When a maker is asked by a family member for a specific handmade item, they put everything down and fulfill that desire, stat! My son requested me to knit him a black beanie. He showed me a picture of a fisherman’s rib beanie that he had found online. He also had some “specific” requests – it couldn’t be slouchy, it needed to be quite short so that it didn’t completely cover his ears, he wanted a wide-ish brim so he… Read more »

Sometime last fall, I had a YouTube channel recommendation pop up. It was a crafty podcast by Jooles Hill under her brand Sew Sweet Violet. Jooles had an idea for 2021 through community activity and she called it, The Rainbow Sock Chronicles. Rainbows make everyone smile and her suggestion was that this could be a year where we seek out “rainbows”. I don’t think that we can deny the continued devastation on our globe as this pandemic rages on. However,… Read more »

Here we are, closing the final chapter of 2020. While a lot of this year was upside-down and inside-out, there were many things that went right. I’m choosing to remember the good things. My heart is filled with gratitude for all that has been and I look forward to all that is to come. Though this is blog post is different from the way I usually write about my finished projects, I wanted to document my creative 2020 makes. With… Read more »

The hat, it is done! This is the coziest hat I’ve ever made. Also, the sweetest. That mohair halo! That pom!! It was truly a pleasure knitting every stitch of this project. Holding the hand dyed merino from Hedgehog Fibres together with the fluffiest Rowan Kidsilk Haze produces a fabric that is so dreamy. I would love to wear a sweater knit with this stuff! My daughter wanted it extra slouchy and she is super thrilled with how it turned… Read more »

I purchased this faux fur pompom a few months ago and put it away in one of my yarn baskets. Then I promptly forgot all about it. A couple weeks ago, I was digging through my stash for some yarn and my heart just about stopped. I saw this round, furry thing sitting there in the basket. I swear it had beady eyes and sharp teeth. Eeek, had a rodent invaded my yarn stash and made a cozy home?! I… Read more »

I’m currently working on a store sample for Black Sheep Yarns.  We want to showcase how Arbor knits up and so we picked out a small(ish) pattern to finish and display in store. The pattern choice that made the cut was High Pines, a textured cowl designed by Jared Flood. If you’re familiar with Jared’s work you will know that his patterns have unusual techniques and the design is often quite intricate.  The end result though, is always stunning.  High Pines is… Read more »

I have been working at my LYS, Black Sheep Yarns, for the past two years and I have loved every minute.  Last month, we became a destination store for Brooklyn Tweed. Happy dance 😀   As we unpacked boxes and boxes and boxes of gorgeous BT yarn, there was much squealing and whoops of delight!  Stocking the shelves was a mammoth task, but so worth it.  I love the story behind this all-American yarn and now I am so glad… Read more »

Actually typing up a blog post as opposed to formulating a post in my head is always a good thing!  And, there’s no time like the present to hit publish, right? I’ve got a few small finishes that I haven’t yet shared on the blog so here’s my #LaterPost about these. Two of these FOs were made as Christmas presents so they have long since been gifted to the recipients and were received with delight! First up is this table runner made using mini squares… Read more »

When I was little I remember my grandma spending hours sewing at her sewing machine. Always humming as she sewed. She had the sweetest singing voice. Every once in a while she would ask me to “help” sort through her scraps by size and that was the thrilling task I was waiting for.  She would cut those scraps into squares or rectangles, sometimes pausing and chuckling.  She would tell me how this piece was from a dress she had sewn… Read more »

I was looking for dinner inspiration on the interwebs the other day and you know how AdSense shows you pictures on the sidebar of things that you may be interested in. They have to rework their algorithm because I get a lot of promotions for power tools!!  I don’t think I’ve ever actively “googled” power tools for this to happen, but nonetheless. This time however, there was this cool looking project tutorial by Jenny Doan of Missouri Star Quilt Co. I paused dinner… Read more »