t a z h i

I was lucky enough to test the new and improved #semperslipver by @the_knit_purl_girl and I love my finished object. It’s everything you want in a slipover - well fitting, easy to construct and has the polished finishes we’ve come to love and associate with Sophie’s work. I’ve worn mine nonstop since I finished it and already have yarn for a v neck version. Details - I made the size H for 3” of positive ease and knit this according to pattern with zero modifications. I used @purlsoho Echo Wool in Poseidon Green which is a new, recycled yarn from the company that I would 100% work with again. It was really interesting to knit with and while I found it a bit splitty at times, the woolen spun nature and bounciness of the yarn made this a great project to work on. Before blocking, it was sort of nubby from the recycled texture but after, it was super smooth and even and it’s lightweight and easy to wear. Highly recommend giving it a look if you haven’t yet! Thanks so much for having me, Sophie!

Sharing ten photos of April because I always want this feed to be more than a parade of finished objects and I always forget that’s a thing I want to do here. Some of these are finished objects already, some are still deep in the wip stage and some are ideas I’ve been throwing around and together, it’s a peek at all the ways making has shown up for me this month. Still trying to find my footing as the seasons change, still stringing my life together with wool and all the ways it pops up in my life. 1. Cosmopolitan shawl by @toriknitsnyc in handspun on the armchair in my Nashville hotel room. 2. A bit of Jineen’s lamb fleece from 2022 because @frankopotamus has her current shearing and I love the kismet of working a fleece that’s the same but different. 3. Avenue tank test in @purlsoho Santolina. 4. Ogee socks in @longdogyarn Bare Necessities. 5. JAT Dark Star on my Daedalus Dove. 6. Pieces of my Oxbow tote the night before sewing. Spoiler alert, it went with me to Nashville and is the perfect travel companion. 7 and 8. Pouches I made for @schknits and @_procraftinator_ and the lunch we shared in the sunshine before the cold chased us inside. 9. A pile of spring fabric for all the button downs from @brooklyngeneralstore . 10. My Cosmopolitan tee that I’ve worn almost daily since it hopped off my needles. It is, as I hoped it would be, already a classic. Happy green season, yall.

Happy release day to the Cosmopolitan Tee and Shawl! This has been cooking for some time and it was worth every second - the resulting patterns are the elevated basics we’ve come to love from Tori’s work. Knit Details - I made size 4 for a touch of positive ease in Hudson and West Weld for a more structured take on this tee and my god, it is incredible how much time goes into a fingering weight garment. I chose black for this because I wanted something I was going to live in and I am over the moon with the resulting garment. I knit this according to pattern with zero modifications and as always, Tori writes a very easy to follow pattern that fits well. Simultaneous set in sleeves just work on my frame and I’m so glad I tested this. It’s a 10/10 fit with zero notes straight out the packet. My shawl is handspun Romney from a pat of fleece that was grown by Godiva at @oakcreeksheep before being shared with me by @berleywool in a fiber swap some time ago. I knew that this skein of yarn was destined for a next to skin neck thing and this was a perfect pairing. Woolen spun yarns aren’t always what folks think about when you think for lace, especially yarn like this with considerable halo, but I think the hazy nature of this softens the lace into a dreamscape of texture while the two plies oppose each other enough to still make it legible. This was a quick and soothing knit and I would make this again in a heartbeat. Thanks so much for letting me test, @toriknitsnyc !

Y’all, this bag sewing thing is really a vibe and I am so glad @knitandgrace gave me the push to give it a go. I needed an overnight bag for Nashville this weekend and rather than buying a new one, I opted to give making one a go and it was such a fun and rewarding project. This is the #oxbowtote by @noodlehead531 in the overnight size and it took me two nights to make this between cutting and sewing. Like my last project with Anna’s patterns, the instructions here were very clear, easy to follow and yielded a bag that I’m a little bit impressed with, ngl. It fit under the seat on my flight over and I could easily see myself making this again in the smaller size and the mini version I’ve seen people hack from this pattern. Tech specs - I made this using waxed canvas sourced from @bigduckcanvas and quilting cotton sourced from @brooklyngeneralstore . This was my first time sewing with waxed canvas and it was a DREAM. The fabric wasn’t shifty, it was nice to not have to press and interface everything and the fabric is sturdy and holds its shape well. I made a few small modifications to this, namely adding a trolley sleeve to the back of the bag so it sits on my rolling luggage and an inset zipper pocket in the lining for more storage. I used Anna’s instructions from the Plover pattern to do so and it’s still such a cool feature to whip out and put together. All zippers, pulls, and bag hardware including the d rings and the slides are from @wawaksewing and the webbing is cotton from Amazon. I loved how the pattern of the webbing looks agains the floral of the cotton and I still can’t believe this is a thing I made with my hands. Bag making continues to satisfy.

