Time for a little Equilibrium

 Happy Autumn, fellow northern hemisphere dwellers! Bring on the crunchy leaves, apple everything, and sweater weather! 🍂🍁 And Happy Spring to those of you in the southern hemisphere 🤗

I'm happy to say my workshop at the Clarenville & Area Fibre Festival last month went absolutely fantastic. What a fun group of ladies came out, and learned the basics of cable knitting. Plus quite a few learned the cable cast-on as an added, and completely impromptu, bonus! We completely lost track of time! Or at least I did lol. I'll definitely sign on to teach again next year (barring any unforeseen moves, of course)

Sadly, my furry niece Silver Belle decided the same day was a good one to leave on an adventure, and while we've had sightings of her in the last 4 weeks she still isn't home. Fortunately, or is it unfortunately?, she was a semi-feral rescue when she came to us so she has survival skills and instincts. But we're understandably worried about her especially as the colder weather seems to be arriving a bit sooner than usual. We need to replace some posters around the neighbourhood that got waterlogged in our most recent deluge. Hopefully I can report she's home soon. Jakey is absolutely lost without his sisfurr, poor lil guy

And it looks like Google still hasn't figured out I'm signed in so I continue to not be able to upload photos 🙄 If, as a Canadian, I need more reason to find non-Google alternatives this is definitely it. A knitting blog without photos isn't exactly what I've been putting forth all these years. Pain in my...

I'm seeing a whole lotta traffic to my site recently: welcome! Glad you found me here in my little crafty corner of things 👋 I hope you'll pop by again if my knitting and other projects, and snippets of life in Newfoundland/Canada are of interest

Sure sign of Autumn coming: the organizers behind the Fasten Off Yarn Along have been informally chatting and working out some bits here and there. Keep an eye on the social media accounts and/or website, there should be posts coming soon. And as always, full disclosure: I'm one of the organizing team behind the FOYAL. I can't believe this'll be our 7th event! Seems like it wasn't too long ago we were figuring out the very first one! 

I've been remiss in my Canadian Small Fibre Arts Business highlighting lately, so I'd like to bring another Newfoundland-based local yarn shop to your attention today: Cast On Cast Off. 

Cast On Cast Off is located in Triton here on the island, and offers in-store and online shopping for yarn, books, needles and notions. They also host a retreat each summer which is becoming very very popular. They carry several exclusive colourways in Briggs & Little wools, including Bergy Blue (which you might remember I used for my Countess Cathleen). You can visit them here: https://www.castoncastoff.com/ 🔗

Ok, fibre friends, that's everything from me today! I hope your crafting is going well. Anything autumnal on your needles and/or hooks? A few friends have made little pumpkins recently so the autumn vibes are definitely starting to flow

Yours in yarn, and equal parts sunshine & moonlight (as long as the clouds stay apart iykyk),

Síle

Summer, Was That You?

While much of the northern hemisphere has been roasting at turns this year, my island home has been pretty normal: clouds, fog, drizzle, out and out bucketing down rain, more clouds, showers, sporadic sunshine, and of course more clouds.

That's at least given me a fair amount of crafting time anyway. Even if I could really use more sun; you can take the girl off the prairie but you can't take the prairie sun outta the girl's soul.

 
A friend pointed out last night that the (Clarenville) Fibre Festival is only 2 weeks away!! 2 weeks from now, I'll have finished teaching my first ever workshop, and will probably be browsing the vendor area. I have copies of the pattern I'm using to introduce cable knitting, and a cable tips and tricks handout all ready for my 10 attendees. That's right, 10; a full class for my first time out. That delights, and honestly scares me lol. I'm sure everything will go well though. Fingers crossed 

I just wanted to pop on with a quick update today, so here are some current KDRD pattern samples that show some decent progress to make up for my lack of posting. I think I need to set a reminder for posts again. I'm so disillusioned with social media that I'm just not really posting anything anywhere.

I digress! Let's see the progress photos, shall we?

You may remember Céilí (kay-lee) being a hood last time. Well, she's grown a bit since then:

Ok, scratch that. I've spent the last hour trying to resolve why I can't upload photos *eyeroll* I'm getting an error message that says I'm not logged in. If I'm not logged in how am I writing a post?? Google, you're offbase; go have a nap

So, unfortunately I can't show you where my current design samples are at. This post is suddenly much shorter than anticipated! Sorry, fiber friends; hopefully Google sorts itself out soon. I'll check back later this week, and see if I can get photos to upload then.

What's on your needles and/or hooks? Are your summer craft plans all coming together? I hope they are

Until next time!

Yours in yarn, and annoyance with Google,

Síle

Well Now

 It's been a minute... or five, hasn't it? Oh my. Really, what else is there to say about it? The best laid plans of mice and men...

Well, welcome to June! 

I have some goings on to let you in on, and even some new projects with photos to chatter about. So let's jump on in!

You may remember my mention of an idea for a double-knit hooded short cloak/cape that I was toying with getting on my needles.

Meet Céilí (kay-lee):

As you can probably guess, the hood is finished, (and yes, that's an Estonian braid along the front edge of the hood), and I've picked up the stitches reversibly (a neat trick I unvented for my Hornpipe Bag) to continue the cloak body downwards. And there's shaping in between all those lovely pattern sections on the cloak portion. I'm absolutely enamoured with how it's coming along!

But of course I'm me and I don't have just one WIP on the go lol. Of my own designs, I'm most actively working on Three Hand Reel:

(Talk about not losing me in a snowstorm lol)

and Cherish the Ladies:

Is my "go big" era as apparent to you as it is to me? ;)

I have another project in the works, and it's not on my needles ;)

After its success last year, the Clarenville Fibre Festival is coming back this August for its second year. And yours truly has signed on to teach a workshop! I'll be teaching beginner level cable knitting on Saturday August 22nd :) I'll be guiding between 5 and 10 individuals through the twists and turns of cable knitting. This is the first time I'll be teaching outside of a one-on-one situation so I chose to keep the class on the small side. I'm very excited for this opportunity, and a bit nervous I have to confess. But if my stage days taught me anything it's that when I'm not nervous is when I should worry. 

