Tournament of Stitches Mystery Make-Along 2022

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For those of you who joined us for the Game Day make-along back in February, you know the great time we had making a mystery project together. Make-alongs, especially mystery make-alongs, are among your favorite projects here at Marly Bird. And it’s time for our next one: Tournament of Stitches 2022. Over the years, we have learned a LOT from our many mystery make-alongs and are using what we learned to make this one better!

Things will be run a little different for this mystery make-along, so be sure to read the full post below to know how it works and how to participate.

There is a pattern for the knitters, crocheters, and Tunisian crocheters because we know this is a bicrafty community! All skill levels will be covered so please be sure to join in the fun!

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History of the Tournament of Stitches 2022 Mystery Make-Along

We started this annual event in 2018 during March Madness. Therefore, 2022 is the fifth annual Tournament of Stitches event. We’re excited to keep growing this each year. More and more people participate each year. We get better at streamlining the whole process, design new creative projects, and keeping it all running smoothly.

Past Tournament of Stitches Patterns

It’s the most fun if you join in during the make-along, so you can be part of the community and uncover what we’re making together. That said, though, we put a lot of effort into creating great timeless patterns that you’ll want to use again and again. See what we’ve made in the past:

2021 Tournament of Stitches; this year’s crochet pillow/throw pattern is one of my most popular Ravelry crochet patterns to date
2020 Tournament of Stitches; this year’s crochet scarf pattern is one of my most popular Ravelry crochet patterns to date
2019 Tournament of Stitches
2018 Tournament of Stitches

Each post has the clues to the patterns as well as links to the ad-free PDF versions of the completed patterns where available.

What is the Tournament of Stitches Mystery Make-Along?

The Tournament of Stitches mystery make-along is held during the time of college basketball March Madness. It is a great way for us to come together as a community and make something that is the same but different. Sound confusing? I hope not.

For the Knit and Crochet projects, think of the old, “choose your own adventure” stories you probably read as a kid, this will be similar to that.

(**Note: the Tunisian project is only one pattern without concentration levels**)

Your first choice is whether you want to make a shawl or a cowl. Once you decide that, you will follow along with the instructions for that piece.

Each week there will be a set of plays for you to choose and each play will have the concentration level attached (see chart below). You get to choose the concentration level you want to use for each week’s instruction.

Once you select concentration level, simply work up the pattern for that play, then wait for the next week to continue with the project.

On the next week, you will have another set of plays to choose from, and again, you can select which concentration level you want to follow for that week.

The cool thing is we’ve written the pattern in such a way that you can mix and match concentration levels. Therefore, you don’t have to stick to the same one each week.

After five weeks you will have a finished shawl or cowl that was a mystery to you (and to us) prior to you making it.

Tournament of Stitches Make-Along Concentration Levels

Concentration levels are based on how much concentration you need to put into the pattern as you are working it. We have broken them out as the following:

“Netflix and Chill” Knitter/Crocheter–This is a knitter/crocheter who might be watching something more detailed that they want to pay attention to but aren’t so involved in what they are doing that they don’t want to keep track of what they are working on. These plays have detailed stitch patterns that still allow you to hold a conversion with one person or watch a light TV program.
“Smooth Jazz” Knitter/Crocheter–This is a knitter/crocheter who can have some noise in the background but not something that they need to focus on. When you listen to music, think smooth jazz, you can hear the music but you don’t really need to be listening to the words. These plays will have stitch patterns that are more beefy than the first concentration level and will require some thinking.
“Be Quiet, I’m Knitting/Crocheting” Knitter/Crocheter–This is a knitter/crocheter who will need to have a quiet house so they can count and make sure they are following the stitch pattern correctly. These plays will have more complicated stitch patterns and will need more counting as you work them. These plays require the most focus

When is the Tournament of Stitches Mystery Make-Along?

Every year the Tournament of Stitches Mystery Make-Along is held around the same time as the NCAA March Madness Basketball Tournament.

How do I Participate in the Tournament of Stitches Mystery Make-Along?

To participate in the ⭐️ There is a sign up form ⭐️.
Join the Marly’s Minions Facebook Group where we chat about the event all month long.
Get your materials – This is sent to your email inbox after you sign up.
Add your project to Ravelry ➡️ Knitting ➡️ Crochet ➡️ Tunisian
Mark you calendar!
Return to the blog throughout the event for the plays, which you’ll find linked below.
As you work on the project, post progress pictures on Facebook and Instagram with the tag #tournamentofstitches #tosMarlyBird #MMMDI. When you do, you’ll have the chance to win various surprise mystery prizes!
Grand Prize details coming soon.

How Do I get the Plays for Each Week for the Tournament of Stitches 2022?

Beginning March 15, 2022, the plays will be added in a post here on the MarlyBird.com website. After the event, the free version of the patterns will be removed this year and made available for purchase as a set under the name Stitch Switch.

Get the Stitch Switch vol. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. As they are available they are listed in my Etsy Shop, Ravelry and Marly Bird Pattern Store.

Sounds Great, What are We Making?

So traditionally, when it is a mystery make-along it is truly a mystery from start to finish. This one is slightly different in that I want you to know what the final project is so that you can decide which plays you want to follow, but the mystery is that you still don’t have any idea what it looks like.

As I mentioned before, you need to decide if you are making the shawl or cowl before you get started.

Then, each week select with concentration level play you want to follow.

Remember, you can mix and match concentration levels each week. So, if you select “Netflix and Chill” in week one, you can still choose “Be Quiet, I’m knitting/crocheting” in week 2.

Materials for Tournament of Stitches 2022 Mystery Make-Along

We chose a yarn weight that is easily accessible to most. This year, we are featuring the WeCrochet and KnitPicks Yarn for the samples, but you can use any yarn you choose that is fingering weight for the knit and crochet project, or DK for tunisian crochet, as long as you get gauge!

As for color choice, the sample is made in one color.

Also, because I know you all are going to ask, like many of the Game Day Mystery Make-along events, we do not suggest using any variegated yarns. We think it is best to choose solid or semi solid colors of yarn.

The yarn amounts are different for each craft … and notice this year we are including another craft option for those of you who are triple threat bicrafters…TUNISIAN CROCHET*!

As noted above, the Tunisian project is just a normal pattern without concentration levels. For those of you wanting to try tunisian, you will have fun with the “normal” mystery make-along 🙂

Here’s what you’ll need to gather before the event begins:

Crochet

Materials needed for Tournament of Stitches Mystery Make-Along 2022

Hook: E (3.5mm) *or size to obtain gauge
Yarn: WeCrochet Comfy Fingering, 50g / 218 yds =
- Shawl: 10 balls
- Cowl: 5 balls
Notions: Stitch Markers, Tapestry Needles