Come and meet Tazhi at Yarncentrick on May 1! Where to find them... 🧶 Meet and Greet: Yarn Jam booth from 9-11am. 🐑 Spinning Demo: Stage area from 12-1pm If you watch Tazhi's You Tube Channel (@stitchesandstarlight ) you know their love of all fiber related things! Come chat and shop with Tazhi at the Yarn Jam booth from 9-11! They will also be giving a spinning demo on the Yarncentrick stage from 12-1pm! Tazhi will be demonstrating both worsted and woolen spinning techniques. Come with your questions and enjoy learning with this "rad human".

I was lucky enough to grab an hour in the sunshine with zero obligations, a lovely pup by my side and a few rows on my Cosmopolitan tee test and I thought I would take you along with me for a couple of seconds, and invite you to do the same if life and space allows. This is a tee I’m testing for @toriknitsnyc and I’m working it in (sadly) discontinued Hudson and West Weld in the color Raven for the perfect chic summer staple. My tee lives in my @redesigned_project 39 in the Dark Cherry color and having a project bag with straps that looks this polished and elevated has made it that much easier to always have a project with me as I’m moving through the day. My @dreareneeknits #travelercowl was the perfect layer to sit outside in while I squeezed in a chapter of Water Moon, listened to too much Hozier, gave the dog too many scritches, and spent a minute taking a breath before closing the bag and getting back to the next thing. With life being what it is these days, moments like this to press pause and just be are becoming more vital by the day and I am so grateful for this pocket of quiet in the middle of all the noise.

Y’all, bag making is so stinking satisfying and I don’t know why it took me so long. This is a (not great, let’s be honest) #sandhillsling by @noodlehead531 and I’ve carried it every day since I finished it last week. It’s the perfect everyday bag size for me and as someone who walks to and from work, having a bag that’s hands free is just what I needed. I can fit a water bottle, my kindle and a sock project in it with a bit of room to spare and I love the pop the patterned fabric adds to an otherwise neutral bag. I learned so many techniques on this bag and will be practicing them until they’re less scary and hopefully a bit more second nature - I’m looking at you, drop in lining. My curves are all over the place and my gusset needs help - all wobbles and wonky seams are operator error to be sure, this is an excellent pattern - but I’m really pleased with that zipper install and the tidiness of my top stitching on the shoulder strap attachment so calling the overall project a mixed bag (ha! a pun). I already have a second cut out in waxed canvas so it’ll be interesting to see how a heavier and studier fabric holds up to the shape of this bag and how well my machine handles it. Tech specs - bag is made on my Juki DX5 from Essex canvas and Sevenberry cotton linen canvas for the bag front lined with quilting cotton with 1.5” webbing for the straps, all purchased from @brooklyngeneralstore . At 6oz, they’re a bit light for this project but I didn’t want to add wrangling heavy fabric to the mix of my first proper bag and it works! Next time, I might try a heavier interfacing if using a fabric this lightweight. So much to try and experiment with on future projects!

Happy release day to @threadandsprout #tssoftarmor! I worked on this piece little by little over the last three weeks and it was a delightful place to rest and press pause after longer work days and grim nights. Details: I am wearing a size L with 2” of positive ease with 1” added to accommodate my longer torso than the pattern is drafted for. I pieced a plus quilt top using a variety of quilting cotton fat quarters from my stash and then made a log cabin panel for my hood from scraps I had from previous projects before backing all of the panels with batting and Robert Kaufman Essex and quilting it at 1” intervals. My lines aren’t at all straight but this was my first time using my walking foot and I really enjoyed how much easier it made the process. Once the patchwork was finished, the assembly was smooth sailing and I opted to use a mish mash of fabric for my bias binding to lean into the color play aspect of the overall piece. The vibe for this project (and the photos) was whimsy - god knows we could all use some - but in the words of the designer of this incredible choose your own adventure, the world needs your whimsy and your rage and hopefully a slower make like this serves as a home for both.

Happy release day to @skeinnydippin and the #winterbirchbeanie! I’ve been having the most fun knitting hats this winter and this is a welcome addition to my rotating cast of beanies and brimmed hats. Details: I knit my hat from handspun from a @helloyarn patchwork kit and @northbayfiber BayHouse DK in Pumpkinseed on US5 needles which is the needle size recommended in the pattern. This is a DK weight pattern so I held handspun double for the hat and lost my game of yarn chicken right at the end! I knit 4.5 repeats and this fits like a dream. The Targhee yarn is extra squishy in this brioche fabric and the syncopating stripes were a new technique for me and were a lot of fun to knit. It’s always a treat testing for Alex - the pattern was well written with a chart and line by line instructions and was easy to follow (few mistakes in my hat are my fault - one of these days, I will learn to fix brioche 🫠🫠). Highly recommend it to brioche knitters, new and experienced!

