BLOCKED 20

CODES, SPIES & YARN • MOGA MAL • SEMPER FIBER • TESTING TIMES

20

TUNISIAN CROCHET • THE ODYSSEY • JAPANESE KNITTING PATTERNS

TEAM BLOCKED

Editor in Chief

Neil James

For all enquiries:

blockedmagazine@gmail.com

Layouts, Graphics, and Ads

BS Designs

Copy Editor

Cézanne Black

Editorial Assistants

Denise

Elizabeth

Michele

Robyn

Tech Editors

Cézanne Black (Knitting)

Annie Robinson (Crochet)

Cover Photography

Tom

Cover Model

Tabitha of CabotCoveKnits

Content Writers

Amy D, Naryknits

Cézanne Black

Katie Gerwein

Lizzie Knits Socks

Katie C

Melody

Tabitha of CabotCoveKnits

Neil James

Pattern Designers

Liz Clothier

Lizzie Knits Socks

Melody

Uknitted Kingdom

This issue is packed full

of great patterns!

We have provided a

cumulative list of abreviations

to make it easier for you to

make all the things!

KNITTING ABBREVIATIONS:

Beg – Beginning

BO – Bind Off

CDD – Center Double Decrease.

(Sl2 tog, k1, pass 2 slipped sts over K st)

CO – Cast On

Dec(‘d) – Decrease(d)

DPNs – Double pointed needles

K – Knit

Ndl(s) – Needle(s)

P – Purl

Rep – Repeat

Rnd – Round

Sl – Slip (all sts are slipped purlwise unless

otherwise stated)

St/sts – Stitch/Stitches

CROCHET ABBREVIATIONS:

BP – Back Post

ch – Chain

dc – Double Crochet

FP – Front Post

sc – Single Crochet

sl st – Slip Stitch

Dear Readers,

Welcome to issue 20, “Ciphers.”

It’s been a fun couple of months since the last issue.

What is a Woman?

My government spent millions of tax-payers’ £s to ascertain what a woman is and, thankfully, the High

Court agreed that a woman is a biological female. This means men cannot say they are women, nor can

women say they are men. A tiny minority will be upset about this, but looking at the wider picture, women

and girls in the UK are going to be safer now than they were prior to the hearing.

Tariffs

The USA introduced reciprocal tariffs on overseas imports and all the woke knitters with armchair

economics doctorates lost their minds. They don’t want to have to pay a dime more for the Peruvian

sweat-shop yarn ‘curated’ by their favourite dyer. My heart bleeds.

Test Knitting

You’ll read about Tabitha’s ‘Salmon Sweater’ test knit in this issue. When she told me she had been

accepted, she dared me to apply to be a test knitter for James N. Watts. I panicked when he chose me, as

I hadn’t really thought it through. Despite my own reservations, I finished the test knit in time and James

thanked me and sent me the free pattern as agreed. Would I recommend testing for James? Absolutely.

He was very laid back about it, no stress, no drama, and I like that his designs fit me! In this age of sizeinclusivity,

very few designers consider the rotund gentleman worthy of being included. James does.

Enemy Infiltration

For quite a few weeks, I had noticed a username not known to me (or anyone else) in my Blocked

Magazine Telegram group. This person had joined my Patreon, paid their dues, got access to the Telegram

group, cancelled Patreon, and then lurked in the Telegram group, regularly logging in but rarely interacting.

After she made a suspiciously woke comment, I decided to scratch the surface. I messaged her publicly. I

asked her what she was working on. No response. Others messaged her with common niceties associated

with a knitting group. No response.

After a few days, I sent her a DM. This time she replied. She told me she was a real estate agent from

[state] and a member of [church name]. She was a crocheter.

Immediately I knew she was lying. I located the person she was pretending to be. I looked to see if her

socials had any crochet or craft in them. They did not. She was indeed a real estate agent and did belong

to the [church]. So, I contacted her on Instagram and then told the infiltrator to reply to me on her Instagram.

I could almost hear the panic. Needless to say, I blocked her from Blocked. The irony!

The lesson is that one can’t be too careful when it comes to the haters. They’re dangerous, dogmatic, and

deranged. And they are obsessed with us. We’re all pretty amazing, so when their knit stars are picked from

the sludge in the barrel, of course we’re all going to look like actual STARS.

The Pigpen Cipher

Below, you’ll see a cipher that can be used to break the secret code. Work out which letter each symbol

represents, and you’ll be able to read the simple message.

If you knit this issue’s Dishident, you will need this cipher to understand it.

Your Editor-in-Chief,

Neil

3

by Cézanne by Naryaknits Pellett

Codes, Spies,

and Yarn

“Only one soul was to be seen, and that was Madame Defarge –

who leaned against the door-post, knitting, and saw nothing.”

-Charles Dickens

4

If any of you have read the book A Tale of Two Cities,

by Charles Dickens, you would know about Madame Defarge,

a character motivated by revenge against the nobility

of France. She sat in front of the guillotine, calmly

knitting in coded stitches, the names of those who

should be next under the blade. A Tale of Two Cities is a

fictional story based on the French Revolution, but spies

have used knitting as a way to convey secret messages in

real life as well. Hiding messages in knitting is a form of

steganography, a technique that lets a person hide messages

in plain sight.

George Washington created a network of spies to help

defeat the British during the Revolutionary War. People

from all walks of life were recruited to help the Patriot

cause. One woman who answered his call was Molly “Old

Mom” Rinker. Molly gathered intel about British troops

while pretending to knit on a nearby hill that coincidentally

overlooked British troops. She would write messages,

hide them in balls of yarn, and “accidentally” drop

the balls to hidden Revolutionary soldiers.

Molly used her yarn to hide messages, but during WWI,

a different technique was employed. The Allies needed

to know what kind of German trains were arriving at different

stops. Any information about what the trains were

carrying, such as troops or munitions, was at a premium.

Belgian Resistance members watched the trains arrive

and noted what type they were by using different knit

stitches or creating holes in their work. They would then

pass the knitted piece off to those who would decode

their work and act on the information.

Using knitting as a means to pass messages continued

during WWII. Codes became even more prevalent, and

there were many different ways that both sides passed on

information. Women came to the forefront of the Allied

effort, working at Bletchley Park with Alan Turing, to decode

messages from the Japanese and the Germans.

At the same time, British secret agent Phyllis Latour

Doyle, who was born in South Africa, worked with the

Special Operations Executive, or SOE. The SOE conducted

espionage, sabotage, and reconnaissance in occupied

Europe. Phyllis moved to England in 1939 and

joined the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force as a flight mechanic.

Her fluency in French enabled her to join the

SOE. She joined for revenge, as her godmother’s father

was shot by the Nazis and her godmother committed suicide

after being imprisoned.

Like many SOE operatives, Phyllis parachuted into Normandy

as a wireless operator. She posed as a young

teenage woman and rode her bicycle, engaging in conversation

with German soldiers. She transmitted onetime

codes, printed on silk that was wrapped around a

knitting needle and pushed inside an open shoelace. She

then placed the knitting needle in her hair as an accessory

to hide it from the enemy. She also hid silk yarn encoded

with knotted messages in her knitting basket. She

would translate the message using Morse code equipment.

She had several close calls and was able to translate

135 coded messages that helped guide Allied

bombing missions.

There are also accounts that German spies hid messages

in hand-knit sweaters. When unraveled, there was

a wool or silk thread dotted with knots that could be

deciphered based on a known alphabet code.

During the American Civil War, women and soldiers

used knitting as a way to hide messages. Because

women were encouraged to knit for soldiers during multiple

wars, knitting was an innocuous activity, providing

an advantage for spies. Using knit and purl stitches,

knitters could use Morse Code to hide information in

plain sight.

Continued on next page...

Codes, Spies & Yarn Continued...

Not just used for spying, knitting has also been used to tell

stories or share history. Cable knit patterns have been used

for cultural and religious meanings. While not a cipher or

code, Aran stitch patterns carry meaning and tradition. Aran

fishermen’s sweaters use stitches like the Honeycomb stitch,

which represents hard work and rewards; the Trellis stitch,

symbolizing protection; and the Cable stitch, depicting the

fishing ropes and nets and signifying safety and good luck.

Together with other stitches, they can impart hope for a good

catch, family, and protection. While there weren’t specific

family patterns, knitters would learn from their mothers and

grandmothers and use the same stitches. In essence, they

created patterns that could be identified, if necessary, especially

if they needed repair at any time.

Knitting provides a versatile canvas to hide messages. Knits

and purls are binary and there are many ways to use the dynamic

to encode information during wartime or add information

at any time. Some designs use knits and purls for

Morse code to hide words in knitting. Colorwork is another

method to knit a missive into a project.

The next time someone says that they are “reading” their

knitting, it might not just mean they are checking that their

stitches are correct!

