WOOLSACK

New life for British wool as eco-insulation firm secures major funding A new venture pioneering rigid insulation panels made from sheep wool—offering a valuable new market for farmers—is set to scale up after securing a £300k

www.farminguk.com/news/new-lif...?

British Breeds Scottish Lace Pack - Blacker Yarns Our new Limited Edition British Breeds Scottish lace pack contains 5 x 50g skeins of laceweight yarn.

I'm pretty sure this is what used to be called St Kilda laceweight. It's my absolutely favourite yarn for lace knitting- soft & drapey with character but none of the slipperiness that can make lace knitting challenging rather than enjoyable @blackeryarns
www.blackeryarns.co.uk/british-bree...

Here's a free knitting chart. Note that the squares are flattened the way knit stitches are shaped. If you use this chart to cross stitch, the motif will be stretched taller. I like it for a scarf. 🧶
#knit #knitting #thistlechart #knitsky #knitted #freechart #freepattern #thistle #colorchart #flower

Wow!
Well everyone has different preferences I guess...
Personally I think it's fabulous - you've used a very subtly heathered yarn that's almost solid colour & with a smoothness that allows the cables to be clearly identified, so all very appropriate for the complexity of the texture.

Image of sunflowers on painted Ukrainian flag

#SlavaUkraïni

Gifted Harris Tweed wool, reclaimed from an old sweater. Plaited twill. I am adoring the texture.
#weaving

Combing wool 🧶🐑

Handspun Cheviot wool singles. Hand dyed with madder root. Handwoven and sewn into a cute skirt to match my handknit pullover sweater. #februarty #orange #weaving #spinning #fiberarts #yarn

A tangle of sheeps wool on a twig out in a field with dewdrops on it

When a tangle of sheep's wool catches your eye 👀
#Macro #Nature #Photography

A 600-year-old medieval hat from Lappvattnet.
The hat, which is made of felted sheep’s wool, was preserved in a bog. Now housed at the Västerbottens Museum in Sweden.

Latest knitting make - Aurora Cabin shawl by Stephen West

Quote tile with white text on an orange background: “[Knitting punch cards] are also, in the age of seemingly-endless proprietary software and terms and conditions, refreshingly punk, in a minimal computing, open-source sort of way…” Nichole Misako Nomura Digital humanities scholar

🧶💾 Punch cards aren’t just relics of computing—they’re still powering knitting machines today! Discover how hobbyists & archivists are preserving this blend of tech + textile. ⁠

🔗 https://blog.archive.org/2025/02/12/vanishing-culture-punch-card-knitting/
⁠
🕳️ #VanishingCulture⁠

Fascinating and informative lecture, but I had no idea he was going to mention my book, so that was a wonderful surprise. I did read his papers on St Kilda sheep as part of my research for the book and we've corresponded, but I didn't know he'd read the book
Feel very honoured.....

Two yarn holders I’ve had for years. So long that I can’t remember who made them. The black one is wrought iron and fits over your belt. The silver one hangs from your wrist.

Now is the time to get yourself a yarn holder, if you don’t already have one! It will make knitting while protesting much easier. I want one from Lemonwood Fiber Tools

www.etsy.com/shop/Lemonwo...

Here is a picture of two that I already have. #preparingtoprotest #madamdefarge
#knitting #knitsky

Mail is in & Highland Knits, Knitwear Inspired by the Outlander Series book by a group of designers from Interweave (used) is here. It looks good. More knitting inspo. 🧶

#knit #knitsky #knitted #knitting #highlandknits #outlander #claireoutlander #outlanderknits #rusticknits #outlanderfashion #book

Lundy Wrap (Ravelry)
A fave pattern which I’ve made many times 🧶 #knit

The yoke of a handknitted sweater. Dark sage green hanging bauble motif on a marled mid grey background

Current WIP - 'Jingle' by Isabelle Kraemer in Sandnes Tynn Peer Gynt 😁 #knitting #SweaterWeather #showmeyourknits

I can’t tell you how good this makes me feel to look at the textures on this piece 🧶 #knit

St Kilda: A Rosetta Stone for Early Sheep Races in the North-East Atlantic Region?   - Society of Antiquaries of London No fewer than three races of pre-modern sheep were introduced to St Kilda; in sequence, Soays, then Borerays, then St Kildas aka Hebrideans. This sequence may carry implications for the history of dom...

