Basically: knit any pattern of the designs featured in these MDK March Mayhem brackets.
Show and tell here—seek counsel for your questions, help out a fellow knitter who’s stuck. And share your progress on Instagram, with the hashtag #MDKMarchMayhemKAL.
How to Participate
Start date: this minute!
Duration: we honestly don’t have an end date. This may become a long-running knitalong.
Consult the bracket. Buy a pattern. Order up yarn from us if you feel a need for new yarn. (Of course you do! Have a stroll through our juicy offerings.)
If you’ve already started a Mayhem project, that’s great—projects in progress are fine. This isn’t a speed contest; it’s a let’s-all-knit-cool-stuff-together thing.
My plan is to FINALLY knit The Twigs, in Rowan Felted Tweed, which comes in perfect colors for it. I won’t be able to achieve the prescribed gauge, but I also want mine to come out a lot bigger than the size of the sample, so: WINNING.
It’s a Junko Okamoto doubleheader! You’re doing The Twigs, Kay, and I’m resuscitating my Papa pullover, aka the duplicate stitch long haul. Here’s my last post about this amazing design.
I am going to cast on for Ursa. I have never worn a cropped sweater but I am embracing the unknown and it looked great on the pretty model. It will be ideal for a walk on the boardwalk. I am going to swatch with the Lichen and Lace, Pressed Flowers that i bought a while back from MDK. I am still going to work on the other sweater that I cast on last week but what the heck else am I going to do when I binge watch stuff?
Presently I am listening to a danish book ( in english ) called the Chestnut Man, or something like that. I also bought some extra audible credits so I will not be with out a book to hear. Recommendations are welcome. I like crime and mystery.
Well, I bought enough Mingo while in Lisbon over Christmas to make the Weekender. But I’ve got the Big squeeze cardigan to finish first and then I promised my husband a jacket. I’ll add this to the queue.
I love so many of the patterns, but the Capel Cross made me go “OH” when I saw it. An opportunity to use Rowan Felted Tweed again and a lovely sweater. I do want to convert it from flat to in the round. I prefer not to purl and really want to try out that steeking method with the brush and needles. Any tips or hints are appreciated!
I just listened to Say Nothing by Patrick Keefe. True story of an abduction and murder of a widowed mother of 10 during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Narrated by an Irishman. Very compelling. Also American Dirt.
This year it’s socks for me. Sisters United will be on the needles as soon as the yarn arrives. I’m sitting here in Mistigri, a sweater from last yrs MM as I type this.
Resistance was futile. I bought the Indira shawl pattern today. It’s just too pretty to miss the opportunity to knit. I received some pink Brooklyn Tweed Peerie and some pink mohair as a gift and look forward to a new pattern with new to me yarn.
I love you two. But respectfully, I find myself at odds with this each year. May I elaborate?
The ballot’s thumbnails are terribly small. Frankly I don’t want to belabor the process by clicking on each one to see an enlarged photo. Furthermore, why can’t I just double click or drag the design I like to add it to the ballot?
I’m a sweater knitter. I don’t knit socks. I don’t knit wraps often. I rarely knit hats. I knit sweaters. Why must I also choose 8 patterns from categories in which I have little to no interest in order to cast my vote?
After choosing an entry, I have to then go down to the bottom of the page to find it in its category to cast my vote. However the order of the categories themselves is different from the thumbnail areas to the ballot. Additionally the listings within the categories is changed. Why is this process more difficult than it should be.
I have cast my ballot. I have selected eight sweaters (because I had to). I really only liked four. This results in misinformation when the votes are counted.
I like the idea of March Mayhem, but the process itself is flawed.
With kindness, and meant to inform and not offend,
There’s a reason for every one of those things. We spend a lot of time and thought on this. Of course we’re open to all comments and suggestions, but it’s not possible, for example, to cater to an individual knitter’s specific interests. This is for all knitters and we choose our categories based on the nominations that we receive and because they are of proven interest to the wide knitting audience. The ballot scrambles the entries so that it’s fair to all the designers–no one is consistently at the top or the bottom of the ballot. We make people vote for 8 in each category in this round, and 4 in the next (it does get easier), because otherwise the voting would be weighted. That’s one way to do it but the way we do it means that the designers with a smaller platform have a fairer shot.
Thanks for the explanation Kay. You are two highly intelligent people, and I felt certain the design was a reasoned one. Last year I abstained due to the stated structure; this year I opted to participate. It’s always interesting to see the results.
Cyber hugs (as endorsed by the WHO), and thank you both for all you do to enrich our knitting lives,
Thank you for the explanation Kay. I look forward to this fun event. I like to knit all the things. Shawls are not my favorite, but I like to see the different patterns. I will be making the Woolly Wormhead hat!! Thank you both for all you do, especially during this difficult time.
. I needed an excuse to do The Shift cowl from last years March Madness. I’ve started tonight 
