My Knits of Rhinebeck Weekend 2025

Every year, I always think I can stitch up a sweater in less than two weeks. This year was no different.

For Rhinebeck weekend, I stay in a house with a lovely group of knitters, and we all try to make the same sweater for Saturday. Accountability. Accouknitalitiy, if you will.

This year’s sweater pick was the Rumble Raglan by Lydia Morrow, a fingering weight yarn project. Cue the scary music.

This year, I was underprepared and began my sweater in the beginning of October. I didn’t have the right yarns, so I ended up making my sweater out of DK weight scraps. I used a big box cotton/acrylic for Color A and variegated minis from indie yarn dyers Five Borough Yarns, KraeO, Asylum Fibers, and Bad Sheep Yarn for Color B.

By the Monday before Rhinebeck, I knew some shortcuts would need to be made. The sweater would now be a crop top, meaning I would trade-in my jeans for a skirt and a strategically placed belt. And bust shaping was out of the question.

By the Thursday before Rhinebeck, I had bound off (a little too tightly around the waist) and was off to sleeve island. The sleeves would be just long enough to count as sleeves—but they would count nonetheless.

Thursday night, I realized I had been so focused on my Saturday Rhinebeck sweater that I had given zero thought to what I would wear for the rest of the weekend.

So I upgraded to my larger suitcase and filled half of it with Knit Collage yarns. If the mixed bag of colors and textures turned into anything—awesome. If not, at least they would give my hands something to do.

By Friday morning, I had bound off one sleeve on the raglan and the race was on for sleeve two. I took the bus, then the train to Brooklyn, and hopped into a car with my friends heading upstate. Like the passenger princess that I am (I still don’t have my driver’s license), I settled in for the ride.

My Sophie Scarf and one of my older FOs, a maroon cable sweater, were my Friday uniform. They paired so well with my beaded messenger bag.

Three hours of car singing later, we made it to Rhinebeck. I was about halfway through the sleeve. I brought my sweater to lunch—and I didn’t feel guilty about table knitting.

By the time night fell, and after winning a game of Clue, I still had seven rows and a bind-off to go. But my hands were cramping and I started to make silly mistakes. I tapped out for the night.

I set my alarm for 5 a.m. Eventually got tired of checking it every five minutes, so I got up at 4:45. How come I can never do that on a regular work day?

By the time everyone else woke up, my sweater was done! Well, done-ish. It really depends on the kind of knitter you are and if you consider a sweater with unwoven ends to be done. With strategically tucked-in ends, I had a wearable sweater.

I’ve honestly never cut a Rhinebeck sweater this close—and I’m actually in love with this hodgepodge garment.

Because I changed up the colors every couple of inches, it has a very personal feel. I may redo the bind-off (OMG it’s tight) and I’ll weave in the ends—but I love it.

As I sat at the kitchen table filled with pride, I felt my face fall like the end of The Graduate. Now I had nothing to do with my hands. And I really had not thought about what I was going to wear the next day.

On my way out the door to the festival, I popped some yarn onto my Lemon Wood mini winder and decided to knit up a 2×2 ribbed hat with Loopy Mango yarn that I bought at Rhinebeck 2024.

As I walked around the festival squishing yarn and stuffing my face with pulled pork mac and cheese, I knit.

By the time I got back to our Airbnb, the hat was complete. It’s not perfect or fancy, as I was losing count every few rows when I would run into a lovely fiber friend or stop to ask a stranger what pattern they used. The pop of blue sparked some joy—but not quite enough.

That night I tossed and turned. My Knit Collage yarn burned a hole in my suitcase.

I leapt out of bed just before 5 a.m. I began crocheting.

I watched as the mountains woke up around me. I was startled by gunshots from hunters off in the distance.

I sat in the window seat where I could at first see people coming home after night shifts, and then new people heading out to start their day as the sun rose.

By the time my crew was up, I had finished what I’m now calling my Rhinebeck Morning Shawl. The first time I put it on, it sparked so much freaking joy. Is it more blanket than shawl? Maybe. But is that a bad thing? I don’t think so.

An added bonus was that I now had half of an empty suitcase, which is a dangerous thing for a yarnie to know when going into day two of Rhinebeck.

I had an absolute blast with all of my WIPs and FOs this year. And I promise to get stitching earlier for Rhinebeck 2026. Maybe. Possibly. Remind me I said this next year.