Intro: Trean

Here is the last pair of designs for the Enchanted Garden ebook.

Trean (Gaelic meaning: strong)

The wrought iron gate stranded colorwork pattern gives a sense of majestic strength and yet has a classic beauty all it’s own.

The Tam starts with an simple one-by-one rib then transition quickly into the colorwork sections which expands for a traditional slouch effect. The matching cowl would also start off the same way allowing for a cohesive look.

This is the last sketch for the ebook and now to search for the right model and perfect location.

Thank you for coming on this journey with me. I look forward to when I can launch the ebook and share it with all of you.

Intro: Cosan

I would like to give you a sneak into my design process. Since for as long as I can remember, drawing has always been a part of my life. With the Enchanted Garden, I wanted to showcase my sketching and illustration skills a little bit by drawing the knits on models.

With that I give you an inner look at the first 2 designs of the Enchanted Garden ebook:

Cosan (Gaelic meaning: Path)

The diamond clover stranded colorwork pattern emulates a walking path through a garden surrounded by wild flowers. The Tam starts with an icord edge, then transition into the colorwork hem which then widens for a traditional slouch effect. The matching convertible mittens would also start off the same way allowing for a cohesive look. Worked from the wrist to fingers and constructed with a flip-top, the button down style allows for easy access to fingers.

When Life Takes Over...

Seriously.

Crickets.

It's that bad. BUT I will not apologize for being absent.

What I will do is tell you that I've been busy with 6 color work patterns that are all a part of an ebook. I'm looking forward to launching that series. I need to secure a photo shoot location and some models. Doing my own modeling is okay in a pinch, but it would be nice to see new faces.

And in other big news, I've also lined up 8 more Woobie Designs that I'll be releasing as I finish them. The first has been knit, but I'm going to record some tutorials along with this Collection number 3 that I think will be valuable to those of you struggling with some techniques.

Here, let me sooth you over with a picture of the finished yarn when last we met...930 yds of a 3ply heavy fingering.

The other random bits that I've been knitting is the Sockhead Hat by Kelly McClure on as a pick-up-and-go-kind-of-knit:

I'm on my third hat...it's potato chip knitting for me. It's also great for stash busting sock yarn.

Tons to talk about...now that I can talk about it, I'm looking forward to sharing all the things with you. Thanks for hanging in there while I was MIA.

Parade of Finished Objects...

Over the holidays it was seriously intense around here. Not only was I working on launching the new blanket pattern but I had plans to Knit. All. The. Things. The original plan was to knit something small for most of the little people in my life. And to be honest, I had done a fair job. More things got added to the list, while others fell away.

Monsters for each of my SIL boys. They are at that perfect age (4 and 2), where a stuffie is still kinda cool and then add the "monster" bit in and we are talking winner-winner-chicken-dinner!




My son then saw these little guys and... well, lets say things got weird. My 6 foot 4 inch, 17-year old son... reverted back to his 3-year-old self. He said in the most sweetest voice, "I want one." Which just took me by surprise. I was planning on knitting him a hat, but since he was requesting, I just couldn't say no.

Thus, there was the red and black monster



New slippers for Mac because she grew out of her last pair.



Then there was this moment in late November that my husband wore out his slipper, so that got added to the list and now he has warm toes.



I purchased a thrummed kit from a vendor at Vogue Live Chicago and finished them pretty quickly:



I was then hooked. A quick jaunt to The Fold and was now making more mittens... a pair for Grandma in blue.



Then there was the Lined Beanie for Grandpa Larry made out of some left over gray Berroco Vintage yarn and some green/black Noro yarn for the stripes.



There is more to talk about, but *sigh*, I'm done for now. Perhaps I will pick up blogging more often. I miss it.

Gannon Pattern & Contest

I hold a special place in my heart for my Grandma Pat. A teacher of Irish decent who loved a Manhattan and a Kit-Kat for happy hour. Gotta love that!

I bear the middle name Patricia, which comes from her. Yet everyone called her Pat. She was kind and always had a smile. I think happy hour had a lot to do with it.



While in the design process of making these cables pieces, I thought to myself, she would have really like these. It then seemed a perfect fit to make them blue, in her favorite color of course.



I'm really excited to launch this pattern set and just in time for my Grandma's birthday Month. So in honor of her and the month of May, I'm running a contest and a discount on the pattern. You can purchase the pattern for just a buck by clicking the link which will take you to Ravelry.

I'm also giving away two skeins of the Simpliworsted yarn to a random commenter on this post. You have until May 17th at midnight to enter to win. I'll pick a name by the random number generator and post the winner that Friday (May 18th).



The yarn is super fabulous to work with and you can get any one of the pieces completed with these two skeins.

Cheers Grandma! Here's to you!!

Brookstone

I'm proud to announce that Kollage Yarns has just released one of my new designs for their spring collection. Say hello to Brookstone.

I was really inspired by the colors of Kollages Sock-a-licious yarn. The variegated yarn has so much depth and it married beautifully with the solids. The window pane design allows the colors to fade and transition giving it a delicate touch.

