Celebrating 10 years of Shawlcowl Pullover

I first released my Shawlcowl Pullover pattern in April 2014, and in the years since then, I have had some requests to write up instructions for how to add length to the original pattern, and I will admit that this was something I had been thinking about doing even before anyone asked me about it.

Challenge accepted!

Although I totally overlooked (oops!!) the opportunity I had earlier this year to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the release of Shawlcowl Pullover, I decided that it’s never too late to release an updated version of the pattern that includes these bonus, optional instructions for how to add length to the design.

Version 3.0 of the pattern will include instructions to make three beautiful but slightly different variations of the Shawlcowl Pullover, as well as the bonus instructions for how to add length to all of them, should you wish to do so.

The updated pattern will be released soon on Ravelry. So if you already own a previously released version of the pattern, keep your eyes out for Version 3.0 to land in your pattern library. And if you haven't already purchased the pattern, head on over to Ravelry and grab your copy now — you'll also receive the Version 3.0 update in your pattern library as soon as it's available!

Thanks so, SO MUCH for your support, everyone! 💜 Words are inadequate to express how grateful I am to each of you for all the beautiful Shawlcowl projects you've made and shared over the past 10 years, as well as all your messages with questions and/or words of encouragement. Here's to another 10 years of this fun pattern!

Pink blanket for great-grandaughter

This is going to be a Christmas gift for my great-granddaughter Lilliana, who loooves pink! The blanket used less than 4 skeins, so I'm using the last part of the fourth skein to also make a matching pink Mini Dino for her. 💜 This is a great design to give as a gift to any young person because it's easy to crochet, and the infinite pathways contained in the blanket represent the infinite potential in every young person's life. I absolutely love that symbolism and message.

I followed the method shown in this video by Fiber Spider. Blanket is worked with 39 pattern rounds followed by 1 round of solid DC and then edged with a border of RSC (reverse single crochet, also known as crab stitch). So, essentially, 40 rounds plus the edging. Here's the link to my Ravelry project page, which has details about the yarn and hook I used.

I've made this design several times, and I like that the rounds begin/end at a corner, but I think if I ever make another one, I'm going to attempt to do it in turned rounds, where there is no obvious right side/wrong side.

Etsy vs. Ravelry

In creative circles, there is an ongoing debate about which online platform is best for selling patterns: Etsy or Ravelry. And more sites are regularly coming online to also try to grab a piece of the action, such as Ribblr, LoveCrafts, Ko-fi, and more. 

As a pattern designer, I have used both Etsy and Ravelry to sell patterns, so I can speak to this debate from the viewpoint of having used both. 

Etsy charges sellers a fee for their listings (and the listings expire and have to be renewed every X number of days, which means you pay the listing fee again) whether you sell anything or not. Ravelry doesn't charge listing fees, and your listings never expire; it only charges you a fee when you make a sale. Depending on your individual needs and goals, there are different advantages and disadvantages to each platform, so the answer of which platform is best is entirely dependent upon your particular situation. There is no one-size-fits-all best answer.

1-2-3 Flip-brim Beanie free pattern

Two new free patterns released in two days! Wow!

Like a lot of us, I get busy with day-to-day things as well as just simply spending my time actually WORKING on yarncraft projects rather than blogging about them, so it can sometimes be months between my posts. Sigh. But sorry, there are only so many hours in a day. I'm sure you've been there, too, and can understand.

Today I am releasing this pattern for a 1-2-3 Flip-brim Beanie because in the USA, October has become the single biggest month for cancer-awareness causes in the form of the Pink October breast cancer movement.



Cancer (not specifically breast cancer) has profoundly touched my life and the lives of so many people who are close to me, and because of this, I feel moved to make and donate attractive caps each year to support the patients battling this terrible disease at a nearby cancer treatment center.

I offer this pattern for free, forever, in honor of Pink October and all the men and women who have battled and survived or lost the fight to any form of cancer.

If you download this pattern, please consider making and donating at least one of these hats to the patients at your local cancer center. Thank you so much.

The “1-2-3” portion of the name for this beanie comes from the texture that is achieved by working in repeating rounds of sc, hdc, and dc.

These instructions yield a simple but sophisticated cap with about a 20-22 inch circumference, depending on your yarn and tension, which should comfortably fit the head of an average adult - and particularly adults who have lost their hair to the cruel ravages of chemotherapy. The fit is intentionally a bit oversized (although not slouchy per se) for comfortable ease. The brim flips upward as you work the brim instructions and will remain in place on its own.

If you are making this hat to give to a chemo patient, choose a soft, hypoallergenic fiber by following the guidelines provided by Halos of Hope.

Shawlcowl Pullover pattern is free for a limited time

I released my Shawlcowl Pullover pattern on Ravelry on April 10, and the pattern has been receiving lots of yarn love from Ravelry users. The Shawlcowl Pullover is designed to mimic the trendy look of wearing a shawl as a scarf combined with the comfortable ease of wearing a pullover cowl.



If you use this link, you can download a free copy of the pattern through midnight PDT on May 1. On May 2, the price becomes $3.00 USD, so head over to Ravelry and grab your free copy while you still can using coupon code "spring."