5

SEMPER FIBER

by Melody

Illusion knitting is an interesting way to add a visual twist

to a project. It takes only knit and purl stitches to create an

image using texture. Your yarn and color choices can help

push or hide your design and you have lots of room to be

creative and playful.

The knitting part is straightforward as it is grounded in

alternating garter stitch and stockinette stitch in rows.

Each ridge is made of 2 rows, RS and WS, and 2 ridges

form one line of the image on the RS with one ridge in

garter and the other ridge in stockinette.

Reading an illusion chart is a bit of a challenge and takes

a while to get the hang of it.

There has been a running theme throughout our knitting

fellowship that brings fear to our detractors and hate

watchers. We are part of a secret society composed of the

dregs of the crafting world and we are guilty of all sorts of

shenanigans.

In a nod to our “secret robe-wearing society,” the Illumiknitty

was created. It is an idea of fun, comradery, and adventure

for all crafting outcasts and not-so-silent-majority.

If you find yourself in the shady part of the crafting world

and accused of thought crimes such as individuality, you

might find a place in the Illumiknitty fellowship.

I have created a few charts for the Illumiknitty. One is a

simple chart that can be used for many different crafts or

projects and you are welcome to use it. It includes the slogan

“Semper Fiber” from Tina of Awenydd Fiber Arts and

is used with her permission. The cat skull graphic is mine

and I am looking forward to developing and creating more

things with it. This is just the beginning of the Illumiknitty!

The next two charts are illusion knitting charts. One is a

smaller chart that I used to make a kerchief. In this chart, I

chose to highlight the illusion stitches in different colors to

make it more beginner-friendly. The second chart is larger

and includes the skull and slogan from the basic chart. I

used the chart to make a cowl. I followed Woolly

Thoughts' ideas for illusion charts and it uses white, black,

and gray to represent the stitches. These charts can be

used as they are to make a kerchief or cowl, or as building

blocks for a shawl or wrap by changing the increases or

decreases as needed.

For a more comprehensive introduction and information on illusion knitting, please check out Woolly Thoughts at:

http://www.illusionknitting.woollythoughts.com/knitting%20basics.html (Ashforth & Plummer, 2011).

6


Basic instructions for illusion knitting:

Black squares are Knit stitches.

White squares are Knit on RS, Purl on WS.

Gray squares are Knit on WS.

Each row on the chart represents two (2) rows of knitting.

The RS is always knit and the WS is knitted or purled according

to the chart. This method creates ridges. A pair of ridges,

one in MC and one in CC, define one row of texture.

This is a brief overview of illusion knitting and I would recommend

going to Woolly Thoughts' website to read more

and see other examples. I plan to keep learning and exploring

how to create more detailed illusion charts.

Illumiknitty cat skull © @mockingbirdsrealm and @licytavya

Semper Fiber slogan © Awenydd Fiber Arts"


7

8


9

READER PROFILE

Kasi

– California, USA.

Please tell the readers about yourself

I'm just an average girl who loves yarn too much.

How long have you been a knitter and/or crocheter?

Crochet - 31 years. Knitter - 16 years.

I find both to be calming and entertaining overall. I

enjoy the process. And I like to create items that I

couldn't just find in a store.

What do you enjoy the least about knitting/crochet?

I also sometimes hate the process. Sometimes I'm

very impatient to have the finished product. Also, I

hate joining in new yarn. I'm never really confident that

it won't come apart with wear.

What is your favorite yarn?

I love most yarn. Each fiber and weight have their

own unique qualities and uses.

What are your favorite needles/hooks?

Needles - Knitter's Pride Nova Platina. They are well

made for a fair price. Hooks – Clover Amour. I like the

shape of the hook and the ergonomic handle makes it

feasible to crochet longer.

Your favorite project so far?

Trellis Lace Infinity Scarf. I just found a neat reversible

stitch pattern and turned it into an infinity scarf. I wear

it almost every day.

Your favorite designer(s)?

I don't really have a favorite designer. I'm pretty

picky, so I function on a pattern-by-pattern basis.

Favorite vlogs/podcasts?

Politically Incorrect Knitters. DK and Anne introduced

me to a fantastic group of crafters.

How did you become a reader of Blocked?

I learned about Blocked when Neil appeared on an

episode of PIK.

Have you ever experienced or witnessed cancellation

in the knitting/crochet world? If so, what happened?

Historically, I was always an isolated crafter. I was

never really involved in any knitting/crocheting communities

until recently, so I haven't witnessed anything

firsthand. As usual, I'm late to the party.

How can people find you?

I don't want people to find me. LOL. IG: kasi.crafts

10

by Tabitha of by Cabot Cézanne Cove Pellett Knits

Testing Times

Jessica Fletcher went undercover a number of times

while she was investigating a crime, or honestly, just

being nosy. I’d like to think I’m a lot like Jessica, especially

when it comes to being nosy, or as Jessica puts it,

“Just curious.”

So, when I received a newsletter email from Boyland

Knitworks asking for “preview knitters” (formally called

test knitters) for her newest King Salmon sweater, I put on

my red Jessica Fletcher glasses, logged into Ravelry, and

requested to be a test knitter, adding my social media

profiles. Imagine my surprise when an email came to my

inbox, saying I’d been selected to be a test knitter. Much

like when Jessica goes undercover and you can still tell

she’s Jessica, Boyland Knitworks could still tell it was me;

a crazy lady who has too much yarn, loves watching murder

shows, and works very heavily with Blocked Magazine.

would be represented, just not knitted by males. She

thanked him and encouraged him to apply in the future.

The test knit went on from there with less fanfare in the

forums. People shared their progress, yarn choices, and

occasional mistakes. Overall, it was pleasant. I skated

through my sweater with minimal issues. I did modify it to

add the sleeve holes early, and I personally don’t care for

the neckline. The neckline is a common complaint from

many who knit Boyland patterns.

The test knit started out on the wrong foot. Boyland recently

changed how she handles test knits and went from

having as many testers as possible to limiting it to about

thirty. While not everyone got picked for this knit, most

people understood and said that they would like to be

considered for next time. One post on Ravelry stood out

to me. A user going by the name, DrewJacobs83, expressed

his upset that no male testers were listed and

stated that, as this sweater is likely to be billed as unisex,

it may be valuable to have at least one male knitter to

test possible fit issues for men. He also said that male

knitters are often overlooked within our community in lots

of ways. Betsy, who runs all the test knits for Boyland, replied

to Drew, stating that Boyland has used male knitters

in the past and typically anyone who applied to test knit

was accepted. She explained, however, that Boyland was

going down to a preview style and wanted to use fewer

knitters. She added that he had also requested to knit a

size that had been highly requested and they had used a

lottery system to fill those spots. She then went on to say

that some of the chosen knitters were making male versions

(even though this sweater is not unisex) so males


11

Testing Times Continued...

During the test knit, I found out that Knit Picks had

canceled my Ambassador code and I was no longer invited

to participate. I applied to the Knit Picks Ambassador

program in the same way I applied for the test knit,

by using my socials and not hiding my involvement with

Blocked. I was given a special code, joined the Discord

chats, and was prompted to post about using Knit Picks

yarn. A large number of orders went to Knit Picks using

my discount code, and I was tagging Knit Picks in posts,

where appropriate, using the King Salmon test knit as

my muse. A few weeks into the program, I received an

email stating that my discount code was being terminated

and that I was no longer welcome to be in the

Ambassador program due to lack of participation.

Further investigation into other Ambassadors who were

posting less than me, or not at all, showed that they

were able to keep their code and remain in the program.

I did share a cheeky post, tagging Knit Picks and Boyland,

stating I was an #exknitpicksambassador, perhaps

channeling my inner Drew Jacobs and wanting to complain.

Even with all the Knit Picks drama, or lack thereof, I finished

my test knit early. I shared my finished sweater on

Instagram on release day, tagging Knit Picks for the yarn

used, Boyland for the sweater pattern, and, of course,

the lovely Blocked Magazine. I also included a mention

of an upcoming photoshoot and article I’m currently

working on for Blocked. Boyland went on to share all the

test knitters’ photos in her stories, minus one. Mine. To

be honest, I was a little hurt, not that the designer must

share my photo, but it was clear that she shared all the

other photos before and after mine. I highly doubt I

would be chosen again to test knit for Boyland, and

that's OK. I’ll take my free pattern and move on.

Overall, I still encourage people to apply to be part of

test knits, for both little and big designers. It’s fun to knit

something with a group, share photos, troubleshoot together,

and share our love of knitting. I always like taking

nice photos for the designer to use at their will. Unlike

the joy eaters of Craftsnark, I think it's fun to play model

for an hour or two with your new knitted piece.

If you are curious about test knitting, there’s usually a

small handful of designers from Blocked who are looking

for test knitters. Neil is especially a hoot to test knit for,

even when you don’t finish the cursed Ugly Cats Shawl.

