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Colorful knitting, crochet, latch hook and macrame from craft book author & designer Heidi Gustad.

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A Look at the Intarsia Mountain Design Process

October 29, 2018 3 Comments

This post is part of our Read Along Knit Along series & is brought to you by LoveKnitting, Eucalan & Knitter’s Pride. Learn about our sponsors and enter to win the RALKAL prize pack here. 

Take a look inside the process of designing a large scale, colorwork afghan pattern. Designer Heidi Gustad walks you through how she designed the Intarsia Mountain throw from start to finish.
It’s funny looking back at this picture! This photo was taken near the end of June, when I was very much eyeballs deep in the design process for Intarsia Mountain. Since there was so much interest in this particular design, and since I designed it so differently than all of my other work to date, I thought it might be interesting to delve into my process just a bit. Hold on to your britches! We’re about to take a look at how I designed the Intarsia Mountain throw from start to finish, including swatching, sketching, knitting, and one particularly leaky barn.

Intarsia Mountain by Heidi Gustad is a knitting pattern worked primarily in garter stitch and features a beautiful landscape formed using color and geometric lines.

On the very off chance you’re here and haven’t seen Intarsia Mountain yet, here it is!

Inspiration

In the pattern introduction for Intarsia Mountain, I credit the book The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey (our Read Along Knit Along title) and the weavings of Sarah Warren as two major points of inspiration. Of course, so much more inspires a knitting pattern than just a single image or a single work of fiction. For me this design was a lot about the texture of garter stitch, embracing the simplicity of letting color do the heavy lifting in a design, and fully diving in the deep end of intarsia knitting as a technique. It’s safe to say that Intarsia Mountain marks a pretty serious pivot in my approach to knit design (more on that below), and the first design that I feel like I’ve fully captures my personal design aesthetic.

For a look at my Read Along Knit Along color selection process and more, check out this Instagram highlight. 

Take a look inside the process of designing a large scale, colorwork afghan pattern. Designer Heidi Gustad walks you through how she designed the Intarsia Mountain throw from start to finish.

Working Smarter, Not Harder

After I’d done some swatching to play with how exactly Intarsia Mountain might work from a technical perspective, I made a final gauge swatch with intarsia colorwork similar to what I was planning to do in Intarsia Mountain. With that large gauge swatch made, wet blocked, and allowed to dry completely, I was able to start running the numbers & designing.

Take a look inside the process of designing a large scale, colorwork afghan pattern. Designer Heidi Gustad walks you through how she designed the Intarsia Mountain throw from start to finish.

My final swatch for Intarsia Mountain, measuring in at approx. 12″x18″. 

Since I struggle with repetitive strain injuries (RSI) like a lot of professional crafters & artists, a chunk of my design process has necessarily started to involve paper and pencil, plus knit design software called Stitchmastery. Once I have my gauge, I can literally outline my design idea using these tools to save my body some stress. In particular, stress from knitting large chunks of a project only to realize what is & isn’t working, tear it out, and start again. (Really, it’s all about an efficient approach to design – working smarter, not harder.)

Long story short, I make a large piece of custom graph paper designed to match a large gauge swatch, and I do the math on how many grams of yarn I’m using per stitch. From there I can draw out an entire design, convert it to a chart, and know with relative certainty that I won’t be sitting around playing yarn chicken and wrecking my body if I lose. Only when I have my finished chart DONE do I actually cast on and make the full pattern to confirm I didn’t screw up my math during the graph paper and software-based design process.

P.S. If you want to hear a little bit about knitter’s graph paper, how I used it for designing Intarsia Mountain, and what’s so special about knitter’s graph paper, I get into it on episode 7 of the Very Serious Crafts Podcast, which you can listen to here starting at the 22:00 mark:

Knitting a Throw in a Leaky Barn

Okay, so that’s the “secret” to how my design process went for Intarsia Mountain. I knew I wanted to have a finished Intarsia Mountain of my own done by July to leave time for everything that goes into making a finished pattern. Specifically, the technical editing, pattern testing, and photography processes needed enough time to happen before I released the pattern on September 1. I finished my giant pencil and paper-based pattern chart, entered it into Stitchmastery stitch by stitch to create an 8-page chart, and I converted the chart to written instructions as well. (In all, this sonofabitch pattern is 20 pages.) Then it was FINALLY time to knit it for myself.

