Featured Knitting Patterns

My portfolio showcases various projects created throughout my career. For a full list of my designs, go to Duke of Nikko Ravelry Page or LoveCrafts Designer Page as well as Payhip Store.

Published Works

Ancient Arts Fibre Crafts – North Sea Collection – Winter 2023

The North Sea Collection features Ancient Arts Fibre’s Herlig DK yarn. I wanted to showcase their amazing color portfolio by using whopping 10 colors in this oversized stole design. The motif is a traditional Japanese pattern called Tatewaku (Rising Steam). The subtle yet elegant movement of steam is achieved by combining stitch increases and decreases.

This is by far my most ambitious design to date, and I thank the Ancient Arts Fibre team for allowing me to express myself.

Both the collection and the individual pattern are available as a PDF download.

Radicle Threads – Issue 3 (Occult) – Fall 2022

My Kuro Sumi Scarf was featured in the Occult-themed issue. The double-knit scarf represents ying and yang of the universe using inspirations from Japanese kanji characters of Black ( 黒 – Kuro) and Ink (墨 – Sumi). One half of the scarf (Kuro) illustrates a typical kaidan (Japanese ghost story) scene: a moon, black crows, and a willow tree, while the other half (Sumi) illustrates abstract elements of the cosmic world.

You can get a digital copy of the magazine.

Ancient Arts Fibre Crafts – Lascaux DK Fall/Winter 2021 Pattern Collection

Ancient Arts Yarns reached out to me and asked me to design for their new yarn base Lascaux DK. I took inspirations from nature again, and designed Matsu Hat.

This stranded knit hat pattern incorporates a Japanese kanji character “Matsu (松/Pine)! Pine trees are adored in Japan, and are the traditional subject of many beautiful artworks. The motifs representing this iconic tree flow around the hat, presenting images showing different shapes and aspects of pine trees.

Both the collection and the individual pattern are available as a PDF download.

Ancient Arts Fibre Crafts – Lascaux Fine 2021 Collection

Ancient Arts Yarns is a Canadian dyer specializing in high quality artisanal yarns. Their Lascaux Fine line is a 2-ply fingering weight yarn with Manx Loaghtan wool and Punta Arenas wool.

My “Kaze Hat” is included in their 2021 Collection. The stranded-knit hat incorporates a Japanese kanji character “Kaze (風, Wind).” The motifs continue around the hat just like the beautiful multi-panel screens of Byobu, presenting a series of images related to different aspects of winds. Both the collection and the individual pattern are available as a PDF download.

Nomadic Knits – Issue Eight: Washington (2020)

Nomadic Knits is a quarterly publication featuring specific states of the U.S. in each issue. Issue Eight features Washington State.

My “Midori Hat” was inspired by the Evergreen State. The stranded-knit pattern uses a Japanese kanji character Midori (緑), meaning Green, as the main motif. I also wrote an essay for this issue talking about my cultural heritage as a Japanese American. The issue is available in print and for PDF download.

The individual pattern is also available on Ravelry, Payhip and LoveCrafts.