The yarn was an absolute dream to work with... Sock-a-licious is a fingering weight merino, silk and nylon blend. Seriously? You can't go wrong with merino and silk!!

The Brookstone pattern set is consisted of a tam, cowl and mitts which is perfect for those cool spring mornings. What is even better is that all you need to complete the full set is one skein in each colorway.

I couldn't have done this project with out the my crew. Huge thanks goes out to Knitterary and Amy at Writing Weaver for their fantastic efforts and tight deadlines. You guys are the best!

If you're interested in purchasing the Brookstone pattern you can find it for pdf download on Patternfish.

FO: Lo-Lo's Sweet Baby Cap

Pattern: Sweet Baby Cap by Gro

Yarn: .5 skein Socks that Rock in Heavy Weight

Needles: US 5 Double Pointed needles

Started: December 29, 2010

Finished: January 15, 2011

I gave you a quick sneak-peak in my Project 365 shot yesterday on a new finished object. The family came over for Super Bowl and I was happy to see the hat fit little Lo-Lo perfectly.



Soon after these pictures where shot he began to pull and tug the hat off. I forget how quick babies can be and how much they don't understand the need for a great hat photo!!



He is so freakin' adorable it just melts you. The one thing he has inherited is his mother's dimples. I think my camera would have melted too if I actually caught any glimpse of that smile;)

Ravelympics Update

I think I have truly underestimated my knitting abilities. I thought this would at least get me through the week.



I'm currently on the decrease for the top and I don't feel that I've really set myself up for any real challenge. So I pulled out the Left Over Sock Yarn Blanket...



This is really all that I've done so far. Pathetic really. 15 squares. This is where I think I'm going to set myself up for a REAL challenge. I'm planning on knitting ALL My Left Over Sock Yarn for the remaining days of Olympics.



Each square measures 3.5 inches. Currently the blanket is 17.5 inches and I plan on making a 60 x 80 size blanket. Lots and Lots of squares. 414 squares to be exact. Yes, that's right... Four Hundred and Fourteen squares.

I'm off to knit!

2010 Ravelympics

It seems that I've gone off the deep end and have joined in the craziness that is called Ravelympics.



This basically means that come the torch ceremony at 8pm (Chicago Time) for the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. I will cast on for new project and then have 17 days to finish this project.



This is the yarn I plan on using to make the Beaumont Tam... scroll down to the hat done up in red and white.

The only downside I see with this project is my color selection. I have a feeling I might not like it. More contrast is needed, but heck you never know.

So what happens if I don't finish the Tam?



I then pull out this sucker. Yes, the Left Over Sock Yarn Blanket. I haven't touched this since 2008. I Know! For.Ever.

And this might seem kinda weird, but I'm really kinda looking forward to working on the blanket a little. I might not finish the blanket in 17 days, but I will have gotten a huge chunk of it completed.

FO: Am Kamin Hat

Pattern: Am Kamin Hat by Toshiyuki Shimada

Yarn: 2 skeins of Classic Elite Yarns Renaissance

Needles: US 7 circular needles

Started: January 12, 2010

Finished: January 28, 2010

The translation of this pattern from Japanese to English wasn't too difficult, but it wasn't until I opened the book and was scoping out the sweater did I see something odd.

Go click on the link above and see if you can spot it (you'll have to scroll down a bit...it's the sweater/hat set in red). If you need a hint, look at the cables in the photo compared to my finished version. Go, I'll wait.

Do you see it? Do you see the X-O cable? Yeah... the pattern directions didn't have that in the pattern. Go figure that this Japanese pattern book would have errata in it. I really should have been paying more attention, but I was more concerned with stitch count and decreases verses if the chart was accurate to the photo.

Either way I love the hat and would totally do it again.

Quick Project Update

The Faery Ring sleeves are well on their way to being done and off the needles. I just wish the pattern was complete because I could certainly get further along if I had proper instructions. I suppose this means that I'll be doing some knitting math this weekend along with the help from the Ann Budd book "The Knitters Handy Book of Sweater Patterns.



This Am Kamin hat is turning out to be fabulous. I love the yarn, Classic Elite Renaissance and the cables are filling the space beautifully and making me do a happy dance. I can't wait to put this on my head... weather is hitting hard with major wind chills over the next couple of days.

FO: Red Cloud Hat

Pattern: Red Cloud Anime Hat for Eric

Yarn: Cascade 220 in Black, Red and White

Needles: US 7 circular needles

Started: December 7, 2009

Finished: December 9, 2009

This has been an ongoing endeavor since December of 08. Back then I wanted a double knit hat with the Red Cloud image on the side, but it failed as a project last year. Yet I was determined to not let it beat me. Since the lining of the Star Hats I knew I had my solution to anime character hat.



I'm still considering whether to write this pattern up or not. I'd hate to get sued for copyright violation or anything. That's also to say it would be a free pattern, so no earnings or such would be made. I just don't know if anyone would really want to make this. Would you?

FO: Norwegian Star Earflap Hat For Mac

Pattern: Norwegian Star Earflap Hat by Tiennie Knits

Yarn: Cascade 220 in Pink and Purple (half a skein in main color and a quarter of the other)

Needles: US 7 circular needles

Started: December 5, 2009

Finished: December 7, 2009

No modification were done... and yes you read that correctly. Knit in two days. Great quick knit. The polar fleece lining took longer to do then knitting the hat.