Take a look inside the process of designing a large scale, colorwork afghan pattern. Designer Heidi Gustad walks you through how she designed the Intarsia Mountain throw from start to finish.
I was feeling very chuffed with my well-planned design, so I figured I’d at this point I’d make my Intarsia Mountain in a couple weeks, no problem. Maybe I’d find an error or two, and I’d fix them and be right on track to sail on through the editing & testing process. To give myself a dedicated chunk of time to knock out Intarsia Mountain, my husband and I decided to take a little trip to a would-be quiet & picturesque barn in rural Wisconsin. He was going to read for a week, and I was going to knitflix to my heart’s content. Unfortunately, our trip to this horse barn-turned AirBnB quickly devolved into us confronting no less than three roof leaks in the middle of the night, and not a whole lot of knitting getting done.

Leakybarncation is what @handsoccupied followers on Instagram & Very Serious Crafts Podcast listeners have come to know as the nickname for that trip, and most of the photos throughout this post were taken in that darn barn. If you’re curious for details, I’ll direct you to the 8th episode of the Very Serious Crafts Podcast (starting around the 4:00 mark) for a quick run-down:

Testing, Finishing & the RALKAL

Once I got out of that leaky barn, the rest of the design process went pretty smoothly. Tech editing was a breeze, and my testers were great. (Shout out to Mariah, Manvitha and Allison!!) The photography process is always a huge point of anxiety since photos genuinely make or break your ability to share a pattern with the world.  As always, photos ended up working out in the end, even though it can take a few different days of shoots and getting creative with different setups.

In the end, Intarsia Mountain has resulted in our biggest Read Along Knit Along to date, and I’m really grateful to each and every person who got excited about the pattern, particularly those who decided to give Intarsia Mountain a try despite being new to the technique! You’re all wonderful, brave and lovely. <3 Although the RALKAL officially ends this week, entries for the Read Along Knit Along giveaway will remain open for another week, so don’t forget to enter to win the prize pack (worth over $180!). Even if you haven’t finished your afghan, there are lots of entry options open to you, and this prize pack is excellent.

Take a look inside the process of designing a large scale, colorwork afghan pattern. Designer Heidi Gustad walks you through how she designed the Intarsia Mountain throw from start to finish.

This post is part of our Read Along Knit Along series & is brought to you by LoveKnitting, Eucalan & Knitter’s Pride. Learn about our sponsors and enter to win the RALKAL prize pack here. 

Filed Under: Inspiration, Knit Along, Knitting Tagged With: intarsia mountain, knit design, ralkal, read along knit along, stitchmastery

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad is a craft book author, designer & creator specializing in yarn crafts like knitting, crochet, latch hook & macramé. Her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now.

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Comments

  1. Samantha T

    October 29, 2018 at 11:07 am

    I’m so glad you made this pattern! I’m still on clue 3, but I can’t wait to finish. This will be my first intarsia piece, and the first blanket I’ve ever made (I tend to stick to shawls, hats, gloves, etc.). Loved reading about your design process. The book was great, too.

    Reply
    • Heidi

      October 30, 2018 at 2:37 pm

      Thank you! I’m so glad you’re enjoying it! :)

      Reply
  2. Kelley

    November 3, 2018 at 11:19 pm

    I’m still working through the first clue!! (on attempt #3- hopefully, 3rd time is a charm). You’ve turned me on the intarsia technique, and although I’m a rank beginner at knitting, I actually have some ideas for my own designs using your technique. I’m so glad I joined this RALKAL!

