The Raven is often a magical creature able to take the form of human, animal, or even inanimate objects. He is a keeper of secrets, a messenger, a spy, and a trickster. His stories tell of how worldly things came to be. Raven’s creative nature shows itself through circumstance rather than intent, through the desire to satisfy his own needs, rather than any altruistic principles. Raven is both the protagonist among the stories of some groups, and the antagonist of others; he is a hero and an amusement.

Winter Raven Walks is inspired by a love of Raven mythology, and by a desire to capture in knitting the form of a soaring bird’s wings. The pattern is worked from one end to the other, so there are never more than @120 stitches on your needles. As such, it is a pattern that can easily be worked up on straight needles if that is your preference.

The pattern was originally released as a MKAL, and still comes in 8 separate .pdfs: a pattern swatch, and seven discrete sections.

Materials Needed:

• minimum 750 yards of lace weight yarn with good stitch definition (solids, semisolids and kettle dyes are best; gradient or self-striping yarns with long colour repeats will also work well if the transitions are smooth between colours)
• 3.5mm (US size 4) needles, either circular or straight
• smooth thread, embroidery floss, or contrasting waste yarn for lifelines (at least two strongly recommended in the pattern)
• stitch markers to keep track of repeating motifs

Skills Needed:
- knit, purl, twisted stitches, yo, left and right leaning decreases, working twice into one stitch, casting on at end of rows, bind off at start of rows, short row shaping without wrapped stitches

Gauge:
Gauge is given for the pattern, and instructions for a gauge swatch is included in the pre-purchase download. Note that I do not personally think gauge is important for lace knitting, and the swatch is more to see if you get a fabric you like with your combination of yarn and needles, and to practice some of the skills needed to complete the pattern.