A new MKAL is up!

Don't you fret, Boba Fett--a new knit will keep you curious, not judgemental.

It's no secret that I host a fun Mystery Knit-a-Long this time of year, so I've been working very hush-hush behind the scenes to get everything ready for you!

For the past several MKALs, I’ve chosen the theme of either a movie or tv-show that makes us howl with laughter. This year is no exception—it’s a comedy for sure—but it’s also a show that works through grief and forgiveness, with a central premise that doing the right thing is never the wrong thing.

I give you:

Believe: An MKAL the Lasso Way is a mystery pattern for a festival of stitches shawl/wrap in 6 clues that begins on Feb. 27, 2026. It’s an homage to Apple TV’s Ted Lasso—a comedy-drama about a folksy, optimistic American football coach who winds up heading an English professional soccer (read: football) team.

How do you describe a show that isn’t just a comedy about sports-ball but also shows you a vision of the kind of person you know you can be?

I first started watching Ted Lasso back in 2020 when I finally caved to Apple TV’s ad campaign, and because it was 2020 so what else was I going to do? I’d enjoyed Jason Sudeikis ever since his SNL days, but wasn’t quite expecting to experience emotional growth from a show full of folksy puns and more 80s references than a Duran Duran revival tour.

Ted knows next to nothing about soccer, hates tea; but he can bake biscuits with the best of them and manages to win over the press corps, some die-hard football fans who call him “w-nker,” and even grouchy Roy (“this is why it’s hard to love you”) Kent.

The pattern is available on both Ravelry and Payhip (a nice alternative if you can’t use Paypal or Rav), and it’s on sale at a discount before the first clue drops:

There’s more info on the actual pattern pages, but to summarize:

How Does This Work?

• It’s a knitting pattern for a generous, rectangular shawl/wrap/scarf-thingy.

• Those purchasing the pattern during the pre-sale period (see below) will receive a planning sheet with gauge and materials info.

• There will be 6 clues for the mkal. Clue 1 drops on Friday, Feb 27th, 2026 with clues 2-6 releasing on each of the following Fridays.

• As each clue is published, you’ll receive an update with that clue via Ravelry download or through Payhip, depending on where you purchased.

• We can chat about each clue in my Ravelry Group and/or our mkal Facebook group .

What Am I Getting Myself Into?

• The pattern is written for 4 full (400 yard) skeins of fingering weight yarn in 4 different colors

• There is non-stranded colorwork, but no brioche, no short rows, or stranding (tho there is a stitch pattern that will occasionally have you use 2 strands of yarn on a single row—it’s not at all what you’d think of as stranded)

• There might be any of the following stitch types: Lace, dip stitches, drop stitches, slip stitches, eyelets, twisted sts, stitches violating the off-sides rule (just kidding…)

• To give you a break if you need one, I’m making it easy for you to occasionally substitute a different stitch pattern if you prefer.

• I’ll support the pattern with several video tutorials, and all stitch patterns will be written out in line-by-line style. Any charts will have line-by-line directions accompanying them. Yep, I’ve got you covered.

• There will be several show references in the pattern, but you won’t need to get the jokes in order to work the actual shawl instructions.

What About Yarn Colors?

For the pattern, I used a set of Yummy 2-ply from Miss Babs. Kits are be available here and they're gorgeous! Other dyers will be offering sets as well, and I'm adding them all to the grand list on the pattern page. Meanwhile, here are the yarn details:

• 4 full skeins of 4 different colors (“C1, C2, C3, and the CC”) of fingering weight that play nicely with each other. Any of them can be slightly speckled, but I wouldn’t recommend it be much busier than that.

• Each skein needs to have a solid 400 yds (more is fine) to make sure that you have enough yarn for the project. The 400 yds includes some wiggle room provided you meet gauge.

• CC is the contrasting colorway, and it needs to contrast with C1, C2, and C3 since it will be used in colorwork with each of these 3 colors individually.

• C1, C2, and C3 don’t have to have much contrast with each other—they much only contrast individually with the CC.

• C1, C2, and C3 can be in a gradient (my set is) but they don’t have to be.

Here’s the set I used:

I chose this absolutely perfect yellow (“Vincent”) paired with sporty blues as a nod to the iconic “Believe” sign hanging from the wall of the team locker room.

I hope you’ll join me in this little knitting journey—we’re going to have some fun, learn new stitch patterns, share some laughs, and maybe even become the best version of ourselves on and off the needles.

With that, I’m off to re-apply my lip liner :o

See you in the chats,

Mary (aka Lyrical Knits)

P.S. In case you haven’t seen the show, please know that while it’s a pretty wholesome watch, it is NOT Suitable for Kids or work!

P.P.S. Wanna Get Away? Join me in Michigan this coming September for a lovely retreat celebrating Emma’s Yarns and lots of fun colorwork! I’m teaming up with Lisa Ross (PaperDaisy) and Stephanie Lotven (TellyBeanKnits)—who are both so cute I absolutely want to squiiish them—for a fun weekend of colorful knitting and companionship. Click the photo for more info and to register: