Knitting Tip: Avoid a Gap When Binding Off Mid-Row

You’re happily knitting your bottom-up sweater, and you finally get to the neck shaping. You knit along your row and start binding off for the neck and there it is… the pesky gap. If you’re anything like me (a completely neurotic virgo), the asymmetry of the mid-row bind off makes you a little uneasy. The good news is the fix is super easy!

Knit to 1 stitch before where you’re going to start your bind off (shown with a marker in the photo above). You’re going to kfb (knit in the front and back loop) of the next stitch (the stitch before the bind). This will give you an extra stitch to bind off, and will make your neck shaping clean and symmetrical!

That’s it! Start your bind off with the extra stitch from the kfb for a cleaner neckline!

Meet the Witch: Leila Raven of Call of the Raven

I fell in love with Leila’s designs years ago, drawn in by her beautiful stitchwork and witchy aesthetic. I've had the pleasure of getting to know this amazing person over the last couple of years, and I want to share her story!

- xo, Ana

Part of my journey over the last few years has been coming out of the broom closet, and integrating my practice as a witch with fiber arts. Do you identify as a witch?

I'm glad you asked, and I do. It's been a journey in itself to state that without hesitation, for a number of reasons: I grew up with a deep interest in witchcraft, astrology, and tarot, but always felt a bit of an outsider/imposter to the Western European-based pagan traditions that were most commonly covered in the literature available to the average teenager in the 90s. I have kept it hidden from public view for most of my life. It wasn't until relatively recently, when I started digging into my indigenous roots in earnest, that I realized my Native Hawai'ian ancestors were actually witchy as fuck. Their intimate understanding of and reverence for the natural world and the cosmos, and the ways in which they expressed this in chant, ritual, song, dance, and storytelling—their very relationship to the land, and to time and space, on an individual, societal, and spiritual level, intergenerationally—it's just such a staggeringly profound revelation to me. My understanding of "witchy" expanded beyond the deities, spells, and rituals I had grown up with as a near-solitary practitioner. That reconciliation of the history and traditions of my practice and my personal identity was a major turning point in my life, to say the least.

You have such a gorgeous collection of patterns you've created! Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got started designing?

Thank you, Ana! I started designing in 2008 on a whim. I self-published a cowl, then a pair of mitts, and then a shawl. Soon after that, I think mostly by luck/chance, I began working at various yarn companies, which spanned the next ten years. My favorite part about that experience is getting to meet and work with so many talented, wicked smart people—designers, technical editors, writers, and knitters—who have become lifelong friends, and who helped me grow in my own design work (particularly garment design). Within the past year I've returned to independent publishing—specifically so that I could be more intentional about who I work with and support in any collaborative endeavor.

As a fellow lover of Ravens (for those who haven't seen me in person, I have a raven tattooed on on my left forearm), I'd love to learn more about your connection to Raven. Would you be willing to share part of your story?

I've had a lifelong love of ravens. They weren't common in the areas I lived in growing up, so whenever I saw one it was a magical event for me. I would take those sightings as messages. I have always had what some might call a "morbid obsession" with death, and our relationship to it, and the concept of the pyschopomp really resonates. Impartial guides between the realms of the living and the dead...what an important role! Lore has not always been kind to the raven, but I love any and all raven stories. They are special kin. Their distinctive call is one of my favorite sounds in the world.

In my 20s I ended up marrying a wonderful person whose surname was a derivation of the word "raven." We eventually parted ways, but when it came time to update my legal name I decided to mark the point I had arrived at in a forward way: instead of reverting to my maiden name, I chose a new last name for myself—Raven. Names are incredibly powerful things.

I'd love to see your tattoo. I have two ravens at my upper chest. They aren't related to Odin's Huginn and Muninn of Norse mythology, but symbolize my Gemini rising nature, which I have definitely leaned into much more as I grow older.

Thank you for sharing this story. I am heavily involved in psychopomp work too, and one of my cats is named Munin! Can’t wait to dive more into this with you in the future.

You recently launched Aroha Aloha, a new collaboration with Francoise Danoy to highlight the work of indigenous fiber artists. What do you want folks to know about this project?

