Southern Kyrgyzstan (photo: Erica Manning) Kyrgyzstan is experiencing immediate economic effects from Russian's invasion of Ukraine, a consequence of a world-wide response to economically isolate Russia. Whenever we talk about the founding of June Cashmere, we recount the history that led to Kyrgyzstan's need for economic development. Like Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan was once part of the Soviet Union. It was part of a thriving textile-producing region in which shepherds belonged to cooperatives that directly sold their fiber to spinning mills with thousands of employees. The mills in turn had a vast market in the Soviet Union to which they could sell their goods. Archival photo of textile mill in Kyrgyzstan, mid-20th Century Also like Ukraine, when...
Find joy in making, I like to say, because I truly want us to find joy in creating, in using our hands and minds to produce something uniquely made. I especially want us to find joy in making with this special cashmere yarn, bringing honor to the final step of the yarn's voyage from shepherds' hands to our own. Recently, however, I'm reminded that knitting (and making) can offer the mind, body, and spirit a multitude of benefits beyond joy. Research and anecdotal evidence from knitters tell us that knitting reduces depression and anxiety (lowers blood pressure, relaxes us, helps us to cope with difficult situations); helps slow the onset of dementia and distracts us from chronic pain (can even...
Learning a new skill can be frustrating. Recently, a knitter casting on the Lostine hat was trying to master the tubular cast-on. Expressing her frustration on Instagram, I reached out to her for moral support and links to tutorials. She was so close to making it work, but the truth is, figuring out a knitting technique on your own can be hard. The Lostine Hat and Wrap patterns by Shellie Anderson start with a waste-yarn, tubular cast-on. You can see in the photo how beautifully the cast-on allows the ribbing to flow from the edge. For the hat, this cast-on method doesn't impede the necessary stretch of the rim like other cast-ons might. Conquering a new technique is...
We're thrilled to be a feature story in the current issue of Laine (Issue 13)! A few months ago, Sy and I enjoyed a Zoom interview with Maija Kangasluoma, who in turn wrote a beautiful 6-page spread about us. Laine is a Finnish knitting magazine published in English and Finnish and distributed widely around Europe, USA, and Canada. We hope the publicity will help us to grow our community of knitters. In addition to offering beautiful knitting patterns, every issue of Laine includes recipes, sometimes from other cultures, sometimes to showcase Scandinavia. I love food traditions and in my family, December is the month in which food revolves around my Swedish heritage. We eat lutefisk on Christmas Eve (yes, I...
I am enthralled with how people design. . . and I love textile swatches - woven ones, knit ones, printed ones, all the ones. I love to imagine what those swatches might become. When hand drawn sketches are involved, I swoon. And swoon, I did, when I saw Tayler Harris's design boards for our Holiday 2021 Collaboration. Tayler's inspiration for the collection came from the Uinta mountains of her home state of Utah. In Tayler's words- The Uinta Range is full of forests, lakes, and meadows, and is home to the highest point in Utah, Kings Peak, that reaches over 13,000 ft. It is a beautiful place full of so many textures, colors, shapes, sounds, smells, and wildlife. All...