Edit: Signups are open now, so if you'll be near Clarenville, Newfoundland & Labrador this August, and specifically the weekend of August 20th through 23rd, and want to check out the Fibre Festival, and maybe a workshop or two, go to https://www.clarenvilleregionart.ca/festival🔗 (link to outside website) for all the details. If you scroll down a little bit on the Fibre Festival you'll see where the workshop schedule is. Wee mistake alert: the Cable Knitting workshop is listed as being instructed by "Sila Maureen"; that should say Síle Maureen, of course. My handy-dandy phonetics "helper" has once again confused someone and e got shifted to a. I promise it's me that will be teaching 🤗

That's my big news! And the projects that are keeping me out of trouble.

I'm off to Town next week for a dr's appointment (fingers crossed for better pain management solutions), so don't be surprised if there are touristy photos in my next post. I think Cherish the Ladies would look quite nice on the Newfoundland dog statue in Harbourside Park ;) Maybe I should hold off until the knitting's done and the steek cut open for that though. Three Hand Reel on the other hand...

I digress!

What's on your needles and/or hooks, fibre friends? Anything fun for summer? 

Ok! That's honestly it this time lol

I remain, yours in yarn and general creative shenanigans,

Síle

Weather, Double-Knitting, and Sherwood Forest

After a nasty blast of winter last week, I've finally unthawed. Did not have a "bombogenesis" on my weather bingo card for early November! Admittedly I had no clue what one was until our local weather fella mentioned it; it's when rapid intensification of a storm caused by a sudden and significant drop in atmospheric pressure : the development or intensification of a bomb cyclone. A cyclone is a low pressure system and a bombogenesis occurs when a storm intensifies, rapidly losing 24 millibars of pressure in 24 hours. (Thank you, Merriam-Webster's dictionary! Brief aside, their Instagram account is hilarious. Check them out if word play is your jam)

So yeah, low barometric pressure (hello, weather headache), super high winds, and the first snow of 2025. Jakey, Silsie and I just kind of cuddled up, and spent a couple days in massive blanket nest to be perfectly honest. Floofy boy hates wind and required Auntie and Sisfur to protect him. 

This has meant a burst of knitting speed to get my latest ear-warmer off the needles, and onto my rapidly icy-feeling ears. I'm down to the second i-cord tie as of this morning. So yay for a nearly finished project! This was taken last night as I approached the end of the ear-warmer's shaping:

That'll make 2 done, and 3 left to knit of the collection. Oh, and one needs its charts combined so that it can be knit. I'm aiming to have the ebook of all 5 patterns out in Fall 2026, ideally late September or early October.  This one is Rise & Grind, referring to the common "jig step" of the light jig and several céilí (kay-lee) dances. I showed off Sevens to you a bit ago. Left to come are Threes, Birdies, and Twists. 

As is often the case, I've been in deep thoughts about which design to get on my needles after the ear-warmers are all knit. I have a spreadsheet where all my ideas live, and the column for "idea/chart/swatch" is often where I look for the next thing. I've had a chart done for a 3 color double-knit scarf/cowl set for quite awhile (chart is dated 2021), and I purchased yarn to knit the sample cowl last year. But I have to be honest with myself and you: I'm not feeling another d-k scarf right now. The ear-warmers have me wanting to continue playing with shaping double-knitting rather than just creating plain old rectangles. 

Fiber friends, I've gone and created the chart for a hood to go atop a short cloak/cape in the last week. A double-knit hood involving not just decreases but also short-rows. 

Ok, I'd be super remiss if I didn't acknowledge where the whole hood inspiration came from. Are you familiar with the designs of Nim Teasdale🔗 (link goes to her Love Crafts profile)? Probably best known for lace shawls of phenomenal artistry, this summer and fall saw a set of 5 hooded short ponchos/long cowls emerge. Inspired by medieval fashions and the tales of Robin Hood these are a glorious set of colorwork enhanced whimsical yet practical items to keep the wind off your ears and neck, while confounding the Sheriff of Nottingham. I want to knit them all! 

And armed with my supposed-to-be-a-scarf chart, that's where this hood of mine obviously got its start. I'm not sure if this is going to go anywhere, but I'm probably going to at least swatch the shaping portion at some point. 

And yes, this is reminding me that I have Countess Cathleen glaring at me from the top of my dresser awaiting her pattern to be written/tech edited/released to beta knitters/published. She's definitely not forgotten, but my mind is having a bit of a time figuring out how to write the pattern in multiple sizes. I've knit enough of them, it shouldn't be that difficult but... Yeah. I do have charts and stitch counts, so that's helpful at least.

Oh look, more rain coming the next few days, with another wind warning. Thankfully my tea reserves are very robust, and I have many woolly layers to burrow into while drinking my weight in tasty hot teas, and knitting.

Oh! And don't forget: the Fasten Off Yarn Along is fast approaching! Cast-on is 9pm Eastern Standard on November 21st. Designer signups concluded last night but I haven't seen the final count yet. I do know several new-to-FOYAL designers have been joining and saying hello on the Discord server🔗 (link to the server), which is awesome! I love discovering new-to-me designers. And of course a lot of old friends are back, both designers and makers, which really makes it such an amazing event.

I did notice one returning designer in particular that gives me an excellent and timely personal project. I got a lovely mitten pattern during last year's FOYAL, Voss by Anniken Allis🔗 (link to pattern page in designer's Payhip shop), and I think that's going to be my first  cast-on for FOYAL 2025. I think the pattern will pair nicely with some Briggs & Little Sport I have onhand, and I can keep my hands warm this winter. I also have the patterns for Vaffel Votter and Vinter Votter by her but I'm less sure on my colors of B&L Heritage for contrast purposes. They're all lovely patterns. Do check out her Payhip shop; she also has a number of really beautiful lace patterns. 

