Works in progress

Almost too many to count, and probably some I've completely forgotten. Here are the ones I can remember.

I have a beautiful charcoal gray scarf on needles. It's probably going to be a Christmas gift if I can bear to part with it. (and they move Christmas to June) I do lurve me some cashmere! It's a little pattern I made up. I won't claim it as my own, because I'm sure it's been done before. It's too simple NOT to have been done before. If it is, I have no idea what it's called, and I've never seen it written down, but I haven't looked real hard either. Want the pattern? .......... OK


I'll call it
Steve's Completely Original, Never Been Done Before Scarf.

Cast on 38 stitches.
Knit 7 rows
Begin 6 row pattern repeat
1. Knit
2. K4, (P4, K1) six times, K4
3. K4, (P2, K3) six times, K4
4. K4, (P2, K3) six times, K4
5. K4, (P4, K1) six times, K4
6. Knit
Repeat rows 1 through 6 until scarf is as long as you like it.
Knit 7 rows
Bind off all stitches
simple, huh?

It makes a nice cushy textured pattern. It sort of reminds me of waffles. (mmmmmmmmmm, waaaaaaffles)


Let's see, what else am I knitting?
I have a super secret project for a very special knitting friend who gave me a TON of blue hand dyed wool yarn quite a while ago. She's getting some of it back after I get it knitted up. More info and photos to follow.


I'm knitting a toe up sock. I haven't turned the heel yet. There are plans in the works to knit a second sock to match the first. I'm using white yarn because it's easier to see, and it was in my stash. I think I may dye them with walnut hulls after I knit them. They may actually become kilt hose, as I have ordered myself a kilt from Alt.Kilt. Check it out. She's got a sweet little operation going, and a touching story about how she got started.


I'm knitting a top down, shawl collared cardigan for myself. It was going to be my 2010 SAFF Sweater, but that didn't happen. I'm using Rowan Yorkshire Tweed Aran, which pre-dates Rowan Scottish Tweed Aran, (for those of you keeping track), but it's pretty much the same thing. It's a beautiful shade of blue with purple, (that's right.... purple!) and turquoise slubs. One partial sleeve, One full sleeve, two button bands, and a collar, and I'm done. I'm teaching a top down sweater class this month, so chances are some of it will get done.


I'm working on a beautiful, INCREDIBLY soft cashmere hat for Miss Nancy. She's having chemo, and will soon need something to keep that noggin of hers warm. I'm knitting love and healing thoughts, (and I think maybe some peanut butter cracker crumbs), into every single stitch I make. LOVE YA NANCY!


OK, now I'm tired, and I've thought of about 10 other projects I've started, but not finished, and what am I doing instead of knitting? Blogging! That's OK. If I wasn't doing this, I'd be screwing around on Facebook or Ravelry.

Time to blog again

Yes, it has been a while. That's not an apology, just an observation. I think writing a blog should be fun. I started looking at mine like it was homework. I've never liked homework. Now I'm going to do my darndest to make it fun for me. Hopefully it will be fun for all who read it too.

Lots of things have happened in my life since I last wrote. Probably the biggest thing that has happened is; I decided to come out to my family and friends, and live my life as the gay man that I am. (yes, I know you're all shocked) For too many years I have done what I thought my family, my church, (God), and society as a whole expected me to do. I thought if I acted straight, I would become straight. I thought if I prayed to God, he would make me straight. None of that happened. What I learned was; there is nothing wrong with being who you are. I also learned that living a lie, and trying to be something you're not, creates deep unhappiness. I wish I had come to this conclusion years ago, but I'm learning that all things happen when they should. I still have a lot of things to work through, but luckily I'm surrounded by many supportive and loving family members and friends. I love you all.

I am still working at Cut Flower Wholesale. With the help of a therapist and prescription anti-depressants, I manage to show up to work on time every day and do what is expected of me without killing anyone. Luckily I still have my other job. Teaching at Knitch is my joy and my passion. If you had told me three years ago that I would be teaching people how to knit, I would have said you were crazy. Now I cannot imagine my life without it. I had no idea I would enjoy teaching as much as I do. Apparently I'm quite good at it, (that's what they tell me), and I plan on doing it as long as I can hold a pair of needles in my hands.

Hope you like the new blog design. Think "chocolate covered cherries" - one of my favorite color combinations!

