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The Cost of a Knitting Pattern, Annotated

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what's a knitting pattern worthI love this post from Thread & Ladle breaking down the potential time and monetary costs of producing a quality knitting pattern.

People sometimes complain when I share patterns that cost money, and I do try to stick with mostly free patterns most of the time, but I like to support designers who charge for their work because it’s worth it to pay for a well-done pattern, and it’s important to support people who are trying to produce the very best designs and patterns that they can.

The post breaks it all down, but the quick version is that, between knitting, writing the pattern, grading the pattern (that’s coming up with the stitch counts and instructions for different sizes), taking pictures, designing the pattern itself and getting the pattern into the system wherever you want to sell it can easily take 100 hours or more.

And that doesn’t factor in the cost of materials, any photo editing and layout programs used, technical editing, test knitters and more things that actually cost money beyond thinking about paying a designer for her time and expertise.

If you think about all that goes into it, and that a designer would have to sell many hundreds of patterns to make up the cost and pay themselves some kind of wage for their labor, paying $5 or $7 for a sweater pattern doesn’t sound so bad, does it?

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Do you pay for knitting patterns or only use ones you can get for free? Do you think paid patterns are better quality? What is a knitting pattern worth to you?

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Comments

  1. I am almost always able to take an idea or photo of a knitted item, and then make my own pattern. It isn’t that hard.

  2. I am more than willing to support knitting designers. I am most appreciative of their creativity, and the time spent bringing their patterns to us. For a modest, initial fee, the pattern can be used repeatedly. It’s a win-win for me.

Have you read?

Bucket Hat Knitting Patterns

As I was starting to write this post I thought that it was true that I’d never done a roundup of bucket hat knitting patterns before. But then I looked, and I actually did one last year (which you can find here) but there are plenty of cute bucket hats to do another post about, right? 

The one that made me want to write about this (again) is the Red Heart Knit Fanfare Bucket Hat from Yarnspirations. This cute striped hat can be worked in team colors, and while I might prefer a non-acrylic yarn for a summer hat, it would be fine when it’s not too hot outside (or try a cotton yarn instead). 

Claire Slade’s Sunlit Bucket Hat has an angled brim to help keep the sun out of your eyes. It’s worked from the bottom up using worsted weight cotton yarn, and comes in three sizes. You can find the pattern on Ravelry. 

Get a little air flow in your bucket hat with the Shady Bucket Hat from Wool & Beyond. This one uses DK weight yarn and an eyelet pattern throughout the body to keep it cool. It comes in sizes ranging from newborn to adult large, and is worked in one piece from the top down. You can grab the pattern (in English or Swedish) on Ravelry. 

If you’re looking for a fun, floppy sun hat for kids or adults, this pattern from Muki Crafts is a little more slouchy than a traditional bucket hat but it’s super cute. It comes in baby, toddler and bigger kid sizes and adult. I uses worsted weight yarn and is worked from the bottom up. 

Another variation on the classic bucket is this one that’s more of a cloche style. Made by branda, it uses bulky yarn so it’s more of a winter bucket hat, but now’s a fine time to knit it if you live somewhere that’s warm right now (or even more so if you live somewhere that’s cold right now). 

Another one to get you ready for colder weather is Tirmety, a two-layer bucket hat from ViTalina Craft, which has a textured stitch pattern on one side and stockinette on the other. You can wear either side out or even make them different colors if you want. The pattern is sized for toddlers, kids and adults. 

And if you want to add some extra cuteness to your bucket hat, I love this (of course totally optional but also totally adorable) embroidered deatila on the New York Bucket Hat from Pauline Fanguin. It uses two strands of DK weight yarn held together for extra sturdiness, and uses changes in needle size to shape the hat. Of course you could also knit stripes or use different textures of yarn to change up the look. This pattern is made to fit your head and is available in French and English.