Lady of the Lake

Lady of the Lake

The Lady of the Lake – it seems like such a poetic and enchanted name! Best known for her role in Thomas Mallory’s Le Morte d' Arthur, the character herself is every bit as inspiring as her name. A somewhat mysterious sorceress, The Lady of the Lake plays a variety of roles: in some accounts she is Merlin’s lover who steals his secrets and imprisons him forever in a tree trunk, however she is best known as the benefactor of Arthur who bestows him with the magical sword Excalibur!

A free version of the pattern follows. You can also download a printable PDF of the pattern for a nominal fee through my Ravelry store, HERE.

This pattern is the 4th in a series of patterns inspired by The Legends of King Arthur.  

Please be warned - this pattern, like the legends themselves, is not for the faint of heart. It requires an INTERMEDIATE TO ADVANCED skill level.

Special thanks to the following Ravelry members for all their help testing:

MawMawsGarden, madaboutpooh, skyhookdesigns, absintheofmalice, Wuzzel, Danika2407, and Kaikelasa

I hope you enjoy the pattern!

- Lisa

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Materials:

·         Size H/5 mm crochet hook;

·         Tapestry needle for weaving in ends;

·         Worsted weight yarns in the brand/color of your choice. 

I used the following colors - note Land version expressed as letters and Celtic version as numbers:

	Land Version (above)		Celtic Colorway (bottom)
A	Graphite	1	Greybeard
B	Sungold	2	Antique Teal
C	Burnt Pumpkin	3	Sea Blue
D	Red	4	Light Sage
E	Aubergine	5	Forest
F	Mixed Berry	6	Navy
G	Mid Green
H	Greybeard
I	Purple

All yarns - Hobby Lobby I Love this Yarn

Size:

Using an H size hook I was able to obtain a 12” square.

Basic Terms/Abbreviations Used (US):

ch – chain                                                         BPsc – back post single crochet

yo – yarn over                                                  BPhdc – back post half double crochet   

slst – slip stitch                                                FPdc – front post double crochet              

sc – single crochet                                           BPdc – back post double crochet

hdc – half double crochet                                BPtr – back post triple

dc – double crochet                                       

tr – triple crochet                                            

FPsc – front post single crochet                 

For reference ease, special stitches are defined in the rounds they are used in.  In-pattern notes are highlighted blue.

Beginning Loop:

With color A/1, ch 4.  Join with slst to 1st ch – beginning loop made.

Round 1:

Ch 3 – counts as beginning dc. Dc in beginning loop again.  [Ch 3, (2 dc) in beginning loop] 3 times.  Ch 3, join with a slst to 3rd ch of beginning ch-3.  Fasten off.  2 dc per side and 4 ch-3 corner spaces.

Round 2:

Special Stitch – Extended mini puff - xmp – insert hook into indicated stitch or space, pull up a loop – 2 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo, insert hook into same indicated stitch or space, pull up a loop – 4 LOOP ON HOOK.  Yo, pull through 3 loops, yo pull through last 2 loops.  You will use this stitch over the next couple rounds.

Special Stitch – Extra Large Extended mini puff – XLxmp – yo, insert hook into indicated stitch or space, pull up a loop – 3 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo, insert hook into same indicated stitch or space, pull up a loop – 5 LOOP ON HOOK.  Yo, pull through 3 loops, [yo pull through 2 loops] twice.  You will use this stitch over the next couple rounds.

Join color B/2 with a standing xmp in the first dc of any side.  *XLxmp between the stitch just worked in and the next stitch, xmp in the next dc, ch 5, skip the corner space, xmp in the next dc.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting last xmp on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning xmp. DO NOT fasten off.  2 xmp and 1 XLxmp per side.  4 ch-5 corner spaces.

Round 3:

Ch 2 – counts as beginning hdc. Xmp in same stitch as join.  *(XLxmp, ch 2, XLxmp) in next stitch – new corner made, (xmp, hdc) in next stitch. Ch 5, skip the space, (hdc, xmp) in next stitch.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting last (hdc, xmp) on final repeat.  Join with a slst to 2^nd ch of beginning ch-2 and fasten off. 2 hdc, 2 xmp, 2 XLxmp, and 1 ch-5 space per side.  4 ch-2 corner spaces.

Round 4:

Join color C/3 with a standing dc in the first stitch after any ch-5 space – this should be an hdc and may be slightly closed off.  *XLxmp in the next 2 stitches, (XLxmp, ch 2, XLxmp, Ch 2, XLxmp) in the next corner space.  XLxmp in the next 2 stitches, dc in the next stitch, ch 5, skip the next space, dc in the next stitch.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting last dc on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning dc and fasten off. 6 XLxmp, 2 dc, 1 ch-5 space, and 2 ch-2 spaces per side.  4 corner XLxmps.

