How To
A Year of Techniques: Steeks!
This is it. The joy of steeks—a fitting, wild conclusion to a brilliant year of learning new things. We’re at the grand finale, the culmination of A Year of Techniques.
In the MDK Shop
All I’m saying is: I wish I’d had an adorable baby pattern when I learned to cut a steek. And I sure wish I’d had Jen Arnall-Culliford talking to me along the way.
The project of the month is from the great colorwork designer (and MDK contributor!) Mary Jane Mucklestone. It’s called Oorik (Shetland dialect for “small person”), and it’s a perfect match of pattern and yarn.
Jen’s video tutorial, up top, will ease your mind. She goes through preparing the steek, cutting it, and even creating a crochet stabilizer if you’re really wanting a sense of security. As usual, she’s cool and calm. I’d like Jen to hang out at my house to talk me through pretty much anything.
How to Get in on Oorik
Get the pattern. If you already own a copy of A Year of Techniques, you’re set. If you need to obtain your copy, the print edition is available in the MDK Shop. (It includes a download code for the ebook edition.) The ebook-only edition, which includes all 12 patterns, and tutorials for the whole program, is available on Ravelry and from Arnall-Culliford Knitwear.
All the video tutorials for A Year of Techniques are here.
I’ll second that. I have enjoyed every bit of the year of techniques, even though I am steeling myself for steeks….but I know a beautiful baby boy who will look great in this so here goes!
You can do it! 🙂
How about A Decade of Techniques?
Hear, hear!
Amen!
Once you’ve cut a steek, there’s no looking back. You’ll want to steek everything. EVERYTHING.
Jen and Jim are interviewed on the new edition of the Fruity Knitting podcast. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Z7EIGHInwA
Fyi athe link for steeks goes to Fair Isle Dominance.
Thank you, Marilyn! Link-fixers get into Heaven a half hour early . . .
How wonderful to have a baby in mind for this!
Thanks, MDK & Jen. This has been a fantastic series & I’ve learned a lot. Jen’s a fantastic teacher – so clear in her explanations. Plus, I love her calm, reassuring, “see, it’s easy”, style! Thanks again.
I agree about Jen’s teaching style – she makes everything seem so quietly do-able.
My book and kit arrived yesterday! I’m looking forward to trying it, and it will be good to have a baby gift in reserve, just in case.
This is a really lovely vest and Jamieson’s is a really lovely yarn, but the idea of giving a toddler who will likely get it terrifically dirty within the first five minutes of wearing (I’m being generous) makes me think you hold a grudge against mothers of toddlers everywhere. Unless this stuff is superwash, it seems like more of a curse than a blessing to be honest.
Steeks have really terrified me, but somewhere in the middle of Jen’s video I started breathing normally. I’m going to try a swatch and then if all goes well give it a go. Thanks, Jen!
I have always wanted to find the courage to do a steek and use the “real deal” yarn for a fair isle project. Trying something new on a small scale seems the perfect solution. My daughter says she doesn’t mind hand washing such a handsome vest for her little boy! Can’t wait to get this project on my needles!
one question. If picking up the stitches for an armhole band where you generally want fewer stitches than you had rows of knitting do you pick up every stitch from the fabric and then decrease the first time ’round?
You make it look so easy. I am ready to try again