Unbroken Circle is my first design in a series of original patterns in which I pay homage to sheep, shepherds, and the bonds between animals and humans. When Melissa Littlefield of Knitting the Stash issued a call for designers to work with her limited edition Shorn V farm yarn, it was the perfect opportunity to realize a design concept about which I had been dreaming. I wanted to depict sheep circles in wearable fiber art.

What are sheep circles? In an interview with Junction Fiber Mill (Millcast episode 71, https://www.junctionfibermill.com/blogs/blog/millcast-epi...), Paula Aarons of Dancing Pony Sheep Farm recounts an intimate experience with her flock that explains this phenomenon. Another instance of this curiosity was shared by Rachel Haas of Meadowfed Lamb in episode 73 (https://www.junctionfibermill.com/blogs/blog/millcast-epi...). As an avid lover of natural wool and admirer of small farm producers, I found these stories deeply moving and wanted, in fact needed, to manifest them in a design.

Unbroken Circle has abstract and figurative design elements. As a mӧbius cowl knit in the round, its construction and final shape incorporate circles. Additionally, the mӧbius loop has no defined inside or outside. There is a duality of meaning in this form, one of being both protected by and a protector of others. The circle shifts but remains unbroken. On the surface, shapes are created through stranded knitting in contrasting colors of natural wool. Textured circles represent sheep surrounding another animal or person in distress. From a distance, these circles also resemble individual sheep that themselves encircle the cowl. Between sections of “sheep circles” are geometric bands designed not only to complement the circular elements aesthetically, but to represent the dynamic movement of individual sheep into circles. Halfway through the cowl, colors are reversed, echoing themes of duality and oneness.

Unbroken Circle is a “love letter” to farm yarn. May it capture the essence and beauty of the animals and people who pour their hearts and souls into producing it for us knitters.

Construction: A double-thick fabric mӧbius begins with a provisional cast on, is knit in the round into a tube, and is finished by grafting the final round of knitting to the cast-on edge.

Gauge: 24 sts x 28 R in 4” (10 cm) squared, in pattern, knit in the round, after blocking. If knitting in an alternate, looser gauge, please note that additional yardage will be required.

Dimensions: Approximate finished circumference after creating a mӧbius twist, grafting, and blocking, 31” (79 cm); approximate finished height 6.75” (17 cm).

Yardage Requirements: 500 yards (457 meters) total; 250 yards (228.5 meters) of each color, one light and one dark. Sample used 92 grams of each of two colors, exclusive of swatching. This design maximizes yardage. Save your swatch to unravel if needed.

Notions: Tools for preferred method of provisional cast on (e.g., crochet hook, waste yarn, extra interchangeable needle cord, try-on cord), BOR marker, tapestry needle, additional gauge needle (or one needle size smaller) for grafting.

Instructions are both charted and written.

This pattern has been professionally tech edited and tested.