The Knitting Pen

Yarn Store Therapy

2009-10-31T21:52:32Z

It absolutely amazes me just how restorative a trip to my local yarn shop can be. After a very trying day of substitute teaching (’read teacher’s day in hell’ ) I found myself looking for a way to calm my nerves before returning home, lest I take out my frustrations on my innocent family. Remembering that my local yarn store, River City Yarns, had just opened a new location on the side of town I was working on that day, I decided that stopping in there on my way home would be just what I needed.

And it was. I spent a full hour fondling yarn, exploring patterns, planning projects and absorbing the array of gorgeous colours with all of my senses. By the time I left the store, my difficult teaching day was a part of my history I shall soon forget, and I was looking forward to casting on for a new pair of Ysolda’s Garter Stitch Fingerless Mitts when I got home. The supersoft, superfine ball of Zarina Print Merino, by Filatura Di Crosa, that I had just purchased, would be the perfect yarn choice. It’s impossible to feel discouraged when looking at this soft, pastel confection of green, lavender and rose.

My other purchase was a couple of balls of yarn for a Christmas present for my daughter, which I cannot elaborate on here as she reads my blog. Suffice it to say that the colours are again gorgeous and the mere thought of beginning this new project lifted my spirits even more.

I only spent $30 in the yarn store that day. Compared to $100 an hour for professional therapy, I consider that a real bargain.

Christmas Yarn Diet

2009-10-14T14:27:59Z

Two things have conspired to force me to get a headstart on my Christmas knitting this year. The first is my self imposed ‘yarn diet’. As of August 2009, I’m not allowing myself to buy any new yarn before January 2010. The idea being, of course, that I get creative and use up the varied and interesting collection of yarns in my stash.

The second is the fact that I’m on an unpaid leave of absence from my job this year. Those drawer fulls of yarn are a perfect opportunity to create thoughtful gifts, while trimming back the Christmas budget. A challenge that I’ve been enjoying even more than I expected to!

To date, I’ve knit 2 pairs of fingerless gloves, 2 slouchy hats and 2 pairs of slippers for family members. Since I have quite a collection of ‘one ball wonders’ in my stash, I’ve also knit a bag full of hats, mitts and scarves for donation to our local Youth Emergency Shelter.

It’s been great fun to pick up a ball of stashed yarn and let my needles and imagination decide what it will become - a truly liberating and creative process.

A few more pairs of mitts and some dishcloths and my Christmas knitting will be complete.

Maybe then I can start daydreaming about colour choices for the Slanting Gretel Tee I want to knit , with newly purchased yarn, once 2010 rolls around and my yarn diet is over.

stash knitting

Cozy Knitted Slippers

2009-10-04T22:24:31Z

In anticipation of cold winter toes, I’ve developed a pattern for my idea of the ultimate knitted slippers. Adapted from a pattern I found in an old knitting book, circa 1911, these slippers are a great way to use up small amounts of yarn in your stash. They’re snug and warm, adaptable to any size, and hard wearing.

The soles are sewn on after the knitted top is complete. I used 100% wool sweaters, purchased from my local Goodwill store, for the soles. I thoroughly felted the sweaters, in my washing machine, to create a dense, cushy fabric, then cut them to fit and sewed them to the slipper tops, using a blanket stitch. The result is a comfortable, hardwearing sole.

Here’s the free pattern cozy-knitted-slippers4

Happy (knitting) Trails!

Knitters Comment!

2009-11-09T03:09:20Z

After reading this post Knitters Never Comment! on one of my favourite blogs Men with Pens, I consider myself extremely lucky to have as many comments on this blog as I do. Thanks so much to everyone who has left a comment after reading one of my posts.

I hope I’ve been conscientious in responding to your comments and vow to be even more responsive, and therefore helpful, in the future.

Knitting and spinning forums are, by definition, the essence of ‘communities’. I read knitting and spinning blogs and check into Ravelry regularly, to get information, find patterns, ask questions and, most fun of all, see what other fiber enthusiasts are up to!

It’s through these shared ideas and discussions that my own imagination is inspired for future projects and designs. Sharing is what art is all about.

Our beautiful hand knit scarves and garments, and colourful handspun yarns,were not meant to languish in our closets or stash- they’re meant to be shared…shown off…discussed.

