For the whole month of August I’m discounting all my eBooks and knitting patterns 25%. No code needed. Discount applied at checkout.
I’m calling this the end of summer sale even though summer is still in full swing. It’s more about the fact that when fall rolls around I’ll be publishing some new patterns. Here’s the links to some of the patterns and eBooks. (Jacobina Set, Twoolen, and Darrington Set links are on right side of this blog post page.)
Children’s Fair Isle Mittens pattern comes in 3 sizes, each with their own individual chart to knit from. It’s best to measure the child’s hands and refer to the finished measurement chart for sizing. The mittens sizes will generally fit as follows: Size 1 for age 2-3, Size 2 for ages 4-6, Size 3 for ages 7-9. You can find this pattern here: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/childrens-fair-isle-mittens
Five Floral Mittens is an eBook that contains instructions for five different pairs of colorwork mittens, all with floral motifs. Each pattern calls for just two colors to be worked from charts. The palms and backs of the mittens have the same design, thus there is no designated left or right. Just make 2 mittens and you have a pair. Each set of mittens has a unique cuff, some plain and some elaborate. You can find the eBook here: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/sources/five-floral-mittens
Here’s a little history if you are new to my blog. A few years back I started writing patterns for the mittens and hats that I was designing. I put them out for free on this blog. All those free patterns are still here and people mostly find me on Ravelry. Those accessory patterns were never professionally edited or tested. They are almost all for “one size”. Most of them were written with only the imperial measurements leaving the metric system out all together. Don’t get me started on the punctuation errors – oh my god it’s bad.
Starting in 2025 I finally wrote a few patterns that were edited and tested. I charge money for those now and they are so much better than the free ones. I do plan go back and fix all my free patterns. There are about 60 of them so it will take a while. Working with a technical editor has taught me so much! I should be able to improve the free patterns and will chip away at them when I get a chance.
I’ve been knitting a long time and I personally prefer patterns that don’t have a lot of teaching elements. My free patterns represent this style of pattern writing. Mostly the pattern is some charts and some basic instructions and the knitter is expected to know what to do with it. For example, the free patterns say “close the top of the mitten with the kitchener stitch” and the for-sale patterns have half a page dedicated to the steps involved to do the kitchener stitch. Needless to say, the free patterns are about 2-3 pages and the for-sale patterns are 12-18 pages.
If someone wants to be a knitting pattern designer I don’t think they go about it like I did. There are some big problems about putting out so many unedited free pattern. Someone might write me off as a hack when they see my old patterns. Also, all those free patterns were used to train AI (thanks wordpress!) and have been hijacked by other websites so they make money off my work – ugh. Of course people steal patterns that are for sale, but I made it really easy for the theives.
On the bright side, I did get a small following of people who like my designs. I also got to knit A LOT. Now that I pay an editor, I will only put out 4 or 5 pattens a year. When I was putting out free patterns I sometime put out 3 or 4 in a month. That allowed me to experiment with designs and get a feel for what people like.
That leads me to the Favorite Mittens pattern. After I made these mittens I determined that they were my favorite so I named them as such. Get this—it’s one of my least liked pattern on Ravelry. A total of ZERO people have made them. It was first published in Feb 2025 and I just updated the pattern today! It still has not been tech edited, but I fixed the main problems. Now it is written for metric along with imperial measurements. I added the row count to the gauge–it use to just have stitches per inch. I added an abbreviation guide. It still doesn’t tell you how to do a kitchener stitch, it just says “work these (stitches) off with a kitchener stitch”.
Here’s the updated pattern if you are interested. Please do not post this PDF on the internet. If you want to share it, please link to this page.
For those who want to add a Latvian Braid to your own project here’s the basic instructions.
How to make a Latvian Braid
This Latvian Braid is worked in the round with an even number of stitches and two different colored strands of yarn.
A Latvian Braid is made by working these 3 rounds:
Round 1: (k 1 Color A, k 1 Color B) repeat to end of round.
Round 2: Move both strands to the front of the work. (All stitches in rounds 2 and 3 are purled over the same color as the previous round.) Starting with Color A, pull the yarn up and purl. Now using Color B, bring it under the last stitch and purl. Now use Color A and bring it under the last stitch and purl. Alternate these two stitches for the round. Your yarn will twist up. Do not try to untwist because it will naturally do so on the next round.
Round 3: Work the 1st stitch by pulling Color A under the last stitch and purl. (This is the only one in this round that is pulled from under the other.) Then work the next stitch in Color B, pull the yarn OVER the last stitch and purl. The 3rd st is also worked by pulling OVER the last stitch and purl. Continue bringing each yarn over the last and purl to the end of the round. Your yarn will untwist as you do this row. Pull the yarns to the back at the end of the round. You will weave them in later.
