Understanding One of the Most Misunderstood Parts of Knitting Welcome back to Summer Yarn School! We're down to our final two lessons, and this week we're tackling a topic that almost every knitter encounters but one we may not really understand. Picture this... You've just finished a beautiful sweater. You wear it proudly a few times, and then one day you notice tiny little fuzz balls beginning to appear under the arms, along the sides, or where your favorite crossbody bag r

Welcome back to Summer Yarn School! We have just two lessons to go before we wrap up our summer journey together. Over the past nine weeks, we've talked about yarn weights, spinning methods, twist, ply structure, colorways, and choosing yarn with intention. This week, we're exploring something that can completely transform your knitting even when you don't change the pattern at all. Have you ever admired a sweater or shawl that looked impossibly soft? Maybe it seemed to glow,

Welcome back to Summer Yarn School! Hard to believe it's Week 9 (3 more to go!) already. Over the past several weeks, we've explored yarn weights, spinning methods, ply structure, twist, and how color influences the appearance of our knitting. This week, I'd like to take that conversation one step further. Have you ever fallen in love with a skein of hand-dyed yarn only to cast on and think, "This isn't quite what I expected?" Maybe those beautiful cables disappeared into the

Why Can the Same Pattern Look Completely Different? Welcome back to Summer Yarn School! This week we're talking about one of my favorite subjects: Color. As knitters, we're naturally drawn to beautiful yarn. Sometimes it's a rich tonal colorway. Others it's a wildly speckled skein that simply begs to come home with us. But color does more than make yarn beautiful. Color influences how we see the finished fabric. THE YARN AND THE PATTERN WORK TOGETHER When we choose yarn for a

It's More Than Just Nylon Welcome back to Summer Yarn School! If you've spent much time shopping for sock yarn, you've probably noticed a common formula: 70-80% wool, 20-30% nylon. Because this blend is so popular, many knitters assume nylon is the defining characteristic of sock yarn. But that's not entirely true. In fact, knitters were creating durable socks long before nylon became part of the yarn industry. So what actually makes a sock yarn a sock yarn? Let's take a clo

The Secret Hidden in Every Skein Welcome back to Summer Yarn School! This week we're exploring one of the most important and most overlooked characteristics of yarn. The twist. Many knitters focus on fiber content, yarn weight, or color when choosing yarn. Those things certainly matter as we've already talked about some of them. But twist often has a tremendous influence on how a yarn behaves, wears, and knits. WHAT IS TWIST? Simply put, twist is exactly what it sounds like.

Welcome back to Summer Yarn School! Have you ever noticed that cables seem to leap off the fabric in one yarn but look softer and less defined in another? Or maybe you've wondered why some yarns feel incredibly sturdy while others feel airy and delicate. The answer may have less to do with the fiber itself and more to do with something called ply structure. WHAT IS PLY? A ply is simply a strand of fiber that has been spun. Those strands can then be twisted together to create

Welcome back to Summer Yarn School Week 4! Have you ever picked up two skeins of yarn that were both 100% wool and the same weight, yet one felt light and airy while the other felt smooth and substantial? The difference may have less to do with the fiber itself and more to do with how the yarn was spun. Today we're exploring two common spinning methods: woolen-spun and worsted-spun. THE FIBER ISN'T THE WHOLE STORY When choosing yarn, most knitters focus on fiber content such

UNDERSTANDING YARN WEIGHT, YARDAGE, AND WHY BOTH MATTER Welcome back to Summer Yarn School! This week we're tackling one of the most common misunderstandings in the yarn world: YARN WEIGHT DOESN'T REFER TO HOW MUCH A SKEIN WEIGHS In fact, a 100 gram skein of Fingering weight yarn and a 100 gram skein of Worsted weight yarn weigh exactly the same. So why are they called different weights? Let's take a closer look. WHAT DOES "YARN WEIGHT" ACTUALLY MEAN? When knitters or crochet

THE CURIOUS HISTORY OF DOUBLE KNITTING Welcome back to Summer Yarn School! This week we're exploring one of the most popular yarn weights in modern knitting: DK, or Double Knitting. If you've spent any time browsing patterns or shopping for yarn, you've almost certainly encountered DK weight yarn. It's beloved for its versatility. Substantial enough for sweaters and accessories, yet light enough to create comfortable fabrics that can be worn throughout much of the year. [Desi

UNDERSTANDING YARN TERMINOLOGY ACROSS THE POND One of the most common questions I hear when helping knitters substitute yarn is: "What exactly does the designer mean by Aran weight?" The answer isn't always as straightforward as we'd like. Depending on where a pattern designer or yarn company is based, the same yarn weight term can mean slightly different things. This is especially true when comparing American and European yarn terminology. Let's take a closer look. AMERICAN

Each skein is artist-dyed using the dyer’s unique expertise and vision. The result? A collection that celebrates both the farm and the maker. "Because we are stronger when plied together." Mitchell Wool Co.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. About this space. About you. About the quiet threads that connect us beyond our love for fiber...

Hazel Top is for every body, every style, every occasion. There are some knits that become wardrobe staples, and there are others that...

There’s a certain kind of guilt that creeps in when we don’t make. Not because we don’t want to, but because life, in all its fullness,...

Last time, I wrote about why I'm embracing the slow stitch, and wow, the response truly warmed my heart. There’s something quietly...

I’ve been thinking a lot about rhythm lately. Not just in my stitches or row counts, but in life. Things have been a little quieter here...

There’s a tender moment after frogging a project. The stitches are gone, the yarn is soft and slack again, and your hands feel a little...

Let’s talk about something tender and true: the beautifully imperfect journey of making. You know that moment when someone asks, “Did you...

There’s a moment in every maker’s life when you stare at your project - really stare at it - and something just doesn’t feel quite...