Remembering Eisaku Noro

September 3, 2022 by Sarah White Leave a Comment

Eisaku Noro, the creator and founder of Noro Yarns, has died. Noro was immensely creative and developed his namesake yarns with luscious color combinations that are often imitated but it’s still possible to pick out a garment made with Noro yarns from a crowd.

An announcement posted on Knitting Fever’s Facebook page said:

With regard to quality or artistic expression, Noro-san did not compromise. This was reflected in all he did, from the unique, eco-friendly and painstaking production methods, to the thoughtful selection of fibers from farms where animal stock is treated humanely. Noro’s vision for creating yarns was that they should inspire joy while remaining true to their natural heritage.

Knitting Fever has distributed Noro yarns since the 1980s. The post described him as “tall, regal, with a sense of humor and full of passion, here was a true artist who painted with fibers to create yarns unlike any on the market at the time.”

Noro’s eye for color and texture has inspired countless knitwear and crochet designers, including me. When I was working on my book Colorwork Knitting I knew it was time to finally knit a sweater that had been on my mind for years. Shown above, it’s called the Color Belt Sweater in the book, and is worked starting with the linen stitch waistband, then the bodice is knit onto one side and the bottom of the sweater on the other. I knew Noro Silk Garden was the only yarn to bring this vision to life and it remains one of my favorite sweaters (you can check it out on Ravelry.)

Noro’s creative spirit lives on in his company, which is in the good hands of his son, Takuo Noro.

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Learning to Knit? Try a Garter Stitch Washcloth

I used to always teach people how to knit by giving them bulky yarn, teach the knit cast on and have them knit a scarf (like this garter stitch scarf). That’s still a great first project, but I acknowledge people might get bored knitting all that garter stitch before they can say they’ve finished their first knitting project. Plus they might not want to wear something that comes out a little wonky, as first knitting projects often do.

These days I’m more likely to recommend a garter stitch washcloth to a new knitter.

Washcloths are usually made with medium weight cotton yarn, which is one of the easiest yarns to find at big box stores and craft stores, and it’s usually inexpensive and comes in lots of fun colors. You only need one ball of yarn and one pair of needles to make one, so there’s not a lot of outlay in terms of supplies.

Everyone can use washcloths, and even if you drop stitches, add stitches, have weird tension issues or all of the above, it will still work as a washcloth. And you can keep that first thing you made to see how much progress you make in just a couple of projects.

And if you still want more garter stitch when it’s done, you can move on to a scarf (or even a sampler scarf if you want to try some new stitches).

That post linked above is a great one for a brand new knitter or someone who just needs a refresher, because it walks you through everything you need to know how to do to make it. There’s also a full video tutorial for people who would rather see moving images rather than still pictures.

What was the first thing you made when you learned to knit? Or if you’ve taught someone to knit, what first project did you give them? I’d love to hear about it!

Easy Washcloth Knitting Patterns

Knit a Sweet Ducky Washcloth

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