If you want to follow a pattern that includes a Latvian Braid, here’s some of my patterns for you to try.
Sizes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 are closed as of 6/28/26. Still need testers for size 6, 7, and 8.
Interested in being a Test Knitter for the Ulia sweater? This post is to give you information so you can decide if it’s the right Test Knit project for you. First I will describe the sweater, then I will describe the test knitting process.
Ulia is a textured, structured, crew neck sweater with a classic fit.
Construction: Ulia is knitted from the bottom up, in the round, until you get to the armholes. At that point the front and back of the sweater are knitted flat. The sleeves are knitted in the round until the underarms and then knit flat as you shape the shoulder caps. Both the body and the sleeves start with a tubular cast-on to create a tidy, long-wearing ribbing. The raglan sleeves are sewn to the sweater body. Stitches are picked up around the neck to create the ribbing for the neckline. Lastly, a tubular bind off is worked to keep continuity of all edges.
The pattern is charted and there are written instructions of the charted sections for those who prefer it. This pattern is for experienced knitters. It’s expected that the knitter maintains gauge while knitting both in the round and flat. The bobbles are what I call “quickie bobbles” because you do not turn your work to create them.
Sizing: Choose your size according to the largest measurement around your chest, plus 4-6 in/ 10-15 cm of positive ease. Example: if your chest measures 34 in/ 86 cm and you want 5 in/ 12.5 cm of positive ease, you would knit the size 2 that has a 39 in/ 98 cm circumference at the chest. The chest and waist measurements are the same so pick a size that also fits your waist.
Materials: Harrisville Designs Highland Yarn Color: Russet 100% wool, Worsted weight Approx. 200 yds/ 183 m to 100 gram skein Amount needed: 6 [6, 7, 7, 8, 8, 9, 9] skeins Substitution can be made with other worsted weight 100% wool yarn. Amount needed: 1150 [1130, 1232, 1320, 1406, 1493, 1601, 1695] yds/ 961 [1034, 1126, 1206, 1286, 1366, 1464, 1550] m.
Supplies Needles for gauge swatch and sweater referred to as larger needles US Size 6/ 4mm 32 in/ 80cm circular needles US Size 6/ 4mm 16 in/ 40cm circular needles US Size 6/ 4mm dpns or preferred needles for small circumference knitting Needles for Ribbing US Size 5/ 3.75mm 16 in/ 40cm circular needles US Size 5/ 3.75mm dpns or preferred needles for small circumference knitting Optional for Tubular CO US Size 4/ 3.5mm dpns or preferred needles for small circumference knitting US Size 4/ 3.5mm 32 in/ 80cm circular needles Cable needle, tape measure, scissors, stitch markers, yarn needle, a few yards/meters of cotton or other smooth scrap yarn.
The Test Knit Process
Start Date: Now. The pattern will be emailed to you as soon as you are chosen to be a test knitter. End Date: Nov 5, 2026. The pattern will be published on Ravelry mid-November 2026.
This pattern has been professionally edited and is ready to knit. I do not pay for test knitters, nor do I supply any $ for yarn allowance. I use email for communication regarding the test knit.
Expectations Compete project by Nov 5, 2026 Make project page on Ravelry (exceptions may be made for those who don’t do Ravelry) Keep track of your yardage and final measurement of garment. Supply me with (or post on Ravelry) at least 3 photos, taken in natural light, of the sweater. A WIP photo is good, plus the sweater laying flat, and if you are ok with it, a photo of the sweater being worn by a person. If you don’t want to be in a photo, a picture of the sweater on a hanger will work. I will have a short questionnaire at the end of the test knit period asking about the clarity of the pattern and you general impressions.
Model is wearing size 3 with a 4 in/ 10 cm ease.
Applying: just email me at traciscott1210@gmail.com and let me know what size you want to test knit. Please read the expectations and only apply if you can meet those.
After all that time with a calculator and then going back and forth with the editor, I’m happy to be at this point. Let the knitting begin!
Have you noticed the trend of photographing knitwear without a face attached? I like that style and embraced it while choosing photos to promote my knitting pattern called Twoolen. I felt that it put the focus on the sweater, not the person. And let’s be honest, I’m not really a model.
Alas, another internet trend has developed. Thieves are stealing patterns and chopping off the heads of the models in the accompanying photos. I’m pretty sure this happened before AI, but clearly it’s a problem now. When I’m on social media forums lots of people post these AI fakes and ask, “doesn’t anyone know where I can find this pattern?” The crowd responds: it’s an AI fake. The author of the post asks, “how do you know”. This back-and-forth is repeated everyday.
