Go Knit In Your Hat

Okay, let's get this raffle started

2012-01-30T08:55:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, I posted about a fundraiser I wanted to do to benefit Summer Search Philadelphia, a fabulous organization that helps high-risk teens stay in school, get into college and graduate from college. You can read my post here. My husband has been working with this non-profit group for a while now, and we have been so impressed with both the kids who are part of the program, and the staff and volunteers who help make it happen.

I'm ready to begin the raffle and I have been so grateful for the outpouring of support from all of you. Check out the amazing prizes that have been so generously donated so far in support of Summer Search:

A signed copy of Wendy Knits Lace, donated by Wendy Johnson

A selection of patterns from StephCat, donated by (of course!) Stephannie Tallent (her Ravelry pattern page is here)
A knitter's goodie package full of handdyed yarn and patterns, donated by Black Bunny Fibers

: Representative skein shown; I'll select for you based on your color preferences and available inventory

Lovely-to-spin shetland/mohair/silk roving, donated by Puff the Magic Rabbit
A spinner's goodie package full or handdyed roving, donated by Black Bunny Fibers

A copy of Hunter Hammersen's upcoming book full of beautiful patterns, The Knitter's Curiosity Cabinet, in either PDF or printed form (expected publication date spring 2012)

: Crocus Sock (from The Knitter's Curiosity Cabinet)

An advance signed copy of my new book, which will be published this fall (target date October 2) by Lark Crafts -- I will give you one of my author copies as soon as I get them and sign it for you.

An accessory handknit by Somebunny's Love
A selection of 5 PDF patterns from Sailingknitter/Liann Originals (link to her Ravelry pattern page is here)
A selection of PDF patterns from the Lady Wyvern (link to her Ravelry pattern page is here)
Goodies from Ancient Arts Fibre Crafts....
A gift certificate to WEBS, generously donated by Caitcreates
Three skeins of gorgeous Brooklyn Tweed Loft yarn in the winner's choice of color and the Sakura shawl pattern donated by Loop Yarn in Philadelphia

: Brooklyn Tweed's Sakura Shawl

A prize to be announced, donated by Universal Yarn
A prize to be announced, donated by designer Chrissy Gardiner of Gardiner Yarn Works
A prize to be announced from KnitCircus magazine
A signed copy of Knitting Knee-Highs, by Barb Brown

A copy of "The Fine Line," a beautiful pattern booklet by Grace Anna Farrow

To be eligible to win these prizes, all you have to do is make a donation to Summer Search Philadelphia. For each five dollars you donate, you will get one chance to win. So if you donate five dollars, you get one ticket in the raffle; ten dollars gets you two; and so on.

To try to maximize participation, there are 3 ways you can donate money. The best is to go directly to the Summer Search Philadelphia website right here and use a credit card to donate directly. When you receive your email confirmation, forward it to me at summersearchATblackbunnyfibersDOTCAHM and I will create your tickets and put them in a Safe Place until the drawing.

If you would prefer to send me a check or even cash (although I cannot be responsible for anything getting lost in the mail), email me at summersearchATblackbunnyfibersDOTCAHM and I will provide you with my mailing address. I will give the money to Summer Search Philadelphia and put your tickets in the raffle.

If you are a Paypal person, please shoot me an email at summersearchATblackbunnyfibersDOTCAHM and I will provide you with the email address associated with my paypal account. Once again, I will give that money to Summer Search Philadelphia and put your ticket(s) in the raffle.

I will check the special email addy several times a day so I can respond quickly but if takes a couple of hours, please be patient!

If you can't donate but would like to help, please don't overlook the best, most important thing you can do: SPREAD THE WORD. Link to this blog post on whatever social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) you use, tell your blog-readers about the raffle, post the link in appropriate Ravelry groups, tell your knitting, crocheting and spinning friends, and so on.

The raffle is open as of the time you read this post, and to be eligible for a prize, donations must be received by midnight, EST, February 29th, 2012.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart (and the bottom of crusty old Mr. Go-Knit-In-Your-Hat's heart) for your help with this!

Let's get the thermometer going up, shall we? I've set a goal of a thousand bucks. Can we hit that? Might we even top that?

No-Bull Book Review: Knitting with the Color Guys, by Kaffe Fassett & Brandon Mably

2012-01-25T08:10:00.000-05:00

While I was at VK Live, I picked up a couple of books simply because I couldn't help myself. One of them was the brand-new knitting book by Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably. Knitting with The Color Guys: Inspiration, Ideas, and Projects from the Kaffe Fassett Studio (Sixth and Spring 2012; MSRP $24.95, available for $15.80 through the link above as of the time of this writing), is a lush, gorgeous book full of, well, color. From the endpapers featuring a knitted motif to the gorgeous photographs throughout to the projects inside, Fassett and Mably live up to their billing as "the color guys" (although shouldn't it be the "colour guys"?). Let's take a closer look.

KWTCG is a hardback book, about 9 x 10.5 inches, with about 176 pages. From the very beginning, you know what this book is about: indeed, in his introduction, Kaffe Fassett characterizes his style as "full-on color." The approach is intuitive, focusing on experimenting and playing with color, rather than giving the knitters a set of hard-and-fast rules. For example, Fassett urges knitters to be bold and try things, reminding them "don't judge too harshly till you have at least ten inches of knitting on those needles." To make it easier to customize projects and color combinations, Fassett notes that many of the book's motifs are done in different colorways, making it easier for a knitter to pick one that suits her taste or home decor. (A special note of commendation must be given to photographer Debbie Patterson both for the lovely photography and for including a nice shot of Mr. Fassett's well-turned leg in her portrait of him.)

Mably's introduction tells a bit more about the duo's design process. "I was intrigued to see Kaffe using a bright palette in bold contrasts, as oposed to his more usual tone on tone palettes -- usually I am the one to reach for bolder colors and be more graphic with my design work." Mably notes that he and Fassett design "directly on the needles from simple charts" but echoes Fassett's direction to put the work up and stand back to view it before deciding whether one likes it. Interestingly, he reveals that the collection grew without "an ordered plan," as the pair would begin by casting on, then pin up a piece of work before deciding, based on factors like the weight of the yarn or the nature of the pattern, whether a given piece of knitting wanted to be a pillow or a scarf or a throw.

Multistripe Stole (KF)

One aspect of this book (and something that I've noticed in other Fassett books) is the inclusion of photographs showing various sources of design inspiration. Before we even get to a single pattern, we see a close-up of paintings, cushions, pottery, sources of the shape and color and texture that end up in the knitting. It's fun to page through the book, paying special attention to things other than the knitting -- the circular weaving of a chain seat, the geometric wooden inlays of a desk, brightly colored pieces of tile in a mosaic.

Half-Circle Throw (KF)

Ah yes, there I go, getting lost in the color and pattern and texture.

Dark Dot Scarf (KF)

Let's get back to the nuts and bolts: The heart of the book is divided into four sections: "Soft Tones," "Singing Color," "Moody Hues" and "Rich Shades." As you can tell from the headings, each section revolves around a general color scheme.

Trapezoid Throw (KF)

"Soft Tones" is inspired by "the delicate, restrained end of the color palette," items like spring flowers, beach pebbles, all-white or all-gray outfits, weathered wood. There are six patterns: a striped stole, a baby blanket featuring a triangular motif, fingerless gloves with a zigzag pattern, a second stole knit in Rowan Kidsilk Haze for a "mossy" texture, a scarf with a very easy but effective dot fair isle pattern, and a checkerboard hat, fingerless gloves and legwarmer ensemble.

Checkerboard Ensemble (BM)

"Singing Color" features the vivid hues of crayons, party balloons, carnivals, fresh fruit and vegetables. Nine patterns use bold, bright color: from a zigzag throw to a shadowbox cushion and throw, a pineapple blanket, a zigzag cushion, a triangular cushion, a throw featuring a half-circle motif, a wide scarf with broken stripes and a cushion with all sorts of striped patterns and an hourglass shape in the middle.

Multistripe Cushion (KF)

"Moody Hues" emphasizes faded, stonewashed textures, "the colors of old tapestries or ethnic wraps that have seen a lot of wear." A cleverly-designed blanket featuring diagonal stripes that form blocks, dotted cushions, a blanket knit in striped blocks, a softly striping scarf, variations on the triangle cushion and zigzag cushion, a throw and cushion with trapezoidal pattern, a diagonal garter stitch scarf typify the moody, chalky hues of this section.

X-Factor Blanket (KF)

Last is "Rich Shades," obviously using deeper, darker, more dramatic shades. The red circle stole is a good example; the relatively simple shapes gain drama and depth when knit in ruby red and navy blue. A variation of the dot scarf, diagonal scarves knit in the rich hues of a color-changing yarn, a stole with accordion-style pattern, a ridged scarf, a scarf featuring the half-circle design, and scarf and legwarmers with a "wiggle" pattern use these rich shades to perfection.

Red Circle Stole (KF)

The "Useful Information" section gives some directions on color knitting techniques (like one- and two-handed stranded knitting, how to weave and twist strands, intarsia, duplicate stitch, and information on yarn categories and substitution.

The numbers are as follows: a total of 31 patterns (although some are variations on each other, I counted each separate pattern entry in the table of contents), of which 4 are stoles; 8 are blankets or throws; 2 pair of fingerless gloves; one hat; 9 are scarves; 8 are cushion covers; plus two pairs of legwarmers.

Accordion Stole (BM)

I know that some knitters will take a quick look at the patterns in this book and say something like "The patterns are all so simple; why should I buy the book?" But really, this book isn't about patterns per se. The patterns are on the basic side because the focus is on the color -- combinations of color, unexpected pairings, bursts of hue that can rev you up or relax you. And an equally important part of the book is encouraging knitters to play with color; not to simply copy the combinations that Fassett and Mably have created, as fabulous as they are, but to find something that inspires you, colors that make you happy, to play with shape, to go out on a limb a little and add colors spontaneously and see what you get.

Opal Dot Scarf (KF)

Likewise, I am sure that some knitters will look at the patterns, see that they call for numerous skeins of yarn and freak out. But I don't think that the point is necessarily to have you run out and buy every single color of every yarn used in a given pattern. Yes, if you have the money you could, and more power to you, but you could just as easily pull together a bunch of leftover balls, single skeins and other odds and ends in about the same weight or category, and use them to craft your own color combinations. Each pattern includes several paragraphs discussing how the colors interact, with suggestions for additional palettes. Knowing, say, that a pillow requires a lighter and darker shade of the same color, plus a border color, makes it easier to play around with one's own favorites, with some assurance of getting a pleasing result.

Zigzag Fingerless Gloves (KF)

The yarns used in the book all come from Rowan, and range from Kidsilk Haze (airy baby mohair with silk), fingering weight sock yarn, dk-weight cotton, heavy worsted Summer Tweed, chunky color-shading wool, bulky-weight Big Wool and more -- just about every category of yarn is used somewhere. The patterns are for items other than sweaters -- stoles, throws, pillows, scarves, and a few pairs of fingerless gloves and a hat -- and are one size. You'll find thorough directions if you want to duplicate the colors shown in the sample patterns, and the patterns feature charts (mostly in color) and diagrams to help with color layouts.

Trapezoid Cushion (KF)

There are all different kinds of knitting books, and I value them all. This is a book that I will turn to over and over again when I need a jolt of color, when I'm looking for inspiration, or when I need my spirits lifted by gorgeous photos of pretty things. Of course, the lovely projects packed with color will also provide many hours of knitting enjoyment, especially if one follows the Color Guys' advice to "play with these ideas in any way that occurs to you as you sit down with your own yarn stash."

What a difference a year makes

2012-01-22T19:38:00.001-05:00

A year ago, a little girl was born prematurely. Her mom had a nightmarish pregnancy with many complications. Her mom even had a difficult time during the emergency C-section (and we're very thankful she is okay today). We were so grateful when both Lily and her mom made it home from the hospital, and I am thrilled to report that today we attended Lily's first birthday party. It should not come as a surprise that such a darling little girl was given a tiara to wear

and although she looks a little skeptical in the above photo, she quickly warmed up to all the guests.

Lily is now a smart, healthy and gorgeous little girl. Indeed, she proved she was related to me by immediately recognizing the inherent goodness of cake.

About a year ago, I started knitting premie caps for Lily; this January, I made her a quilt I knew she could romp on.

Lots of bright colors for a bright girl.

(Thanks to Boy Twin, my quilt holder....)

What a difference a year makes. Happy birthday, Lily! We're delighted to have you as part of our family, and we hope to celebrate a hundred or more years of birthdays with you.

No-Bull Book Review: Stitch London, by Lauren O'Farrell

2012-01-20T08:21:00.000-05:00

Having just spent several wonderful days with some incredible Brits at VK Live, it is perfect timing for me to show you a book called Stitch London: 20 Kooky Ways to Knit the City and More, by Lauren O'Farrell (David and Charles 2011). I recently received a review copy of this book, which was released last fall, so let's set off on another No-Bull Book Review.

Stitch London is a paperback book, roughly 9 inches square, and it's bursting with color, line drawings, photos and funky design (MSRP $22.99, available for $14.99 through the link above as of the time of this writing). Its mission is simple:

In the midst of pointy spires, shiny skyscrapers, sloshy riversides and scurrying stitchers, Stitch London was born of the fact that I can't help but see London knitwise. And I'd like everyone else to see London knitwise, too.

O'Farrell goes on to assure the knitter that her book consists of "squee" knits -- knits that will inspire in the viewer the uncontrollable urge to shout "squee!": "The patterns aren't fancy-schmancy and they don't require you to be a sage of stitching. All you need is basic knitting knowledge, a willingness to switch on the part of your brain that has crazed ideas and let it run things for a while, and a total lack of yarn snobbery."

She urges the reader to experiment and riff off her patterns, advising "Grab them by the stitches, twist them, shake them, turn them purple, love them, hug them and call them George. . . . Mix buttons, pipe cleaners, watch cogs, cat hair, glitter glue, beads and all manner of crafty bits togehter with your knitting and see how they get on."

Before launching into patterns, Stitch London provides the reader with some introductory material. O'Farrell explains her difficulty ratings and abbreviations; lists essential and non-essential supplies; provides some knitting translations to ease the transition from UK to US; gives a needle/hook conversion chart; and (my favorite) provides some London slang.

Next up are the patterns. First chapter is "Little London Landmarks," and provides miniature knitted versions of Big Ben,

the Tower Bridge, and the characteristic red phone box -- all adorable and charming. "Little Londoners" focuses on people, from the Queen (with corgis), a beefeater (with black fun fur for the hat, natch), and police officers.

"Rat Race London" takes the focus away from knitted minis to full-sized items -- a scarf with a knit-in pocket for your Oyster card (a transportation e-pass), a book cozy to protect your reading material, and a bag cover (with mulitple versions, including the Union Jack version shown below). "Work work work" provides you with a laptop cover, in several versions, and mug cozies (also with several versions).

"City Critters" looks at the non-human citizens of London, including Cooey the Pigeon (I think I met Cooey when I was at Trafalgar Square), a raven, a mouse, and a fox. "The Great Outdoors" features a picnic blanket made from recycled plastic bags, bugs (also made from recycled plastic bags) and Umbrella Fellas, little stuffed creatures to hang from your umbrella handle.

Stitch London concludes with technical information, including about a dozen or so pages on how to knit and other skills (e.g. cast on, decreases, increases).

My book even came with yarn, teeny needles and pipe cleaners (for whiskers) sufficient for the knitting of Cooey the Pigeon. (Visit the book's web site for more gratuitous knitted pigeon photos.)

These patterns are all one size or accessories, so other than the designs meant to cover things (like mug and laptop covers), where you'll have to keep an eye on gauge so they fit the object, there aren't any sizing issues. The patterns generally take relatively small amounts of yarn in various colors, good for using up stash and leftover balls. The yarn weights tend to be middle-of-the-road thickness, mostly DK to worsted weight. Newer knitters need to know that O'Farrell has a very loose approach to yarn category, quantity and thickness, and this may cause agita if you are used to following instructions exactly. For example, yarn quantities are given as ounces and grams rather than yards and meters. Yarn categories are fuzzy; for example, patterns list "DK (worsted) yarn", by which O'Farrell suggests that "DK" is used in the UK for the weight of yarn called "worsted" in the US. Rather than bicker over it, allow me to suggest that since the vast majority of these patterns are for things that aren't going to require fit in the sense that a sweater does, and since most of them require only small amounts of yarn since they are for small toy-like objects, that you can use small amounts of either category 3 or 4 yarn, depending on what you have. If you use all the same yarn weight within a single project, you should be okay, although the finished object may end up a wee bit bigger or smaller. You can also fiddle with changing needle size to compensate for small variations in yarn weight.

To sum up, Stitch London is a breezy, fun book filled with adorable models of various British icons, as well as some patterns for cozies and a picnic blanket and other odds and ends. Most of the projects require relatively small amounts of yarn and are perfect for using up leftover bits. With the London Olympics round the corner, and a new season of "Downton Abbey" on the telly, Stitch London will go down easier than a cup of Yorkshire Gold or a pint of bitter. God save the Queen!

In which I go to VK Live, meet Alice Starmore, kiss a bald head with lipstick on, and ride in a clown car limousine of awesomeness

2012-01-17T19:04:00.001-05:00

Last night, my train pulled in at around 7:30 p.m. and my family was waiting to pick me up. It was wonderful to see them and I missed them so much. Yet I had such an incredibly fun time in New York at VK Live. I have said it before and I'll undoubtedly say it again: nothing beats spending a weekend with your tribe. Catching up with old friends, making new ones, teaching classes to eager and enthusiastic students, getting a small taste of New York, coming home with a few goodies to play with? Could. Not. Be. Better.

I put the kids on the bus Friday morning, and then Mr. Go-Knit-In-Your-Hat drove me to 30th Street Station. (All hail, Mr. Go-Knit-In-Your-Hat who worked from home Friday so he could drive me and tend the kids.) Quick train ride, with extra pleasure of listening to the woman two rows in front of me tell the whole train car about her near-death experience. I am a nervous traveller so was not amused. (FYI: She saw her deceased mother and St. Therese, who asked her if she was ready to die or wanted to go back. This caused me to spend the rest of the trip wondering how she recognized St. Therese. Was she wearing a nametag? Did she have sweatpants that said "St. Terry" instead of "JUICY" across the bum?) My reverie was interrupted by the bomb-sniffing dog. Okay, for a minute I was a little freaked out wondering if there was some reason the dog was in our train car, but in the end, the doggie laid down in the front of the train car and just sat there looking extremely cute, which was kind of sweet.

Once off the train, I cabbed it to the Hilton and was able to check into my room even though it was technically earlier than check-in time (yay). I debated what to do with my precious few hours in NYC and although I was tempted to find some of the Manhattan knitting shops I'd never been to, or take the subway to the Lion Brand Studio, I decided to forgo shopping temptation and try the American Folk Art Museum (which also was a walkable distance away).

