In an exclusive interview for KNITFreedom, the man behind the Brooklyn Tweed scarf, the Hemlock Ring blanket, and the Koolhaas hat, shares inspiration, design advice, and how he the developed unique color-palettes behind his new Shelter and Loft yarns.

Jared Flood is also giving away three free patterns to KNITFreedom readers! (See below to download the patterns.)

So: How did one of the industry’s most classic knitwear designers get started? How does he get inspired? Read on and get to know Jared Flood.

The Beginning of Brooklyn Tweed

KNITFreedom: How did you get involved in the knitting industry?

Jared Flood: My background is in photography, design and 2D media. I studied painting, illustration and photography in both undergrad and graduate schools.

Jared Flood became obsessed with knitting in 2003

I never had any formal knitting training, but did put myself through a rather immersive ‘self-training’ when my obsession with knitting began in 2003. My mother is an avid knitter and lover of wool, and I think I got a lot of my appreciation for knitting from her.

I was very interested in it as a child and did learn, though never stuck with any one discipline long enough to become specialized (I learned knitting, crochet, macrame, lanyard weaving, etc. before ever entering grade school – so ‘string’ art has always appealed to me).

In college I had a friend who began knitting simple chenille scarves for her friends over the holiday break.

She was from rural Oregon and had nothing to do when she went home for Christmas, so spent most of the time knitting with her mom.

When we returned to school and I saw her knitting, I was captivated. I hadn’t seen anyone knitting since my childhood and was overcome by the urge to learn right away.

I wanted to make a sweater first, which was not in my friend’s knitting vocabulary, so pretty much right away I started searching for good books that I could learn from. There was very little on the internet at that time in the way of tutorials, etc. If I had been trying to learn now, the internet would have been an incredibly useful (and efficient) resource!

Advice For Designers: Patience and Trial-and-Error

KNITFreedom: Many of your designs have become “classics” — instantly recognizable and always recommendable. What is your most recognizable original knitwear design?

The popular Koolhaas hat still surprises Jared when he sees it on the streets of New York City.

Jared Flood: Probably the Koolhaas hat, which was my second-ever ‘official’ design.

It was published in Interweave Knits Holiday 2007. I was (and still am) really surprised and delighted at how well people took to the pattern.

I see them every so often when I’m wandering around New York City. That’s always a surreal feeling.

As a designer, it’s always a big guess as to which designs will resonate with people and which won’t. I’ve given up trying to predict that – or cater to it– since the results are usually unexpected! It’s really fun to watch the designs go out into the real world once the work is done.
KNITFreedom: Many of my male readers seem to be starving for knitwear patterns designed for men. Do you think it’s important to have men design patterns for men?

Jared Flood: Not necessarily. I’ve seen men’s designs from female designers that really hit the mark, and men’s designs from male designers that really miss it.

Because I think most designers create what they would like to wear, there is something to men designing for men, but I don’t think that it ever guarantees anything.

KNITFreedom: What advice would you give to someone who is considering designing a piece of knitwear for the first time?

Jared Flood: Be patient, and be prepared to make mistakes! Designing for handknitting is a lot about trial and error.

I have learned the most by trying things out, failing, and assessing why the situation didn’t work and how it could have been improved (though I guess this is a valid learning technique for most things in life!).

Because handknitting is more labor-intensive than machine knitting for example, the process can be more frustrating and more time-consuming than people who are learning knitwear design for ready-to-wear, etc.

I think the important thing is not to rush. When you make a mistake and think about how much more time it will take to fix it before you call a design ‘finished’, the temptation to compromise starts creeping in. That’s a dangerous temptation, and one that should be ignored as much as possible!

Photography: From Film to Digital

KNITFreedom: Your photography accentuates the beauty of the patterns on Brooklyn Tweed. Have you always been a photographer, or did the skill develop organically as your blog progressed?

Jared Flood: I was trained as a photographer prior to the advent of my knitting (or my blog), though I only shot with film cameras then. When I started my blog I didn’t have a digital camera that could function in the same way as my film cameras.

The early days of my blog were all on a point-and-shoot, which is definitely noticeable if you go through the archives.

Interestingly enough, my blog has sort of tracked my transition from film to digital. Over the span of 6 years, the work has improved slowly as I’ve become more comfortable developing pictures in photoshop vs. a physical darkroom, and invested in better cameras and lenses.