Ok, that's my rambling musings for this evening! Hope you're keeping warm, or cool depending on your location, and have an engaging project or two (or more ;) on your needles or hooks

Yours in yarn, and kitty snuggles

Síle

Do You Know What Season Has Started?

Regular readers won't be the least bit surprised but newcomers are probably thinking "She's getting excited for Fall this late in the game?" *raised eyebrow emoji*

And no I'm not quite that forgetful.

Hint: You may notice a new-yet-not tab above this post.

The Fasten Off Yarn-A-Long (aka FOYAL) is being organized as I write! Designer signup is open now (like literally starting today) until November the 9th. I missed posting about the volunteer signup window because, well honestly, life was lifing. I also know that there may be some ways to help out once things are underway, and the best way to hear about those when they crop is via the FOYAL Discord server.

Ok, now I know some of you are probably wondering "What the heck is FOYAL? Designers of what are signing up for this? How does this relate to this strange individual who mashes knitting and Irish dance together to make knitting patterns?"

All extremely valid questions too! Especially that third one ;)

Ok, so first things first. The Fasten Off Yarn-A-Long got its start in 2020 because Ravelry got basically broken by some bad choices in its new look, commonly known as NuRav. This resulted in a lot of people getting headaches and worse from trying to use it. And a lot of those people were independent designers of knitting and crochet patterns. You can find out more about what was going on in some of my earliest posts on this blog; NuRav is a particularly good tag to select in the sidebar, also Ravelry Accessibility

But back to where FOYAL came into being: Every late fall through December, a group on Rav hosts the Indy Gift Along or GAL which is a big craft along featuring and promoting independent designers of knit and crochet patterns, and it's a lot of fun. But it's based on Rav and when approached by designers and past participants who couldn't use Rav any longer (at that point there were no workarounds), the organizers didn't really have the time or inclination to expand the event. Which was all good because quite frankly, it wasn't them that broke things, and they were gearing up for their own event and didn't have time to put something totally new together. Knowing and setting your boundaries is important, and being honest about them is *chef's kiss*

So up stepped a rag-tag group of people who said "There's got to be a way to have a similar in scope event but not tied to really any particular site so participants and designers can join in from a number of points on the web."

And that little band proceeded to create the Fasten Off Yarn-A-Long, which is an event promoting the patterns of independent knit and crochet pattern designers with, much like the GAL, a pattern sale followed by a big craft along. There is a central website🔗, and participants can join in on one or several social media platforms. There are games and giveaways, sharing of projects, lots of great chatter, and quite a community. Especially on the FOYAL Discord server🔗.

As you can imagine a lot of the event hinges on volunteers (many of whom are also participating designers) posting across the supported social media platforms in a variety of ways. We do our best to keep things fun and safe/comfortable for everyone. Some platforms have changed in how much is done there over the years. Some of the original busiest platforms aren't any longer. Others we never thought of using before have become where we're found more often. It's ever changing, depending on where the volunteers say they're comfortable running various things. Which is why there's the central website to find all the relevant info, including the pattern/designer database. The searchable database is the core. We've even come up with games that use the search features!

And just to own up to my position in all this: yes, I'm one of the organizers. And I have been all 6 years we've put this event together. So yeah, when I write we I'm literally meaning it as "me and the gang". And I'm a participating designer as well as doing my background work. Hence the special tab above

Hmm, I think I answered all three questions in one fell swoop. Will wonders ever cease: I kept that remarkably brief! Go, me lol

Onto the finer details of 2025's event. Every FOYAL starts with a pattern sale. Using a single code, you will get 25% off (before any relevant taxes) any patterns amongst a certain collection of the participating designers' patterns.

Now just to be clear: this doesn't mean all of the patterns by every designer. There are some designers who include all of their patterns in the sale (hi), while others select particular ones. In the past, the patterns that are included in the sale have been marked by a special sale tag in the FOYAL database. I believe that will be the same protocol this year; if this info changes I'll let you know!

This year the sale starts at 9pm North American Eastern Time on November 21st, and runs through end of day on December 4th.

Meanwhile, the craft along portion of the event also starts at 9pm North American Eastern Time on November 21st and runs through December 31st. There's also our New Year's Eve Boonanza (hosted strictly on the Discord server because quite honestly over-caffeinated Síle can not possibly run allover the web while ringing in several , New Years' in all different time zones) which is a ton of fun and usually pushes well into January 1st. Admittedly it tends to end whenever I finally run out of caffeine and fizzle out lol. I think my record was in 2023 when I was awake and online for something like 28 hours. I get very amusing the longer I'm up apparently lol. The conversations always run for a few days into January but the event itself is over. 

Ok, so those are the important dates but how do you participate? Take a look at the participating designers. If you have already acquired (not necessarily bought it yourself) one of their normally paid for patterns, cast-on/chain/start making it and share your progress on one of the supported platforms (don't forget the hashtag and/or tag the FOYAL account on that platform so our volunteers can see it; you just might be featured!), and start chatting with others who are doing the same. It's that easy! 

Now, if you don't already have a pattern by one of the participating designers, that's where the database comes in. Use the search features to find a pattern, and then use the sale code to purchase it at 25% off, and you're on your way!

Why is the focus on the paid patterns? Because we want to support indy pattern designers. That's it. No gimmick. 

But that doesn't mean you necessarily have to have bought a pattern either. Perhaps you were gifted a pattern; that totally counts. Maybe you were lucky and got in on a first day giveaway, and got a normally paid pattern for free. Maybe you test knit/crocheted for a designer, and got another of their patterns as compensation for your time. Maybe you won a pattern prize in a previous FOYAL, and the same designer is participating again. (Fun fact: there are a lot of designers who have participated in more than one year of FOYAL, and I believe around 40 who have participated every year!) These are all ways you may have acquired a normally-paid for pattern by a participating designer without having paid for it monetarily yourself. 