12

by Tabitha of by Cabot Cézanne by Neil Cove James Pellett Knits

MOGA

MAKE ORANGE GREAT AGAIN MAL

2024 was the Don of a new era.

For too long, orange has been hijacked by

race-baiters, bullies, and grifters.

It’s time to paint the world orange in honor of the

original Cheeto King.

Beginning June 14th and going until September

30th, Blocked Magazine will be hosting the 2025

MAKE ORANGE GREAT AGAIN MAL.

Three winners will be randomly chosen from the

completed entries.

Each winner will receive one skein of orangethemed

yarn from one of the following dyers

(chosen at random):

Awenydd Yarn and Fiber

Chicken Lady Fiber Arts

Mystery Mouse Yarn

Eligibility:

All projects must be:

1. At least 50% orange (any and all shades of orange are acceptable).

2. Made using any fiber-related craft (knit, crochet, weaving, spinning, macramé, etc.).

3. Finished (blocking/weaving-in ends is not essential, but the project must be off the needles/hook/loom/bobbin).

Participants will receive one entry into the drawing per 50g of orange fiber used.

- For example, if you knit a hat with one 50g skein of orange and one 50g skein of another color,

you will receive one entry.

- If you spin 200g of orange fiber (starting weight) you will receive four entries.

- If you crochet a shawl using 300g of orange yarn, you will receive six entries.

The link to the online entry form will be available in issue 22 (the September 2025 issue).

Feel free to double-dip with any other MAL.

You are going to be so proud of your orange, because we’re gonna turn it around, and we’re gonna start orange

again! We’re gonna orange so much! We’re going to orange at every level. We’re gonna orange so much, you may

even get tired of orange. And you’ll say, “Please, please. It’s too much orange. We can’t take it anymore, it’s too much.”

And I’ll say, “No, no it isn’t.”

https://www.youtube.com/live/h1XRZzW8tKA?si=WEdsoRDfg1SjerYR

13

YOU’VE BEEN

by Liz Clothier Designs

IN HONOR OF BLOCKED’S

3-YEAR ANNIVERSARY!

YARN

Yarn Art Jeans Cotton/Acrylic yarn approx. 45 y

(Not as heavy as regular dishcloth cotton, if using heavier cotton use a larger needle)

NEEDLES

US Size 5 (3.75mm)

INSTRUCTIONS

CO 34 sts

Rows 1-3: Knit.

Row 4: K3, P to last 3 sts, K3.

Row 5: Knit.

Row 6: Repeat Row 4.

Rows 7-14: Repeat Rows 5-6.

Row 15: Knit.

Rows 16, 18, 20: K3, P8, *(K1, P1) 3X, P1* rep from * to * P6, K3.

Rows 17, 19, 21: K12, P1, K1, P1, K4, P1, K1, P1, K to end.

Row 22: K9, P2, K12, P to last 3 sts, K3.

Row 23: K3, P6, K2, P12, K to end.

Row 24: K3, P to last 3, K3.

Row 25, 27, 29: K11, *(P1, K1) 3X, K1* rep from * to * once, K to end.

Row 26, 28, 30: K3, P9, K1, P1, K1, P4, K1, P1, K1, P9, K3.

Row 31: Knit.

Row 32: K3, Purl to last 3, K3.

Rows 33-40: Repeat Rows 31 and 32 4X.

Rows 41-43: Knit.

Bind off and weave in ends.

14

by Katie Gerwein

Tunisian

CroCheT

RESOURCES

Are you interested in trying Tunisian crochet? Below is a

review of several resources to get you started with the Tunisian

crochet technique.

As I usually do when looking for information on a topic

new to me, I set off to our local library. Unfortunately, I was

again disappointed by the limited number of books on

the shelves, both overall and on the subject of Tunisian

crochet (but that is a topic to address at another time and

venue). I did find two books on the topic: The New Tunisian

Crochet: Contemporary Designs

for Time-Honored Traditions, by

Dora Ohrenstein and Tunisian Crochet

– The Japanese Way, published

by Nihon Vogue (Vogue Japan) and

translated by Linda Lanz. Additionally,

I also found Toni Lipsey’s,

The Tunisian Crochet Handbook: A

Beginner’s Guide, available through

our library’s digital download service.

While I was looking for Lipsey’s

book on our library’s digital download

site, I also discovered a Craftsy

class available on Tunisian crochet.

Reviewing the Craftsy website, they offer 20 Tunisian crochet

courses, ranging from entry level to advanced techniques.

I was hoping to find a single book that would provide

readers with the clearest instructions and the most current,

appealing projects.

I found that Ohrenstein’s, The New Tunisian Crochet,

gives the best overall background about the obscure history

of Tunisian crochet in the first chapter of her book.

She provides written instructions for the foundation chain,

and the forward and return passes, applicable to all Tunisian

crochet stitches. While her descriptions are wordy,

the drawings of each step are not as clear, nor as

frequent, as I would have liked. That said, I was still able

to complete the stitches. She goes on to explain how to

increase, decrease, pick up stitches for lace, change yarns,

and finish a row with the Tunisian slip

stitch. She then gives brief instructions

for weaving in ends, seaming, and blocking.

Ohrenstein reviews the types of

hooks available, then describes how to

use double ended hooks to work in the

round and how to complete short rows.

She includes a stitch dictionary, with 33

stitch patterns from simple to lace patterns.

The book contains 11 projects: 2

sweaters, a very open skirt, a man’s vest,

a hat, several scarves, a blanket made of

squares of various stitches, a tote, and

booties. Overall, the projects remain current;

in fact, I like both of the sweaters.

However, I don’t know anyone, except a very brave gal,

who would wear the crocheted lace open skirt! Lastly,

Ohrenstein includes a symbol key, a glossary, and instructions

for basic crochet stitches. Overall, the book is helpful

and gives you some attractive project options,

particularly if you are interested in the history of Tunisian

crochet.


15

Tunisian Crochet Resources Continued...

You may recognize the name, Toni

Lipsey, as she has a popular YouTube

podcast, TL Yarn Crafts. Lipsey has a

friendly and energetic demeanor in

her podcasts, where she discusses

crochet as well as knitting. She has

also published some crochet patterns.

Lipsey’s, The Tunisian Crochet

Handbook: A Beginner’s Guide, is

very encouraging and is written in a

welcoming and conversational tone.

After a brief welcome, the first section

addresses essentials, including a

good explanation of what type of

hook to use with the yarn of your

choice. She then reviews how to read

a pattern and the serious topic of gauge. Next, she covers

every step needed to complete the foundation row, with

good explanations and photos demonstrating each step.

I found this to be a clearer guide for basic techniques

than that provided in Ohrenstein’s book. Lipsey explains 6

additional stitches beyond the basic Tunisian stitches, and

also includes a section about basic crochet techniques.

From there, she describes how to change color, do

stranded colorwork and intarsia, increase, decrease, work

short rows, and work in the round with a double ended

hook. Her section on finishing, including multiple seaming

methods, is quite good and thorough, particularly for

readers who are not familiar with finishing techniques.

Lastly, she includes a short section on embellishments.

Lipsey’s book offers 20 projects, ranging from a cardigan,

to home décor, to shawls, scarves, and mittens. All the

projects are current and attractive. The photography is

clear, crisp, and appealing.

I did a test run of the instructions in both Ohrenstein’s

and Lipsey’s books to see which one provides the clearest

instructions for completing basic Tunisian crochet stitches.

Overall, I found Lipsey’s book provided the clearest instructions,

particularly because this book used photos instead

of drawings to demonstrate each stitch. I compared

instructions for the Tunisian simple stitch and Tunisian knit

stitch.

I checked out Nihon Vogue’s book,

Tunisian Crochet – The Japanese

Way. I chose it because I liked the

cover, which showed several attractive

projects, and was curious about

the connection to Japanese as well.

This book starts immediately with instructions

for the Tunisian simple

stitch. There is no guide about tools,

yarn selection, etc. Each step of the

stitch is explained, along with a clear

photograph of each step, but there is

one big difference. For each stitch,

the book includes a chart of the stitch

pattern. Nihon Vogue also includes

additional stitch patterns, including

the domino stitch and lace stitch. The 20 patterns start at

the back of the book. While they are attractive and current,

including hats, scarves, vests, bags and more, the

pattern instructions are written in the Japanese style. This

style uses limited written instructions and substitutes

charts for the majority of the directions. Since I am new to

Tunisian crochet, and even though I love simple directions,

I was a bit intimidated by these instructions. If I had

lots of time and patience, I might give one of the patterns

a go. As someone new to Tunisian crochet, however, I will

stick to one of the projects in the other books with more

detailed instructions. The projects in Nihon Vogue’s book

are attractive, as is the photography, but for the new Tunisian

crocheter, I would describe this as, at best, an aspirational

book, from my perspective.

On Craftsy, Toni Lipsey has a 20-minute session entitled,

The Absolute Basics of Tunisian Crochet and a class entitled,

Four Weeks to Tunisian Mastery. I reviewed the

Craftsy platform in Issue 19, if you want further information

regarding the site.