The Exquisite Corpse Project: Collaborative Garment Design

Today's sweater is a rare and special bird. Last Fall I was given the opportunity to produce an art-sweater for ESOPUS magazine -- a very special publication that is produced by the ESOPUS foundation here in New York (read more about the ESOPUS Foundation here). I spun my wheels on this project for quite a while trying to think of a way of incorporating knitting into the publication in a fresh and interesting way. After enduring a long creative void, I found myself thinking about the Exquisite Corpse process-drawings that were done by Surrealists in the 1920's

The Exquisite Corpse is a collaborative process in which multiple artists create a single image (typically the human figure) in sequence with one another. Each artist is permitted only a glimpse at the contribution of the previous artist without knowing its connection to the whole. The imaginative drawings that are created in this way are spontaneous, random, and very interesting.

With this process in mind came the spark of an idea for a design experiment that resulted in the sweater you see photographed here.

I got in contact with a few of my favorite indie-designers to see if they were up for a design challenge: to create a collaborative garment in random sequence working directly off of the piece or pieces that were presented to them from the previous designer. Starting with a general set of garment dimensions provided by me (so that the garment would fit the body at the conclusion of the process) each designer was given complete creative freedom for their portion of the sweater.

I chose a bulky, rustic sheepswool in hopes that the materials would inspire textural experimentation and highlight the multi-directional quality of the fabrics. As you can see from the images, the garment is a veritable explosion of texture!

The designers who collaborated on this project, each from a different location around the country, were: Connie Chang Chinchio, Tanis Gray, Carrie Hoge, Melissa LaBarre & Elli Stubenrauch.

Below is a schematic of the finished garment, a Dolman cardigan, and how each designers contribution comes together to create the finished whole.

It was a wonderful experiment and created a garment that I find interesting for so many reasons. The magazine is accompanied by a gallery show in which all pieces from the current issue are on view at the ESOPUS space in New York. For those readers who are local, click here for the show information if you'd like to see the physical garment on view at the gallery.

I want to give a special thank you to all the designers who joined me to put this together as well as my lovely model (does she look familiar? Yes, that's famed Cookie A. looking fierce).

The garment is a true one-of-a-kind and the result of each designers immediate response to the garment pieces as they were presented to them. I hope you enjoy it!

Romney Kerchief

Shortly after returning from vacation, I completed work on this simple handspun triangle. Since I was shooting to use up every last bit of this special yarn, I waited until I was home again and armed with my trusty kitchen scale to aid in calculations so that every last yard could be enjoyed, stress-free.

It's probably no surprise to anyone, but a simple shape of fabric with a good wool and suitable texture is a recipe for success every single time in my book. Simple knitting allows for the enjoyment of the special characteristics of our materials and I think this might just be one of the things that keeps me devoted to my knitting. One of the many things.

This piece was worked in the standard method, starting with just 10 stitches at center-top and increased regular along both edges as well as the center 'spine' to create a simple triangle. I love working from the top down (from the top 'out' seems more appropriate in this case) when you know you have limited yardage and want to stay in control of your process. By working with with a scale and measuring the remaining grams of unworked yarn remaining, you have good solid numbers telling you when you need to start thinking about binding off. This scenario is almost always better to me than spending the last 20% of the project wondering if there will be enough yarn to get me across the finish line.

The simple stitch pattern is a subtle variation of garter stitch -- knitting, knitting, knitting, and purling every 6th row (or every 3rd RS row) to create a 'valley' in place of every third Garter Stitch Ridge. I think this stitch pattern is beautiful in its simplicity and highlights the diagonal directional fabric in a sweet way. I kept the first and last 3 stitches of each row (the stitches running along the top, flat edge of the triangle) in pure Garter Stitch and ended with 3 consecutive ridges to give a touch of weight to the outer edge of the shape.

I estimate that I used approximately 275 yards of a very light, handspun 2-ply yarn, the weight of which danced around between a DK-weight and a light-worsted weight, as handspun yarns tend to do. I loved the lightness of this yarn and wanted to play that up by knitting it at a looser-than-average gauge and block the finished piece as for lace. The result is a feather-light fabric that is toasty-warm and wooly-soft. Surprisingly soft for a Romney, but that has a lot to do with the amount of air that is trapped in the finished yarn.

