Off-Roading at the Studio?

This is a guest post from one of our studio instructors, Donita. Enjoy!

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I find that a lot of us are hesitant to leave the well-trodden path in our crafting. We like to have a pattern to guide us; if the pattern has been tested, tech edited, and has dozens of successfully finished projects, even better!  If you’re busy, your crafting time is valuable.  You might not want to sacrifice precious hours with your yarncraft only to have to rip out later.  If you turn to crafting for the meditative effect it can bring, struggling to decipher a poorly written knit pattern or weaving draft isn’t going to give you that stress relief you seek!

Do you have an idea in your mind that you would really like to create, but can’t find a pattern or draft that fills the bill? What about modifying an existing pattern or draft to use a specific yarn you love, but isn’t the weight of yarn the pattern was written for?  Do you want to learn more about how to bring these ideas from images dancing around in your head to actual, tangible objects you can use and enjoy?

Then it’s time to go off-road!

Off-roading is the activity of driving or riding a vehicle on unsurfaced roads or tracks, made of materials such as sand, gravel, riverbeds, mud, snow, rocks, and other natural terrain.  I always think of these trailblazers when I decide to deviate from a pattern or dream up an idea I can’t find anywhere else!  Sometimes you encounter unknown elements, but it’s always a great learning experience.

I have gone ‘off-road’ with my crafting many times over the years.  Whether it is changing the shape of a garment to better fit my body, mashing up two different patterns to create a unique project, or starting from scratch to design a piece that only exists in my mind, it’s always a challenge!  But what a reward when you get an end result that you love!

Have you ever wanted to go off-road with your crafting?  Want a travel guide?  Reach out to me at the studio!

Donita Westman teaches spinning, weaving and (sometimes) knitting at 614 Knit Studio.  You can follow her classes on Facebook  or her crafting and rescue cat antics on Instagram.