Finally, I gave the Tunisian crochet technique a go, with

the intention of making the pair of slippers from Ohrenstein’s,

The New Tunisian Crochet book. I enjoy the process

of Tunisian crochet. I found the foundation chain

process easier and sturdier than the typical foundation

16


Tunisian Crochet Resources Continued...

crochet chain used in most traditional

crochet projects. Every row in

Tunisian crochet consists of a forward

and a return pass. I found the

process to be easy and pleasant to

complete, and maybe even a bit

addictive. Because of the nature of

the technique, the fabric grows in

length quickly and creates a thick

fabric. Since I live in a moderate climate,

I am rethinking the idea of a

Tunisian crochet sweater, as the

thickness might be just a bit too

warm to wear here. However, there

are home decor projects and other

projects that are interesting. As an

by Katie Gerwein

added note, Tunisian crochet has a tendency

to curl up and requires blocking.

I have included photos of some of my

initial attempts at Tunisian crochet.

If you are interested in trying the

technique yourself, I hope you enjoy

exploring these learning options and

have some fun in the pursuit of Tunisian

crochet. If you are already experienced

in the technique, you might enjoy the

patterns found in Nihon Vogue’s Tunisian

Crochet - The Japanese Way.

References:

• Craftsy. (2025). Tunisian+Crochet search results. Craftsy.com. https://www.craftsy.com/search?s=tunisian+crochet

• Lipsey, T. (2021). The Tunisian Crochet Handbook: A Beginner’s Guide. Abrams. Available new and used on Amazon

from $17.15 to $38.38 (some with free shipping) and on Kindle for $10.99 at this link: https://tinyurl.com/mu4w5p4t

• Lipsey, T. (2025a). Four weeks to Tunisian mastery. Craftsy.

https://www.craftsy.com/product/four-weeks-to-tunisian-mastery

• Lipsey, T. (2025b). The absolute basics of Tunisian crochet. Craftsy.

https://www.craftsy.com/video/the-absolute-basics-of-tunisian-crochet

• Lipsey, T. (2025c). TL yarn crafts. TL Yarn Crafts - YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@TLYarnCrafts

• Nihon Vogue. (2024). Tunisian Crochet – The Japanese way (L. Lanz, Trans.). Tuttle Publishing. Available new and used

on Amazon for $11.90-$28.95 (some with free shipping) and on Kindle for $15.10 through this link:

https://tinyurl.com/2t86s2kz

• Ohrenstein, D. (2013). The New Tunisian Crochet: Contemporary Designs for Time-Honored Traditions. Interweave

Press. Available new and used on Amazon from $7.52 to $53.42 (some with free shipping) and on Kindle for $4.99, or free

with Kindle Unlimited, at this link: https://tinyurl.com/3a7zurzf

17

by Katie C

Ugly Catastrophe

18

by Lizzie Knits Socks

THE ODYSSEY

(OF KNITTING A TEMPERATURE BLANKET)

Idea

Sometime during the middle of January 2024, I had a

moment of insanity. I got the crazy idea to knit a temperature

blanket for my husband. He is a meteorologist, and I

thought it would make a cool gift for him. He has his own

weather station in our backyard, so I thought it would be

even more special to use the temperatures at our house.

I do not know when people started encoding temperatures

into their knitting. I first heard about temperature

blankets years ago as a new

knitter, but I never had the desire

to knit an entire adult-sized

blanket before. I knew it was a

crazy idea that I would come to

regret at some point during the

year. The only question was how

long that would take. I spent a

month looking at color choices,

but I knew that once I bought

yarn, there was no turning back!

Knitting a temperature blanket

is a big commitment, but it is

achievable, even for someone

like me who does not knit fast.

Pattern

I spent some time researching temperature blankets online.

There are many blogs devoted to them with plenty of

advice on how to create your own. I looked at different

patterns and examples of other knitters’ and crocheters’

temperature blankets. None of the options I saw were exactly

what I wanted to make. I knew that I wanted to incorporate

both the high and low temperatures each day, as

well as track rainfall. I also liked the look of blankets that

incorporated a neutral background color throughout, to

tie everything together.

Mitered square blanket patterns can

easily be used as temperature blankets.

I, however, am not crazy about mitered

squares, and knitting them seems to

take me forever. Another common pattern

calls for knitting one row per day.

This type of pattern only allows for incorporating

either the high or the average

daily temperature, which was not what I

wanted. I saw a beautiful blanket made

of crocheted hexagons, but I am not a

crocheter. I also found a pattern composed

of 12 large squares, one for each

month, with


19

The Oyssey Continued...

each row representing the daily high temperature. I liked

the look, but it did not meet my needs.

Ultimately, I decided to create my own pattern, combining

multiple ideas. I knit one square per day, with a

background color, a color representing the daily high,

and a color representing the daily low. I encoded daily

rainfall using purl stitches, with each side of a square

representing one-quarter of an inch of rain. I chose to

pick up stitches along the sides of existing squares as I

went, rather than knitting individual squares and seaming

them together. The upside was that I did not have all

that seaming work to do on the back end. The downside

was that the blanket became less portable throughout

the year. I also decided to knit my squares in straight

rows, rather than on the diagonal from corner to corner. I

thought it would be neat to be able to find a specific

date’s square within the blanket.

Temperature Ranges

Doing a prospective temperature blanket is a little

more difficult than a retrospective one when trying to

calculate the yardage needed for each color. I looked

online to find daily average high and low temperatures

from prior years, to help me calculate the amount of

yarn I would need. The problem with using averages is

that, by design, they knock out extreme temperatures.

I enjoy planning, so I created spreadsheets of historical

temperature data. I made numerous frequency tables in

Excel, to get an idea of how many times each color

would be used for both highs and lows. I wanted to ensure

that my blanket was not monochromatic. As much

as possible, I aimed for a relatively even distribution of

colors.

Initially, I tried even temperature ranges in five- and

ten-degree increments but found that certain ranges

were wildly overused. I eventually settled on ranges between

four and eight degrees. Because I live in a warmer

climate, I chose wider temperature ranges (eight degrees)

at the lower end of the spectrum and narrower

ranges at the upper end (four degrees), with some sixdegree

ranges in the middle. I hoped this would show

more variation and avoid overusing colors. Unfortunately,

the weather last year had other ideas!

Yarn Choice & Color Palette

The next step in planning was to choose yarn. I prefer

natural fibers, but I also wanted the blanket to be washable.

I did not think pure wool was necessary, since it

does not get overly cold where I live. The higher cost of

100% wool was also a factor. I wanted to buy the full

amount of yarn at one time to avoid variability between

unmatched dye lots and save on shipping costs, but that

made for a large outlay of cash all at once.

I chose a worsted weight blend of acrylic and superwash

wool, which was reasonably affordable, warm

enough for our needs, and easy to work with. The only

color I did not buy was white, which I used for my lowest

temperature range. I used some white acrylic that I al-

20



cable, and capped the ends, then went on to knit other

squares. This kept me from falling two weeks behind

(again) as I waited for my order to arrive. I was very lucky

that there was not a visible difference between the dye

lots of the old and new yarns.

ready had on hand, as I knew I would not need much. It

was so unpleasant to knit with and I disliked knitting the

squares that required it; if I had used that yarn for a significant

part of the blanket, I might have set the project

aside permanently.

Choosing a yarn was difficult because I needed something

that had a large variety of colors available. I settled

on 16 different temperature ranges, so it was challenging

to find enough colors for all of those in one brand of yarn.

I did use a second brand with a slightly different fiber

content for a few of my colors. While the two yarns are

not completely alike in texture or sheen, I do not think

that is noticeable in the finished blanket.

As for the colors themselves, I chose to use a traditional

color palette. I had a picture in my head of white and

blues for lower temperatures, soft yellow and green for

mild temperatures, and progressively darker oranges and

reds for warm to hot temperatures.

I did not use yarn from the big box craft store as I was

afraid I would not be able to find more of the same color

if I ran out of something. I do not have any local yarn

shops nearby, so I was not able to compare yarns or

choose colors in person, which would have been helpful. I

did find a helpful feature on the Jimmy Beans Wool website.

They have a yarn comparison grid, to which I added

my prospective yarn colorways. They even have a blackand-white

filter to ensure that the contrast between different

colors is visible.

I calculated the amount of yarn I would need using my

spreadsheets and gauge swatch. I did run out of yarn

twice during the year and had to stop and order more.

The second time, I knitted the border of the square,

transferred the live stitches to an interchangeable needle

Knitting the Blanket & Lessons Learned

I started knitting in early March and I put a lot of pressure

on myself to get caught up and then stay on track

once I got there. I should have been more patient with

myself. I was usually able to knit one to two squares per

day, and sometimes more on weekends. I managed to

get caught up by early May but soon fell behind again.