As promised, here are samples and a swatch of Starlit Forge on the grey Shaniko base for you! I always like to spin a chain plied yarn and a fractal style barber pole yarn when I’m trying to assess and show off the colors in a hand painted braid. The chain plied mini skein keeps the colors separate and discrete and lets you see all the places where the dyes break and overlap - those are my favorite places, that’s where the magic happens - while the barber pole skein gives you an idea of how those colors might mix and match as they share space with each other on the same yarn. I then took my fractal skein and knit a stockinette swatch which really lets this colorway shine - the gold and orange tones of the forge almost glow as it cycles through the purple, berry and green shades partnered with it and the overall effect is warm and vibrant and eye catching without being aggressively so. This is how I’ll be spinning my sweater yarn. My plan is to make the Weekender Crew by @dreareneeknits and my initial swatch is right on gauge. Post washing stats had me at a grist of 1360 YPP and a WPI of 14 which would mean I was ready to start spinning my project yarn if I took any notes on these samples and wasn’t spinning these for play and for color. All that means is I’ll be going back to the drawing board and doing a proper sampling process with all the note taking involved before embarking on my sweater spin but with fiber this pretty, it’s no hardship to start at the beginning. Thank you again to @yarnjam for inviting me and allowing me to create alongside you and such talented makers for this collection. Preorder opens today if you want to snag some Starlit Forge for yourself and if you haven’t already, be sure to pop on over to my fellow makers to see what they dreamed up. Spoiler alert, it’s all so good. Other colorways coming from: Emily @thebotanicalknitter Rachel and Renee @tabletenpodcast Mia @knitandgrace #handspunhabit #handspinnersofinstagram #yarnjam

I’ve been keeping a secret and it’s finally time to share what I’ve been working on behind the scenes for a few months. Meet Starlit Forge - my custom colorway created in partnership with Trisha of Yarn Jam for her second podcasters’ collection! With a vibrant, jeweled tone palette (and of course some mustard laying next to purple, iykyk), Starlit Forge was meant to evoke a sumptuous, almost baroque workspace complete with leather journals, fine crafting tools, crystal lined candlesticks, and a fire burning in the hearth - a place where you could retreat and listen to the star song while you worked on what fills your cup. It was intended to be decadent and lush (and just a touch over the top) and Trisha nailed the inspiration better than I could have hoped. I’ll have samples and swatches during this week’s Pedal Party so come back to the channel then if you want to see more and hear me chat about the inspiration for this colorway! Thank you again to @yarnjam for inviting me and allowing me to create alongside you and such talented makers for this collection. It’s been an absolute treat. Other colorways coming from: Emily @thebotanicalknitter Rachel @rachelattableten Renee @reneeattableten Mia @knitandgrace #handspinners #handspinnersofinstagram

This sweater feels like a hug. I’ve had this yarn in stash for some time, sitting on the shelf waiting for the right project to come along. It was a touch dense with a tighter twist angle than I would spin these days and after swatching in lace and texture and cables, I decided it needed to be paired with stockinette in the right gauge if I had any hope of making something the yarn would shine in. So it sat, and it waited and I forgot about it until @aliciaplums released The Wintering and I just knew that this was the perfect backdrop for another dance with Marge. Details - I knit a size 4 in this pattern with no modifications besides a slight different decrease rate in my sleeves yielding a wider cuff than Alicia’s sample. I knit my version using handspun from Large Marge - a CVM x Cotswold x Rambouillet ewe raised at @nistock_farms - and @knittingforolive Soft Silk Mohair in Dark Moose on US 9 for the body and 10 for the sleeves and the 16 stitch gauge was a solid pairing for this yarn. I paired my sweater with my #cityscapemitts by @toriknitsnyc which I worked up in @bichesetbuches Le Petit Lambswool held double with @isageryarn Alpaca 1 - they are covered in cat hair like everything else is in my life and I’ve given up on fighting that losing battle. This pullover is warm, comfortable and just interesting enough with the rolled details at the neck, cuff and hem to separate it from other sweaters and I love the narrower shoulder drop in this, so much so that I’ll be looking for that feature in other sweater patterns going forward. Marge’s fleece arrived at my doorstep in February 2022 and here we are in February 2026 and it’s a forever sweater. Just goes to show that sometimes good things take time and the really special things are worth the wait. Cheers to patience and to letting life surprise you and to honoring the timeline of the universe - love when a project pops up in my life and reminds me (and my heart) of all the things I know to be true but have forgotten in the hustle of life these days. This craft continues to be a light and a gift. #handspunsweater #knittersofinstagram #knitting