It seems funny now to think about shooting film, since digital technology is so advanced and accessible to everyone. I miss shooting film, but it doesn’t make sense for most people now, especially those living in small urban spaces!

The Story Behind “Shelter” and “Loft”

KNITFreedom: Over the past few years, you’ve added “yarn designer” to your resume. What yarns have you and the Brooklyn Tweed team created, and what makes them unique?

Shelter yarns get a final washing and then hang to dry in front of oscillating fans

Jared Flood: We currently offer two yarns at Brooklyn Tweed – both are completely US-grown and produced products.

Shelter is a worsted weight 2-ply yarn with a woolen-spun construction, and Loft is the fingering weight ‘sibling’ yarn (constructed in the same way, with a slightly lighter twist and less fiber to create a thinner yarn).

I think the story of the yarn make them unique – it’s rare to find yarns that are completely US-made (the wool is grown, scoured, dyed, spun and distributed here).

It is so much easier and cheaper to make similar yarns by sourcing fiber and labor from Europe, China or South America.

The yarns are also woolen-spun (rather than the more commonly seen worsted-spun construction) and requires a different type of machinery than many mills have.

There are few remaining US mills that can spin true woolen yarns (you can count them on one hand), so the yarn project was also conceived as a small way of supporting and helping to preserve a dying American tradition.

Working with the historic mill in Harrisville, NH has been one of the most rewarding parts of this whole experience for me.

I’m very hopeful that the US-made yarn trend will catch on and increase, but it’s hard to tell what direction it will go. It’s certainly a much more difficult path from a yarn-producer’s standpoint to pull off!

KNITFreedom: The new colors you’ve added to your “Loft” yarn collection are stunning. What was your inspiration for the palette of colors, and how do you go from inspiration to reality?

Jared Flood hand-spins each sample to evaluate the colors of each yarn as a group.

Jared Flood: Developing the palette is my favorite part of the entire process.

All the colors in our yarn palette are blended heathers – meaning we take several colors of solid-dyed wool and mix them together before spinning the yarn.

This creates rich, sophisticated color blends that have a beautiful cross-range harmony.

This is a more difficult process than dip-dying solid yarns, but also much more rewarding when you nail the perfect shade you were after!

Learning how the colors behave when you start mixing is really interesting. The first thing that struck me was how similar creating heathers is to mixing oil paints.

I ended up drawing a lot on my Color Theory training from school, which I was very grateful to have had! It helped tremendously.

I work closely with the colorist at Harrisville to get the final blends.

In the beginning, I’ll begin collecting samples of colors that are headed in the direction of my final vision – it can be snippets of other yarns, woven fabrics, and even, in a few cases, photographs – and give them to the colorist.

I’ll often provide notes with the samples like “I love this red, can we add a little more black?” etc. From there we create sample pads of fiber (like miniature bats) with 7–10 variations of the target.

I handspin each pad and then assess the nuances of each color all together, once they are spun. The colors do change their behavior slightly from loose fiber to finished yarn, so spinning the pads is very important.

With Loft, we expanded the palette to 32 colors, which was so much fun but also incredibly difficult! The more colors you get, the more colors you want. Editing becomes very important, and thinking about the range of the palette as a whole.

Sometimes I get stuck on a particular color family – like greens or oranges – and end up with 4 or 5 more shades of that color than is appropriate for the balance of the full palette. There are several colors that haven’t been seen yet by the public that I’m hoping to introduce in the future, as the palette expands.

Follow Jared Flood at Brooklyn Tweed

KNITFreedom: If a knitter is interested in learning more about your site, yarn, and patterns, where should he or she start?

Jared Flood: Our website – www.brooklyntweed.net – has the most information all in one place. If someone wanted to dig a little deeper, they could hit the blog archives (www.brooklyntweed.net/blog) and start working back chronologically. We can always be reached by e-mail at info@brooklyntweed.net as well!

Giveaway — Win Three New Patterns from Brooklyn Tweed

Just head to Brooklyn Tweed, leave a comment, and then comment here to win!

Jared is generously giving away three new patterns from Brooklyn Tweed, just for KNITFreedom readers!

They are: Juneberry Triangle, by Jared Flood, Arrowhead Mittens, by Alexis Winslow, and the Fuse cardigan, by Veronik Avery.

To enter the giveaway, head to Jared Flood’s blog, have a look around, and leave a comment for him.

Then, come back here and leave a comment for me! Next week I’ll randomly choose three winners from among the commenters here — each winner gets all three patterns!

So don’t wait — visit Brooklyn Tweed and let him know that Liat at KNITFreedom sent you! Good Luck!

This original article was written by liatmgat for KNITFreedom - Videos To Help You Knit Like A Superstar.

Also like most knitters, you may have woken up with knitting pain in your hands, fingers, and joints.

Any flagrant overuse of your joints can lead to stiffness and leave you susceptible to more chronic knitting injuries.

I asked my sister, Kate Howe of katehowemassage.com, what knitters can do to get some relief from knitting pain.

Tight Muscle Fascia Prevents Joints From Healing

Kate explained to me that muscle fascia is the “bag” of dense connective tissue that surrounds your muscles and joints, kind of like plastic wrap.

Fascia surround every muscle in the body

Fasciae are made of collagen and are connective in nature, like tendons and ligaments, except that fasciae connect muscles to other muscles.

If the fascia is tight around your muscles, all the stretching or massage in the world can only provide limited relief, because the muscles don’t have room to move.

The good thing is there is an easy way to fix this, and it works, feels good (after you’re done), you can do it by yourself, and it doesn’t take very long.

Just do a series of fascia stretches on yourself. This is called myofascial release, and it’s a form of massage therapy developed in the 1920’s.

After you stretch your forearm fasciae, you can stretch the muscles of the wrist, hands, and fingers and experience a lot of relief from knitting pain next time you go to knit.

Grasp, “Lock,” and Push To Stretch Muscle Fascia Correctly

• Make sure you don’t have on any hand lotion that might make your arm slippery.
• Unlike most massage techniques, you want the skin to “grab,” not slide.

Grasp your left forearm with your right hand. Squeeze just tight enough to prevent your skin from slipping, and push down towards your wrist.

Note: If your right hand is too sore or weak to get a good grip, you can stabilize your left forearm between your legs (still hold onto the fascia with your right hand) and pull your left arm towards you.

“Lock” the fascia and push towards the wrist

Maintaining your hand grip, now push your hand towards your elbow. Your skin (and fascia) will move, about an inch. That’s how much room your fascia have.

That’s what we want to expand.

Perform This Sequence of Fascia Stretches to Relieve Knitting Pain

1) Forearm Stretch. Work down your forearm (just a few places will do), holding each stretch for 90 seconds.

I like to do this while standing in front of the microwave, waiting for my tea to heat up.

After 90 seconds, you will feel that the fascia have relaxed and stretched. Move your grip down your forearm and repeat.

2) Wrist Stretch. Make sure to keep your elbow straight (this is like keeping your knees straight for a hamstring stretch).

Do not overstretch the wrist by applying too much pressure. Easy does it.

 3) Milk the Fingers. Grasp, lock, and push down each finger, stretching the fasciae.

Work your way down each finger, stretching for 90 seconds. Check your manicure.

4) Stretch the Thumb and Hand. This one feels sooo good.

The tops of the arms face each other as you grasp and stretch each thumb.

5) Stretch Your Pinky.

Be gentle on your pinkie and keep that elbow straight.

You can do one whole arm then repeat, or alternate each step.

Either way, your hands are going to instantly feel better.

Timesaving Tips

• If you don’t have much time, just do the myofascial stretches on your forearms  from step 1. These alone will provide very fast relief.
• Do these stretches in the bathroom, in front of the microwave, or in line at the store.

I’ve been using these stretches all week, and I love them! Leave a note in the comments if you find anything that has worked for you.

Photographs were taken with the assistance and direction of Kate Howe. Kate is a certified massage therapist based in Aspen, CO. Find her work at katehowemassage.com.

This original article was written by liatmgat for KNITFreedom - Videos To Help You Knit Like A Superstar.

These are my favorite go-to socks for Christmas gifts or for knitting on Christmas Day

You can definitely knit these socks two-at-a-time toe-up on Magic Loop — it will take you just a day or two. I also choose these socks for knitting on Christmas Day while sitting around the Christmas tree, although they are almost too fast — you may have to look at the pattern often because you will already be on the next step before you know it!

Just know, although the yarn pictured here (Malabrigo Rasta — one skein exactly) is buttery-soft, it is not a highly durable yarn. These socks won’t be made to last for years, just about one super-snuggly year. My sister Lizzi always returns on Christmas and hands me her very scary worn-out socks from last year — gasp!

Eew! I confiscated these “socks” immediately and gave my sister a new pair.