Life events, running out of yarn, losing interest in the project

for a time, and going on vacation all put me behind

during the year. Surprisingly, there were only about two

months out of the year when I stayed up to date with the

knitting.

I knew my blanket would not be finished by Christmas,

when I planned to present it to my husband, because I

planned to knit squares through December 31st. So, I was

already prepared to give him an unfinished gift. Fortunately,

as it got closer to the end of the year, I felt less

pressured to catch up. I was able to live in the moment

more and enjoy the process. I finally put the finishing

touches on the blanket around the middle of February. In

total, I knit 378 squares, plus the rectangular intarsia

panel displaying the year.

As I said, I knew I would come to regret my choice to

knit this blanket at some point. Sometime in December, I

looked at the blanket and thought “I never want to knit

again!” Happily, the feeling was fleeting. I do still enjoy

knitting after finally finishing the project. Now, I am so excited

about knitting all of the other projects I could not

work on last year while I was solely making the blanket!

I wanted this blanket to be a surprise for my husband,

so I never told him exactly what I was working on. I was

counting on him not showing much interest in my knitting,

as usual. I was vague with my answers the few times

he did ask about it. Of course, he saw me working on it all

year, as it was not possible to hide such a large project

and still get it finished. When I finally gave it to him on

Christmas Day and explained what it was, he described it

as “Awesome.” He is definitely knitworthy, as he recognizes

what a labor of love this gift was!


21


Are you thinking of knitting a temperature blanket?

After having completed this odyssey, I have a little advice.

• Consider choosing a special year from the past. This

allows you to know exactly how much of each color to purchase

before starting.

• Temperature data can be found at:

http://www.wunderground.com/. Enter your desired

location in the “Search Locations” bar on the top right of

the page.

• Using even temperature ranges is much simpler if you

are not bothered by using more of some colors than

others.

• Do not be afraid to get creative with your color palette.

If you do not want to use a traditional palette of cool

colors for cool temperatures and warm colors for warm

temperatures, try pastels, neutrals, jewel tones, or whatever

appeals to you most.

• It is so important to choose a yarn/fiber that you enjoy

working with. You will not finish such a large project if you

do not like the yarn or if it hurts to knit with.

• If you can, buy one skein of your chosen yarn to swatch

with before committing to the project. This will help immensely

in determining yardage requirements. Consider

purchasing only the colors you will need for one season at

a time if you are not able to get everything at once.

• Give yourself plenty of time if you are trying to finish

your blanket on a deadline. Try not to pressure yourself so

much that you stop enjoying the process.

• Once you are finished with your blanket, consider adding

a custom tag listing the temperature ranges you used

along with any other information you would like to include.

Add strands of your yarn to illustrate which colors

represent each temperature range. Or, you could choose

not to include a tag and let others wonder at the hidden

meaning of your project!

• If you are not a blanket knitter, consider making a

scarf, shawl, sweater, stuffed animal, or anything else you

want. If you cannot commit to a year, do a month instead.

There are no rules for your project, so do what makes you

happy!

22

METEOROLOGIST’S

TEMPERATURE BLANKET

This pattern can be adapted to any size you choose. Add

extra squares of your background color to make a rectangle, if

needed. To record temperatures over a shorter time period,

make a scarf or a shawl. If you do not want to make a temperature

blanket, this pattern could also be used for a set of

mini skeins or an advent kit.

YARN

Worsted weight yarn in desired colors

(see notes on calculating required amounts below)

NEEDLES

Set of 5 DPNs in US Size 6 (4.0mm), or desired size

based on yarn weight and gauge

MATERIALS

Stitch marker to mark beginning of round (optional)

Scissors

Darning needle

by Lizzie Knits Socks

PATTERN:

With background color, CO 72 sts using knitted cast on.

Arrange sts evenly on four DPNs (18 sts per ndl).

Round 1: *K15, CDD* rep from * to * 3X more. (64 sts)

Round 2: *P15, Sl1* rep from * to * 3X more.

Switch to color representing high temperature.

Round 3: K14, CDD, (Beg this dec rnd, the K st of the CDD will

be the 1st st on the next ndl.) *K13, CDD* rep from * to * 2X

more. (On final rep, the K st of the CDD will be the 1st st of

the next rnd.) (56 sts)

Round 4: *K13, Sl1* rep from * to * 3X more.

Round 5: K12, CDD, *K11, CDD* rep from * to * 2X more.

(48 sts)

Round 6: *K11, sl1* rep from * to * 3X more.


(40 sts)


Round 9: K8, CDD, *K7, CDD* rep from * to * 2X more. (32 sts)


Switch to color representing low temperature.


(24 sts)



(16 sts)



(8 sts)

Cut yarn and pull tail through remaining sts. Pull tight to close.

Weave in end.

For subsequent squares on the first row, pick up 18 sts along

the right side of the last square. CO 54 stitches in background

color with knitted cast on. Distribute sts evenly on four DPNs

and proceed with Round 1.

For the first square of each subsequent row, pick up 18 sts

along the bottom of the first square of the row. CO 54 stitches

in background color with knitted cast on. Distribute sts evenly

on four DPNs and proceed with Round 1.

For subsequent squares on all remaining rows, pick up 18 sts

along the right side of the last square and 18 sts along the

bottom of the square above. CO 36 sts in background color

with knitted cast on. Distribute sts evenly on four DPNs and

proceed with Round 1.

To mark precipitation, P instead of K the sts on even numbered

rows. I began with Round 6, to ensure these sts stood

out. Each side of a square encodes up to ¼” of precipitation.

For example, ½” of rain, P half a round, for 1” of rain, P an entire

round, and for 1¾” of rain, P one round then three sides

of the next even numbered round.


23

Temperature Blanket Continued...

BORDER:

Once all squares are completed, you may choose to add a

border. I added a crochet border in my background color, as

follows.

Round 1: sc into each K st around the edge of the blanket.

Make 3 sc sts in the K st at each of the corners. When you

reach the end of the Round, close it with a sl st.

Round 2: ch3, dc into each edge st. When you reach a corner,

make 3 dc sts in each of the three corner sts in Round 1.

When you reach the end of the Round, sl st into the Ch3 to

close.

Round 3: ch 1, *FP dc in the dc post below, BP dc in the next

dc post below* rep from * to * until you reach the end of the

rnd. sl st into the first FP dc to close. You may end here or

choose to rep this rnd one or two more times, as desired.

There will be six ends to weave in for each square. I recommend

weaving ends in as you knit, by weaving the tails

over and under the needle with each stitch. When switching

colors, first weave in the tail of the old color, then weave in

the tail of the new color on the next row. This way, the only

tail you have to weave in for each square is the last one.

I chose to knit a square in the background color to mark the

beginning of each month. I also embroidered the first letter

of the name of each month onto these squares using the

color representing the average temperature for the month.

For my last two squares, I knit a rectangle with an intarsia

panel denoting the year represented in the blanket. The

colors used represented the average low and high temperatures

for the entire year. Make any extra squares you would

like, to encode any other data you want to display.

CALCULATING REQUIRED YARDAGE:

Gauge is not critical for this project, but it will affect the size

of the finished project as well as the yarn requirements. To estimate

the number of skeins needed to complete your project

at your personal knitting gauge, you will need to knit a

swatch and weigh it several times on a gram scale. (I used my

kitchen scale.)

Before you begin knitting,

weigh your

needles and save this

number (A). Cast on

and knit Rounds 1 and

2. Weigh your swatch

again, and save this

number (B). Knit

Rounds 3-10, weigh

your swatch, and save

this number (C). Then

knit Rounds 11-15,

weigh the swatch with

the needles still in the

stitches, and save this

number (D).

B - A = grams of yarn

used for the border.

C - (A + B) = grams of

yarn used for the high

temperature section.

D - (A + B + C) = grams

of yarn used for the low

temperature section.

Calculate the number

of yards needed for

each section based on

the yardage and

weight in grams of your

chosen yarn.

To determine how

many skeins of each

color you will need,

multiply the yardage calculated above by the number of days

that require each color (based on average temperatures if

knitting a prospective blanket, or actual count if knitting a

blanket for a past year). That gives you an idea of how many

skeins of each color you will need to buy. I let Excel do this

work for me.

Calculating the amount of yarn needed for the background

color is more difficult if you choose to add a border around

the blanket. I recommend calculating the amount you will

need for all the squares you plan to knit, and buying at least

1-2 extra balls if you plan to add a border. The yarn I chose

had 199 yards per 100 grams and I used 9 skeins. I did not

have enough yarn to crochet more than three rounds for the

border, but I felt that my blanket was big enough at that

point.

