This week's technique of the week is all about silk hankies! Also known as mawata, each silk hankie is made of silk from cocoons that are stretched and dried over a square loom that can then be pulled apart, drafted and worked into yarn. Best part of all is that you don't need any special tools and you don't even need to know how to spin in order to enjoy these lovely silk hankies. Simply peel off a light-as-air layer of silk and slowly pull it apart by beginning in the center, and you'll be ready to knit or crochet with it.

These stunning Silk Hankies from Hanks in the Hood are available in so many beautiful colors, choosing your favorite just might be the hardest part! Another advantage for those unfamiliar to spinning techniques is that silk has very long fibers, which makes it easy to draft without accidentally pulling it completely apart. Although the process of turning your silk hankies into yarn is rather simple, it can be a bit intimidating at first and feel somewhat like you are venturing into unknown waters. And if you are anything like me, a little visual reference can go a long way when I am learning new techniques. Which is why we put together a video tutorial all about how to work with silk hankies. You'll learn all about seperating and drafting each layer by layer, how to start working with your drafted fiber, along with other tips and trick for working with these beauties!

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I've been knitting for quite some time now (going on seven years! Phew!) and I've only successfully knit two sweaters, both of which were separated by years of socks, mittens and other smaller projects. It was always so hard to take the plunge and invest in enough yarn for a full, cozy sweater. This past summer I found the Larch Cardigan by Amy Christoffers and fell head over heels for it. The color and high collar really caught my eye! I fussed over which yellow and which yarn I would knit my new dream cardigan in and eventually settled on Stroll Sport in Mustard to give it a nice, soft drape and so that I'd be able to machine wash it. I set to work and finished all the pieces within two weeks! But... then came the sleeves.

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There's a lot to be said for gift yarns. When my friend went walking along the knitting shop row in Buenos Aires, Argentina, she bought a lovely skein of hand-dyed, ribbon yarn. It took a long time for me to find something to make out of the precious skein. I wanted a scarf or shawlette that I could knit without worrying about the yardage. 

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As we talked about in the last color theory blog post, inspiration for color is all around us. In addition to seeing amazing combinations of colors in nature, we can even look back through works of art to find patterns of color combinations that have stayed true for hundreds of years. Continuing along with our theme of warming up the winter blues, we will take a closer look at different shade of blue along with colors that are often paired with blues – including paintings from centuries ago to present day fashion.

When I think of exceptionally lovely uses of the color blue, I can’t help but think of the 17^th century Dutch painter, Johannes Vermeer. Known best for his domestic scenes of middle class life, Vermeer was also particularly fond of bright, vibrant shades of blues which were often paired with bold colors such as yellows, oranges, and reds.

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Begins with a single slip knot!

The yarn for hubby's sweater is here! I think he was even more excited than I was when I first opened the box on our couch. He grabbed it and took a deep whif of its woolly goodness. I've trained him well! Now for the fun part - designing the sweater!

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