Central Park

The museum was closed so that they could install an installation. Cue the sad trombone. (That's what I get for trying to avoid buying yarn. You know what I'll do next time.....)

Central Park

I walked around a little bit, but headed back to the hotel to chill for a while. Now that I am no longer a newbie at teaching, I have come to understand how exhausting it is, and how you need to grab those hours here and there when you can rest up. It was a good thing I did, because that night was a teacher's cocktail party (a brilliant idea, since it allows us all to catch up with each other before the morning that classes start).

The first time I met people whose patterns and articles and books I'd admired for a long time, I could not get past the fact that I was actually face-to-face with, say, Amy Detjen. But after I started to get to know them, and spend time with them at shows, my reaction went from fangirl to "Amy Detjen is fun and funny and wicked cool and I can't wait to catch up with her." Thus my genuine pleasure at seeing people in the industry that I hadn't seen for a while. It's also fun when you get to meet new people and realize that they, too, are extremely fun and cool and wonderful. At the cocktail party I got to meet Patty Lyons, of Lion Brand Yarn Studio, who was absolutely lovely, and Fiona Ellis, whose worked I have admired for a long time but never met before. Fiona and I got on like a house on fire. Fiona, if you are reading this, you are now an official Friend of Go Knit In Your Hat, with all the privileges, perquisites and responsibilities that entails. (Basically which means you have to hang out with me whenever we see each other and I will flatter you unctuously in my blog. Deal?)

I spent some time hanging with Rosemary Drysdale, the Empress of Entrelac, and she is an absolute delight. We closed the party down, along with Brooke Nico (Our Lady of Lace) and Doreen Connors.....although we are still trying to figure out what happened to an entire bottle of Glenlivet that went missing. (If I had thought of it sooner, I would have volunteered to strip-search Fiona Ellis....)

I was extremely fortunate to not have class until 2 pm the next afternoon, so I just wore my jammies to the teachers' meeting (AT SEVEN A.M. thank you very much!) and then went back to bed.

I was too excited to sleep really late, though, and ended up getting up to check out the marketplace. (I have to apologize for how lousy most of my photographs are. I didn't take a camera, since I already was hauling a lot of stuff and didn't want to lose or break it, so these were all taken with my cell phone. It also happens that I had to replace my cell phone the day before I left for NY, so I really had no idea how to work it.)

While at the marketplace, I browsed and browsed; made a special attempt to visit some of my homies, like Linda Pratt (God bless her, she has knit more ruffle scarves in the last six months than you can imagine!) and Ron and Theresa Miskin, and I popped by to see some of the Koigu samples from Magazine No. 2, which were at the String booth:

I know, I know, pretty crappy photo. My bad.

While I was there, I couldn't stop myself from picking up the new book by Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably, which was premiering at the show. (I'm going to do a book review of it very soon but it's really wonderful!)

My first class was "Yarn Substitution Made Easy," which may be my favorite class to teach, and as per usual for VK Live events, I had a fantastic crop of students. They were eager, enthusiastic and full of energy. It was a blast! One thing that absolutely blew my mind was that one of my students came to class wearing a sweater that I designed for Vogue about a year or two ago:

This photo simply does not do justice to the beautiful job she did. The handpaint yarn looked terrific, and she also did an outstanding job on fit -- unlike the model, who was shown wearing it as a slightly oversized tunic, she had made it a more fitted size, and it was absolutely wonderful. You have no idea how thrilling it is when you run into someone who has made one of your patterns. Thank you so much, dear one, for being so thoughtful as to wear it to class!!!!

After class, I'd arranged to meet my sweet Cockney rose Sarah Hatton for drinks at the hotel bar. I have said before that Sarah Hatton is made of win, and we are totally sympatico.

We were extremely fortunate to find seats in the bar area (since Nicky Epstein, as many of you know, had callously run over my foot with her rolling travel bag. She'll pay for that. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, maybe not next month, but I hope she looks over her shoulder for the rest of her life because ONE DAY SHE WILL PAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).

Here's the part where I had to strap on my Depends adult undergarment, for who did we end up sitting with but Debbie Bliss (!), her charming daughter and spokesmodel Nell (!), Martin Storey (!), with cameo appearances from Carla Scott and Linda Pratt and Josh Bennett. It was truly lovely and fun. (I'm also waving to the lovely Barbara and to Theresa, Nell's BFF....) As a Rowan/Debbie Bliss fan from way, way back, this was absolutely a dream come true for me to be hanging out with such amazing talent.

The VK banquet was that night and due to a snafu with my ticket, and my complete exhaustion from having spent an hour or so in the company of some of my favorite Brits, I had to take to my bed. Yes, I was asleep before 9 p.m. on a Saturday night whilst in New York City. Sad, innit?

The bright side to my early bedtime was that I was very well-rested for Sunday, which was a darn good thing, because it was another busy and fun day. I think I may have neglected to mention that while at the bar Saturday night, I slipped my extra hotel room key to a buff, handsome young gentleman about 20 years my junior. So he woke me up early Sunday morning, if you know what I mean....

Hah! It was merely Josh "The Knituation" Bennett, bon vivant hipster designer man. He didn't want to schlepp his teaching materials back and forth to his apartment so I let him store his stuff in my room. (A girl can dream, can't she?)

Another terrific class on Sunday afternoon, and some more time in the marketplace -- I managed to snap up a copy of the sold-out-but-being-reprinted Deborah Newton book that is getting such rave reviews

as well as Meg Swansen and Amy Detjen's new book on color knitting:

and I decided to try out a couple of balls of Marion Foale wool, in fingering weight:

Thank goodness I didn't miss Franklin Habit showing off his glorious gams in his kilt.

Thanks, Brooke, for taking the photo! That's crochet and knitting
designer Mary Beth Temple, of LSG fame, with us.

At this point, I felt I was suffering from a Koigu deficit, so after finding some exquisite Buffalo Fiber yarn dyed by ... Kersti???? ....

I received a text from Taiu Landra that read: "Ready to party?" Yes! Yes, I was.

VK was participating in a wonderful effort to raise awareness of heart disease, and fundraise for research to fight it, called Stitch Red. There was a cocktail party and silent auction benefiting this fine cause, and it was there that I was able to spend some more time with Taiu and Kersti:

VK had arranged for the cocktail party to be held at a really fabulous warehouse/loft kind of space in Tribeca. They arranged for buses to drive us over, and we were literally met at the door by hunky waiters carrying trays of drinks. The room itself had huge windows lining the walls that showed off the New York skyline to perfection. The food was fabulous, too -- including little spoons filled with macaroni and cheese with lobster on top, crab cakes, satay, egg rolls and all sorts of delicious things. We ~~guzzled~~ sipped champagne and then they brought around trays with teeny tiny cheesecakes and chocolate mouses and pecan pies. Nom, nom, nom.

While all of this was going on, the silent auction was taking place. Designers, yarn companies and others had donated great prizes, including a needle set owned and used by Elizabeth Zimmerman:

and a painting by Nicky "Reckless Suitcase Roller" Epstein:

(I had no idea Nicky painted! If I had any spare cash, I would have totally bid on the painting....)

In the end, over $18,000 was raised for a good cause -- and more to the point, we had such a fun time doing it. I actually got to meet and chat with Alice Starmore, and I even got to bring her a glass of champagne. She was lovely. (I didn't tell her that I used to be a lawyer, though.....)

By the end of the night there was dancing and lipstick kisses planted on the top of bald heads (yup, I did), and so much laughing....

from left, Nell Bliss, Debbie Bliss, Shawn (sp?), Theresa

When the party place began turning up the lights and playing Cee-Lo (oh yes they did), we reclaimed our coats and went to find cabs. Outside on the street was a man with a stretch limo. He told us he'd drive us to the hotel for five bucks a head, which seemed like a good deal, since we'd have had to take several cabs anyway.

Somehow we managed to cram over 15 people in this limousine, including Alice Starmore, Josh Bennett (who was wearing a very Hef-like smoking jacket), Sarah Hatton, Trisha Malcolm, two hilarious Kiwi ladies who came to the show to promote their lovely yarn, and many more amazing knitting folks. It must have been an absolutely hilarious sight watching this limo roll up to the Hilton, and then seeing all these knitting people come pouring out like clowns in a Volkswagen at the circus....

I had carefully alternated club soda with my champagne, so I was not too tired the next morning.... good thing, because I had class at 8 a.m. and again at 2 p.m. My students really seemed to enjoy the morning "Sockknitter's Seminar," and I even had some repeat students who stuck around for the afternoon "Yarn Substitution" class, which was great. Again, I can't say enough about how fun the students were; we all enjoyed ourselves and I hope they learned a lot.

In between classes I managed to get in a little bit of MMO stalking (I had been painfully deficient in this regard):

I also got to stop by Liza Lucy's patchwork class, which was really wonderful. Seeing her students creating gorgeous quilts out of Kaffe's fabric was such a pleasure.

Alas, after my second class on Monday, I had to pack up my things and zip back down to the train. (Cue the sad violin....) By that point, I was in zombie mode. Mr. Go-Knit-In-Your-Hat and the kids were kind enough to meet me at the train station, and I got home, took a quick shower and went to bed.

So there you have it: VK Live New York, 2012 version. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I'll get to teach in Chicago in October (where I can show you all the book, which is scheduled for release on October 2d).

It was a wonderful event. Kudos to Trisha Malcolm and the rest of the VK staff (including all the lovely volunteers who help things run so smoothly)! If you get a chance to attend one of the VK Live shows, you really ought to take advantage of it. Great classes, lovely people, fashion shows, a fun marketplace......it's a knitter's dream come true.

No-Bull Book Review: Sweet Shawlettes by Jean Moss

2012-01-14T08:51:00.000-05:00

I am very pleased to be part of the official book tour for Jean Moss's new book, Sweet Shawlettes: 25 Irresistible Patterns for Knitting Cowls, Capelets, and More (Taunton 2012). Jean Moss is a British designer who has created garments for such well-known companies as Ralph Lauren, Laura Ashley and Benetton; she is the author of several previous books and she frequently teaches in the US and UK. Her latest book is devoted to those charming small shawls, cowls and other accessories that have become so popular. Let's take a No-Bull look.

The patterns are divided into four sections: Country, Couture, Folk and Vintage. Country begins with six patterns, ranging from a shawl with colorwork edging

to a necklace-like leaf cravat

and a buttoned tweedy cowl.

The Couture section includes an entrelac capelette

and a bulky twisted cabled scarf:

In the Folk section, you'll find a cowl with charming stranded colorwork:

as well as cables

and graceful stitchwork.

Vintage includes goodies like multicolored lace

oodles of ruffles

and a mohair-blend mantilla:

Perhaps because of the lighter color choices and the styling, many of these patterns look particularly suited for springtime. (I love the look of the apricot lace shawl over a summer dress, above). Clear, attractive photographs of the patterns, both close-up and overall, were skillfully done by Alexandra Grablewski.

The pattern section is followed by an appendix, with techniques, yarn information, and other reference information.

For those of you who like the numbers, you'll find four full-size shawls, four small shawls/scarves, two necklace-type scarves, five capelets, one hat with scarf tails to wrap, one longer cowl and eight shorter cowls and neckwarmers (some are loosely fitted while others sit closer to the neck). Yarn weights are all over the place: 3 fingering weight, 9 DK weight, 1 worsted, 1 denim yarn, 3 aran weight, 2 chunky weight, 3 in KidSilk Haze, and 3 polar/superchunky -- so no matter what's in your stash, you'll have choices. Most of the patterns come in one size, since they're accessories, but a few are given in multiple sizes. You'll find schematics and charts, too. Difficulty levels range from easy to experienced, again providing a good mix depending on your mood.

To sum up, you'll find a variety of styles, difficulty levels and yarn gauges in this book full of accessories, including scarves, cowls, shawls and capelets, as well as a few very decorative necklace-like pieces. It's well worth a look, particularly if you are looking for smaller projects that will help you use up stash. By the time spring rolls around, you'll have a new wardrobe full of accessories.

Next stop on the blog tour: Redshirt Knitting tomorrow. And you can find the full blog tour schedule here, on Jean Moss's website.

New York State of Mind

2012-01-11T08:55:00.001-05:00

Thanks to everyone for your robust response to my Summer Search raffle. I am finalizing the list of prizes and getting ready to post a link to a page which will contain all the information about prizes, and how to enter.

In the meantime, I'm packing my bags for another trip to New York City for Vogue Knitting Live! I've had such fun teaching at the first and second shows, and I expect the third will be just as great.

As of this morning there were only a few seats left in my Yarn Substitution Made Easy class on Monday, and my Socknitters' Seminar still has some spots. There's going to be all sorts of wonderful stuff going on, from fashion shows to free talks to skill-builder demos. I'll be attending the banquet Saturday evening, too. Booksignings, yarn tastings, raffles....all sorts of exciting stuff, not to mention a terrific group of vendors at the marketplace. I hope to see you there!

Are you in?

2012-01-05T06:30:00.000-05:00

About two years ago, Mr. Go-Knit-In-Your-Hat got involved with a wonderful organization in Philadelphia called Summer Search. The program is part of a national organization that is designed to find high school students from disadvantaged backgrounds and help nurture them so that they graduate high school, continue on to college and become productive members of the community. There are a lot of great things about the Summer Search program, but one thing I really like is the way it tries to make a difference one kid at a time, with lots of coaching, mentoring and follow-up.

Summer Search starts by getting referrals from teachers and principals -- people who see kids at school every day. They identify students who demonstrate potential for reflection, altruism and performance -- and part of the reason for Summer Search's success is the difficulty of the screening process. It's a rigorous screening, and these kids come from backgrounds so unlike most of ours that we can't imagine the kind of things they face on a day-to-day basis (parents who have died or are otherwise out of the picture, abuse, neglect, poverty, crime and violence in their neighborhoods, and so on).

Once they enter the program, students participate in four aspects of the Summer Search program.

Each student is assigned a mentor and meets with their mentor for weekly sessions. The mentor helps coach the student, give them insight into their behavior, help them with any problems they are having, and generally gives emotional support. A big emphasis is placed on helping the student to be accountable for their actions.
Each student gets a scholarship to take two trips, one in the summer before the junior year, and one in the summer before the senior year. These trips are designed to build the student's confidence in his/her abilities, to show them the broader world out there (a lot of these kids have never been outside Philadelphia -- some have never been outside the particular neighborhood where they grew up, let alone left the city or state) and help the student gain valuable experience. Past trips have included participating in Outward Bound, community service trips to the Dominican Republic, study abroad programs in China, and other amazing experiences.
Each student gets help in applying to colleges, including individualized help with the admissions forms and financial aid counseling. Over 90 percent are the first in their family to go to college, so things like paperwork and deadlines, that might not be a big deal when you're used to them, prove much more difficult for Summer Search kids.
Each student participates in a host of "alumni" services, like helping them with networking events, providing internships and finding mentors for them. They also receive continued mentoring through the first two years of college. You might not realize it, but the first two years of college are critical for Summer Search kids. They are away from home for the first time, feeling isolated and overwhelmed as so many college freshmen do, but they also don't have tons of financial support or sometimes emotional support. They may get calls from family members saying "You need to quit school and get a job" or they may have trouble getting used to the new workload that college demands. The mentoring process really helps these kids keep their eyes on the prize: a college degree that will help them break out of the endless cycle of poverty.

The results are phenomenal. Consider some of the statistics. The U.S. Department of Labor says that only half of low-income students graduate from high school; a whopping 99.6 percent of Summer Search participants do. If you look at low-income ninth-graders, only 11 percent of them are statistically going to complete a four-year college degree -- eleven percent! But 85 percent of Summer Search participants in post-high-school educational programs are on-track to graduate.

All of these statistics are kind of bland, though, compared to the experience of actually meeting a Summer Search participant. Tom and I have been at various events and part of the program is that Summer Search participants and their parents are expected to help pay it forward by telling their stories in person and in print. These kids are so bright, so enthusiastic, and so proud of what they've accomplished. Their parents tell stories that will make you cry, admitting how difficult it was to let their children go to other states or countries, how much they missed them, but how proud they are of all their child has achieved.

Sounds pretty amazing, no?

Here's where you can help, even in a small way. Right now, I am organizing a Go-Knit-In-Your-Hat fundraiser to benefit Summer Search Philadelphia. I'm still figuring out the exact logistics, but the general idea is that anyone who contributes to Summer Search Philadelphia will be entered in a type of raffle to win fabulous, fiber-y prizes. (I will post a separate blog post entry explaining the procedure later in the month.)

I would really like to raise some cash to help out this amazing program, so I need your help. Right now, I'm looking for prizes. I will, of course, include some fabu Black Bunny Fibers prizes -- probably a spinner's basket full of handdyed roving, and a knitter's basket with yarn and patterns -- and I will also offer up one of my author's advance copies of my new book, personally autographed for you....perhaps I will even offer to do a custom dye job for someone and create a colorway based on the winner's preferences.

But those of you who read my blog who are in the business, might I prevail upon you to offer up a donation of something to use as a prize? Perhaps if you are a yarn company, you might offer up a prize consisting of some of your fine yarns? I will sing your praises forever. If you are a designer, you might offer up a signed copy of your latest book, or a collection of your patterns in paper or PDF form. If you are a publishing company perhaps you might show your appreciation for my unceasing dedication to book reviews by offering a book or selection of fiber-related titles. You can leave a comment if you're sure I can track you down, or leave your email or use the sidebar to contact me.

Thanks in advance.

I'm ready for 2012....I think!

2011-12-31T10:47:00.000-05:00

Since I managed to cap off 2011 by catching a stomach bug from one of my kids -- a nasty one that's left me feeling exhausted and still a little queasy nearly a week later -- I've had some time to mull over the past year. (One thing I've noticed that is a sure sign of impending senility is the way in which, when I go to look back over a year that's ending, I find myself hopelessly confused about whether things actually happened in that year, or whether they happened two or three or even more years ago. Something about having kids has irrevocably skewed my sense of time. I wondered for a minute whether 2011 was the year that Michael Jackson died, and was horrified to realize it was 2009 -- two years ago. WTF, people?)

One very convenient thing about writing a blog is the ability to go back over one's posts and get some verbal snapshots of what was going on at my life at different points in time. So I looked over the blog posts I've written in the past year to help put my wonky mental time line into perspective. In retrospect, 2011 was an incredibly eventful year for me, and when I step back and think about what happened in the wider world, it was a pretty eventful year period. I hate to resort to the cliched "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times," although the sheer number of wonderful and awful things that happened makes it tempting. On the awful side, in addition to some personal stuff I won't go into here, consider:

the March earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis that devastated Japan
all too many senseless acts of violence, from Rep. Gabby Giffords to the kids in Norway to the nameless victims we don't hear about who are lost every day
Hurricane Irene's effects on so much of the country (and our week-long power outage)
my mom's near-miss as the Susquehanna River came a strand of laceweight away from flooding my hometown
the ten-year anniversary of 9/11, a sobering reminder of the evil that can live in our world
the frustrating, forget-about-who-sent-you-to-Washington state of American politics, and the gobsmackingly pathetic road show that the Republican primary season has become
the infuriating revelations about accused pedophile Jerry Sandusky, and Penn State's alleged complicity in concealing his crimes, a story that makes Pennsylvania taxpayers like me particularly livid since Penn State is a state-funded university
the continuing economic turmoil in this country and elsewhere
the loss of friends, family and loved ones, famous (Elizabeth Taylor), infamous (Christopher Hitchens) and not famous (Beverly, Goat-Boy), but who will be missed all the same.