So please, feel free to use the comment section of this blog to ask questions and share ideas or opinions, perhaps get some discussions going. For my part I promise to be a ‘conscientious responder”! Barb

Show and Tell

Here are some of my recently completed projects:

Grey slouchy cap destined for donation to the Youth Emergency Shelter.

Hemp/wool slouch hat, also destined for donation to Youth Emergency Shelter.

Vintage Silky Wool top, pattern from A Stitch in Time, by Jane Waller and Susan Crawford.

Teaching Young Children To Knit

2009-08-24T16:36:17Z

Very young children can be successful knitters, given the right teaching techniques.

Right Hand vs. Left Hand Knitting

The ‘English’ method of holding the yarn in your right hand and throwing it over the needle, as opposed to ‘Continental’ which has the yarn in the left hand, seems to be easier for children to learn. They’re able to drop the yarn and pick it back up again more readily with the ‘English’ method, in the early stages.

A Knitting Mantra

Over the fence

Catch the sheep

Back you come

Off you leap

Teaching this verse to a beginning knitter will give them a handy mnemonic device to help them remember the multiple steps required. It works like this:

Over the fence: wrap yarn around the needle.

Catch the sheep: hook the yarn with right needle tip

Back you come: pull the yarn just hooked through the opening

Off you leap: remove newly made stitch to right hand needle.

Once children have been shown these 4 steps a few times the verse helps them remember the order in which they are performed.

Beginner Projects

A bookmark is a fast, rewarding project for a beginner.

Cast on 10 stitches and work 10 garter stitch ridges, or 20 rows.

Cast off leaving a 10 inch yarn tail.

Tie this tail to the cast on yarn end to create a bookmark which can be draped through the center of the book. With this project a child learns to cast on, work in garter stitch, and to cast off.

From there, the young knitter will soon graduate to creating headbands, washcloths, scarves, and eventually, mittens and sweaters!

With each successive project, they’ll acquire a new skill: purling, decreasing and increasing, and following a pattern.

Spool Knitting

If your young knitter is having difficulty mastering these 4 steps, try easing them into it with spool knitting. These are wooden or plastic tubes with nails or hooks around the top. They’re available at craft stores for $4-5. Wrapping the yarn and securing it hook by hook produces a knitted tube. These are fast and fun and kids love them! Spool knitting is a first step in helping children develop the ability to do more than one thing at a time, such as holding the yarn while moving the stitch.

Passing the Torch

Knitting is a social, as well as a functional, craft. It has united old and young in the creation of articles to keep us warm and provide comfort, for many, many years. Passing this skill onto the next generation ensures that our timeless knitting traditions will not be lost in our high tech world.

Spinner’s Scrapbook

2009-07-17T22:03:59Z

Who needs a photo album to remember a vacation or travel visit, when you could have a basket full of spinning souvenirs instead?

I keep all of my spinning fiber in a large wicker laundry basket. Sorting through it is like turning the pages of a travel scrapbook. There’s my most recent purchase of merino/bamboo roving, with the delightful colourway name of ‘velvet underground’, from Sweet Georgia Yarns in Vancouver. This studio shop is a fiber artist’s dream-come-true, with floor to ceiling windows overlooking False Creek. Definitely worth a visit if you’re in Vancouver, Canada, or visit the website for Internet ordering.

I purchased the 2 bags of raspberry coloured, merino/silk roving in Prince Edward Island last summer, at Belfast Mini Mills. From the Pacific Ocean in Vancouver to the Atlantic in PEI, clear across this vast country.

The precious twist of quiviut/ alpaca/ merino blend came from Celeigh Wool, near Millet, Alberta, during one of my countryside knitting shop jaunts.

As I sit at my wheel and spin these fibers into yarn, my mind wanders, daydreaming of these trips. What we saw, who we visited…

I may never get around to organizing my pictures in a photo album but I have all the memories I need right here in my spinning basket.

Year End

2009-06-15T04:01:17Z

I didn’t expect to feel this way. With the school year drawing to a close and a full year’s Leave of Absence ahead of me, I thought I’d be jumping for joy, trying not to let the door hit me as I scurry out on the last day of school.
Instead, I find myself wanting to slow time down, just a bit, these last 2 weeks. My soft heart is insisting on one last, compassionate push before I go. I need reassurance that my kids will be OK over the summer. With 7 of my 10 students in fluctuating foster home placements and 2 others in a very volatile home, summer may be a difficult time for them. It’s not necessarily the golden months of sun and freedom many of us remember.
Will they be cared for? fed? Will they have some structure?guidelines? security? During the school year we provide so much more than an education. In our inner city school we feed, clothe, discipline and love them everyday.