And I'm not sure if it's just me or perhaps this look has been around for awhile and I just didn't realize it... but I'm seeing this style hat EVERY.WHERE. go figure.



I also think she has warmed up the idea of this hat. It might not be Hannah Montana, but it sure keeps her noggin warm in these below 0 temps.



And how could she not smile at our matching hats!

FO: Norwegian Star Earflap Hat

Pattern: Norwegian Star Earflap Hat by Tiennie Knits

Yarn: Cascade 220 in Pink and Purple (half a skein in main color and a quarter of the other)

Needles: US 5 circular needles

Started: November 30, 2009

Finished: December 5, 2009

This hat was super fast to make and I loved the pattern enough to make a second one for Miss Mac. I really should clarify that. I indented on making one for Miss Mac and misread the instructions and ended up making a hat for myself first!

This photo was taken before I added the top tassel, which I will have to eventually take pictures of. It's just really difficult to find proper daylight during this time of year.

I did finish the other two hats for the kids in time for Christmas. I waited with anticipation the morning of hoping that they would swoon over my knit wears. The craziness took over and without even knowing it my son had opened his present. All I saw was a blur as he came dashing over to slam hug me as I sat on the couch trying to stay above the holiday wrapping paper and boxes.

He was really pleased with it and I was shocked. I figured he would have tossed it to the side without a second glance. Now Miss Mac opened her slowly and picked it up and the next thing you know dropped the hat on the floor without a second thought. WHAT?? She's the one who has always loved my knitting. To say I was a tad hurt is an understatement. I'm leaning towards the Too-Much-Going-On-In-One-Day kinda reasoning for her reaction. Hopefully I'll get finished pictures of all the hats over the New Year weekend.

New Years. wow. Hard to believe it's 2010. I raise my cup to everyone of you out there. Be Healthy, Be Safe and Knit-On!

I Now Want To Add Fleece To EVERYTHING

With the seriously low temps hitting the Chicagoland area, I'm thinking of fleecing every article of fabric in my home.

I found the perfect tutorial for lining hats with polar fleece. Check out TECHknitting's blog post that totally helps in the construction.

Unfortunately, in the tutorial it wants you to wear the fleece on your head to give a more perfect fit. With gift knitting, that's kinda hard. So, I used the my matchy-matchy to Mac's hat as a test.



I measured my head and then pinned the fleece. I then tried the fleece on my head to see if it would fit and it does. I then placed the knitting hat on top of the flat fleece and pinned around the outside of the hat to get the slop of my skull. Give your self plenty of wiggle room. You don't want to match it perfectly because it will need room to stretch. You can see I also included the earflaps on my tracing.



Then pick up some matching thread. I used a general all purpose thread and was happy to see it matched so well.



You then sew along the pinned area with the good side facing towards each other. I really don't have a clue what kind of sewing technique that is... mattress, whip... something that is strong. What I love about fleece is there are no worries about fraying.



You then take your knitting hat and turn it inside out and do the same with the polar fleece. You place the fleece on top of the hat and begin pin the two items together.



Once pinned in place you go along with your needle and thread to secure the fleece edges with the knitting edge of the hat. And really that's all there is to it. I've made three of these so far and I'm kinda hooked.

The Clock is Ticking...

Only 16 days until Christmas and I think I will be able to finish what I've set out to do. I'm really kinda pleased with that.

The Gumdrop socks are close to toe construction... just had a slight delay while I had my children on a secret mission to discover Grandma's shoe size. I was a little disappointed to hear that there are three size shoes all through out the house... 9, 10 and 11. What is a knitter to do? I'm going with a 10 as I'm hoping that is her average and knowing socks stretch I shouldn't have too much of an issue.



Ya'll just don't know what goes into getting these work-in-progress shots... I swear putting on a pair of socks that are connected at the toes (without loosing a stitch mind you) AND trying to get the right angle with the camera. Without knowing it I think I just invented the next torture-aerobic-workout!

The other projects I've been working on are hats for the kids. I downloaded Norwegian Sttar Earflap Hat which is a free download (revelry link) and got started.

The first one turned out too big and it wasn't until I bought more needles that I realized I had actually knit the larger hat instead of the child's version. D'oh!



It turns out I had enough yarn to make the smaller version and now I have TWO! so now me and Miss Mac will be Matchy-Matchy!!

The next item on my list was a hat for Eric. It was time to bring out the Failed Anime Hat that I started this time last year.



Second time around it turned out much better. It's still wonky but I'm hoping with blocking and a polar fleece lining it will smooth out.



Here is a better side angle of the Red Cloud symbol that Eric's favorite character Itachi wears.



Just look at all those ends I have to weave in. sigh. That might take me just as long to do as it took to knit.

My only other item is a pair of socks for my sister-in-law. I don't plan on seeing her until after the holidays and this my perhaps give me the extra time I need to finish those for her... I just can't decide what pattern to knit. Maybe I'll try the Snicket Socks.