On the good side, consider how happy Satan is, having called home three of his favorite sons in 2011: Osama Bin-Laden, Muammar Ghadaffi and Kim Jong Il. (Delaware folks might also add Tom Capano to that list; I'd nearly forgotten that that murdering bastard died in prison this September.) Remember the Arab Spring, affecting Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Syria; the Occupy movement, which if nothing else began a badly-needed conversation about the role of money in American politics; the official end of Don't Ask/Don't Tell; the continued acceptance of gay marriage and its legalization in New York; and the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq.

At the top of the list for us was a new cousin. After a heartbreakingly difficult pregnancy, lovely Lily was born in January to my godson and his lovely wife. This photo is a few months old but she is healthy and gorgeous and showing no ill effects from her prematurity. Hurrah!

I was extremely fortunate in my professional life this year. I started off 2011 by getting to participate in the very first VK Live in New York City and it was fabulous. (I'm happy that I get to start 2012 off with VK Live -- and there are still spaces available in my Monday classes -- go here for details.) Indeed, ramping up my teaching schedule was one of the most notable aspects of this year for me, and I greatly enjoyed teaching in local yarn shops like Loop & Gosh Yarn It!; smaller knitting shows like the Midwest Fiber & Folk Art Fair; and big shows like VK Live in New York and Los Angeles, and Stitches East in Hartford, CT.

I had a lot of fun dyeing and designing, and although I managed to crank out a respectable number of designs in various publications, and do some more technical articles, too, much of the year was subsumed by the process of working on my third book. I could not be happier with the way it's coming along and I can't wait to be able to tell you and show you more about it in the coming months. Publication date is set for October 2nd.

And one last creative note, 2011 was the year I totally lost my head over quilting, finishing a whopping six quilts, and assorted other sewing projects. (Once I started knitting for a living, I had to find a new hobby.)

As the year ticks away, though, the most cherished memories I have from 2011 are the times I spent with the people I love. Whether it was a raucous night at a Phillies Stitch-n-Pitch, a quiet summer stay with the kids at my mom's, a fiber event that had me surrounded by my people, a ribald Facebook chat, or a mellow night with my husband and kids (and bunny), the times I'll try to never to forget are those. And I consider myself extremely lucky to have met so many beautiful new people who have become friends.

We are all healthy and here, with a roof over our heads and food on the table and way more in the way of material and non-material blessings than most people in this sad world can imagine. For that I consider myself unaccountably fortunate.

Happy New Year, everyone!

2011 Retrospective: Overall

2011-12-29T08:39:00.000-05:00

Well, we've talked about specific yarns and we've talked about specific books. What were the overall trends in knitting in 2011? What else in the last year helped shape our knitting (and spinning and crochet) world?

Overall trends

For most people, the economy was still an issue when it comes to hobbies, although there seemed to be a bit less anxiety about financial issues toward the end of the year. Handdyed yarns were still strong -- and at the top of the competitive market, MadelineTosh's saturation in the market was unbelievable. We saw continued interest in organic yarns and renewable fibers; most of the big yarn companies continued to produce at least one new yarn with recycled fiber content in it. We saw continued interest in single breed yarns and rare or endangered breed preservation (as in the Campaign for Wool). We saw renewed interest in novelty yarns, especially self-rufflers, and this helped push sales for these one-skein, one-hour projects. We also saw companies building off established yarn brands they already produced, whether to add yarns with the same name in different weights (like Cascade adding different weights to its 220 line, or Berroco adding to its Vintage and Blackstone Tweed lines), cooperating with publishers to create brand-specific books (Noro and Cascade 220 come to mind) or add magazines (Interweave began Knit.wear and added special issues like Jane Austen Knits, and Koigu Magazine hit the shelves).

In terms of patterns, the cowl (a.k.a. neckwarmer, neck cozy, loop scarf) was huge. Quick to knit, with a relatively small amount of yarn, the cowl was a great way for knitters to try out a new yarn or use a new stitch pattern with a minimum of investment, while avoiding issues of fit. (Cowls are also great for people who aren't good at draping or tying scarves.) There was still interest in sock knitting, but less of a frenzy in that regard, and knitters (aided by designers like Stephen West and Brooklyn Tweed) continued to explore using fingering weight yarn for other things, like shawls, scarves and fingerless mitts.

Pebble Neckwarmer

I mentioned in my books post how there was a continued interest in lace knitting; we also saw continued interest in fair isle and cables, although no one technique dominated. Technical books put out by both mainstream publishes and the indie press helped give knitters instruction and confidence (I forgot to mention JC Briar's excellent little book on charts, for example).

One of the most interesting and exciting trends we say in 2011 was the resurgence of the knitting show. Stitches has been the granddaddy of the knitting show, having now expanded to East, West, Midwest and South venues; but this year Vogue Knitting burst onto the show scene with VK Live, premiering in New York City in January. A second show took place in Los Angeles in September. Interweave premiered its Knitting Lab in November, and a second Sock Summit was held in July in Portland, OR. UK Knit Nation had its second event in London, as well.

What does this burst of shows say about the industry? Lots of good things. It's a way for knitters to bring on-line connections to real life. It's a way for knitters to learn more about the craft they love so much. It's a way to rekindle enthusiasm for knitting if you've been doing it a while, and to grab hold of the energy that seems to emanate from these sorts of knit-centric occasions. Overall, the fact that so many people are willing to travel, stay over and commit a weekend (or more) to a show indicates their commitment to the craft: an excellent thing.

2011 was a mixed bag for local yarn shops. We lost way too many this past year, including Ewe and I in the Philly 'burbs and Woodland Woolworks in Oregon, which makes me sad, and a few changed hands, but we also saw the entry of some new yarn shops to help offset the losses. PDF patterns continue to be huge (for example, we saw Dale of Norway enter the PDF market by beginning to sell patterns on Patternfish) and LYSs now have to not only be educated about the patterns that they sell, but also about the hot patterns that are sold on-online, so that when knitters walk into the shop with a PDF printout looking for yarn, the LYS can help them find a suitable choice. In a clever move, the Ravelry folks premiered a yarn shop sales service, in which designers can agree to let yarn shops sell Ravelry PDF patterns through their shops.

Goodbyes

We lost some terrific fiber people in 2011, including Judy Sumner (author of Knitted Socks East and West);

Jean Leinhauser (author of many books on crochet, and founder of Leisure Arts and the American School of Needlework); Erica Wilson, who is known mainly for her needlepoint designs but also wrote a knitting book; and Joan Vass, longtime knitwear designer. We also lost some less well-known but just as treasured fiber folks, like Sue Nelson, who was greatly loved by her colleagues at XRX; Steve Harder, a.k.a Goat Boy, who deeply loved the goats he bred and was a fixture at shows on the eastern seaboard; and Beverly Johnson, a Philadelphia-area knitter who was like a ray of sunshine (well, if a ray of sunshine never went anywhere without her cute little doggie). Rest in peace to all.

Current events

Although it's tempting for non-knitters to envision knitting as a solitary activity, knitters proved time and time again that they were in touch with the wider world. When Japan was struck by a horrific earthquake and tsunami in March, knitters jumped in with efforts to help. Fundraisers auctioned off knitting supplies, books and finished objects, and big companies and small designers alike donated proceeds from their profits to the Red Cross and other relief organizations. Crafters also began creating items to send to the Japanese natural disaster victims, including quilts, knitted socks and blankets.

On a brighter note, inspired by the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, knitters could recreate the wedding party in knitted form, courtesy of Brit Fiona Goble. Knit Your Own Royal Wedding included directions for knitting all the major participants, even including a corgi!

Knitters were right in the forefront of technology, too, with many knitters using their iPads for crafty pursuits. The large display of the iPad's screen was perfect for showing off photos of finished products, and knitting-related apps -- from a gauge measuring device to magazine subscriptions to inventorying yarn and needles -- started appearing at the App Store.

It's hard to encapsulate a whole year's worth of activity in a few blog posts, so I apologize in advance if I've inadvertently missed anything. As usual, feel free to chime in with comments to share your impressions of 2011. It was an eventful year, and like most, full of good and bad. Best wishes to all my readers for a wonderful 2012!

Special note: I'll be appearing on the WEBS podcast, Ready Set Knit, this Saturday, as Kathy Elkins and I take our own look at 2011 in the fiber world. The podcast will air Saturday, December 31st -- go here for details.

2011 Retrospective: The year in yarn

2011-12-22T06:42:00.000-05:00

As 2011 draws to a close, let's take a look back at yarn: what new yarns charmed us? what old yarns did we say good-bye to? what trends seemed to be peaking and what trends seemed to be revving up?

Let's get the bad news over with first. This past year, we bid a sad good-bye to Rowan Calmer, a cotton/acrylic blend that was a workhorse yarn for those sensitive to wool and those living in warmer climates. I don't know why Rowan discontinued this versatile yarn, but damn, it makes me sad.

We also lost Mission Falls this past year. Mission Falls 1824 wool was a great and well-priced yarn in a lovely palette. Its cotton sister was soft, plush and cozy, and came in a similar palettte. Also getting out of the knitting yarn business: JCA/Reynolds, although they continue to sell their needlework lines. That means bye-bye to Whiskey and Soft Sea Wool, although Lopi is now being distributed by Westminster Fibers.

Another yarn I was sad to see discontinued was Nashua's Julia, a wool/mohair/alpaca blend created by the lovely and incredibly talented Kristin Nicholas. The palette of colors for Julia was wonderful, created for mixing and using together, and we'll miss the way Kristin combined those colors to produce gorgeous colorwork garments. (I am sure, however, that she will end up designing beauteous things in other yarns, but still....)

Just after the fall fiber season closed, the Sanguine Gryphon partnership announced that they would be splitting, reforming two separate dyeing companies: The Verdant Gryphon & Cephalopod Yarns. Hand Jive Yarns and Kitchen Sink Dyeworks (Mercedes Tarasovich-Clark's dyeing business) also are hanging up their dyepots to pursue other fiber ventures.

When it comes to the new stuff, some of my favorite designer-led yarn companies released new yarns: Veronik Avery's St-Denis line released Sommet, a luscious baby alpaca that can be substituted for Nordique in St-Denis patterns.

Quince & Co. had a limited-edition set of natural yarn colors in some of their most popular base yarns, and recently introduced fingering-weight Finch in all-American wool, along with organic linen Sparrow. Brooklyn Tweed gave us Loft, a fingering-weight tweedy wool in a versatile palette of colors that blend beautifully.

Our friends at Westminster Fibers have done some reorganizing. Nashua Handknits has been discontinued as a brand, but some of the yarns, like Creative Focus Worsted, have been folded into the Rowan line. In addition, Schachenmayr yarns are now being sold under the name SMC and SMC Select. I saw some of these yarns at TNNA and they are quite lovely (there's a line of Extra Fine Merino yarns that are especially nice).

Lion Brand Yarns premiered a line of Martha Stewart branded yarns, and I was kind of surprised to see some novelty yarns in the mix, like a glittery eyelash yarn and a really bulky roving encased in thread. There are more traditional yarns in the line, too, like a pure merino and a merino/alpaca/acrylic blend.

Lorna's Laces introduced Solemate, a blend of superwash merino, nylon and a fiber called Outlast, which is designed to help adjust to the wearer's body temperature; Solemate has proved so popular that a sportweight version is coming soon.

When it comes to yarn trends, the first things that comes to mind are the ruffle yarns -- they were everywhere at the fall shows. Even Rowan came out with Kidsilk Creation, a kind of mesh knit in Kidsilk Haze that allows the knitter or crocheter to quickly create ruffled scarves.

Handpaints were still popular, although the craze seems to be slowing down a bit. I think that the focus of knitters has contineud to move away from wildly colored multicolored yarns to more muted colorways and semi-solid/solid colors. Apart from handpaints, we saw a lot of chainette yarns, like Rowan's Lima and Debbie Bliss Paloma, and generally speaking, alpaca seemed to be in a lot of yarn blends, adding its distinctive halo and soft hand.

Those are my impressions of 2011: the year in yarn. What did I miss? Did you discover a brand-new yarn that you loved? Did you say good-bye to a discontinued yarn that I didn't mention? Speak now or forever hold your peace.....

2011 Retrospective: Best Books of the Year

2011-12-19T15:06:00.000-05:00

It's that time again: the end of the year, when I take a moment to look back over the past year in the dog-eat-dog world of yarn. Let's start our retrospective with a look at some notable knitting books published in 2011.

We start off with Clara Parkes' excellent The Knitter's Book of Socks: The Yarn Lover's Ultimate Guide to Creating Socks That Fit Well, Feel Great, and Last a Lifetime (Potter Craft), the third in her "Knitter's Book" series. Clara does a great job explaining the technical requirements of a good sock yarn, then presents a beautiful selection of sock patterns from top designers, including Melissa Morgan-Oakes, Cat Bhordi and Ann Budd.

While we're on the topic of socks, Barb Brown's Knitting Knee-Highs: Sock Styles from Classic to Contemporary (Krause) presents a knockout selection of patterns for knee-highs (with pattern variations showing the socks in ankle- and/or crew-length, too). Lots of beautiful stranded knitting, texture, cables, and lace make for a lovely collection for the sock-knitter. Sock knitters will also want to check out Ann Budd's Sock Knitting Master Class: Innovative Techniques + Patterns from Top Designers (Interweave).

Did someone say lace? Three standout lace books made their debut this year, each with its own sensibility. Wendy Johnson's Wendy Knits Lace: Essential Techniques and Patterns for Irresistible Everyday Lace (Potter Craft) presents clear technical instructions for the beginner, and a terrific selection of patterns using fingering-weight and heavier yarns. The talented Teva Durham presented her own lace collection with a trendier edge; in Loop-d-Loop Lace: More Than 30 Novel Lace Designs for Knitters (STC) she riffs on standard lace techniques and creates some really interesting and gorgeous garments. I haven't seen The Haapsalu Scarf yet, but based on Siiri Reiman and Aime Edasi's previous book on Haapsalu shawls, I feel confident this one's just as good.

I'm a big fan of Connie Chang Chinchio, and her first book Textured Stitches: Knitted Sweaters and Accessories with Smart Details (Interweave) is hot off the presses. I like the way Connie combines classic, elegant silhouettes with interesting details, and you'll find some great, wearable and stylish choices here. Wendy Bernard's second book, Custom Knits 2: More Top-Down and Improvisational Techniques (STC), presents another good-looking collection of sweaters knit in the round from the top down, along with technical information to help adapt patterns for a more customized fit.

Noro fans, rejoice: two gorgeous books devoted to all-Noro designs were published this year by Sixth and Spring. Knit Noro: 30 Designs in Living Color contained a mix of items from sweaters to accessories, and Knit Noro: Accessories: 30 Colorful Little Knits is devoted entirely to smaller items. Both contain terrific selections of patterns that make the most of Noro's self-striping and vivid color combinations, and both are elegant enough to serve as coffee table books.

It was a dream of Elizabeth Zimmerman's to publish a book devoted to garter stitch. Even though EZ is no longer with us, her daughter Meg Swanson was able to compile a selection of patterns in garter stitch from Elizabeth's notes. Knit One Knit All (Schoolhouse Press) contains the kind of creative and fun projects that EZ is known for. Meg Swanson and Amy Detjen also have a book on stranded knitting that has just gone on sale, and although I haven't seen it yet, I expect it to also be a winner.

Knitters hungry for technical instruction had some great choices, including Extreme Double Knitting by Alasdair Post-Quinn (Cooperative Press), which explores in great detail the technique of double-knitting; Judy Becker's Beyond Toes: Knitting Adventures With Judy's Magic Cast-On uses Judy's Magic Cast-on as a jumping point for designs; and Mary Jane Mucklestone's 200 Fair Isle Motifs: A Knitter's Directory (Interweave), provides a comprehensive collection of traditional fair isle motifs. Back in print: Alice Starmore's Alice Starmore's Charts for Color Knitting: New and Expanded Edition (Dover).

For newer knitters, Melissa Morgan-Oakes' Teach Yourself Visually: Circular Knitting (Wiley) provides plenty of photographs and step-by-step instruction on how to knit tubes rather than flat pieces. Once you've been knitting for a while, it's easy to forget how confusing knitting in the round can seem to a newbie, so this book would be extremely helpful for a relatively new knitter.

Last but not least is Anna Hrachovec's Teeny-Tiny Mochimochi: More Than 40 Itty-Bitty Minis to Knit, Wear, and Give (Potter Craft), a whimsical collection of tiny little knitted objects -- everything from volcanoes to robots to armadillos.

With all the concern about the longevity of traditional publishing, it was good to see a strong crop of knitting books released during the past year (and I've only mentioned a handful of the ones that were publishedin 2011). I was happy to see that treasured old titles are being reprinted and in some cases updated (in addition to some of the Alice Starmore titles, look for Principles of Knitting by June Hemmons Hiatt in early 2012, and a revised edition of Folk Socks by Nancy Bush is expected out any minute now). There seems to be a growing trend of creating knitting books tailored to a specific yarn, such as the Noro and Cascade books, and the renewed emphasis on techniques is also encouraging.

Next up: a look at yarns we said hello and good-bye to this year.....

The book process, part 3

2011-12-16T06:26:00.000-05:00

Nope, I hadn't forgotten about my series of posts describing the process of writing a knitting book. I'll pick up where I left off, after taking a lengthy break to actually work on my book...Remember, these posts are based on my experience and to a lesser extent, on conversations I've had with other authors. Different publishers do things differently, so YMMV.

My last post discussed the process of firming up the book contract. Today's post focuses on the process of creating the projects that will fill the book. It is a part of the process that is incredibly fun and exhilarating, yet also a bit nerve-wracking since you need to generate so much creative output in such a short time.

Exactly how the projects in your book develop depends on whether you are designing all the garments in the book yourself (or with a co-author), or are doing what are sometimes called "author-curated" or multi-contributor books -- the kind where one person does some designing but collects patterns contributed by a multitude of other designers. I've done both.