Round 5:

We have been building a ladder of chain spaces in the middle of our sides – please see photo above – Round #s labeled to side of chains.  Familiarize yourself with these chains as we will be working up and down that ‘ladder’ of chains over the next couple of rounds.

Note – when making the ch-7 and ch-9 spaces in this round, do not make them too tight.  If you tend to chain tight, add an extra link.

Join color D/4 with a standing sc in the first stitch after any ch-5 space.  *Sc in the next 3 stitches, skip the ch-2 space, (dc, ch 1, hdc, ch 1, hdc, ch 1, dc) in the next  corner stitch.  Skip the next ch-2 space, sc in the next 4 stitches.  Ch 7.  **Working down your ladder of chains toward your center, in front of, not over, your other round chains and stitches – sc in the Round 4 ch-sp, ch 1 [sc in the next round ch-space, ch 1] 2 times, sc in the Round 1 ch-sp. Working up your ladder of chains toward the edge again, in front of, not over your other round stitches – [Ch 1, sc in the next round ch space] 3 times. **  Ch 9.  Repeat from ** to ** one more time – you will be working up and down your chains twice. Ch 7.  Sc in the first stitch of the next side.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting last sc on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning sc and fasten off. 2 dc, 2 hdc, 12 sc into Round 4, 10 sc in ladder, 2 ch-7 spaces, 1 ch-9 space, and 3 ch-1 spaces per side.

At the end of this round you will have 4 rows of scs worked up and down the chains on each side of your square.  Slide the center 2 strands together and push the outside strands toward the corners, thereby forming a two ‘v’ motifs.  We will be working in the chains of these 2 ‘v’ motifs in the next round – see photo above far right. 

Round 6:

Special Stitch – Double Crochet Cluster – Dc clstr – yo, insert hook into indicated stitch or space and pull up a loop.  Yo, pull through 2 loops – 2 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo, insert hook into same indicated stitch or space and pull up a loop.  Yo, pull through 2 loops – 3 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo, pull through all 3 loops.

Join color E/5 with a standing dc clstr in the 2^nd sc after a center double ‘v’ motif.  *Ch 1, skip the next stitch, dc clstr in the next stitch, ch 1, skip the next stitch, dc clstr in the next space, ch 1, skip the next stitch, (dc clstr, ch 2, dc clstr) in the next space, ch 1, skip the next stitch, dc clstr in the next space.  [Ch 1, skip the next stitch, dc clstr in the next stitch] twice.  Ch 4, pull your chain behind the ch-7 and skip the next {sc, ch-7, sc}.  Working down your ladder of chain spaces of your 1^st ‘v’, between the stitches already there, in front of, not over, your other round chains and stitches – sc in the Round 4 ch-sp, sc in the Round 3 ch-sp. Ch 1, skip the Round 2 ch-sp, sc in the Round 5 sc at the bottom of your 1^st ‘v’.  Working up the ladder of chain spaces of your 1^st ‘v’ again, next to the stitches already there and in front of, not over, your other round chains and stitches – ch 1, skip the Round 2 ch-sp, sc in the Round 3 ch-sp, sc in the Round 4 ch-sp. Ch 2 and pull your chain behind the center ch-9.  Working down your ladder of chain spaces of your 2^nd ‘v’ motif, between the stitches already there, in front of, not over, your other round chains and stitches – sc in the Round 4 ch-sp, sc in the Round 3 ch-sp. Ch 1, skip the Round 2 ch-sp, sc in the Round 5 sc at the bottom of your 2^nd ‘v’.  Working up the ladder of chain spaces of your 2^nd ‘v’ again, next to the stitches already there and in front of, not over, your other round chains and stitches – ch 1, skip the Round 2 ch-sp, sc in the Round 3 ch-sp, sc in the Round 4 ch-sp.  Ch 4, pull your chain behind the ch-7 and skip the next {sc, ch-7, sc}.  Dc clstr in the next stitch.*   Repeat from * to * 3 more times, omitting last dc clstr on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning dc clstr and fasten off. 8 dc clstr, 6 ch-1 spaces on sides plus 4 ch-1 spaces worked down v’s, 10 scs, 1 ch-2 space and 2 ch-4s per side.

Your piece may be a bit unwieldy at this point.  Don’t worry, we will work to shore it up and flatten it out beginning with the next round.

