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...
Knitting Needle Review, Part 2: Fixed circulars and DPNs
It’s time for Part 2 of my knitting needle review, this time focusing on fixed circulars and double-points (DPNs). Once again, there is no affiliation or sponsorship at play here – all the needles that I use I’ve either purchased myself or received as a gift that was purchased....
Knitting Needle Review, Part 1: Circular interchangeable sets
As I’ve gained practice and experience with knitting, I’ve tried many different tools, and I’m starting to settle on my favorites. In this first of two videos, I wanted to review interchangeable knitting needle sets in particular, and share some observations, complaints, and personal recommendations for the features and...
Fiery Foliage scarf captures the colors of autumn
Continuing with my interest (obsession?) with sequence knitting, as well as a deep appreciation for the work of Karida Collins, owner of Neighborhood Fiber Company, I developed this large scarf with another one of the NFC gradient packs. The fun pompons are decorative as well as functional, providing weight to...
Don’t Wait Up: a versatile shawl, scarf, and poncho in one
After months of experimenting with colors and textures, Don’t Wait Up is finally ready for you to knit for yourself. This versatile and large-yet-lightweight piece of fabric can be styled in many different ways. Wear it as a wrap, poncho, scarf, or hooded cape. Based on my experiments with...
Bethel Socks: new knitting pattern for warm feet this winter
I just love the Vermont Sock Yarn from Wing & A Prayer Farm, so when Tammy let me design another pattern for socks I jumped in with both feet (literally and figuratively). The Bethel Socks are based on my popular hat and mitts pattern, and the cushy texture makes...