Welcome to the 2025
Sprang subscription

​the year of the shirt / sweater / 
garment
aka the year of shaping & finishing techniques
Picture
Photo from the book "Pleteni a ramu" by Anna Cerna, published in 1912, featuring Slovakian girls creating sprang bibs, two at a time ... or front and back at the same time.
The year of the sprang sweater / vest / shirt! 
There are many ways to make a garment using the sprang technique. Begin at the neck, begin at the hem, begin at the wrist ... 
A number of details deserve consideration. For example the stitch you use affects the shaping: lace stitches will sit wider, the 3-3 interlinking stitch has threads sitting closer together in a tighter structure. 
We will discuss a number of approaches over the next 12 months, and share with you ideas. The goal is to help you understand how sprang can be used practically.

If you seriously want to make an adult-sized garment, Carol strongly recommends you begin by making small garments. This will help you to better understand the process. Words and instructions can only go so far. There is truly something about getting your eyes and fingers to understand and know the process.
We recommend you make doll-sized or child-size garments for starters. When you feel comfortable with one of the many approaches, and decide to try making a garment for yourself, some of the dangers may well have been averted by your experience with the smaller garment.​
Here is the list of the topics, diverse ideas for creating a sprang shirt or vest or sweater.

The flat-warp shirt, boatneck
Cut apart, secure ends, sew seams
Boatneck design suggested by Coby Reijndeers-Baas, assembling three pieces of flat warp.
Calculate size, create a slit and button holes
The flatwarp shrug.
Shaping by means of surface design
The flat-warp shirt, V-neck, worked from hem to shoulder. Stabilising the base of the V.
Hella Skowronski's shirt-in-sections.
​Work a long warp in manageable short sections. 
T-shape shirt suggested by Fenny Nijman. Begin at the hem with one width of warp, and later add shorter threads for the sleeves.
Circular warp: the shrug
Carol's summer shirt.
​Circular warp for the body, flat warp at the shoulders.
The circular warp V-neck shirt with options to cover the tassels at the hem.
The 9-piece shirt
Sleeve treatments
Cutting a neck hole

Virtual meet up

I look forward to sharing information with you, and accompanying you in your explorations of sprang. I will be available for a monthy sprang chat via Zoom, on the 3rd Wednesday of the month. There you are welcome to ask me questions, and receive on-line support. You will also be able to meet others who are interested in sprang.


The monthly Zoom meeting was originally intended as a question-and-answer, for those working through the patterns. What has happened is, that we start the meeting by asking if anyone has a question. Often what follows is a fascinating discussion of the current sprang structure. When silence follows, the moderator asks participants, one by one, to talk about where he/she is at, what you are working on, your challenges and successes, a bit of show-and-tell. A variety of questions, tips, and insights generally follows.
Join the Facebook private group  here to share your trials and tribulations and your successes too.

Over the years, Carol has put together several helpful videos and tutorials that will help and inspire you to make a variety of items. 
Working with wide warps (WWWW)
One of the more frequently asked questions when considering sprang garments has to do with managing wide warps. My DVD IntroductionToSprang contains a clip that addresses this issue.
The critical moment is when you grab the new handful of warp threads. Take a moment to identify the most-recent stitch: the thread came under two, one of the two was the correct partner and the 2nd thread needs to wait for the next stitch. The critical thing is to find the correct partners for that next stitch. Take a moment to look at the threads in your hands, and all will become clear.

Chopsticks tend to be 8 or 9 inches long, and work for narrow warps. For wider warps you may want to invest in some longer dowels. You can get them at the hardware store. 1/4 inch dowels work nicely. They often come in 36 inch long lengths which you can cut shorter.

In the video I am working with a long knitting needle. You can get these at 2nd hand stores. You might also work with a safety string, drawing the safety string through after every handful of threads.
​A helpful hint came from Kevie, who says she works with a safety string tied in front. After every handful, move the knot in the safety string, drawing one end through the just-finished stitches, and removing the other end from the completed stitches.
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