Do you, like me, love modular knits? And do you, like me, love a pattern that is so easy to memorize, that you can knit while chatting with friends, while travelling, or even when watching TV? If the answer is yes, then Many a Mickle Makes a Muckle is the perfect pattern for you! And there’s more! There is absolutely no seaming involved! You simply join the modules as you go!

I adore the endless possibilities for designing structures and manipulating yarns with long color gradients that modular knits offer, but I also get great satisfaction when I complete each module, which can keep me going even on the most tiring of days. And sometimes, before you know it, you have already completed a large design – after all, Many a Mickle Makes a Muckle!! The phrase has its origins in Scottish English, where many small amounts (mickles) added together make a large amount (muckle).

The Many a Mickle Makes a Muckle wrap is originally designed for fingering yarn, but you can use the pattern for every weight from lace to dk, or even sport, as it comes in four different sizes: small, medium, large, and extra-large. You simply need two distinguishable yarns of the same weight. You can choose two solids, one solid and one color gradient, two color gradients, or – provided you have a yarn with a very long color gradient – two balls of the same gradient and work from opposite ends. The amount depends on the size you want to knit.

For the first version, I combined Wollmeise Pure Frühling with Wollbonbon Merino 4ply Clematis, which you can find at www.wollbonbon.de. Wollbonbon yarns come with a very long color gradient and you can customize the yardage. I wanted to knit the extra-large version, so I used 984yds/900m and two thirds of a Wollmeise Pure skein.

For the second version shown on the pattern page I knitted the large size and used a combination of Wollmeise Pure and two identical Laceballs by Schoppel. I knitted with two Laceball strands at the same time to get fingering weight but also a very long color gradient. But it will work with the 4 ply versions like Zauberball, Zauberball Crazy, and Zauberball 100 just as well.

If you fancy a lighter adornment I recommend the small or medium version.

In any case, you will need about three times the amount of yarn of your contrasting color. Since it is a modular knit without any trims you can simply stop as soon as you run out of yarn.

Many a Mickle Makes a Muckle is a fun to knit reversible project. It is knitted in modules but there is no seaming involved because you will join the modules as you go. All instructions are written and charted and you will find plenty of helpful photo tutorials to guide you through the different techniques. This makes Many a Mickle Makes a Muckle a feasible project for most knitters.