What can you tell us about your very first experiences with knitting?
Like many women of my generation, I learned the basics from my mother. But in my case it just didn’t take. My mother is a good teacher and a wonderful knitter, but she’s my mother and, in an effort to see me succeed, she always started me on a simple garter-stitch scarf. My desire to learn to knit became a ritual we performed every couple of years. In the earlier years, she would cast on for me and I’d knit away on my little scarf until I’d either tire of the monotony or cast it aside in frustration over my mistakes. In later years, she taught me to cast on and purl, but each effort ended the same way, with me abandoning the scarf before it was complete. Whether it was the boredom or the frustration, none of those early lessons turned me into a knitter.
It wasn’t until many years later that the urge to knit resurfaced. I was living in London one winter and had time on my hands. I could spend whole afternoons wandering through Liberty. My favorite halls were those with fabric, and tucked just beyond fabric in a long, narrow room was yarn. Eventually I bought a stitch book, bamboo needles, and several balls of Rowan wool cotton in a lovely pinky beige. I went home to sit by the fire to see what I could teach myself.
Once I managed the basics and had a garter- and Stockinette-stitch swatch, I started playing with the stitch dictionary. It was a great education in gauge and my introduction to reading the shorthand of knitting patterns. As I moved from the simple to the more complex stitch patterns, light bulbs started going on in my head. I saw knitting as something smart that could be predicted and planned. That was it; this time I was hooked, totally.
How did you go from beginning knitter to knitwear designer and the owner of Dolce Handknits?
That same winter I knit my first sweater and, after studying the pattern and schematic, figured out how to alter it for size. By my second sweater, I was trying my hand at design. The sweater wasn’t much to look at, but I loved the design process as much as the knitting. After about a decade of serious knitting, I submitted a design to a national magazine just to see what would happen, and my design was accepted. I seemed to have a knack for it and freelanced whenever I could over the next few years. I had a growing file of design ideas, but often found myself holding back some of my favorites. The desire to work on my own timeline and my reluctance to sell designs outright was what pushed me to start Dolce Handknits.
What are some enjoyable things knitting has brought into your life—besides the knitted pieces themselves?
The entry into the industry itself. As a knitter you often don’t consider the industry behind the magazines and yarn companies, although I suppose the Internet has changed that to some degree. It’s a wonderful industry, and I’ve met some incredibly generous and talented people along the way.
Your best-selling book Dolce Handknits presents stunning projects for each season of the year. What were you most excited to share with readers in this book?
What excited me the most was the opportunity to present a cohesive collection. Most often my designs stand alone as leaflet patterns. This was the first time I was able to consider a full collection of garments, from the selection of yarns and colors to the styling of the garments at the photo shoot. I was thrilled with what the team at Martingale pulled together in the design of the book.
Which of these extraordinary garments do you most enjoy having in your own wardrobe?
The sweaters I wear most from this collection are Bloomsbury, Fitzroy (shown at right), and Covent Garden. I have Fitzroy in hot pink, and I love to wear it buttoned up over a camisole with jeans.
What inspires your color choices?
Even though I just mentioned wearing a hot pink version of Fitzroy, I tend to be a little color phobic, which may be evident from the overall color palette in the book. I prefer neutrals and very muted, soft hues. My designs work in any color, so pick your favorite.
How do you select a yarn type for a particular project?
The beauty of designing for my own pattern line is the freedom when selecting yarn. I love natural fibers, so that’s always my first consideration. These days I’m trying to be more conscious of how fibers are processed and where they come from. I love a good story and find myself attracted to local yarns and those that have been processed in an environmentally friendly way. But that said, often the project dictates what will work. In Dolce Handknits, I used cotton, hemp, and silk for most of the spring and summer designs, while wools and alpaca played heavily in the fall and winter looks.
Which projects in Dolce Handknits would you recommend for beginners?
There are no real knitting acrobatics in the book, so I’d consider most of the projects very approachable for beginners. But for more timid beginners, Point Reyes, the super-bulky, off-the-shoulder sweater is not only easy but can be knit in no time flat. Greenwich, Santa Fe, and Captiva are all also very simple sweaters.
How can our readers find out more about your handknit patterns?
Knitters will find all my leaflet patterns at dolcehandknits.com, along with an extensive list of shops that carry the patterns. Readers knitting projects from the book or one of my patterns may also find it helpful to join the Dolce Handknits Ravelry group, where they can always ask questions.
In addition to your stunning knitwear designs, you’ve also designed shoes! What inspired you to make the modern Mary Janes featured on your blog?
My family was in shoe manufacturing until the mid seventies, so when I had the chance to take a shoemaking class, I jumped at it. Originally I envisioned a pair of simple, flat, platformed ankle straps. Then I shifted my thinking to a traditional pair of lace-up oxfords, believing I would learn the most from creating a more traditional and complex shoe. Ultimately, I merged the two ideas for fear I’d never finish the more complex design. I was right, since I worked right up to the last possible minute of class.
What’s your favorite part of the creative process?
I enjoy the problem solving and sorting out all the tiny details that pull a project together.
If you could spend a day doing anything you like, how would you spend it?
I’d spend it doing whatever captured my imagination at the moment. As long as design is involved, I’m interested. I’m just as happy designing knitwear as I am designing and renovating a kitchen, making a pair of shoes, weaving, or doing metalwork. In my dream home, I’d have multiple studio spaces set up for knitting, weaving, metalworking, leatherworking, and who knows what else in the future. I’d move from one to the next as the mood strikes.
What’s next–are you working on any new designs or book ideas?
I always have new ideas in the works for Dolce Handknits, but I’m also taking time this season to do a little work for some of my favorite yarn companies. I’ve even gone back to where I started and have submitted designs to both print and online magazines.
Do you have a favorite knitting tip that you’d like to share with our readers?
Swatch! It’s so important, not just for gauge but also if you hit a snag with a stitch pattern or some shaping detail. It’s so much simpler to cast on a small number of stitches in the same multiple as the stitch pattern and swatch a sample rather than work on the actual piece and then have to rip back all those stitches if it doesn’t work out.
When did you start sewing, and what inspired you to create your very first quilt?
You’ve created several award-winning quilts, including “Splendor in the Grass,” which won Best of Show at the 2009 International Quilt Festival in Chicago. Congratulations! What’s the story behind that quilt?
Cutting-Garden Quilts
You’ve been teaching workshops across the United States and in Canada. What can students expect from your workshops?
How did you first get started as a knitter?
Mary Lou (shown at left), your book 
Together you’ve coauthored a follow-up to Out of the Box called 
How long did it take you to go from basic quilting classes to designing your own quilts?
Your daughter-in-law, Olivia Lynch, made some incredible cookies to celebrate the release of !Quilt Fiesta! What can you tell us about those cookies?
Could you give us an example of a design that was inspired by one of your bike rides?
Your quilts have received considerable recognition over the years. What’s one quilt you’re especially proud of?
What inspired you both to become quilters?
What gave you the idea to form your quilt-design company,
Mary has brought me from the dark side into the bright.
How did you first get introduced to quiltmaking?
To celebrate 35 years of publishing America’s Best-Loved Craft and Hobby Books®, we asked our staff members to share what it’s like to work at Martingale & Company. Here’s what they said.
How did you first get introduced to quilting?
How does the Blended Border technique soften the lines of a quilt?