Whew! This has gotten much longer than I intended, and the sky is getting very light. Despite the torrential rain outside. Eddie (the weather fella) said we were in for rain, and he wasn't kidding!

I'll be back with more FOYAL talk as things progress. If you have any specific questions, don't hesitate to ask them in the comments below, or in my feedback form in the sidebar, and I'll answer you as quickly as I can. 

Yours in yarn, and way too little sleep (I started writing this at 4:30-something am; it's now 7:28am *facepalm*),

Síle

Going (Too) Big?

The phrase "Go big, or go home" has been a bit stuck in my head the last while. And my Three Hand Reel sample has reached the point of having 933 stitches in a row so it's also very fitting! 

That number of stitches in a row also has me wondering if there's such a thing as too big. I'm not an overly fast knitter; I consider myself average speed at best. So these long rows take me a good while to get done. Definitely something to keep in mind for future designs. Well, try to keep in mind anyway lol. I know myself. 

Summer has definitely come to Atlantic Canada! We've had a lot of heat and sunshine so far. So much that Roomie and I got a little pool for the backyard; inflatable sides and about 55cm/22 inches deep. Plenty of room for two lounging adults. It's been quite nice to have. That's also led me to my latest personal project: Beach Flowers🔗 by Brenda Grobler (link to designer's site). I'm using some variegated Bernat Baby I had on hand which is giving it a bit of an underwater look:

Fun, right? I'm enjoying the change up between it and the Three Hand Reel. Nothing like a bit of crochet to offset a lot of knitting.

I forgot to include my Spotlight of Canadian yarns, designers, and shops in my last post so you're getting an extended one today:

SPOTLIGHT

First up I thought I'd stay fairly local to me, and start with some truly beautiful yarn. Windswept Fibres & Design🔗 (link to their website) is located in St. John's, Newfoundland & Labrador, and Pam hand dyes some of the prettiest colors on our Rock. I'm a big fan of her Best Kind Sock; I'm knitting the sample of an upcoming lace shawl design with it currently, and it's glorious to knit with. A hank of this yarn in the 2022 Come Home colorway was part of the prize pack for my MKAL a few years ago too. All of the colorways have Newfoundland-inspired names, while the yarn lines get their names from common/popular sayings here. If you get to visit St. John's, you can buy in person at the Artisans' Loft, located on historic Water Street, which is one of the many fun shops in downtown St. John's. 

Speaking of yarn shopping in St. John's, Wool Trends🔗 (link to website) carries a wide range of yarn weights, fibers and colors along with needles, hooks, and notions. Confession: I order from them quite a bit! Deirdre and staff are fantastic whether shopping in person or online.

If you're on the lookout for Canadian wool, look no further than New Brunswick-based (Atlantic Canada represent!) Briggs & Little Woolen Mill🔗 (link to website), Canada's oldest woolen mill in operation. Fun fact: the mill is older than Canada! It's been operating, under a few different names, since 1857. While B&L's yarns can best be described as rustic, they're wonderfully warm for hats, mittens, hiking/work socks, outer cardigans and pullovers, and even shawls. These are work horse wools in a very wide range of colors. You'll find at least one line of B&L wools at most Canadian yarn shops; I can buy their Heritage line (Aran weight) at my closer lys, and I order Sport regularly from either Wool Trends (mentioned above) or Fia Fia (mentioned in my last post). I love them for their wooliness, price point, and durability, and you'll notice several of my patterns' samples have been knit with B&L wools.

Leaving Atlantic Canada for a moment, I bring you to Sweet Paprika Designs🔗 (link to their website) based in beautiful Montreal, Quebec. Hand-dyed yarns, patterns, kits, plus tools and notions, books, etc, they have it all! If you're familiar with the Fasten Off Yarn A Long, Debbie and Elizabeth Sullivan, the sister duo behind Sweet Paprika, have been participating designers for several years. Debbie's Eadgyth (ie Edith in Saxon times) shrug is very high on my must-make list *heart eyes*

Ok, fiber friends, I think that about does it for today! I hope you're beating the heat or keeping warm depending where you are in the world, and that your projects are going well. Are you working on small light things, big keep-you-warm-while-you-work things or coming up the middle? I'd love to hear about them!

Yours in yarn, and the annoyance that is a mosquito buzzing your ear every 30 seconds,

Síle

A Bit of a Time

This past few months has been a bit of an emotional, and physical, roller coaster if I'm being honest. 

And that's held up some projects and changed the scope of others. So let's dive into what's on my needles and where it's all going, shall we?

When last I posted, I had finished a double-knit earwarmer, and was pondering and planning a few others to have a bit of a series exploring and/or refreshing aspects of double-knitting with the added techniques of increases and decreases. The first one is pretty basic if you've done any double-knitting. The increases and decreases are the only "spicy" bit, and only if you haven't knit a shaped shawl like those from Tania of Epic Knits/Knit 1 Roll 20 or Lisa of Nifty Knitter Designs. It's a very approachable little project.

To go with that, I started playing around with some tweaks to the concept, keeping the basic shaping. This led me to a 3 color design, and a 2 pattern design for earwarmers 2 and 3. A slight jump in skills but still very approachable, and I think a natural progression from basic double-knitting to slightly more flashy looking projects. I plan on knitting those up pretty soon. And then I thought the natural place to go was cables with a touch of texture. Again, building on what you've already learned and/or refreshed from the first 3. 

And then my brain got involved.

Fiber friends, I'd be lying if I said sometimes my brain isn't my biggest nemesis. 

Because of course I couldn't just stick to front crossing cables on the same colored background. Noooo, not me. I had to switch colors and have alternating panels both color wise (which would've been more than enough. An excellent middle ground), and cable twist direction. 

I bit off much more than I originally envisioned. Here's the supposed earwarmer 4 in progress. It's not quite halfway knit:

So! Upon reflection this is now earwarmer 5 lol And I need to scale back a bit for a properly placed 4 with not quite the time and contortion commitment. I'm pausing this one briefly just to catch my breath. I really went headlong at it with no real plot. Sometimes looking before I leap, even in knitting, is a much better idea.

