Trailing Vines Tote Bag in Deramores Studio DK Acrylic - Downloadable PDF

Trailing Vines Tote Bag Knitting Pattern by Wendy Kippax – Deramores Studio DK Acrylic

The Trailing Vines Tote Bag is an original knitting pattern designed by Wendy Kippax, available as a downloadable PDF. This beautifully conceived project produces a fully functional over-the-shoulder tote bag featuring an elegant vine motif that winds its way across the fabric, evoking the charm of branching vines creeping up a warm stone wall. With its vintage country lady aesthetic, this bag is as decorative as it is practical, making it an ideal project for knitters who want to create a stylish accessory with real character.

Design Overview

The Trailing Vines Tote Bag is cleverly constructed as a single knitted piece, eliminating the need for a bottom seam and giving the finished bag a clean, professional finish. The vine pattern is a central design feature, but it is worked differently on each side of the bag to add visual interest:

• Front panel: The vine pattern is worked vertically through the centre of the fabric.
• Back panel: The vine pattern is worked horizontally, creating a pleasing contrast between the two sides.

This thoughtful approach to the vine placement means that no matter which way you carry the bag, the trailing vine motif flows naturally and consistently in the same direction. The long over-the-shoulder strap is knitted separately and then stitched on when the bag is sewn together, keeping the construction straightforward and manageable.

Construction Method

One of the most distinctive features of this pattern is its use of a provisional cast on, worked with a crochet hook and a long piece of smooth yarn. This technique allows the knitter to begin at what will become the centre of the bag and work outward in both directions, so that both sides of the bag can be knitted without creating a bottom seam. The provisional cast on is a valuable intermediate-level skill that produces a neat, seamless base — a key reason this pattern is rated as intermediate difficulty.

Once the provisional stitches are released, the live stitches are picked up and the second half of the bag is worked in the opposite direction. This ensures that the vine motifs trail consistently and symmetrically across the finished piece, just as the designer intended.

Techniques Used

• Provisional cast on using a crochet hook and smooth waste yarn — an intermediate technique that creates a seamless, live-stitch edge for working in both directions
• Colourwork with two yarns — the pattern uses at least two yarn colours (referred to as Yarn A and Yarn B), with careful yarn management to avoid holes when changing between colours
• Yarn twisting at colour changes — when switching between Yarn A and Yarn B, the new yarn is taken behind and under the old yarn to lock the colours together neatly and prevent gaps in the fabric
• Seaming and strap attachment — the bag is sewn together on completion, with the long shoulder strap stitched on as a finishing step

Stitches Used

• Stocking stitch — used to form the main body of the bag, providing a smooth, classic knitted fabric as a backdrop for the vine motif
• Moss stitch — worked in panels of 20 stitches, moss stitch adds a beautifully textured contrast to the smooth stocking stitch sections and contributes to the vintage, artisan feel of the design
• Vine pattern — a decorative stitch pattern forming the central motif of the bag, worked vertically on the front and horizontally on the back

Materials

This pattern is written for Deramores Studio DK Acrylic yarn, a reliable and widely available DK weight yarn from the Deramores brand. The pattern uses a minimum of two colours — Yarn A and Yarn B — to achieve the colourwork vine design. The recommended needle size is 4mm knitting needles. A crochet hook is also required for working the provisional cast on, along with a length of smooth waste yarn for that initial cast on stage.