The designs for this project are coming from a completely different place than my previous work (which was equal parts "would I knit this" and "would anyone else knit this"). Reconnecting to my Hawai'ian heritage is a work in progress that was sparked by the Mauna Kea protests that reached a fever pitch in 2019, and my ancestral antenna, like so many others, was "activated" by a call from our most sacred of mountains to protect it. The work I'm publishing under this collaboration with Māori designer Françoise Danoy serves as a prism to reflect that intimate process of learning and reconnecting. The development of these designs is being organically informed by that learning process, which is a departure from how my designs typically take shape. I wrote a little bit about it on our blog.

I wasn't sure if it would resonate with anyone, or if knitters would find it interesting, but the response to part one of our three-part series so far has been immensely heartening. Like Frenchie says, we all have a story to tell. I think there's a universal connection each and every one of us can relate to about the healing that can happen when you seek to have a better understanding of yourself in relation to the world around you—and that each one of us is a waypoint between history, and the future. It's humbling and also empowering.

Part 2 of our Mana Wāhine series is releasing in April, and part 3 is coming later this fall.

I am super excited to collaborate with you on our new Mauna Hat kits featuring Harrisville FlyWheel. Can you tell us about this new design?

I chose triangle motifs in the Mauna hat to represent the mountains and people of Hawai'i. The protectors of Mauna Kea created a symbol formed by raising your hands and making a triangle between forefingers and thumbs—Kū kia'i mauna: Guardians of the mountain. On a more personal level the motifs also represent my exploration of relationship to my family, my heritage, and my home.

I featured FlyWheel because it's one of my favorite sport weight wools...it's excellent for colorwork and the characteristics of its soft, woolen-spun fibers have a lofty texture that isn't found in worsted-spun yarns. I also aim be much more intentional with the yarn choices specified in my patterns, and having known the Harrisville crew for many years, I can confidently work with their materials knowing that they are produced from a good place, by individuals who truly care about what they do. I'll never forget how kind they were to let me hide in the back "panic room" (aka stock room) of their Rhinebeck booth when I needed a breather from the crowds—which is where I believe I first met you, Ana, when you pulled the partition back to beckon me out. :)

And I’m so glad I did! You’re one of my favorite people. Thank you so much for chatting with me and sharing your amazing story! As always, I look forward following your work and upcoming project.

Thank you, Ana! It is truly a pleasure to be invited to this space to talk with you.

The Shift Cowl!

My finished Shift Cowl being blocked.

I will admit, I am always hesitant to jump onto the latest trend. I didn’t even know that it originally was published in 2018. It wasn’t until Ana started selling Spincycle yarn in kits for the Shift Cowl that it came into my radar. I finally caved late November of last year and bought a custom kit of Spin Cycle Dyed in the Wool in Leith, The Family Jewels, and The Meadows. I didn’t get the chance to start the cowl until the beginning of February. I remember being so resistant to wanting to like this pattern. In the end, I LOVED knitting this cowl. I will admit, it took a few rounds to get into the groove of the pattern, but from then on, it was smooth sailing! 

The initial stages of the Shift Cowl.

This pattern uses mosaic knitting to achieve the pops of color. Instead of holding both the two colors at the same time, only one color is worked at a time and uses slipped stitches to show the second color. If you are new to color work, I highly recommend this cowl. It is a great introduction to mosaic knitting as the floats are only two stitches maximum. The entire project is knit flat, then uses mattress stitch to seam together. 

Here’s the cowl a few rows away from the bind-off.

I do have to say that it wouldn’t be a project completed by me without a few mistakes. The first mistake I made was forgetting an increase on one of the sides. Luckily, it was fairly close to the beginning, so I just ripped it out and started again. The other slightly significant mistake I made was with one of the increases. The pattern calls for both make one right (M1R) and make one left (M1L). It wasn’t until about halfway through the pattern that I realized i was incorrectly doing M1R. I certainly wasn’t going to rip out all my progress, so I kept doing it incorrectly, but made a mental note for upcoming projects. The only other thing that gave me issues was figuring out how to seam it together with mattress stitch. Luckily Ana offers online lessons and was able to give me the help that was necessary to complete the seaming.

