HAPPY THANKSGIVING




Volume 4 http://www.stitchtherapyknitalong.blogspot.com/

 

Always ongoing, this Stitch-Along is meant to teach you, the knitter, how much you know about knitting. As you pick your projects and read the stitch instructions, a little voice inside your head will say, "I can do that."

IT'S ALL IN THE KNITTING

Eight squares down, and eight more to go.

Using up your scrap yarn.

Congratulations to those of you who have finished the first eight squares.

Blocked to size.

This stitch-along is a true test of your pattern reading skills. Thanks for your patience.

Enjoy Volume 3!

If you are experiencing difficulty downloading the patterns, please make sure you are using an up-to-date browser such as Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. You can download them for free here:

Google Chrome

Mozilla Firefox

NEW PATTERNS

CHAPTER THREE: A READING - October 23rd



The Adventures of Miss Flitt, Vol. I, Part III, “The Séance,”
 an Illustrated 19th C. Tale with Knitting Patterns.

The third book of this illustrated mystery, "The Séance," sends Emma, Amity, Nadya, and Rolie into the curious world of 19th century spiritualism. The mystery continues with over twenty full-color watercolors and a six knitwear accessories. Join the story and knit the elegant Ether Overskirt--a lace side-buttoned skirt that will dress-up any outfit; to keep the chill of the spirits at bay, work the Séance Shawl--a prettily patterned lace triangle shawl; leave your fingers free for automatic writing with the Medium's MItts--a set of soft, fingerless gloves.


“The Séance” includes over twenty full-color watercolors and will be available for purchase during the reading and online at http://www.missflitt.com/.



“The Séance” will launch at Stitch Therapy Brooklyn on October 23rd. Join us at 4 PM for a reading and art and trunk show at Stitch Therapy’s new location: 335 5th Avenue, between 3rd & 4th Street in Park Slope. “The Séance” includes over twenty full-color watercolors and will be available for purchase at Stitch therapy during the event and online at www.missflitt.com.

Picada y Vino Wine Shop located at 327 Fifth Avenue will serve a wine for your tasting.

The Dao of Knitting: Free your mind and the rest will follow.

Guest Daoshi Wu Wei Lin
When my friend Maxcine asked me to write an article for her blog about knitting, I was flattered, but a little hesitant at first. I know almostnothing about knitting, quite honestly. I know a few people who knit, and another friend raises her own sheep and spins the wool into beautiful organically dyed yarns, but I have never knit myself, and it all seems rather esoteric and mysterious. But then, so (probably) does Daoism to someone unfamiliar with the term. So I put aside my doubts and agreed to write the article.You could ask, and rightfully so, what a priest from an ancient and obscure Chinese religion could possibly contribute to a subject that he admittedly knows next to nothing about. Hopefully, I can help you to see your art (and I do believe that it is an art and you are artists) in a fresh light. Perhaps this will help you to see a problem in a new way, or simply help you to gain a new appreciation of your needlework and yourself.

First, I need to explain a couple of terms so that we are speaking the same language. Dao is the fundamental concept underlying Daoism. Simply put, “Dao” means “theway”, or “the path”. It can also mean “the method”. Everything we experience with our senses is the Dao. The entire universe is a manifestation of the Dao. Yin and Yang, which literally mean the dark and light sides of a mountain, are the female and male, negative and positive aspects of the Dao. This is graphically represented by the Yin/Yang symbol, or “Taiji” – the supreme ultimate. The symbol shows the universal dance of these aspects, constantly changing, constantly moving, each containing the seed of the other. Qi (pronounced “chee”) is the energy inherent in something. Everything has qi energy, either yin or yang, or some combination of both.

How in the world does this relate to knitting or crochet? That’s a very good question. If we understand that Daocan also mean a “way”,

or a “method” then we can certainly say that there is a Dao of needlework. As artists, you have an individual “way” or “method” of working and creating also. For thetime being, I would ask you to spend time focusing on this method, your method, and not the final product. If you celebrate the process, and truly put yourself into it, the end product will naturally be an outgrowth of that. The next time you pick up needles and wool, consider them alittle more closely.

These are your tools and media, the same as a painter has brushes and paint. You create art that is not only beautiful, but practical as well! That is harmonious indeed. If pure beauty alone can be considered passive – or yin, then being able to wear the thing of beauty to stay warm could be considered active – or yang. See? Your art is already balanced and harmonious, without you having to do anything special! Don’t worry about the end result. Consider your needles. Are they wood, metal, plastic? All are valid, and have an energy specific to themselves. Once you start thinking about that, you can decide if that energy is what you want to bring to the piece that you are working on. Wood is considered yang, metal is yin. They would impart their inherent energies into your work. Even plastic, which is a product of the earth, has energy. Earth energy is yin and yang in balance, therefore plastic needles could be considered more or less neutral.

