

A Versatile Diamond Stitch from 1870

Diamond and zig-zag swatch in knit/purl stitches.

One of the most striking knit and purl patterns I found in The Knitted Lace Pattern Book, was stitch number 31, with offset diamonds and vertical zig-zagging lines of reverse stocking stitch.

Even though this pattern was published in 1870, I think it has a real 1930’s vibe to it, and would make a great sleeveless pullover for a man or a woman, or a really nice scarf. I can also imagine separating the vertical lines of diamonds with a cable stitch, or even working a lace diamond inside each diamond shape.

Whatever you decide to use this stitch for, I hope you have fun with Stitch Number 31 from The Knitted Lace Pattern Book, aka Offset Diamonds. I’ve updated it into modern knitting terms, created a chart and test knit it so it can become a favourite of knitters worldwide once more.

Sarah