New pattern: Colorshift

This is my lastest design, Colorshift. It’s is the kind of easy accessory that gets you a whole lot of reward for a small amount of effort – the cherry on top of any vanilla outfit! Click here to queue it on Ravelry

[Lace weight sample made from Malabrigo Lace]

Colorshift is knit top-down in 1×1 rib with a narrower neck than hem. The shaping and subtle shifts in color are created by gradually increasing needle size and adding additional strands of yarn that are held together as one. The only stitches in this pattern are knit and purl… a super simple project for your “TV knitting”!

Below from top to bottom of the swatch, the first section is knit holding C1 & C2 together, second section is C1, C2, & C3, third section is all 4 colors, and the fourth section is 2 strands each of C3 & C4.

[ Malabrigo Lace swatch & yarn ]

The shape of Colorshift allows it to be worn as a cowl, pulled up over your hair as a wimple, or layered over your shoulders like a capelet – a super functional piece for transitional weather! While the all-over ribbing makes this piece super stretchy, the feedback I got from my test knitters is that it as a capelet probably works best on people with a chest measurement of up to about 44″. I’m planning some further field experiments on this subject though (i.e. making everyone I know try on my samples), so I’ll report back later with my findings.

[ Fingering weight sample made from Madelinetosh Merino Light ]

Pattern can be made with lace or fingering weight yarn. Though the difference in thickness between the two weights of yarn is small, the lace weight yarn (shown in green) yields a more delicate, lighter weight fabric and fingering weight (shown in purple) creates a more dense, slightly heavier fabric. Both make the same size cowl.

The colors you choose for your Colorshift are what will make it uniquely your own. Since it is made up of 4 separate colors of your choosing instead of a pre-made gradient colorway, yours will be one of a kind. You can make it a dramatic shift in color by going with high contrast yarns or a very subtle shift by sticking to monochromatic yarns closer together in value. Below are two of my fabulous test knitters’ projects that highlight this point. You can find both of their projects linked to this pattern on Ravelry for more info about their yarn choices.

For both my samples, I chose a light to dark gradient to highlight my face when I wear it, but I think the opposite could be beautiful as well. If you need help choosing a set of colors for your Colorshift, please post your pictures in my Ravelry forum and we will be happy to help you work it out. Can’t wait to see your Colorshift cowls in action!