Arien Wrap - Free Pattern
Inspired by the moon and its governance of the four seasons, Arien is named after the Maia spirit who guides the moon across the sky in Arda, the world of The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion. More of a shlanket than a shawl, Arien is a large rectangular wrap that combines the two colorwork techniques of intarsia and marling. Holding yarns double makes for a warm and cozy fabric, and the intarsia color blocking creates striking visual interest. This heavy shawl is perfect for keeping off the cold of winter and also doubles nicely as a small lap blanket.
The pattern is available here on my blog for free, but if you would like a downloadable and printable PDF, you can purchase one in my Ravelry or Payhip store.
Pattern
Dimensions
Width - 23in (58.5cm)
Length - 66in (167.5cm)
Note: the width and length are both easily modifiable. You can make the wrap wider or narrower by adding or taking away stitches on either edge and you can lengthen or shorten simply by knitting more or fewer rows. Feel free to adjust to your liking.
Gauge
15.5 sts x 27 rows = 4in (10cm) in garter stitch worked flat before blocking
Yarn
Sample used
The Fibre Co. - Cumbria Fingering (held double)
60% Merino / 30% Masham / 10% Mohair (328yds [300m], 100g)
Three skeins of
Color A - Saddleback Slate
One skein each of
Color B - Buttermere
Color C - Windermere
Color D - Cowberry
Color E - Helvellyn
Color F - Blencathra
To substitute, use
Fingering weight yarn (held double)
1000yds - Color A
300yds - Color B
300yds - Color C
300yds - Color D
300yds - Color E
300yds - Color F
Needles
US 6 (4.0mm) 36in circular needles
Notions
tapestry needle
Abbreviations
A, B, C, D, E, F - colors A, B, C, D, E, and F respectively
CO - cast on
k - knit
RS - right side
st/sts - stitch/stitches
WS - wrong side
Special Stitches and Techniques
Intarsia
Intarsia is a colorwork technique in knitting that allows you to create vertical stripes as well as blocks of color. These stripes are held together where they meet by looping the working yarns around each other as you work up the piece. This is accomplished by picking up the yarn of the new color from underneath the previous color. Below is a link to a video tutorial that you may find helpful.
Because the intarsia in this pattern is worked while marling two strands of yarn, there are a few things about it that are different from intarsia worked with only one strand at a time. You will want to keep these things in mind as you work through the wrap, but especially while working the moon section in the center.
You will only ever be changing one color at a time. This means that every time you come to a place where you work intarsia to change colors, one of the colors you are marling will remain the same and one will change.
Because there is always one color that remains consistent, it is not absolutely necessary to loop the working yarns around each other to hold your work together as in regular intarsia, though I still recommend doing it.
Because yarns tend to get twisted around each other when marling, it is even more important than usual to have a system for managing your yarn balls as you work. You will save yourself much time and headache if you untangle as you go. The most I was ever able to work before ending up with a huge mess was two rows.
Intarsia Knitting Tutorial - link to video by Very Pink Knits
(URL - https://youtu.be/PtJdamqXlAU)
Instructions
Section 1 - Before the Moon
Using long-tail cast-on, CO 45 sts holding A and B together, then CO 45 sts holding A and C together.
Row 1 (WS): k45 holding A and C together, k45 holding A and B together.
Row 2 (RS): k45 holding A and B together, k45 holding A and C together.
Continue working back and forth in garter stitch, maintaining the colors in the pattern established until piece measures 26in (66cm) and ending with a WS row.
Section 2 - The Moon
Written instructions follow here, for charted instructions, see the charts at the end of this post.
Row 1 (RS): k39 holding A and B together, joining F, k6 holding B and F together, k6 holding C and F together, joining a second strand of A, k39 holding A and C together.
Row 2 (WS): k39 holding A and C together, k6 holding C and F together, k6 holding B and F together, k39 holding A and B together.
Row 3: k35 holding A and B together, k10 holding B and F together, k10 holding C and F together, k35 holding A and C together.
Row 4: k35 holding A and C together, k10 holding C and F together, k10 holding B and F together, k35 holding A and B together.
Row 5: k31 holding A and B together, k14 holding B and F together, k14 holding C and F together, k31 holding A and C together.
Row 6: k31 holding A and C together, k14 holding C and F together, k14 holding B and F together, k31 holding A and B together.
Row 7: k28 holding A and B together, k17 holding B and F together, k17 holding C and F together, k28 holding A and C together.
Row 8: k28 holding A and C together, k17 holding C and F together, k17 holding B and F together, k28 holding A and B together.
Repeat rows 7-8 once more.
Row 11: k25 holding A and B together, k20 holding B and F together, k20 holding C and F together, k25 holding A and C together.
Row 12: k25 holding A and C together, k20 holding C and F together, k20 holding B and F together, k25 holding A and B together.
Repeat rows 11-12 once more.
Row 15: k22 holding A and B together, k23 holding B and F together, k23 holding C and F together, k22 holding A and C together.
Row 16: k22 holding A and C together, k23 holding C and F together, k23 holding B and F together, k22 holding A and B together.
Repeat rows 15-16 once more.
Row 19: k20 holding A and B together, k25 holding B and F together, k25 holding C and F together, k20 holding A and C together.
Row 20: k20 holding A and C together, k25 holding C and F together, k25 holding B and F together, k20 holding A and B together.
Repeat rows 19-20 once more.
Row 23: k18 holding A and B together, k27 holding B and F together, k27 holding C and F together, k18 holding A and C together.
Row 24: k18 holding A and C together, k27 holding C and F together, k27 holding B and F together, k18 holding A and B together.
Repeat rows 23-24 twice more.
Row 29: k16 holding A and B together, k29 holding B and F together, k29 holding C and F together, k16 holding A and C together.
