Who doesn’t love a sweet treat?

Botanical motifs are some of my favorite shapes and textures to play with in knitting, and I know I’m not alone, judging by the number of leafy patterns out there!

Launch Special: Save 25% on Skybridge

Launch Special: Save 25% on Making Ripples through October 31, 2024. No code needed.

Launch Special: Save 50% on the

Welcome baby with this soft and cuddly crocheted blanket. It’s a simple one-row repeat with stripes that are always in style!

This scarf has a little of everything - color, texture, chevrons, puff stitches, and lace - to keep you interested. Each row is a little different, and the colors keep changing, so you won’t get bored. It is crocheted in one piece from one short end to the other.

This small bandana cowl uses two different stitches to play with the colors in a variegated skein of fingering weight yarn. The linen stitch at the top is worked back and forth and blends colors together, while the rows of shell stitches at the bottom cluster sections of color.

Arrowsmith is an exploration of simple geometric forms within a defined space.

Organic forms grow and recede, swirling around the circumference of this cowl. A picot cast on and bind off adds interest and keeps the edges stretchy. Instructions for the Sea Fan pattern are provided in written directions as well as a choice of two charts: a traditional brioche chart on a grid, and a StitchMaps chart, a more visual represen...

Stripes, ridges, eyelets, and textures play across the surface of this luxurious little neck warmer. There’s plenty to keep your interest, but also a lot of relaxing knitting in the round. The design is mirrored at the center. Enjoy the flow of cashmere through your fingers as you create the Newburg Cowl in two colors that bring you joy.

Camino Peak is a big cozy bandana cowl knit in two lofty yarns. As you work from the top down, little flecks of color-changing yarn grow to become bubbles, and then blocks, and finally you’ll finish off with a simple stripe.

Sometimes you just need a little something fancy around your neck.

Indulge in the repetitive rhythm of a gently shifting stitch pattern spiraling around this cowl. Each round has a little something to do, and the shell shapes will build upon each other before you know it.

This two-color brioche scarf uses a careful arrangement of increases and decreases on just one pattern row to make a bold organic design. A picot cast-on and bind-off give the scalloped ends a little extra flair.

The angular forms of plants and the precise geometry with which many of them grow is a constant source of wonder and inspiration. Washingtonia is the name for several types of palm trees which have a lovely repetitive quality to their fronds.

Pep up your outfit with a fun and colorful cowl. Stockinette stitch stripes and bigger blocks of textured knitting come together in a simple project that helps make the most of mini skeins.

There’s nothing like a good cabled hat for chilly days. Alterna features squishy alternating cables in a cozy worsted weight yarn.

Little boxes travel along striped lines all around the Boxcars Cowl. This project is knit in the round with a combination of stripes and mosaic techniques. The slipped and purled stitches give curves to otherwise straight lines, and the lofty yarn helps keeps textures well-defined.

Stripes make little waves around this soft and simple cowl, knit in two colorways of cashmere-silk yarn.

Alternating textured chains support one another across the surface of this cowl. Knit in the round, it’s easier than it appears—the cables are small and the textured appearance is created by the clever use of ribbing and lace stitches.

MDSW Special! Save 25% on all patterns

This lacy two-color cowl is knit in a long tube that is then grafted together to form a double-thick fabric that’s sure to trap air and keep you warm and cozy! Simple vine lace lets a contrast color lining peek through for a reversible look.

This lacy loop uses a combination of chains and double crochet clusters to form arched open motifs, like a fountain or flowers. I like this pattern because it looks nice from both sides and most stitches are worked into spaces, making the crocheting flow easily. Fringe hides the join and adds texture to the finished piece. For more interest, co...

Bold bands of color in this large, warm cowl will brighten up your winter wardrobe. This cowl is a long loop knit in the round and then joined together.

Cable and lace panels form columns of diamonds and twists up the front and back of this cropped, oversized pullover. Simple shaping and a dropshoulder construction gives the Deer Park Pullover a casual shape, while the front and back panels let you flex your knitting muscles with fun textures.

Growing up, a fun favorite summer dessert was a no-bake chocolate eclair cake. With layers of graham crackers and vanilla pudding, it wasn’t necessarily a culinary masterpiece, but it was always a treat!

A series of waving, dancing ribbons squiggle their way down these socks. Offset increases and decreases make the fabric twist and turn, and a single twisted rib gives definition to the pattern.

Long slipped stitches stretch all the way around these warm and cozy fingerless mitts. This pattern is stretchy, quick and simple to work, and gives great dynamic results in both variegated and solid yarns.

Tufted Puffin is a reversible hat with two distinct textures. The smoother knit side is punctuated by tufted, puffy insulating dimples - but turn it inside out and you’ll see a purl fabric deeply criss-crossed with a lattice that really catches light and shadow. This fingering weight hat is simple to work and will show off your favorite colorwa...

Alternating sections of bold eyelet mesh and garter stitch blocks in this wrap create an interesting effect between solid and open fabrics.

People often ask me what to pack when they come to visit in the San Francisco Bay Area. The short answer is always “layers!”

Increases, decreases, and bands of rhythmic slipped stitches help transform variegated yarn into a beautiful cowl, while still being fun and easy to knit.

“There’s never been a dance that’s so easy to do

The original version of the Tracery Pullover (worked with different shaping in a now discontinued yarn) was my first Rhinebeck Sweater: an autumnal pullover that I was excited and proud to show off at the popular fall Sheep & Wool Festival. I’m finally ready to share it with everyone.

There are a lot of basic or vanilla sock patterns out there. This is the one I use for myself.

The original prototype of this hat was invented as a gift for a dear friend of mine who needed something warm and cozy for the winter. A year later, I’ve recreated it in our newest yarn, Madison.

The Palermo Hat transforms plain 2x2 ribbing into something special with the help of a simple cable. The interplay of light and shadow suddenly creates deep textures and interest. It’s easier than it looks!

REVISED August 2020 to update formatting and add charts!

Miss Babs Keira is delightfully bouncy and calls for a texture you can really snuggle into. The City Paths cowl is designed to make the most of one skein of Keira.

A slouchy lightweight beanie with texture from simple lace and the occasional cable, Curlew is knit in the round in fingering weight yarn.

The Kaweah Hat has texture, rippling cables, and a slouchy look all capped off with a fun pompom.

Gradients: these soothing colorways flow gently into one another, giving your knitting a beautiful shaded effect. But sometimes you need to shake up the flow of things with a pop of color and texture.

These mittens and fingerless mitts were created to coordinate with the shapes and textures in the Merge hat.

Merge is a slouchy beret with a lot of texture. Twisted ribbing, cables, and welts offer lots of places for light and shadow to play on the subtle variations in hand-dyed yarn. Cable decreases create a striking star pattern at the crown of the hat.

The Denver Cowl was born of a collaboration between Miss Babs and myself. It’s designed to make the most of the always-changing, no-two-alike, fun and funky “Babettes” that Babs dyes.

Brighton is a long infinity cowl that’s perfect for that skein of variegated sock yarn you just couldn’t live without.