If you are doing a multi-contributor book, the process is somewhat easier. Presumably, you and your editor have come to an agreement when you pitched your book about the book's focus. You'll have another chat or two to fine-tune your concept, and discuss how many projects and perhaps some general guidelines (e.g. will the book be all sweaters? all women's garments? what percentage of what types of garments? what skill level or mix of skill levels will be required? etc.). You'll write up some kind of request for submissions, outlining what you're looking for, set up a submissions schedule and distribute it to the people who you want to contribute. Depending on you and your editor, you might to an open call for submissions, mailing or emailing the request to a list of possible contributors and posting the request on your blog or a forum like Ravelry; you might to a targeted call for submissions, reaching out to a small group of people whom you've worked with before and/or especially like; or you might just ask specific people to submit a specific item (or say "I want you to design something; any ideas?"). When the due date arrives, you look over what you have, cull out your favorites and figure out how they fit into your mind's eye view of the book. If you're lucky, you'll have enough or more than enough, and your toughest call will be winnowing down the projects to a manageable number. If you're unlucky, you might have to supplement your call for submissions to generate a few more projects, or design some more yourself.

Different publishers supervise the submissions process to a different degree. You might have an editor who is very closely involved, helping choose the specific items that will end up in your final list of projects. You might have a very laissez-faire editor who doesn't even want to see the submissions, and just wants a list of your finalists. Either way, you'll end up with an outline that consists of the contributor, their project, and perhaps sketches or swatches that they've submitted.

If you're doing the patterns yourself, you'll have to start working fast. You'll need to generate sketches or swatches or both for the projects you're hoping to create. It's hard to generate 20 to 30 pattern ideas, so unless you've included in your proposal a comprehensive outline with all of your proposed projects, you'll have to come up with additional projects to supplement the sample ones included in your proposal. Again, the involvement of your editor can vary. You might have an editor who micromanages your projects very closely, kiboshing this one, suggesting that one, or you may end up with a very hands-off editor who rubberstamps what you do, or you might end up somewhere in the middle. No matter what, you will eventually end up with an outline of projects, and either sketches and swatches or general descriptions to point you on your way.

One of my favorite parts of the process is next: yarn selection. Here is where a complete yarn ~~whore~~ devotee like myself has a blast. You get to pick yarn and colors for each project! And the fabulous people at yarn companies send it to you for free because being featured in a book is terrific advertising! Now let's be realistic: it's very bad form to take advantage of the people at yarn companies. They can't give you 15 bags of yarn if you're only making a hat, nor can they send you twenty-five different shades of a yarn so that you can pick the one you like the best. (Lately some companies will ask you to fill out a form or have your editor call them to confirm that you aren't just making up the book to get free yarn.) You may be asked to return unused skeins so the yarn company can do something with them, maybe use them for sample garments, since good yarn costs money.

There is something so cool about having the entire world of yarn at your disposal and picking your favorites for your book. It can be a very bewildering process, too, since, in case you haven't noticed, there is a helluva a lot of different kinds of yarn out there. I try to think very carefully about my yarn selections, thinking about the needs of the pattern (drape? elasticity?), colors available, what kind of garment we're talking about, gauge required, and so on. Again, the extent to which you have freedom to pick your yarn will depend on your publisher and editor. You may get unlimited freedom or you may be instructed about specific yarns to include (for example, if your publishing company has some kind of close relationship with a yarn company, they may ask you to use some of their yarns). Or in some cases, you may be asked to pick yarns that tally up with the advertisers who tend to underwrite your publishing company's other publications, like magazines. Likewise, the extent to which you have freedom in selecting colors will vary. With "Knit So Fine," we were given a palette and asked to choose yarn shades that conformed, at least in a general way, with the palette. You may not be given a palette but may discuss general color ideas with your editor. Or you may get complete freedom to pick whatever you want. If you aren't given a color palette, you might want to think about creating one for youself, or think about general color ideas and preferences, to give your book a unified feel. If every project is in a different color yarn and the colors don't mesh together, the book might end up feeling less cohesive when it's done.

If you're selecting yarn for yourself, then you probably need to run your choices by your editor, giving yarn company, yarn name and color/color number. If you're doing a multicontributor book, you might want to run your tentative choice(s) by the designer, to get their feedback. Once you and the designers have agreed on yarns, you can run them by your editor. There may be some tweaking done, and your editor may say something like "I think there is too much purple in the second section" and you can adjust, and then when everyone's happy, you contact yarn companies and order the yarn.

It can get nerve-provoking if you are waiting on yarn and under a strict set of deadlines. Some yarn companies are so fast: they send the yarn out the day you ask for it. Others have a longer internal process, and may take up to several weeks to get yarn out. I hate having to contact companies again and nag them about getting yarn, even if I know it's required given the time deadlines of the project. Occasionally when the yarn arrives, it's not right -- maybe the colors look totally different from the ones on your monitor. Or if you're doing a multi-colored project, maybe the different colors look awful when you start knitting them. You may have to send the yarn back and ask for a different color, which may delay your project even further.

Pretty much every designer I know ends up using yarn from their personal stash when they write a book. It's inevitable, really; either yarn doesn't arrive in time, or it's not the right color or gauge or texture; or the project morphs into something completely different, or you have to add projects and you need to start knitting ASAP.

When the yarn arrives, you have to swatch, cast on and whip out those projects. Here is where all sorts of awkward issues may arise:

The project doesn't work. Either the idea you had looks terrible, or there are unforeseen problems that make the finished garment look like crap, or the yarn turns out to be a bad match for the project, or maybe you just don't have enough time to complete the original concept. This happens to just about everyone, and all you can do is your best to adapt, given the materials and time you have. You may have to tweak the project, reknit it, simplify it, or change it entirely, and every once in a while you have to completely abandon it if it proves unworkable. Bummer. You may have to add some new project to compensate for a project that gets abandoned in order not to have too few projects for the book. Another bummer.
The yarn company supplies yarn and despite your best efforts, it ends up not being used in the book. This is one of those things that really bothers me, because I don't want yarn companies to think I'm a greedy pig asking for yarn I don't need. But every so often, things don't work out and there's nothing you can do except apologize and hope the yarn company understands.
Someone backs out on you. Every once in a while, hopefully very rarely, in a multicontributor book, someone can't make good on their project. There may be an excellent reason for it -- death or illness, carpal tunnel, the yarn arrives too late for any human being to finish it in time -- or someone may just flake out on you. Frustrating, yes, but again, you have to cope. You might need to add another project, ask a designer friend if they've got something in their back pocket they can provide, or find something you've done that you can fiddle with and add to the projects.
The project ends up coming out quite different than you envisioned. Sometimes this can end up working in your favor, and you can end up with a project that comes out better than you imagined. But if it messes up the balance of your book, it can require more adjustments. You don't want it to look too "samey" compared to the other projects in the book, for example. When working on my first book, I was a little paranoid about my editor looking at the finished projects and saying "This isn't what you proposed at all!" Silly me. Editors know that the book proposal is, as is sometimes said, an exercise in fiction-writing because you just can't know ahead of time what will happen with the projects.

You can see from this part of the process how the line-up of projects in a book is a combination of inspiration, luck and hard work. It's not easy to generate workable design ideas in a short period of time and no matter how organized you are, there are all sorts of unexpected things that can happen to slow the process down or crater individual projects. It can be really hard to maintain a level of objectivity about the designs, too. I find that by the time I'm finished with a project, I have completely lost the ability to view it dispassionately and I usually end up hating it, at least until I've put it down for a while and stopped thinking about it. I also find that designs look very different when they are on a model and styled by a skilled stylist, and you have to keep in mind that some knitted pieces really need to be seen on a human body to look the way they are supposed to. On the other hand, nothing is more thrilling than getting projects you've commissioned for a book and having them be absolutely fabulous. It's magical to watch a designer give you a sketch and a general concept, then turn it into a knitted garment that is beautiful.

Next installment: photography and styling

No-Bull Book Review: Extreme Double-Knitting, by Alasdair Post-Quinn

2011-12-12T07:43:00.000-05:00

As I have said before, one of the most exciting things that independent publishers can do is bring knitters books that mainstream publishers won't publish. Publishing executives who aren't knitters might not recognize the appeal or importance of technical topics, or might believe that a specific subject won't generate enough sales to warrant the substantial investment that a book requires. Ideally, smaller publishers can make a profit on books that don't sell as many copies or appeal to a particular niche of the market, and therefore bring overlooked topics into print.

Today's book review is an example of a very technical subject brought to us by independent publisher Cooperative Press. Alasdair Post-Quinn describes himself as "a 30-something computer technician in the Boston area" who spends "much of my spare time as a knitwear designer, focusing specifically on double-knitting." For those of you who aren't familiar with the technique, double-knitting is a way to create a piece of knitted fabric that doesn't have a "wrong" side. As Post-Quinn explains, "Until recently, a typical double-knit fabric was either tubular or two-colored with the opposite side showing a mirror image in opposite colors from the facing side. Over the past few years, people here and there have been pushing the boundaries of double-knitting to include more complex color and structure variations." Enter Post-Quinn's book, Extreme Double-Knitting (Cooperative Press 2011; available for $29.95 through the link or as a PDF download for $16.95 via Ravelry).

In Extreme Double-Knitting, Post-Quinn presents a primer on double-knitting as well as a collection of patterns illustrating various double-knitting techniques. What makes the book stand out is the depth in which Post-Quinn covers the technique of double-knitting, and the way in which he pushes the boundaries of what might seem to some to be a very narrowly-focused topic. (In fact, I can't believe someone hasn't already used that irksome phrase: "It's not your grandmother's double-knitting!")

Extreme Double-Knitting is a paperback, just under 200 pages, about 8.5 by 11 inches, and chock-full of photographs and charts. There are 14 patterns, plus a few exercises included. It's not a typical knitting pattern book, though, relying much more on technical instruction and skill-building. Let's do a GKIYH walk-through.

The book begins with a two-page introduction, in which Post-Quinn distinguishes similar uses of the phrase double-knitting (he's not referring to DK-weight yarn, or knitting with 2 strands held together, or referring to typical stranded colorwork done with 2 shades of yarn, nor is he referring to tubular double-knitting). He then addresses the question -- not an insignificant one, he acknowledges -- of why do double-knitting rather than knit two separate pieces and sew them together. Post-Quinn cites the way double-knit fabric contains 2 layers that are anchored together and don't bunch up; the way either side looks equally good; and the freedom of colorwork without stranding or twisting.

Chapter 1 begins with the basics of double-knitting: how the fabric is made, the importance of gauge; and why Post-Quinn continues to twist his stitches as he knits them. Chapter 2 gets the knitter going with a two-color cast-on, then shows how to double-knit both with and without twisting the stitches. Next up is double-knitting flat, with three methods of working edge stitches to keep them neat, and two methods of binding off. After describing modifications necessary for double-knitting in the round, Post-Quinn covers adding a new skein of yarn and reading charts. Last up are two exercises to practice double-knitting, one flat and one in the round. This chapter contains three patterns: the Corvus Scarf, a long muffler with a crow motif:

Corvus Scarf

a baby blanket with a geometric pattern inspired by fractals,

Sierpinski

and a set of wristwarmers.

Wrist Chakras

Chapter 3 introduces shaping, walking the knitter through a variety of decreases and increases while double-knitting, including helpful close-up photos of what the increases and decreases look like, and hints for handling them in charts. The patterns for this chapter include a brimmed cap:

Bratach

and two neckties.

Silk Road

Chapter 4 teaches the more advanced topic of knitting two different patterns in the same item, combining two charts into a single one for knitting. There's an exercise given for this technique, then two patterns: a sign that reads "Open" on one side and "Closed" on the other, and the Four Winds cap (a version of which appeared in Twist Collective).

Open For Business

Techniques get progressively more advanced, and Chapter 5 adds a third color to double-knitting, making it...triple-knitting? Two hat patterns demonstrate the technique, including the terrific Struktur cap, my favorite in the book:

Struktur

Intrepid double-knitters can push the boundaries by exploring double-knit cables, a new cast-on technique, a stitch Post-Quinn calls a "lock stitch," with patterns for another cap, a trinket box, baby booties and a buttoned bag.

Vasily

Chapter 7 covers finishing techniques, including how to deal with the double loops of live stitches at the end, and how to weave in ends when there are two "right" sides and no wrong side. Chapter 8 gives information on how to read your double-knit stitches, how to read and translate charts, and how to check your work. Chapter 9 is devoted to troubleshooting, with common mistakes and how to fix them. Last is an Appendix, containing additional double-knitting techniques that were not used in the book's patterns but might be useful for the double-knitting aficionado (slipping stitches, textured double-knitting, ribbing, openwork and so on).

Falling Blocks Hat

Extreme Double-Knitting is a somewhat unusual book, delivering much more technical background in a specific niche of knitting than we've become accustomed to, but kudos to Post-Quinn for delving into a topic that fascinates him and sharing his expertise with the rest of us. This book is sure to be the definitive work on the subject, and it will be fascinating to see where Post-Quinn takes double-knitting next.

Noro-mania

2011-12-07T07:30:00.000-05:00

Coming soon, to a yarn shop or bookstore near you: Noro Accessories, by Sixth and Spring, a lush book full of accessory projects to be knit in gorgeous Noro yarns. I am pleased to announce that I have two patterns in the book. One is this cloche-style hat:

with decorative decreases on top.

while the second is this cushion cover (inspired by my recent forays into quilting):

Photography © Rose Callahan

The book has a total of 30 patterns in it, and would make a perfect holiday gift for a knitter, don't you think? As soon as my copy arrives, I'll do a book review and show you more of the beautiful patterns.

Da Valley*

2011-12-05T06:07:00.001-05:00

I got back last evening from a quick but very fun trip to the place where I grew up, Wilkes-Barre (also known as the Wyoming Valley, or da Valley). Little Miss was bringing cheer to little children by participating in a mini-version of the Nutcracker at her ballet school, and thus unavailable for this trip, so I took the boys with me to spend a night with Nana.

We arrived Saturday afternoon, and inspected my mom's front window. A few nights ago, some jerk through an egg at my mom's front window, and even though it wasn't hard-boiled, it was hurled with enough force to break one of the panes of glass in the front window. There was egg on the curtains and floor, and since it happened at 10:30 p.m., it freaked poor Nana out.

By the time we saw it, my brother had replaced the broken glass with a temporary covering, and the mess was cleaned up, but Nana was still really happy to have some company. So we hunkered down, got us a bucket of KFC and watched teevee (I knit, of course). The boys love being spoiled by their Nana and it's the sweetest thing in the world to see a big teen boy snuggled up with his Nana on the couch.

Bright and early I was up and ready for my class at Gosh Yarn It!, a relatively new knitting shop in Kingston, which is just over the bridge from downtown W-B. This is the first time I can remember there being a knitting shop in the Wilkes-Barre area; in the past, you either had to drive a ways to the nearest shop outside Scranton or go to a big-box craft store for knitting supplies. And the folks in W-B are lucky, because they've got a top-notch shop with gorgeous yarns (everything from Madeleine Tosh to Debbie Bliss to Noro to Lorna's Laces to Cascade to Dream in Color, and more).

Perhaps because I'm fighting a cold, I didn't have the presence of mind to take any photos, but the shop is big and bright, with lots of inviting chairs to sit and knit in. There was a separate classroom, just right for my class. I taught "Making Friends with your Handpaints" and my students were great -- eager, enthusiastic and really friendly. I think they really liked the fact that I grew up in Wilkes-Barre, too. We played the "who do you know" game, and immediately discovered that the dad of one my students had gone out with my cousin Barbara.

I managed to make it through the class without losing my voice (damn cold), and then had a chance to hang out with some of the regulars, who do an informal knit-in on Sunday afternoons (regular Knit & Spin is Thursdays) and they were so much fun. We discovered that one of the knitters knew my dad, as her husband's family owned the sporting goods store my dad shopped at all the time. (I can still remember the way Danoff's smells: gun oil, leather, with wood floors....)

The owner of the shop, Jill Schwartz, was great, and the manager, Ann Ross, could not have been nicer or more helpful. I had brought a big batch of BBF spinning fiber and yarns for a trunk show, and I was thrilled that so many folks wanted to take home a skein or two to try.

If you are in the Wilkes-Barre area and are looking for a yarn shop, I highly recommend you stop by Gosh Yarn It (their blog is here). You'll have a good time and you'll probably leave with lots of gorgeous yarn. I'm really grateful that they asked me to visit and I hope I get to teach there again soon.

*If you are curious, there are some fascinating local slang words and dialect n the northeast part of PA. One of the most prominent is the word "hayna" or "haina," used at the end of the sentence, kind of like "n'est-ce pas," perhaps derived from "ain't it". More on haina-speak here.

FO: Quilting edition

2011-12-03T07:34:00.000-05:00

Now that a bunch of my deadlines have passed, I have had a chance to start picking up some unfinished projects from earlier in the year. I started this quilt at the beginning of the summer. I didn't use a pattern because I really wanted to use large blocks that would show off the bright colors and patterns of this Echino fabric, whereas most of the patterns I see use smaller pieces of fabric. So I cut big blocks myself, roughly 10 x 10 inches.

I opted for some neutral beige for sashing but thought it needed something more. So I decided to add some little bits of solid color. I just played around with some Kona cotton that matched some of the colors in the prints, adding triangles and rectangles of color to the ten-inch blocks.

Although I like all of the bright patterns in the fabric, I think my favorite is the Viewmaster-inspired print, since I vividly remember having Viewmasters as a kid.

One thing I learned from this quilt is to try to be much more careful and exact when cutting blocks and sashing (and when sewing them together). I had to even out some of the edges, and realized then how lopsided some of my blocks were.

This was my first attempt at machine quilting. I decided to just give it a go, and not worry about crooked lines or other imperfections. I was amazed at how quickly the quilting went, and even though there are lots of wobbly places, I was still pleased with how my first machine quilting attempt went.

For the backing, I used half of a duvet cover that I bought at Ikea. (I'd read about this on a quilting blog and figured it was worth a try.) I used a brightly-colored dot fabric for the binding, and noticed that my binding technique is starting to improve and look more consistent.

It's been really fun to get back to a more normal day-to-day, instead of being frenzied and struggling to meet deadline after deadline. The next quilting project I'm going to focus on is a throw for my mom. I started it with the hope of having it done for her birthday in October, but that just wasn't going to happen. So I'm aiming for Christmas.

Another lucky winner

2011-12-02T07:41:00.001-05:00

Congratulations to EmilyHK who said:

The descriptions of yarn weights/substitutions and help with color-mixing (I'm always wary) makes this book seem very interesting! Thanks once again for a great book review.

I have sent Emily an email so that I can get mailing info for her copy of Stashbuster Knits. Thanks for commenting everyone! There'll be more book reviews and giveaways.

For those of you who live in the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton/Hazleton area, my old stomping rounds, don't forget that I will be teaching a class in "Making Friends with your Handpaints" and then doing a book signing at the lovely Gosh Yarn It in Kingston, PA. Details are here. I'll have Black Bunny yarns and fiber to sell, too, so here's a great chance to see the beautiful colors in person and stock up.