What else have I been up to? I got the idea, made a plan and am nearly halfway through a 3 color shawl lol! 

This one's one of those back burner ideas that finally just clicked and I was off to the races. And it timed well with GST checks to get the yarn and extra long circular needle ordered (Plus one for Cherish the Ladies which I'll be re-diving into soon... ish)

I'm using Briggs & Little Sport (ordered from Halifax's Fia Fia🔗; link goes to their website. Canadian wool bought from a Canadian, and Atlantic Canadian too!, shop), and chose Fern green, Mauve, and Magenta for my sample colors. Wanna see?

The photo is a bit older now because I have roughly half of the second openwork done; it's in the Magenta. That will be followed up with another slipped stitch section, a section of Fern openwork, a final slipped stitch section, and then the bottom border with garter stitch, slipped stitches, and beads along with a picot edge. 

Talk about bringing some drama!

This is my Three Hand Reel design. 3 Hands, reels or jigs, are choreographed dances often combining elements from solos and céilís. My favorite was the one created by The Dance Brain, aka my 2 dance besties (S &H) and me. The colors are reminiscent of each of us too. And fittingly it'll end with a bit of added pizazz and sparkle, just like any good performance piece. A little nod to my dance days, and the friends who were on the ride with me. Good times!

This seems like as good a place as any to mention that I can no longer leave the house without my cane. Walking even a km has become really difficult. I still do it; I gotta get groceries and check the mail after all. And just het out of the house in general. But I've really been struggling with this downturn in my mobility. Not a fun time, fiber friends. I'm hurting pretty badly after an ill-advised "I need to get out!!!!" "moment" yesterday. I did get to capture this though:

This isn't far from my house. Maybe 5-10 minutes of a walk down to the water for someone walking a normal non-dragging speed. I think it took me just shy of 40 minutes to get there yesterday. sigh

Ah, my Rock in the ocean. There's something strangely soothing about a moody ocean. It was what I needed yesterday, even if I'm hurting extra today. Seems like that's a constant trade off lately.

Back to the good stuff!

I knit this little shawl mock up to try out another of my back burner ideas. It's not quite what I have in mind but it's close and it makes an adorable wrap for my little bear friend. She's quickly becoming my mini model for little one off's:

She's quite adventurous, climbing the trees in my backyard. 

I still haven't knit the sleeves for my Jeri🔗 (link to The Wayward Knitter Payhip shop) cardigan lol. The weather has warmed up and my cozy cardigan, though not forgotten, has been decidedly neglected. My hands want lighter yarns right now; the shawl is fingering/sport weight, and the earwarmer is DK. 

It's the first day of summer! What are your crafting plans as the weather heats up? I've been looking at my pattern collection, and I have to be honest I'm tempted to embrace my oft-suppressed inner mermaid.

Inner mermaid? While chatting with a friend about aesthetics, she asked me what I thought her vibe was, and I immediately said she's largely a Hobbit with a bit of an edge. She laughed and said that was fair given that to her I'm a Lisa Frank mermaid with a glitter problem. She's not wrong, fiber friends! Gimme the bright colors with a decided leaning to the cooler tones and if I can incorporate sparkle/bling or otherwise unexpected bits, yeah I'll do it. 

What does that look like? Picture the above palette on this gorgeous skirt Folly Skirt by Espace Tricot (sorry gang, I'm not finding their individual patterns listed on their website, https://www.espacetricot.ca🔗

Or this crocheted skirt (appropriately) called the Mermaid Skirt🔗 (link goes to designer's Etsy shop)

My mum would probably describe the vibe as "hippy dippy". I prefer mermaid comfort. I think a long skirt to go with my existing and in progress shawls comes first and then I can start exploring patterns for tank tops and other sleeveless tops. I have lots of shawls and cardigans to toss on when things are chilly.

Ok! I think that's it for today. I'll pop all my links in and get this up for your reading and viewing pleasure. Speaking of viewing: did you like my little video clip? Should I add those when I have them? I promise not to give any spoken commentary; no one needs to hear a cartoon character chattering in a nature clip lol

Yours in yarn, and not enough consideration for physical pain,

Síle

Once More Around the Sun

Goodness! It's been a minute or two, hasn't it?

A quick run down of what's been going on around here:

• I had a birthday in mid-February. Adding the digits together I'm once again 11 or 2 if you go all the way to a single digit. Either way I should be feeling much more youthful than I am currently lol 
• I finished the Folklore Cardigan (pattern by Amy Gundersen🔗; link to the MadeleineTosh website pattern page) for Roomie and I think it turned out pretty well 

So that's really the two major things. The weather is trying to decide if it's winter, or spring, or maybe sprinter. That's been fun to navigate. Like not leaving the house for 8 days at a go kind of navigate. Ah well, better safe than in traction.

Speaking of, I should be in a body cast. Or wrapped in bubble wrap. I seem to have sprained or at least reeeeaaallly strained my back. Yesterday. Fiber friends, I would be lying if I said I'm not badly hurting right now. Movement is very gingerly when it happens. Of course this brings out the crack medical team of Drs Jakey and Silver. Dr Jakey is an expert in patient care, while Dr Silver has done very indepth research of healing vibrations. This photo shows Dr Jakey checking to be sure I was resting properly this afternoon:

Dr Jakey takes a very paws on approach with his patients. Needless to say, I'm strictly under my doctor's orders ;)

Onto KDRD news:

I designed and knit the sample for something quick! And there will be more of them!

So a few years ago I knit what you'll find on the interwebs called various things like skating bonnet or cap, headband, earwarmer, etc. And it's something I use frequently in the colder months because it allows me to keep my ubiquitous ponytail, and still cover my ears. The one I knit originally has ties on it, and here's a photo:

It used bulky yarn and equally thick needles, which I confess aren't my favorites. That end of the yarn and needle spectrum tends to make my hands ache. Thankfully it was quick to do. And it's been a wonderful addition to my winter gear.