The finished dimensions of the piece came out to about 43 inches across the top, flat length of the triangle, and a 21 inch depth at the center 'spine'. Perfect size for a wool-lovers alternative to a bandana, no?

I don't know if I'll ever stop singing the praises of blocking wires -- their precision in making perfectly symmetrical shapes while blocking brings me an unlimited amount of satisfaction. They really play to my inner Geometer. To maximize the blocking potential, I worked a sewn bind-off for as much added elasticity as possible. Traditional bind-offs, when worked along the perimeter of larger pieces that will be blocked severely is a recipe for disaster. The sewn bind off, while taking a bit longer to execute is so absolutely worth the fuss.

Wool-wearing weather is beginning to slowly retreat, but at least this little triangle will provide a graceful (desperate) transition before the official hibernation of my cold-weather wardrobe.

Made (Over) in Brooklyn: PDF Downloads Now Available

I've spent a lot of time over the last two months giving the patterns in Made in Brooklyn a complete make over for their release as individual PDF downloads. I'm very happy with the result, and even happier to announce that they are all now available both through my Ravelry store as well as BrooklynTweed proper.

One of the most beautiful things about PDF downloads is that there are no page restrictions. Thanks to my rather verbose style of writing patterns, I really pushed the limit on my page-count when writing the print-version of the book, which ended up significantly affecting the size of the charts which was, while understandable, a real bummer.

That said, the biggest change to the patterns is definitely chart size and clarity -- in most cases they have been re-illustrated and blown up to have their own, spacious page to spread out on. The texts have also been given more breathing room and in some cases have been extended. Each pattern begins with a Pattern Blueprint page which lists all the specifics about the garment and needed materials and includes an alternate photograph as well as a large, clear schematic.

As mentioned above, all the patterns are available either through my Ravelry store or through BrooklynTweed.net -- follow the buttons below to visit either:

I worked closely with a tech editor for all the new layouts and corrected any existing errata that was present in the 1st edition of the print version. I hope you enjoy them and thank you so much, as always, for your continued support!

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

I figure I might as well use this post to discuss a few of the other things that I've been meaning to bring to your attention:

Social Media: I finally got around to setting up a Facebook page (took long enough, right?) -- please feel free to stop by or to become a fan if you're a Facebook user. I plan on using it as an alternate way of posting my teaching schedule and teaching-related announcements (Dates are also always posted on my website), as well as other informal announcements, snapshots, etc.

And if that isn't enough social media for you, you can also catch Brooklyn Tweets (sorry, I had to) on Twitter here, if you're into that sort of thing.

Pattern Wholesale: In the last 6 months I've been wholesaling many of my designs to Local Yarn Shops. If you are a shop owner and interested in wholesaling print patterns, please send me an e-mail and I'll be happy to put you in contact with my distributor.

Phew! I think that's all the housecleaning for the day... although I'll expand this post if I realize there is anything that I've forgotten, which there most likely will be.

Thank you!

Vacation Knitting

I travel a lot, but rarely for the express purpose of vacationing. My considerations for travel-knitting, in general, are designs that are in-process works that are at a point where a significant amount of mindless, or at least not-difficult-to-record knitting is in store. This way, I get 'work' knitting done without having to sit in front of Illustrator or InDesign, activities which I prefer to do only on the Homefront.

So, when a true Vacation came along I thought my travel knitting should reflect this change, and I decided to bring simple, 100% pleasure-knitting that required no pattern, no notes, and very little brainwork. I wanted projects that were geared towards my hands and allowed enjoyment of the simple act of knitting. And oh how wonderful it was!

I took small amounts of two special yarns that were both worthy of a special occasion. First, one beautiful skein of Buffalo Gals Yarn -- a very special 2-ply Bison/Merino yarn, hand-dyed by Fiber Sage Judith MacKenzie McCuin -- which I was fortunate enough to acquire directly from the source (Judith's hands) and have been savoring ever since. The other, my recently spun Romney 2-Ply, which is as light as a feather and wonderfully woolly.

I fell deeply in love with Judith's dye work, and this rust orange skein stole my breath. Bison, as it turns out, takes dye incredibly well and this skein seemed to almost shimmer with some other-worldly presence (again, I attribute this to Judith's sage-like energy.)

