Jenny Doh

Knitting Poetic by Appointment

I've been knitting and crocheting since I was a little girl. I love it. Not just the finished garment or accessory, but the zen-like process of getting to the finish line.

As important as it is to acquire knitting skills to experience the zen, I think it's also important to discern how to select projects that are fresh, sexy, exciting, and poetic. And also to practice knitting in places and in ways that make me feel wonderful. To me, that's knitting poetic.

Though I've been knitting and crocheting for over 40 years, I am amazed at how much there is still left to learn within the universe of yarn. I don't know everything but what I know, I'm happy to share and teach ... a starter project for beginners ... an intermediate project for those who are ready to move from the basic scarf onto something a bit more challenging ... or support to solve a knitting problem if you're in the middle of a difficult project.

If you're interested, you can email me at [email protected] and we can calendar an appointment and I can give you a supply list of things you'll need to bring. (If you prefer to buy a supply kit from me, we can make that arrangement too.) We will first meet in Studio Crescendoh and either stay there for the entire session or walk over to a nearby coffee shop to finish our session.

Two hour minimum.
Knitting poetic OR crocheting poetic.
By yourself or with another human.

ONE PERSON
Minimum of 2 hours: $50
Each additional hour: $20

TWO or more PEOPLE
Minimum of 2 hours: $40
Each additional hour: $15

xoxo,
Jenny

Key Cozy Tutorial

Heart key cozy tutorial. Crochet a heart as follows:

Ch3, join with sl st in first ch to form ring, ch3, (2dc, 3sc) in ring, ch1, dc in ring. Ch1, (3sc, 2dc) in ring, ch2, sl st in ring.

Place key on top of this heart.

Make another heart, place on top of key and stitch together.

Wire and Crochet Sculpture

I've been having a wonderful time sculpting with wire and crochet. Thought I'd show you one of my latest sculptures with a couple of detail shots.

 

Announcing :: Knitting 101 :: Fingerless Gloves

Have you always wished that you could knit?

Well, March 2015 is your lucky month because I'll teach you! Within a few short hours, your sentence will change from "I wish I could knit" to "I'm a knitter!"

And a whole new universe will open up. :)

Enrollment is NOW open here. Join me if you want to.

Texting in Korean

It's been quite wonderful getting back in touch with my Korean relatives. I've been out of touch with most of them for quite some time. After visiting with my aunt in New York recently, we exchanged cell numbers so that we could stay connected.

Last night, she started texting me in Korean and I surprised myself to find that I could understand all that she was writing in Korean. How about that? Even after all these years of being very much out of practice using the language, I find that I can read and understand it! Now writing it is a whole different matter. I mean, I probably could do it but it would take me a long time. So I just write her back in English, which she understands. It's a good set up for the both of us because I get to practice reading Korean and she gets practice reading English. Maybe one of these days I will be able to text with her completely in Korean. Now wouldn't that be something?!

For those of you who read Korean, I don't need to tell you what we were texting about. Socks! Yes, I'm excited to knit socks for her. A dark colored pair (similar to the pair shown at the very bottom) is what she would like. And so that is what she will get. :)

Announcing My New Book :: Crochet Love

I am thrilled to announce my NEW book! It's titled Crochet Love, and it features 27 sweet and simple zakka-inspired projects. They are small, adorable projects that I had a ball designing and hope you enjoy making!

 

Crochet Love officially hits book stands October first but can be pre-ordered right here on amazon.

With gratitude,
Jenny

PS: Here's a little video that provides a sneak peek of Crochet Love. Enjoy! :)

Knit Cross Apron

I'm diggin' my new apron I made with a cross motif that I knitted with Crochet Hemp and appliqued. Here's how I did it.

