First-foot Forward!

Ringing in the new year with three free patterns

Dec 31, 2025

The first-footers will soon be crossing the threshold, and with them, the brand new year! Tradition dictates that a tall, dark haired man is the luckiest first visitor to have, and as my wonderfully compact husband ticks two of those three boxes, I’ll be pushing him out the door just before midnight to stand around in the garden for a few minutes. Do you reckon it counts if he comes back in wearing stilts?

Whistlebare Fold will be open as usual this week (9-5), including New Year’s Day. We’d absolutely love to have you, and you may even be the shop’s very own first-footer!

It’s a triple feature this week - three free patterns, ranging from an afternoon project to something a bit more involved. If you’re eager to blow away the cobwebs with a new cast on for the new year, one of them may take your fancy!

I hope you enjoy the pops of colour in between, too. I wanted to see out the year with a celebration of all Whistlebare’s yarn, and the absolute magic Alice works with the rest of the team on the farm and in the dye kitchen to make it all happen.

Accompanying photos are from a recent trip to Northumberland’s own Cragside, where they make an exceptional seasonal effort, and a particularly lanky giant redwood on the grounds was this year declared Guinness World Record holder for the world’s tallest bedded Christmas tree!

The World’s Simplest Mittens

Another fantastic spoilt-for-choice pattern from tincanknits! These mittens make a pretty unbeatable wardrobe staple at this time of year, and come in five sizes, from toddler up to an adult’s large. The pattern comes with instructions for how to knit them in 4 ply, DK, worsted/aran and chunky weight yarn, plus a wonderfully detailed online step by step tutorial.

A single 100g skein of 4 ply, DK or Aran Yeavering Bell / Cheviot Marsh will knit a pair in any of the five sizes bar one, the adult large in aran weight. The full skein only comes up 10 yards short, so an added mini skein will more than make up the difference. I think a bit of contrasting colour in the cuff would be an ideal way to work it in!

Soho Scrunchie

These sweet scrunchies by Tori Yu are the perfect project if you’re looking for a quick knit to get back into the swing of things. There are three sizes to choose from, and each can be knitted in a choice of four different yarn weights. A single mini skein will knit the small scrunchie, or a full skein will knit the full set of three.

I think the silky feel of Yeavering Bell or Cuthbert’s Sock would work particularly nicely for this one. A real treat for your hair!

Miramare Shawl

A brand new release from Nadia Crétin-Léchenne, and a real stunner! The Miramare shawl is worked seamlessly from the top down, with garter stripes accented by rows of dainty contrasting bobble stitch.

If you’d like to knit your own in Yeavering Bell or Cheviot Marsh (4 ply weight), you’ll need one 100g skein for each of your main colours, and one mini skein for the contrasting bobble stripes.