24

Knitting Patterns

https://www.ravelry.com/designers/liz-clothier

Knitting Patterns

https://galilee-life.com/vendor/deplorable-knitter/

Anne Pinkava

Knitting Patterns

www.lovecrafts.com/en-us/user/maker/fdba7e1e-93b6-4b6f-9f82-06ef18d0ec8c

25

DISHIDENT #20

by UKnitted Kingdom

PATTERN DESCRIPTION

Each issue of Blocked will contain a “secret”

pattern. The design will only be revealed as you

knit. The instructions might uncover an image,

design, word, or message.

When using cotton, these secret squares make

excellent dishcloths. If you make 4 or 5 of each

square in wool or acrylic, they can be seamed

together at the end of the year to make a small

Afghan or lap blanket.

GAUGE & MATERIALS

Each dishident uses approximately

41 to 43g of worsted weight 100% cotton.

Follow the yarn manufacturer’s

recommended needle size.

DIRECTIONS

Cast on 45

← Row 1 [RS]: K45

→ Row 2 [WS]: K45

← Row 3: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 4: K45.

← Row 5: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 6: K7, (K2, P12) 2X, P1, K9.

← Row 7: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 8: K7, (K2, P12) 2X, P1, K9.

← Row 9: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 10: (K9, P2, K3) 2X, K6, P2, K9.

← Row 11: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 12: (K9, P2, K3) 2X, K6, P2, K9.

← Row 13: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 14: (K9, P2, K3) 2X, K6, P2, K9.

← Row 15: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 16: (K9, P2, K3) 2X, K6, P2, K9.

← Row 17: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 18: (K9, P2, K3) 2X, K6, P2, K9.

← Row 19: K2, P41, K2.

26

Dishident Continued on next page...

Dishident Continued...

→ Row 20: K7, (K2, P12) 2X, P1, K9.

← Row 21: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 22: K7, (K2, P12) 2X, P1, K9.

← Row 23: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 24: K45.

← Row 25: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 26: K3, P1, (P11, K2) 2X, P12, K3.

← Row 27: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 28: K3, P1, (P11, K2) 2X, P12, K3.

← Row 29: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 30: (K3, P2, K5) 2X, K6, P2, K12, P2, K3.

← Row 31: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 32: (K3, P2) 3X, K5, (K6, P2) 2X, K4, P2, K3.

← Row 33: K2, P6, K4, P22, K4, P5, K2.

→ Row 34: K1, (K2, P2) 2X, (P2, K2) 2X, K4, (K5, P2)

2X, (P2, K3) 2X.

← Row 35: K2, P6, K4, P22, K4, P5, K2.

→ Row 36: (K3, P2) 3X, K5, (K6, P2) 2X, K4, P2, K3.

← Row 37: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 38: (K3, P2, K5) 2X, K6, P2, K12, P2, K3.

← Row 39: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 40: (K3, P2, K5) 2X, K4, (K2, P2) 2X, P10, K3.

← Row 41: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 42: (K3, P2, K5) 2X, K4, (K2, P2) 2X, P10, K3.

← Row 43: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 44: K45.

← Row 45: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 46: K7, (K2, P12) 2X, P1, K9.

← Row 47: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 48: K7, (K2, P12) 2X, P1, K9.

← Row 49: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 50: K17, (K2, P2) 2X, K9, P2, K9.

← Row 51: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 52: K9, (K4, P2) 2X, (K2, P2, K7) 2X, K2.

← Row 53: K2, P27, K4, P10, K2.

→ Row 54: K12, P4, K1, (K2, P2) 2X, K9, P2, K9.

← Row 55: K2, P27, K4, P10, K2.

→ Row 56: K9, (K4, P2) 2X, (K2, P2, K7) 2X, K2.

← Row 57: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 58: K17, (K2, P2) 2X, K9, P2, K9.

← Row 59: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 60: K17, (K2, P2) 2X, K9, P2, K9.

← Row 61: K2, P41, K2.

→ Row 62: K45.

← Row 63: K45.

BO all sts.

TIPS

If preferred, slip the first OR the last stitch of every row to create a

neater edge. When purling a stitch immediately after knitting a

stitch, pull the excess yarn out of the purl stitch before knitting or

purling on. This helps to reduce loose or baggy knit stitches.

NOTES

Occasionally, a dishident or secret square might not be

suitable for children and “polite company”. This will be made

clear when this is the case.

If you would like to receive notifications of our next issue!

Check out our Patreon!

www.patreon.com/join/BlockedMagazine

27

STAFF PROFILE

Which country/US state are you from?

Up Nort' USA don’ cha' know! Where it can be 86 today

& 42 tomorrow! Flip flops today, wool socks tomorrow!

Please tell the readers about yourself.

Went to art school in Minneapolis in the 90s, when art

school was still cool. After college and several years working

in Merchandising/Marketing, I moved back home and

got a job with a publisher. From there I started a side gig of

freelance graphic design, which snowballed into a fullfledged

graphics business. I then went out on my own.

Rather than work from home, I had a small design

studio/gift shop featuring local artists. I added yarn a couple

of years later when my passion for knitting and wool

really took off. Several more years after that, together with

my sister, we purchased another business where she mainly

runs day-to-day operations and I just help out with the notso-fun

paperwork, licensing, and financial part of the business.

Now I just work all the time, although being at my

studio doesn’t feel like work, especially when I get to share

my love of yarn!

How long have you been a knitter and/or crocheter?

Been a crocheter for 30 years, a knitter for 10 years.

What do you enjoy the most about your knitting/crochet?

I am a selfish knitter. I love wearing my sweaters & socks. I

primarily crochet blankets and washcloths for gifts.

What do you enjoy the least about knitting/crochet?

Lace really isn’t my thing. And, that I never get enough

hours a week to craft. I have too many jobs!

What is your favorite yarn?

Seriously? LOL. How can anyone have just one favorite!!?

I love it all! But, I tend to love natural fibers first.

What are your favorite needles/hooks?

I love my ChiaoGoo needles. I have tried almost every

other brand, but nothing beats those lace tips and red

cables!

I’m old-fashioned with my crochet hooks and love my

standard Susan Bates el-cheapo metal hooks.

28

Your favorite project so far.

I just finished The Armor sweater by Ankestrick. I love the

classic style of her sweaters, and I just finished one with

some luxury fibers that I can’t wait to wear! I just have to

weave in the dang ends!

Your favorite designer(s)

Classic Sweaters: Isabelle Kraemer, Ankestrick.

Dream Knits: Marie Wallin, Zaneknits.

Favorite vlogs/podcasts

Well, I have so many! I don’t have traditional television so

of course all of my favorites are Blocked, Knit Nite, Two

Sisters & Some Yarn, Cabot Cove Knits, Politically Incorrect

Knitters, and many more of our friends. Typically, I can

never catch a live, so I always have to rewatch in the evenings.

If I’m all caught up on those, typically I like to watch

True Crime. I also follow some local farming channels ‘cuz

I’m a farm girl at heart.

How did you become the graphic designer for Blocked?

Super long story, but the short version is that I followed

Keri on her earlier channel and she did the interview with

Maria from Tusken Knits. Then, I followed Anne and DK

during the Ravelry meltdown at the start of their channel. I

think I reached out to Neil shortly after the publication of

his first couple of issues and just volunteered. I can’t exactly

remember the chain of events after that.

I love to help out like-minded folks and I get to be a little

creative! So, I love that I get to be behind the scenes, seeing

it all come together with all of the wonderful contributors

and patterns from everyone in the community! It’s like

getting to be the person who spins the yarn, which I would

love to learn (like that’s ever going to happen because I

have SO much free time), but this is my version. I take all

the wonderful parts and put them all together into a finished

product. I love it!

– Minnesota, USA.


Staff Profile Continued...

What are the best and worst things about working for

Blocked?

Best things are all the best! It’s yarn and graphics, my

two favorite things, mixed with awesome people. There is

absolutely nothing I would change, except for time. I wish

I had more time to interact with everyone. I’m always so

out of the loop and wish I had fewer jobs, so I could join

in the knit nights, podcasts, and chats, and knit more

often!

Have you ever experienced or witnessed cancellation in

the knitting/crochet world? If so, what happened?

Not personally. Just what Maria, DK, and Anne all went

through. I’m not really scared of being canceled because

I don’t have a strong online presence. I’m more worried

about how it would affect my younger sister and her

family because most of the left has completely gone insane

to the point of violence. If it were to affect that business,

I’m more afraid I would go off the deep end and

retaliate against them in a not-so-P.C. way…. I would

probably end up spending my life in prison to protect

them and am totally willing to sacrifice myself to do so.

Jail doesn’t seem so scary to me… it would be like a

forced vacation where I would get to sit on my rear and

get three meals a day, while someone else does the laundry.

And, in prison, I could make yarn out of ripped-up

sheets and knit with spoon handles if I had to.

Anything else you’d like the readers to know?

