Ten Years

Lego figures built by David Fraser who also took the photo.

Ten years ago a Scottish boy told a Danish girl that he really liked her. The Danish girl went: "Oh shoot, I like you too, but I don't want to ruin our friendship because.." (cue five-minute ramble). The Scottish boy assured the girl that the friendship wouldn't suffer. Ten years later they are still each other's best friend as well as still really liking each other.

I met David online. He had a blog and I had a blog (an earlier incarnation of this one!). True to the era we had no idea what the other person looked like, but we liked the same things (1990s indie pop, art, camp musicals, and books). We were online friends for about four years before we realised we really liked each other's company. We had grown closer over the four years to the point where I considered him one of my best friends. And then he threw that bombshell.

It's difficult to imagine what my life would look like without Dave. I used to say I'd die a spinster underneath a collapsed pile of books - but now I not only know the etymology of the word 'spinster' (someone who spins yarn!) but I also get to talk about yarn, etymology and books for a living. I live in one of the most beautiful cities in one of the most beautiful countries in the world. And I have a life where conversations over dinner revolve around colour theory, art movements, and Star Wars Lego. We have impromptu dance sessions in the kitchen. He takes photos. I knit. We eat cake and discuss politics.

Dave is my rock (and photographer, stylist, sounding board, and biggest cheerleader). Things have not always been easy, but they have been worth it.

Happy ten years to the cool, funny, warm-hearted guy who makes me want to be the best person I can possibly be. Thank you for opening up your life to me. I still really like you too x

(And because I can - here's a Spotify playlist of music we've danced to over the last decade.)

Two Events!

I am currently putting last touches to my workshop schedule for late 2015/early 2016. I am sitting on my hands a little bit as some of the events are not mine to announce, but I can give you the heads up on two of the several one-offs I will be doing.

August 26-28, 2015: In the Loop 4 - From Craft to Couture. This is an academic conference held in Glasgow at which I am giving a paper on the semiotics of knitting with special reference to The Killing. Other speakers include luminaries such as Annemor Sundbø, Lynn Abrams, Jennie Atkinson, Tom Van Deijen, Roslyn Chapman, and Linda Newington. I am so honoured to be involved.

February 27-28, 2016: Joeli's Kitchen Retreat, Manchester. This promises to be so much fun. I'm running classes alongside Kate Atherley, Jules Billings and Joeli herself. Some very special guests are going to be there alongside exclusive vendors. ETA: Joeli's down to just eight four slots, folks!

Aside from one-off events I'll be teaching at various yarn shops as well (old and new friends alike!) and I'll be posting the schedule as soon as we have worked out all the details. Last year got a bit crazy (along the lines of "if this is Wednesday, this must be Belgium") so this year I have included some downtime into my schedule, so I can a) sleep, b) spend time with my loved ones, and c) design!

Making A Big Decision

Late last week I made a big decision. It had been brewing in my head for some time, but I finally said the words out loud: "I am going to make a book." I have no idea how exactly this is going to happen, but I am going to make a book.

This I do know:

• the topic
• the design vocabulary I am going to use
• it's a book that will combine patterns and essays
• my colour palette (yes, there's a secret moodboard)

I am also sure about these things:

• the yarn support
• the technical editor
• the photographer(s)
• the art direction
• the sources I will use

I learned a lot from doing the Doggerland e-book which is why I know I will be doing things differently this time. Doggerland was so, so much work for me because I was learning on the job - and I was doing pretty much everything myself (with the admirable help of my partner). This time I want to delegate a bit more, so this book won't take me three years to complete. I also want to get some people on-board that are far better at certain things than I am.

• book layout
• distribution
• random arse-kicking (because I designed over 25 pieces for the 8-piece Doggerland e-book thanks to useless bouts of perfectionism)

Now all that's left is to figure out how to make this work as I balance doing all this with my other work commitments. I have plans. Plans with action points.

Anyway, I have joined the 21st century and acquired a smartphone. I am now on Instagram if you fancy keeping up with my day-to-day existence - do say hello.

Tutorial: Lace Charts 2 - How to Read a Basic Chart

I like my patterns to be inclusive, so I try to offer them with both written and charted instructions. However, sometimes (like the Mahy shawl) a chart is the best way of offering concise and precise information. I know many people don’t like charts, but I hope this series of tutorials will go some way to demystify charts and explain how to use them.  This post is about how to read a basic chart. The chart is very straightforward - no shaping and no extra stitches being added. If you like this stitch pattern, you may enjoy my Florence scarf (it's free and only takes one ball of fluffy yarn).

Reading a chart can be really daunting. Unfortunately chart symbols are not standardised and so you need a key which explains what the various symbols mean. Always check the key to make sure you know what the symbols mean. 

Tip: If you find it hard to remember what the various symbols mean, or if you keep mixing up two symbols, make a copy of the chart and assign a colour to each symbol. Grab highlighter pens and start colouring in the chart. It's a nice little brain-hack.

Now let's look at the chart itself.

Row numbers are important because they tell you which is the RS and the WS rows. RS rows have numbers on the right-hand side. WS rows have numbers on the left-hand side. We'll come back to why this is important in just a second!

Pattern repeats are outlined. Normally the outline is red, but you may come across a fat, black line being used if the pattern is provided in black & white. The outline is exactly the same as the repeat from *.. you are used to from written instructions. In this case, you can see this is a 10-stitch/6-row repeat. You repeat the ten stitches over and over, until you finish with one stitch (the one outside the repeat).

Action is how I think of a square in a lace chart. Each square represents an action you must take when you get to that stage. Many people think that each square represents a stitch, but sometimes you work more than one stitch per square or do not work a stitch at all. A right-slating line means you are knitting two stitches together; a V (not represented) typically means you are slipping a stitch from one needle to another.

