New knitting

This is my “Knit City 2023” sweater that I made for our big yarn festival in Vancouver! I’m really, really very very proud of this sweater and I absolutely love it. The sweater was designed by Caitlin Hunter from Boyland Knitworks and it’s called Alpine Bloom. “Alpine Bloom” has a short-sleeve t-shirt kind of design and is a little bit cropped. Of course, since this pattern is knit from the top down, you’re able to knit it as long as you like! The sleeves are very short — you only need to knit a few rounds and then you hold all those sleeve stitches. Then you cast on a whole other set of stitches for the lace cuff of the sleeve. So rather than finishing the sleeves with ribbing, the lace cuff is knit separately and then grafted on. I used two sets of knitting needles and a sewing needle and had to graft the stitches together kind of like how you would graft a toe closed for for your socks. When I was at Knit City, I did notice a couple of people wearing this sweater as well. Many...

The holiday season is here. Is anyone else panicking about the things they were planning to make for people?! If you are still looking for things you might want to make for gifting, at today’s Taking Back Friday vlog I want to talk about projects you might be able to knit, just in time for the holidays. Now one thing I do want to say about gift knitting is I don’t want it to be stressful for you. I don’t want it to be stressful for anyone. I know that I get myself into a bit of a tizzy every year about trying to make things for people before the holidays. There can be a little bit of time pressure. And of course the person who receives the item you made for them, would love to know that you enjoyed making it. That it was a joyful experience. So if you are planning to make things for the holidays, there’s still time. I would love the hear how you approach the holidays! How do manage your knitting for other people during the holidays? Or how do you manage knitting for other people ...

Part of the fun of any make-along is to connect with fellow makers — to share your progress, ask questions, and be inspired by others’ work. We’ve absolutely loved seeing all of your photos and the journey of all of the weave-along weavers both at our Discord and SOS Forum spaces. SweetGeorgia Team Member, Greta, has now started weaving her second Kaleidoscope Scarf ! Helping to add some additional needed yardage for the border colour with our SweetGeorgia Individual Mini-Skeins (in Bison), Greta is following her own weft order — adding in some yellow picks and writing the order on a sticky note so the pattern can be easily repeated. Greta’s @gretacornejomakes second Kaleidoscope Scarf in-progress There is more weaving project inspiration to be found at our SweetGeorgia Discord space, in the #winterful-weave-along channel. It’s wonderful to follow along as everyone works through the weaving steps together. Also a fabulous opportunity for community learning, as weavers share ...

Let’s just say, I am okay with change. I am okay with taking risks. And I am okay with starting over. I have been wrestling with something for the past several years and I think it’s finally time to make a change. As we get closer to the end of this year, I’ve decided that I don’t want to go into the new year doing the same thing I’ve always done. I have been making content about the fibre arts for the internet in some way, shape, or form since 2004. I started writing about knitting, spinning, dyeing, and later weaving, on a blog called SweetGeorgia. It led me to start the SweetGeorgia Yarns company plus an online fibre arts school, the School of SweetGeorgia . Now, in order to learn about how to make videos for the School, I started making YouTube videos in 2017. This was all meant to be practice, but it has really become one of my favourite ways of making content. I can show you up close about how things work, or what I’m most excited about. I love making videos about what I’m maki...

There’s one step in the making process that is my least favourite process of the making process. And you would think that it might be finishing, because I almost never weave in all of my ends. But no. My least favourite part of making things, is winding yarn from skeins to balls. This one step is my biggest obstacle. So, Caydo gave us a new Electric Yarn Winder to test out and, in today’s video, I take some time to compare it to the many yarn winding tools I’ve used in the past. (Disclosure: This video was not sponsored, but Caydo did send me their Electric Ball Winder for free to try out. This following links are affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.) If you are interested in getting your own Caydo Electric Yarn Winder, you can get 40% off with our link: https://sweetgeorgiayarns.com/caydo You can also find the EEW Cone Winder from Dreaming Robots here: https://sweetgeorgiayarns.com/eewconewinder...

Hand cards, drum carder, hand combs… oh, my! Exploring fibre preparation can be a far deeper and more expensive dive than a curious spinner may have anticipated. Don’t fret! You already have everything you need to begin exploring basic fibre preparation for your next spinning project: your own two hands—and your stash of fibres, of course. Together, you have all you need to get started. What Exactly is Fibre Preparation? Fibre preparation is the way we manipulate direction, alignment, aeration, and even colour in our fibres before they go on the wheel or spindle to impact the end yarn we spin. Every change we make prior to spinning the fibre will have some kind of effect on that yarn, making it more woollen or worsted along the spectrum, also depending on the draw used to spin it. And while your hands can’t truly replace real fibre preparation tools forever, you can put them to use in thoughtfully replicating many preparatory possibilities. The following hand-prep methods ca...

As multicraftual textile artists, we’re attracted to anything fibre. We enjoy the magic of dyeing colourful yarn and the interplay of textures in our crocheted pieces. We also enjoy the patterns in our knitting. Maybe you’re ready to learn to weave on a rigid heddle as another outlet.  But weaving might seem like a daunting task, more so with all the tools and materials needed to get started. A big floor loom may even need us to rearrange our living space; an excellent option is joining a Weaver’s Guild, where you can have opportunities to borrow equipment or weave at the guild’s studio if available.  Here comes the rigid heddle loom! It’s an easier type of loom that fits into many lifestyles, to put away when not in use, and to warp without needing extra equipment. The beginner-friendly rigid heddle loom is an ideal partner for a variety of your handspun yarns. Schacht Cricket loom and stand are shown. Learning Rigid Heddle Basics Felicia Lo’s  Rigid Heddle Weav...

Unique to rigid heddle weaving, hybrid warping allows a weaver to wind a warp and put it on the loom at the same time! This would be a good method for two heddle projects, longer warps, and warps with more than two colours. This is a huge time saver and a great way to put on a longer warp when you don’t have room for a direct warp set-up. It also allows those with mobility concerns to sit while warping, making it a more accessible warping process. Hybrid warping, unique to rigid heddle weaving, lets you wind a warp and put it on the loom simultaneously. Before You Begin Choosing a Warping Board Many of the newer looms come with optional pegs that you can use on the bottom of your loom to wind a warp and put it on in the indirect method. However, because we are going to use the warping board and the loom at the same time, this kind of setup will not work in this situation.  Warping boards come in various dimensions and are designed to be affixed to a wall or used on a table. ...