If anyone wants to help me put together a Blocked •

Wrong Thinkers • Yarn Lovers Retreat, I would totally

host! Everything from the stay to the food and the yarn. I

just don’t have enough time to coordinate something, if

anyone is interested in hitting me up! September in MN

is a beautiful time of year! Not too hot, not too cold, and

everything is still nice and green. I was thinking three or

four days of just knitting, eating great food, and hanging

out! Show and tell, project finishes, and maybe some

project starts! It would FORCE me to stop working for a

couple days and hang out with some great people! OR,

Arizona in January is AWESOME! I’m a country girl, so

when I can slow down I LOVE to just sit and knit. It

doesn’t happen very often, so if I can do it with likeminded

folks who also love yarn like I do, then that’s a

WIN!

How can people find you?

I’m bad at responding right away… so give me a little

grace.

@frostyartist on Instagram. Hardly ever post there anymore

but do check it once a week or so.

@frostyartistsam on X. < i only check this every couple

days because i’m too busy working!!!

Check out our database full of FREE PATTERNS

contained in all of our issues!

https://linktr.ee/Blockedmagazine

29

by Neil James

PATTERNS

Background

Ever since watching the American TV mini-series Shōgun,

which aired in 1980 in the USA and 1982 in the UK, I’ve had

a fascination with Japan. The series, based on James Clavell’s

1975 novel of the same name, had five episodes,

each approximately two hours long. It was epic. In the days

before re-runs, video recorders, and multi-channels, if you

missed an episode of your favorite show, you never

thought you’d ever see it again. Every Saturday, I battled

my family in order to watch.

The culture, the geography, the fashion, the language,

and everything about Edo-era Japan, were completely

alien to me. I grew up with many international TV influences

and experiences, yet Japan was something different

entirely. It was exotic, exciting, frightening, tragic,

beautiful, and ruled by etiquette and tradition. Much like

Karen Templar and her vision of India, to me, Japan might

as well have been Mars.

Side note: I don’t care if this upsets anyone. If it does,

that’s your problem to overcome, not mine. Get a life!

When I discovered Japanese knitting patterns, I was

equally impressed. Often, the detail, the construction, and

the general aesthetic of Japanese patterns, in my opinion,

are far superior to patterns in the West.

The patterns themselves are very different from those we

are used to. At first glance, they appear to have few words,

a detailed schematic, and lots of numbers reminiscent of a

Revell or Airfix model construction kit.

There’s no hand-holding with these patterns and there

appears to be an assumption that the knitter will know

which cast on/bind off and increase/decrease to use. If it

isn’t specified, the knitter chooses the best option based

on experience.

draft it yourself. Considering the obesity rates in the USA

and UK range from 30 to 40% of the population, compared

to 4% in Japan, there is much less demand for outsized

clothing in Japan.

https://data.worldobesity.org/rankings/?age=a&sex=f

I would argue that designing for only one size allows the

designer to create far more ornate, complicated, and

visually impressive items. Only focusing on one body type

also allows for more innovative garment construction that

may not work for larger sizes.

Japanese patterns rely mostly on the schematic. There

are no pithy instructions. The patterns won’t tell you to

“knit in stockinette” for 30cm, and they certainly won’t give

you row-by-row instructions. Where the schematic line represents

the body length, it will just say “30cm.”

Before I go into more detail about how to decipher Japanese

patterns, indulge me for a moment as I mansplain the

reasons I believe Japanese designers have developed such

a different method of presenting a knitting design.

Japanese History, Written Language, Art, and Literature

During the Edo Period, between 1603 and 1868, Japan

maintained a strict isolationist policy and expelled all foreigners.

Only a small handful of Dutch traders were permitted

to step foot on the artificial island of Dejima.

Dejima was only 120m by 75m (131y by 82y) and acted as

an effective barrier between traders and the Japanese

people and culture.

As a result of this isolationism, Japan’s people and culture

remained untouched by any outside influence. It was a

great period of peace and creativity for Japan, and almost

every aspect of their culture evolved differently from that of

Europe.

The knitter is expected to possess an adequate knowledge

of the techniques used. Techniques are included in

pattern books, but in individual patterns, they’re quite rare.

One of the biggest differences is a complete disregard

for size inclusivity. More often than not, the patterns are

presented in one size only. There’s no pandering to the

masses. If you want the pattern in your size, you need to


30

Japanese Knitting Patterns Continued...

For example, where European art became very painterly

and photorealistic, Japan’s art became very linear and

graphical. Where European perspective was multi-point,

Japan’s was mostly one-point or what is known as dimetric

projection. This is still used by engineers and designers

to portray a 3D object in 2D, and thus accurately

display the object’s dimensions.

During the era of Edo isolation, the Yamato-e art style

(where paint was applied within a bold outline) evolved

into the Ukiyo-e style, which is still the most recognized

Japanese art style. The Yamato-e and Ukiyo-e art styles

continue to have a huge influence on art in Japan. Where

prose novels are most popular in the West, graphic novels

are far more popular in Japan. Although there are some

extremely famous Japanese prose novels, Japan is more

famed for producing Manga, and every genre imaginable

is drawn and published.

It seems that the Japanese prefer pictorial imagery

above descriptive. While readers in the West like to

create images from descriptions, Japanese people like to

see the images already on the paper. Within the confines

of this article, it’s not possible to explore in any great detail

why this might be the case. My own theory is that it relates

to the way Japanese is written.

Japan’s earliest form of writing was taken from ancient

Chinese pictograms. These are drawings and images that

look like the words they represent. In Japan, these pictograms

are part of the Kanji writing system.

For example, the kanji characters for tree, 木 , woods, 林 ,

and forest, 森 , are intended to be depictions of a tree,

trees, and more trees!

Although Japan has since incorporated phonetic-based

symbols, there are said to be 50,000 kanji pictograms in

the Japanese written language, but only 3,000 are still in

common usage.

Could it be, rather than having a varied vocabulary to

describe a tree, woods, or forest that a reader can imagine,

having a less interesting vocabulary gives the Japanese

a predilection for drawn imagery?

For example, if we only had the English word “tree” to

describe all forms of trees, then descriptive writing would

be very boring. Imagine this book title if we only had the

word “tree.” It would be “Tree, Tree Tree, and Tree Tree

Tree.” I don’t know about you, but I’d rather look at pictures

of the three things instead. In addition, the Japanese

art of calligraphy arguably makes the formation of

the word as beautiful as possible, rather than the meaning

of the word.

Bearing all this in mind, is this why Japanese knitting

patterns don’t have much of a written explanation? It’s a

fascinating idea to explore.

Deciphering Japanese Knitting Patterns

When you first look at a Japanese pattern, you might

well be overwhelmed. To the Western eye, Japanese may

as well be some alien code. The characters of the written

language bear no relationship to our own. Only numerals

are recognizable as the same (when they are using Arabic

numerals, which they don’t always use). So how on Earth

could any of us understand Japanese in a subject-specific

context?

Take a deep breath. It’s not as impenetrable as it looks.

I’m going to have to generalize somewhat, however, all

the Japanese pattern magazines I’ve seen tend to follow

a standard format. I’ll be describing the magazine from a

Western perspective.

The Typical Japanese Knitting Magazine

As you hold the unopened magazine in your hands, the

spine will be on the right-hand side, not the left, as we are

more accustomed. Magazines, like all Japanese books,

are read from the back page (to us) to the front page. The

front cover and title are on what we would consider the

back page.

The first section of the magazine is typically high-gloss,

full-color, and image-heavy. All of the pattern photographs

are in this section. The patterns themselves are on

black and white paper of a lower GSM (grams per square

meter) and some are barely more than newsprint quality,

depending on the overall quality of the magazine. The

pattern pages are all together in their own section towards

the front of the magazine as we would read it, but

to the back as the Japanese would read it.


https://www.nilsjapan.com/news/?p=658#:~:text=Kanji%20are%20ideograms%2C%20which%20were,look%20like%20streams%20of%20water

31


A Typical Pattern

The pattern title will either be at the top center or top

right of the page. A small thumbnail image of the finished

item is usually in the top left corner of the page. As the

full-size glossy color images are in a separate section, detail

in this thumbnail is not necessary. It’s more for identification

than information.

To the right of the thumbnail, and below the title, there

will be two columns of information. The left column will indicate

the yarn used, needle size, gauge, and finished dimensions.

This is the column we need to focus on.

The right column is information that is “nice to know”

but not necessarily needed. This might be something like,

“A stockinette cardigan, knitted in pieces from the bottom

up,” or something similar. It’s quite rare to find anything

in this column that isn’t made clear later in the

schematic.

32



Don’t worry if all this seems like too much to remember.

Only the information in red is crucial.

The Yarn

You will most likely be unable to easily source Japanese

yarn in your own country, so working out the weight of the

yarn is imperative. To find this information, start by looking

for identifiable numbers. “1361-02 Suisai/825g” is a

good place to start. A good starting point is to search for

the yarn on the Ravelry website. Regrettably, some information

is easier to locate there than anywhere else. While

the Ravelry yarn database is pretty good, I couldn’t find

this one. A Google search for “Suisai 1361-02,” however,

brought up the webpage where the pattern can be downloaded

and the website provided a lot of useful information.