Anyone who enjoyed reading The Lost Flock may be interested in this in-person & on-line lecture by Professor Andrew Fleming FSA at @antiquaries.bsky.social
I mentioned his research in the book. I anticipate this will be a very informative & enjoyable event
www.sal.org.uk/event/st-kil...

A screenshot of a book review by Ruth Watson in The Scottish Farmer about a book called The Lost Flock by Jane Cooper.

It was a pleasure to write this review of 'The Lost Flock' by Jane Cooper @orkneyboreray.bsky.social for @thescottishfarmer.bsky.social

This is a book for anyone who likes a detective story with a bit of lambing and a
bucket of sheep nuts

#GoNative #OrkneyBoreray #ScottishDunface

We were delighted to welcome people to a wool skills workshop at #ORFC25 this morning.

The session highlighted the wonders of wool and why it needs to be considered as more than just a byproduct.

A kindle with highlighted quote - "Knitting calms me down when I'm stressed, gets me excited when it feels like there's no point living. gives me something to think about that is outside myself, a reason to get up in the morning." A sock in wip in double pointed needles

When the fine thread that connects you to life is literally a "fine thread" 🧶🧦
"Knitting calms me down when I'm stressed, gets me excited when it feels like there's no point living. gives me something to think about that is outside myself, a reason to get up in the morning." #pwme #mecfs

Garter Stitch Mitts by Ysolda Teague, knit flat and shaped with short rows, and worked from a provisional cast on in very pale blue cotton glace. The photo depicts the flat garter stitch in West Yorkshire Spinners ColourLab DK Sock in Soul, left over from some DK socks I knit last year. The colours are a lovely random mix of dark and light blue-grey with flecks of clear pink. Really nice yarn to work with, and the pattern is fabulous, extremely well written and easy to follow.

Well, that was fun! Woke up to 10cm more snow on top of the 20cm+ we had Sat-Sun, and then the power went out at 7am! Took 4 hours for the power to come back on, so I spent it cosily curled up on the sofa knitting a mitten (details in alt text) 🧶😍❄️

A triangular piece of knitting sits on top of 2 balls of green yarn. The knitter has put it down for a break while she makes a cup of tea.

Christmas knitting eventually cast on yesterday - a Trillian scarf from yarn brought back from Iceland by a friend. A nice, easy pattern for doing while watching tv or chatting with friends.

My favorite make of this year, Eldfell pullover. This was my first Lopapeysa sweater. I got to wear it on my trip to Iceland this past September. 🧶 #knitting #showmeyourknitting

Every one needs a good wool blanket to sleep with

Starting a new knitting project from my stash of handspun. I never feel so centered, my mind is never so quieted as when I'm knitting or spinning. Knitting, spinning, crochet, hand sewing: these are your foremothers' stims.

Cover of the book showing a close-up of a stranded colorwork sweater with a beautifully shaped puffed sleeve cap.

Detail photos of a short-sleeved chartreuse pullover with a yoke in pinks and greens.

Detail of a pullover with bands of stranded colorwork in blues, yellows, and pinks.

Fresh, modern stranded colorwork design called "Marble," short-sleeved pullover with horizontal color bands "veined" in black.

And ANOTHER amazing new knitting book comes by post. I have every book by Susan Crawford. This latest is the third volume in her "A Stitch in Time" series, devoted to colo(u)rwork. Vintage patterns updated for modern knitters, preserving the interesting details that make them so special...

Fiber friction is the key to cozy knits Friction between loops of yarn give knit fabrics the ability to take on a variety of shapes even when no force is applied.

Friction is the defining force of knit/crochet/woven fabric. I think we as fiber artists intuitively know this via drape, but it's cool to see the science.

Cast on NUMBER FOUR for my “relaxing” Christmas knit. 1st was fiddly small stitches, 2nd was tension on colour change side, 3rd was being clever & catching yarn & created weird loop. If ur like, these all look fine, u r correct. If ur like, I would have started over, u r also correct. #knitting 🧶