How I actually write a pattern

Every pattern I release starts as a swatch I didn't plan to make. I keep a basket of them by the couch, and most go nowhere. The ones that stick usually solve a shaping problem I've been chewing on for months.

Once a swatch earns a sketch, I grade it before I knit the sample. Grading first forces me to be honest about whether the stitch pattern survives at the largest size — plenty of ideas don't, and it's much cheaper to find out on paper.

Then comes the sample, knit exactly as written, with the pattern open beside me. If I deviate, the pattern changes; my hands don't get to keep secrets from the document.

Last is a long proofing pass. I check the arithmetic I stopped seeing three drafts ago, re-knit any section that changed, and only then turn it into a PDF. It's slow, but it's the reason the pattern works the first time.