You may not ever think about yarn fiber processing, or it may be something you pay attention to, but it is quite important to what your yarn will and won’t do. I am by no means an expert, and like all things, yarn fiber processing has pros and cons for every step, and you should…
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Yarn Fibers: Basic Helpful Information
Yarn fibers are spun together to make yarn. There are some very odd exceptions, but mostly, yarn is made from fiber. It doesn’t matter what the fiber is, it has to be spun to make yarn. Before I get to talking about ply, let’s talk about yarn fibers. There are two categories of fibers: Natural…
LYS Day is Local Yarn Store Day
I’m taking a day here to talk about the upcoming, first ever, Local Yarn Store Day on April 21, 2018. Hopefully LYS Day is coming to a local yarn store near you. If your LYS belongs to TNNA they should be participating! So please, ask your LYS if they are participating and send them to…
Will This Yarn Work for This Project?
The question most of us have when we pick up a yarn, or pick a project we want to make is “Will this yarn work for this”? I love to swatch, so I am always trying things out and have come up with a formula for getting a sense of a yarn, but quite honestly,…
Almost Plaid Scarf in Blush and Black Cherry
Before I get into Almost Plaid, you might like to check out my blog on Cloud on Anzula’s website. I’ve done swatches for Remarkables, Snow Farm, and for Roundhill in Cloud. I ended up with yarn left over, and you know I hate that. I wanted to challenge myself to design something masculine. The challenge…
Relationship Formula for Non-Math-y Knitters
The relationship formula is called other things, but I think if you aren’t a math person, it is better to describe what it is doing. I use it a lot: figuring new stitch counts, finding size relationship numbers, calculating yardage, weight, or other measurements. I use it so much I should have a spreadsheet for…
Using the 2018 Project Planning Sheet
I got a query yesterday about getting some tips and techniques on using the 2018 Project Planners. If you are like me, doing it right, and making it pretty sometimes get in the way of the use, which is why I just made it a download. My advice, just use them, and worry about how…
Tips and Techniques for Meeting Knitting Goals
I thought tips and techniques to get you to your 2017 knitting goals was in order today. I’ve got a lot of content available to you and anyone else, so here are some things I’ve written that you might be able to use now. Work in Ends (weave in ends). If you’ve been knitting,…
Unorthodox Approach to Blocking
Today Mitch caught me employing an unorthodox approach to wet blocking. I put a swatch I’ve been working on into a bath this morning, and then moved on to working on projects in my office. A while later (the water was still warm-ish), Mitch commented that he didn’t think he’d ever seen the needles go…
Messy-Bun Hat Recipe in Anzula Cricket
If you read my Anzula blog post on Cricket and are looking for the Messy-bun Hat Recipe, this is the right place. How does a recipe differ from a pattern? A recipe tells you the steps to take, with the inputs needed, but isn’t formally drafted as a pattern. I tend to do them for…
Arriving at the Gift-Giving Finish Line
Do you have gift-giving finish line goals? I know many of you make things for gifts, and it can get pretty stressful trying to get the finish line and the deadline to match. There is nothing worse than having to finish up after the climax is reached. Talk about anti-climactic. This is why I don’t…
The last GAL Designer list post!
This is the last GAL designer list post. I hope you are ready for this. So many good, yummy, interesting, and beautiful things in this year’s GAL, befitting a fifth anniversary. I am always overwhelmed by all the goodies made available at 25% off, the prizes offered, the participating designers, the organizers, it is a…
