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Follow Jen and Jim's many knitting and craft adventures, including expert knitting tips, tutorials and book reviews, with bonus quilting and other crafty content.
One of the great pleasures in what we do is the location photoshoot. The photos for the summer projects from A Year of Techniques were taken in Bath, in the kitchen of my brother’s house and on the banks of the River Avon.
Have a look back over the summer techniques and patterns.
Read moreThe fantabulous Mary Jane Mucklestone has created our final design for A Year of Techniques: the Oorik tank top.
Oorik (meaning small person in Shetland dialect) is a Fair Isle tank top (US vest) knitting completely in the round. The arm and neck openings are created with steeks, thus allowing you to always be working with the right side of the fabric facing you. This makes it easier to avoid mistakes in the colourwork, and there's no purling to do in the Fair Isle section.
Read moreToday I'm thrilled to welcome Rosemary (Romi) Hill to our blog. Romi designed the Talmadge Cloche for this month's project for A Year of Techniques, and she is well known for her beautiful lace designs. She has generously donated a prize for a blog reader, so do read down to find out more.
Read moreMay was all about the pinhole cast on, and for many that has meant toys. Alex the Mouse by Ella Austin has, as we'd expected, been a big hit, even amongst those who have previously avoided knitted toys.
Read moreIf you're a regular reader, you'll know that April's A Year of Techniques technique was intarsia. Most knitters taking part in our KAL followed Bristol Ivy's Brambling shawl pattern, but others took the technique and had a go at something else for an extra challenge, as you will see.
Read moreHow does yarn choice affect helical striping? Read on to find out....
Read moreJen mentioned in the launch post that Ann and Kay of Mason-Dixon Knitting will be writing the forward to A Year of Techniques. Having talked them through the concept and given them a look through the fuzzy snapshots we have of the samples, I think they're as excited as we are. As our Stateside cheerleaders, we asked them to take a break from high kicks and put their pom poms (knitted, obviously) down for long enough to answer a few questions.
Read moreHeartfelt thanks for all the kind words you've said about A Year of Techniques. We've been overwhelmed by the messages in our Ravelry group, on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and via email. It's so great to hear that you're sharing our excitement!
I've always been a bit of an enthusiast for learning something new. In fact, that might be the understatement of the century. Whether it's in my knitting, or the garden, or helping the kids with their homework, I absolutely adore that satisfied feeling you get when you've mastered something you couldn't do before. I want to spread that feeling far and wide! You don't have to love every new thing you try, but there's always something to learn from the process of having a go. At least that's what I tell the kids when I've cooked some experimental dinner and they are all turning up their noses. Sometimes it even works!
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Twelve projects, from world-class designers (you wait until you see the list!), teaching you twelve new techniques that will bring your knitting to a new level. Each pattern will be supported by an article with a detailed photo tutorial, as well as a video tutorial to walk you through each step of the technique. The projects are intended to be small enough to be completed within a month, thus allowing you to try something new without over-investing in either time or yarn. And the best part is that we will be with you every step of the way, knitting along and encouraging you as you try something new.
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