Cloud Tote
Yarn: KnitPicks CotLin
Pattern: I used the Hanna Tote from Love Crafts as a base to determine stitch count and construction. I drew the cloud pattern myself in Google Sheets. (Here's a PDF of the design, if you want to try it out.)
Finished: August 2, 2026
Notes: I've mentioned a few times that I love (and collect) Michael Simon knitwear. I really wanted to attempt something similar on my own. I've drawn out a bunch of stranded knitting patterns using Google Sheets, but I've never attempted intarsia. When I got the idea to make a cloud tote, it became the perfect opportunity to try.
Sort of. The first side, I carried the blue across but added the white using intarsia. It worked OK, but the clouds are sort of lumpy. So on the second side, I decided I might as well try to do it right. It looks a lot better, and it's not that much more annoying to just do it correctly.
When knitting and construction were finished, I made a kite out of felt and beaded along the edges. Then I added a beaded kite string that trails around the front and onto the back, and decorated it with little felt bows. I think it looks cute as hell.
I planned on using this as a knitting bag, so I figured I might as well line it. It was a bit of an ordeal since I had to sew everything by hand (not one of my strengths). The lining is just a chopped up Anthropologie shirt that never fit me right. Could've probably sold it, but I wanted to continue enjoying the colorful pattern. Yolo.
Anyway, it is so annoying to knit with 50 strands of yarn going everywhere. But I love the results. My husband had the idea to make a fish tank tote, which I am definitely going to attempt. With beads! I love adding beads to my knits. Everything in my life is going to be beaded from now until eternity.