A few weeks ago I mentioned in a post on Instagram that I sometimes find myself motivated re-knit the same patterns, and was musing on why that’s the case for some patterns, but not others. Join me for a closer look at why certain patterns lend themselves to repeating,...
Six Stripe Poncho – A simple and colorful stash-buster
Once again, my mother has gifted me with some Harrisville Designs Highland yarn, and once again…I decided to make a poncho. While the piece shares some similarities of shape and construction with the Prospect Street poncho, this striped accessory is knit side to side rather than edge to edge,...
2019 into 2020: celebrating successes, building community, and embracing inspiration
We hope you’ve had a satisfying and rewarding year of making. We certainly have, primarily on the brewing and knitting fronts, with a lot of natural dyeing as well. In each of these spheres, we’ve tried new types of projects, mastered skills, and published our own recipes and patterns....
Fancy Mac & Cheese: a favorite crowdpleaser that’s quick to prepare
Need a quick, tasty, and filling dish for your next family gathering or potluck meal? This upscale version of Macaroni & Cheese is scratch-made with top quality ingredients and complex flavor, without being too fussy or complicated. This recipe was adapted (and greatly simplified) from The Savory Way by...
Refinishing a Sewing Machine Cabinet: Observations and tips from a first-time furniture restorer
What do you do when your partner picks up a beautiful, top-condition sewing machine in a cabinet for you at the local transfer station? Of course you get the machine a tune-up from the local expert. But what about the cabinet and all that flaking varnish? After giving serious...
Glittering Quartz Hat & Mitt Pattern Set, Celebrates Mohair’s Sparkle & Shine
Sometimes, a design seems to manifest out of thin air, helped along only by my ability to work with string and sticks to fashion it as quickly as possible. That’s what this latest set of knitting patterns seemed to be as I’ve been creating them this past week. The...
Sheep to Sweater – Part 3: Washing fleece with a pre-rinse
As I read more about fleece preparation, I realize there are many options and variables in the process, particularly in washing or cleaning a fleece. Temperature, time, type of detergent, number of rinses, and other variables can be combined in different ways depending on the type of fleece to...
Sheep to Sweater – Part 2: Washing fleece with hot water and detergent
After skirting, the next step of fleece prep is washing. There are many techniques for washing a fleece, but the objectives are the same: remove dirt, manure, urine residue, sweat, debris, and excess lanolin from the fleece, while maintaining the integrity of the wool and without felting it. In...
Sheep to Sweater – Part 1: Skirting Fleece
I’m excited to start a project that I’ve imagined for several years: taking a freshly-shorn fleece from one of our sheep and cleaning it, spinning it into yarn, and knitting a sweater. The first steps are to grow and harvest the wool, and I’ve already made a few blog...
Keeping track of knitting patterns: mark your place, count repeats, and work charts
Building on the theme of “what I find helpful in my knitting” – this week I’m sharing inexpensive tools and simple techniques for tracking your progress and modifications as you work through knitting patterns. Whether it’s a colorwork sweater with multiple charts, or a simple accessory, you need to...