No-Bull Book Review & Giveaway: Stashbuster Knits, by Melissa Leapman

2011-11-29T07:33:00.000-05:00

Melissa Leapman is one of the veterans of the knitting industry: she seems to work tirelessly, teaching, writing books and publishing patterns. Having met her in person, I can also tell you that she is funny and down-to-earth and fun. I was delighted to receive a review copy of her latest book, Stashbuster Knits: Tips, Tricks, and 21 Beautiful Projects for Using Your Favorite Leftover Yarn. Let's subject it to the No-Bull Book Review treatment.

Stashbuster Knits (Potter Craft) is a paperback book, 144 pages, approximately 9 x 9 inches. MSRP is $19.99; available for $13.59 as of the time of this writing through the link above. In the introduction, Leapman good-naturedly (and accurately) describes the typical knitter's stash:

Some of this treasured collection consists of one or two extra balls of yarn purchased "just in case." Much of it is just partial balls--precious bits and pieces left over from completed projects. Then there are those times a single ball of this or that lands in the stash because it's something you are curious to try out, or perhps it was an irresistible bargain, happily discovered in a hidden sale bin. And who can resist picking up yarn as a souvenir from vacations and business trips?

Leapman cannily notes that although we love our stash, we also find it guilt-provoking because we know "there's just so much potential in there, if only we could figure out what to do with it." But first, she cautions, we need to know what in our stash, and be able to retrieve it. Accordingly, part 1 of the book is devoted to stash organization.

Puzzle Play

Leapman begins by suggesting that the knitter aggregate her entire stash, then sort it. She uses a four-category system: super fine/fine yarns (lace through sport weight); lightweight (DK); medium (worsted and aran weight); and bulky/super bulky (heaveir than aran weight). She helpfully includes the wraps per inch calculation, for balls of yarn that have lost their wrapper, and then includes a chart which gives rough yarn equivalents (e.g. 2 strands of super fine yarn equal 1 strand of light yarn). She gives tips for how to inventory stash and how to store it (with anti-moth tips). After some tips for what to do if you have too much stash, she covers some basic color theory, giving advice on how to combine colors, how to create a "magic ball" and other methods for randomly (or not so randomly) combining colors. Last topic covered is matching project to yarn, considering amount, laundering care and yarn weight/gauge.

Cables and Colors

Part Two is the project section, organized by yarn weight. The first section, devoted to lace-, fingering/sock and sportweight yarns, contains 5 projects, the Boho Bangles (best for using up small quantities of leftover yarn), a striped market bag, a cowl,

Fire and Ice Cozy Cowl

a bias striped scarf and a baby kimono with zigzag stripes on the body and a geometric stripe on the sleeves.

The section on lightweight yarns (dk weight) includes the Harlequin bag,

Harlequin

striped mittens, a kid's rollneck sweater done in stripes, a ripple stitch shawl, and an intarsia sweater for men.

Sea of Blue

Worsted weight projects consist of an afghan done in multiple colors shaped like jigsaw puzzle pieces,
a tote bag, a cabled yoke sweater, a circular-shaped medallion jacket

Roundabout

a multicolored linen stitch wrap, and a fair isle-style men's vest.

Strathaven

Bulky and superbulky projects include a slouchy beret,

Urban Knitster Slouch Hat

a textured cap, a cropped cardigan, a zipped and hooded vest, and a throw.

Bravissimo Throw

Following the patterns is a brief refresher course on topics like how to join a new ball of yarn, how to make bobbles, intarsia, provisional cast-ons, methods of increasing and decreasing stitches, and finishing techniques. A helpful section also gives the basics of reading charts.

One thing that is especially helpful, and appears throughout the pattern section, are little boxes with tips and suggestions for customizing the patterns. For example, the sample garment for the men's sweater is done in a blue colorway, but photos are given of two alternate colorways, one in browns, another in neutrals.

For knitters who are nervous about selecting colors, or who aren't good at imagining different color combinations together, this is a great help. Other boxes include tips on yardage (noting, for example, that colors used for one part of a sweater will require more yardage than colors used later in the pattern), ideas for tweaking size or style, and suggestions for how to best use scrap yarn in that design.

As one might expect, you'll find all the amenities that Potter Craft books are known for: color charts, schematics, clear photographs, close-ups of design details. and an easy-to-read layout. We've already covered the weight of the yarns used (everything under the sun). Sizing is generous; men's sweaters run from around a 43-inch finished chest to 61 to 64-inch finished chest, andwomen's sweaters go from around 34 to 35-inch finished bust through 3X, around 48 to 55-inch finished bust. The baby kimono is sized for 6/12/18/24 months, mittens are adult women's/men's; the child's sweater runs 2/4/6/8/10, and the rest of the items are primarily one size items (e.g. bags, throw, scarf).

Project count goes like this:

2 throws/blankets
3 women's sweaters
2 men's sweaters
2 hats
1 pair of mittens
3 bags
1 cowl & 1 scarf
1 bangle cover
2 shawls/stoles
1 baby's sweater
1 kid's sweater

Summing up, Melissa Leapman presents a versatile collection of good-looking patterns designed to use small amounts of yarn and other leftovers from the knitter's stash. There's a little bit of something for everyone in this book, and the technical information on organizing stash and combining colors will be helpful for knitters who feel overwhelmed by their odds and ends. And thanks to the generosity of Potter Craft, I've got a copy of Stashbuster Knits to give away. Leave a comment (one per person, please) no later than midnight, Thursday, December 1st and I'll draw a random winner the next morning. Make sure you include an email address or some other way I can get in touch with you or I'll pick another name. (I moderate comments, so if your comment doesn't show up instantly, please be patient!)

And the winner is....

2011-11-28T13:23:00.000-05:00

Evelyn, who said:

Thanks for this giveaway! I always have a nice healthy stash of Malabrigo in my collection so this pattern book would come in handy dandy!

Evelyn, look for an email from me so we can arrange for you to get your free e-book. Thanks for reading! And thanks to Nichole Reese for offering a free Ebook version of her lovely collection, "Harvest."

Pattern Booklet Preview & Giveaway: Harvest by Nichole Reese

2011-11-25T10:48:00.001-05:00

While at Vogue Knitting Live: Los Angeles, I had a chance to meet the very fun and funny Nichole Reese. She kindly sent me a PDF copy of her new pattern booklet so I could show it to all of you. The booklet features designs knit in Malabrigo yarns, and is part of Malabrigo's Freelance Pattern Designer Project. Malabrigo provides yarn support and promotional assistance, while the designer retains copyright of her designs.

Reese chose the theme "Harvest" for her collection of patterns. She explains:

Harvest is a remarkable time here in the Columbia River Basin and inspiration abounds everywhere you look. ... I pushed myself to create designs that were unique, fun to knit and fun to wear.

Harvest contains 5 patterns, including the Pumpkin Patch legwarmers (knit in Malabrigo sock yarn, doubled);

a charming beaded and lace capelet,

these clever mitts, which feature an inner layer that felts, with an outer layer knit in superwash yarn:

a long vest, knit in chunky textured yarn:

and the Foliage hat, with cable and colorwork.

Sizing varies: the legwarmers come in one size, the mitts, hat and capelet in two sizes; the vest is sized XS through XL (finished chest sizes of 34.5 to 51 inches). Yarns range from laceweight (used doubled for the hat) through the bulky yarn used for the vest. Charts and schematics are provided, as well as lots of color photos. You can purchase the booklet in PDF form via Ravelry or Nichole's website for $18.

It's fun to see yarn companies reaching out to indie designers and helping to support their work. And thanks to Nichole's generosity, I am pleased to announce that one lucky reader will win a free copy of the PDF version of Harvest. Leave a comment to this post (one comment per person; I do moderate comments to avoid spam, so if your comment doesn't appear immediately, be patient!) no later than noon on Monday, November 28th. I'll use the random number generator to pick a winner later that evening and announce it on Tuesday.

Now where was I? End of the summer Book Report

2011-11-23T06:24:00.000-05:00

It's been a good long while since I told you what I was reading, so I guess it's time to play catch-up. Here is what I read at the end of the summer, for July, August and September:

The Dark Enquiry by Deanna Raybourn, was another entry in the lightweight Lady Julia Grey series. In this installment, Lady Julia is a newlywed, and she and her new husband Brisbane have just returned to London. Lady Julia's brother seeks out Brisbane's help but swears him to secrecy about the nature of his problem, which only serves to whet Lady Julia's curiosity. She ends up following Brisbane to a gentlemen's club -- not the kind featuring pole dancers, but the kind where seances are held. Good escapist fun set in Victorian England.

I next went on a veritable binge of Inspector Montalbano mysteries, beginning with Voice of the Violin and continuing through the series to August Heat. (Remember, this is over three months, including two beach vacations!) I really enjoyed this series, featuring a world-weary Sicilian police inspector who has to figure out tricky ways to work within the corrupt and complex Italian justice system. If you like mysteries, I'd highly recommend these -- they are suspenseful and well-written, and Camilleri does a wonderful job evoking the atmosphere of the imaginary village he has created. I was lucky my local library had so many of the books in this series, as I plowed through a bunch of them while on vacation.

I moved back to the cold, forbidding world of Scandinavian crime with Karin Fossum's Bad Intentions. The book begins with the death of a troubled teen named Jon Moreno. He jumps into a lake while on a weekend trip and drowns, before his two friends have time to save him. Over the course of the book, we learn a lot more about all three young men, in more of a psychological study than a police procedural. Creepy and heavy on the psychological tension.

Then it was back to WWI-era England with A Bitter Truth by Charles Todd. I am a fan of Todd's Ian Rutledge series; this is a second, more recent mystery series set in the same WWI-era time period, but featuring an army nurse named Bess Crawford. This is the third book in the series and I think the series is getting better each time out. While on leave from duty, Bess returns to her London flat, only to find a woman huddled in the doorway. She invites her in and gets sucked into the woman's life. The woman claims she was beaten by her husband, but wants to returm home -- if Bess will go with her. Once you get past the unlikeliness of a WWI nurse giving up precious leave to accompany a virtual stranger to her country home, the mystery gets interesting.

GKIYH fan Mary Kay has been recommending the Armand Gamache series of mysteries, set in Quebec, and I am glad I took her up on the recommendation. This summer I read two Gamache mysteries, first Bury Your Dead, in which Gamache spends some time in Montreal recovering from the violent gunfight that ended a recent investigation. This book was really moving in the way it travels back and forth from the past to the present, slowly revealing the events that changed Gamache's life. The most recent book in the series, A Trick of the Light, didn't affect me as deeply, but was still very good, centering around the death of a thoroughly unpleasant art critic in the garden of a rural village.

I did take some time out from the mysteries to read a few good non-fiction books. I really enjoyed In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson. Larson seeks to answer the very compelling question of why the U.S. and other countries either didn't realize what Hitler's intentions were earlier in time. Thus Larson's book begins in 1933, when William Dodd, a Chicago professor, is named ambassador to Berlin. Dodd moved his family to Berlin (even shipping his car overseas so he wouldn't have to buy a new one while there) and we see how reports of German atrocities and aggression are tempered by the German government's assurances that Hitler means no harm. Especially striking is the way in which Dodd, an outsider to the diplomatic corps, has misgivings that keep getting bigger even as folks back in the US don't seem to be paying much attention to what he has to say.

I also read an interesting biography of Mary Boleyn, the infamous Queen Anne Boleyn's sister, called (of course) Mary Boleyn: The Mistress of Kings by noted historian Alison Weir. Mary Boleyn was the subject in recent years of a lot of historical fiction, and Weir takes a no-nonsense look at what is known about Boleyn (not much) and what has been invented about her (most of what people think they know about her). It's a good book, although the big problem is that when you're writing about a woman who lived so long ago and didn't leave much of a written record about herself, there's only so much to say. Weir ends up with more to say about what Mary Boleyn was not, than what she was, which makes the topic a bit unsatisfying (but is not the fault of the author).

Last non-fiction offering was grim but fascinating. A Thousand Lives: The Untold Story of Hope, Deception, and Survival at Jonestown by Julia Scheeres is a history of the Jonestown massacre. Scheeres herself was raised by a fundamentalist Christian family and as a teen, she and her brother were sent to a Christian reform school in the Dominican Republic. Her perspective gives her, I think, a special empathy for the victims of Jim Jones, and inspired some of the survivors to speak to her for the first time on the record. She pored over thousands of pages of newly-released government documents, too, for a thorough look at what happened and why.

I continued to read some good young adult books. In July, I read Revolution, by Jennifer Donnelly. I'd read good reviews of this book and I thought I'd give it a try, perhaps then recommending it to my 13 yr old. I really liked the book, which is set both in the present time and during the French Revolution. I have since learned that the author is a fellow graduate of the University of Rochester (we probably overlapped by 2 years) which made me like her even more. When I had the chance to scored a free copy of a book called The Wild Rose by the same author, I jumped. While I enjoyed The Wild Rose, it was more of a sprawling family saga (intended for adults) and was the third in a series (I hadn't read any of the earlier ones). It took place in the years around World War I, and the story stretched from the mountains of Asia and Africa to London to Turkey.

Little Miss spent much of the summer rereading the Harry Potter series, and so in solidarity with her, I reread the first 2 books of the Harry Potter series. I'd read them when they first came out, but it was great fun to enjoy them again, especially given my daughter's enthusiasm for them.

Somewhere along the way, I picked up a copy of The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe, for some absolutely ridiculous price like three bucks on a remainder table. I enjoyed the book, which tells the story of a grad student cleaning out her grandmother's house, only to find there is a family connection to one of the witches involved in the Salem witch trials. I felt like I'd read something similar to this before, but it was a good beach book and went fast.

Phew, I read a lot this summer, didn't I? I found The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino at the library, and I'd read some good reviews of it. (It won the Japanese equivalent of the Booker Prize.) This was one of those books that grabbed me right from the beginning, and I read it in a really short period of time because it was so suspenseful. The book is about a Japanese woman who accidentally kills her nasty ex-husband, then disposes of the body with the help of her next-door neighbor (who she doesn't really know very well until this point). The plot is twisting and intricate and I guess you'd describe it as a psychological thriller as much as a police procedural.

The Sixth Lamentation by William Brodrick, is a thriller that begins when an old man asks a monk what to do when the world turns against you. The monk tells him to seek sanctuary. The old man turns out to be a Nazi war criminal and he does seek sanctuary (in the historic sense of the word) in the monk's priory. The monk -- who is a former barrister -- is ordered by his chapter to investigate the old man's case. This was a good thriller which flips back and forth between WWII and the present day. A quick, suspenseful read.

Last on my list was a book nominated for the Gold Dagger Award (given to the best mystery novel by a crime writers' association), The Cypress House by Michael Koryta. This novel deserves the word "gripping": as it begins, we see a Depression-era drifter is on a train to find work at a Civilian Conservation Corps site in Florida. The drifter, named Arlen Wagner, has a strange gift -- he can see in advance when someone is going to die. (When someone is not long for this world and Wagner looks at him, he sees smoke in their eyes and a skeleton instead of a body.) Wagner looks around the train he's on and sees smoke in the eyes of everyone around him, which can only mean that something horrific is going to happen to the train. He gets off at the next station, taking his young friend with him. They end up at Cypress House, a kind of deserted inn on the Gulf Coast. Wagner and his friend get sucked into the world of Cypress House's owner, the lonely Rebecca Cady and have to face the fury of a Gulf Coast tropical storm along with the twisted and corrupt small town sheriff and his cronies. A really good read (I can just imagine the movie).

So that's what I read this summer. I'll catch up with my fall reading list and give you book reports for October and November next week.

In the meantime, happy Thanksgiving to all those celebrating it. I am grateful for so many things in my life: health, family, dear friends, knitting, bunnies, and of course books. Thanks for being a part of it.

Lucky winner!

2011-11-19T12:53:00.001-05:00

Congratulations to Collegeknitting, a.k.a. Michelle, who posted:

I only use the figure-8 cast-on, and she's right- it does make a pretty big gap. I'd love the chance to win this book and really learn how to do the Magic Cast-On! Thanks for the offer!

Please shoot me an email at carolATblackbunnyfibersDOTCaHm along with your shipping address. I will give your information to Judy Becker and she will sign and send your book!

Thanks to everyone who commented. I have a whole backlog of books to review so look for more book reviews and giveaways in the coming weeks.

And for those of you egging me on with my Sullivan sweater, I've got the 3rd nupp row done. Today I am going to finish the 4th and do the row where I turn up the hem and join it....then things will go faster with nupps only at the beginning and end of the rows.

No-Bull Book Review & Giveaway: Beyond Toes: Knitting Adventures with Judy's Magic Cast-on, by Judy Becker

2011-11-17T06:52:00.000-05:00

Judy Becker developed her "Magic Cast-on" several years ago, a method of casting stitches onto two circular needles (originally motivated by the desire to knit toe-up socks). Becker describes her magic cast-on this way:

There are various ways to start a toe-up sock: Figure-8 cast-on, provisional cast-on, long-tail cast-on combined with grafting, etc. I used to use the figure-8 cast-on, but it leaves loose stitches that have to be tightened back in after a few rounds. Even with lots of practice, I usually had to make two or three tries at it. Although invisible from the outside of the toe, on the inside the figure-8 cast-on leaves a blank space between the purl bumps of the first round.

I thought that the world needed a better way, a more humane way to start toe-up socks, so I developed Judy's Magic Cast-On. It's an easy to learn, fast method that starts at the very end of the toe and works the first time, every time. It's completely invisible from both sides, and it can be used with almost any toe-up sock pattern.

This ingenuity, trying to figure out an effective and attactive way to solve a practical problem, is one of the things that fascinates me about knitting. And like so many ingenious solutions, the Magic Cast-on has become very popular -- not just for toes-up socks, but for any place a knitter needs to use an invisible cast-on.

November Street (Duffy Stephens)

One of the fascinating aspects of the rise in self-publishing has been seeing books devoted to topics which pique the knitter's curiosity but might not seem "marketable" to a traditional publisher. Judy Becker's novel and extremely handy form of casting on stitches has excited knitters all over the place, but a traditional publisher might not want to base an entire book upon it, not really understanding why it's such a big deal to knitters.

Becker bypassed the traditional publishing world, publishing Beyond Toes: Knitting Adventures With Judy's Magic Cast-On (Indigo Frog Press 2011) herself. Let's take a No-Bull look.

Eye of the Needle (Stephen Houghton)

"Beyond Toes" (Indigo Frog Press 2011) is a sturdy paperback book, about 11.5 by 8 inches, with glossy color pages. MSRP is $28.95 (available through the link above). The book begins with an Introduction, in which Judy describes her background, how she came up with the Magic Cast-on and includes several great vintage photographs from her family history. After the introduction, she moves right into techniques, giving a page of handy tips before demonstrating the Judy's Magic Cast-on technique. Next up are explanations of the following techniques which riff on Judy's Magic Cast-on:

using the Magic Cast-on as a provisional cast-on so that one can knit in two directions from the same starting place
a tubular version, giving a stretchier edge for ribbing
a method of casting on a twisted I-cord
how to add stitches using the Magic Cast-on
and double-knitting using the Magic Cast-on (if done with two colors, you get an invisible start)

Handy illustrations help walk the knitter through each technique.

