Slip Stitch Stashbuster Hat

After my moment of self-awareness about circular knitting preferences, I made pretty quick work of the Slip Stitch Stashbuster Hat.  Slip Stitch Stashbuster, designed by Carolyn Little for Knit on Pearl The generosity of knitters never fails to warm my heart -- and expand my skills. Thanks to everyone who shared their tips for knitting …

A knitting confession

I don't like Magic Loop. There, I've said it.  Before you wonderful knitters reply to share your love of this knitting-in-the-round technique, I know. I know. You love it...for so many reasons. It's not as fiddly as using DPNs. One never has to worry about dropping a needle. Perhaps I'm just not doing it properly …

Friends’ Knits

I love when friends send me updates on their knitting projects. Sometimes it might be an emergency (don't laugh. Knitting emergencies are a thing). More often, they'll be looking for a consultation. Sock Knitter Judy, who doesn't yet believe that she's a Fearless Knitter, texted last week with a dilemma. Can you spot it? If …

First Helix Stripes

The latest in my ongoing quest to learn new knitting techniques (and, at least once so far, crochet techniques) has been helical stripes -- sometimes called "helix stripes." They're single stripes in the round -- and at first glance, look like regular stripes -- but they don't have the usual "jog" that appears when switching …

Exuberant Girls with Yarn & Needles

Have I mentioned recently how much I enjoy teaching knitting? Oh, I have? Maybe a couple or few times? Well, I'll say it again. Every Thursday afternoon since early January, I've been teaching fourth- and fifth-grade girls from a local after-school program how to knit. There's never a dull moment in what is definitely the …

Feminism + hockey + knitting

As I sat down at last night's college hockey game, my phone pinged with a text from Karen, Sister-in-Law Extraordinaire. She and daughter C were sporting their Pussy Hats, ready for next week's Women's March in Washington, DC. Isn't that the BEST?! As the organized and thoughtful woman she is, Karen generously had secured two additional hats for …

Going Pink for #PussyHatProject

It's decided. I'm heading south in a couple of weeks for the Women's March on Washington. On their first full day in office, I want our new president and vice president to have a powerful reminder that they work for all the people of the United States and that we are paying attention to their …

Two Girls, Two Knitted Tubes

Longtime readers have heard how much I love to teach knitting. This year, I've expanded my students to include three marvelous pre-teen girls, each a Fearless Knitter in her own right. At our most recent class, L finished the garter stitch hat that she'd knitted with a rainbow of Noro. She had declared her previous …

Class time

I've said before how much I enjoy teaching knitting, and my current class is no exception. Once a week, these six intrepid women gather around the table, needles in hand, patterns laid out and personally annotated, and they dive into their projects. Chatting, whispered counting (34, 35 -- damn, I'm supposed to have 36!), an occasional …

Back to Class

I'm so pleased to be teaching again! For the past two Wednesday mornings, a group of 8 intrepid women has gathered around the table and dived into knitting.  The two hours fly by -- at least, for me. Most of the students have knit before -- some many years ago, some intermittently, some just starting. …

Third Time’s a Charm

Recognizing your mistakes and know how to correct them is one of those things you need to do if you want to succeed -- with knitting and pretty much everything else in life. And so it was with the Brattleboro hat. The pattern, in the copy of  New England Knits  that I borrowed from the …

A lovely wee hat

When my now-teen children were younger (three under the age of five), a wise neighbor encouraged me to reignite my love of knitting. When I explained how I didn't have a moment to spare and couldn't possibly find the time for such an indulgence, she waved my cares away. "That's exactly why you should knit. …

Knitting Reacquaintance

"I'd like to take some time during our visit to get reacquainted with knitting," my dear cousin Meg wrote in advance of our getaway weekend in Chicago. Her words were music to my ears because there's nothing a knitter enjoys more (this knitter, at least) than sharing the joy of knitting with others. I know, …

More Cables

The more I knit, the more I learn about myself. Occasionally, I'm surprised. I tend to think of myself as a generalist, someone who likes to learn about lots of different things without going far into depth in any one particular topic or discipline. I've long marveled at friends who've completed their doctoral degrees and …

Wee Pumpkin Hat

There's a new life in the neighborhood, so the Every Way Wrap has been cast aside in favor of a hat for the newborn. I chose something seasonal because, well, it's fun.  (We won't speak of the two not-fun times that I had to rip back the green on top because I hadn't read the …

Boy Wonder

The longer I've been a mother, the more I side toward Nature in the whole nature-vs-nurture debate. My primary, completely unscientific data are my three children, each with a distinct temperament, each of which was pretty much discernible shortly after birth. Case in point: my dear Kevin, who turned 15 yesterday. It's a pleasure and …

What We Celebrate

I had occasion to read the Declaration of Independence earlier this week.  While packing some glow-in-the-dark necklaces and red-white-&-blue tattoos to send to Hannah, Kevin, and cousin Phoebe who are away at overnight camp, I was struck by a wave of motherly geekiness.  Perhaps it's the New Englander in me or maybe the lifelong learner, …

Let’s start knitting

I get great joy from teaching others to knit. Pure and simple. There's something very rewarding about watching someone create something they've envisioned and finally be able to hold it in their hands.  All from a very long piece of string (well, yarn). Earlier this year, I taught a beginner knitting class through the local …