Holly Chayes

Welcome! I'm Holly Chayes.

This online space has been around in one form or another since 2010, it focuses on making, creativity and living a curious life, plus a lot of clothing.

Some of the projects I've worked on in the past 10+ years include...

Talking About Clothes with Holly Chayes

An interview podcast that's all about clothing (and also, not *really* about clothing at all). Find all the details and listen to conversations about comfort, style, change and shopping here. Or search for Talking About Clothes with Holly Chayes wherever you listen to podcasts.

Who Wears Who?

The Self-Made Wardrobe Project

Predecessor to Who Wears Who, a year-long challenge in 2014/2015 where I only wore clothes I made. That year would have been a lot easier if the clothes had magically made themselves. Learn more about The Self-Made Wardrobe Project and explore the archives here.

The Shawl Geometry Book Series

Enough shawl shapes to keep you knitting for a lifetime. A multi-year exploration of math, shape and space in knitting, where I documented traditional shawl shaping, and iterated on those traditions to create new recipes of shawl shaping. Ultimately this lead to 75+ shapes, and 400+ pages of common and uncommon shawl shaping instructions. This project was inspired by a dozen individual shawl designs, each encapsulating a love of geometric lace design. You can find The Shawl Geometry Series here.

Thank you for being here with me. –Holly

12 shawls in 2013

31 Dec 2013

FOs, thoughts & things

All the shawls of 2013. Shawls that were just finished, or begun and finished. 1. The Shawl Without A Name. From very early this year. 2. Aella. Also finished up early this year. I actually want to reknit this shawl, and make a bunch of pattern tweaks. 3. Mayur. The first shawl started and finished in 2013. A really simple pattern, knit with the delightful Unplanned Peacock’s superwash merino fingering. 4. Red Mesh Shawl. Started as a very last minute gift for Christmas last year. Bound off on New Years. But not posted about (or gifted) until March. The pattern is exclusive (and free) for people who join the Announce Announce list. 5. Anwar. This was a huge lesson in trusting my own color sense, and it looks way more complicated than it is. 6. Lapidarius. Because diamonds are a girl’s best friend, and Latin is fun to play with....

Noella – Mesh Swirl Shawl

30 Dec 2013

Administraaavia!, Pattern Releases

Noella is now available on Ravelry. Noella – The Mesh Swirls Shawl combines stockinette, mesh, and simple shaping to create a shawl that is the essence of meditative knitting. Loop after loop. Stitch after stitch. It’s the perfect project to work on while catching up with friends and family. “Noella” – a French Feminine form of Noël, which means Christmas. I love this shawl specifically for it’s simplicity. I started knit it at the end of 2012 just two days before Christmas, as a gift for my mother, and ended up giving it to her in mid March – but I think I get brownie points for it being before Mother’s Day. That being said – if you have more than two days – this shawl makes an excellent, special, last minute gift for any occasion. And if you don’t have more than two days, it makes a great project...

Inklings

19 Dec 2013

thoughts & things

Something about beginnings. Starting things. Casting on a project. Casting off on a voyage. New ideas. New projects. New Years. Something about endings. Finishing things. Binding off projects. Weaving in ends. Finalizing. Also casting off. Finished ideas. Done projects. Old years. Something about middles. Transitions, and transitioning. Old things into new things. Letting the transition happen. Seeing it coming and giving it space. No related posts.

Welcome! I'm Holly Chayes.