Patterns are next, and they are divided into seven chapters organized by the type of garment. First up are hats, including the stylish brimmed cap

Laurel Jane's Cap (Deb Barnhill)

a caddy's hat and the funky "Headbumps," with short rows used to create three-dimensional shapes.

Headbumps (Gayle Roehm)

The "Neckwear" chapter features a double-layered cowl and matching wristlets

Magic Cowl (Sivia Harding)

and a lovely seamen's style scarf suitable for men and women.

Monica's Seamen's Scarf (Myrna A.I. Stahman)

"Mittens" features an adorable bobsled-inspired pair and a second pair with cable details. "Socks" contains two pair, including these lovely ones by Janel Laidman.

Spring Fever Socks (Janel Laidman)

"Garments and Wraps" takes the technique to a grander scale, including a colorwork vest

Djinn (Samantha Roshak)

shawls/wraps, and a poncho. "Bags and Cozies" features a felted bag, a cabled notebook cover and a backpack-style bag. Last chapter is "Comfy Things," a pillow cover with variations and Pippa the pig.

Pippa (Deb Barnhill)

For my statisticians, you'll find the following patterns:

5 hats
4 scarves/cowls (including wristlets for one pattern)
2 pairs of mittens
2 pairs of socks
a colorwork vest
a shrug
2 shawls
a poncho
3 bags (one is a laptop cover)
1 pillow cover pattern; and
1 stuffed toy pattern.

Mokosh (Cindy Abernethy)

Yarn weights are varied, from fingering weight to bulky. Sizing varies depending on the pattern. Hats, for example come in one to three sizes. Scarves, bags and shawls are mostly one size, mittens come in 4 to 5 sizes (child through adult male), socks in one to three sizes (think women's sizes, rather than kids' or men's), and the vest comes in five sizes (finished chest circumference 29 through 46.5 inches). Charts are used in most of the more complex stitch patterns, and you'll find schematics for the vest and shrug, as well as diagrams for the items with more unusual construction. Plenty of clear photographs (by Vivian Aubrey) taken against stunning natural backdrops add to the charm.

Bobsled Mittens (Lorilee Beltman)

"Beyond Socks" is a terrific example of what smaller independent publishing can offer us knitters: a book with a very specific technical focus, informed by its author's own vision of how valuable the technique is and how it can readily be used in different knitting applications. With its attractive selection of patterns from respected designers such as Cat Bhordi, Myrna Stahman and Sivia Harding, it will be a welcome addition to your bookshelf.

And thanks to the generosity of author Judy Becker, I've got a copy of "Beyond Toes" to give away to a lucky reader. Just leave a comment telling us whether you already use the Magic Cast-on or whether you'd like to learn it, and I'll use a random number generator to pick a winner. Judy will even sign the book for you. Leave your comment to this post (one per reader, please) by Saturday, November 19th at noon EST and I'll pick a winner later that day.

Sullivan Sweater: Starting point

2011-11-16T09:39:00.001-05:00

Here is a photo of where I am as of last night. The sweater is knit in one piece, from the bottom up, and it has a foldover hem. I have passed the turning ridge and am in the middle of the first row of nupps.

I will endeavor to finish the nupps rows so that I can move into mostly-stockinette stitch -- that will go faster, right?

Shall we add a thermometer to measure my progress?

A generous estimate puts me at 2%. I love being nudged along by you -- it's definitely very inspiring!

I need your help!

2011-11-14T07:25:00.001-05:00

I spent most of the weekend at Loop, and what a wonderful weekend it was! Craig and his staff are always great fun to hang out with and they always treat me like royalty. Plus it's inspiring being surrounded by so many beautiful yarns and projects.

My Saturday class was scheduled to begin at 10, but the Schuylkill mocked me, sucking us into a huge traffic jam. A trip that normally would take 20 minutes on a Saturday morning took close to an hour and half -- feh. My students were very understanding about me being late, though, so we pushed the class back half an hour and went 10:30 to 1:30ish. I love teaching the Handpaints class. It's always filled with people who, like me, are fascinated with handpainted yarns and love knitting with them. By the time we're done with the class, I can actually see how a little light comes on the eyes of the students: they understand how handpainted yarns work and why they do what they do, and it gives them a whole new window on their knitting.

After class, I was able to hang out at the shop and see some of the lovely customers that came into Loop.

Aileen, "Kristin Dee" (if that is her real name) and Sallykins

I also got to see Mary Kay (who brought lots of beautiful projects she'd knit in BBF), Jenny the vet, Sam, Merrill, Martha, and many other knitting friends. I also got a chance to look around. Loop has always had a delectable assortment of yarns, but I was especially entranced by all of the Rowan (Cocoon! Wool-Cotton! Lima! Kidsilk Haze!) and the Brooklyn Tweed yarns (Shelter and new Loft).

Yes, some Shelter ended up coming home with me (although I was sorely tempted by the Loft, too, and I heartily believe there is a Cocoon something in my future). I also had to stop next door to see what was new at Loop's sister store, Spool. Laura had plenty of goodies for me to ogle, and I found that I simply couldn't resist Amy Butler's new Lark collection:

and the new Echo collection by Lotta Jansdottir:

I am now pondering what to do with them. The Lark fabric is so vivid, and the Echo is much lighter, with lots of creamy white, so I'll have to find just the right patterns for them.

Sunday ended up being a much smoother day. There was no traffic so I had plenty of time to get into the shop and get ready for the class. I was really pleased to meet one of my most excellent customers, Tonia, who took my class and then hung out for a while. She had lots of lovely projects to show me and I was really happy to finally meet her in person. I only had my cell phone with me to take photos, but this is a shot of her Girasole:

Stunning, isn't it?

After class, sweet Anmiryam dropped by, too, and it was terrific to see her, since I've been so crazed lately I haven't had much of a chance to see anyone in the last few months. Tom even brought the kids by, since they were excited that I had a "show," and it was fun to have them around, taking part in my big weekend. A huge thank-you to Craig and the staff of Loop for putting up with my wisecracks and being such fabulous hosts.

But before I sign off, I am asking you all for your help. I now have a bunch of Shelter in the Faded Quilt color:

While I was hanging at Loop, I cast on the Sullivan sweater, designed by Whitney Gegg-Harrison. I really want to finish this sweater so I can wear it, since I so rarely manage to knit sweaters for myself. So here's where your help comes in: Remind me about my sweater. Harass me, harangue me, shame me. Do whatever it takes to help incent me to finish it. I will do an update of my progress on the first of every month 'til I am done. My goal is to finish it by my birthday, in March. I'll take a photo of where I am tomorrow and post it so we have a reference point. What do you think? Can I finish something for myself? Will you mock me, cajole me, remind me until I'm done?

Special preview: Koigu Magazine 2

2011-11-11T19:13:00.000-05:00

I am very pleased to be able to provide you a special preview of the brand-new Koigu Magazine, Issue 2. KM 2 should be arriving at your local yarn shop very very soon. In the meantime, here's a sneak peek at some of the 32 lovely patterns inside.

The theme of this issue is "On The Go" -- smaller projects, like accessories and home dec items, along with projects that are easily transportable. The magazine begins with short profiles of the contributing designers, then features an article by Sue Mitchell on picking Koigu colors. Next are the patterns.....

Garden Gate Socks by Barb Brown

Laura Zukaite makes her Koigu Magazine debut with a cropped shrug and a capelet done in a patchwork of ribs

Sweet, by Laura Zukaite

while Maie Landra designed the striking zigzag sweater on the cover (above).

The only other adult sweater (in keeping with the on-the-go theme) is this lovely red pullover with a sharply scalloped body.

Astrid by Astrid Schramm

The rest of the patterns fall primarily into the accessory category. There are hats of all kind, from watch-style

An Impish Smile by Un-Jung Yun

to fair isle to entrelac and more. There are lovely socks (all by GKIYH pal Barb Brown), including these spectacular knee-highs

Vineyard Kneehighs by Barb Brown

and these charming anklets.

Autumn Berries by Barb Brown

You'll find several scarves, knit vertically and horizontally,

Rainbow in Ribs, by Marji LaFreniere

a stunning red lace shawl

Apex Shawl, by Carolyn DesChamp

and some less-typical items, like this sweet kerchief.

Patch of Berries, by Maie Landra

With a whopping 32 patterns in this issue, you will find bags, jewelry,

Cluster of Grapes, by Taiu Landra

and home dec items, like this tablerunner made of mitred squares.

Squares & More Squares, by Maia Landra

Another one of my favorites from this issue are the clever round pillows:

Candy Swirl Pillows by Shiri Mor

I love the way Shiri Mor used relatively thin areas of each color to get a striping effect -- very clever.

Of course you will also find my baby hat and cardigan (shown with a baby blanket designed by Maie Landra):

Ginger, by me

Koigu Magazine 2 will be hitting the shelves of your local yarn shop any day now.

Don't forget:

I'll be teaching at Loop in Philadelphia this weekend. There's still some room in my classes: Making Friends with your Handpaints from 10 to 1 on Saturday, and Secrets of the Schematics from 10:30 to 12 on Sunday. I'll be in the shop both afternoons with lots and lots of Black Bunny Fibers yarn and some rovings, too! Plus Craig always has an amazing selection of yarns and patterns, with Brooklyn Tweed's Shelter and Loft yarns, a new shipment of Koigu (I am pretty sure Magazine 1 is in stock, but not sure if No. 2 arrived yet), Rowan (bestill my heart) and you can get your fabric on next door at Spool. (There's a fat quarter pack of Amy Butler's Lark with my name on it....)

See you there!

My sixth blog-iversary

2011-11-08T16:59:00.000-05:00

Once again, the anniversary of my very first blog post slipped by me (it was November 6th, for those of you who like exact dates). It is absolutely shocking that I have been blogging about knitting, and various other topics that pique my interest. for six whole years. It still amazes me that there are loyal readers out there who've stuck with me all that time. I love getting comments from readers, and it still cracks me up that I occasionally get hate mail (including hate mail about people other than me -- what's with that?) and that every once in a great while, someone flounces from reading my blog -- but not without sending an email just. to. let. me. know.

It's been a very busy fall for me and I have been struggling, at times, to keep posting, even on a semi-regular basis. Although time constraints have definitely been part of it, I've noticed I also have become more reluctant to blog about my personal life. It's very easy for me to sit down and post about something concrete -- a new design, a fiber show I've attended, a book review -- but I've found it harder and harder to post about me.

My kids are getting older, so to some extent, I am trying to preserve their privacy a little more. I'd also be lying if I didn't admit that the slightly higher profile I've achieved through my writing and designing has something to do with it. There's more scrutiny placed on my blog and I'm painfully aware of how easy it is to offend someone, even unintentionally, through a casual joke or badly-phrased comment. I also have found that more people in my non-knitting life read the blog -- family members, neighbors, and others whose feelings are important to me. I hope there is still enough of value to keep people coming back, even if my snarky edge has softened somewhat over the years, and even if my daughter no longer pees on the bathroom floor out of spite.

Thanks to all of you out there for reading. That you are willing to regularly spend a few minutes of your day reading what I have to say is appreciated more than you can know. And that so many of you have become friends, whether virtual or in real life, is the icing on the cake.

No-Bull Book Review: Wendy Knits Lace by Wendy Johnson

2011-11-07T08:29:00.000-05:00

Wendy Johnson has been on quite the roll for the last couple of years. Her excellent toe-up sock books contain lovely patterns and lots of good technical advice. Her latest, Wendy Knits Lace: Essential Techniques and Patterns for Irresistible Everyday Lace was released this past summer. I am rather behind in my book reviews (well, okay, I'm behind in just about everything) but I didn't want to let this one pass without giving you all a look -- it's such a pretty book with gorgeous patterns in it.

"Wendy Knits Lace" is brought to you by our friends at Potter Craft, and like Wendy's prior books, it's a paperback, with fold-in covers, with glorious color throughout. "Wendy Knits Lace" is a little bigger than her two sock books, at around 8.5 by 11 inches, with approximately 144 pages, MSRP $22.99 (available for $15.63 as of the time of this writing through the link above). The first 38 pages or so are devoted to technical material, and the remainder of the book contains 20 patterns. Let's take a closer look.

Wendy starts with an introduction explaining her approach to lace. While she began by making airy shawls from cobweb yarn, she came to realize that those garments weren't very durable and therefore weren't practical for everyday wear.

The pieces I use over and over again are sturdier lace. The shawls and scarves I knit from slightly heavier lace-weight yarns and sock yarns, for example, are the ones I wear all winter long. I like the idea of knitting pieces that are sturdy and serviceable whiel at the same time lacy and pretty -- lace for everyday life.

She then instructs the reader that the patterns used in the book were knit with "heavier" yarns, meaning yarns other than truly cobweb-weight: heavier lace yarns, and sock through worsted weight yarns.

Deirdre Sweater

Chapter 1 begins with lace knitting basics. Wendy starts by talking about needles, focusing on the material the needles are made from; the pointiness of the tip; and the smoothness of the join (she uses circular needles for lace almost exclusively). She then discusses yarn choice, warning against cotton and acrylic (acrylic because it does not block well, and cotton due to its inelasticity). Wendy goes on to explain the basics of chart reading; the importance of swatching and gauge; and the critical step of blocking. She covers the use of lifelines; how to use stitch markers to keep track of patterns; and tips for fixing missed stitches (very helpful!).

True Love Stole

Chapter 2 covers specific techniques needed to knit lace. Wendy begins with cast-ons (provisional, circular. the "lace" cast-on, and the use of a garter-stitch tab; yarn joins (the most commonly used join, the Russian join and the spliced join); bind-offs (Russian); how to knit on a border; and methods of increasing and decreasing.

Chapter 3 begins the patterns. This first set of patterns is designed for every day, and begins with a scarf with lace stripes, to ease the new lace knitter into the rhythm of laceknitting:

Lace Stripe Scarf

Projects start to ramp up in difficulty at a slow but steady pace. Easier items include a cute set of mittens; gloves with a lace edging; a hat; and a tam.

Mairi Tam

There are five different shawls/stoles from which to choose, of various shapes and sizes, including this great circular one, shown in an afghan-sized version:

Vortex Spiral Afghan

In addition to the first lace stripe scarf, you'll find another scarf pattern, as well as a worsted weight cowl and a "smoke ring" (really, another kind of circular scarf).

Elizabeth's Cowl

Sock lovers will enjoy two crew-length sock patterns as well as a set of knee-highs.

Delicate Vines Socks

There are even three sweater patterns: a beautiful cardigan, a long-sleeved pullover and a camisole.

Seashell Cami

Summing up, we've got:

2 rectangular scarves and 2 cowls
two hats (one watch style and one tam)
one pair each of mittens, gloves and fingerless mitts
3 pairs of socks (two crew-length; one knee-high)
3 sweaters (one each of cardigan, pullover and camisole)
5 shawls (one is shown in a larger afghan size, too).

The resources section at the end contains the usual helpful info, such as yarn companies, abbreviations and the standard yarn weight system. I like the visual project index in the back, which includes small photos of each pattern, along with name and page number.

Two-Thirds Shawl

Photography is once again done beautifully by Alexandra Grablewski, and the layout of the book (designed by La Tricia Watford) remains as airy and cool as the lace itself. As mentioned before, the yarns used range from "heavy" laceweight to worsted weight, and while many of the projects do not require sizing (e.g. the shawls, scarves and stoles), the sweaters range from 34- to 37-inch to 47- to 53-inch finished bust circumference, and the sock patterns come in four or five (!) sizes, to ensure that every sized foot is happy.

Vintage Kneesocks

So even though this book isn't brand-brand-new, it's still pretty new, and it's a very good-looking book filled with lovely lace patterns. If you are new to lace and would like to ease into the process, this book will get you started with a minimum of angst. Even if you are already familiar with the basics of laceknitting, though, I think the patterns are pretty enough to tempt you to add this book to your bookshelf.

Now having written kick-ass books about socks and lace, what will be next for WendyKnits? Perhaps cables and arans (hint hint)?

And the winner is...

2011-11-03T12:58:00.001-04:00

"jlr" who said:

I have heard wonderful stuff about Clara's books, but have not yet gotten my hands on any of them. Must rectify that somehow!

I have emailed you through the email address in your Blogger profile, so check that email account and I will send out the book to you.

Thanks to all for reading and commenting! I love when you all pop out of the woodwork and comment. It's nice to know someone is out there!

No-Bull Book Review & Giveaway: The Knitter's Book of Socks, by Clara Parkes

2011-10-31T05:01:00.001-04:00

When she's not taking photographs of the artfully-swirled cream in her cup of java mochalatta, Clara Parkes writes books. Really excellent books, as a matter of fact. Today's No-Bull Book Review examines her latest, The Knitter's Book of Socks: The Yarn Lover's Ultimate Guide to Creating Socks That Fit Well, Feel Great, and Last a Lifetime (Potter Craft 2011; MSRP $30, available as of the time of this writing for $17.85 via the link).

I first encountered Clara Parkes through her excellent newsletter, Knitter's Review, and the message boards that accompanied it. I have always loved Clara's in-depth yarn reviews, her emphasis on small-producer and single-breed wools, and her willingness to share her technical expertise though both her newsletter and message boards. Clara's first two books (The Knitter's Book of Yarn and The Knitter's Book of Wool) are wonderful, information-packed volumes that should be on every knitter's bookshelf. They also feature some lovely patterns, too. It's no surprise that The Knitter's Book of Socks will take its place next to them, as a must-read book for the sock knitter. Let's take a closer look at what's inside.

Knitter's Book of Socks begins with a brief introduction, in which Clara sets out her goal: to educate readers about "the art, science, and sheer pleasure of knitting socks from the yarn up." By using the specific sock yarn as starting point, Parkes hopes to prevent sock knitting disasters that might result from a bad combination of sock and yarn.

Stepping Stones, by Clara Parkes

Chapter 1 is titled "What a Sock Needs," and we learn in the introductory section that a sock yarn needs three qualities: elasticity, strength and absorption. Parkes walks the reader through each of these qualities, discussing what elasticity is and how to measure it; different aspects of strength, including strength to resist abrasion and tensile strength; and moisture management. She finishes with a nod to a fourth, more abstract factor: what I think of as the yarn's charisma -- whether the yarn feels good to wear and work with.

Hickory, by Jane Cochran

Chapter 2 covers the fibers that are used to create sock yarns, not only covering types of fiber (wool and other protein fibers, plant-derived fibers like cotton, synthetic and others) but also issues like blends, the fineness of the fibers and staple length.

