I have had a little trouble getting back into walking. I’ve been taking walks with my dog Griffin for over seven years, but our newest dog, Missy, is scared of people on walks, and I don’t want to push her to a point of aggression, and she can’t be left alone. So that leaves me walking with no dog (and no people, because pandemic). When walking I have to hear my surroundings, so that nixes listening to music or audio recordings. Walking the neighborhood under these conditions is boring. What to do?

Nålbinding to the rescue! I have found that I can nålbind and walk at the same time. Now, it is with a stitch I am comfortable with (fun fact, there are 4,000 or so ways to loop yarn into a continuous fabric, and naming can be tricky and a bone of contention in nålbinding circles), I am working on small pieces (that will eventually be sewn together into something larger), and the road is fairly even. I have read that people can walk and spin, or even walk and knit, so compared to those nålbinding and walking is an achievable task. I do start my spirals before I venture out, because that is the trickiest bit, but once I’m in the steady rhythm of the pattern, I’m good to go. I think I may even be able to crochet and walk, if I had my yarn in a bag (I can make beanie hats from memory). Knitting and walking? I drop stitches sitting down, so that is probably out. Spinning and walking? Ooo, now there is an exciting goal!

Unlike knitting and crochet, nålbinding (which I have heard pronounced as nawl-bending) is made by passing lengths of yarn through loops. Since the yarn must pass through, the crafter works with sections of yarn, rather than from a ball. A way to increase the amount of yarn that can pass through a thumb-sized loop is to use a nål (needle) with two or more holes. I also carve a channel along the holes to reduce bulk. In the picture above I have the nål loaded as much as I dare! I made 4 four-foot loops and threaded two loops through each hole. As you work, you can pull the working yarn through the hole and keep the loops neat. If you would like to see a short video on an in-process piece, here it is.

This is my forever project. I’m making something for me, so it is on the bottom of the priority list and I use it to fill the gaps between other projects. I decided to make spirals (I like spirals), and sew them all together, because it gives me flexibility if I change goals mid stream. Current goal is to make an ombre vest. I have made two hand spun yarn cakes into nålbound spirals, and have two more yarn cakes ready for nålbinding.

Aw, look how nicely the blended colors in the yarn go with the needle! I’m still plugging away at making a gazillion nålbound circles to construct a larger piece. I can usually do one spiral per car pick up line session. It is going to take awhile. The yarn is spindle spun undyed local alpaca, and the needle was carved from an aged grape vine and sealed with tung oil. I just enjoyed the color play today.

With virtual learning and a puppy to watch it has been hard to find the time and energy to do any needle craft, but I did find some space to get back to a nålbinding project now that my youngest is F2F (it probably dates me that I am using this abbreviation for the first time). Not only did I get to stitch, I did so outside in beautiful weather. Bliss.

This is drop spindle spun undyed alpaca and the plan is to make many small spirals and stitch them together to make … something. The plan is in flux, but if the technique works, I will probably make many things using the method. I like spirals, and I dislike making large boring blocks that never end. Somehow a large stack is different than a big rectangle.