Skill Building
Tutorials, lessons and how-tos
Which Bag is Best?
Bags are the topic for November over at EduKnit. It got me thinking about the many bags I have designed versus the ones that I actually use on a regular basis. As with many things in life, it depends on a variety of factors. One of the very first projects that was ever published by […]
Swatches and Braces
Good morning dear knitters! This week, my focus has, admittedly, been over on the photo side of my business pursuits. Some of that has been knitting photography for a favorite yarn maker, but most of it has been the busy fall portrait season. Families and high school seniors love photos in the gorgeous fall colors of […]
Playing With Stitch Patterns
One of my personal knitting goals this year is to draft an original (at least to me) stitch pattern. That means I’ll start with a blank piece of graph paper and some yarn and needles and just play, without consciously deriving from or referring to any published stitch pattern. Chances are that I’ll hit pretty […]
Adventures in Stranded Knitting
I’m pretty excited about the patterns we’re debuting this month. Gwen wrote about her design here, and wowza, did her skirt-that-started-as-a-sweater turn out beautifully. I just love it. Skirts really are a great way to wear knits, and stranded-knit skirts have the advantage of greater fabric stability than other knit fabrics. Do consider it. You can […]
Spinzilla: The Dabbler’s Attempt
This past week, I participated in a worldwide event called Spinzilla. It is organized by The Spinning and Weaving Group of The National Needlearts Association (TNNA), which is an organization that supports the people who provide materials and instruction for needleartists of all kinds. It is described thusly: Spinzilla is a global event where teams and […]
Dealing With Dye Lots
Today I finished my 4th UFO for my Nifty Fifty initiative, which is to finish 50 dormant projects before my next birthday. My birthday was about 5 weeks ago, so I’m a bit behind, but this took two weeks for me to finish, partly because of an unexpectedly large apple harvest at our house, and […]
Traveling Like an Expert
When Arlis and I first got married, he traveled often and I did not. Then about 10 years ago, the tables turned and I have since been the frequent flyer. Photo via Craft Cruises; Gwen on her current travels around the world on a knitting cruise! What I have learned over the years is many […]
Adjusting Summer Sweaters
Several months ago we asked for your questions and bit by bit we have been answering them. Today’s answer is in response to two related questions that are a bit more complex. Both questions involve adjusting knitted sweaters for a custom fit. Cindy asks: “How do you raise the neckline so it’s not such a […]
Stay Friends With Your Knitting: 5 Ways
I met my one of my new neighbors yesterday in the hopes of becoming friends. They moved in a month or so ago and I’ve been so busy I kept missing opportunities to introduce myself and say hello. As I was driving up to my house late in the afternoon, I noticed one of the […]
Knitting Rules – Learn, Use, and Break Them
If you have ever taken a class with either Kellie or me you know that we rarely say that there is only ONE “right way” to accomplish most things in knitting. Even so there are some rules or guidelines that significantly improve your finished results. In most cases, how you get there can take a […]