These are the questions that plague me as I pack up my boxes.
For one of my students at least, the answer has arrived encouragingly. After living in 12 different group homes in 9 short years of life, Jacob has been placed in a foster home on an acreage outside of the city. He told me he hopes this one will be his “forever home”. To let him know how much he’s wanted the new foster parents are throwing him a ‘welcome home’ party next week, to which we’re all invited. What a kind, loving thing to do! I’m overjoyed to know that Jacob’s life is about to improve.
Now for the rest of them…

‘Cloisters’ Comfort

2009-05-28T03:21:47Z

This sweater is by far the most comfortable garment I have ever knit for myself. Simple in design, this Cloisters pullover fits a bit loose, pulls easily over my head and yet offers a bit of feminine flattery with its waist shaping. Knit in Cascade 220, a soft bouncy Merino yarn, it’s warm and cozy, yet lightweight. Perfect comfort for a cool spring day!

The Cloisters pattern on the sleeves provides just enough interest, while keeping the overall sweater simple.

I made only a couple of small alterations to the pattern. I found the neckline too wide for my liking so I frogged and reknit it , decreasing a few stitches every 2 rounds for shaping and working twice as many rows as indicated to pull the neckline higher. I also decreased a few stitches on the final rows of the sleeves to snug up the cuffs a bit.

The top down construction of this sweater makes it easy to custom fit to any body as you can try it on as you knit.

The pattern for this sweater is available in the Fall 2008 issue of Spin Off magazine.

My Sweater of Many Colours

2009-05-03T13:57:54Z

This sweater is proof that ripping and re-doing pays off. Initially, I had knit I-cord borders down the fronts but wasn’t happy with the zig zag effect this created. I frogged the borders and went shopping for a sturdy, navy yarn that would pull the stripes together. Lamb’s Pride Worsted, from M1 Yarn Studio in Calgary provided just what I needed.

My inspiration for this sweater came from Dyeing To Knit by Elaine Eskesen. Using my colour wheel while digging through my stash of cottons and wool, I chose colours that fell within one quadrant of the colour wheel only. To create a bit more unity I hand dyed some chenille and handspun yarns and threw in a bit of yellow to brighten it up.

The cardigan is knit in the round with the sleeves knit seperately and sewn in afterward. Another learning curve was the steeked front. The body is knit as a tube, to avoid purling, then cut down the middle to create a cardigan. My edges ended up a bit ragged on the underside of the front edges so I finished them with bias tape facings, sewn in by hand. The bottom border of the sweater uses a pattern from Nicky Epstein’s book, kntting beyond the edge, called ‘tree tops’.

Truly an adventure in colour and design, this sweater is destined to become a comfortable favourite in my wardrobe.

‘Cloistered’ Meditation

2009-03-29T16:09:48Z

As wonderful as it is to work at a school that is dedicated to providing opportunities for inner city children, it does get a bit overwhelming at times. The past 3 weeks at our school have been a whirlwind of special days, presentations and extra programs. We don’t know if we’re coming or going anymore! A kind of mad, frenetic energy has built up in the kids (and teachers)that’s threatening to blow at any moment.

I arrived home from work last Wednesday feeling pulled in 20 directions and on the verge of panic. All I could think was “I gotta knit, I gotta knit…”

With the Cloisters sweater, designed by Sarah Swett, freshly cast on the night before, I had the perfect tool for meditation at the ready. As the stitches slipped rhythmically off of my shiny new Addi Turbos my blood pressure came down and my anxiety subsided. Taking a cue from Tara Manning’s book Mindful Knitting , I focussed solely on the beautiful merino yarn slipping through my fingers and the formation of my stitches, not allowing my mind to be pulled back to my troublesome workday. By the time my son and husband arrived home 2 hours later I was feeling calm and balanced once again and was somewhat surprised to realize that I hadn’t moved from my chair in all that time.

Knitting meditation had restored my sanity for yet another day.