I was listening to a youtube video (while knitting, thus the reason for not watching) about images on the internet and how it’s important to look like a human now. In other words, put your face in the photo. This comment was not about knitting patterns, but right away I saw the truth in this idea. Most of the designers I follow use their faces in their promotional images. I know their faces and I know their pattern designing style. Some examples of designers that do a good job of being humans on the internet are: Briana Arlene, Native Knitter, and Tracey Doxey. These designers share quite a bit about their lives. They are clearly real people with real pattern designs.
So when I say, “How to be a human on the internet” what I’m really saying is “how to not look like a bot”. (As for being a good human, that’s on you and will not be addressed here.) Sadly, the internet world has come to this. There are so many scams on fb marketplace and all the buy-and-sell groups, we all have to be careful. My default mode is: that’s not a real person. I’ve tipped over into the doubt-everything mind-set. As for knitting patterns, I wouldn’t buy anything unless I was totally sure the designer was getting paid. Pro tip: if the pattern is being sold for $2, scammers are just getting your credit card info and you will not get a pattern. (I read that story on a knitting forum.)
I don’t think a person has to show their face to be seen as a human and not a bot. Half of my internet friends have their cat or dog as their avatar! I love that. My original Fleece Love and Happiness (circa 2008) avatar was a photo of my hands holding yarn. Moving forward, I will be mindful of how I portray myself and I will not shy away from sharing my humanness. Mistakes and all. Human slop is so much better than AI slop, right?
A few years ago I put out a free pattern on this blog called Blyn. Today I updated the pattern to make the chart easier to read. Take a look at these two blank charts. The first one, on the left, is like the old Blyn pattern and the second one on the right is like the new Blyn pattern.
The chart on the left assumes the knitter knows to read from the previous line when working the center double decrease. The one on the right is easier to understand regarding when to start the center double decreases.
Although I considered the first style of chart to be normal, it was confusing to people. I probably wont go back and change other patterns but I made an exception for Blyn. Moving forward, all my new hat patterns will be laid out with the double-center-decrease in the middle of the chart.
Here’s the free updated knitting pattern for Blyn. Please do not post this pdf on other websites! If you want to share it, just link to this page.
Side note: not everyone uses the term “Center Double Decrease”. I see it sometimes as “double-center-decrease” or “centered double decrease”. Either way, it’s taking 3 stitches and turning them into 1 stitch with it aligning in the center of the original 3 stitches.
I should have known better. If you give something away for free, someone else will take it and sell it. In a round-a-bout way, that is what the websites that gather free patterns in one place are doing. They make money from the advertisements they sell. So people go to the websites for the pattern and see all the ridiculous links to “download” something. A few of these sites have had my patterns up and they redirect people to this blog for the pattern. I surrendered early on to that situation. I check the link, and if it really goes to my blog, I just let it be. These shitty sites include, but are not limited to: sarahmaker.com, knit-knit.com, and intheloopknitting.com. Do not click on them!
Sometimes my name has been removed for a pattern/chart and there is no link to me or to Fleece Love and Happiness. When this happens on Pinterest I fill out a complaint form. I prove it’s my pattern by linking to my original post. Pinterest deals with it right away! Within 24 hours they will take those fraudulent pins down. Today I was on a site that had my photography and my charted pattern and the name on it was Sarah White. Wow. That’s probably not even a person. An AI bot probably scooped a bunch of free patterns off the internet and posted them to sell adds.
I come from an era of using the internet to share ideas. That’s why I wrote free patterns and that’s why I blab away on this blog. But times have changed and every corner of the internet has been monetarized. Today I edited every post that I have made that includes a free pattern download pdf to say: “Please do not post this pdf on other websites! If you want to share it, just link to this page.” I’m not sure that will deter anyone but I figured I should state it clearly.
Theft is a problem for all artists and craftspeople who put their work on the internet. I’m a beginner silversmith and I hear from the real artists that make their living selling jewelry that scams are everywhere. Thieves take the photos of their jewelry and post it for sale, take the money, and never send the item because, of course, they never had it. I’m talking about beautiful hand crafted silver pieces worth several hundred dollars. To make matters worse, the duped buyer is livid and they write horrible reviews of the artist.
On that note, I can only be a little grumpy about people taking my free patterns. What’s really crazy is people posting knitting patterns that are in books or purchased pdfs. I cringe when I see those Pinterest pins of photos taken of the pages from a pattern book.
The photo above is a pattern called Pretty Please Mittens that I published on this blog in 2023. I found it on a website that had “10 Free Patterns for Beginner Knitters”. Ok, anyone who has knitted my mitten patterns knows they are not for beginners! They are knitted on size 2 needles, in the round, using 2 strands at a time, and changing colors often. I think an adventurous intermediate knitter could give this a go, but you’d drive yourself crazy if you were a true “beginner”.