Another reason to grab your copy now is that on May 2, everyone who has added Shawlcowl to their Ravelry library will automatically receive an updated version of the pattern that includes the Shawlcowl 2 variation. Shawlcowl 2 has a different neckline edging and a more open look to the feather-and-fan lace border.

This is my first knitting pattern design, and in the process of creating it, I discovered that developing, then testing, then ripping out and reknitting, then writing, then editing, then shooting photos, then editing some more, then test knitting it again ... was A LOT OF WORK!! Which is why I decided to put a very reasonable price on the finished pattern product.

I have gained a great amount of additional respect for people who develop pattern designs for knitting and crochet. These people WORK HARD at their craft, and they deserve our support. I have always enjoyed finding and sharing free patterns online, and of course I will continue to do that, but I have also paid for a significant portion of the patterns in my personal library. The experience I gained while developing the Shawlcowl Pullover has shown me that indie designers have earned every cent that they charge for their work.

Please respect the copyrights of indie designers!

Hitchhiker - the full mathy

I received a partial skein of sock-weight two-ply self-striping yarn in blue-green-white in a box of yarn given to me by a friend. And I had no idea what to make with it.

After searching for several years for the perfect pattern to go with this yarn, I found it in the Hitchhiker shawlette designed by Martina Behm (on Ravelry at Maltina).



The 8-row repeat is easy to master to produce a delicious-feeling, ready-to-wear neck wrap, which you can make as short or long as you like.

Sock yarn Hitchhiker project after 15 points completed.

The scarf above ended up at 18.5 points long when the yarn ball ran out, but it's just long enough to wear around one's neck to chase away a chill. I plan to add a small button and loop to fasten it closed and donate it to my local cancer center as a small yarn hug for a patient.

But if your goal is to make a full-size, 42-point Hitchhiker scarf, progress feels like it slows down exponentially after one reaches about the 25th point because by then there are more than 100 stitches on the needle (and still growing).

For an impatient knitter like me, that makes achieving the "full" 42-point version of Hitchhiker rather difficult toward the end. However, if you are able to persevere, the rewards of the finished shawlette are definitely worth it.

Full-size Hitchhiker project after 23 points completed.

A recent yarn blog post by humorist Franklin Habit says: "When a non-knitter asks a question about my knitting, that question is most often, 'How long will it take you to finish that?' or the common variation, 'How long would it take you to make me a (type of knitted thing)?'

"So I explain that a hat may require several evenings, particularly if worked in a complicated technique or a fine yarn. I tell them the average number of stitches in a pair of socks (eight million) or a plain sweater (seven hundred trillion) and that completion of the latter may take months.

"The gasps of astonishment are strong enough to suck the stitch markers right out of a raglan."

After I stopped laughing (because I can especially relate to the "seven hundred trillion" feeling), I started wondering just how many stitches are there in a full-size, 42-point Hitchhiker scarf.

The pattern's array of increases and decreases are standardized, so I figured with the help of a spreadsheet, I could calculate the exact number of stitches in each row of the pattern and then add them all up.

My result? 29,579 stitches!!! (And at a minimum average of 3 seconds per stitch, that works out to at least 25 hours to complete.) So, yeah, knitting (particularly for me) takes some determination.

Joining the KAL

For the uninitiated, "KAL" stands for Knit-A-Long, which is a fun way of expressing the event where a designer shares a pattern with a group of knitters. Generally, the pattern and instructions are released in small portions at a time over a period of time, and the knitters work on each portion of the pattern as they receive it. The designer and the knitters usually correspond online, both for fun and to share questions and answers about how to work the pattern.

At the end of the process, everyone who sticks with the project has a new item to show off, and people from the group often share photos of their finished pieces. It is fascinating to see the creativity of the other group members in how their finished pieces can vary from person to person -- even when everyone was following the same pattern!

In similar fashion, "CAL" stands for Crochet-A-Long.

I have never tried participating in either a KAL or CAL before, but I just heard of "A very FOXY KAL" being offered by Tanya and Lisa, who hail from Australia, and I just headed over to their Ravelry group to join in. It looks like it will be a lot of fun, and the free fox hat pattern they are sharing is SO CUTE -- AND it's available in BOTH a knitted and crocheted version! I hope you will check it out and join in, too!

Minion hat

This minion hat is a work in progress (meaning that I still need to sew on the smile and some strands of hair), but I have to admit — I've never seen the movie, which is making it difficult for me to decide which grandniece or -nephew to give it to. 

Any of you out there who have seen "Despicable Me," do you think it would be OK to give a minion hat to a preschooler? Or would that be considered too "edgy" or something? Please advise! Thanks!

I followed the quick, easy, and free Minion Hat pattern by Elizabeth Mohsin, which is available on Ravelry.

Friends on Ravelry

Are any of my friends on Ravelry, and if so, how do I find you there???

It seems that some people really get into the site, but it's taking me a while to figure it all out. As far as social networking goes, Ravelry is lacking a feature that many other social sites have: the option to search your email contacts for other site users (whom you would already know, obviously).

If you're seeing this blog post and you want to add me to your Ravelry friends, here's a link to my profile page: https://www.ravelry.com/people/booniesangel

Go to my page and click the little button to add me to your friends! 💜