Suisai is a yarn company, “1361” is their 100%

wool, super-bulky yarn in a watercolor style, “02” is the

colorway number, and you need a total of 825g.

https://www.gosyo.co.jp/knit_pattern/gs-1361sw

If you can’t find any useful information in your pattern,

however, the yarn weight can be identified by looking at

the gauge.

Gauge

We can identify the gauge by looking for the following

symbols:

目 means “stitches.”

段 means “rows.”

So, in this pattern, the gauge is 7 stitches x 9 rows over

10cm. This gauge would match that of a size 6 super bulky

yarn.

Needle Size

In the second bullet point, the number isn’t as easy to

identify. However, near the end, one can see 15. Just before

the number, you can see this pair of symbols 棒針 . By

itself, 針 means “needle” but the two symbols together

mean “knitting needles.” Just remember, you are looking

for the crucifix-like symbol, and the number directly after

it will indicate the size needle you need.

Since you see a 15, you’d be right to assume you want a

Japanese size 15 needle, but it is much more complicated

than that. Just to make things even more confusing for us,

Japanese needles don’t just have a different numbering

system than the US or the UK, the needles themselves are

in different measurements! Below is a chart to show how

Japanese needles can be compared to US and UK

needles.


33


However, in this particular pattern, there is another clue

to the needle size. After the number 15, these two symbols

appear: . They mean millimeters. Without these

symbols after the number, “15” would represent a Japanese

size 15, or 6.6mm needle. With the symbol, however,

15 becomes a more recognizable 15mm needle.

Yes, it’s a little confusing, but your knitting “Spideysenses”

should warn you if a needle size, yarn weight, and

stitch gauge don’t all correspond.

Garment Dimensions

Japanese garments are measured in cm, so any

numbers followed by “cm” or just “c” are more often than

not related to the physical dimensions of the garment. If

this information isn’t immediately understood, don’t

panic! The schematic will also show the dimensions.

Now that we know the type of yarn, needle size, gauge,

and finished dimensions, we can start the fun bit – the

schematic!

34

The Schematic

When looking at a schematic, the first thing to identify

is how the garment is constructed. Japanese designers

tend to produce pieced, seamed garments. Obviously,

there are exceptions, but these are quite rare.

With the example above, we can see this is a simple

drop shoulder construction. The image on the left depicts

the back, and the image on the right depicts the

front. We know this for two reasons. One, the front is always

knitted first (reading right to left, since this is a Japanese

pattern), and two, the front neckline is usually

lower.

There will always be an arrow in the schematic to

show the direction of knitting. This pattern is knitted

from the bottom up for both the back and front.

Along the horizontal (x-axis) at the bottom of each

image is the measurement of the finished garment section,

you will see “(39 目 ) 作る”. As we learned above. 39

目 means 39 stitches and 作る means “make” or cast

on. So, you are to cast on 39 stitches, and as per the

image, this should equate to 55cm in width. Just remember

to look at the beginning of the piece for a

number with the stitches symbol and that will most

likely be how many stitches you need to cast on. Unless

the cast-on is specified, the designer leaves the cast-on

choice to the knitter.

Ribbing

You can see in the schematic that the bottom of the

sweater cinches in slightly and the text “1 目ゴム編み”

with a line connecting it to the cinched-in section. This

indicates there is ribbing (or rubber band, as the Japanese

refer to it) at the bottom of both the front and

back.

In the center, between the two parts of the body, you

will see vertical (y-axis) measurements and rows with



“3c (3 段 )” next to the ribbing. This indicates that the ribbing

is 3cm high and, as we saw before, the 段 symbol

means it is also 3 rows high.

But what type of ribbing? 1x1 or 2x2? The text “1 目ゴム

編み” translates to “1 stitch ribbing” but you may struggle

to remember what this means. An easier clue to this is

usually just below the schematic or inside the ribbing section

of the schematic.

Here we can see:

| –– | –– –– | –– |

Here, | = knit and –– = purl. So, this is a simple 1x1 rib.

A 2x2 rib would look like this:

|| –– –– || –– –– –– –– ||–– –– ||

If a selvage stitch is to be included, it will often be illustrated

like this:

| –– | –– –– | –– | |

In the example above, as only 1 selvage stitch is required

on the front and 1 on the back, only 1 is shown in

the image.

Body

For the body, we have to check whether there’s a chart.

If there isn’t a chart, the body will be knitted in either

stockinette or garter stitch. Most knitters will be able to

recognize which from the photographs in the pattern

photo section of the magazine, but it will also be on the

schematic, often in the center of each piece. If you look in

the center of the front and the back pieces, you will see

“” which we saw before in the gauge section.

It translates to “stockinette stitch,” however, as mentioned

before if there are no charts, you’ll be able to see

from the photograph which stitch is used.

Referring to the center measurements again, we can see

the body should be knitted in pattern for 35cm (33 rows)

until the armhole. Place markers at the armholes, and

then, for the front, continue in pattern for 14 more rows.

You’ll see this as a measurement with a dotted line to the

front collar. Reason tells us this is the point where we have

to work each shoulder separately.

The collar information is probably the trickiest to understand

at first glance.

On the front schematic, you will see “9 休目 ” which

means that you need to bind off 9 stitches at the center of

the neckline, as the line indicates. On the back schematic,

you see that the bind-off number is 13. However, if you

look at the chart for the neckline, you will see that there is

a red line that goes lower than the black lines of the chart.

This line indicates the front neckline and the black outline

is the back neckline. There are numbers along the right

side of the chart that show that you need to bind off your

9 front neckline stitches on Row 15 and your 13 back neckline

stitches on Row 17.

Next, you see the numbers 2-2-2 and on the back 2-2-1.

This means you bind off two stitches every two rows, twice

(on the front), and two stitches every two rows, once (on

the back). Shaping instructions always appear in this format

(stitches, rows, times). You will know if this is a bindoff,

increase, or decrease by how the schematic is

depicted, whether it gets smaller or larger. Unless specified

in a chart, the increase/decrease stitch is the knitter’s

choice.

This particular pattern includes a chart for the front and back collar with the red line indicating

the shape of the front collar. This is especially helpful. We can see from the legend that 1 square

= 1 stitch and we are working in stockinette stitch. In combination with the 2-2-2 and 2-2-1

decrease information, the placement of the decreases is clear.


35


On the schematic below, you see “(19 目 ) 拾う” and “(23 目 ) 拾う” with arrows going to the front

and back of the collar. These indicate that you are to pick up 19 stitches on the back of the collar

and 23 on the front. As we saw at the bottom, “1 目ゴム編み” and “3c (3 段 )” mean that we do a 1x1

ribbing for 3cm to match the ribbing at the bottom. If you are unsure what the collar instructions

mean, they generally, but not always, mirror the hem ribbing pattern.

Sleeves

These sleeves are particularly easy. On the right-hand

side, we can see they are knitted shoulder to cuff. Cast

on 29 stitches and knit in pattern (stockinette stitch) for

42cm (40 rows). Above the right cuff, it states, “-11

stitches.” Therefore decrease 11 stitches evenly over one

row (choosing your own decrease method) until you have

18 stitches on your needle.

Rib 1x1, to match the bottom edge, for 3cm (3 rows).

Bind off.

Repeat for the second sleeve.

We are left to assume this pattern should be seamed

much like any other drop shoulder design.

* The use of this copyrighted material is in compliance

with the educational exceptions to copyright law,

allowing limited use for instructional purposes.

Conclusion

Japanese patterns are written with the assumption that

knitters already know the basics of constructing that specific

type of garment. Typically, only one size is available

and knitters are expected to grade for themselves, if

necessary. The type of increases/decreases are often unspecified.

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a Japanese designer

writing, “Join in the round, being careful not to twist the

stitches.” They expect you to already know that along

with cast-ons, bind-offs, and a host of other basic skills. I

admire this about Japanese designers.

In a future issue, I intend to present a sweater design in

the form of a Japanese schematic (but with some English).

I really think we have a lot to gain from using their

concise, economical, graphical style of pattern writing.

In my pattern utopia, all knitting and crochet patterns

would be more like an Ikea flat-pack instruction leaflet.

No words, just drawings and numbers.

Congrats to Shauna W

on winning the MAGA hat

challenge in issue 19!

36

Podcasts!

https://www.youtube.com/@TwoSistersAndSomeYarn

https://www.youtube.com/@knitnite/featured

https://www.youtube.com/@politicallyincorrectknitters

https://www.youtube.com/@astitchinthesky

http://www.youtube.com/@CabotCoveKnits

http://www.youtube.com/@MommaNevin

http://www.youtube.com/@ShaunaStitches

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37

CATASTROPHE ANSWERS

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© 2022 Conley Olson, @NantucketStudios

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being a contributor

email: blockedmagazine@gmx.com

38

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