New Kickstarter Reward and the GN Blog Tour

If you haven't yet backed our Twin Peaks- inspired knitting pattern book, here's another incentive to get in on the action.

We've got an exciting new reward available!! My good pal Heather at Ewe Ewe is donating a Double Deco kit in the original colors. WOW! That's right. 10 balls of lovely Ewe So Sporty and the pattern, for your knitting delight.

This reward is now available on our Kickstarter page, here.

While you're in the Twin Peaks spirit, check out Teresa's guest post on the RainCityKnits blog about her Log Lady sweater for the Great Northern collection!

The Great Northern Blog Tour will continue through October 9th, when the Kickstarter campaign ends. See the schedule and check 'em out!

Scarves in the Round by Heather Walpole

I recently got the chance to review Heather Walpole's fantastic new book, Scarves in the Round, and wanted to share how much I loved it.

Heather is the owner/HBIC/creativity machine at one of my favorite yarn companies, Ewe Ewe. I work with her a lot and she's a friend, so I was very excited to see her book. When we were at TNNA I got to read through it ahead of her book signing, and it is great. There are dozens of lovely patterns in there, all worked in the round-- Horaay! Circular needles and mostly knit stitches! -- for your knitting enjoyment. There are cowls, infinity scarves, tube scarves, capelets... many of which I'd like to make and wear.

My favorite scarf is this one, "Pixel Perfect," which is worked as a tube, alternating a solid color (shown in Ewe So Sporty) with a gradient color-changing yarn (Ombre Sport by Freia Fibers). The effect is simple and striking.

Totally tubular, dude

I really enjoyed the projects and photos in the book, and I bet you will too.

Are you into it?? You can win a copy of the book!

To enter to win a copy from Stackpole Books, leave a comment below about why you like working in the round rather than flat. Be sure to include an email address so we can find you! Comment by Friday, June 19th to enter.

As Heather says in the book, get busy knitting yourself in circles!

TNNA recap!

Last weekend, the yarnfolk gathered in Columbus, OH for the fall 2015 TNNA tradeshow. This bi-annual event is where vendors sell yarn (and other crafty things) to store owners, people from all areas of the industry gather, classes are taught, and all the new designs and products are previewed before they get released to the public.

This was my first TNNA as a full-time designer, and I had a great time. I met some awesome folks, knit (although not as much as you might think), drank tons of beer, and hung out with designer and yarny friends new and old. There were also some meetings in there, too.

Beer flight at Wolf's Ridge, our first "meal"

L to R: Heidi Gustad, Carina Spencer, Allyson Dykhuizen, Me, Teresa Gregorio.

In the mornings, I hung with my friend Heather in her Ewe Ewe Yarns booth. I've worked with Heather's yarn a lot over the years and am a big supporter, so helping her sell it was no problem!

My wrap "Rainbows and Unicorns" in its natural environment

Heather Walpole and me rocking the knitwear

A huge reason that I decided to go to TNNA was that Teresa Gregorio and I are working on a project together, but had never met in person before. Teresa is awesome, and you should check out her designs if you haven't already. We had a very productive, fun time working together and not surprisingly, got a lot more done when we were sitting on the same couch than during our email sessions.

Schemin' (via @canaryknits on instagram)

Filmin' (via @canaryknits on instagram)

You may have heard rumblings about our project (and if you know me or Teresa personally, you certainly have), and we are almost ready to make an official announcement. Stay tuned for that!

Overall, TNNA was a great experience and worth the travel. I had never been to Columbus before and was pleasantly surprised with what it has to offer.

We're working on a YarnTalk episode about the show, so check back for that in a week or so!

Rainbows and Unicorns time

Pure knitting joy. Rainbows and Unicorns!

Every color in Ewe Ewe's line (that's 20 colors!) in glorious rainbow alignment. You can also use 

 scrap yarn, there is a yardage breakdown on the Ravelry pattern page.

This was so much fun to create. If you like knitting garter stitch and working the occasional short row, this will be your jam.

There are so many color overlap possibilities. How you wrap it makes it look so different each time. I'd love to see this in a gradient yarn, color-changing like Noro or an ombre...

Rainbows and Unicorns wrap

knitting pattern pdf

$5.99

Finishing up the KAL

My Knit Along with Ewe Ewe (and you?) is wrapping up! Today is the final official day of the Double Deco KAL and I posted about it over here.

I am in love with my new Double Deco wrap!

I knit really loose and it is HUGE.

It's officially cold in Chicago, so I have been using it constantly. Stay warm, fiber friends!

Double Deco Madness

We're into Week 5 of the Double Deco Knit-Along! So many great projects.

I love seeing what colors people chose. Some bold, some subtle, all awesome. These photos are a little old at this point, but you can see the color choices at least. I'll post another update once I have some more current pictures.

Keep it up, knitters!

Great TV Knitting

I don't think it's a secret that many designers watch things while knitting. I can only do this when the work is not very "think-y" and doesn't require many visual check-ins... so, garter stitch is the absolute perfect thing to knit knit knit while my attention is elsewhere.

