Difficulty Ratings

Some of our patterns include a difficulty rating, on a scale from one sheep to five sheep. Here is a guide explaining what might be included at each level.

Beginner 1/5 sheep

Beginner knits should only include very basic knitting. Knit and purl stitches, casting on and off. Beginner crochet might include chain, double & treble stitches.

Easy 2/5 sheep

Easy knits should only include knit and purl stitch patterns, slip-stitch patterns, and simple lace. Basic increasing and decreasing. Knitting up stitches around neck, button/hole bands and armholes. Easy crochet may include shaping in crochet with basic sts (as above), easy lace sts.

Intermediate 3/5 sheep

Intermediate knits may feature cables, colourwork, more complicated lace patterns, or simple lace patterns that require shaping at the same time. Intermediate crochet may include shaping and more complex sts such as back or front loop.

Advanced 4 /5 sheep

Advanced knits require some specialised knowledge of techniques such as Fair Isle, Aran, lesser used abbreviations and more complicated shaping. Advanced crochet would include tunisian or intarsia styles.

Challenge 5/5 sheep

Challenge knits and crochet would require a high level of concentration (no TV knitting here!), and may include make-and-lose patterns, all-over patterns, every row patterns, or unusual techniques.