Definitely not a perfect example of mattress stitch. Also note the floats in the knitting.

This was such an enjoyable project, that I already have some more Spincycle Dyed in the Wool for another Shift cowl!

Next Shift Cowl using Spincycle Dyed in the Wool: Absinthe, Cataclysm, and Ruination.

What the Sweater Challenge is Really About

Happy 2019, friends!

This is our third year welcoming in the new planetary cycle with our Annual Sweater Challenge.

We’ve been working hard over the last four years to really hone our core values and mission, and this is also true of the Sweater Challenge. So today, I’m sharing thoughts on what this challenge really is about.

On the surface, it seems like a way to get folks knitting - which is true! But there is a whole lot of “why” behind getting folks knitting. There are the obvious answers, which are about supporting the small businesses and industries that make knitting possible. Without our knitting community, we wouldn’t exist, and in turn we wouldn’t be able to support the various small businesses and independent entrepreneurs we partner with. There is an amazing ripple effect that comes from supporting small businesses. That said, this not why we do what we do. We genuinely believe that creativity is a conduit to a healthier, more fulfilling life, and a way to connect and care for ourselves.

Some people tell us they’re hesitant to join the Sweater Challenge due to time constraints. The challenge kicks off in late December, with an early March deadline, inviting folks to finish their pieces and wear them to our Anniversary Party. The timeline is about 2.5 months, which objectively speaking, is a good amount of time! But why do people feel so crunched? We are all bogged down with responsibilities and myriads of little things that keep us busy. America is the land of busyness (insert side rant about the pressure to feel busy all the time). By committing to this challenge, you are committing to self care and to more intentional living. We knit because it brings us joy and helps us destress; knitting is absolutely a form of self care. By making a commitment to knit a garment in this time frame, you are making a choice to intentionally set aside time for self care. This of course brings us to thoughts on intentional living. Many of us (myself most definitely included) from being more intentional in how we spend our time. By committing to self care through knitting, we are creating space for more intention in our lives.

Beyond this, we are big supporters of crafting a handmade wardrobe and slow fashion. Slow fashion allows us to be mindful about consumption and putting together a wardrobe that reflects our values. Clothes can be such a defining element for folks as a vehicle for self expression. If we have to wear clothes, why not wear clothes that bring us joy? Not only is the act of knitting a form of self care, we can came out of the activity with a beautiful wearable piece that inspires us. It can feel silly to talk about the transformative power of clothes, but we’ve all experienced it - those special items that really make us feel like ourselves when we put them on. And what is more you than a piece you’ve made yourself, to look and fit exactly the way you want? My beautiful friend Sew Liberated has been posting about this, and this year we are committing to being unabashedly ourselves, and helping you do the same!

I know what some of you are thinking: “but my sweaters never fit right!” or “I don’t have the skills to make what I want!” We hear you, and the Sweater Challenge is our call to you to grow your skills, and we are here to help you every step of the way. Even if you’re part of our online community (rather than in person) we will still work with you - phone calls, emails, even video chat.

Thank you for reading! There’s so much more to be said about all this, but for now I will leave this with an ask to hear your thoughts.

Celebrating Samhain with the Hemlock Shawl

It’s no secret that we love Halloween/Samhain and this year we are super excited to share a special collaboration with you! Ash Alberg is one of our favorite indie designers and all around witchy fiber person. We often talk about important it is to us to support other small business owners and independent entrepreneurs, and that’s how this collaboration was born.

Ash took the plunge to become a full-time knitting designer, and as soon as I heard, I reached out to her to commission a shawl pattern. I also wanted to highlight Harrisville Designs, a small family-owned and operated fiber mill here in New England. Ash and I took some time to squee over our mutual excitement, and then I sent her some skeins of FlyWheel.

A few months later, Ash and I are delighted to bring you Hemlock, her exclusive design just for us. It uses three skeins of FlyWheel, which has a stunning color palette, but you can knit it in any wooly fingering weight.