Armed with one beautiful skein, I threw a prized set of Ebony needles into my luggage and started thinking of the possibilities for something luxurious and simple. A feast for the fingers! I ended up deciding to knit a top-down hat in a simple waffle-stitch pattern. The yarn is a sport weight and creates a beautiful, light-weight and butter-soft fabric. A perfect companion for being in the passenger seat of a car for miles of Italian Autostrade.

Alternatively, the skein of Romney created just enough variety to keep me constantly entertained, bouncing between two projects from day to day. For this, I began work on a simple, almost-garter-stitch triangle. Because I had limited amounts of both yarns, I decided to work both projects from the top down (in the triangle's case, from top-center, opposite of Triangle Tip) and work mindlessly until I used up all of my yarn. I love working in this way -- armed with a simple kitchen scale, you can always be sure of using as many yards as is possible without having to spend the last 20% of your knitting time biting your nails, wondering if you'll have enough yarn to finish.

I didn't complete either project on my trip, which was a good lesson toward learning that I often need less yarn than I think I will while on the road. I have, since being home, just about finished both projects with very satisfying results.

Also, upon return, I was stricken by an incredible urge to have some Unspun Icelandic yarn back in my life (this is what happened the last time), and ordered yarn for a new lace project in this lovely stuff. It reminds me of a chocolate layer cake.

Unspun Icelandic Wool ranks high on my list of favorite yarns, largely because it is so unique and unlike anything else out there for knitters. The majority of the yarn is air, after all!

So, it turns out that I ended up learn something important from vacationing -- keeping it simple, even though my instincts were screaming to bring more yarn, was absolutely the perfect choice for enjoying knitting every day and savoring every stitch of these special yarns.

Home, With Cables

I'm home after a wonderful week of adventures -- simple knitting projects, simple foods, and many a click on the old odometer (people drive fast in Italy) -- oh what fun! I took the opportunity of being in the middle of such a visually rich country (texture, texture everywhere) to shoot some new accessory patterns that I've been working on this Winter. I'm happy to introduce Dryad -- which has become an instant wardrobe luxury around BT headquarters, even despite the slow thaw that brings Spring.

In the Fall I found myself frequently experiencing the urge for a serious cabled scarf -- one that pulls out all the stops and doesn't apologize for being dramatic. I wanted something wide and long, with big, plump cables that still retained a non-oppressive weight and elegant drape. As is usually the case, finding the right yarn for the job was the key to solidifying design, and made all of the above listed requirements possible.

The scarf is knit with Blackstone Tweed, new from Berocco last Fall, a yarn that is special and unique and in my opinion stands out among the commercially available tweeds. Blackstone Tweed has a rustic look, but a surprising drape and hand, due in part to its interesting fiber composition (Wool, Superkid Mohair, Angora). Don't be fooled though, this is not your average mohair/angora sneezy fuzzfest. The yarn is prepared with minimal halo and a lightly spun, crisp hand. The touch of angora (just 10%) adds amazing softness and really makes this a luxurious material. The drape that can be achieved, even in heavily cabled fabric is something definitely worth taking a second look at!

All that said, it makes a perfect fit for a scarf that may otherwise be overly heavy or rigid. Even with 6-stitch cables, which begin to be voluptuously plump, the fabric still drapes and moves beautifully, and is quite visually appealing as well. A great color palette doesn't hurt either.

Back to my ever-present desire to be swathed in cables: this one definitely fits the bill. In general, I usually wait to absorb a new piece of knitting into regular wardrobe rotation until the pattern is written and the photo shoot complete... not only as a way to keep the work fresh for its close-up, but also to trick myself into getting the work done faster. This scarf has been burning a hole in my pile of finished knitting and I'll be honest that I've been wrapped up in it ever since we wrapped the shoot. Even indoors. Which makes me think I may have a problem.

The pattern has been provided for three differing lengths: 60, 75, and 90 inches. All sizes have a width of approximately 8.5 inches. The sample shown is the long version and can be wrapped and wrapped if you require a nest of cabled fabric around your face. If you're less about the drama, a shorter version can be worked without problem.

The pattern is now available in my Ravelry Store here, and will be available through BrooklynTweed downloads shortly. Pattern instructions for this piece are charted.

