Are you tired of clicking link after link, following a rabbit trail to find the knitting or crochet pattern that was *supposedly* free, but actually isn't?! Here are my five favorite quick and easy resources for legit Free Knitting Patterns!
No, I don't think we should be complaining about paying for patterns. Designers spend a TON of time designing, writing up, editing, and perfecting the patterns that they put into the world, and most of that effort is never compensated, even when they are charging for their patterns. BUT, I get it. We don't all have the money to buy every pattern that we love. We're trying to make knitting an affordable hobby for ourselves. As long as you aren't stealing or illegally copying/distributing patterns, I say have no shame in searching out the patterns that fit in your budget. The designer is offering the pattern for free.
Of course, you can search Pinterest or Google for "free knitting patterns," but that's where you find all of the broken links, or links that still lead you to paid-for patterns. To make the search easier for you, I am going to share 5 reliable resources for free knitting patterns. These are:
1. Free Pattern Search Filters on Websites Designed for Filtering Patterns
2. Test Knitting -- Trading Your Review For a Free Pattern(s)
3. Free Pattern Blogs
4. Companies that Publish Their Own Free Patterns
5. Free Pattern Forum
For most of these, I will provide a couple of examples of places to find these resources! Note: I am not affiliated with any of these companies, just providing resources for you!
1. Free Pattern Search Filters on Websites Designed for Filtering Patterns
Ravelry Search & Filters
If you aren't familiar with Ravelry, it is a resource-rich platform specifically created for fiber enthusiasts. While there are many not-so-instinctive and overwhelming features on this platform, Ravelry is unparalleled in what it offers, especially when you know what you're doing! Here's a step-by-step guide to finding free patterns on Ravelry!
Please note: Ravelry recently updated their site graphics. If you suffer from a neurological disorder or migraines or seizures, please do not click through to Ravelry. For the sake of this blog, I am using screenshots of the old Ravelry view. (Note if you are able to log into Ravelry without issues, but you still want the old view, you are able to switch the view to "Classic" using the menu that pops up when you hover over your profile photo in the upper right-hand corner.)
1. Visit www.ravelry.com
2. Create a free account, or log into your existing account.
3. Click "patterns" in the upper left-hand corner.
4. Click "pattern browser & advanced search" below the search bar.
5. Scroll down until you see the "Availabilty" box on the left side of the screen, and click the box next to "Free."
In images, this is the process:
The shortcut to get to this page is to visit this URL: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/search#availability=free&sort=best&view=captioned_thumbs, but I wanted to share how you can find it on your own! You can now use any of the filters to narrow down your search to find exactly the pattern you're linking for! (For example, you can choose the craft, the yarn weight, the yardage, and the type of project.)
Once you've found the free pattern that you love, (first click on the icon or name of the pattern to get to the pattern page) you can save this project to your favorites, add it to your queue (which is the list of patterns you want to start in the near future), add it to your library (this is like purchasing the pattern -- if the designer ever becomes a paid-for pattern, you already own it!), download it, and create your project page for it (by clicking "cast on project" or "create project"). All of these options are available in the upper right hand corner of the pattern page.
LoveCrafts Free Pattern Search
Similar to Ravelry, LoveCrafts is another website for accessing fiber-related patterns. While the website has less features than Ravelry, LoveCrafts hosts a plethora of patterns that are also searchable for free patterns. One pro is that you do not have to create an account until you are ready to download a pattern, but one con is that there are less options that you can filter by when looking for a pattern. You are also not able to search both crochet and knitting patterns at the same time.
To navigate to the free patterns:
1. Visit www.lovecrafts.com
2. In the top left menu, hover over the craft for which you are searching for patterns.
3. Hover over "Patterns."
4. Hover over "Free."
5. Click "All Free Patterns," or the category you are interested in.
These steps are all visible in this image:
And in this image I've zoomed in and circled the specific words to hover over.
The shortcut URL for free knitting patterns is: https://www.lovecrafts.com/en-us/l/knitting/knitting-patterns/free-knitting-patterns, and for free crochet knitting patterns is: https://www.lovecrafts.com/en-us/l/crochet/crochet-patterns/free-crochet-patterns.