    Kelley

    Reply

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi (she/her/hers), a craft book author & pattern designer specializing in knitting, crochet, latch hook & macrame. Really anything with yarn! ❤️  My work combines vintage and modern design elements, featuring bold colors and graphic motifs.

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Craft book author, designer & creator specializing in yarn crafts like knitting, crochet, latch hook & macramé
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Finally organizing & putting the finishing touches Finally organizing & putting the finishing touches on my home studio. After losing my studio space last fall, it’s feels really great to *occupy* this new space all the way. 😉
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I started by removing general clutter & returning straggler supplies from various WIPs, videos & design deadlines to their homes. Next, I hung a third peg board in the space - this one is mostly for display and less for organizing tools or projects. For the first time ever, I’m displaying projects from my book, plus a couple other faves. (The best thing about designing more yarn crafts besides knit & crochet is that I have some really fun -and delightfully pettable 😆- samples around.) I finished by adding a square dowel to my small supply storage tower to keep it from tipping over, plus re-arranging and de-cluttering the closet. 
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This cleaner space already has me feeling so much more creative and less overwhelmed. Now to find a safe spot in the basement for the tower of project samples in Rubbermaid tubs I liberated from my WIPs closet. Also why are there five?! 
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Here’s to keeping it clean for a few weeks! 🧶 
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#handsocupied #handsoccupiedstudio #craftroom #craftroomorganization #craftroomstorage #yarncraft #knitter #crocheter #latchhook #latchhookbook
It’s a disaster in here and my video microphone It’s a disaster in here and my video microphone isn’t cooperating, but it could be worse! How’s your day? 
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(If we haven’t yet met, I’m Heidi and I’m a pattern designer and tutorial creator specializing in yarn crafts like knitting & latch hook. You can learn more about my work and regularly find new tutorials in my profile. ☺️👋🏻)
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#handsoccupied #craftstudio #knitter #yarncrafter
How to knit a one-row buttonhole 🧶 . Sweater k How to knit a one-row buttonhole 🧶 
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Sweater knitters, listen up! Learn how to knit a buttonhole over the course of a single row of knitting, a.k.a. a one-row buttonhole. In this technique, a combination of binding off and casting on stitches on opposite sides of the work creates a symmetrical, stretchy buttonhole. 
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The time limit on these is 90 seconds, so this quick tutorial is perfect to save for future reference. (Did you know you can make folders of saved items like tutorials? 👩🏼‍🏫) 
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If you’re brand new to the technique or want to see this demonstration slower and more in-depth, my bl0g and You/2be are the place to be. Thanks for watching & let me know if you have any questions or requests for future tutorials in the comments. ☺️
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#handsoccupied #knitting #onerowbuttonhole #learntoknit #sweaterknitting #knittutorial #knitting_inspiration
One-row buttonholes are one of a few common ways t One-row buttonholes are one of a few common ways to knit a buttonhole. Created using a combination of binding off and casting on stitches over the course of a single row, this technique is one you’ll come back to again and again, and bonus: it’s not wildly challenging. 
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Find a brand new video tutorial for knitting one-row buttonholes and a post with other useful buttonhole resources on the bl0g, 🔗 in bi0.
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#handsoccupied #onerowbuttonhole #knitting #sweaterknitting #buttonhole #knittersofinstagram
It was quiet last week as I’ve been working on a It was quiet last week as I’ve been working on a few behind the scenes projects, including filming a bunch. The goal: tutorials most weeks!
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I also put some time into neglected design projects, in particular the pattern collection I began working on back in 2022. As I work on the samples, you’ll be seeing some sneak peeks here and there in my feed. ☺️
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The other thing occupying my time: I got an iPad to try digital planning and keep my design notes more organized, not to mention digitized. (Paper scribbling just ain’t it after 12 years.) If anyone has tips for how to make the most of digital planning as a crafter / knitter, I’d love to hear them! Accounts to follow, apps, must-know hacks for crafters - I’m excited to learn it all! 👩🏼‍🏫
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