Thanks also to my dear friend Sara for modeling -- a Contemporary Italian Literature Scholar and truly fashionable Tuscan -- she wears knitting quite well, wouldn't you say? We shot these photos on location in a tower-filled, Medieval hilltown outside of Siena.

I hope you enjoy!

Pattern Store Update, and Splitting the Country

I've been scurrying around the US so much in the last few weeks that I completely forgot to mention that I have two patterns that are now available as PDF downloads in my store, both on Brooklyn Tweed and on Ravelry.

The Alberta vest was published last year in Wild Fibers Magazine and can now be purchased as a stand-alone pattern.

Upon request I've also made the Wool Leaves Baby Blanket available as well, for any of you who were interested in making one too! There are links below to both Ravelry as well as BT.

* * * * * *

A L B E R T A

on Ravelry | on BrooklynTweed

W O O L L E A V E S

on Ravelry | on BrooklynTweed

* * * * * *

As for me, I'm currently having that frantic moment before a long trip when you have to decide what (oh, what) knitting to bring. I tend to always overcompensate and bring too much, so I'm trying to be reasonable. I won't finish 3 lace shawls on vacation. I know that. And I can exercise control to be away from said shawls for a week... in theory.

I'll be back at the end of the month. Until then, I'll be knitting (and eating) in Italy. Have a wonderful week!

A Spin-aissance

The organization of yarn inevitably meant the organization of projects (major bonus), which meant that I've been stricken by that wonderful feeling of falling-in-love-all-over-again (or what I like to call Knitter's Christmas). When a project that we once fell out-of-love with comes rushing back into our lives and we see it with fresh eyes as we once did. One previously stalled project of mine gave me the familiar rush and has been welcomed back onto the regular roster of nightly knitting with open arms.

My thick-and-thin handspun corriedale lace blanket dates back to circa Spring of 2008, as best as I can tell, and is just the type of project I've been craving lately. It's already large enough that I can use it as a lap blanket as I work. I consider this a major plus.

I originally put this project aside because I ran out of yarn and didn't feel up to spinning more right away... which in turn meant that this fluffy cloud of handspun got inadvertantly buried and has been lying dormant ever since.

The construction is almost identical to the Bridgewater Shawl from Made in Brooklyn, and in fact when I was starting work on the book I still had this piece knocking around in my head. Aside from the obvious difference in materials and a simpler knitted-on edging, there is virtually no difference between how the two pieces are constructed. Which is yet another example of my favorite part about lace -- the same piece can be completely different with decidedly different materials. Each more delicious than the other!

So, yes -- I've fallen for it again, which leads me to my next admission: I've been having a love session with my Spinning wheel this week. I went back to spin up the remaining Corriedale fiber so I could finish my blanket... but when the yarn came off the wheel and was ready to knit, I didn't feel like stopping. So I consulted my humble fiber stash and just kept spinning.

And I've been spinning all week! It feels fresh and relaxing and is the perfect activity for sitting next to the window and enjoying the wonderful sunlight (after endless days of monsoon rain) that reminds me Spring is almost here.

I've spent the last few days spinning up a some beautiful, smokey Romney that a friend had given me last Summer. The wool is a perfect warm-grey heather and light as a feather while being very warm (my favorite combo.)

I've spun up about 300 yards of dk-weight 2-ply, lightly plied and can barely wait for it to dry so I can get it on my needles and start making fabric. In a few days I'll be leaving for a ... wait for it... VACATION (I can hardly believe it myself) and I think this handspun will be my treat for mindless vacation knitting.

As for the lace blanket -- I'm closing in on her. I have a little less than half the edging to finish, although I'm worried I might run out of yarn (again) just before the end.

But you know what? I'm happy to spin more right now... just in case.

Full Power

After days and days of honest (and sometimes tortured) sorting, I feel like I've been through a gauntlet and come out on the other side amazed at what was lurking in the depths. When you commit to giving your stash a deep-cleaning you expect to feel organized afterwards... but what I wasn't expecting was how inspired my own stash has made me. Assessing the whole scope of it caused me to start making connections between yarns that have probably never even been in the same room with one another.

Aside from being organized, I'm now living amongst a beautiful palette of wools that has my head spinning with ideas.

I was lucky enough to be able to find grateful hands for all the yarns that were jettisoned, which is probably the reason for the sense of lightness that I now feel, and ended up donating a small amount of yarn to a local charity. All that remains are yarns that I'm absolutely itching to work with - oh what a feeling!

