Terwilliger Versatile Pattern and Interview with Rilana Riley-Munson

Our latest free pattern is the Terwilliger Versatile in Galler Yarns Heather Prime Alpaca by Rilana Riley-Munson.

Rilana's design uses a pattern stitch that makes a reversible project which can be worn many ways: looped around the neck as a cowl, draped low in the front, or placed at the back of the neck with one side pulled through as a scarf.

I had a lot of fun modeling Rilana's sample!

Rilana likes naming her patterns after places near her home.   She named this infinity-type scarf after Terwilliger Boulevard in SW Portland, as well as a dangerous stretch of Interstate 5 called the “Terwilliger Curves.” The pattern stitch displays curving diamonds, twisting back and forth. 

A detail of the stitch pattern.

Download Terwilliger Versatile PDF Pattern

We had the chance to interview Rilana, who is currently working on another pattern for Galler Yarns.  Rilana Riley-Munson is a part-time knit designer who has been published in Vampire Knits and Knits For Nerds.  She resides in the lovely city of Portland, Oregon with her husband, teenaged daughter, yarn stash, and three cats. She knits and crochets almost constantly and rarely sits with her hands idle for long.  


You can find Rilana online on her blog, on Twitter, and on Ravelry (as rilana and on her designer page).


Galler Yarns (GY): How did you first get started knitting?
Rilana: Well, I was a long time crocheter. My mother taught me to crochet as a teenager. In early 2004, my husband was leaving on a two week business trip. Rather than sit home in the evenings, whining about how much I miss him, or how bored I was, I decided to purchase a knitting how-to book, a pair of #8 needles, and two skeins of worsted weight yarn. I spent the next two weeks teaching myself to knit from that book and a few online videos. I made a horrible striped garter stitch scarf...and the rest, they say, is history. I knit and crochet right-handed, despite my being a lefty.


GY: What was your original inspiration for publishing your designs?
Rilana: In the beginning, I just made up simple knits and published them for free on my blog, for my knitting friends to make, too. I began designing patterns mostly for fun. Then Ravelry came along. My knit designing took on a life of its own, thanks to the Ravelry community. I have continued knitting and designing, because I find that I enjoy it - even the math that is required for designing...and math is not one of my strong suits.


GY: Where do you generally find your creative inspiration?
Rilana: A lot of my designs came about because I want to wear them. I tend to design what I like at that given moment. I find inspiration in textures, colors, nature, mood, in the media (books, music, movies, tv shows, etc.), and sometimes just the yarn inspires me. Also, I'm plus-sized, myself. I think there should be more fun and cute knits for the fuller figured girls out there.


GY: Why did you choose Heather Prime Alpaca for this design?
Rilana: I chose Heather Prime Alpaca for my cowl design because it was a smooth, simple-looking yarn with a good selection of colors. The cowl has a lot of texture going on in the pattern stitch. I needed a simple, almost plain-style yarn to show off the pattern. I tend to gravitate to smooth yarns and highly textured knitting. I don't use too many novelty style yarns. I prefer the basic, classic yarns.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing this versatile design, Rilana!