by Jennifer Adair | Master Knitter | Ewe & Company Instructor
Jennifer Adair
As a child, a new lawnmower meant that Grampa had been to the town dump, gathered supplies, and returned to his shop, a dark, cool, and secret place off the garage that smelled of machine oil and ancient wood, to rebuild the old push mower. A new bedcovering began when Grandma disassembled a worn out quilt to salvage the batting and any other still useful material. Making a quilt from whole new cloth would have amazed her, and saddened her at the waste.
Without brothers, I learned sewing, knitting, carpentry, and metalsmithing from both parents and grandparents. They taught me to work with my hands, to solve problems using what is at hand, and to work until the job is done.
Armed with a bachelor degree from Texas A&M University, I spent the next 10 years in a “left brain” world of construction management, schedules, and linear thinking. In 1986, I took a stained glass class and soon had a thriving side business making panels for home builders. In 1996 I left my “day job” and opened a glass studio, focusing on fused art glass.
Wanting something to do with my hands while selling my work at fine art and craft shows, I began carrying knitting projects with me. It’s portable and lets me work with lots of color.
Creating my own patterns is exciting and challenging. Knitting is such a wonderful combination of precise logic, mathematics, and organic growth.
It also connects me to the community, through teaching, a shawl ministry, and local fiber groups. As with the glass, my focus is on color, texture, organic forms, and the creative use of “scrap.”
Why do you knit? Post your comments here.
Ewe & Company 
My mother was always knitting and giving her afghans to nursing homes where she was a nurse. My grandmother made all of her grandchildren afghans before she was no long able to knit … she wanted us to have something to remember her by. I love being able to sit quietly and “create” . And, I am not much on watching T.V. so this gives me something to do while I sit with my husband in the evening. I love making something that I can give to someone who really appreciate the beauty and time that went into it. I was a computer administrator for years and knitting is so much easier to deal with than computers!!
Susan Delaney