NOTE: This class consists of two 3-hour sessions and will fill both time periods on Saturday.  

Date/Time: Saturday, September 30, 2023 9:00 am-noon & 1:30-4:30 pm

Eyeing colorwork cardigan patterns? Tired of working purl rows on Stockinette cardigans? Afraid to cut your knitting? Overcome your fear with NO RISK!

In this workshop, we’ll steek old or thrifted sweaters (bring your own or purchase one from Ann's collection). You don’t have to knit anything in preparation! You’ll work through all the steps of steeking a sweater, and you’ll be ready—and excited—to steek your own work.

We’ll be doing crocheted and hand-sewn steeks on our sweaters. Ann will demonstrate and provide examples of both methods and discuss the pros and cons of each. You’ll leave the workshop with a booklet of photo tutorials for all the techniques discussed.

What you’ll learn:

• How to crochet a steek (no crochet experience necessary!)
• How to hand sew a steek
• How to cut a steek
• How to pick up stitches for a buttonband
• How to knit a buttonband
• How to perform other modifications, such as shortening the body, changing the sleeve length, and changing the collar
• How to add ribbon facing to cover your steek 

Skills required: Picking up stitches

The materials list for this class might seem overwhelming—don’t stress out! You can get everything you need on the day of the workshop. Ann will have sweaters and some extra needles and crochet hooks to share, and you’ll be able to purchase yarn, needles, and crochet hooks for the steek and button band in the Marketplace.

Supplies:

• One or more sweaters to steek OR $15 for each sweater you’ would like to purchase from Ann. She will have good-quality thrifted wool sweaters available in a variety of colors and sizes.
• If you bring a sweater to steek, be sure it meets the following criteria:
• 100% wool or nearly 100% wool
• Gauge no smaller than 8 stitches per inch
• No fancy texture patterns (simple cables and ribbing are fine, and colorwork is encouraged) 
• A few more suggestions:
• Beware complex collars. The more complex the collar, the more complex the steek. If you’re up for a challenge, bring something complicated.
• The darker the sweater, the more difficult it will be to see your stitches.

Other materials: 

• Yarn:
• A small amount (50 yd) “sticky” fingering weight 100% wool yarn, NOT superwash, for crocheting steeks. Jamieson’s Shetland and Lopi yarns are great for this. If you don't have any in your stash, Ann will have some you can use.
• Yarn to knit your button band. You can use your steeking yarn or a different yarn; your button bands do not need to be worked in a “sticky” wool yarn. If you’re purchasing a sweater from Ann, you can get a skein (or a few mini-skeins!) of yarn for your button band during the workshop. 
•  Needles:
• Size B or C crochet hook 
• Knitting needles, size 4, 5, 6, 7 . . . bring several sizes so you can experiment and determine which works best for your project. Circular needles of any length will work. 
• Sharp scissors! We are going to cut these sweaters!
  
• Sharp tapestry needle (large enough to thread with fingering weight yarn and SHARP)
• Safety pins or removable stitch markers

Homework: None

Skill Level: Intermediate

Ann Weaver