Now to your wool. Is it natural fiber, or synthetic? Animal fibers (wool, silk) are generally considered yang, while those derived from plants (cotton, linen) would be yin. What color is it? Chinese color theory as it relates to qi is a whole school of thought unto itself! Certain colors are considered yin or yang, of course, but they also have an effect on certain organs and therefore our physical and mental health. Briefly, green affects the liver, red the heart, yellow the spleen, white the lungs, and black/dark blue the kidneys.

Don’t be overwhelmed. You don’t even need to know all of this. The next time you start a project, trust your instincts. Don’t try too hard! This is Dao. There is a very important concept in Daoism called “wu wei” which means non-doing, or more appropriately “non-striving”. Pick needles that feel good in your hands. It doesn’t matter if they are finely crafted bamboo or wooden needles, or something inexpensive from a mega-store, as long as they are comfortable in your hands, and appropriate for the project. They will become an extension of your hands and your creativity will flow from your hands into the needles, and into the work. What energy the needles bring on their own is only in addition to what you bring. Pick yarn that you like the look and feel of. Note whether it is natural or synthetic, but that doesn’t matter if it makes you feel good working with it. That is the energy that will go into the project.

Now for the process. Remember “wu wei”? Don’t stress about the project. Try not to worry about stitch counting. Is stress and worry the energy that you want to go into that baby blanket? If you are worrying about the color, stressing about the stitches, obsessing about getting it done on a deadline, I guarantee that is the energy that will flow from you into the work. Instead, trust in your own skills. Give yourself plenty of time and the right resources to finish the project. Then make it a meditation. Soon, you will find yourself in “the zone”. Your hands, confident in their skill, will free your mind from worrying about the details. But don’t let your mind wander aimlessly! Focus on putting the joy that you feel while knitting into the project. When you are in this state you become what Daoists call an “empty vessel”. An empty vessel is open, receptive, able to be filled with the Dao. Your actions will become effortless, you will achieve balance, “wu wei”. Your work will be a manifestation of the Dao; balanced, perfect, and beautiful.

道长無爲臨

Ginkgo Grove Daoist Center
http://www.ginkgogrove.org/

VOLUME TWO: IN DEMAND

Image by http://www.thecompletefabrication.blogspot.com/

This stitch-along has reached as far as Australia and is a virtual success. So far I have heard from teams of friendly knitters making the blanket as a baby shower gift and solo knitters using their subway time wisely. No matter how far the Mystery reaches the hookup is taking place online through Ravelry.com, Facebook.com and the right here.  Look for the release of Volume Two available now at http://www.stitchtherapyknitalong.blogspot.com/.

MY FAVORITE YARN SHOP by Beth Hahn

Had I never gone to Stitch Therapy, it is very possible that The Adventures of Miss Flitt would not exist. When I first began to visit Maxcine’s store, I was not an experienced knitter. I harbored a vague terror of knitting in the round, but I fell in love with the alpaca Baby Twist. It’s soft palette and softer feel called to me. I must knit a hat, I thought, a hat in the round, and so I approached the counter with some trepidation. Maxcine asked me a series of pointed questions: Can you tell the difference between a knit and a purl stitch? Do you know how to decrease? Have you knit in the round before?

I bought the yarn, made the hat, knew so little that I wore it wrong side out, and took it to show Maxcine. “Look at that!” She said. “How beautiful!” I looked down at my work and felt proud. I bought yarn and knitted a second hat for my husband. By then I had figured out that I was wearing my hat the wrong way, so I corrected his. Again I took my hat back to the shop, and again, I was congratulated on my achievement.

What next? I wondered. A sweater? I chose a light blue mohair and went to work on a Karabella shawl-collared pullover pattern I’d fallen in love with. It was a tricky. The first thing I had to do was knit a turned picot edge using a set of needles and one extra, smaller needle to hold the turning stitches. I was stumped, but I knew where to go. Brandi, the official Miss Flitt model and a Stitch Therapy employee, set me on the right track. Her directions were easy to follow, and she was patient with me.

When I finished the pieces, I washed and blocked them, and then it was time to sew everything together. Oh dear! How to sew a sweater together? How to get those tidy seams and clean lines? I went back to the shop, joined a Sunday night knitting circle, and was taught by Tony Limauco, a wonderful designer, and an expert at the mattress stitch.

