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If you follow me on Instagram you know I had a ton of fun on the Fjords and Highlands Knitting Cruise. The knitters on the cruise were fantastic, eager to learn in class and fun to hang out with outside of class. The weather was better than any of us had hoped for, with hardly any rain and plenty of sun.
And the shore excursions! Craft Cruises did an awesome job of arranging special shore excursions of interest to knitters. My faves:
- A tour of the Eilean Oir croft on Isle of Skye. Go on, take a minute to read their story.
- A visit to the inaugural Woollinn festival. So much yummy yarn!
- A trip to the New Lanark World Heritage Site. I’m thrilled that this cultural treasure is being preserved, and that the site is being used – for education, for yarn production, and simply as a lovely picnicking spot for local families.
- A trunk show with Kieran Foley, where I was blown away by the ease with which he thinks “outside the box.” Actually, I’m not even sure he’s aware a box exists.
- A visit to Annemor Sundbø’s studio. What a treat! I loved hearing her story and – more to the point – getting a sense of her passion for the textile arts of Norway. Check out her books. Or grab a cup of tea and enjoy her treasures on Flickr. (Caution! This is a rabbit hole.)
If you ever get a chance to take a Craft Cruise, do so! You'll love it.
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At Woolinn, I discovered Selbuvotter by Anna Bårdsgård. It was love at first sight.
It’s a book about the traditional mitten designs of Selbu, Norway. Yes, the book is in Norwegian, but that’s okay. The book’s main attraction are its pretty pictures: hundreds of photos of historical mittens and charts for “Selbu roses;” dozens of charts for palm patterns, cuff patterns, and divider patterns; and pages of diagrams suggesting motif placement.
It’s hard to put into words just how stunning this book is. Suffice to say I’ve spent hours poring over its patterns, and dreaming of ways to use them – and that’s saying something, for a lace junkie like me.
If you want to get your own copy: Sadly, it’s hard to find in the US. Schoolhouse Press currently says it has one copy on hand, but its corners are dinged. Another option is to order from Ysolda, then to wait patiently for international shipping to do its thing.
If you want to learn more about Selbu mittens: Check out Selbuvotter: Biography of a Knitting Tradition by Terri Shea, or Norwegian Mittens and Gloves by Annemor Sundbø. Both are in English; both give excellent instruction on the traditional construction approach. Their only downfall – if you can call it that – is that they offer a fraction of the charts in Bårdsgård’s Selbuvotter. |
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Reading Selbuvotter got me all fired up to do some stranded colorwork. But what? Selbu mittens and possibly someday gloves, yes, but not right off – it’s been a while since I’ve done any stranded colorwork, and I’d rather practice my tensioning with a less fiddly project before tackling mittens in fingering-weight yarn. I had considered a hat with Selbu motifs... but then I remembered some Imperial Stock Ranch Columbia in my stash, out of which I’d promised to knit DH a sweater years ago. Why not make good on that promise and have fun with Selbu motifs at the same time?
And then I remembered I’d been meaning to try the “simultaneous set-in sleeve” approach that Barbara Walker describes in Knitting from the Top. Unlike my Slick Set-in Sleeves class, where we knit the upper back, upper fronts, and sleeve caps for a top-down sweater one at a time, in the simultaneous approach you knit them all at the same time, shaping with increases rather than short rows. Why not do that too?
Okay, sure, challenge accepted. But first, I decided to play it safe and try the novel construction approach in a kid’s-size sweater. It doesn’t look like much, but so far I’ve managed to knit to the start of the armhole shaping.
Though there’s room for improvement, I’m pleased with the tensioning of the colorwork. And I’m definitely learning as I go. I’ve already decided to modify Ms. Walker’s approach by throwing in a few short rows – probably just two pairs – at the top of each sleeve cap, to round them off a bit. And I think I’ll separate the patterning on the body from that on the sleeve caps by adding in Selbu-style dividers, or at least a single column in the main color. We’ll see how it goes. Wish me luck!
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On my needles, part 2
Don't worry! My current fascination with Selbu patterning hasn’t completely overshadowed my love of lace. As a matter of fact, I’m nearing the end of a shawl project in which I’m doing something a little unusual for me – I’m adding in beads!
Normally I can’t be bothered to add beads to my lace. But, being knit out of Knitting Notions Classic Merino Bamboo, this shawl is so light that I think some beads are in order to help it drape nicely. Bonus: last Saturday I was able to listen in on the talk Sivia Harding gave at the Salem Ravelers’ WWKIP event. It was all about choosing the right bead for your project – what perfect timing!
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And November 1-4, I’ll be teaching at a new event – Stitches SoCal in Pasadena.
More events are on their way, but I can’t talk about them yet! Stay tuned.
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Okay, then. Let’s all get back to knitting, shall we?
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