"The idea for Citron came about when I was trying to figure out what to do with a beautiful skein of Malabrigo Lace yarn that I bought while traveling. I was really intrigued by the idea of incorporating ruching into a knit project, I love a repeating pattern, and the yardage in my single skein was just the right amount for a shawlette...put all of those together, and Citron was born.
My experience designing Citron was one of the very rare occurrences in which the process went exactly to plan. The stitch pattern worked, my math worked, and it turned out exactly how it looked in my head. That was the first time a design went so smoothly for me, and it was also probably the last!
It has been amazing seeing so many people knit the pattern and make it their own. Citron was published when I was relatively new to designing. In the first week, I think there were close to 100 projects posted on Ravelry – I remember watching as each new one appeared and being more blown away each time. I couldn't possibly pick a favorite, but I do love when people really personalize their Citrons by using handspun, adding stripes, or embellishing in some way, such as with beads. A few knitters have made Citrons for their, or their loved ones' weddings, and that is pretty special, too.
This pattern opened so many doors for me. I had no idea when I was gazing at that little green skein of laceweight 11 years ago that it would pave the way for a future career in the way that it did!"
Photo courtesy of Hilary Smith Callis.