Knitting Inside Out

Has this ever happened to you, dear knitter? You're knitting in the round, perhaps on your first hat, and suddenly something doesn't look right at all. You've unintentionally created a band of bumpy reverse stockinette. That's what happened to Helena, one of my Knit 101 students at Stitch House. In my experience teaching knitting, it's …

Eclectic Cowl

Until I made an Eclectic Cowl for my old long-standing friend Beth, I've never known the artist who created the yarn for my project. Diane, aka Lady Dye, is a talented local fiber artist here in Boston. Her "urban-inspired yarns" are inspired, in large part, by street art. Her hand-dyed, multicolored yarns are simply exquisite …

The Thrill of a First Sock

There's something very special about knitting a sock. It's a simple piece of clothing that's not particularly visible and endures a lot of wear and (eventually) tear. But the structural components of a sock make it a wonderful challenge even for a beginning knitter. The different parts to a sock provide learning opportunities, a multitude of …

Strange, Sacred Time

The most recent cold snap has broken and the pipes in the second floor bathroom have thawed -- without bursting, again. The contractor from whom we bought our house ran pipes up an uninsulated, exterior wall and didn't add any heat to the bathroom -- duh! We leave the taps and shower dripping and put …

Know What’s Fast? Arm Knitting (seriously)

Inspired by Skye, an extraordinary young girl at the Friday knitting group at JP Knit & Stitch, and by a recent Wall Street Journal article and video, I decided to try something new. As we sat together on the window seat last week, Skye created this loose, chunky, oh-so-soft scarf. Totally intrigued, I bought a …

Ambidextrous? I Think Not.

Just before I finished the second of K's socks, I succumbed to the lure of my next project: the Diamonds Are Faux-Ever cowl.  It's a Fair Isle style, knit with two yarns, one of which changes color, giving the illusion that you're knitting with more than two. I modified the pattern slightly, starting with the solid …