The Knitting Life

In October of last year, I sat down with two pointy sticks, a ball of yarn and experienced the terms knit and purl for the first time in my life. By Christmas I had managed to knit two hats for Christmas gifts, and now I’m hooked. Our house now contains a respectable knitting stash that [...]

A Tale of Two Knits

Knitting is an enigma. It is simple, but can be complicated; it can involve no mental effort, or take intense concentration; it can be a soothing, but can also drive you to distraction. It can fill you with a sense of accomplishment, and also convince you of your complete uselessness; it can make you proud, [...]

A Strong Finish

It’s that season again. Students are donning caps and gowns, Pomp and Circumstance fills the air of gyms, stadiums and lawns all around, and part of life seems to be coming to a close as another opens up—for some it is high school or college, for some it is confirmation or communion. Whatever the event, [...]

Casting Off the Winter Vest (A Story to Welcome Spring)

The wind at North and East Was never good for man nor beast So never think to cast a clout Until the month of May be out (Old English Proverb) Spring is my favourite season. I love it when the grass turns from brown to green overnight and the tender shoots of the first daffodils [...]

The Lesson of the Fair-Isle Cardigan

The second big thing I ever knit was a fair-isle cardigan. The pattern caught my eye in a magazine, but I had no intention of knitting it. After all, I had only ever made one thing before—the disastrous Red Sweater. How could I possibly knit this complicated, multicolored thing? “I can’t possibly knit that”, I [...]