Monthly Archives: April 2011

We have a name AND an announcement!

There’s
something about these socks that just makes us smile.  They’re so much
fun and you know that they were knit with love!  We want to thank
everyone who contributed their ideas for names. I can tell you that all
of us here at Knit Picks were in stitches (ha!) reading through them. 
While it is sad that we could only have one winner, the good news is
that we think we’ve picked a great one!  

Read more for our special announcement!

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Podcast Episode 158: All You Need is Gauge

Kerin and Jenny chat about gauge – what is how, what effects your gauge, what fibers to watch out for and how you can use the basic understanding of gauge to make your own designs take form.
Both The Knitter’s Handy Book of Patterns and The Knitter’s Handy Book of Sweater Patterns were referenced in this episode.
 
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A Weaving Contest!

Thank you to everyone who participated! This contest is now closed.  To see who won, click here: Winners

I haven’t had a chance to do a contest for a while so when I heard that
we had some weaving prizes to give away, you can imagine my excitement!
Weaving is one of those crafts that I find immensely fascinating.  I
could watch someone weave all day long without blinking — it’s that
intriguing. Uniformity, structure, and tight lines are so appealing to
me so when I see a woven project, I am immediately drawn to it. I mean,
look at this beautiful scarf!

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Knitting for Earth Day

Besides being a fun pastime, knitting is a pretty effective way to
help the earth by using less energy. I’m sure you’ve all heard the
adage, “If you’re cold, put on a sweater.” But it goes so much farther
than that!

The difference of just a few degrees on your thermostat can make a big impact on your energy usage. According to the US Department of Energy,
for every degree lower you set your thermostat in the colder months,
you can save up to 1% on your energy bill. Lowering it from 72 to 68
degrees can save a lot more. Instead of turning the heat back up if you
feel a chill, a wool sweater or blanket can be just the thing to keep
you warm without having to warm the whole house. Not to mention that
some blankets, like the Impressionist Afghan, can warm you while you work on it – because it’s made in one piece!

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Podcast Episode 2: Deserted Island knitting

Reflecting on the idea of being stranded on a deserted island is an interesting exercise in focusing your knitting requirements.  It turns out that my care package would be filled to the brim with sock knitting supplies.  The easy way they fit into my “normal” life has several positive applications for a “stranded” lifestyle.  If you’ve been thinking of learning to knit socks, I hope to inspire you and give you confidence to try it.  If you are already a sock knitter, I think you’ll completely understand the logic behind my deserted island choices.
 
3 easy ways to listen…
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Podcast Episode 3: Meet Tina Birch, Knit Picks’ Vice President

In this podcast I introduce you to Tina Birch, our vice-president. Over the next few months, I’m looking forward to your meeting all of the Knit Picks staff. Each one has their own history regarding how they got started knitting and what keeps them knitting. As much as I enjoy hearing different accounts of challenges met, I’m sure you will appreciate Tina’s story as well.
After that, I’ll review a new book that has got me thinking about summer knitting as a way to prepare for next winter. And, there is a surprising twist to What’s On My Needles this week.
 
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Podcast Episode 4: Wool, from start to finish

First, I need to give you an apology for the brevity of this podcast. This week was filled with activities that kept me away from my taping equipment and computer. Lots of out-of-town visitors, a quick two-day get away with Bob and golf. You will hear all about it in the podcast.
My mind has been focused on wool all week. It must be because I have been thinking about buying a new spinning wheel. That led to the podcast topic – the structure of wool fibers, how that changes depending on the breed of sheep and what it means in terms of the finished yarn. Armed with a bit of knowledge, I hope you can feel much more confident choosing wool yarns for particular projects you have in mind.  
All the time away from the office gave me plenty of time to knit. And, to reflect on how nicely …

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Podcast Episode 5: Embrace your own knitting style

Have you ever had the experience of another knitter telling you that you were knitting “wrong”? Well, a listener asked me to talk about the differences between English vs. Continental knitting and it brought back memories of my own encounters with dogmatic knitters. I decided to use the comparison of knitting styles as a way to highlight knitters’ individuality and encourage you to embrace whatever method works for you.
 
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