Round 7:

Note:  In this round we will be tacking down the Round 5 ch-7 spaces.  You should have 2  per corner.  The trickiest part of this process will be making sure you have them laying correctly before tacking them down – see photo below.  When you look at these chains, you have a shorter part of the chain that terminates in a sc (blue arrows), and a longer part of the chain that continues down the ladder of stitches terminating in an sc at the base of your v (white arrows).  When pinning these down, keep the ‘short’ part of the chain on the outside edge of your corner petal and keep the ‘long’ part of the chain on the inside of your corner petal. Additional photos with puffs in place at end of round. In other words, be careful the chains don’t twist.

Special Stitch – puff - Insert your hook into the indicated stitch.  Pull up a loop – 2 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo and insert hook into same stitch.  Pull up a loop – 4 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo and insert hook into same stitch.  Pull up a loop – 6 LOOPS ON HOOK.    Yo and insert hook into same stitch.  Pull up a loop – 8 LOOPS ON HOOK.  YO and pull through all 8 loops.  Close stitch with a chain. Closing chain does not count as a stitch for pattern purposes.

Special Stitch specific to this pattern – Triple 3 Together – tr3tog – When working these be sure to work in front of, not over, your other round chains and between the stitches already there.  Yo 2 times, insert hook into Round 4 ch-space, pull up a loop, [yo, pull through 2 loops] twice – 2 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo 2 times, insert hook into Round 3 ch-space, pull up a loop, [yo pull through 2 loops] twice – 3 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo 2 times, insert hook into Round 4 ch-space again, pull up a loop, [yo pull through 2 loops] twice – 4 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo and pull though all 4 loops.

Join color F/6 with a standing sc in the first dc clstr after a ch-4.  *Sc in the next ch-1 space, ch 1, skip the next dc clstr.  Pulling your first ch-7 loop from Round 5 up to the next ch-1 space – keeping the short part of the chain on the outside, puff in the ch-7 space and the ch-1 space behind it together. Ch 1, skip the next dc clstr, puff in the next space, ch 1, skip the next dc clstr (puff, ch 1, puff) in the next corner space.  Ch 1, skip the next dc clstr, puff in the next space, ch 1, skip the next dc clstr. Pulling the next ch-7 loop from Round 5 up to the next ch- 1 space – keeping the short part of the chain on the outside, puff in the ch-7 space and the ch-1 space behind it together.  Ch 1, skip the next dc clstr, sc in the next space, sc in the next dc clstr.  Ch 2, tr 3tog in the round 4 and 3 ch-spaces – see above. Ch 2, pull your chain behind the center ch-9, tr 3tog in the next round 4 and 3 ch-spaces.  Ch 2, skip the ch-4 space and sc in the next dc clstr.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting last sc on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning sc and fasten off.  6 puffs, 6 ch-1 spaces, 4 scs, and 2 tr 3tog per side.

Round 8:

Note – when working into your puff stitches, work into the closing ch-1 at the top of the puff.

Join color G/3 with a standing sc in any ch-1 corner space.  (Ch 2, sc) in same space. *[Sc in the next puff, sc in the next ch-1 space] 3 times. FPtr around the ch-4 from Round 6.  Skip the next 2 Round 7 stitches, (2 hdc) in the next ch-2 space.  FPhdc around the next tr 3 tog, ch 2, skip the ch- 2 space and pull your ch-2 behind your ch-9 loop.  FPhdc around the next tr 3 tog, (2 hdc) in the next ch-2 space, FPtr around the next ch-4 from Round 6.  Skip the next 2 Round 7 stitches, [sc in the next ch-1 space, sc in the next puff] 3 times.  (Sc, ch 2, sc) in the next corner space.*  Repeat from * to * 3 more times, omitting corner sequence on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning sc or join with invisible join as we will be back posting in the next round.  Fasten off. 22 stitches and 1 ch-2 space per side.

Round 9:

Join color H/1 with a standing hdc in any corner space.  (Ch 2, hdc) in same space. *BPhdc around first 9 stitches of side.  Skip the next 2 stitches.  Working through the Round 5 ch-9 loop and the ch-2 spaces from Rounds 8 and 7 directly behind – enclosing all 3 together, (dc, ch 1, dc, ch 1, tr, ch 1, tr, ch 1, dc, ch 1, dc) – side shell made.  Skip the next 2 stitches, BPhdc around last 9 stitches of side.  (Hdc, ch 2, hdc) in the next corner space.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting corner sequence on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning hdc and fasten off. 26 stitches and 5 ch-1 spaces per side.