Chapter 3 looks at specific types of yarn, instructing the reader about twist, singles vs. plies, even cable-spun and corespun yarns -- all excellent stuff that often is overlooked in discussions of yarn.

Chapter 4 gives the knitter some tips on how to make adjustments to a yarn to compensate for natural tendencies that can affect its suitability as a sock yarn. For example, Parkes gives some guidance on how to use your stitchwork to increase the elasticity of the socks (if you are working with a less-than-elastic yarn); how to improve the strength of a less-durable yarn; and discusses the use of wooly nylon as reinforcement.

Veil of Rosebuds, by Anne Hanson

If your mind starts spinning from the vast amount of valuable information in the beginning chapters, you can always take a break and refer to Chapter 5, the patterns. Parkes presents a selection of 20 sock patterns from leading sock designers, including Cat Bhordi, Cookie A, Lucy Neatby, Nancy Bush and Ann Budd.

Buddleia by Marlaine Bird

There's a great variety of styles included, from stranded

Strago by Jared Flood

and eyelets

Prana, by Cirilia Rose

to cuffs

Lady Tryamour, by Sivia Harding

even unique multidirectional colorwork:

Percheron, by Kathryn Alexander

But of all the gorgeous patterns, my favorite is a lovely one called "Tutu," designed by Melissa Morgan-Oakes and knit up in Black Bunny Fibers Stella yarn:

Tutu, by MMO

The patterns feature charts (in color where appropriate); close-up shots to show off specific design features; notes to help the knitter with unusual techniques; and extensive descriptions that explain how the features of the specific design illustrate the technical information given in the beginning of the book. Sizing varies depending on the pattern; some of the more unusual designs are shown in one size only, but many include two or three different sizes.

The pattern section is followed by a "Resources" section detailing how to care for your socks; explanation of abbreviations and techniques; a chart showing foot size and how it relates to sock sizes; and a bibliography.

The book is hardcover; approximately 208 pages; with lots of photographs and inset boxes; and the mouth-watering photography is by Alexandra Grablewski.

When you really love yarn, especially sock yarn, like I do, it's a real treat to encounter a book as informative and easy to read as it is beautiful. The Knitter's Book of Socks is such a book, and thanks to the generosity of Potter Craft, I have a free copy of The Knitter's Book of Socks to give away. Leave a comment to this post by midnight, Wednesday, November 2. I will use the random number generator to pick a winner and announce it the next day. One comment per person, please! And makes sure you include an email or I can reach you through your Blogger comment login.

Coming soon

2011-10-30T11:12:00.004-04:00

to a LYS near you: Koigu Magazine volume 2. I am proud to present Ginger, my baby cardigan and hat combination, knit in Kersti.

There are lots of other lovely items in this issue and I'm hoping to have a complete preview of the issue soon.

In the meantime, we are doing fine after our unusual October storm. We only had about two inches of snow, and much of it has melted already. Keeping fingers crossed that power is restored to those who are without -- having experienced that in August, I have great sympathy for you.

Black Bunny Fibers lovers: Occupy Loop!

2011-10-26T12:57:00.004-04:00

I am very excited to announce that I will be having a trunk show at Loop in Philadelphia during the weekend of November 12 & 13. I'll be bringing pretty much everything I've got in stock, and I'll be stoking up the dyepots during the coming weeks to make sure I've got some new stuff for you. You'll be able to browse to your heart's content all day Saturday and Sunday, and for those of you who like to touch and see yarn in person, this is a great chance for you to fondle the goods!

I'll also be teaching two classes at Loop. Saturday morning I'll be teaching "Making Friends With Your Handpaints," from 10 to 1, and when the class is done, you'll understand all about why handpaints do what they do (particularly why they pool) and what you can do about it. Sunday I'll be teaching a class that uses the schematic of a pattern as a jumping-off point: what it tells you about the pattern, the important but often overlooked concept of ease, different shoulder styles and ways to tweak patterns to get a better fit.

I'll be hanging out at the shop after my classes to answer any questions about BBF yarns, to sign books, or just to say hi. (And now that Loop has Brooklyn Tweed's Shelter yarn, as well as Rowan yarns (!), you can bet I'll be leaving with a big bag of yarn that I didn't arrive with.....) Full details are here.

Stitches East: Hartford edition

2011-10-24T07:38:00.000-04:00

I first discovered Stitches East when it was held in Valley Forge, just five minutes from my house. I have very vivid memories of attending about 15 years ago, when I was very pregnant with my oldest kid and wandered around buying baby kits to knit. He's almost 14 now, and it seems unbelievable that I've been going to Stitches East for so many years. I followed it to Atlantic City and Baltimore, but I haven't been there since the show moved to Hartford so it was great fun to be asked to teach there this fall.

View of Hartford from my hotel room

It took about four and a half hours to make it from my house to the hotel/convention center, and it was teeming with rain for much of the way -- very stressful. It was a relief to check into the hotel and have a quiet night of watching bad teevee and knitting before the show began. Thursday was jam-packed. I attended the Teachers A La Carte luncheon, which was described to me as "speed dating for teachers." We started out at a lunch table full of students, and as they had lunch, we had about five minutes to introduce ourselves and tell about our classes. Then we moved to the next table, and so on. It was surprisingly grueling but I did get to meet some lovely people, including a bunch of women who were from northeastern Pennsylvania and couldn't believe I grew up in Wilkes-Barre.

Outside the hotel

Thursday afternoon was my first class and it was full of great students. I had dinner that night with lace goddess Brooke Nico, and my second class was bright and early Friday morning. It was another enjoyable class full of great students but since my Friday afternoonwas free, I decided to use it to take a quick whirl around the show floor and then nap. (Teaching takes a tremendous amount of energy out of me and leaves me feeling zombified.) By this time, my roommate Melissa Morgan-Oakes had arrived and so we were able to have dinner together Friday night, thus alleviating any need for me to lurk in the shrubbery with night-vision goggles. (By the way, it has come to my attention that MMO is claiming that she is missing some underwear. I am most certainly not wearing it on my head right now, so please put that thought out of your mind immediately.)

Stalkery of MMO

My last class was Saturday morning and it was my favorite one to teach: Yarn Substitution Made Easy. My class was bright and eager and enthusiastic, and we had a great conversation about the relatively new square-shaped knitting needles vs. round. (Consensus was that it was quite common to find that one's gauge was a bit looser on the square needles compared to the same size in traditional round shape.) The best part for me was that one of the students in the class was a knitter who'd taken a class with me before; nothing's more rewarding than someone willing to come back and take a second class with the same teacher.

Marie even brought a scarf she was knitting in some Black Bunny yarn -- my cell phone photo doesn't do it justice, but it is so fun to see BBF yarn knit up, and Marie was doing a fabulous job with the scarf.

Saturday afternoon was a real treat for me. I got picked up outside the hotel by my pal Kristi and she and her wife Donna and doggie Ripley took me away from the knitting world into the world of Mark Twain. I had not realized that Mark Twain lived for many years in Hartford, and we went to visit the Mark Twain House and Museum. It was just five or ten minutes away from the Convention Center but a world away in spirit.

View of Mark Twain House

The house itself was big and beautiful. I guess you could call it Victorian or Gilded Age, but it also had a sort of craftsman feel about it -- lots of wood, and stenciling everywhere. There were balconies, a glassed conservatory, and amazing construction details. Our tour guide knew an incredible amount about Mark Twain (for example, he could rattle off factoids like "The family had 11 cats during the 18 years that they lived in this house" and other details that made the family come alive).

Mark Twain in Lego (gotta love a museum with a sense of humor)

Donna, me & Kristi

I got back to the hotel in time to chill for a little while and then attend the student banquet. I could not believe my eyes when Lily Chin entered the room wearing an entire Mary Poppins ensemble -- including crocheted hat and long coat, knitted skirt, carpetbag and even a black umbrella with a light-up handle. She kept going around saying that she was "practically perfect in every way."

Once again I had the pleasure of hanging with Brooke Nico and we met some lovely students at our table (several of whom had taken classes with Brooke over the previous days).

Linda Pratt demonstrates the Kid Silk Creation scarf kits

After chatting with my students about square knitting needles, I had to stop at the WEBS booth before I left so I could try a pair. (I'll let you know what I think....) The show floor seemed well-populated (a few vendors were missing due to overlap with the SAFF show) and I got a chance to see some of my favorite fiber folks, including the Elkins, Linda Pratt from Westminster Fibers, and Michael DelVecchio of Universal Yarns. I got to meet Lisa Souza in person (we've been conducting a shameless Facebook correspondence but haven't actually met in person) and enjoyed poking around and seeing what was new in the knitting world.

I will freely confess that after being away from my family for four days, I was very happy to get back on the road Sunday morning and head for home. It was a great trip and I returned home, as I usually do after a teaching gig, both exhausted and energized. If this blog post sounds a little disjointed, it's probably because I am still taking in all the new people I met and the things I saw....

Now it's back to the massive to-do list that was waiting for me. At the top of the list: Halloween costumes.

Rhinebeck: Part 2

2011-10-18T08:11:00.000-04:00

Saturday night ended up being a cozy and mellow evening. My roommates convinced me that drinking lots of wine and eating lots of Chinese food while sitting in the hotel room in my jammies was the way to go, and you know what? They were right. So we gossiped about yarn and the yarn world and cracked jokes and had a wonderful time.

Sunday morning was even more beautiful, and although we had to bid the cool Canadian ladies "adieu," we were still prepared to get our last licks in at the show, before hitting the road. For some reason, we hadn't seen a lot of Philadelphia friends Saturday and we were wondering where they all were. But Sunday was a different story. We ran into the lovely Jody Pirrello Richards and her loyal companion Christy first thing.

Shortly after that, we found Lisa and Purlewe loitering near a display of pumpkins....

and just as we were about to leave, Jim found Craig and Mark (Mark is a love; he very kindly shared his fried pickles with us).

Laura and I were fairly restrained in our shopping, although we did both succumb to the lure of some Bartlett yarn.

In the interests of science, I decided to do an experiment: APPLE CRISP VS. APPLE PIE.

You can see the choices here:

Crisp (Saturday's choice)

Pie (Sunday's choice)

I have to say that I preferred the pie: more apples and the crust was moister than the crisp. (I believe strongly in the scientific method. I am debating whether to do pumpkin pie vs. apple pie next year.....)

Of course, there were all sorts of lovely things to see at the show, and I enjoyed snapping some photos of miscellaneous items that caught my eye. From lop-eared goats

to an entrelac wrap;

sheep of all flavors, colors and sizes;

fiber-related equipment

and handwoven baskets

a baby bun

(This guy was a ham. He absolutely mugged for the camera)

delicious things to eat and drink:

um, Yoda?

but I think my favorite photo from the weekend is this one.

One of the last things we did was walk through the animal barns and see the sheep. Laura seemed to have an uncanny bond with the sheep, and at one point, she had 3 or 4 sheep jostling to try to get her to pet them. I started calling her "the Sheep Whisperer."

The weekend flew, and I've barely unpacked my suitcase and it's time for another teaching gig, this time at Stitches East. So if you're in Hartford this weekend, make sure you stop me and say hello...

Rhinebeck!

2011-10-17T06:24:00.001-04:00

How quickly a wonderful weekend with dear friends flies by! I got back from our annual trek to Rhinebeck last evening, and although I was looking forward to sleeping in my own bed again, I already missed my fibery friends dreadfully. Here's the recap, so if you weren't able to make it, you can experience it vicariously.

The first year we went to Rhinebeck, faithful companion Jim and I

got up at the crack of dawn on Saturday and went for the day. We quickly realized that (a) we are too old to get up at 4 a.m. every year and (b) we needed to spend more time there because it was so fun, so the next year we got a hotel room and stayed over Saturday night. A year or two after that, lovely & uber-talented Laura Grutzeck had been coming with us and we all decided one night at Rhinebeck wasn't enough. So we added Friday night to our hotel reservation and made it a weekend.

We left midday Friday, and the weather was kind of misty and overcast, with the sun peeking through from time to time. Our drive went pretty quickly, and we arrived before 5 p.m. We met up with my girl-crush Veve and her wonderful friends Tara and Kate, and ended up at the Olympic Diner for a quick dinner. We hit the hay early so we would be able to get to the show nice and early.

We woke up Saturday to beautiful sunny skies...(later on, there were short but drenching rain showers, though)

and before we even left the parking lot, we saw Tara and Kate.

Tara just finished her lovely sweater the night before so she modeled it for us (she has previous modeling experience, you know).

We were early enough that we didn't get caught in too much traffic (we heard that some friends were stuck in a gigantic line of cars a little later in the morning -- feh) and we were very pleased to be strolling the grounds while the sun shone and the leaves gently fell.

When I first get to Rhinebeck, it's such a giddy feeling: where to go first, looking for friends along the way, and simply soaking up the great feeling of being surrounded by fellow fiber freaks....So we wouldn't be completely overwhelmed, we adopted a somewhat systematic approach, starting at one end of the barns and working our way through them. It's always interesting to see what new vendors are there, to greet old friends from past years (we always make out way to Maggie's Soaps, because she is a lovely person and the soap is divine!)

and one of our first stops was, of course, to see the inimitable Dr. Mel

wearing his customary kilt and thereby gracing us all with a view of his sexeh legs.

Not to mention the great Icelandic sweater....

We also had the pleasure of running into Amy Detjen

and Rhichard from happy Koiguland (also showing off his great gams)

Of course we saw all sorts of adorable animals, from sheep

(I think this is a Teeswater) to goats

and bunnies

and we ran into several alpaca and llama parades

We made a special stop at the book tent, where I picked up a signed copy of Teva Durham's recent book (I'll do a review soon -- it's fabulous)

Ysolda was signing her new book and showing off her new 'do:

while Ms. Clara Parkes was selling out (SELLING OUT!) of her new book (one of the next books I'll be reviewing)

Lunch was my favorite Polish food from Janek's

(stuffed cabbage rolls and pierogi).

We didn't see a lot of folks from Philly on Saturday, and somehow I completely missed Marilyn and Joe (very unusual) but we still managed to have a most excellent day.

Jim didn't want to leave -- can you blame him?

(Tomorrow: Day 2 recap)

No-Bull Book Review: Bambeanies, by Woolly Wormhead

2011-10-12T07:16:00.002-04:00

I've got a big stack of books waiting to be reviewed, and now that the knitting crunch for the book is reaching an end, I'd better get cracking. Today's book review: a charming selection of hats for kids, by the designer Woolly Wormhead.

I first discovered Woolly Wormhead on Ravelry. It seemed as though nearly every time I encountered a wonderful, creative hat pattern, it was by this designer with the whimsical name. This past summer, I had the pleasure of meeting Wooly at TNNA and we got along like a house on fire. So when she emailed me to ask if I'd like to do a blog post about her new book, Bambeanies, I was only too happy to oblige.

Bambeanies can be purchased via this link as a print book or, for instant gratification, a PDF download. (The print book costs $23 while the PDF download is ten pounds, about $15.75 as of the time of this writing.) You can purchase the download on Ravelry, too, and if you fall in love with an individual pattern, they are available for purchase individually, too.

Woolly Wormhead is, as I mentioned before, known for designing fun and funky hats, often using creative structural techniques. Bambeanies contains a selection of 20 hats, shown on some adorable kids, but also sized, in many cases, for adults, too.

Aurora

The book begins with Woolly Wormhead's introduction, in which she explains her fascination with hats:

I love the challenge they can present with a new technique or stitch pattern, and how they can be used to experiment with an unusual construction. I love their 3-dimensional nature, and the way they can be worn to reflect a mood or feeling or favourite outfit. And most of all, I love their quickness and portability.

Woolly's aim in creating this collection was to showcase all of these aspects of hat knitting, providing fun for the knitter and the wearer.

Nupkin

The book next covers some technical information, beginning with sizing (including measuring, which size to pick, gauge and blocking); info about yarn, needles and gauge; a list of abbreviations; and several illustrations showing specific skills like kitchener stitch and different cast-ons.

Next up is the collection of hats -- a mix of unisex caps

Rocketeer

as well as a few which are particularly suited for girls.

Damsel

The hats are knit in a variety of yarns, including Noro self-stripers, handpaints and solids.

Corby (l) and Trullo (r)

The yarns used run the gamut from fingering/sock weight (2 patterns), to sport (1), to DK (6) and chunky (2), with almost half knit in worsted/aran weight yarn (9). All of the hats are presented in multiple sizes, ranging from baby or child sized through larger/adult sizes. Schematics are also provided for the hats, which isn't usual for hat patterns, but is helpful, especially for those hats with unusual construction.

Tipper

As you can see, the photographs are really adorable, showing these moppets looking very cute in all sorts of poses, with all sorts of expressions.

Queenie

(I like that the photos show kids who look like they're having fun, and who are making the cute but goofy faces that little kids often do.)

Tricable

The patterns in Bambeanies are awfully cute -- so cute that they made me want to put down what I was working on and whip out a couple. They would make adorable gifts for a baby shower, and given that breadth of sizing, it would also be fun to make a few for oneself! If you are looking for small, portable projects to showcase some of your stash, or perhaps enjoy knitting for one of the many service-oriented knitting projects (like Afghans for Afghans or Caps for Kids) that are looking for knitted caps, then I have the feeling you will find lots of inspiration in these pages.

So let's hear it for Bambeanies, a wonderful treasury of adorable and creative hats, with a generous size range, adorable photos, and a heckuvalotta bang for the buck (or pound).

Happy National Coming-Out Day!

2011-10-11T07:20:00.003-04:00

Each year, I join in honoring my LGBT friends, neighbors and colleagues on National Coming-Out Day.

I salute your courage in being who you are in a world that often condemns you, misunderstands you and hates you. And I support your right to live your life without fear of discrimination, prejudice or mockery.

Peace and equality for all.

More about Portland

2011-10-06T07:37:00.017-04:00

I've heard a lot of people rave about Portland, and having just spent a few days there, I can completely understand why Portlanders love their city. After our rainy Sunday, Monday dawned with a less damp weather forecast.

I was at ace photographer Carrie Hoge's studio bright and early in the morning. Conveniently, this was located right about the warehouse distributing Quince & Company's beautiful natural-fiber yarns.

Carrie and I got along really well. We spent a lot of time going over the finished items and talking about styling and photographing them. We spoke in very specific terms -- e.g. what specific garments would the models wear with each piece, how would each piece be worn by the model -- and in more general terms, about the overall feel we wanted each item to have. We also discussed which model seemed best suited to wear which piece, given their coloring, their overall "look" and the other clothing we have for them to wear. We even got to visit a lovely boutique called Bliss

where the owner and staff helped us pick some great clothing and accessories to use with our models. (So if you live in Portland, and need some clothes, go give Bliss some love! They're wonderful.)

