Video about Knitting-In Zippers

Have you read the no-sew zipper article in the 2010 winter issue of Interweave Knits magazine?  TECHknitter has developed a way to add a zipper by knitting it in, rather than by sewing it in, using a small latch-hook called a “knit-picker” or “snag-fixer”.  In this video, Eunny Jang demonstrates 2 versions of the technique.  Check out the entire post (including several helpful tips) on Knitting Daily or on TECHknitter’s blog.  Merry Christmas!!

Twisted-Stitch Article published and New Videos posted!

The November — February issue of Cast On magazine is arriving in mailboxes; I got my copy today.  I wrote a technical article for this one — my first!  It tells how to work Bavarian Twisted Stitches without a cable needle.

Back in August, and again in October, I filmed videos to demonstrate the techniques I describe in the article.  If you check the Tutorials page (see those tabs along the top of the page on my blog. . .), you’ll see that I’ve started posting them there.  Hope you enjoy and learn from them!

For more videos, see the right sidebar or my YouTube channel:  MtMomDesigns.

We have had some “white stuff” here.  Snow was seen high up on the Peaks; at lower elevations (7000 feet) we got some sort of frozen rain that hurt when it struck my face.  (Sleet?  I didn’t grow up with such precipitation, so I’m not sure what to call this. . . .)

San Francisco Peaks, 9 November

Frozen stuff in our backyard, 9 November

Channel Island Cast On

Here is a link to a recent Knitting Daily post, which includes a demonstration video by Eunny Jang of the Channel Island Cast On.  She is suggesting it’s use in top-down socks, but it’s traditional use is in the welts of guernsey (also spelled gansey) sweaters.  Guernsey is one of the Channel Islands, in the English Channel, between the UK and France.  I don’t know if the cast on was developed there, or if the name came from its association with the guernsey sweaters made all up and down the east coast of England and Scotland from the late 1800’s.

Fearless Sock Knitting

And, on another note, here’s a poem from Dr. Seuss that pops into my head periodically:  (thanks to papahere for the text)

How did it get so late so soon?
It’s night before it’s afternoon.
December is here before it’s June.
My goodness how the time has flewn.
How did it get so late so soon?
~Dr. Seuss

Old Norwegain / Twisted German Cast-On videos

edited to add the multiple versions of this demonstration

This is a classic example of the non-uniformity of knitting terminology.  Techniques spread from knitter to knitter, but names may change.  It may make you nuts when researching something, but it’s not a bad thing in itself.  Here we have 3 videos, each knitter gets the same cast-on result, but each manipulates her thumb in a slightly different way.  One movement may be easier for you than another, but all will get you the same stretchy cast-on with the extra twist (and little bump) in the bottom strand.

(1) Knitting Daily and the “Old Norwegian” cast-on.     (originally posted here:  http://www.knittingdaily.com/blogs/daily/archive/2010/01/20/crazy-for-cast-ons.aspx#video1)

(2) Knitwitch and the “Twisted German” cast-on.  (This is what I usually call it, but not exactly how I usually do it.) 

(3) Lucy Neatby and the “German Twisted” cast-on.  Her thumb technique is closest to the way I learned it. 

Plus a little pic of kitty, for fun.

Chloe

Stretchy Cast-On and Bind-Off.

Two how-to YouTube videos for knitting techniques devised by Jeny Staiman, one a bind-off, and one a cast-on, and both VERY stretchy.  I tried the BO today, but have not tried the CO yet.

“Jeny’s Stetchy Slip-Knot Cast-On”, demonstrated by Jeny Staiman.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3n8E3I6Cg2k

“Jeny’s Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-Off” demonstrated by Cat Bordhi.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abBhe-JYmgI

 

Managing my Videos

I’m moving my YouTube demonstration videos to a new account, styled “MtMomDesigns”.  I’ll be updating the links in the sidebar to reflect their new addresses.  Any new videos will be going to that account, not to the old one.  [So, now you know!]  Isn’t it cool that I can do that at all?!  Thank you, YouTube.  And thanks to teen-genius, my Camera Guy!

You can “subscribe” to my knitting videos from any of the Mt. Mom YouTube pages.  Then, if I upload a new video, you’ll be notified.