Keep Your Arms, Hands and Wrists Happy in the New Year

If you’re like me, you’ve probably started a new knitting project or two with great enthusiasm in the past couple of days. Or maybe you’re just planning to knit more in the new year. Either way, you need to be mindful of what all the sitting and knitting is doing to your body, and if you have repetitive strain injuries like I do you really need to stretch and rest often. (This is one of my resolutions this year, since I’m going to be doing a lot of knitting for my next book.)

Knitting Daily has been thinking about this, too, and recently published some tips for stretching the fingers, wrists, head and neck (originally from a 2012 issue of Interweave Knits) that are really helpful.

Perusing Pinterest I found a few videos from Mala Yoga studio in Brooklyn, which include a wrist stretch using the wall and a quick stretch to repeat that works the arms, wrists and hands. There’s also one for a supported fish pose you can do in your chair that’s great for people who tend to hunch over their knitting (or their computer).

I also like these tips on yoga for carpal tunnel from my About colleague Ann. They remind you to be mindful of your wrists while building strength.

Doy you ever stretch before, during or after knitting? I’d love to hear the moves you use.

[Photo via Knitting Daily.]

Next Pattern:

It felt like it had been a while since I’d done a roundup of knitting patterns involving sheep, and if search is any indication, that is true. I found a roundup of patterns for knit sheep from a few years ago, but the only one with v I could find is from 2015. So it’s definitely time to revisit this fun genre of knitting patterns.

This all started with a headband. Alyssa Kaat’s Icelandic Sheep Headband (free on Ravelry) to be specific. Ravelry showed it to me as a pattern highlight and I couldn’t resist taking a closer look. It’s worked with two colors of worsted weight yarn and alternates sheep with stars around your head.

Another great sheepy headband is this one from Loch Fyne Crafts on Etsy. These sweet little sheep are worked in bulky yarn and you can make the background look like field and sky or work it in a solid color.

Or make a headband (or a hat, cowl, or all three) covered with a flock of sheep with this set of patterns from New Age Knitting CA. These pieces also use the field/sky coloring, but you can use whatever colors of worsted weight yarn you like.

Speaking of hats, there’s also the sheep hat from Lynann Knits Designs. The sample was worked in Icelandic wool to make the sheep and the hat extra fuzzy and warm, but any worsted weight yarn will work.

There’s also the Wandering Sheep hat from Kat Hudon (on Ravelry), which features a fun collection of speckled sheep that can be worked in different yarn weights to make different sizes of hats for kids and adults.

And lest you think sheep need to be knit in traditional stranded colorwork, check out the Rebel Sheep Mob blanket by Deborah Moore. This one is worked in mosaic knitting using fingering weight yarn. In mosaic knitting you’re only working with one color per row so it’s pretty easy. You can find this pattern on Ravelry.

I can’t possibly share sheep knitting patterns without mentioning the amazing Black Sheep Shadow Shawl by Mark Jamieson. Shadow knitting is a technique I want to do more of, but it involves working two rows alternating in two different colors and the pattern emerges when you look at the design from an angle. It’s so cool and the sheep on this one are amazing! It’s not a beginner project but well worth the work. You can find it on Ravelry or at the designer’s website.

Next Pattern:

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