I could have stopped there, but I didn’t want to. I wanted to design my own sweater, and so I did a watercolor of a girl holding a book and wearing a purple sweater with a tie at the neck. She looked vaguely 60s and vaguely French, so I called her Claudette and wrote a few paragraphs about her sweater collection. She lived on the Left Bank, rode a bicycle, and carried the kind of satchel I remembered seeing in Truffaut’s Small Change.

I brought my watercolors to Stitch Therapy. “Look at this!” Maxcine said. “This is beautiful. Can you do more?” she asked. “Maybe you could do some for the shop.” I felt shy. After all, I hadn’t put pencil to paper in over five years. It was only my desire to design a sweater that prompted the watercolor. I went home and did a drawing specifically for Maxcine. It was a thank you gift, and she uses it as her avatar on Ravelry.

Gradually, it began to dawn on me, as I continued to knit and paint and write, that I might put a book together, and when I told Maxcine about it, again she was enthusiastic. She said we should do an art show and a reading. She’d always wanted to do a reading at the shop, and wouldn’t this be perfect? She never once thought I might not be able to finish the work, or that when I did, it wouldn’t be something she’d want to show.

We launched the first book of The Adventures of Miss Flitt series, “The Strange Case of the Magician’s Cabinet”, in October, 2009, and we launched the second, “Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens” in May.

Maxcine still asks me pointed questions, but now they are more about business and marketing than knitting. She has been able to answer questions that I would otherwise be clueless about: What’s the difference between a copyright and a trademark? What sort of tax do you place on knitting goods in New York?

I buy most of my yarn at Stitch Therapy because the yarns are lovely, elegant, and classic, and I like to visit the shop, sit at the little round table, and talk to Maxcine about the progress of the next installment in the Miss Flitt series or the yarns she’s thinking about ordering for the new season. There’s always something to admire in the shop—Maxcine’s hat designs are inspiring, and I love to see other customers’ projects. Stitch Therapy is a friendly, comfortable place, and for me it is a uniquely wonderful place, because it is the true home of The Adventures of Miss Flitt.

For more information or to purchase a book, please visit The Adventures of Miss Flitt online at http://www.missflitt.com/

This one's for you Sherlock! - The Mystery Blanket Stitch-Along

For the creative knitter who's not afraid of a challenge, the Stitch Therapy Mystery Blanket Stitch-Along project is just for you. Experiment with a variety of knitting stitches and textures from stitch to stitch, unveiling each mystery as you knit. You play detective as clues come in the form of your favorite authors and writers; each square is named after a famous writer, perhaps giving you an indication of what to expect, or perhaps not – let's not give away too much at once! Details of their life span and a title of one of their well-known works adds to the fun.If you are daring and up for an adventure get involved! And for those of you who like the idea, but want to thread carefully, feel free to drop in to the shop on a Wednesdays between 4:00 – 6.30pm to pick out your yarn and get started with some basic stitch therapy! Happy Knitting!

Visit the knit-along blog to download your free patterns.

This summer on Wednesday between the hours of 4:00 - 6:30pm if you need help and you have purchased the yarn from Stitch Therapy feel free to drop in.

Guest Post: Knitting in Motion

by Natalie Agee

Knitting has swiftly become my favorite thing to do, outside of teaching circus arts, and being an inter-disciplinary performer.

I'm a beginning knitter, and so far, each project has proven to be a very dramatic – dare I say say "theatrical" – process. Chunky yarn and larger needles are a special combo for me--they bring knitting to it's most physical; each arc, swoop, loop over, and tug feels hearty, satisfying, energetic and somewhat suspenseful, like performance.

...I bet John Cage would've loved to gather three hundred and one knitters together in concert, so musical are the sounds of those bamboo needles clicking...

On a more cerebral note: trace forms are the dynamic and invisible lines traced in space by a movement, or movement phrase. When I was beginning to study movement, I tried to draw these movement pathways so that I could "see" them for as long as I wanted. The trace forms of a knitter's path become color-saturated parts of a fabric that you can see, touch to your cheek, and give to another person.

Part of the beauty of live performance is that it exists in the moment. This, alone, makes it so completely amazing, and so worth doing. But that slightly-gone-awry, imperfect sweater, that I'll make for a special someone, may last a life-time. I feel so lucky to have the chance to experience and cherish the best of both these worlds. I can't wait for the day when I make my first knitting pattern!

Read more about Natalie Agee.

