Valley Yarns Sun Star Knitting Pattern

Valley Yarns Sun Star Wine Tote Bag

What is Being Made

The Valley Yarns Sun Star is a hand-knit wine bottle tote bag designed by Susan Baron. This intermediate-level project creates a practical and elegant gift bag for delivering wine bottles to hostesses. The finished tote measures 10 inches in circumference and 12 inches in height, making it perfectly sized to cradle a standard wine bottle. The tote is crafted from Valley Yarns Haydenville yarn, a durable blend of superwash merino wool and acrylic microfiber that resists moisture and spills—essential qualities for a functional wine carrier.

Techniques Used

This tote employs several key knitting techniques that contribute to its construction and visual appeal. The garment is worked in the round, creating a seamless, tubular structure from start to finish. The bottom-up construction method begins with a flat base and builds upward to the opening, allowing knitters to try on the tote as they work and adjust the length as needed. The seamless approach eliminates the need for finishing seams, resulting in a smooth, professional appearance both inside and out.

Cable knitting is a central design element, with a seeded cable motif running up the body of the tote. This textured stitch pattern creates visual interest and adds structural integrity to the fabric. The cable section comprises three complete 24-round repeats, measuring approximately 9¾ inches in height. At the neck of the tote, the stitch pattern transitions from the seeded cable design to a seeded rib pattern that incorporates eyelets. These eyelets serve a functional purpose, allowing a drawstring to be threaded through for securing the tote opening around the bottle neck.

Stitches Used

The Sun Star tote utilizes fundamental knitting stitches combined in strategic ways. Knit stitches form the base of the fabric, while purl stitches create the textured seeded patterns that alternate with cable work. Yarn forward (kfb) increases are used during the base construction to expand the stitch count from the initial 8 stitches to the full circumference needed for the tote body. Cable stitches are worked using a cable needle to create the twisted, dimensional effects characteristic of the seeded cable pattern. The ribbing in the neck section combines knit and purl stitches in alternating sequences, creating vertical lines that provide elasticity and help the drawstring opening conform snugly around the bottle.

Materials and Tools

The Sun Star requires one 100-gram skein of Valley Yarns Haydenville yarn in color 28 Silver, which provides 220 yards of fiber. This yarn is composed of 60% superwash merino wool and 40% acrylic microfiber, offering both the warmth and workability of wool with the durability and easy-care properties of synthetic fiber. The superwash treatment ensures the finished tote can be gently laundered without felting.

Needles for this project include US size 6 (4.0 mm) double-pointed needles for the base construction and a 10-inch US size 6 circular needle for the body, or alternatively a 40-inch circular needle worked using the Magic Loop method. Additional tools required are a cable needle for manipulating cable stitches, stitch markers to denote pattern repeats and the beginning of rounds, and a tapestry needle for weaving in yarn ends and any finishing work. The recommended gauge is 14 stitches and 24 rounds per 2½ inches wide by 3¼ inches high when the seeded cable pattern is blocked, ensuring the finished tote will have the intended dimensions and appropriate drape.