Chronic Pain & Crafting, Part 4: Crafting Tools as Adaptive Tools

Part of the appeal of knitting and crochet is the way you can take some sticks and string and like magic turn them in afghans, sweaters, dresses, cushions, or anything your heart desires and your mind can dream up. At its core, yarncrafts require very few tools other than yarn, a selection of needles or…

Chronic Pain and Crafting, Part 3: Exercises and Accessories

While I myself am not a physical therapist, the exercises below are often recommended for crafters to stretch tense muscles and increase strength and flexibility, releasing tension and discomfort and preventing future stress and pain. These should be considered gentle stretches; you should feel a pulling sensation, but not pain. If the movement is painful,…

Chronic Pain and Crafting, Part 2: Fibers and yarns

Let’s talk about fibers. Wool is know for being squishy and bouncy with natural elasticity that makes it perfect for both knitting and crochet. However, it’s not perfect for every person or every situation. Wool or wool superwash blends frequently retain that elasticity while reducing allergies from lanolin (in the case of superwash), adding loft,…

Chronic Pain and Crafting, Part 1: Needles & Techniques

The days of only finding one style of needle or hook in the craft aisle at the local grocery store are long over. Thanks to the internet, international shipping, and several clever and talented independent creators, there are now a plethora of needle and hook styles available that can help extend your crafting time. If…

Back in Black

It's been a while, hasn't it? But I did need that time off. I'm not sure I would have been able to meet any of my deadlines for July or August if I'd been concentrating on the blog, too. We moved the last weekend of July; not far, but if you saw my Twitter feed…

What Moving Taught Me About Chronic Illness

If you've seen my Twitter (@Knotmagick) in the last week, you've probably seen how fantastically bad our recent move went. It's become a running joke at this point that when we move, the hired help doesn't showed up (this is the 3rd move in a row). I don't want to get into all the ways…

Video update

A basic run down of why I've been feeling crummy. I have the why now, I'm just waiting on the doctors to tell me how/if it can be fixed. https://youtu.be/3n1dkJCkbSw

New Article on Piecework

I have a new article up on the Piecework website. Piecework is a magazine all about history, textiles, and preservation. Whether you are a knitter, seamstress, cross stitcher, or other textile artist, it's a great place to learn more about the history and preservation of craft. You can read the article here. Want more information…

An Open Letter to Ravelry

For those unaware, in June the yarncraft website Ravelry.com suddenly and without warning rolled out a full site redesign and rebrand. Immediately reports of migraines, dizziness, and nausea appeared, as well as reports of seizures. While I won't go into detail here, the following is a copy of an email I sent to the Ravelry…

Thinking Ahead

The past few months have been difficult. I'm currently working with 2 different doctors to try to solve my personal energy crisis. Some days, I can do all the things. Some days, I sleep for 13 hours and spend my waking time wishing for a nap. Needless to say, this has had a drastic impact…