Free knitting patterns are all over the internet. That’s the good news (yea!). The bad news is that YGWYPF: You Get What You Pay For. Sometimes free knitting patterns are worded strangely, are hard to understand, or are just plain wrong. Or, you click on a link that promises “Free Patterns!” and find two cheesy patterns published sometime in the mid eighties. (Not that I’m knocking eighties knitters…but do I really need an oversized angora t-shirt dress with shoulder pads and bobbles right at this moment?) Here are some fairly reliable, or fairly plentiful, pattern sources for the web savvy knitter.

1. Lion Brand Yarn

   Read more in Crafts

   « The Benefits of Scrapbooking

   How to Cast On: Free Video Tutorials »

   One of the most popular yarn companies, Lion Brand has a huge collection of free patterns for their yarns. You do have to register to view the patterns, but there’s no fee.

2. About.com: Knitting

   A collection of patterns and articles moderated by a real live person. Lots of information and patterns, set up in a blog-ish style format.

3. The Daily Knitter

   They’ve got tons (I mean tons) of links to patterns, reviews and articles. They’ve also got a yarn shop directory and an event calendar, among other fun stuff. Watch out, though. You may run across some YGWYPF patterns here.

4. Knitty

   A staple of the online knitting community since 2002, this fun and fashionable online magazine features trendy patterns, and informative and entertaining articles. Their archives are definitely worth perusing.

5. Ravelry

   Open to both knitters and crocheters, this online community hit the fiber art world like a storm. Thousands of people are sharing projects, opinions, and patterns of course. Free to both hobbyists and designers, ravelry is still in beta, still being tested. You have to sign up to receive an invitation to join, but trust me, it’s so worth the wait!

So, what are you waiting for? Get out there and get knitting! (Oh, and if you join ravelry, you can drop by and say hello to MerryChicky…aka me!)