This is my first time devising my own pattern from scratch! Previously I improvised mittens to match an Icelandic style hat, but that was merely adjusting an existing pattern.

I intend for this to be a retirement gift for a coworker. I’m not 100% sure if she is retiring at the end of this school year, but better to be prepared. She regularly does sudoku puzzles on her lunch, etc., so when I thought of knitting something for her, sudoku came to mind immediately. At first I contemplated a sudoku-themed blanket, where each square is a separate square I could then seam together—but that just seemed like a lot of work. A pillow provides a nice rectangular surface for the puzzle but will be more easily accomplished.