If you were around at the beginning of the knitting Internet, you might remember the Clapotis (pronounced, apparently, clap-o-tee; I’ve been saying it wrong in my head for 20 years!). Originally published in the fall 2004 issue of Knitty, it could be argued it was the first viral knitting pattern of the Internet age.
It’s easy to see why it took off: it’s fun to knit, pretty easy, stylish, you can use wild or more subdued yarn and it looks great. Plus, dropping stitches on purpose is just fun.
I have still yet to knit one, even though I’ve wanted to a few times.
Now I have no excuse, because to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the pattern, Knitty has reissued it and has declared Clapotis Fest. They produced a digital look book with the pattern worked in yarn from 63 different indie dyers (which is just a drop in the dye bucket compared to the nearly 24,000 versions that have been posted on Ravelry).
They’re also hosting a contest where you can win some of that gorgeous yarn by submitting a photo of your (newly knit since Sept. 17, 2024) Clapotis. Entries must be submitted by Dec. 1 and will be included in a similar flip book style presentation, which will be part of the Knitty winter surprise early next year. People who look at the book can vote for their favorites, and the top 50 vote-getters will get some lovely yarn (folks with the most votes will get to pick their prizes first).
Part of the point of this celebration, in addition to getting people excited about the pattern again and sharing the work of some great indie dyers, is to also honor the designer, Kate Gilbert. She was paid $50 for the pattern in 2004, and of course Knitty is free so no one has profited much from the huge popularity of this design, but Kate definitely should. If you knit a Clapotis, or have in the past, you can send her a few bucks through her Ko-fi.
I’d love to hear your Clapotis stories. Have you made one or several before? Had you ever heard of it before now? Thinking about making one? I think it might just be time for me to do it!
[Photo via Knitty]