Before you get too jealous of all the lazy, wonderful times I am having watching television, I'd estimate this is probably 10-15% of my worktime... and I usually do it at night after dinner.

While knitting my new Double Deco for the Knit-Along, I have been watching Hannibal and just started Outlander. These are verrry different shows (note to self/everyone: don't watch Hannibal before bed!) and shouldn't be watched back-to-back or whiplash may occur. I MEAN:

"I have feelings for you maybe" 

"I consider you my only friend and maybe also want to kill you and maybe you also want to kill me and maybe we just ate someone together and hey are you hungry cuz I got some nice flank steak in the freezer..."

So.

But hey! Back to the knitting. This is the tops when it comes to letting those stitches fly.

If you still want to join the Double Deco KAL, it's not too late! Check out the Ravelry thread, pick out your colors, download the pattern, and get started. 

If you're already knitting along (or crafting something else) while you watch something, leave a comment and let me know what you consider the perfect TV/movie/knitting combination!

Double Deco KAL begins!

Hey there! Are you knitting along with us yet?

 

Check out my Week 1 techniques post over at Ewe Ewe. We're casting on and getting started. Next week we will finish the first section of Wing 1 and Wing 2.

Make sure to label your posts with #DoubleDecoKAL so we can find each other! I can't wait to see what you're up to. So far the colors people have chosen have been super fun.

new pattern - Rita Hayworth cropped sweater

Named after the incredible Margarita Carmen Cansino (Rita Hayworth was her Hollywood-friendly name), dancer, actress, bombshell. A 1940s-inspired fitted sweater with some updates-- wide boatneck, deep V in back, cropped length, half sleeves, pure sass.

The ribbed waist ensures a snug and flattering fit, whether you wear it over a flowy blouse, or all by itself, you daring minx you.

Fits with a bit of negative ease. Shown is size M (to fit 36" but I'm more like a 38").  The strap makes sure it stays where it is supposed to, along with looking pretty neat. Knit with Ewe So Sporty, my go-to washable merino yarn.

I hope you enjoy this one as much as I do!

36" size on a 36" mannequin

Rita Hayworth cropped sweater pattern PDF

$7.99

Double Deco Knit Along!

This is exciting! I'm leading a KAL for one of my favorite recent patterns, Double Deco. 

 

Starting Wednesday October 1st you can knit along with us, learning tips and tricks along the way... and in the end you'll have your very own gorgeous wrap.

Head over to the Ewe Ewe blog to find out how to join in. There's a coupon for 25% off the pattern price!

Once you've got your materials, join us on the Ewe Ewe blog and/or the Double Deco KAL forum on Ravelry!

Here are the colors of Ewe So Sporty I'll be using for the new version of the shawl. What do you think? If you're having trouble choosing colors, check out my color combinations blog post!

 

New crochet pattern! Patches the Elephant

Do these curtains make my ears look big?

Patches is here! I made this squishy, huggable pillow-toy for Ewe Ewe Yarns in their excellent superwash Wooly Worsted.

This happy creature is about a foot long, a nice large size for playing or snuggling at nap time. Patches only has two legs-- but really, how many legs do you need when you're a pillow?

The better to hear you with, my dear

I chose colors that were sunny and bright and unisex (at least in my opinion! I was never one for the pink-or-blue dichotomy). The pattern involves minimal finishing: the belly-ful body is join-as-you-go, stuffed with plenty of cushy stuffing, quick embroidered eyes and sew the ears on-- done. 

It's times like these when I wish I had a handy kid-model for scale. We'll have to settle for this shot of me being a goof.

Do the Pachyderm Rock

Patches the Elephant crochet pattern PDF

$6

Double Deco Shawl knitting pattern!

I'm so excited to share this with you: My new knitting pattern Double Deco is now live on Ravelry!

It was designed with Ewe So Sporty which is just lovely to work with. A soft, springy merino sport weight and it's washable... can't beat that.

Tina (my dressform) can't help being bootylicious

This shawl is looong, perfect for wrapping yourself up on these chilly afternoons. It's a simple knit (deceptively so) with a bold graphic style. The knitting is mostly very very easy garter stitch (knit stitch forevaaah!) -- If you can increase (kfb), pick up stitches, and knit, you're good to go on this. TV knitting at its finest.

Like wings!

There are so many ways to wear this. And think of all the 4-color combinations you could do! I want to make a more pastel version at some point. 

Thanks to Heather Walpole at Ewe Ewe Yarns for the yarn and inspiration.

I hope you enjoy this fun pattern!

Double Deco Shawl knitting pattern

$6

Ewe So Sporty, gurrrl.

Hi fiber friends.

Lest you think that I've fallen off the face of the earth since moving to Chicago, here's a little sneak peak of an upcoming project. I am working on a pattern for Ewe Ewe Yarns' new sportweight, Ewe So Sporty! I love this yarn, it is so soft and smooth... and 100% merino superwash (score).

I can't wait to share this fun knitting pattern! Stay tuned.