I’ll Knit If I Want To: Episode 204 @dreareneeknits

Uploaded February 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago

Welcome to I’ll Knit (& Spin!) If I want To! I asked y’all to send in some of your questions (from everything from fiber arts, to designing and on!) so I could put together a little video for y’all every Friday doing my best to answer your questions!

Sign up for my newsletter here: Sign up for the DRK Newsletter: eepurl.com/diPxsr

In this week’s episode we cover:

1. Would you recommend spindle spinning to someone completely new to spinning? And if so, what kind? I’d love to dip my toes into spinning but am not sure where to start!

2. Hi Andrea! I want to knit your comfort fade cardigan with some special yarn that I got from a subscription. I have eight colors and have enough to make the size I want in terms of yardage. However, how often do I change yarns? Is there a mathematical way to figure this out? Should I change doubly as often as is listed in the pattern for four colors? Any tips would be appreciated. Thanks so much!

3.The spin skein you showed is E203 was lovely (as always), but I’m curious - how much fiber was that? 8oz, etc! It was huge!! I’ve only been spinning for a couple of years - and your spins are always exciting to see. Thanks!!

4. I have knit a few sweaters and almost all of them are top down construction which I love. One thing that I do find, is that despite going down the recommended number of needle sizes for the neck band, it can still come out quite large. I look at the sweaters you wear and see how nicely they sit as a proper crew neck, and I would love to be able to achieve the same fit, especially so that my base layers don't poke out!

5. First of all I just want to say I so appreciate the joyful and kind presence you bring to the Internet. You are a ray of sunshine in our often gloomy world. Now to my question: I moved to Austin a few years ago and am learning that the cold season is so short here. BUT I love to knit and wear me-made garments. What of your patterns would you recommend for warmer climates? Even patterns that could easily be adjusted to a lightweight fabric? Any fiber recommendations? Hoping to get something on the needles and have it ready to go for the warm weather (which will probably be the end of March *insert melting face emoji*) Many thanks!

Hey Sailor - ravelry.com/patterns/library/hey-sailor-2
Vellichor - ravelry.com/patterns/library/vellichor
Nebula - ravelry.com/patterns/library/nebula-17

Today I am wearing Moon Mint:
Ravelry: ravelry.com/patterns/library/drk-everyday-sweater
My Website: dreareneeknits.com/shop/drk-everyday-sweater

And the Thru Lines Shawl:
Ravelry: ravelry.com/patterns/library/thru-lines
My Website: dreareneeknits.com/shop/thru-lines

Ask a question for next week’s Q&A: https://forms.gle/pKM9gF9SixkdQwmS7

Knitting Tutorial: Right Lifted Increase (RLI)

Thanks, I Made It! Birch pullover + Jaunty Shawl + Arthur Pants

$I’ll Knit If I Want To: Episode 227 BIRTHDAY SALE!! Save 30% off of all of my independently published patterns (with the exception of Ooey Gooey and any patterns that were published thru 3rd parties) with the discount code DREA30 thru 8/8/25 at midnight EST! (Please note - don’t forget to enter the code before finishing your purchase, as discounts cannot be applied retroactively!) Welcome to I’ll Knit (& Spin!) If I want To! I asked y’all to send in some of your questions (from everything from fiber arts, to designing and on!) so I could put together a little video for y’all every Friday doing my best to answer your questions! Sign up for my newsletter here: Sign up for the DRK Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/diPxsr In this week’s episode we cover: 1. Im making the Tessellated vest and just have the ribbing to go. Have loved knitting the vest so am looking forward to finishing it and wearing it. The challenge I have is picking up the stitches for the armholes. Youve mentioned in the past that you use a ratio of 5 in 7 but do you vary this for armholes? Do you use 5 in 7 when working top half of armholes and over the shoulder, but pick up more stitches on the slanting edge towards bottom of armhole. Any advice would be appreciated. 2. Im just starting out as a designer and have a question about gauge patterns. Does the gauge pattern have to match the stitch pattern used in the item? Or would a stockinette gauge sample, for example, be suitable for a brioche or cable pattern, if both the gauge sample and the item are worked flat (but no stockinette is used in the pattern)? Would your answer change if its a two color brioche pattern? Thanks for all your advice over the years - Ive learned a lot from listening! 3. My question is about spinning. Like so many others, I’ve been inspired by you to pick up spinning. I took a couple drop spindle classes a little over a year ago and fell in love. I don’t currently have the financial or spatial budget for a wheel (though I’m hoping for an e-spinner for my upcoming birthday ), so my question is specific to your experience with spindle spinning. And particularly about plying. Since most spindles can hold less spun fiber than a wheel bobbin, my plied skeins tend to be fairly small. But yours always look much larger. Do you use a felted join on your singles to add more when one spindle runs out? Or perhaps a felted join on the plied yarn to combine smaller lengths into a larger skein? A combination of both? Would either affect the integrity of the finished yarn? Or is there something else I’m missing? Also, when doing a fractal spin with half a braid spun end to end and the other half divided into smaller strips, what considerations do you take into account when deciding which singles to ply together? I imagine you end up with some parts that have two plies of the first half of the braid and one ply with the smaller strips, and vice versa. How do you decide which to combine? Or do you just choose at random? 4. Ive been knitting for years, but am newish to sock knitting. I have two questions - The first sock I ever knit was perfect, then I had a few duds after that. My tension seemed to tighten significantly to the point I have to knit the size up from my frist sock - why would that be? My tension for other types of projects havent been affected in the same way. I also notice on the last couple socks Ive knit there is a slight ridge on the inside of my sock where I grafted the toe. I can feel it on the inside of the foot and I cant determine why the ridge is there. I have watched a lot of tutorials and know I have done the Kitchener stitch correctly. Could that also be a tensioning issue? 5. I know how important swatching is however there is one aspect that has me curious. One of the reasons for swatching is to see if the fabric grows and by how much. My question is, if the swatch does grow, how does the knitter determine what pattern size to follow? It seems like it would be challenging to translate the amount of growth seen in a swatch to a larger garment such a sweater. If I normally knit a size 36 bust should I drop down to a smaller bust size? If the pattern states to knit until piece measures 10 inches, should a lesser amount be knitted? Fortunately I’ve never had any major issues with growth but I’m sure it’s just a matter of time! High Tide Set: https://matchymatchysewingclub.com/products/high-tide-set-pdf-sewing-pattern Today I am wearing Night Lights Ravelry: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/night-lights-3 My Website: https://www.dreareneeknits.com/shop/night-lights 2025 Rhinebeck Ooey Gooey KAL Ravelry Forum: https://www.ravelry.com/discuss/dreareneeknits/topics/4368040 Facebook Forum: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1076153613959074 Instagram Hashtag: #RhinebeckOoeyGooeyKAL Ask a question for next week’s Q&A: https://forms.gle/pKM9gF9SixkdQwmS7$