Once I was done experimenting with the Old Shale and Feather and Fan traditional Shetland border patterns (see my post about Shetland haps) as well as with edgings, those elements so typical for lace designs from Shetland and Estonia, I wanted to challenge myself with combining basic simple stitches into more complex pieces, and to create a wrap that would be based on my interpretation of traditional patterns- something new, yet connected with the other two Arctic Aura haps. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the Arctic Land!
Since this hap is part of the Arctic Aura wraps family, its stitch patterns are to symbolize various elements of the arctic world: icy spikes, sharp edges, waves of slightly melted snow, fluffy snowy balls and trails in the snow are all reflected in this design either as individual elements surrounded by plain fabric or as a combination of smaller patterns joined into a larger, newer pattern.
Arctic Land, similarly to the other two Arctic Aura haps, has the Cat’s Paw motifs spread all over the central square. However, this time, unlike the stocking stitch background in the Arctic Air and garter stitch background in the Arctic Water, those lace elements are hidden in between the lines of purl rows, what makes the square feel semi-squishy, and results in an interesting effect of the paws deepened in narrow trails created in the fresh, fluffy snow. Yet another look and feel to the same lace element.
The border section was the biggest fun to design. I enjoyed working with traditional diamond and snowflake patterns and using them to tell my own story about the arctic world I envisioned. If you look closely, you may find heart-like shapes built from the smaller diamond-shape lace elements there, too.
Also, I really wanted to incorporate nupps into this design. Those are similar to small bubbles but are worked in the Eastern European style and are used in lace knitting. Nupps are fun to form once you get the right feeling about the tension of the loops they are made of, and the way they turn out is indeed rewarding. The fact that they pop out a bit makes the wrap’s structure more interesting both when you look at the hap and when you touch its surface. My nupps are meant to work as small balls of snow in this particular design but they are widely used in numerous patterns as single lines or groups, where they might mean something different.
Although the border section has a lot of stocking stitch worked in the round (which means a lot of knit stitches and almost no purl stitches), the lacy stitch pattern makes it interesting and enjoyable to create. It might seem that the border takes long to knit but it grows in no time really. Not only you will not get bored but you will see results of your work pretty soon, as the diamonds are placed right after the border’s set up rounds.
Finally comes the edging. This one is very different from what I designed in the other two haps- it is wider than the one in Arctic Water, and its pattern block, which is to be repeated around, binds off ten stitches, like the one in Arctic Air; it makes this wavy border pattern block the tallest and the widest of all the three used in my Arctic Aura wraps.
There is also a new spiky edging that has been inserted in the wavy edging in such a way that while working on the edging section you actually create two lines of borders at the same time. Just a small trick to have more fun.
Arctic Land is whole white, and makes beautiful finish to the Arctic Aura haps set.
The pattern is available from the pattern section → Arctic Land.
Other haps in the Arctic Aura family are: Arctic Water and to Arctic Air.
Enjoy making your own Arctic Water hap and be sure to let me know how it turned out.
~ Cathliin
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