Cecelia Campochiaro, Curious Knitter

When you first learned to knit, you might have wondered why certain stitches made fabric that curled, or why right-leaning and left-leaning decreases didn’t quite match, or why charts didn’t really show what the knitted fabric would look like. Knitting patterns might have seemed completely unworkable. If we stick with the craft, most knitters eventually take these oddities in stride and work around them. We learning to fudge what we can’t fix, and we figure that’s the way knitting goes. We read our stitches, let the habits of our skilled hands take over, and integrate knitting into our lives the way we ride a bicycle, make a cup of tea, or steer a car. Not Cecelia Campochiaro. With a scientific mind (trained by a PhD in physical chemistry), she approached those small curiosities as chances to investigate knitting more closely. By making small variations—holding several yarns together and creating gradual striping patterns, repeating a sequence of stitches with a slight offset, or mirroring the same stitches on both sides of the work—she has explored the nature of knitting and created extraordinary fabrics. Her latest book, Reversible Knitting, shows the differences in drape, texture, design, and color that emerge simply from removing the idea of “right” and “wrong” sides of the fabric. The richness in Cecelia’s work lies in its simplicity. Like knitting itself, the careful repetitions and variations that she presents add up to a project far greater than the sum of its parts, as pleasing to the eye as to the hand. Links Reversible Knitting (https://ceceliacampochiaro.com/reversible-knitting/) is Cecelia’s latest book. Making Marls (https://ceceliacampochiaro.com/making-marls/) explores working with strands of different colored yarns held together. Sequence Knitting (https://ceceliacampochiaro.com/sequence-knitting/) examines the surprisingly rich results of repeating a group of stitches. Parastripe Shawl (https://farmfiberknits.com/library/RSPIFfjdRk6icOdEBaAvGA) is available in the Farm & Fiber Knits Library and as part of the Creative Color Collection. (https://farmfiberknits.com/library/LuKQD_4ITWmxBc5CM5MuSg) Carson Demers’s book Knitting Comfortably (https://ergoiknit.com/) offers advice on the ergonomics of knitting. This episode is brought to you by: Treenway Silks is where weavers, spinners, knitters and stitchers find the silk they love. Select from the largest variety of silk spinning fibers, silk yarn, and silk threads & ribbons at TreenwaySilks.com (https://www.treenwaysilks.com/). You'll discover a rainbow of colors, thoughtfully hand-dyed in Colorado. Love natural? Treenway's array of wild silks provide choices beyond white. If you love silk, you’ll love Treenway Silks, where superior quality and customer service are guaranteed. The Michigan Fiber Festival—Michigan’s largest sheep and wool festival—is a vibrant world of fiber arts. Discover five days of classes with nationally recognized teachers in spinning, weaving, lacemaking, dyeing, felting, and rug hooking. Enjoy three days of shopping. Delight in shearing and fiber arts demonstrations. Enjoy a truly immersive experience. Join us in August at the picturesque Allegan County Fairgrounds (you can even camp on site!) Find more details at michiganfiberfestival.info. (The Michigan Fiber Festival – Michigan's largest sheep and wool festival – is a vibrant world of fiber arts. Discover five days of classes with nationally recognized teachers in spinning, weaving, lacemaking, dyeing, felting, and rug hooking. Enjoy three days of shopping. Delight in shearing and fiber arts demonstrations. Enjoy a truly immersive experience. Join us in August at the picturesque Allegan County Fairgrounds (you can even camp on site!) Find more details at michiganfiberfestival.info.)