How to Use Ravelry

With the rise of Generative AI, it’s getting harder and harder to find crochet (and knitting) patterns that aren’t slop. Etsy is full of AI ‘patterns’; so is Pinterest. And, unfortunately, the image generators are getting better and better at simulating stitches.

While we highly recommend that everyone improve their media literacy and learn how to spot AI in the wild, it can be alarmingly easy to get tricked out of your money.

Thankfully, some sites are fighting back, including Ribblr and Ravelry (neither of these platforms allows gen AI). While Ribblr isn’t my personal cup of tea due to the formatting of patterns, I have been in a love affair with Ravelry for over a decade.

I know, I know – there are still diehard Etsy supporters (like my sister), but I want to encourage you to spend a little time trying to understand and get to know the Ravelry platform. While it might not seem as user-friendly as Etsy at first, it’s amazing once you learn its quirks (oh, and it’s free of MAGA shit, so that’s a bonus).

Updated: August 2026

First things first – there is no official Ravelry app to access the site. There are apps out there, but I’ve never found them necessary.

Like I said, I’ve been using the website for over a decade, on shitty laptops and old iPhones.

The easiest way I’ve found is to add a shortcut icon to the website on your smartphone/tablet home screen (or simply log in via our computer).

Follow these links for adding a website icon on an iPhone or Android.

Okay, so now that we have our shortcut saved, the first thing to understand about searching on Ravelry is that it’s not simply a place to buy and sell – it’s an amazing library of patterns – old and new; discontinued and still kicking; knitting, crochet, and other fibre arts. 

So, try to get your head around the idea that you’re searching in a giant catalogue of thousands of possibilities.

You wouldn’t pull up to your local library and complain that it’s not laid out like a 7/11. Mate, this is way, way better! There are so many beautiful, weird, and wacky designs at your fingertips.

Sign up for your free account, and let’s get crack-a-lackin’.

The first thing you are going to want to get your head around is the advanced search filter.

Remember – this isn’t Etsy. We’re getting down to the knitty-gritty (get it?) of each design.

Want to make a crochet sweater? Fantastic! Type in ‘sweater‘ and click on ‘patterns‘. Woop! Almost 250,000 designs have come up. Let’s narrow it down…

Click on Filter Results / Craft – if we choose Crochet, that narrows it down to around 29,000 options.

Click on Filter Results / Attributes / Construction. Did you want to make that sweater top-down or bottom-up? How about worked flat or worked in the round?

Do you know the yarn weight you want to use? Click Weight. Only know US crochet terms? Click Crochet Terminology.

Low on funds? Click Availability / Free! You can also choose all the options except Discontinued to eliminate designs that are no longer available.

You can play with these filters until you’re happy, and then just have a little browse through what comes up.

Once you’ve found a pattern you like, click on it to see all the details.

When a designer uploads a pattern to Ravelry, there is far more info to enter than Etsy (and I think this is what puts people off listing on Ravelry – including scammers).

You’ll be able to see the category, when the pattern was published, the yarn weight, the gauge (if it’s relevant), hook size, yardage, sizes, terminology, languages, etc.

There will also be a notes section where the designer can describe the design. Make sure you read all the info to see if the pattern is what you’re looking for.

You can also click on Projects and Comments above the picture. Projects lets you see if others have made the design. This is one of my favourite features of Ravelry because you can get a peek at other people’s work. I’ll explain more below on how to add your projects to Ravelry.

Comments are public notes people have made to the designer or about the pattern. This will often tell you if people have had issues (and is very helpful if you’re making a pattern out of a book because sometimes people include helpful tips and fixes).

When you’re ready to start a project with the pattern you found, just click ‘create project’ on the pattern page (or you can click on your profile pic / Projects and go from there).

I have been tracking my projects on Ravelry for years (including patterns that aren’t on Ravelry).

It’s a great way to keep track of all the info on your project (pattern, hook size, yarn, etc). This has saved me many, many times when I want to make a project again down the track, or I can’t quite remember a modification I made – I always add changes to the notes section.

This is also a great way to share what you’re working on with your Ravelry friends!

I’m up to 466 projects and counting…

One of my absolute favourite perks of Ravelry is the pattern Library.

Every pattern that you buy is saved to your Library.

To find it, click on your profile pic (or My Notebook on a computer) and Library.

That’s right! No more losing a pattern again… and you can search through your library.

As a designer, I know that people have issues downloading digital files on Etsy (because I used to get several messages a week about it). I’ve never gotten a message about a Ravelry download. It’s easy! 

When you buy a pattern on Ravelry, you’re immediately given a link to download as well as an email. 

Even if you lose it, you can easily find it again in your Library. 

Ravelry also allows designers to easily upload updates to patterns (which is another feature that sucks on Etsy). 

Another really cool feature of Ravelry is being able to look up a specific yarn.

Go to Menu / Yarns and type in the yarn you want to learn more about.

Let’s look up one of my faves: Lion Brand Color Theory by Two of Wands.

Because someone has kindly entered all the info into the database, I can see that Color Theory is: worsted weight, 225m per ball, 100% acrylic, machine-washable, etc.

Oh, and I can also check out the projects that people have made with the yarn by clicking ‘Projects‘ at the top of the page (there are over 21,000 of them, by the way)! 

This is awesome when you’re looking for some ideas on what to make with a yarn in your stash.

And speaking of your Stash, you can log all of your yarn purchases into Ravelry to keep track of what you have.

Now, this isn’t a feature that I’ve used, but my Virgo heart longs to have my yarn stash that organised! Please tell me that you guys also have yarn in random containers, plastic storage boxes, in your TV cabinet… 

You can also search through other people’s stashes to see if they have a yarn you need that they’re willing to sell.

I haven’t purchased yarn on Ravelry, but this is a great place to look if you need a hard-to-find yarn to finish a project. 

If you’ve had trouble navigating Ravelry, I hope this article has helped.

Don’t be afraid to play around… click some things… get to know the site. Don’t be intimidated by all the filters.

Just remember – Ravelry is a library of patterns, not just a place for designers to sell to you. So, enjoy the learning experience.