Markers are for MSW

The Maryland Sheep and Wool (MSW) Festival takes over the Howard County Fairgrounds the first full weekend of  May.  The past two years, I've enjoyed visiting the vendors, seeing the wide variety of fibers, thinking of  possible garments to make with a uniquely dyed skein, and watching the sheep dog competition. Not all in that order and last year I did get hooked on using a drop spindle to make yarn from roving.

This year, I want to try something different and be a more active part in the festivities by entering the Skein and Garment Competition.

During the past year, I've made several top down sweaters.  A few of them were steeked (i.e., knit as a tube then cut to create openings).   I've also had a chance to spend time making a pair of socks and a vest using the fair isle technique (i.e., using two strands of two different yarns while knitting one row).

For my first entry, I decided to combine techniques - top down, steeking and fair isle - to create my own sweater.  This approach eliminates the possibility of my sweater being the same as another knitter's.

Before committing to a design, I used my markers and grid paper to create possible color combinations and patterns. Fortunately, the colors of the markers pretty much match colors of yarn in my stash so they help give me an idea as to how hey will look in the finished garment. This doesn't negate the need to swatch before starting the sweater. 

Watch the video below to see how to add color to using markers.