Round 10:

Join color I/5 with a standing hdc in any corner space.  (Ch 2, hdc) in same space.  *Hdc in the next 10 stitches, ch 5, skip the next side shell, pull your chain behind these stitches, hdc in the last 10 stitches of side.  (Hdc, ch 2, hdc) in the next corner space.* Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting corner sequence on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning hdc.  DO NOT fasten off.  22 stitches 1 ch-5 space per side.

Round 11:

Ch 2 – counts as 1^st hdc.  *(2 hdc, ch 2, 2 hdc) in the next corner space.  Skip the first ‘hidden’ stitch, hdc in the next 10 stitches, (3 hdc, ch 1, 3 hdc) in the ch-5 space.  Skip the next ‘hidden’ stitch, hdc in the last 10 stiches of the side.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting last hdc on final repeat.  Join with a slst to 2^nd ch of beginning ch-2 and fasten off.  30 stitches and 1 ch-1 space per side.

Round 12:

Special Stitch – Popcorn – pop - Work 5 dc in indicated stitch or space.  Drop the loop from your hook and insert hook from front to back in the first stitch of group.  Pick up the dropped loop and pull through stitch.  Close with a ch 1. Closing chain does not count as a stitch for pattern purposes.

Join color B/6 with a standing sc in any corner space.  (Ch 2, sc) in same space.  *Sc in the first 14 stitches – being careful not to miss first ‘hidden’ stitch.  Ch 3, skip the next stitch, pop in the ch-1 space from Round 9 between the 2 tr and the ch-1 space from Round 11 directly behind it together.  Ch 3, skip the next ‘hidden’ stitch, sc in the next 14 stitches.  (Sc, ch 2, sc) in the next corner space.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting corner sequence on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning sc and fasten off. 30 sc, 1 pop, and 2 ch-3s per side.

Round 13:

Special Stitch – Extended mini puff - xmp – insert hook into indicated stitch or space, pull up a loop – 2 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo, insert hook into same indicated stitch or space, pull up a loop – 4 LOOP ON HOOK.  Yo, pull through 3 loops, yo pull through last 2 loops. 

Special Stitch – Extra Large Extended mini puff – XLxmp – yo, insert hook into indicated stitch or space, pull up a loop – 3 LOOPS ON HOOK.  Yo, insert hook into same indicated stitch or space, pull up a loop – 5 LOOP ON HOOK.  Yo, pull through 3 loops, [yo pull through 2 loops] twice. 

Join color F/4 with a standing xmp in any corner space. (Ch 2, xmp) in the same space. *Ch 1, skip the first ‘hidden’ stitch, xmp in the next stitch.  [Ch 1, skip the next stitch, xmp in the next stitch] 6 times.  Ch 1, skip the next stitch. Working in front of – not over – the ch-3 - XLxmp in the skipped stitch from Round 11 – just before the pop.   FPsc around the pop. Working in front of – not over – the next ch-3 - XLxmp in the skipped ‘hidden’ stitch from Round 11 – just after the pop. Returning to Round 12 – [Ch 1, skip the next stitch, xmp in the next stitch] 7 times.  Ch 1, skip the last stitch of side, (xmp, ch 2, xmp) in the next corner space.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting corner sequence on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning xmp and fasten off. 19 stitches and 16 ch-1 spaces per side.

Round 14:

Join color I/2 with a standing sc in any corner space.  (Sc, ch 2, 2 sc) in same space.  *Sc in each stitch and ch-1 space across side.  (2 sc, ch 2, 2 sc) in the next corner space.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting corner sequence on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning sc and fasten off or join with invisible join if you will be back posting in the next round – see note before next round. 39 stitches per side.

Round 15:

For this round, I worked BPhdcs.  This does create some additional pull and is a bit of strain on the wrists.  If you prefer to work either a round of regular hdcs, or scs as size dictates feel free to.

Join color A/6 with a standing hdc in any corner space.  (Ch 2, hdc) in same space.  *Skip the first stitch, BPhdc around the next 38 stitches.  (Hdc, ch 2, hdc) in the next corner space.*  Repeat * to * 3 more times, omitting corner sequence on final repeat.  Join with a slst to beginning hdc and fasten off.  40 stitches per side.

Please Remember:

This pattern was written and designed by me, Lisa Mauser, for This Little Hook of Mine. I am happy to share it with you, but this pattern belongs to me and I retain all rights.  You may not distribute, sell, or share this pattern, or any parts of it.  If you wish to share the pattern, please refer the party you are sharing it with to the original pattern link. Though this pattern has been tested, it is not perfect.  If you find a mistake, please let me know in the comments below or through the contact me button and I will fix it.

Thank you for respecting my property.  I really hope you enjoyed the pattern!