That’s how these super-bulky socks have become a tradition in my family (which I much prefer to, say, a tradition of lace sweaters on size 3 needles). Hey — non-knitters don’t know that these are a cinch! They just know that they are divine and you really can’t buy anything like them.

I did not want to take off the socks after this photoshoot!

Click here to get the specifics for this Super-Bulky Sock Pattern and download it free!

Another holiday knitting tradition that I would love to share with you — my favorite holiday knitting book.

A gorgeous read

Handknit Holidays, edited by Melanie Falick, is the most delicious holiday-knitting read I can think of. It’s on my Top Five Knitting Books of All Time list, and I STILL intend to make every single project in this book.

If you end up going to a bookstore over the holidays, wander into the knitting section and flip through this book — I think you’ll love it!

This original article was written by liatmgat for KNITFreedom - Videos To Help You Knit Like A Superstar.

Hooray! There’s a brand-new e-book in the KNITFreedom store, and I think it’s the best one yet. It’s especially for knitters who’ve just learned to knit or students who want a solid foundation to their knitting (how many students have commented to me, “…if only you were around when I started knitting…” — well now I am!).

THIS e-book is so perfect for the adventurous beginner, I’ve nicknamed it “Beginner Knitting Superstar” — it’s got the best videos and projects for beginning knitters, period.

With 50 videos and eight gorgeous projects carefully and thoroughly leading every step of the way, knitters “graduating” from this course will be able to read their work, fix mistakes, and even increase and decrease on patterned stitches like seed stitch without a pattern!

This is the course KNITFreedom has been missing, and from today until Christmas Eve I’m offering it at a steep discount, along with everything else in the KNITFreedom store, to make your last-minute gifting inspired and fabulous!

BUT WAIT — There’s SO much more! You can gift this e-book AND have something beautiful to put under the tree.

I’ve arranged everything — just grab the Beginner Knitting Superstar Giftable PDF while it’s at a huge discount.

Then, print, cut out, and fold the super-cute Christmas tree e-book card that comes with your purchase (pictured below), and add it to some yarn or stick it in a stocking for instant gratification on Christmas morning!
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You can even arrange for me to send an email to the lucky recipient on Christmas day, with all the instructions he or she needs in order to get started.

Print the card and fold it at home.

Inside is everything the lucky recipient needs to access their shiny new video e-book!

Because KNITFreedom e-books play beautifully on iPads, iPhones, Kindles, Androids, and any other mobile device you can think of, there’s no worrying about whether your gift-ee will be able to watch the and enjoy the videos. It’s guaranteed.

Get 30% off this week only
Gift “Intermediate Scarves and Stitches” to a friend,
or grab a copy for yourself!

While you can buy and gift everything in the KNITFreedom store at a giant discount this week, I’ve also set up the super-cute gift template and Christmas tree e-book card for my most popular e-book: “Become a Knitting Superstar.”

This is, hands-down, the ULTIMATE knitting course — gift it today and your lucky family member or friend will join the hundreds of super-stoked knitters discovering their amazing potential for Knitting Superstardom.

Lastly, MY GIFT to you! Love the folded “knitting” Christmas tree card? It’s yours.

Download my blank template here and use it as a gift tag for any KNITFreedom e-book or decoration for any of your holiday gifts! (If you’ve got kids around — let them do the folding– they’ll love watching it turn into a tree!)

Click the image to download your free blank “knitting” Christmas tree template.

Remember, everything in the KNITFreedom store is discounted at 30% off until Christmas Eve — no coupon required. Let the last-minute shopping begin!

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Liat Gat
Your devoted video knitting instructor

This original article was written by liatmgat for KNITFreedom - Videos To Help You Knit Like A Superstar.

I’ve been receiving delighted reviews for my latest video e-book, Brioche Knitting: Beginning and Intermediate Brioche, and I’m convinced you’ll love it too!

Thanks to great suggestion from a KNITFreedom student, I’ve created a free sample of the Brioche E-Book that will explain all about what brioche stitch is, what supplies you need, and get you started on working one-color brioche stitch.

Check out what Nancy Marchant, author of Knitting Brioche, has called…

Download your free sample chapters here, or if you’d prefer to watch the class online or from your iPhone, iPad, or other mobile device, navigate to the online sample class here (the password is sample).

Happy Knitting!

This original article was written by liatmgat for KNITFreedom - Videos To Help You Knit Like A Superstar.