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Behold the Wonders of Wool

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we love woolNow that it’s almost October (if you can believe it) it’s high time to start thinking about fall and winter knitting and maybe even (gasp) holiday knitting.

It’s a great time of year to be a knitter, isn’t it?

One of the best things about fall and winter knitting is getting to knit with wool, which many of us love quite a lot.

Yarnspirations has a great list of reasons to love work with wool, including ease of blocking and other finishing tasks, warmth, of course, and the fact that hand washing really isn’t all that scary.

My main reason for loving wool is that I am always cold and wool makes me less so.

Why do you love wool? Are you knitting anything with wool right now? (I happen to be working on a giant, super bulky wool roving cabled scarf that I’m sure I’m going to want to live in as soon as its done.)

[Photo via Yarnspirations.]

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Comments

  1. I love the squooshieness of wool, and the wonderful subtle ways it takes color. Oh, and it stays warm even when wet. Yeah, and warms up so quickly. Oh, Wool, I love you so!

Have you read?

Knit and Felt Some Tabi Style Slippers

The felted slipper craze that began last year doesn’t seem like it’s fading away. The Sailor Slippers, often striped knit and felted slippers made with super bulky yarn, because the project of the moment late last year (check out more knit slipper options in this post all about sailor slippers) and they’re still consistently popular with knitters.

Which makes sense because they are fun and fast to knit, and seeing them go from this giant thing to something that actually fits a foot feels a little magical. 

I have always loved felting (in fact my first book was about felting knitting) and it’s always fun for me to see people rediscover this technique. 

If you’ve knit enough plain slippers to fit all the feet you know, maybe it’s time to stitch up some tabi style slippers instead. 

Maymade Knits has designed these cute tabi ballerina slippers, made with bulky yarn and felted. They’re worked flat at first and then in rounds, and are available in 10 EU sizes (the Internet tells me add 31 to your American shoe size to get your EU size). The designer says the slippers are meant to have a close fit and you should choose a size a little smaller than your foot for the ideal fit. 

The pattern includes a video tutorial along with the written pattern. 

You can grab this pattern on Ravelry. The same designer has her own version of the striped felted slipper as well, called Sarah’s Striped Slippers. These are worked in super bulky yarn and have a contrasting foot and a striped body. These are knit flat and seamed and there are 7 size options available. Check that pattern out here if you’re looking for a more traditional slipper shape. They also look roomier so you can wear them with socks if you like. 

[Photo: Maymade Knits]