Skill Building

Tutorials, lessons and how-tos

How to Be Inspired by Color

Filed in Skill Building by on March 14, 2016 0 Comments
How to Be Inspired by Color

Being in Arizona has been a feast for the eyes. Beautiful sunsets, layered vistas, and the subtle colors of cacti have combined to enchant me.

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Combining Methods

Filed in Point of View, Skill Building by on March 7, 2016 0 Comments
Combining Methods

Greetings from Arizona! I’m here with a quick report from the midst of my current WIP, which is also one of my languishing UFOs. It’s the Strandwanderer Scarf by Lea Viktoria. I’m making it in  Holiday Yarns hand dyed Flock Sock yarn in a color called Fathom. The design puts the colors to work in […]

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Take the Leap Anyway!

Take the Leap Anyway!

I must admit, I completely forgot about my post over the weekend. Even yesterday, it slipped my mind beyond a quick wisp while Gwen and I were having our weekly Skype meeting. It’s a shame, because I had a great idea weeks ago for the name. Oh well. Take the leap today, in case the fun […]

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Lace and Genius

Filed in Industry Insight, Skill Building by on February 8, 2016 3 Comments
Lace and Genius

I’m pretty open about the fact that I am a huge fan of Elizabeth Zimmerman. Do you know her? If not, you might find her approach interesting. You might not, and that’s okay. About Elizabeth Zimmerman being influential and unique in her approach, Gwen agrees, but she doesn’t have the same fangirl response to EZ’s words or her designs […]

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When a Project Comes Together

Filed in Just Stitches, Skill Building by on January 7, 2016 2 Comments
When a Project Comes Together

I love it when a plan comes together! Even more so when the result is so much better than was originally expected. That happened for me this week. I wrote several weeks ago about my love of my Felted Slipper Sock pattern. I have also written numerous times about the joy of working with leftover […]

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Train Knitting

Filed in Skill Building by on January 4, 2016 0 Comments
Train Knitting

As you read this, I’m on the California Zephyr, rolling west to California from Utah. For the last 3 weeks, I’ve been on the road, driving from Maryland to Utah, then down to Arizona, then back to Utah and now to see Gwen in The Golden State. I’m looking forward to being in her home […]

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Dissecting the Process

Filed in Industry Insight, Point of View, Skill Building by on December 28, 2015 0 Comments
Dissecting the Process

It’s time to start looking over my class catalog and refresh handouts, rethink the way classes are packaged, and make changes if necessary. I plan to propose more to teach this coming year and I want to make sure I have the best product possible.  One of my favorite parts of designing a class is […]

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When Your Ideas Are Bigger Than Your Time

Filed in Skill Building by on December 17, 2015 0 Comments
When Your Ideas Are Bigger Than Your Time

Most of us have heard the saying, “Your eyes were bigger than your stomach,” when you had more food on your plate than you could possibly eat. But there is a similar phenomenon with creative people. Creatives will often come up with more ideas than they can actually create. For some creatives, this is a […]

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3 Reasons to Learn Something New

Filed in Skill Building by on December 3, 2015 2 Comments
3 Reasons to Learn Something New

When we started EduKnit we decided that we would use the month of December to discuss something non-knitting, but yarn related. Last year it was crochet. This year it is where yarn comes from. No surprise, spinning is a key element of the creation of yarn. Whether done by machine or by hand, many of […]

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Yay for Double Pointed Needles!

Filed in Point of View, Skill Building by on November 30, 2015 0 Comments

In the past 12 or 13 years or so, working with DPNs has somewhat fallen out of favor. I haven’t done any market research to learn about whether sales have actually declined, but it seems to me they are harder to find in stores. Methods involving circular needles have taken the spotlight. I’m all for […]

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