Learn to Knit from a Master!

It is with a bit of sadness, but also a bit of excitement that I announce the closing of Valley School of Creative Knitting May 15.

It’s time for a change.  Instead of telling you what classes you should take, I’m making myself available to work with you on the projects YOU want to do.  We can meet at a coffee shop to work on a project, or if there are a few of you interested in something specific, we can set up a class.

This change excites me because it means that I’ll be learning different things to help you along.  I’ve always said that I learn as much from you as you learn from me.

The website will stay up, and I’ll continue to blog over the summer on some of the projects I’ve put aside the last couple years.  I want to design a few sweaters/vests from the ground up, too, and I’ll share that process with you.

Friday Night Knitting will continue (4 pm to ?) at Espresso Cafe, in the brown buildings (where Sylvia’s Quilt Depot is), across from Walmart.  Let’s  meet there this coming Friday, May 11, and then the first Fridays of June, July, and August.  Once we’re done with our all-too-short summer, let’s set up a regular schedule for FNK.

There’s also a group of spinners and knitters from Northern Lights Valley Knitters who meet at Mocha Moose (corner of Lucille and Swanson) Tuesdays from noonish to 5ish.  I’ll be stopping in there as regularly as I can, too.

So, here we go!

At the last tote bag class, we were talking about how to shape a very soggy wet felted item as it dries.  The problem is that however a felted item dries is how it will be.  It must be shaped over something so it dries to the shape you’re after.  With the tote bag, it can be dried over a large cereal box (covered in plastic) or a plastic cereal container.

Then we thought, how do you shape a soggy, wet felted hat?!  I’m sure not going to check out the size on MY head!!  To the rescue – a great article from Knitting Daily about how to make a ‘head’ to shape and dry your felted hat.

Here are a few highlights:

• Buy four pieces of inch think, circular sytrofoam, 7 inch diameter
• Glue them together, one on top of another, and let dry
• Use a serrated knife or craft knife to shave off the sides to make the block more like your head, and the same size as your head!
• Clean up the edges, then wrap it with plastic wrap to keep things tidy and dry

Your felted hat can be dried over this ‘head,’ and it should fit perfectly!  Great idea, huh!

Knitters are amazingly creative and practical people – don’t ya just love ‘em!

Dupont researchers in 1935 developed nylon, made of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen

nylon fibers

which were melted, extruded, cooeld, and steamed.  The result was nylon as we know it.  The fiber actually looks like glass rods.  They are lustrous, soft, strong, and washable.

But, nylon doesn’t ‘breathe,’ it can pill, it can develop static cling and will melt when heated.

You’ll find nylon in lots of yarns – as a strengthener in sock yarns, as a core for mohairs and novelty yarns.

Acrylic arrived in 1950, coming from wartime development of synthetic rubber.  Acrylic is elastic, washable, and wears better than wool, but it doesn’t ‘breathe,’ it gets staticy, it pills, and it will melt.

Polyester came along in 1953.  It’s softer and warmer than nylon, but still pills, can be staticy, and melts.

Again, look for blends.  Get the strength of nylon or acrylic added to good wool, and you’ve got the best of all worlds!  Synthetic fibers added to cotton lighten and soften the fiber, too.

There have been a number of great tips and ideas in my knitting emails this week.  Let’s look at a few.

Many patterns ask you to decrease stitches evenly on a row between, say, a ribbed edge and the start of the sweater pattern.  This scares off many a newer knitter, but is really easy with a pencil, paper, caluclator, and some simple arithmetic (not even Math!).  Check out this great article from Berocco.

Next comes a great article from Lion Brand Yarns on considering substituting yarn of a different weight in a pattern.  Not an easy task, but doable with some serious swatching, some careful arithmetic, and a leap of faith.  Check out this site for a great article.

Consider subscribing to Lion Brand Yarn’s weekly email.  It’s full of great tips, free patterns, yarn sales, and more.

Another daily service comes from Knitting Daily, a division of Interweave Press.  The articles are informative, fun, and often have free patterns, links to great sites, and more.

You’ll learn a lot to make your knitting easier, help you gain confidence, and even a chuckle every now and again!