I really don’t enjoy pattern writing.  As my tech editor with attest, I find it a necessary evil – well not evil exactly but a trial anyway.  I love all the creative bit around making my own ideas come to fruition but getting the process down on paper is really quite a challenge for me.

It’s not that it’s difficult if you don’t have any differing sizes, it’s just that as I write it I realise that I need to include x information or y fact or even z bit of detail. It’s not till you write it or actually follow your own instructions that you realise that you’ve omitted an essential piece of the process. When I’m working on a pattern, I try really hard to write down everything that I do – but any omission is usually not clear till you get to the testing process. A tech editor can only really check what is there on the page. For general processes, they will point out that ‘you need to include information about – x, y, z’ but in some cases this isn’t obvious.  A good example of this is the Ribble Cowl that I am currently working on. I decided that it was a good idea to do a second version to see if colour changes worked (they do, I’m v pleased) and to check my instructions (I’ve missed something).  I’m not sure I’d do this second working of a pattern often; a quick cowl is one thing, repeating a 3 skein shawl or a sweater is quite another. 

So I’m glad I’ve reworked the cowl and I’m pleased with the outcome so far.  In the meantime, I’m putting the final touches to the Arthur shawl to send off to the TE next week.  Thankfully, I had written all my workings down for this one – I think!