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KnitBits: Inmates Knitting, Expensive Yarn and Fun with Needles

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Prisoners loom knit garments for dogs and other knitting news I loved this story from the Idaho Statesman about inmates in the Acute Mental Health Unit at the Idaho Department of Correction loom knitting dog sweaters for the Inmate Dog Alliance, in which prisoners train shelter dogs to make them more adoptable. there is just so much greatness in this idea all around, and it helps the dogs and the people alike. The sense of accomplishment, connection to something bigger than themselves and ability to focus on something that is calming are all positive aspect of the program beyond just making sweaters. (The group also makes baby hats, blankets and other goods that are donated.)

This is an older piece from Elizabeth Kay Booth, a designer who worked in a yarn shop, but it came up in my news feed recently and I thought it was worth sharing. It explores answers to the question why is yarn so expensive when you buy it at a yarn store rather than a big-box craft retailer? There are a lot of reasons, of course, and I’ll let her tell you, but the higher quality, natural fibers and slower, small-batch processes that are often used on the yarns sold at yarn shops naturally make them more expensive. And probably better, too.

If you want to boost your knitting trivia knowledge before your next party, check out the 46 Interesting Facts about Knitting from Random Facts, and the history of 10 words related to knitting from Merriam-Webster. It’s so interesting to see how meanings have changed through the years.

I haven’t watched it yet, but I did see on PBS there’s an episode of Broad and High called “The Man Who Knits” available online. The guy the story is about sounds amazing — his first knitting project was an Aran sweater, and he gets his yarn by recycling thrift store garments. Definitely one to add to your watch list.

Have you ever used a 9-inch circular needle? These needles definitely have a learning curve, but they do make knitting the straight parts of a sock really quick and easy, and you have no ladders because there are no needles between which to get loose tension. VeryPink Knits has a great overview of the needles, including a review of some of the major brands and which ones turned out to be her favorite. Next week she’s also posting a piece on how to knit socks with the needles, so stay tuned for that.

 

Comments

  1. Hi there, thanks so much for sharing my post! I’m glad you found it helpful. One small correction though – I’m a knitwear designer and I don’t own a shop. I worked in my local shop for 5+ years, and had a wonderful boss, who was the owner. 🙂

Have you read?

Knit a Log Cabin Blanket with All Your Scraps

I guess I must have had this pattern on my mind, because I had chosen this log cabin blanket recipe to write about, promptly forgot about it and a couple of weeks later started knitting a log cabin blanket using all my pink yarn. 

It might stay pink if it makes it to baby blanket sized, or I might add in some pastel green and blue, too, to make a bigger blanket. We’ll see. I’m also holding several strands of yarn together to make a kind of bulky yarn, which means it’s deeply satisfying how much yarn is used even as the project is still relatively small. 

In Kristen Finlay’s version, DK weight yarn scraps (or fingering/sock yarn held double) are used to make a simple scrappy log cabin blanket that’s lighter weight than my version. Log cabin is a great technique for knitters of any skill level because it’s worked in garter stitch. The only not completely basic technique you need for log cabin knitting is picking up stitches. 

If you’ve never worked a log cabin knitting project before, this is a good introduction, and it is really nice to use all your yarn scraps in one big project you’ll use for years to come. 

If you use a lot of DK weight yarn you can keep building on it whenever you finish a project, or if you use more worsted weight you can do the same thing with it, it will just be a little bigger starting out than the pattern calls for. How big it gets is totally up to you. 

I have really been enjoying working on my log cabin project, and it’s my current sitting at my desk and need a break knit (do you have one of those or is it just me?). 

Ready to start your own log cabin blanket knitting project? You can grab the free pattern from Kristen Finlay on Ravelry. 

Need more log cabin inspiration? Check out more log cabin knitting patterns. 

[Photo: Kristen Finlay]