Swatching: that one little word that every knitter dreads. In this post, we talk about why swatching is necessary and share our best tips for swatching so that you can put it into practice for your next project.
Do you love getting surprises in the mail? How about boxes full of gorgeous, hand-dyed artisan colorways on luscious bases? If this sounds like something you’d enjoy, we’ve got the perfect solution: the ZenKnitBox!
The holidays are over, but the weather is still frightful outside. What better time to stay indoors and craft something luscious for yourself? Today we’re highlighting a few patterns to knit or crochet for yourself in the new year!
If your wish list needs a few more items or your loved ones need some hints on what to get the knitter who has everything (you know who you are!!), here are a few of our favourite knitting tools and accessories which are perfect for last-minute gifting - or treating yourself!
In knitting, there are many ways of joining knit pieces together, which is commonly called seaming or grafting. Kitchener stitch is a way of grafting two pieces of knitting together and creating what becomes an invisible join that blends into the rest of your finished piece.
The holidays are fast approaching and that means gift knitting (and crocheting!) is in full swing. Whether you’re creating gifts for the special people in your life, or just looking to relax and craft something special for yourself, we hope you’ll enjoy the season with our yarns and patterns. Today we share our favourite new patterns to inspire your holiday gift-making!
Have you ever wondered who makes the yarn you hold in your hands? With therelease our new Dyepot Dabblersseries of colours, we thought it was the perfect time to introduce our hard-working Zen Yarn Garden team responsible for making sure each skein of yarn is a true work of art.
Sock blanks are made from fingering weight yarns which have been knit up into fabric prior to dyeing. They kind of resemble short scarves! This creates a canvas on which we paint our own artistic colourways onto the fabric, and since each blank is individually hand-dyed, no two are exactly alike. Projects made from a sock blank knit and crochet up in truly unique ways! There are three main ways you can choose to work with your sock blank; each is detailed below.
The hardest part to starting any new knitting project is casting on, and sometimes figuring out which of the many cast on techniques to use. But don’t let that stop you from making the projects of your dreams! We’ve created a short video to show how to do three of the most popular cast ons in knitting: the Long Tail Cast On, the Knitted Cast On and the Cable Cast On. You’ll see each technique up close and personal, learning helpful tips to ensure a successful start with each one.
At Zen Yarn Garden, we hand paint our colourways with the idea that you should be able to easily choose complementary or contrasting colours for your beautiful projects. This year, we have created sets of colors which make it even easier for you to do this - and did you know that even our labels guide you in finding the matching colours with ease? As always, your yarn is hand dyed to order, so you are always receiving specially-made yarn that is perfect for your next project.
We know how much time you spend crafting your projects: choosing the perfect pattern and yarn, and then knitting, crocheting or weaving your project. In today’s tutorial, we’ll discuss how to weave in ends using duplicate stitch on the wrong side of your work, both in garter and stockinette stitch. This method is simple to learn and use, with the added bonus that it blends in perfectly, giving each and every project you create the perfect finish.
Our yarn is special. We know you put your heart and soul into your crafts and we want to create the very best materials for you to work with. Every hank you buy is destined to have many hours in your stash and on your needles before it becomes a garment or accessory item that you will wear proudly - with each skein, we strive to reflect the same passion that you have for your projects and craft in our yarns.
