Knot Knecessarily Known Knitting

Feather and fan is a classic knitting stitch pattern. Anything that is a classic is so for a reason. Casablanca -- possibly the best dialogue in the history of cinema. Where the Wild Things Are -- a great visual description of childhood imagination. Macaroni and cheese -- comfort food that fills your belly and reminds you of home. The Feminine Mystique -- articulation of the "problem that has no name," which is really the universal human search for purpose in life. A little black dress or a string of pearls -- unfussy, modern fashion, subtly complimentary of feminine sexual beauty without being vulgar. Feather and fan is a classic for several reasons. Firstly, the stitch pattern gives you a lot of result for little work. Most variants of the pattern have action on every-other right side row -- i.e. every fourth row. That means three easy rows of knit all or purl all. The clustering of increases and decreases bends the fabric to create a wonderful wavy edge. If you are...

As I mentioned yesterday, I've used Cat Bordhi's center-out möbius cast-on but adapted it for lace. Start with the plain möbius cast-on. The trick is to change the numbers and only cast-on the knits and decreases but not the yarn overs. Then on the first round of the möbius, I added the yarn-over part. For example, my feather and fan pattern is: (k1, yo) ×4, k1, ssk ×3, dd, k2tog ×3, (k1, yo) ×4. The pattern multiple is 16 stitches. Each crest is 9 stitches (9 knits with 8 yarn-overs between them) and each trough is 7 stitches (three left-leaning decreases, a center double decrease, and three right-leaning decreases). If I get rid of the yarn-overs, I have 9 knits + 7 decreases = 16 stitches. Therefore, I should cast on 16 plain stitches for every pattern multiple. I don't need any extra +1 stitch for balancing the pattern since a möbius is in the round. However, to align pattern crests and troughs I need to cast on an extra half multiple. In the pattern I cast on 88 ...

I'm teaching a workshop later this summer on stash busting. I was sorting through my ideas for what techniques to put in the class; and it occurred to me a möbius would be suitable. But I wanted to teach it first before I commit to it. I decided the easiest way to do that would be to design a pattern and put it on the schedule at the shop. Thus, the Sonic Boom Cowl. You may not realize at first glance, but a möbius is a great shape for stash busting. If you use a center-out cast-on -- such as the one devised by Cat Bordhi -- the yarn will automatically produce mirrored stripes. This works with any skein of reasonably long-print yarn and would be perfect for a magic ball. In addition to the stripes, a möbius can be knit until you run out of yarn. Visually it is wonderful. Practically, it is a shape that permits maximum fabric with minimum waste. Stripes are also great for stash busting. One of the best is feather and fan pattern. Typically, there are three or five plain rows/ro...

After the quiet of the winter, I am about to enter the excitement of the spring teaching schedule. Here's some of what's coming up. Thursday 5 March I'll be giving the presentation at the Atlanta Knitting Guild meeting. I'll be talking about Rick Mondragon's sliding loop intarsia method. Rick published this technique twenty years ago. While it is a clever way to work intarsia as you go -- without a mess of bobbins -- it has some other interesting applications. In the photo above, beginning at bottom and moving clockwise: binding off at end of row, flat entrelac, modular intarsia, perpendicular edging, and beads. On Friday and Saturday, 6 & 7 March, I'll be teaching a workshop for North Georgia Knitting Guild. I've taught regular two-color double knitting previously. This time I'll be teaching plain one-color double knitting using my Generic Double Knit Sachet pattern. Again, this is a technique that has greater applications. It is the foundati...

I recently finished teaching my "Refined Baby Surprise Jacket" class. This is one I would love to be able to teach at shows, but it requires three meetings. I usually space those meetings two weeks apart, but this time I spaced them every three weeks. That worked very well for everyone, and it accommodated my trip to South Carolina Knit Inn and a Valentine's Day weekend visit to my Cuddly Hubby in Maryland. I've knit Elizabeth Zimmermann's Baby Surprise Jacket pattern multiple times. In fact, I'm to the point of playing around with it just to see what will happen. This time around, I decided to knit one to fit a teddy bear. Atlanta Knitting Guild supports The Georgia Center for Child Advocacy by dressing comfort bears. Children who have experienced or witnessed a trauma may need to be interviewed so that law enforcement can take action. Bears are typically given to the children afterwards. Did you know teddy bears and babies do not have the same proportio...

I don't usually post much about South Carolina Knit Inn. This is partly because the show already sells out in a week and because I've been in Maryland immediately after the show. While Cuddly Hubby does have a civilized man cave (now there's an oxymoron!), I much prefer to edit images and post from my own desktop computer. I usually sign up for at least one class at Knit Inn. Because I'm teaching, I have to carefully pick a class that does not conflict with mine. This year I picked Michele Kessler's "Lessons in I-Cord" class. I'm already comfortable with I-cord and, in fact, had some applied i-cord swatches made up for my "Faux Crab Stitch" class. But it is also nice sometimes to see what other people are saying as a cross-check of myself. Or it can be nice to just take a couple hours and review a technique I haven't used in awhile or that I've been meaning to try. Michele's little swatch took us through nine different i-cor...

As it is a new year, I've been cleaning up the house, putting away the old, and starting new projects. The stack of unread knitting books is embarrassing. I used to be able to keep up! Just before Christmas I purchased Kate Davies new book, Yokes . As usual, this is one of those purchases where I innocently walked into The Whole Nine Yarns and Jenna the Yarn Pimp thrust the new book in front of me, suggesting I must have this now. As you might guess, Jenna is very often correct about this sort of thing. Kate Davies holds a doctorate in Eighteenth Century studies. For those of us with too much background in academia, this book is a wonderful treat. (Full disclosure, both Jenna and I have degrees in Art History. Just for the record, so does Franklin Habit. The world of knitting is surprisingly well-populated with defrocked art historians.) Yokes opens with seven short chapters exploring the history and tradition of yoke sweaters in the North Atlantic. Some of these chapters are...