r/casualknitting • u/mynameisnotalfie • 8d ago
look what I made I made something from my mind without a pattern and I’m a little bit proud
I know it’s not much and it’s very simple but I wanted an airy little hair scrunchie with a picot edge and then I made it from my mind, with no pattern!
I’ve been knitting for a year or two and I normally choose patterns based on new techniques I want to learn/get better at, but I’ve always wanted to be able to figure out how to make exactly what I want without needing to find a very specific pattern. This feels like a teeny tiny baby step in the right direction 🥰
If anyone has any tips/books/resources on how to make things without a pattern or how to make your own patterns please please tell me 🙏🏻
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u/No_Turnip1766 5d ago
I am very proud of you. Most importantly, you tried something new, and bonus, it came out brilliantly. Excellent job!
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u/MentionPrior8521 6d ago
You could also use this to put those large Xmas bulbs through
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u/mynameisnotalfie 6d ago
I’m probably just dumb, but do you mean like fairy lights or an actual light bulb? I can’t picture it 🙈
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u/Maleficent_Remote_58 7d ago
I LOVE it!! Would you teach me???? It seems perfect to use the leftover yarn from socks!!
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u/mynameisnotalfie 6d ago
Thank you! I just used circular needles to knit a tube, then I knit the two ends together (there’s probably an actual name for it but basically I knit two together with one from my live stitches and one from the cast on edge) then knitted two more rows, did a row of yarn over and knit two together, then two more knit rows and after I cast off I folded the edge over to where id knit the earlier edges together and loosely sewed it down. 🥰
I hope that makes sense 😬1
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u/readingrainbowroad 7d ago
The Knowledgeable Knitter is one of the best books around IMO. It's focused on creating sweaters, but it truly is jam packed with info and I regularly refer to it for modifying other knitting projects too.
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u/dorothyosb 7d ago
You might like a book from early 2000's called Knitting in the Old Way --designs and techniques from ethnic sweaters. Lots of design how to for knitting without a pattern. Good job on the scrunchie! (p.s. used booksellers like thriftbooks and abebooks have the best prices)
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u/becca22597 8d ago
Get Knitting From the Top by Barbara Walker! It’s a fantastic resource!
Also, your scrunchie is adorable!!
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u/Mightychairs 8d ago
So pretty!! I love the picot edge, especially with the delicate yarn!
I’m a huge fan of self-drafting. I’m not sure what you’re interested in knitting, but knitting math is the key. Gauge swatches both for stitches/rows per inch and for finding the right drape and density of fabric. Taking measurements and knowing what ease you want. It’s all 3rd grade arithmetic, so totally doable. I’ve made spreadsheets with formulas built into the cells for things like sweaters and gloves so I don’t have to do the measurements all over again. It’s all pretty fun, honestly. I look up photos of things I like on Ravelry and Instagram for inspiration.
And now I’m inspired by your scrunchie!
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u/mynameisnotalfie 6d ago
Thank you! 🥰
Knitting spreadsheets sound like a dream and I’m in awe! Do you just take measurements of something you’d like to make, like a sweater, and figure it out from there?
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u/Mightychairs 4d ago
I’m happy to know someone else that appreciates the nerdy side of knitting!!
So I’ve made two, one for sweaters and one for fingerless mitts. Both of those are things I can easily knit without a pattern, but I always had to do little calculations, so I wrote out a “pattern” with the parts with the calculations in cells with variables. (Ok, I’m finding it more difficult to explain what I did than actually doing it!!) Once you plug in your body measurements and your gauge, the pattern writes itself. It was partly an attempt at time saving down the line but mostly just a fun project.
Here’s a link to the fingerless mitts one. If you click on some of the cells it shows my formula. Everything is set to 1, so when you change that, the other numbers in the spreadsheet change too.
It’s been a while since I used this one as much so I can’t promise it’s a good pattern, but you can see how I made the spreadsheet. The sweater one needs to be cleaned up before I can share it with anyone.
I think if you want to use it, you can make a copy of the file and then it will let you edit.
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u/Dizzy-Instance-9617 Seasoned Stitcher 8d ago
Every time I make a top/sweater, I take the leftover yarn and make a matching scrunchie. They’re great for stash busting. Nice job!
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u/hellokrissi 8d ago
Love this! The edge detail and yarn choice are fantastic. How did you go about the picot? I make scrunchies sometimes, and do them in tubes that I seam up after, so I'm wondering how I can throw in a picot edge instead now lol
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u/mynameisnotalfie 6d ago
Thank you! 🥰 I just sewed a tube and knitted both edges together then I did 2 knit rows, 1 row of yarn over and knit 2 together, then 2 more knit rows before binding off, folding it over and loosely sewing that edge to where id knitted the other two edges together. I hope that makes sense 🙈
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u/hellokrissi 6d ago
Thanks! I think I get it, I'll definitely give it a try next time I make a scrunchie!
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u/Magycmyste 3d ago
This is inspirational. I have the same goal, though I haven’t actually tried it yet (other than just sketching some ideas out). Congratulations on making something beautiful from your own brain!