Row 30: k16 holding A and C together, k29 holding C and F together, k29 holding B and F together, k16 holding A and B together.
Repeat rows 29-30 twice more.
Row 35: k15 holding A and B together, k30 holding B and F together, k30 holding C and F together, k15 holding A and C together.
Row 36: k15 holding A and C together, k30 holding C and F together, k30 holding B and F together, k15 holding A and B together.
Repeat rows 35-36 twice more.
Row 41: k14 holding A and B together, k31 holding B and F together, k31 holding C and F together, k14 holding A and C together.
Row 42: k14 holding A and C together, k31 holding C and F together, k31 holding B and F together, k14 holding A and B together.
Repeat rows 41-42 three more times. The moon is now halfway complete. Cut B and C.
Row 49: joining D, k14 holding A and D together, k31 holding D and F together, joining E, k31 holding E and F together, k14 holding A and E together.
Row 50: k14 holding A and E together, k31 holding E and F together, k31 holding D and F together, k14 holding A and D together.
Repeat rows 49-50 three more times.
Row 57: k15 holding A and D together, k30 holding D and F together, k30 holding E and F together, k15 holding A and E together.
Row 58: k15 holding A and E together, k30 holding E and F together, k30 holding D and F together, k15 holding A and D together.
Repeat rows 57-58 twice more.
Row 63: k16 holding A and D together, k29 holding D and F together, k29 holding E and F together, k16 holding A and E together.
Row 64: k16 holding A and E together, k29 holding E and F together, k29 holding D and F together, k16 holding A and D together.
Repeat rows 63-64 twice more.
Row 69: k18 holding A and D together, k27 holding D and F together, k27 holding E and F together, k18 holding A and E together.
Row 70: k18 holding A and E together, k27 holding E and F together, k27 holding D and F together, k18 holding A and D together.
Repeat rows 69-70 twice more.
Row 75: k20 holding A and D together, k25 holding D and F together, k25 holding E and F together, k20 holding A and E together.
Row 76: k20 holding A and E together, k25 holding E and F together, k25 holding D and F together, k20 holding A and D together.
Repeat rows 75-76 once more.
Row 79: k22 holding A and D together, k23 holding D and F together, k23 holding E and F together, k22 holding A and E together.
Row 80: k22 holding A and E together, k23 holding E and F together, k23 holding D and F together, k22 holding A and D together.
Repeat rows 79-80 once more.
Row 83: k25 holding A and D together, k20 holding D and F together, k20 holding E and F together, k25 holding A and E together.
Row 84: k25 holding A and E together, k20 holding E and F together, k20 holding D and F together, k25 holding A and D together.
Repeat rows 83-84 once more.
Row 87: k28 holding A and D together, k17 holding D and F together, k17 holding E and F together, k28 holding A and E together.
Row 88: k28 holding A and E together, k17 holding E and F together, k17 holding D and F together, k28 holding A and D together.
Repeat rows 87-88 once more.
Row 91: k31 holding A and D together, k14 holding D and F together, k14 holding E and F together, k31 holding A and E together.
Row 92: k31 holding A and E together, k14 holding E and F together, k14 holding D and F together, k31 holding A and D together.
Row 93: k35 holding A and D together, k10 holding D and F together, k10 holding E and F together, k35 holding A and E together.
Row 94: k35 holding A and E together, k10 holding E and F together, k10 holding D and F together, k35 holding A and D together.
Row 95: k39 holding A and D together, k6 holding D and F together, k6 holding E and F together, k39 holding A and E together.
Row 96: k39 holding A and E together, k6 holding E and F together, k6 holding D and F together, k39 holding A and D together. Cut F. You will continue from this point working with only one strand of A as at the beginning.
Section 3 - After the Moon
Row 1 (RS): k45 holding A and D together, k45 holding A and E together.
Row 2 (WS): k45 holding A and E together, k45 holding A and D together.
Continue working back and forth in garter stitch, maintaining the colors in the pattern established until piece measures 26in (66cm) from the last moon row and ending with a WS row.
Bind off 44 sts holding A and D together, then bind off the remaining sts holding A and E together.
Weave in ends. You may block if desired. I did not block my sample since it would have been very heavy to block, but if you choose to block your wrap, it will likely grow in length and may distort the roundness of the moon shape.
Charts
Chart Notes
The chart is worked back and forth in rows.
Since the scarf is in garter stitch, all stitches on the chart are knit stitches.
The background color and the symbol color in each space indicate which two yarns are being held together for that stitch.
The chart includes only the stitches in each row over which the moon is worked. Each row of the chart will also have stitches before and after to be worked holding together one strand of color A and the corresponding accent color (B, C, D, or E).
This chart does not include the stitches on either side of the moon motif, so you will knit those stitches before and after the chart, holding the corresponding colors of that row together with A.
Work chart 1 first before working chart 2.
Chart Key
Moon Chart - Stitch Fiddle 2
.pdf
Download PDF • 8KB
Chart 1
Moon Chart - Stitch Fiddle 4
.pdf
Download PDF • 104KB
Chart 2
Moon Chart - Stitch Fiddle 2
.pdf
Download PDF • 8KB
I've never posted a pattern as a blog post that included charts before, so adding the charts as downloadable PDFs is new to me, and I hope it works well. If you would like the charts but have trouble accessing them, you can email me, and I will email them to you directly.
Connect
Need pattern support or have any questions? Feel free to email me at refractedlightknits@gmail.com
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Website: www.refractedlightknits.com
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Feel free to share your finished projects on social media using the hashtags #ArienWrap and #refractedlightknits.
Thank you so much for supporting my little creative knitting endeavor! It’s truly means a great deal to me.
Happy knitting,
Ethan Pyle
©2022 Refracted Light Knits, for personal use