Photo by Aimee Norwich

ANNUAL YARN & BOOK SALE

Thursday June 10 through Sunday June 13th

Here is a chance to pick up a few balls of the favorite yarns that you have been dreaming of, get a jump start on your holiday gifts with a quick summer projects.

We have lots of free patterns for creative 2-3 ball projects. I have attached two patterns that are getting alot of buzz amongst your fellow needlecrafters.

Check out www.stitchtherapybrooklyn.blogspot.com to see what we have been making.
Plan ahead and see if your favorite yarn or books are on the list.

25% OFF

Debbie Bliss Baby cashmerino, Fez, Alpaca Silk Aran
Berroco - comfort chunky
Aslan Trends Del Sur, Invernal- merino/angora, Guanaco-Alpaca Blends
Punta - Twist handpainted chunky merino, Merisock Handpainted
Loop-d-Loop - Granite
Marble chunky
Colinette - Jitterbug
Karabella Aurora Bulky
Lana Grossa - Chiara, Silkhair, Vespa, Gnocchi
Noro - Silk Garden Sock

And everything on the SALE TREE

20% OFF

Berroco Cuzco
Joseph Galler - Prime Alpaca, Pashmina
Jade Sapphire - Cashmere scarf kits for her, Mongolian Cashmere 2 ply
Alpaca with a Twist - Big Baby

15% OFF

Books and Patterns too!

Manos Del Uruguay Yarn

A friend was traveling to Manos Del Uruguay in South America for a few weeks, jhe called just before he left for the airport. As you know when my friends are traveling I always recommend finding a local yarn shop or sometimes I say "can you bring me back some yarn". On his adventure he encountered this yarn shop. I asked for jewel tones and what I got were beautiful greens, pinks and yellows. come make your choice while the supply lasts.

HAT OF THE MONTH: DUCHESS

The summer is a reason to keep on knitting - this Hat of the Month is a quick fashionable knit on a bulky knitting needle and takes only one hank of most yarns - the sample is knit in Berroco Cuzco. Inspired by Stitch Therapy customers the Duchess is our offering the Month of June. You will find the download for this pattern on this page.

A Quick Summer Knit: $12-18 Tank Top

A quick knit from Rebecca Summer 2010 - shown in Berocco's Weekend 25% cotton 75% acrylic. Pattern free with yarn purchase.

Knit from the bottom up in the round on a 10 1/2 US. sizing to fit up to 38/40" bust. Nice detailing at the neckline - back neckline is round. Anyone can knit the top to the armhole, then if you need help, join the knitting circle to learn the details for armhole and neck shaping in a garment.

OUTDOOR CIRCLE: 5th AVE. FAIR

We're setting up a tent so come join us on Sunday the 16th of May from Noon to 6pm because Stitch Therapy and Brooklyn Mercantile will be hosting a crafty afternoon. Bring your project knitting or crochet and a friend, and if your friends want to learn how to knit bring them along on this date we will be teaching people to do the knit stitch with the purchase of a ball of yarn and a pair of knitting needles.

IS IT A NECKLACE or A NECKWARMER

This jewel of a knit is a nice quick project for the summer and a great accessory for the fall. While I was on vacation in Jamaica I did one strand of this necklace a day. This is Sev[en] Circles a free pattern online by Kirsten Johnstone you can find it on Ravelry.com.

I used three yarns: Lana Grossa - Chiara (mohair and viscose) in violet (lighter color), Chiara has a metallic quality which adds a shimmer, then I held two yarns together - Lana Grossa Silkhair (mohair and silk) in purple and Naturally Dawn wool and silk) in violet. When these two yarns are held together it creates a stretchy fabric.

You can knit this project in your own style the pattern calls for seven strands but I did nine. Some of my customers are making the strands longer to drape passed the collar bone. Since I am a loose knitter do I used a 24" size 4.

NEW YARN: TWEEDY PIMA

Soft, $6 a ball & 109 yds!

Just Arrived: MIA

BOOK READING: “Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens”

SAVE the DATE: May 8, 2010

TIME: 4:00 pm

Readings by the author from The Adventures of Miss Flitt, “Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens,” an Illustrated 19th C. Tale with Knitting Patterns, to Launch at Stitch Therapy Brooklyn, New York.

When Emma Flitt and Amity Hastings enter the notorious Five Points neighborhood in search of Lucy Flitt, the mystery of the girl’s disappearance deepens. In Beth Hahn’s “Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens,” the second part in The Adventures of Miss Flitt’s four-part series, Emma and Amity meet Nadya Claudere and her son Rollie who become guides to navigating the dark side of 19^th century New York. Nadya’s back-story reveals villainous new plot twists and brings fresh and seasonal knitwear designs.

“Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens” includes the Nadya Corset and Slip, a spring/summer cotton top and matching skirt; Sharpers, a pair of silk lace gloves with thumb gusset and finger loop, and the Five Points Capelet, a short silk cape inspired by the fashion of the times. For the knitter who likes to look ahead, a longer, two-color woolen version of the cape is included. For chilly nights, the Smoke Ring Mobius is a quick, bulky lace knit that may be worn as a scarf or shawl. Finally, the knitter who sews will be overjoyed to find a collaborative pattern with sewer extraordinaire, Clara Ronk, for a cloth Emma Doll.

“Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens” will launch at Stitch Therapy Brooklyn on May 8. Join us at 3PM for a reading and art and trunk show at Stitch Therapy’s new location: 335 5th Avenue, between 3rd & 4th Street in Park Slope. “Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens” includes over twenty full-color watercolors and will be available for purchase at Stitch therapy during the event and online at http://www.missflitt.com/. Stitch Therapy Brooklyn, a fine yarn shop, has been an integral part of the Park Slope knitting community for six years.

FINGER KNITTING

Finger knitting is only one of the new classes added for the under 21 crowd - Look for parent and child finger knitting, summer camp for teens and workshops for you - click here for complete schedule.

Another FREE ENTRELAC WORKSHOP

INFANTRY TRAINING

Technicolor ENTRELAC Wrap - Free project workshop with yarn purchase.

Entrelac creates a beautifully textured and plush Rubik's cube basketweave. Learn this distinctive technique and open up another world of knitting in your repertoire.

Prerequisite: Cast-on, knit stitch, purl stitch

Yarn: 3 skeins of Noro Taiyo

Needles: 11 us 24" long and DPN

Accessories: Point Protectors

Pattern: Basic Entrelac Scarf from Knitting Daily bring your own copy of pattern

DATES: Starts May 2, 23, June 6, 20, July 18, August 1st - You will only need 2 sessions - you must register in advance

TIME: 2:30-4:00 pm

FABULOUS COLORS

A new yarn from Berroco - "Weekend" in over 14 colors, 205 yards and 4 stitches to the inch. This cotton blend is a must have for crocheters as well as those of you that knit - Berroco has created many simple styles. I recommend Weekend for the Stitch Therapy summer knit-along - drop in for help on this delicate leaf pattern and you can take a knitting circle to learn the Mattress Stitch to sew the side seams. Pattern is sized from 32" - 42" bust measurement.

Check website for updated class schedule - also remember our new location on 5th Avenue in Park Slope.

Advance Your Skills with Japanese Knitting Technique

Date: April 18 & 25th 2:30 - 4:30pm
Price: $75.00 plus $10.00 Instruction fee

This is an opportunity for you to embellish your knitting projects with a new level of finishing using different cast-ons and bind-offs.

In this workshop you will learn:

• the five cast-ons pictured
• a circular lace cast-on
• double ribbed bind-off using a tapestry needle
• double knitting slip stitch ribbing for ribbed borders
• basic Japanese chart reading to swatch 3 lace stitch patterns

Materials:

• 1 Hank of Ultra alpaca to knit a beret using a double knitting slip stitch technique
• 16" circular in size 7 or 8 US
• 3 -4 different weight yarns (approx. 100 yards each) and the appropriate knitting needles for each yarn. These yarns will be used for practicing cast-ons. If you can not find these yarns in your stash I recommend Karabella Aurora 8, Bulky, Schulana Merino-cotton 135, Debbie Bliss Fez.
• A lace weight yarn (approx. 100 yards) and double pointed needles in the appropriate size. I recommend Naturally Dawn.
• Tapestry needle (size of needle should work with yarn) will be used for single and double ribbed bind-off.

EASY AND SWEET SUMMER KNIT

This summer you can learn how to knit this beautiful leaf pattern and quickly knit this cute cap sleeved top - I recommend Weekend by Berocco a 50/50 cotton/acrylic. Colors arrive at Stitch Therapy the week of March 15th there will be plenty to choose from - to check colors .

Drop in for help to knit the leaf pattern, then sign up for a knitting circle to learn how to sew the top together.

This easy knit can be customized by lengthening the waist or the sleeves. Pattern is sized from bust measurement 32" - 42"

RED HOT

In celebration of Valentine's Week - All things red in the way of yarn will be 20% off and on top of that all books and pattern booklets will be 25% off. February 8th - 14th, 2010.

The LYS has moved... New location 335 5th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY bet. 3rd & 4th Street.