Treaty oak bag

Treaty Oak Bag by Corrina Ferguson

What is Being Made

The Treaty Oak Bag is a felted knitted bag inspired by the Treaty Oak, a 250-plus-year-old oak tree located in Jacksonville, Florida. The design captures the natural beauty and character of the tree's knots and swirls through a multi-colored knitted construction. This is a structured accessory piece suitable for everyday use, combining both aesthetic appeal and practical functionality.

Craft and Techniques

This project is executed using the knitting craft. The bag features fair-isle colorwork, a traditional technique that allows multiple colors to be incorporated into a single row of knitting, creating intricate patterned designs. The finished piece is felted, a process that transforms the knitted fabric through moisture, heat, and agitation to create a denser, more structured material. This felting process gives the bag its finished appearance and durability while emphasizing the color variations and pattern details throughout the design.

Stitches Used

The pattern employs fundamental knitting stitches documented in the stitch dictionary:

• Knit (k) – the primary stitch forming the fabric base
• Purl (p) – used in combination with knit stitches to create texture and pattern definition

These basic stitches are combined through fair-isle techniques to build the multi-colored pattern that echoes the natural forms of the Treaty Oak's branches.

Materials and Tools

Yarn: The Treaty Oak Bag is worked in Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Bulky weight yarn, a premium blend of 85% wool and 15% mohair. This yarn composition provides warmth, elasticity, and a subtle sheen. Each skein contains 125 yards (114 meters) and weighs 114 grams (4 ounces). Three colorways are used:

• Main Color (MC): Sable – 1 skein
• Contrast Color 1 (CC1): Wild Oak – 1 skein
• Contrast Color 2 (CC2): Oatmeal – 1 skein

The three woodsy brown shades work together to create depth and visual interest that reflects the natural coloring found in aged oak wood.

Needles and Notions: The pattern calls for US Size 13 (9.0 mm) circular needles in a 24-inch length for the main body of the bag, and US Size 13 (9.0 mm) double-pointed needles (dpns) for shaping and finishing sections. A tapestry needle is required for weaving in yarn ends and any seaming necessary after felting.

Difficulty Level

This project is rated as advanced difficulty. While the individual stitches are fundamental, the combination of fair-isle colorwork, managing multiple yarn colors simultaneously, and understanding the felting process requires experience and skill. Knitters should be comfortable with color changes, tension consistency across multiple colors, and the techniques involved in properly felting the finished piece to achieve the intended final dimensions and appearance.