A few weeks ago we had a bunch of days with wind warnings, and I started thinking it would be nice to have another earwarmer. And with my love double-knitting I thought I could make something thicker than usual without having to resort to thick yarns and needles. 

And me being me, after I charted one idea I had a couple others pop into my head, and eventually I had 4 just awaiting needles and yarn. So this is the first one:

I used DK weight yarn I had onhand and a 3.25mm needle. It used about 140 yards/128 metres in two colors; a little more of the blue than the gray because I did both ties in blue.

Ok, so this one (which is called Sevens) is basic 2 color double-knitting with the addition of paired make 1 increases on one end and paired decreases on the other. That's the trickiest part of this one if you're already familiar with double-knitting.

As I said I have 3 more of these planned. One that adds a third color into the fun, one that has different designs on each side, and one with simple cables and a bit of texture.

I plan to release all 4 together as an ebook September-esque. That's what I'm aiming for anyway. Sometime before the Fasten Off Yarn-a-Long comes back around anyway ;) 

And in other design news, I started the swatch for my 4 color double-knit wrap. I need a ballpark number of yards so I can budget and acquire the yarn needed for it. There's also a "sister" design that's a 3 color 2 pattern wrap of similar size. They're both big. Like completely envelope an adult big. I'm so looking forward to these getting on the go!

That's the current goings on at KDRD :)

Shall we check in with my personal projects? Indeed we shall!

I'm back working on my Jeri (designed by Kat Riddell🔗; link to pattern page in her Payhip shop) again, and it's growing. I'm about 6 inches/15cm from where I split out the sleeves (topdown, non-raglan construction). For my size I need to reach 14 inches/35.5cm according to the pattern, which might be a touch short but thankfully I can try it on at that point and see. I think I'll need another inch but I'll see then. Here's a look at how my Jeri is coming along; keep in mind it's being worked topdown:

In other crafts, I've got a new cross stitch design charted out that I hope to be sharing with you as I make progress. I took the poem Pangur Bán, or more correctly the 1912 translation by R. Flower, and created quite a piece. I'm going to need to stitch it on 28 count Aida, or it's going to cover the wall. Well, maybe 18 count; definitely not 14 lol  

That's all I have current in my personal crafting. I have a stack of WIPs but I think I'll save a run down of those for another day. Be warned: there are a lot lol. I'm talking double digits. It's a lot.

Moving on!

As I'm sure many of you are aware, there's some... how to put this?... concerning talk coming from the leader of the country below mine. (For those who're new here, welcome. I live in the beautiful province of Newfoundland & Labrador, specifically on the island of Newfoundland, here on Canada's most eastern coast. And I'm Canadian by birth and inclination) And that talk is causing a lot of unease, and frankly distrust, of that individual, leading to all kinds of trade and other issues between two, up until this point, closely allied countries. A lot of us up here, myself included, have family and friends down there, and of course the reverse is true. There's been, up until now, a sense of cooperation and camaraderie between the two nations. 

I'm not here to be political, fiber friends, but life itself is political. I live in Canada's youngest province; Newfoundland & Labrador joined Canada in 1949 as the 10th province. Yet there are rumblings that the entirety of Canada, all 10 provinces and 3 territories should, and ludicrously should be happy at the suggestion, become the 51st state of the United States of America.

As we say here on The Rock: no b'y. 

There's a lot going on. Canadians are focusing on buying non-USA goods. Some are cancelling vacations to Florida and other destinations States-side in favor of visiting another province here or going further a field to Mexico, the Caribbean or Europe.

I've really thought about what this all means for my very small business (one woman with chronic pain and insomnia), and beyond. As it stands, I'm continuing to support designers who I know via the internet. As for yarn, I already work with a predominantly Canadian group of yarns just from a financial accessibility standpoint. My current habits seem to already be in line with my conscious. 

As part of my own contributions to small Canadian businesses, I'm going to start highlighting one or two each post. I had been toying with this idea since late last year but now it seems particularly important. Most of these will be designers and yarn dyers; links will be to their own sites or social media accounts. Without further ado, I bring you the first of my Spotlights.

SPOTLIGHT

Beaded Beauties Bracelets And More 

Located in Clarenville, Newfoundland & Labrador, this one woman business run by Krista does just what it says. Fully personalized and customizable, she creates bracelet collections for holidays and bands lyrics, as well as necklaces, keychains, and occasionally earrings. I'm currently sporting a set of 4 players from my favorite hockey team (And with the game being over 10 minutes in: Go Habs Go!) made by her.

You can get an idea of Krista's lovely work in the marked highlight on her Instagram account🔗  (Full disclosure: Krista is better known to readers of this blog as "Roomie".)

Knitjbeale Designs

A transplant to St. John's, Newfoundland & Labrador from Canada's West Coast, Jennifer Beale designs breathtaking sweaters and shawls often using stranded colorwork along with lace and/or cables. Truly a feast for knitters wanting something beyond the usual. I have several of her patterns on my must-make list including this recently released gem of an open-front cardigan, Fort Amhurst:

I wasn't kidding when I said breathtaking, was I? You can find this beauty, and many more, on her website: www.knitjbealedesigns.com🔗

Whew! That was a marathon post but I'm done roughly 20 minutes into the hockey game. Enough time to grab links to the various websites, and alt-captions for the photos during intermission! Lol :)

Thanks for sticking with me today, fiber friends! What's on your needles and hooks today? Did you know the most recent issue of Knitty🔗 came out yesterday? Just in time for a new project maybe ;)

Yours in yarn, pain, caffeine, and late night hockey watching (my guys are in Seattle tonight),

Síle

How is it Monday?

More to the point: how is it February?? 2025 is just rolling along even as the world becomes more of a dumpster fire.

Gather with your communities, fiber friends. Whether online or in-person, support each other, hold each other up with love and kindness. And when you've got the energy, however you're able to, be the change you want to see in this world.