KNIT THE CROSS

• With worsted weight natural Crochet Hemp, cast on 4 stitches on size 8 (5 mm) knitting needles.
• Rows 1–7: Knit
• Row 8: Knit 4, cast on 4 (8 sts)
• Row 9: Knit 8, cast on 4 (12 sts)
• Rows 10–15: Knit
• Row 16: Bind off 4, knit 8 (8 sts)
• Row 17: Bind off 4, knit 4 (4 sts)
• Rows 18–23: Knit
• Bind off all stitches and bury all ends with a tapestry needle

APPLIQUE AND EMBROIDER:

• Spray the back of the knit cross with fabric spray adhesive and place onto apron. Use hand-sewing needle and thread to stitch the cross along all edges to the apron.
• Use black perle cotton to add a running stitch to the top and one side edge. Add small cross stithces near the knit cross.

 

Fisherman's Rib Cowl Tutorial

Hooray! I'm happy to report that on this blazing hot day, I have completed my cowl. I'm so happy with it. And yup, it was all done on Second Stage.

What makes a cowl a cowl and not a scarf is that it is a connected loop so that there aren't swinging ends like a scarf. And the connected loop is made by joining the short ends with a simple twist added to it. I'll show you how.

First, I knit up a piece using the Fisherman's rib (here's a great tutorial showing you how to knit the Fisherman's rib) so that it was approximately 20 inches long. But you don't have to use this rib. You can use any pattern you like!

Before joining the short ends, I folded it like this.

Then I picked up the two inner corners like this.

... and then lined up the short edges like this and weaved them together.

This twist results in what is frequently referred to as mobius or infinity. The twist makes the cowl rest beautifully on your neck, no matter how you put it on.

You can add this twist to knitted, crocheted, or sewn items. You can make it short like mine so that you just slip it over your head so it rests on your neck or make it long so that you slip it over your head and let it hang really low or twist it around your neck a few times to make it super chunky.

Here's how it looks when the ends are weaved together.

The reason I like this cowl is that the rib and the wool make it super chunky and thick so that I don't have to knit very much. Just 20 inches. And you can wear it to cover just your neck or you can wear it so that it also covers your mouth ... for days when it's super duper cold.

Happy knitting. :)

Crochet Hemp :: Crocheted Wire Heart Tutorial

Happy Valentine's Day!
Here's a little something I made to celebrate the occasion. A little crocheted wire heart tutorial.

Take a piece of wire and make a tiny twisty loop.

Turn that loop upside down and then curve both ends into the shape of a wire and twist the shorter end onto the longer end to make the bottom point of the heart.

Crochet single crochets all around the entire sire heart using crochet hemp (of course!) and then weave in all ends with a darning needle.
Cut two little hearts with red felt and attach them through the tiny loop using a small brad.


Twist the long end and place it into a vase or jar. (Add a bit of sheet music or tissue into the jar to keep the wire stem in place.)


Happy creating. :)

Crochet Hemp :: Knit & Crochet Hot Pad Tutorial

Check out these yummy, chunky hot pads I knitted (with a touch of crochet). Here's how I did it:

GATHER

• Crochet Hemp: (A) 12-strand, bleached
• Crochet Hemp: (B) 12-strand, natural
• Knitting needles: 10mm
• Crochet hook: 6.00mm
• Tapestry needle
• Scissors

MAKE

• With 6 strands of A held together, cast on 15 stitches onto knitting needles
• Rows 1–24: Knit all rows to create a stockinette pattern.
• Bind off and fasten off, leaving a long tail.
• With crochet hook, create 5 chain stitches with the tail and join with a slip stitch to create loop.
• With tapestry needle, fasten off all ends.

Repeat with 6 strands of B to create second hot pad.

NOTE
Each hot pad weighs approximately 6 ounces. You can work with 6 spools of A or B. If working with just one spool of A or B, pull out enough yarn so that it weighs 1 ounce and make that into a small ball. Repeat until you have 6 small 1-ounce balls of yarn. Use the strands of all six balls to make the hot pad. 

Learn more about Crochet Hemp here.