2. Test Knitting -- Trading Your Review For a Free Pattern(s)
If you're unfamiliar with what test knitting is, it is a process of testing a pattern before it is published. Many times, designers are unable to provide monetary compensation for your test knitting their pattern, so they will instead compensate you with the final copy of the pattern you test plus one (or more) free patterns from their published patterns. Test knitting primarily consists of reading/following the pattern thoroughly, and then providing feedback to the designer for how the pattern may be improved upon.
Designer Email Lists
If you are interested in test knitting, one place to start, is to sign up for designer's lists/emails for test knitting. Often times you can find this in a designer's Ravelry group or in their social media links (i.e. their link on Instagram).
For example, you can sign up for emails for test knitting my patterns by visiting my website: https://www.snickerdoodleknits.com/email-updates. Note: you must sign up for test knitting emails by using the form at the bottom of the page, not the pop-up! You can also sign up for "earburns" (Ravelry notifications) for my test knits by commenting in my Ravelry group here: https://www.ravelry.com/discuss/snickerdoodle-knits/3901356/.
Pattern Testing Forums
You can also join a pattern testing forum, so you can see pattern testing requests from a large variety of designers! Here are a few that I am aware of, all of which are located on Ravelry.
Currently, I am using The Testing Pool to host all of my test knitting discussions, and if I'm having trouble filling a test knit, I will also post it on Open for Testing.
Test Knitting Websites
Finally, you can join a test knitting website and sign up for test knitting emails, so you are aware of test knitting opportunities posted on these websites by a variety of designers! The two that I am aware of are www.wearefiberly.com and www.yarnpond.com. Fiberly sends occasional emails with open test knits, and Yarnpond sends automated emails as often as you want to receive them. Of course, you can always go onto the websites to browse open test knits as well!
3. Free Pattern Blog Posts
If you're familiar with searching for free patterns on Pinterest, you are probably also very familiar with blogs that share free patterns. Because of the way a blog is formatted, these patterns tend to not be as friendly for printing, but they are still a great resource for free patterns, especially if it is a simple design! Of course, the most obvious example of a blog hosting free patterns is this blog: Snickerdoodle Knits! You can find my Free Patterns section here: https://www.snickerdoodleknits.com/blog/categories/free-knitting-patterns.
A few knitting blogs that host free patterns include:
We Are Knitters: https://blog.weareknitters.com/free-patterns/
Little Cotton Rabbits: https://littlecottonrabbits.typepad.co.uk/free_knitting_patterns/
Petals to Picots: https://www.petalstopicots.com/category/knit/free-knitting-patterns/
A few crochet blogs that host free patterns include:
TL Yarn Crafts: https://tlycblog.com/tag/free-crochet-pattern/
Hooks, Books, & Wanderlust: https://hooksbooksandwanderlust.com/category/crochet/crochet-patterns/
4. Companies that Publish Their Own Free Patterns
Earlier I shared Ravelry and LoveCrafts with you. Those are both websites that anybody can publish free patterns to. Alternatively, there are also companies that have such a large quantity of their own free patterns, that they are definitely worth mentioning! I don't know what the correct term for these sites would be, but I'm calling them "independent," because these patterns are created/owned by the website host.
"Independent" Knitting Websites with Free Patterns:
Tin Can Knits: http://tincanknits.com/patterns-free.html
"Independent" Crochet Websites with Free Patterns:
Showing Support without Supporting Monetarily
Once you've received your free pattern, you can still support the designer without supporting them monetarily. Of course, these are great ways to support your favorite designers, whether you use their free patterns or paid-for patterns! A great way to support a designer (or any small business!) is to share about them on your social media, tagging them so others can easily find them and their work. Another simple way to show your support is to like, comment on, and share their posts on social media, as well as going through their patterns on Ravelry or LoveCrafts and adding the patterns you love to your "favorites" or your "queue." Finally, once you've completed your project, it is EXTREMELY helpful if you upload a photo of your finished project to a project page on Ravelry that you link to the pattern. This allows other knitters to have confidence in purchasing the pattern, because they've now had the opportunity to see examples of other knitters who have been successful with the pattern, and they potentially have seen the pattern in different colors and/or sizes!
Do you have any other favorite free craft pattern locations? Please share in the comments!
P.S. Just a reminder that I have four free knitting patterns available! You can find them listed here!