One of the many things I enjoy about both knitting and crocheting is that they both tend to be fairly straightforward. You start with X number of stitches, work them in stitch pattern Y, and when you’re done, you have project Z completed. Except sometimes, it’s not all that straightforward. There are increases and decreases…

Have you ever seen a pattern you like but hesitated to use it because of the colors?   We’d like to help you get started as a designer with some simple steps to choosing the color combinations you prefer. Today we’ll work with the Mulberry Afghan, #90310.  Think about what colors you would like to…

The Inishturk Sweater is certainly a cabled sweater of “Olympic” proportions!  I know I’m not the only one having fun knitting it while watching the 2010 Winter Games.  One reason this sweater is a great project to work with cables is because there is very little shaping in this sweater.  However, we do have necks…

I thought long and hard about whether I wanted to write this particular post. You see, I really, really like talking to you all and helping you with your knitting and crochet questions. I like hearing about the project you’re making for your son on the East Coast, or your daughter in the Coast Guard.…

It has been great reading how many unique ways we all keep track of those cable patterns while making the Inishturk Sweater.  So, whether you’re reading the row by row instructions, working charts, using your computer or index cards to keep things straight, it’s all good! Now here’s some very good news for all you…

Over the last decade, we’ve collected many of the common questions we’ve gotten from yarncrafters like you and created a useful database. Our Frequently Asked Questions section (LionBrand.com > Learning Center > FAQ) is a great resource for most of the basic questions that crocheters and knitters have about yarn, projects, techniques, and even our…

Every once in a while, I find myself working happily along on a pattern when I’m suddenly confronted with an instruction or abbreviation that completely throws me. It’s not too bad if it’s something I can work out and then continue on, but occasionally I find that I’ve worked past a certain point where I…

I can remember over 20 years ago when I was in college (and working part-time in a yarn shop!) that some knitting stitch patterns were starting to written in chart form.  I had always knitted cable and lace patterns with instructions that wrote out what to do row by row.  I was used to doing…

Did you know that you can use our website to find stores in your neighborhood that sell Lion Brand yarns? It’s very simple. Let me show you how – go to LionBrand.com and in the lower left hand corner of the page, enter your zip code. For example, I entered ‘07603′. Once you’ve entered your…

It has been a lot of fun to see so many of you already starting the Inishturk Sweater and sharing your ideas and experiences with the rest of us.  Probably the hardest part of this sweater is the part I’m going to talk about today – going from the ribbing into all those cable patterns!…