HRYC

 Adding to the list of ridiculous things I have knit....the Viking hat!

I actually made this late last year, and keep meaning to sew on the horns. For some reason the horns represent a massive mental barrier for me and I just can't bring myself to do it. They are knit up, but i'm not all that happy with them. With or without horns, it's pretty fun.

When you work with yarn for a living, it can be hard to remember to have fun with it. All knitting projects don't have to take themselves seriously, they don't need to functional or practical. It's certainly something that I need to remember more often. As the kind of person who doesn't understand why you would plant something you can't eat, i'm often guilty of only knitting things that will keep me warm. Enjoy what you are making! Have a bit of fun, laugh about how you made something ridiculous, and best of all, use up some of the random bits in your stash. 

The pattern is The Viking Helmet by Holly Priestly. I used a bunch of random odds and ends - and Cascade 220 for the beard. 

Amendment: no knit row between decrease rows on the main hat - it was just a bit too pointy at the top with the knit rows in between.

A long running issue with men getting into knitting has been patterns. There is a long history of men being the recipients of knitted gifts that are somewhat....ill-conceived. Said gifts are often fussy, with too many details or the wrong colour choice. Scratchy yarn is a big turn-off, as are impractical garments. There is a well-known 'sweater curse' that even has its own Wikipedia entry. 

Mike is going to be working off some his favourite patterns for the Man Made course, including some WWII standard issue patterns for knitting for the troops. Knitting for a man at war couldn't be fussy: it had to be simple, practical and highly functional. Function namely being warm. My idea of the perfect knitwear design is a harmony in simplicity. I find all too often that designers of both mens and womenswear have a tendency to add 'something else'. Something else usually being totally unnecessary and upsetting the balance of the underlying design. 

What i've learned over the years is that men don't want complicated design, they want to put on a jersey that keeps them warm. The jersey shouldn't tell the world very loudly that it is hand-knit; it should be functional garment that serves its purpose well. It comes down to: the simpler, the better. Here's my round-up of great man knits - with an attempt to include some of the best male knitwear designers around.

Turn a Square by Jared Flood

Brownstone by Jared Flood

Emilien by Ariane Caron-Lacoste

Seamless Saddle Shoulder Pullover by Elizabeth Zimmerman

Basic Pullover and Vest by Bruce Weinstein

(don't mind that this image shows a model wearing a sample two sizes too big for him)

This entire post could be a shrine to Jared Flood, but I've resisted that urge. Jared Flood, of Brooklyn Tweed, is an incredible design talent. I'd go so far as to say he is an knitwear architect - every one of his designs have strong foundations with the simplest and most balanced details. His success is well-earned, that's for sure. He now works with an esteemed group of designers and has his own yarn line. He's my man-knit hero.

There is still a pretty big gap in the men's knitwear pattern market, but it is slowly being filled. Unfortunately there are still a lot of hideous patterns being produced. My challenge to our new male knitters: design your own patterns. Knit what you want to wear. Let's start sending a clear message about the kind of knits that fit into your life. And wear them with pride.

Can you feel our fizzy fizzy excitement about this year's Handmade programme? It's pretty darn fantastic with some of our all-time favourite people teaching and talking. We'll be busy as bees running the Knit Lounge with our own little exciting things planned, but the aim of the game is to learn some stuff.

Here's a run down of our top yarn picks - of classes that haven't already sold out!

Twice the fun: two-handed stranded knitting

Taught by Morag McKenzie of Vintage Purls

Have you always wanted to get a handle on fair isle knitting using both hands? TAKE THIS CLASS. I cannot impress upon you enough what a fantastic teacher Morag is, and how much you will gain. It is not for the knitting novice, however: this is for experienced knitters.

Absolute Beginner's Crochet Necklace

Taught by Sofia Moers (our very own crochet class teacher!)

If you haven't the time to commit to our two-session set of beginner's crochet classes, give this one a go. Taught by our very own crochet teacher, Sofia, you will walk away knowing the crochet basics. Again, Sofia is an excellent teacher (there's a reason we keep asking her back) who will generously share her expertise with you. 

Ply on the Fly

Taught by Frances Stachl 

Fancy yourself a bit of alright with a drop spindle? Frances will teach how to ply as you go, rather than waiting until the very end of spinning all your fibre. If I had a spare couple of hours up my sleeve I would most certainly be getting along to this class. It's also wonderful that Frances can make it back to Wellington to teach for Handmade weekend now that she is no longer a local (which makes us very sad!)

You can find more information on all of these classes in the Handmade Yarn section of the programme. If you have any questions at all - such as if your skill level is right for a class - just ask us :)

We highly recommend you book as soon as you possibly can. Classes are selling out incredibly quickly this year and being disappointed is always sad. Last year we had occasion to make up this tasty morsel due to Morag's Twice the Fun class selling out:

Next up: our picks from all the rest of the programme!

While we're anxiously anticipating new stock (Ashford Tekapo and Malabrigo of all kinds!) I thought i'd take a moment to share a few snaps from my Easter weekend away. 

It isn't often I get the chance to escape to the family bach in Arthur's Pass - but it is always a joy to be there. Arthur's Pass is a village in the middle of the middle of the South Island, between Christchurch and Greymouth. It holds a lifetime of memories and lots of little crafty details. I find myself looking around and wondering if we should put in thermal backed curtains, or buy new frying pans. But the perfection that is the family bach is in its imperfection. Everything is worn, or old, or has been made to fulfill a purpose. Old fabrics will do for cushions, worn out cutlery is all you need for dinner here. 

It is a place where you don't need much, just some craft and a book and some good food. Grandma* made the crochet blankets (she says it's a good rest for hands when they're tired from knitting), and there's a spare Ashford Traveller wheel that I finally decided to make friends with. I can now say that I can spin on a wheel, one of those goals i've had for a long time but needed the quiet isolation to focus and get on with it.

How was your Easter weekend? Did you have any craft goals that you wanted to achieve? I hope it was restful and relaxing!

*yes, Grandma is Margaret Stove, but it feels a bit weird name-dropping when she is Grandma to me.