I got to interview with Donna Bowman, paksenarrion on Ravelry for the GAL.
GAL:
what is your current # of wips?
I am doing just one GAL project at a time, because I have a non-GAL gift project with a deadline, and a selfish-knitting project for me that I don’t want to totally put aside. So I’m just doing GAL hats consecutively without setting any particular goal for how many I want to get done.
What are you currently working on?
I have two hats in the blocking stage — one took three days and one was done in a single evening. So I’m picking out my next project as we speak, to cast on tonight. I might do a
Not Cabled since I have lots of solid-color worsted that I bought specifically for unisex hats.
What are your 2019 GAL goals?
I dove in without any goals! I really didn’t plan gift knitting at all this year, after having some serious programs in place the last few years. So any gifts that get made and distributed will be a bonus.
Where did you heard about the GAL?
I lurked the first year I heard about it, I think because I saw some threads about it in other groups where I’m active (like the Ravellenics, Dizzy Sheep and Knit Picks groups). Then the following year I decided it was the perfect excuse to make some things long faved and queued.
How many years have you participated?
This is only the second year!
What Do you like best about it?
1. Being introduced to new-to-me patterns and designers. I follow EVERY LINK and add to my queue and favorites.
2. The encouragement! The ethos of the mods to encourage every single participant is really wonderful. And it sets a tone where everyone else joins in with encouragement and praise.
3. Prizes! I won a hank of yarn last year, quite randomly. It’s great how many opportunities there are to win a little something, and that the mods and donors spread so much love around with those prizes.
Setting you create in:
Where do you craft? (can I have a photo of your favorite spot?)
Recliner at my husband’s side in the living room! I’ve got my yarn bowl of handy notions (crochet hook, waste yarn, Chibi, measuring tape, scissors) at my side, right behind my beverages.
What time of day do You knit or crochet?
Weekday evenings, weekend all day.
Is there TV? Music? Podcast? Audiobook? Anything? No distractions? (My
favorite is when my husband reads aloud to our kids and I get to do
handwork.)
There is always TV. My husband and I both write about pop culture (it’s his full-time job), so we are always battling a full TiVo and a host of streaming services full of things we need to sample and catch up on. I’m usually on Rav at the same time, on my iPad.
Which Social Gathering do you knit or crochet at?
I’m not a huge social butterfly — I’m a homebody. But I knit at church and in class and in every meeting and at our kids’ concerts …
Do you have a favorite snack for while you do handwork?
Crafting Preferences:
Flat or in the round?
I like to switch between flat and in the round to give myself a break. If in the round, magic-loop or short circs — DPNs seem like they’re never situated right for me.
Wood, bone, plastic or metal needles/hooks?
My favorite straight needles are metal. I have some vintage Boye metal 8s that I use for dishcloth knitting — for most other flat knitting I have a gorgeous set of Signature Arts metal needles. In the round I like Knit Picks wood interchangeables, especially the short-tip set which is almost always in use.
What is your go-to pattern or go-to item to make (hat, socks, etc.)?
My comfort knitting is the
Enjoyable-Rib scarf, which I can do endlessly. I’ve made it twelve times. Hats are the things I make when I can’t figure out what to make — they are small and there’s always a home waiting for them somewhere. Dishcloths are my palate cleanser between big projects. I’ll whip out a dozen of them before I’m ready to tackle the next big thing.
Do you have a yarn weight that you prefer or one that you really don’t
enjoy working with?
Worsted/Aran is definitely my go-to. Just the right size to see progress but the possibility to make something elegant. That said, I use a lot of fingering because there are just too many lovely ones out there, and I can’t resist more yardage per skein. I’ve started to use those doubled to make DK/worsted gauge more often, especially in hats.
What is your favorite fiber mix (superwash, merino, nylon/merino mix,
hemp, linen, acrylic mix, cotton, alpaca…)?
Merino and merino-cashmere are the ones I crave to work with, but sturdy wool (like Wool of the Andes or Cascade 220) for the sweater FOs I love to wear and give (like this one for my husband). And I adore dishcloth cotton.
What is your favorite needle size?
6-8.
Continental or English?
Continental.
(a photo of tools would be nice)
Technique:
What is a technique you want to try?
I have not done intarsia except as clumsy improvisation. I am scared of it but determined to try at some point. I also haven’t steeked, but my daughter wants a colorwork half-zip pullover, so I have incentive to tackle that one.
What favorite technique is currently in your repertoire?
Cabling without a cable needle is one that always feels so satisfying to do. I also really enjoy double knitting and two-color brioche, although I’ve done little of either because they grow so slowly that I always balk at starting a project with them.
Do you have a tip or ‘trick’ to share?
When I bought
this tin of stitch markers from Mason-Dixon Knitting, I had no idea how it would change my life. Just having so many stitch markers always on the table beside me, in enough colors to designate as many different places in the pattern as you could ever want, without digging them out or worrying about losing them or not having enough in the set, makes me so happy every single time I knit. It’s a little thing but so satisfying.
Do you like to learn techniques from video or text tutorial best?
Text tutorial with pictures. I guess I am officially an old, because I don’t want to watch a video to learn something. When I have to watch a video tutorial, I do it with the sound off and scroll to the place where I can just watch it happening. I get impatient with the slow pace and with the person talking it through.
Do you buy technique books to learn techniques or single patterns?
I buy lots of technique books for inspiration. My favorite recent one is
Sequence Knittingby Cecelia Campochiaro. I’m just fascinated by new techniques, even if I never go on to use them — they are like potato chips.
Assia Brill’s book on the Distitch is on my wishlist this holiday, and I really hope somebody gets it for me.
Thank you Donna!
