I was just sitting down to my computer to write a post today and I started to think about when I first started my blog. I logged into my old Blogger account and scrolled back to “Posting No. 1.” Turns out it was four years ago today!

I started this blog as a means to keep track of all the stuff I make. I never remember how many stitches I cast on here or how many tablespoons of soy sauce I mixed in there, so I began to keep an online record. It’s still a useful tool to me and I reference my own patterns and recipes all the time.

I soon realized that others might like what I was cataloging. That’s when I started Alaska Knit Nat’s Facebook page.

My first big break was when BuzzFeed featured my DIY T-shirt onesie tutorial. Then Pinterest was invented. Lots of folks find my blog via Pinterest.

But it wasn’t until I was contacted by AllFreeKnitting.com that I really started to see interaction on the blog. In one day alone last winter I got more than 7,000 visits to my Simple Striped Baby Blanket pattern. That’s pretty exhilarating! And totally out of the ordinary. I typically get about 400-800 visits a day.

It makes me happy to know that people enjoy the projects and recipes I share.

So I thought as a throwback Thursday I would share my very first post, which was a pattern for a lovely cowl.

Thanks to all my fans and supporters. I truly enjoy your feedback and interactions.

Posting No. 1

So I’ve been tinkering with the idea of starting a blog and I think it’s high time I do. It’s mainly for my own benefit — I make so much stuff I can’t keep track of it all. In addition to knitting (hence the Knit Nat title), I cook, sew and repurpose things. This blog is a catalog of all things Craft.

I’ve wanted to knit myself a cowl for the winter and I finally used my $25 credit at the Quilt Tree to purchase the most beautiful yarns for it. I did a lot of Ravelry research yesterday and found a pattern that was simple enough. It’s an easy lace pattern.
Just how luscious is this yarn?

I shall call this project the Harlequin Cowl.
Ingredients:
24-inch size 9 circular needle
1 skien of Cascade Lana Bambu color 11 &  2 skeins of Ironstone Sunset color
1 stitch marker

Cast on 104 stitches. Place marker and join yarn, being careful not to twist the work.
k4, p4 for three rows (or however wide you want the trim to be)
row 1:*k2tog, yo*, repeat ** till end of row (don’t forget that the last stitch of the row is a yarn over.)
row 2 and all even rows: knit

Repeat this pattern till project is wide enough to your liking

k4, p4 for three rows and bind off.

Here’s what I have so far:

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It took me a long time to finish the cowl, so I didn’t post the finished product until later. Here’s what it came out like:

xoxo,

Natasha