Merilev, a free knitting pattern from Knitty.com.

INTRODUCTION

Merilev

beauty shot

by Andrea Pfuhl

Tangy

Over time, I've ended up with tons of leftover yarn in every color imaginable. Up to now, I just couldn't face using them—because, probably like any knitter, I really don't feel like weaving in a zillion of loose ends.

Then inspiration struck: the most colorful creatures in nature are coral reef fish – and my leftover yarn is perfect for capturing their vivid hues. I wanted to use up my leftover yarn in a simple Fair Isle technique with only two colors per round so that the project would be finished quickly. To maximize the variety of the fish, I arranged them on a tubular cowl. To skip the most of the weaving in, I simply braided the yarn tails together. These mini-plaits will stay hidden inside the tubular shape of this cowl.

The only tricky bit is the invisible join. But if that feels like too much, just bind off both edges and stitch them together with small stitches.

This pattern opens up endless ways to knit a little underwater world – with colourful fish darting through swaying seaweed in shades of green, red or brown.

spacer model: Andrea Pfuhl

spacer photos: Jürgen Pfuhl

SIZE

One
Adjustable

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS

Width: 6 inches/15 cm (adjustable)
Circumference: 32 inches/82 cm (adjustable)

MATERIALS

Yarn
[MC] Malabrigo Arroyo [100% Superwash Merino Wool; 335 yd/306 m per 3.53 oz/100 g skein]; color: #150 Azul Profundo; 1 skein
[CCs] Scraps of different colorways of various DK weight yarns

Note: There were 18 CCs used in this project: (light yellow, yellow, dark yellow, orange, light pink, pink, raspberry red, rose, dark red, light blue, pale blue, blue, light violet, lime green, moss green, olive green, chamois, grey). You can use as many - or few - colors you like.

Notes on yarn consumption
Chart 1 (one color): CC per 5 repeats /17 rows: approx. 9 yd/8 m
Chart 2: CC per 10 repeats/9 rows: approx. 5 yd/5 m
Chart 3: CC per 10 repeats/9 rows: approx. 6 yd/5 m
Chart 4: CC per 10 repeats/3 rows: approx. 2 yd/2 m
Chart 5: CC per 5 repeats /7 rows: approx. 4 yd/4 m

Yarn Characteristics
This pattern looks best in heathered and solid-colored yarns in strong contrasts. Malabrigo Arroyo creates well defined stitches. Its round-spin gives your knitting extra elasticity.

Recommended needle size
[always use a needle size that gives you the gauge listed below - every knitter's gauge is unique]
1 US #6/4mm circular needle, 16-inch/40-cm
1 spare #6/4mm (or similar size) circular needle, for grafting
1 US #6/4mm crochet hook if you prefer a crocheted provisional cast on

Notions
stitch markers
waste yarn for provisional CO
yarn needle

GAUGE

24 sts/26 rounds = 4 inches/10 cm in stockinette stitch
25 sts/25 rounds = 4 inches/10 cm in pattern stitch

PATTERN NOTES

[Knitty's list of standard abbreviations and techniques can be found here.]

Construction method: The cowl starts off with a crochet provisional cast on. It is then worked in the round in stranded colorwork to form a tube. When finished, the two ends of the tube are grafted together invisibly.

On the Colors:
Use MC for the background throughout. Use your choice of contrast color scraps for the various CC colors shown in the chart. In Charts 1 and 5, the CC designation is used for more than one color. For most impact in the pattern, we recommend using different color scraps for these. You do not, however, have to be consistent. Change the placement of the individual colors when repeating the pattern rounds; change which is which even within a repeat, e.g. in Chart 1 Rounds 8, 9, 19, 20 and 27 all use the same color symbol, but that does not mean you need to use the same yarn for all of these rounds; similarly, you do not need to use the same CC for Charts 2, 3 and 4.

Cut and join the yarns as you need them, leaving a 3-4 inch /8-10 cm tail each time. I recommend braiding the ends where possible, as per the video tutorial below. We do not recommend weaving them in as you go; there are so many ends this will cause bulk in the fabric.

To Adjust the Cowl

To make the cowl wider, add more pattern repeats across the width. Chart 1 has a 16-stitch repeat, all other Charts an 8-stitch repeat.
Although it's possible to extend Chart 1 by 8 stitches, it's not recommended. It is better to increase the cowl in multiples of 16 stitches, otherwise the first and the last fish will later appear at the same height along the seam.
To make the cowl longer, either work additional repeats of the charts — for example, repeat Chart 4 5 times instead of 3 as in the original — or work the complete Charts again in different places. Arrange the seaweed, bubbles, and fish however you like best. It might be helpful to make a sketch of the layout first.
I do not recommend adding more plain rows in the main color between the Charts, as this would break up the cohesive overall look of the patterns.

Techniques:

Note: In Chart 1 (the fish), I've suggested where slipped stitches can be added to make the colour stripes even more dynamic. Shift the placement of the slipped-stitch rows and stripes, or vary the stripe width as you like, to create even more variations.

CHARTS

DIRECTIONS

With waste yarn and a provisional method of your choice, CO 80 sts.
Join MC.

Row 1 [RS]: Knit.
Place marker and join for working in the round.
Rnd 2 [RS]: Knit.

Section 1
First round, establish pattern: Work Chart 1 5 times around.

See Pattern Notes for guidance on colors.
Note: Place markers after every 8 or 16 st repeat if you find it helpful.

Work as set until you have worked all 32 rows of Chart, two times. Work Chart Rows 1-17 once again.
With MC, only knit 1 round.

Section 2
Work Chart 2 10 times around.
Work as set until you have worked all 9 rows of Chart 2.
With MC, only knit 1 round.

Section 3
Work Chart 3 10 times around.
Work as set until you have worked all 9 rows of Chart.
With MC, only knit 1 round.

Section 4
Work Chart 4 10 times around.
Work as set until you have worked all 3 rows of Chart 3 times.
With MC, only knit 1 round.

Section 5
Work Chart 5 5 times around.
Work as set until you have worked all 16 rows of Chart. Work Chart Rows 1-7 once again.
With MC, only knit 1 round.

Section 6
Work Chart 3 10 times around.
Work as set until you have worked all 9 rows of Chart.
With MC, only knit 1 round.

Section 7
Work Chart 1 5 times around.
Work as set until you have worked all 32 rows of Chart. Work Chart Rows 1-17 once again.
With MC, only knit 1 round.

Section 8
Work Chart 2 10 times around.
Work as set until you have worked all 9 rows of Chart.
With MC, only knit 1 round.

Section 9
Work Chart 4 10 times around.
Work as set until you have worked all 3 rows of Chart 3 times.
With MC, only knit 1 round.

FINISHING

Turn the cowl inside out and weave in all yarn ends or braid them together. Turn it right side out again.

Undo provisional cast on and return sts onto the second 16-inch/40 cm circular needle.

Using MC, graft the two open ends of cowl together.

Wash the loop with a wool detergent, roll it in a towel to remove excess moisture and dry it flat, gently shaping it as it dries.

Weave in the final yarn ends.

ABOUT THE DESIGNER

designername Multicolor knitting is Andrea's special passion. She lives with her husband in northern Germany, where the natural surroundings are dominated by subtle colors and landscapes. As a counterbalance, they inspire her to create vibrant patterns. Her love for designing garments was sparked by her grandmother, who once taught her how to knit and crochet.

She can be found on Ravelry as Suruvaippa (btw: Suruvaippa is the Finnish word for the elegantly coloured butterfly Nymphalis antiopa, the mourning cloak).