Doing a photoshoot is a weird mix of exhilirating and excruciating. It's fascinating and exciting to see items that have been concepts and then skeins of yarn transformed into garments worn by gorgeous models. It's also interesting to combine different accessories and other clothing in such a way that they create a cohesive mood, without overwhelming the item you are trying to highlight. Picking an exact location is also tricky; you want something interesting but not too busy and distracting.

At the same time, there is a tediousness about the process -- endless attention to detail and repeating shots. Is the dress she's wearing wrinkled? Steam it. Does the scarf need to be re-draped? Fix it. Is a strand of hair obscuring the model's face or the cowl she's wearing? Is the light right? Does the background detract or add to the shot when things are finally in place? There's lots of retaking, moving, trying this and that.

Fans of Little Miss (and based on the emails and comments I receive, there are many of you) will be pleased to learn that she received a commission to model 2 garments for the book. She was a consummate professional. She looked straight into the camera and wowed us all. She even managed to get her brother to act as impromptu personal assistant and stylist:

Tuesday was another rainy day, so Carrie and I did more styling stuff and also took some still life type shots inside, without live models. It was amazing how fast that day went by even though we didn't do any photography with models. Monday and Tuesday, while I was busy with photoshoot stuff, Tom kept the kids busy with sightseeing

including lighthouses and the ocean,

and the Observatory. Of course they acted like they liked swimming in the hotel pool the best!

Our last day in town was Wednesday, and just as we were packing to leave, the sun came out. We finally got to see Portland under truly sunny skies.

We managed to cram in an early-morning photo shoot (we began at 7:30 a.m.!) and then around noon, my family came to collect me, having packed up all our stuff.

It was time for the long ride home. Here's the Tappan Zee bridge, but we still managed to spend way too much time in car and we were all cranky by the time we got back.

Unfortunately, I can't show you any of the photos from the actual shoot; you'll have to wait until next fall to see them....

So that was my whirlwind trip to Portland, Maine. It's a great city and I love Carrie Hoge. I hope I get to go back again and visit sometime. In the meantime, things are moving along with the book process....

Portland, ME

2011-10-02T16:30:00.006-04:00

It's been a whirlwind few weeks, but right now, folks, I'm in a hotel room in Portland, Maine. The photo shoot for the book begins tomorrow, and an extremely talented and wonderful photographer based in Portland is doing the photographs. Since I've spent much of the past few months telling my kids "Sorry-I have to work," we decided to make this a mini-vacation for them, too. They are so excited to be out of school for a few days, even if required a long car drive.

Of course there are million last-minute things to be done. (I won't be more specific in case my editor reads this blog.) Our drive up was fine, except for some spots of traffic, and we are now settled into a hotel with an indoor pool. Portland is really fun, even though it's been raining and misty since we got here.

The weather being so meh, we took our first day to check out the unbelievable LL Bean flagship store in Freeport.

We tried to wander around the city a bit, but it was teeming rain and not a very good day for it. We're hoping for better weather tomorrow.

Test shots will begin tomorrow, and then we'll begin with some photos that don't require models. I'll keep you posted. I'm hoping to make it to at least one yarn shop before we leave, preferably the one that sells the beautiful Quince & Co. yarns.

Til then, we're enjoying exploring this lovely city, nomming seafood, and spending some family time together.

California bound

2011-09-21T17:55:00.004-04:00

Finishing up many things and getting ready for my trip to VK Live -- LOS ANGELES tomorrow! I hope to see some of you there. Please flag me down if you see me and if you're able to come, there are still some openings in a few of my classes.

Full scoop when I get back...

Peace.

2011-09-11T08:57:00.005-04:00

With all the media coverage about today's tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, I have been uncomfortably aware that this day was approaching. We see slogans like "Never forget" and "We remember" and while I appreciate their fierce determination, I don't see how anyone who experienced those days firsthand could ever possibly forget. On the contrary, a part of me wants to forget, or at least wants to avoid reopening the wounds caused by that day.

Those days in September 2001 were horrifying. That horror feels fresh. And in the wake of 9/11 came new, subtler horrors: uncertainty about how to live in this post-9/11 world; guilt and anger at the mistakes we made in the days following 9/11; frustration at our inability to prevent another massacre from happening again; the painful struggle between the normal human instinct to avoid danger and our determination not to let evildoers rob of us our way of life, or the pleasure we take in our freedoms.

As much as I want to forget, though, I can't. And I won't, because the people who died on that day deserve to be remembered. The goofy red-headed guy who used to stumble down our hall freshman year and once peed into the drain of a broom closet thinking he was in a bathroom. The sort of shy but sweet guy who took me to a semi-formal in college and whose friendship I would appreciate a lot more now that I'm not an dopey 18-year-old fascinated with the college party scene. Both died in the Twin Towers. Tom's cousin who works at the Pentagon and survived because he had a doctor's appointment that day, but carries that survivor's guilt as he remembers the friends and colleagues he lost. The incredible passengers of Flight 93 who learned what was going on in midair, and instead of doing something understandable, like praying (or drinking all the booze from the flight attendant's cart, which would have been my choice), decided that they would use their own deaths to spare their fellow citizens. The first responders who put thoughts of their own safety second, as they, incredibly, headed into the collapsing buildings to help survivors.

None of them deserved to die. All of them deserve to be remembered.

I tried so hard to come up with some thoughtful and meaningful way to end this blog post. But I don't know how to make sense of a senseless event. So I'll just wish you all peace.

Peace.

Jinx

2011-09-09T15:09:00.004-04:00

If I believed in magical thinking, I'd be certain that I jinxed myself in my last post. You might have thought, as I did, that I'd exhausted my quota of natural disasters for the short-term, but apparently I did not. Within the last 48 hours, my 80-year-old mom had to evacuate her home after massive rainfall from Tropical Storm Lee caused the Susquehanna River to rise precipitously.

My family lost everything in the 1972 Hurricane Agnes flooding, so this brought up all kinds of frightening flashbacks. The particular neighborhood that my mom lives in is about 200 or so feet from the Susquehanna, but protected by a very large levee.* The levee was designed to protect from 41 feet of water, and projected totals were very close to that amount. The mayor of Wilkes-Barre ordered evacuation of about 65,000 W-B residents, including my mom. She was safety ensconced in my brother's house, along with essentials and irreplaceable items like family photographs. My brother carried all sorts of other items up to the top floors of the house in the hope that if the flood waters came, they might not reach the second floor or attic.

Last night was dicey. The river was supposed to crest around 2 a.m. but apparently the water gauges were damaged by the weather conditions and water and malfunctioned. We learned today that the river did crest, albeit at over 42 feet (more than projected) but the levee system had a few extra feet built into it that prevented the water from flooding. Phew. The river level is currently dropping but it's a much slower process and there is now concern about the levee system holding up under the weight and pressure of the water over the next day or two.

Market Street Bridge in downtown W-B
Photo from Times-Leader newspaper

Right now, my mom is safe; she has flood insurance; and she has plenty of people who love her and will make sure she is okay. If you can spare a good thought or a prayer (if you're so inclined) that the levee system will hold, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Nothing is more dangerous than a stressed-out dike.

*Lest you think that the entire W-B community dodged a bullet, there are many areas within a few miles of my mom's house that have already suffered devastating flooding -- Nanticoke, Tunkhannock, Shickshinny and others. Having suffered something similar as a child, my heart breaks for them.

I'm back

2011-09-07T14:06:00.008-04:00

As George Constanza might say, "I'm back, baby, I'm back!" If you'd told me a few weeks ago that by Labor Day, I would have experienced an earthquake, been evacuated due to a hurricane, lost power for the better part of a week, and had our local Chili's burn down, I don't think I would have believed you. Yet all of those things did happen, and while I'm swamped with overdue work, I'm glad that we have finally weathered all the literal and metaphorical storms. The kids went back to school yesterday and we're starting to get back into a routine. Our family and our house are doing fine, for which we are very grateful.

One exciting thing that happened in the last week was seeing some preview photographs of two projects that I knit a very long time ago (nearly a year ago) for Interweave Knits -- Holiday edition. Behold the Watercolor Beret, knit in a self-striping sock yarn

and the Overshot Mittens (I didn't name them, so I am not sure what the name means, although I think it's a weaving term maybe?).

These are very special because they are knit in St-Denis Nordique, one of my all-time favorite yarns. Think of all the fun you could have selecting your own two colors to make these:

like Magenta with Bottle Green, or Elephant with Blue Eggshell or Spicy Rose with Silver. The full palette is here (now with online ordering for Nordique yarns!).

The next few weeks are going to be insane here, as I try to finish up various deadlines, including a number of book projects, shepherding other people's projects to completion, and finishing the manuscript. I probably won't be posting as often until October...Don't give up on me, though, peeps!

Bad bad Irene

2011-08-30T20:04:00.003-04:00

Okay, maybe I did call Irene a "moistened bint" and also threaten that if she were a real woman I'd kick her in the taint. And maybe I did mutter some words unmentionable in polite company in reference to the local power company. You see, after being evacuated from Cape May rather abruptly on Thursday night, a long and stormy drive home, and a weekend full of wind and rain, we lost power. After the storm was over, when a neighbor's tree came down.

That was Sunday afternoon, and we're still out of power. Now I am fully aware of how very, very lucky we are. Everyone is safe. Our house is fine. All we lost were 2 days of vacation time and a fridge half-full of frostbitten food. My heart goes out to all the folks who are truly suffering as a result of Irene. (And as someone whose family lost everything they owned in 1972 after being evacuated at 3 a.m. for Hurricane Agnes, I have a sense for what that means.)

With no power, three rammy kids and school not starting 'til next week, it was time for desperate measures. Yes, my friends, we fled to Nana's.

The land of Chuck E. Cheese, a working freezer full of Fudgsicles and an 80-yr-old woman with WIFI. Ladies and gentlemen, my mother rocks.

Back in rare form as soon as I'm able....

West & wewaxation

2011-08-22T16:22:00.004-04:00

It's that time again....

the last week at the shore.

When kites are flown

sandcastles built

and memories made.

See you next week!

Just added.....

2011-08-18T12:07:00.006-04:00

some lovely half-silk, half-Falkland British merino sock yarn to the BBF website.

Decadence

Dulcet

Blue Nile

Each skein is 435 yds/100g, and most colorways had 2 dyed-together skeins uploaded at the same time for larger projects.

Autumn Ridge

Copper Rose

There's also some Heavenly laceweight from my last update, and some bamboo-blend sock yarn still in stock, too.

Plus through midnight Friday, August 19, I will ship all orders free. (If your order is under $25 of merchandise, I'll send first-class mail, over $25 will go Priority Mail. I'll refund shipping when I process your order.)

Have fun!

The Book Process: Part 2

2011-08-15T07:39:00.004-04:00

Part 2: Sealing the deal

If you've gotten an offer from a publisher, what happens next?

Two things. First, you have to come to agreement on the terms of your deal. You might negotiate specific points with the acquisitions editor first -- like the amount of your advance, the percentage you will make on each copy of the book sold, and deadlines for the work. Some items will be pretty flexible while others will be set in stone. Which are which depends on the publisher and the editor.

Some publishers of knitting books are craft-book specialists. They may be corporate relatives of a knitting magazine (think Sixth & Spring, Interweave and XRX). Others are publishers of all kinds of books who include craft books as part of their business (think STC, PotterCraft, Lark and Krause). The extent to which you can negotiate may also depend on how "corporate" or "crafty" a particular publisher is.

Popular Misconceptions about Book Contracts

1. You will get a lot of money.

Not likely. There are a lot of book proposals out there, and a lot of people who consider knitting design to be a sideline to their regular profession (meaning they will accept less because they aren't doing just knitting design for a living). The bigger the knitting name you are, the more influence you have to get a bigger advance (because there will be more competition to sign you, and because you are a surer bet to sell lots of books). A past experience with the publisher that turned out well may also be a point in your favor when it comes to the amount of an advance -- if your last book sold really well, say.

A friend once told me that she was asked by an acquaintance if she was making tons of money on her book. The acquaintance said "So do they give you, like, $150,000 or something?" Hah! You're lucky if you get in the $5000 to $20,000 range, depending on on a lot of different factors, like how big the publisher is, how famous you are, and so on.

2. You get to keep all the money in the advance.

Maybe, maybe not. Different publishers do the deal different ways. Some give you an advance that is all yours to keep, and the publisher also has a separate budget to pay for things like photography, styling, tech editing and other designers who might contribute patterns. Others give you an advance from which YOU are expected to pay various costs -- tech editing, photographer and stylist, contributing designers. You may also have the option of either hiring people like tech editor and photographer yourself and getting a larger advance OR receiving a smaller advance and letting the publisher do the photography and editing (and paying the photographer and editor directly).

No matter what, though, you have to do the math.

Say you get an advance of $8000 (I just made that number up; no, I will not tell you how much my advances have been, nosey-pants.). Suppose you are doing a multicontributor book, and you need to solicit designs from about 18 other designers. If the publisher has a separate budget for designs, and is handling all the photography, getting paid eight grand and keeping it all for your work on the book is not bad. But think how quickly that money gets eaten up if you have to pay all 18 contributors out of it. Suppose you are doing a hat book, and suppose (just to make the numbers easy) that each contributor gets paid $250 for their pattern. That's $4500 of your advance, over half of it, that you have to pay out to others; you are really only getting paid $3500 to write the book and design the patterns you are contributing. That may sound like a lot of money, but there's a lot of work involved in writing a book. Just the number of emails that I deal with on a weekly basis answering questions, researching things, getting information out to my contributors is a substantial amount of work, let alone designing, knitting, writing and editing.

Likewise, if the publishing company agrees to pay you $30,000, you may be jumping for joy. But if you've got to pay a photographer at a thousand dollars a day to shoot the pictures from that money, not to mention models, a stylist and tech editing, that money is going to get eaten up awfully fast.

Update: MMO points out that you also have to pay taxes on this money, as a self-employed person, further eroding the take-home amount.

3. You can negotiate exactly the terms you want in your contract.

Unlikely. There are certain provisions that the publisher won't budge on. They won't change a single word or even eliminate a measly comma that doesn't belong there anyway. Other provisions may be open to negotiation, like amount of advance, and dates for deadlines.

But overall, the publishing company has most of the power in these negotiations by simple virtue of the fact that lots of people want to write books and only a few can get published each year. That means if you are displeased with a provision or term of your deal, and the publisher doesn't agree to change it, you may end up having to decide if it's worth it to suck it up and go forward with the deal, or walk away and not do the book.

4. It's not worth it to hire a lawyer to look at the contract.

That all depends on you. Are you comfortable reading technical material? Do you have a better-than-average understanding of legal terms and concepts? Are you planning on asking for very specific terms? Do you do this for a living or as a lark?

I am fortunate in that I'm a lawyer and my husband is a lawyer. So we are very comfortable going over legal material and interpreting it. (No, we will not review your contract for you for free.) You have to decide for yourself whether the expense of hiring a lawyer is worth the comfort of knowing that you were advised by an expert. Of course, for some folks, hiring a lawyer is prohibitively expensive and in this case, you've got to do your best to understand exactly what you're getting yourself into, perhaps with the help of the library and Google.

After you agree verbally on terms, then the publisher will send you a written contract. Getting the contract signed is the second step of the process. You make sure the terms reflect the deal you agreed to, suggest any changes to the language that are necessary are desirable (the publisher may accept or reject changes, probably rejecting most of them), and sign. At some point after that, depending in part upon how the particular publisher works it and on what deal you struck, you'll get a check for (typically) half your advance. You'll get the second half when all your work is done.

Dale of Norway lovers.....

2011-08-12T09:21:00.003-04:00

rejoice! I have been informed that Dale patterns are in the process of being added to the already-massive collection at Patternfish. Two patterns available now, an adult and a child's, with more coming soon. These are web exclusives, so you'll have to go to Patternfish to get 'em.

Check it out

2011-08-10T08:30:00.002-04:00

I am once again honored and thrilled to have a pattern in the new Vogue Knitting. Behold:

The scarf features a lace motif along with some drop stitches for fun, and the sample is knit with luscious Buffalo Gold Lux yarn.....and I will freely confess that given all my book stuff going on, I took advantage of an amazing test knitter who did the knitting.

Available in the Fall VK -- and you can see the preview of all the patterns here.

Quilting FO: Owen's Baby Quilt

2011-08-08T06:16:00.003-04:00

A few months ago, I started a baby quilt for my friend Kristin. Kristin and I met and bonded on a Ravelry forum; I then became a fellow moderator on that forum and we bonded even more. When Kristin announced she was pregnant, I was delighted and decided that given all my knitting deadlines, I would opt for making a baby quilt instead of something knitted.

Kristen told us that her nursery colors were chocolate and lime. It's a really modern-feeling combination, so I looked for a pattern in my modern quilting books. I opted for the "Blockheads" quilt, from the very cool Dare to Be Square Quilting by Boo Davis (I read about her in the New York Times a while back and she sounds really fun; she describes her style as "I make modern heirloom quilts just like your metal-loving half-blind Grandma would."). The pattern consists of a number of squares within squares, done in all solids -- except I decided to leave off the faces. (This is a version of the pattern done with the faces in case you're curious.)

I rummaged through my solids and found several limes and some chocolate brown. I had thought about making the quilt in all solids but couldn't resist the chance to use some cute prints, especially since it was for a baby. So I went to Spool, where Laura and Craig helped me find some prints that were very cute and also which read like solids, including a bird print and some fake wood (that reminds me of the side of the station wagon our family had when I was a kid). Having heard Kristin say that she didn't understand why all boy-related baby stuff has to feature transportation, I was very careful to avoid anything with wheels, but I figured fake wood was not too transportation-y (my personal synapses notwithstanding). When I looked at the solids and the prints together, I was pleased.

It didn't take long to cut the pieces, and I fiddled around with block placement

before sewing the blocks together. Once the top was finished, I realized that I had subconsciously made it very brown, so I decided to find a lime-colored fabric for the backing (dots!).

I quilted it by hand, mainly because I already knew how to do it and I was afraid to practice my machine-quilting on a gift. It didn't take that long, though, and I found it relaxing to hand-stitch it. I am not sure my technique is perfect, but it seemed to work just fine. I quilted about a quarter-inch inside each square, and I used green thread on the green squares, and brown thread on the brown.

I had originally planned to use the Woody-Wagon print for binding, but the fact that the front was reading so brown deterred me. So I changed my mind, and used pieces of the leftover lime green solids, and added some strips of colors that were a little lighter and darker than lime, but close enough.

I was very happy when I realized that I had already improved my binding skills since my previous quilt....much more consistent and professional-looking.

I was pleased with the finished quilt, shown here being held by one of my helpful assistants:

I think the greens are a little deeper and less yellow-y in real life, but the photo gives you a sense for the overall look. Right now, the quilt is winging its way to Chicago to (I hope) be snuggled by its intended recipient.

And I know that I am very sarcastic and ironical most of the time, but it must be said that when working on a project like this, for a cute little baby of a dear friend, I put a great deal of love and hope into every stitch.