I’ll end it there. I know I’ve been a little cranky in my last few posts. Bear with me. I’ll get back to Fleece Love and Happiness!
The internet is unbearable these days. Social media is filled with slop and bots. I usually enjoy the social media groups that pertain to my specific hobbies. For example, I’ve learned silversmithing from youtube videos and posts on a facebook group. I couldn’t find a class or teacher were I live so I turned to the internet and it’s been great for that. I sell patterns on Ravelry and that has also been a good place without slop and bots. However…
I made a huge mistake and got a Pixel 10 google phone—because it was cheap and I heard it had a good camera. It’s AI integrated. I’m not the person this phone was made for. I turned off as much annoying AI integration as possible and now most apps don’t work right. OK fine, but there’s certain places in my life that I don’t want AI: my CRAFTS. Including photographing my crafts.
Yesterday I photographed a pair of mittens and my phone automatically made a sparkly outline around them that wiggled and shimmered. What the hell? I deleted it immediately. I can’t stand all the wiggly photography. It’s not that I’m old and can’t keep up with the progress—it’s just that the progress is ugly junk.
So for anyone who reads my blog, know that I will not use AI to write it. I don’t want AI in my craft life including the photographing and promoting my patterns. I’m sure it will creep in around the edges but I’m going to fight the slop!
Note: wordpress has a button for “Improve with AI” that I do not use. So be guaranteed by me that there will be grammar mistakes and spelling mistakes. Your welcom.
Earlier this week I received my package of Cascade 220 Fingering Weight yarn that I ordered from LittleKnits.Com. They sell this yarn for $4.75 usd/ skein. Most stores sell it for $6.00/ skein. I think of yarn as “tubes of paint” and I like to have lots of colors to create my art. The colors were pretty much as they were photographed on the website. The first thing I did was to figure out where the colors landed on the grayscale. Sometimes I’m tricked by bright colors so I get help from a black and white photo.
I picked out some colors that I planned to use right away and wound them into balls. This yarn has 273 yds/ 50g. Knit Picks Palette has 231 yd/50g. I consider the Palette line to be fingering and Cascade 220 Fingering to be light fingering. My swatch on size 2 needles gave me 40st/ 36 rows for 4″ square. That’s 10 stitches per inch!
I started experimenting with some pattern ideas. This yarn is just asking to be knit on Size 2 needles. The fabric I get with that gauge is really nice. The ribbing is on Size 1 needles and I plan to make some stitch count adjustments to get the cuff of the mitt to fit better.
The yarn is nice to knit with and it doesn’t split. I washed and blocked my samples and the colors did not run. Good thing I like it since I bought so much! This yarn is going to keep me busy for a really long time.
The quest for new-to-me fingering weight yarns continues. I thought I’d share some of my notes here with you all. Thanks to k1teach2 for the comment and suggestions for US made yarns. I narrowed them down to 100% wool only (no alpaca, no superwash). This list contains only companies that have a supply ready to be purchased. My brain works in “grams of yarn” so in the end I put the price for 50 grams.
Barstow by Jill Draper
48 colors
113g/ 425 yds $28.00 skein
$12.38 for 50g
USA
Cascade 220 Fingering by Cascade Yards
82 colors
50g/ 273 yds $6.00 skein
$6.00 for 50g
Peru/Turkey
Finch by Quince and Co.
46 colors
50g/ 221 yads $12.00 skein
$12.00 for 50g
Mostly USA
Fingering Wt by Blackberry Ridge
55 colors
4oz/ 450 yds $26.00 skein
$11.46 for 50g
USA
Lana by Green Mountain Spinnery
13 colors
3.5oz/ 400yds $25.20 skein
$12.69 for 50g
USA
Palette by Knit Picks
160 colors
50g/ 231yds $5.49 ball
$5.49 for 50g
Peru/Italy/China
To figure the cost for a sweater project I used the requirements from the pattern I wrote called Twoolen. Twoolen calls for 6 different colors and if you were making size 3, 4, or 5 you would need 11 balls of Palette yarn. That would cost you $60.39 at full price right now. I remember when my test knitters started this there was a big sale on that yarn and I priced it out at $38. at the time. Having sales is a big plus for the brands like Cascade and Knit Picks. Anyway, If you wanted to use Barstow yarn for that project it would cost $136.18. The imported yarns are roughly half as much as the US made yarns.
These notes don’t say anything about quality. I’m waiting for some yarn to come in the mail and once I get my hands on it I’ll have more information.
Fleece Love and Happiness 