I'm going to leave that as it is, for now. I'm still collecting my thoughts, and ordering my words on what's going on with our once-respectable southern neighbour. I will say this though, in true Newfoundland fashion, "Thank god we're surrounded by water!" while still holding as many of you as I can in my heart. 

So beyond the collapse of civility between nations, I managed some pattern work this week. Charts are nearly complete for four, yes, 4!, new designs, and basic pattern writing has begun on them. I plan for these to be a literal ebook: 4 patterns of similar items in one pdf... well 2 really because there will be a "standard" one with both charted and written instructions, and a second presented with low vision accessibility in mind (24pt sans serif font, emphasis shown with bold type instead of italics, minimal abbreviations to be clear with screen reader technology, etc). These four designs cover a number of double-knitting techniques, which I thought was a fun idea. These are quick to knit accessories too so just right to learn/try a little something while still being useful.

On the personal project front, I have 3 diamonds of length knit on Sleeve 2 of Roomie's cardigan now. And I put some rows into the birthday surprise gift too; O! I finally finished the chart for that. Whew! That was a bit of a marathon truth be told. When I reveal it that will make much more sense. I didn't get a start on Clue 2 of Common Thread's Keep It Secret Keep It Safe mkal unfortunately. My hands seemed drawn to DK weight yarns this week ;) I'm using Paton's Astra for both the cardigan and the birthday surprise (It's Roomie, they need to be able to safely go in the washer and dryer), again purchased locally. Top of the hill and around the corner in fact. Very handy.

What's on your needles and hooks, fiber friends? Any FOs (finished objects) from January? 

Yours in yarn and varying degrees of fogged brain,

Síle

Hello!

And welcome to the Stitches & Steps blog :)

I noticed that there've been a lot of new fiber friends checking in here lately, and I thought a little intro post might be timely.

So first off, I'm Síle (pronounced she-la), and the Stitches & Steps blog is where I share all my latest news and chatter on my pattern designs (Knit Dance Repeat Designs aka where the site gets its name), personal crafting projects (heavy on knitting but occasional cross-stitch and crochet forays happen), Irish dance news and inspiration, and the occasional blip about my physical health.

Across the top, you'll also find tabs to: an index of my photo tutorial posts and helpful hints, a gallery with internal links to all of my pattern pages, and a glossary of Irish dance terms that have appeared in my pattern intro paragraphs plus a few from blogposts. (Aside: I'm always happy to add to the glossary, so if there's a term or word you're curious about, drop me a comment in the form in the sidebar, and I'll get it added to the glossary as soon as I can)

Along the sidebar I have links to other places to buy my patterns (Payhip and LoveCrafts), and links to other inspirational fiber folks that you might also enjoy. I try to include clearly marked links to any patterns and/or designers I discuss in my personal projects, and tag them in the post. If I've forgotten a link, don't hesitate to let me know! :) It's always my intention to have links but my brain fog sometimes distracts me before I can hit publish on a post.

So that's a wide net overview of the site :)

Why Knit Dance Repeat? To be honest, I fell into it! I was designing a few little things here and there, and writing them up since 2009. Anchors & Ropes was published on my then-blog I think in December of 2009. Could've been November. Anyway! I wanted to design more. I enjoyed it and it was a great creative outlet from my series of retail and customer service jobs; I've been assistant manager of a dollar store, worked at Walmart as both floor staff and a cashier, worked the drive through of a coffee place, etc...

Then I got hurt, and I was home, in a lot of pain, with only books and my yarn hoard to keep me occupied. Thankfully I had my Roomie for company and awesome support, but even the absolute bestest friends can't fill a void in your own head left by suddenly not having a purpose. 

To say I went through some things in the summer of 2015 is an understatement.

But what did happen was I literally dreamed a pattern coming together. I sat bolt up in bed at like 3:30 in the morning, scribbled down the idea, and went back to sleep. When I woke up later that day I looked at the back of that envelope, and discovered what I'd done.

I had used the math of the music of a reel to outline a cowl. Who does that?! Apparently me lol The thing is, it was solid. The idea was completely knitable. I think I cast-on that afternoon.

But that also got my mind firing. If I could use the time signature of a reel (4/4 for those not familiar traditional Irish music) to come up with a cowl pattern, could I use a similar process to design something for a light jig?

I'll spare you the whole journey, but the answer was yes for the light jig, single jig, slip jig, treble reel, treble jig, and hornpipe.

And that blending/melding/mixing of knitting and Irish dance/music brought to mind what I used to do. I knit, I danced, and then I repeated it over the course of my week. Heck, I often knit while at dance! In the down room before class, and even backstage during rehearsals for performances. A few times backstage during performances to help with nerves if I'm being completely honest lol. Even when my feet weren't dancing, my fingers often were! 

The blending of the two worlds also helped me keep my place in dance when we (my dr and I) weren't sure exactly where this was going to lead. Irish dance was a huge component of my life. Many of my absolute dearest friends came into my life because we met at the studio. The music always spoke to me from the time I was a little girl. The steps always felt like they were meant to be mine...

Ok, not trebles; those never felt exactly right lol I'm a slip jig not a treble reel! Thank you for that line, Bernie!! :)

Where was I??

Oh right! Irish dance and trad music were, and are, a big part of who I am. And at a time that was scary and uncertain, I needed that comfort and stability, even if I could hardly put one foot in front of the other to walk from my room to the bathroom. Especially because of it, really.

And my little niche has allowed me to play with knitting and Irish dance in ways I never imagined. And I continue to play with both in ever expanding ways. I have so many ideas!! 

One thing you'll notice is there's not a firm schedule for when new patterns come out here at KDRD. Where I do everything (with the exceptions of photography and tech editing; shout out to Krista and Heather for providing me with the best of both disciplines!), and from only my smartphone to boot, everything hinges on my pain levels, fog levels, and general "can I knit/write/edit/sit up today?". I do my best to be timely. I don't always succeed but I do try.

