>> Fair warning, I will be worse than useless when it comes to picking patterns - nonfunctioning eyeballs - so I'll leave that to the expert. <<
While I understand that this may make the selection more challenging because you can't glance at pictures, it should be possible for you to touch things and feel patterns that way. For many vision-impaired people, pattern is a big part of the appeal because they can't see colors much if at all. So for instance, you might like cableknit with a two-strand twist or a three-strand braid. For shawls, some people like lacey holes or little bundles of stitches that stand up. Working with two different yarns (the blue and silver you mentioned) you could have different textures between them; metallic yarn is usually scratchier than regular yarn. Fringe vs. tassels vs. smooth edge is another question to consider.
You can, of course, simply leave the decision to the crafter. But lack of vision needn't prevent you from comparing patterns. One thing I've done for some crafty friends is help them make descriptions that relate to multiple senses so that more shoppers can find what they want.
Re: Knitted items!
While I understand that this may make the selection more challenging because you can't glance at pictures, it should be possible for you to touch things and feel patterns that way. For many vision-impaired people, pattern is a big part of the appeal because they can't see colors much if at all. So for instance, you might like cableknit with a two-strand twist or a three-strand braid. For shawls, some people like lacey holes or little bundles of stitches that stand up. Working with two different yarns (the blue and silver you mentioned) you could have different textures between them; metallic yarn is usually scratchier than regular yarn. Fringe vs. tassels vs. smooth edge is another question to consider.
You can, of course, simply leave the decision to the crafter. But lack of vision needn't prevent you from comparing patterns. One thing I've done for some crafty friends is help them make descriptions that relate to multiple senses so that more shoppers can find what they want.