A Steek In Time
Hello from Linda! I started working at The Artful Yarn in August of 2019 and have enjoyed meeting new people and learning from coworkers and customers. What a great community we have - it is my happy place. Most of my knitting prior to my tenure here was rectangular and very straightforward. I had little confidence in branching out and rarely even considered patterns with intermediate or advanced techniques. When I doubted my abilities, a knitting friend of mine reassured me by saying “It’s just one stitch at a time.” That has become my mantra, along with “It’s not hard. It’s new.” My favorite thing about working at the shop is being able to help our customers with their projects, getting to know them in the process and making connections. The support I’ve received from my coworkers has made me enjoy the challenges and opportunities in knitting around every corner. While there's something to be said for the comfort of working on a simple project, I have to say this old dog enjoys learning new tricks. Enter steeking! About a year and a half ago, Christine, Jennifer, and I decided to embark on an adventure in colorwork and steeking. We each chose two colors to make the Mattie Cardigan, designed by Kristin Drysdale. The sweater is knit in the round as you would a pullover (colorwork is so much nicer with no purling), and extra stitches are incorporated into the pattern. These are the steek stitches. Christine knocked her sweater out in less than a month and it’s beautiful. Jennifer and I got sidetracked (many times!) and have yet to finish ours, and we’ve all enjoyed the project and learned a lot. There are tricks that make steeking more successful For starters, the yarn you use in a steeking project is important. Choose an untreated wool (not superwash) or other animal fiber (other than silk). The slicker the yarn, the more reinforcement your steek will need before cutting. Yarns that are prone to felt are perfect since the fibers cling together and keep the stitches in place. Once you have finished knitting your garment, the steek stitches need to be reinforced so that there will be no unraveling upon cutting. There are several ways to do this. You can reinforce with your sewing machine, which is quick and efficient. You can reinforce the stitches using the single crochet stitch or you can needle felt the appropriate row to force the fibers together tightly. Each technique is equally effective. The Sheepy Steeky Coaster project (available on Ravelry) is a great intro to simple colorwork and steeking. I encourage anyone interested in learning these techniques to check it out. If you weren’t able to attend our recent class, I’m happy to help you one-on-one to get started! Favorite yarn in the shop: Always and forever Malabrigo Rios, with Spun Right Round a close second. Favorite non-yarn item: Anything related to needle felting! Comments are closed.
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AuthorTiffany Perry Archives
February 2025
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