Blog — yarn

This week, members of the fairisle course had their first chance to STEEK!  Yes, we did.  We cut through our knitting.  And, we did it with impunity!  Hahah! (snip, snip, snip!) Here are some photos from class... I love their color choices!  Check out those beautiful palettes! I was able to make some fairisle swatches using the knitting machine, and I am fairly certain it's what helped many overcome their fear of cutting through their knitting.  Amanda might recognize this yarn if she looks closely... thanks, Amanda! Lots of students even decided to go the traditional route instead of doing...

Baby stuff is so satisfyingly quick to make!!  I guess there's extra motivation when you've only got a few more weeks left in a pregnancy to "finish" everything on your to-do list.  In my case, I've had to put the Zig-Zag Quilt on hold because my free-motion quilting foot is on back order.  If I don't get it by this week, I'll just do simple zig-zag echo quilting and call it a day. In the meantime, here are a few of the things I've been knitting and sewing... Baby Booties These are one of the quickest and most satisfying knitted...

Finished the second prototype!  I really like this version - I made one size larger, which extended the sleeves and front a bit, and that's made a huge difference in fit.  I should be releasing the pattern soon since the MKAL (machine knit-along) is almost done. The pattern writing is nearly complete, and now that the sample is done, I can weigh it and make further yardage and yarn requirement estimates.  I can't wait to get it published!  I'm wondering, though, if I should get someone else to model the back... it's... well, it's a bit of an insecurity at...

Ah yes, today we learn a little bit about the garter bar- that tool which gave me nightmares until it made my knitting machine dreams come true! I have an old-fashioned garter bar that I purchased on e-bay a few months back after not realizing that there was a difference between transfer combs and garter bars.  You live, you learn. This kit is a couple of decades old, but is in pristine condition.  Sadly, it came with sparse instructions in Japanese and German.  I do speak and read German, but the technical nature of the writing made it a bit...

A couple of years ago, I asked a friend of mine who is a professional yarn-dyer how she dyed one of her colorways into a gradient.  I just couldn't imagine controlling the flow of color using the tradition ways of dyeing skeins.  So, she told me.  She doesn't dye the yarn in the skein, she dyes it while it's knitted up like a blanket. ((brainpop)) Materials: 100g skein of yarn meant for dyeing (or natural fiber yarn that can be over-dyed) knitted into a blanket or scarf (a knitting machine makes this faster) gloves kettle to quickly boil water and...