The crown jewel of them all: I rounded up all my Shetland yarns and put them together in color groups (shown above) -- what a thing of beauty! I couldn't resist taking photo after photo of these amazing colors all lined up together. A kid in a candy store comes to mind.

Better than a box of truffles

It looks like there's nothing left to do but start nibbling...

The Reality Check

Is there anything more humbling, dare I say embarrassing, at least for a knitter than coming face to face with the whole of your Knitting Materials? This would include Stash (all of it), unfinished projects (old, new, and reaaaally old), & Tools both large and small (everything from swifts and winders to all 18 of your floating tapestry needles). Well this is what happens when knitters move. And generally the amount of years you've lived in your own Knitting Paradise exponentially increases the scope of just how many loads you'll be making out to that van.

Aside from about 13 days of travel, my life has been eaten by a stressful urban move. And while I absolutely love the architecture of Brooklyn brownstones, and wouldn't trade them for anything, Moving Day is probably the only time I find myself truly cursing the day I ever heard the term "3rd flood walk-up". And when you move from one "3rd floor walk-up" to another, by my math, it's more like a "6th floor walk-up". Multiply that by every box of yarn you own (knitting books too) and you might find yourself wistful and dreamy for even the smallest of elevators.

Of course it's not all drama, especially in hindsight. I'm in a place with great light and more space (for all that yarn) and while it's easy to complain, I really do appreciate a good purge every few years. Which brings me to today's post about being honest about what we have, and more importantly what we, as knitters, need.

It makes sense that our knitting palettes become more refined as our craftsmanship does. That happens in any artistic discipline. And in studying what I've held onto over the years, I began doing what I do whenever I'm faced with an overabundance of information -- organizing and categorizing. In doing so, I've started to notice that my stash (which I used to brag as very modest... somehow I don't feel comfortable with this description any longer) falling into three main groups.

The first is the group that is most obvious and, I think, most important. Those are yarns that really excite me. Often recent acquisitions, or older, special acquisitions that still retain that spark that gets ideas running around like crazy in my head. These are the yarns that usually live on top of a given pile or drawer, or at least are never far enough away that I can't have immediate access to them. These yarns have no surprises -- I know I have them, I know I want them, and I know I'd make a fuss if someone took them away from me. These yarns have evolved with me and I believe are very valuable in terms of how I use my time as I continue to make projects with my collection of materials.

The second group is actually the hardest for me to reconcile. These are yarns that, at one time or another gave me The Spark, but have not retained it as I've grown as a knitter. These are yarns I definitely still like a lot, but I wouldn't say I love, or couldn't live without (if I'm really honest). These are the yarns I'd be grateful for if I ended up stranded in the arctic with nothing but yarn and time... but the yarns that,over the long run, will probably end up taking up the most room and take the longest time for me to give away because I *might* use them. When I finally do end up stranded in the Arctic and somehow my yarn is magically there with me, maybe I'll kick myself for getting rid of much of this group, but until that happens, I probably will appreciate the extra space (both physical and headspace) they allow.

The third group is easy -- it's the group that randomly finds its way in and sneaks around my generally thorough screening process (which, when you're living small, is very very important). This includes all the yarn that has been given to me when people are cleaning their apartments and know that I'm a knitter, or yarns that were so reasonably priced that I couldn't bear to see them go to waste, even though that's kinda what they're doing anyway. Now they're just doing it in my closet. Or they could just be those few odd mystery "What-Was-I-Thinking" skeins. There are some of those too.

All this to say that I'm being diligent and most of all honest with myself about what I need and what is surely overabundance. Too much yarn sitting un-knit starts making me feel nervous and greedy, especially if I think how much more beautiful this yarn is in the hands of someone who is enjoying every stitch.

Among other things that were lurking in the shadows: baskets of unfinished projects, some of which I promptly frogged for salvaging yarn (Group 1), and others that genuinely got me excited again and have rematerialized alongside my current project baskets.

And then there was my trusty (dusty) minstrel... just waiting to be used to turn all that excess fiber (did I mention, there is fiber too?) into more... yep, yarn.

I'm committing to at least giving this all a good try and passing on some wonderful materials to appreciative fingers. And with the survivors of the purge? Well I think I'll just get knitting with those.