I can't believe the first month of A Year of Techniques has flown by so quickly! The enthusiasm and excitement that you've shared this month in the knitalong threads, on Instagram, by email and in blog posts has been humbling. Thank you all!
present to you the Brambling shawl! I had a total intarsia conversion last year when I knitted my Harewood Hap, so when we started to think about techniques and designers for A Year of Techniques, I knew that I wanted Bristol Ivy to be our "intarsia pusher"!
Read moreDoes your knitting ever grip you to the point where you can't imagine that you'll ever want to work another technique? I still remember the fever of tubular cast ons that I went through after first discovering this beautiful way of starting a 1x1 or 2x2 rib. No other edgings were contemplated for quite a while. Eventually it fades, and something else will come along to inspire and excite me, but when I'm deep in the obsession, nothing can dissuade me. I seem to be in the middle phase of helical stripe fever. I've worked obsessively on the first few projects that use the basic technique, and now I want to apply it to every other project* in grabbing distance.
Read moreThree weeks onto A Year of Techniques and many, many Hyacinthus wrist warmers have been cast on. You will have seen a few examples in the yarn choice post from a couple of weeks ago and you can see the range of projects here.
Helical stripes aren't just for a single pattern though, so I've picked out a few from our KAL on Ravelry to highlight the range of applications.
Read moreHow does yarn choice affect helical striping? Read on to find out....
Read moreOn your marks... Get set... Go!
Here is the first pattern for A Year of Techniques! We hope that you will have a ball learning how to work helical stripes, while you make these handy armwarmers. Spring is starting to be in the air here in Somerset, and around the town there are signs of bulbs poking up through the soil. Hyacinths are among my favourite spring bulbs, and the shades of this incredible Zauberball seemed to match the pot I've had on my windowsill this month. Some mornings there is still a bit of a bite in the air while I'm on the school run, or sitting working at my desk, so my Hyacinthus armwarmers are getting plenty of use. Hyacinthus is the genus name for hyacinths - when I'm not browsing Somerset villages for pattern names, my horticulture and bird books come in handy!
Read moreIs it Wednesday already? This week has flown by, and it's finally time to share with you the list of designers from all over the world, who have contributed to our new book, A Year of Techniques. To say that we are enjoying working with them all doesn't really cover it. This is a dream line up for me - these are the designers whose work I turn to when I want to cast on something new. We really hope that you will enjoy their creations as much as we do. Jim and I spent many hours on the sofa, chatting about who we wanted to work with, and how we wanted our book to be, and the time has finally come to share all our plans. We can't wait to be knitting along with you from March!
Read moreDuring the commissioning process, we had long discussions about which yarns we wanted the designers to use in their submissions. Our criteria were fairly straightforward: they had to be yarns we absolutely loved, widely available in quantity, and come from brands with a range of options in weight and fibre mix. After some to-ing and fro-ing, we settled on three of our all-time favourite brands: Fyberspates, Jamieson & Smith, and Schoppel Wolle.
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!
Read moreTwelve 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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