When you work a lace chart, you move from one action to another. One of the biggest advantages of a chart is that it shows you how actions stack on top of one another, creating a stitch pattern. The visual mimicry of the chart symbols often mean your fabric will resemble the chart!

The two biggest problems of reading a lace chart is A) where to start and B) how to know which direction you read the actions. Many people think you start by reading a chart like you'd read a piece of English-languaged text: top left and reading left to right. This is incorrect. And this is where we go back to talking about row numbers because row numbers are your friends.

A chart mimics the knitted fabric and your first row will therefore always be at the very bottom. The row number shows that you start at the right-hand side and work your way left. This corresponds with how you work the stitches too: you move your stitches from the left-hand needle to the right-hand needle. When you work the WS rows, you will have turned your work, so you need to turn/revert the direction in which you are reading the actions. Again, the row numbers are your anchors as they will show you where the given row starts!

So in short:

This post is part of my Lace Chart tutorials.

Lace Charts 1 - The Anatomy of a Lace Chart. Lace Charts 2 - How to Read a Basic Chart Lace Charts 3 - How to Read a Shawl Chart Lace Charts 4: Chart Tricks & Knitting Hacks

Hope you found this useful! Next time we'll be looking at how to deal with 'no stitches', shaping, and how to customise your lace chart reading. As always, comments and questions are welcome! Kx

No Pressure, Karie, No Pressure.

Another photo shoot beckons. I am a perfectionist and I haven't been happy with the photos we've managed to get so far. The first shoot was basically us trying out a couple of locations. Obviously the first location we tried turned out to be my favourite - isn't it always so? - but we had only shot a couple of photos. I wanted more. So, yesterday we headed out for another shoot. I was tired and I think it showed in the images.

I used to joke about modelling being a real job, but now I know it's actually hard work. Usually our shoots lasts between fifteen to forty-five minutes: you have to account for the light, get a variety of shots, get pattern details, and find that magic connection between yourself and the camera. So, going into a shoot with a tired body and a tired brain wasn't the best thing.

But this is your first real glimpse of Mahy, isn't it?

I absolutely love this shawl and I think this is one of the reasons why I've been so hard on the photos. I want to capture just how special this feels to me. I want the photos to convey just how amazing it felt to knit the shawl and how fantastic it feels to wear it.

No pressure, Karie.

Southwards Bound - pt 2

So. London to Cambridge and back to London. I had considered adding Brighton to the itinerary, but I am very glad I decided against it. The weather was hot and clammy - and it sucked all the energy right of me. Instead of doing the thousand things on my list, I opted to visit The National Gallery which I hadn't visited for nearly twenty years. I knew it would be cool, relatively free of crowds and very restorative to my sanity.  But first a gratuitous photo of The Thing which is currently blocking.

A grey woolly blob pre-blocking transformation. I like the early evening light.

The National Gallery in London had played a big part in my days of living in London two decades ago. I spent much of my free time wandering through the galleries and several paintings had become old friends by the time I left. It was a great joy to see these paintings again - a certain Titian, Fra Filippo Lippi's The Annuciation (it had not lost any of its power and mystery) and Paul Cezanne's Les Grandes Baigneuses (Cezanne's painting took on extra meaning for me this time as I'm now so familiar with J.D. Fergusson's Les Eus). But I kept coming back to a simple portrait by Albrecht Dürer.

Detail from The Painter's Father by Dürer. This portrait is over 500 years old and it is still so achingly alive.

But my favourite discovery at NG was the mosaic floor in the Main Vestibule. I spent a lot of time looking at it (much to the bemusement of other visitors).

Detail from The Awakening of the Muses (1928-1933) by Boris Anrep. That man bears an uncanny resemblance to TS Eliot.

After the National Gallery, I headed next door to the National Portrait Gallery. I tend to visit NPG whenever I am in London - it is the perfect size for an impromptu visit and yet I see something new every time. This time I was struck by a painting of Aleister Crowley - the yellow colour vibrated and clashed beautifully against the red robe. I'll need to see it again.

And then I headed out to Hackney to teach at the very delightful Wild & Woolly yarn shop. I always say that yarn shops reflect their owners - Wild & Woolly is owned by Anna who I liked on sight. We sat down with a pot of tea and proceeded to have a fantastic in-depth talk about knitting as lifestyle, knitting as art form, and knitting as pleasure. And the shop reflects Anna's warm personality, sense of humour and eye for detail.

I was teaching a class on my Byatt shawl - and it was a blast. we talked colour choices, techniques and how to knit lace at the pub. The students were all lively and funny. A very brief hello from Larissa and I wish I could have stayed longer - always a good sign - but I had to dash into the dark of night as I was staying with my good friend Ben who lives quite a trek from Hackney.

And so I spent my very last hours of my time in London talking gender identity, privilege and Men Who Knit with Ben. We've known each other for years and I don't see him often enough. I don't see many friends often enough, actually, as they are all spread out across the world (that's a complaint for another day).

Exotic travel: Birmingham

Somewhere north of Preston.

Almost sure I travelled across that viaduct on my journey to Settle just two weeks ago.

Oh Scotland. Home.

I have been travelling a lot the past month or so. As a confirmed introvert (and homebody) I can feel I need some time to recover from adventuring. I do try to soak up as many impressions and ideas as I can while I am travelling - but then I need time to sort through them all. The good news is I have finished quite a few things and I'll be able to share a new design with you very shortly. Yes, it's the grey blob shown above and no, it is no longer a blob but a Very Beautiful Thing.

A big thank you to everybody I met on my travels south - the people who came to my classes; Anna and Sarah who both jumped at the chance to host my workshops; Joanne and Ben who let me stay at their places; and all the lovely strangers who talked to me because I was knitting. I salute you.