One other thing about me: I live on the island of Newfoundland off of Canada's most eastern coast, adrift in the north Atlantic Ocean. This place informs a lot of what I do knitting wise indirectly. And like any good solid Rock, it's given me a pretty steady base to work from. I'd be very remiss if I didn't mention my adopted home. And nothing set in stone but I have an idea or two that'll give my dear island some attention of its own amongst all the dancing and tunes.

So welcome! I hope you'll come back often and see what I'm up to. Comments and questions are always welcome either on a post/page or to the form in the sidebar. 

Ok, so no design news to share this week. I'm still a bit behind in my head from my overnight to Town midmonth to be honest. You wouldn't think an overnight would disrupt so much but here I am. 

In personal projects, I got the first sleeve of Roomie's cardi done. I'm knitting her a Folklore Cardigan by Amy Gundersen🔗 (link to the pattern's page on the MadelineTosh website) in classic cream and black. It's such a great classic cabled cardigan in DK weight; I'm using Patons Astra purchased from a local shop. 

And here's a pic of the sleeve:

I have 1 and a half diamonds done on the second one so it's moving again. I admittedly got a bit bogged down by it for a while because I've been working on it since October. But things are zipping along again, so yay!

The other piece I've put any time into is Nicole from Common Thread Fiber's Keep It Secret Keep It Safe Shawl mystery knit along aka mkal. I finished Clue 1! Clue 4 dropped today lol. Working behind as always lol. I'm using Briggs & Little Heritage which is a wonderfully woolly worsted/aran weight yarn. Canadian too, from our oldest woollen mill in the country. They're Atlantic Canadian neighbors too, being based in New Brunswick :) As I pointed out last post, this pattern is only available on Ravelry for the duration of the original knit along due to the need for sending weekly clue updates, and Common Thread's off-Rav location is on Ko-fi. I'll safe link as soon as I can!

So that's what's keeping my personal needles busy, and I've been doing a wee bit of pattern writing and charting for new designs but nothing I can share just now. Maybe next time I'll have something definitive for you.

I've written a novel this time! Whew! I hope you've had a favorite drink and/or snack to get you through today's post lol

What are you working on, fiber friends? A last minute warm hat or pair of mittens to help stave off the polar vortex that's gripped much of North America? Or are you thinking spring and summer, and have a lovely tee or tank on your needles or hook? I'd love to hear from you :)

As always, I remain

Yours in yarn and really long intros because it's either four words or a novel with me lol,

Síle

Well

I was going to announce winners in my anniversary word games yesterday. But with no entries, I don't have an announcement to make!

I hope the games were enjoyed even without entering. 

Wow, over halfway through January already!

I spent an overnight trip in Town this past week (went in Thursday morning, home again Friday afternoon) for a doctor's appointment. Unfortunately it was the worst weather day of the entire winter so far, especially when paired with taking the Metrobus around. Brr.

I did manage to get to Michael's and pick up some beads for Roomie that she asked if I could get there for. And I got a few colors of embroidery floss since I'd like to explore cross-stitching again. Cross-stitch and plastic canvas needlepoint are where my crafting journey began when I was 6, so a little return to roots exploration happening. I have a sampler I need to finish that I started in 2020 (self designed), and would like to stitch some smaller bits just to change up my creativity a bit.

Sadly I was in too much pain, and didn't feel up to fighting the wind, to make it to Chapters. I did wander the Coles in the Av for a bit but oddly no books found their way home with me. Any I saw that were interesting were ones I either already have or read via the Libby app/NLPL and don't need to own. 

Oh, and I indulged in something I never order out here simply because of my history with the business. I went to the Timmies in the Av and had a large white hot chocolate with 2 cream and an Earl Grey tea bag. Yum. Haven't had that in ages. It's similar to a London Fog but thicker/creamier, which appeals to me. I need to try the microwave jar method of frothing milk and see if I can make a semi-decent London Fog at home. Lots of anti-inflammatory properties in Earl Grey that would be beneficial to me if I got in the habit of one a day. It's sodium I need to cut out not anything else ;)

The anniversary celebration is over so what's next for Knit Dance Repeat Designs, you may be asking. Good question! I'm really hoping to have a pattern release announcement soon. Hand sewing and back spasms aren't really conducive to one another so I'm afraid I can't be more specific than that. I don't like not being able to give hard deadlines but these are the cards I hold, fiber friends.

I'm trying to finish up Roomie's cardigan before I start the swatches for my next two large samples. These are a pair of double-knit wraps; sister designs, really. One is 3 color double-knitting, the other is 4 colors. I need to swatch for usage so I can estimate the yardage I need to acquire to knit the samples. So much math! So much yarn!

The other thing about these swatches is they'll be perfect for getting the photos for my beginning double-knitting tutorial that I've been putting together. This tutorial will include all kinds of tips and tricks to help knitters on their double-knitting journey. The things I learned the hard way lol. Much of it is my preferences though; I've tried to be clear on that, and include links to other methods that may suit you better too. I'm nearly done writing it, then photos need adding before I hit publish. I'll let you know before it comes out. I'm aiming for late spring, May-ish, for it to be ready, but that's a moving target for now.

Alright! That's my catch up this week. What's on your needles and/or hooks, fiber friends? Anything new? In my personal projects alongside Roomie's cardigan, I'm working on clue 1 of the Common Thread's Keep It Secret Keep It Safe (KISKIS) mkal. Clue 3 came out yesterday lol :) While the mkal is going on, it's only available on R@v due to sending out updates; Ko-fi isn't set up with functionality for them but Nicole has mentioned releasing the finished pattern in her Ko-fi shop when it's complete. You might be interested if you like large worsted weight shawls full of yummy textures inspired by Middle Earth and Tolkien. Common Thread's Ko-fi shop, and all of their existing patterns, can be found here: Common Thread Ko-fi Shop🔗

This time I really am done! lol

Yours in yarn and semiorganized chaos,

Síle