Nothing to see, so move along

One of my favorite authors has a page in a "virtual bar" where periodically she will go radio-silent and then pop up with a message that says "nothing to see here, folks, move along..." in her best police officer voice.

That's how I am feeling today!

I feel like I have 64 bajillion design ideas running around in my head!  Not anywhere near enough hands to chart, write and knit them....

Not to mention still catching up from a week where my evenings were filled with things other than knitting...

I need a vacation from myself!

And...tomorrow is the first of the month.

Ack..Calgon, and red wine,  take me away!

~M

Things that Slipped Past

In the craziness that is real world life...I neglected to tell you that I was interviewed by Skein Shop as part of my participation in their Independent Designers Program...want to learn a little more about me*?


But anyway...read a little more about me here!

And be sure to check out the special deal on the kit version of Second Saturday Shawl here!

~M
*Is there anything you don't know?  Well, lots I am sure, because my real life presence and my internet presence are really two different things, and this is a knitting blog after all...so if you were expecting something else, you are in the wrong place!

Quietude-But Not completely Silent

Word of the Week: Polycythemia. 

Problem of the Week: Electrical Short, somewhere.

Proudest Moment of the Week: 3 Separate Mentions in the Graduation Program.

 

Works in Progress

It has been an exciting and busy week here, and it is only mid-week!

Unfortunately most of it has not been knitting busy.

There was a graduation ceremony.

And building a new top to my patio table.

And just a little tiny bit of knitting.

A newly installed outside faucet and a new garbage disposal.

So, lots of things happening, just not much knitting!

What's happening in your world today?

~M

"Children Of The Sun"

Parallel to life
There's a wisdom that seems out of reach
Like a figure of speech
In a maze of white lies
So elusive it's hard to recognize
With naivety's eyes
It's like running with a knife
The thought steals away with your peace
And high on that trapeze
You hold on to me
You hold on to me

And I'll be singing you
Songs of tomorrow
And then dawn will follow
And our sorrows all undone

When you're done with all the strife
When they echo the minds in the streets
You know your heart beats
A solitary call
For a change in the tone of it all
You'll be scaling that wall
And the higher you climb
The more you can see of this life
On the edge of that knife
You hold on to me
Hold on to me

And I'll be singing you
Songs of tomorrow
And then dawn will follow
And our sorrows all undone

Yeah, I'll be singing you
Songs of tomorrow
And then dawn will follow
We are children of the sun

And you know you can take this story
Take your glory
Make your own way
Yeah, I want you to shake this story
Take your glory
Find your way
Make your own way

And I'll be singing you
Songs of tomorrow
And then dawn will follow
And our sorrows all undone

Yeah, I'll be singing you
Songs of tomorrow
And then dawn will follow
We are children of the sun

Special Offer Friday

I am so happy to be able to tell you that Skein Shop, who provided me with the opportunity to design The Second Saturday Shawl has put together a limited number of kits to make your very own Second Saturday Shawl at a discount!

Run over to her store here and you will get:

• A printed copy of the Second Saturday Shawl knitting pattern
• Large kits come with seven balls of Katia Lino yarn
• Small kits come with four balls of Katia Lino yarn
• Within 24 hours of your order you will receive an email with a coupon code to get the Second Saturday Shawl pattern on Ravelry - you will need a free Ravelry account to redeem this code

You will need to supply:

• Size US 5 (3.75mm) circular knitting needle (or size needed to obtain gauge)
• Stitch markers
• Tapestry needle for weaving in ends
• Smooth waste yarn for the provisional cast on

Pattern Info :
Size: Large: 34 inch drop and 66 inch wingspan (85 cm by 165cm)
Small: 24 inch drop and 48.5 inch wingspan (60 cm by 121 cm)
Required Skills: Chart reading, k, ktbl, p, yo, k2tog, ssk, RT.
Pattern presented in charted form, no line by line written instructions.
 
Extra Bonus - The coupon code for the electronic copy of the pattern on Ravelry comes with a bonus printable Linen Swatch Cloth pattern.

About the yarn:
Lino is a good, simple linen.  The smooth finish and round twist makes this yarn a joy to work with.  As with all linen, it is important to remember that it softens considerably with wash and wear.  The subdued color range suggests summer tanks, market bags, and home décor.  This would also be an ideal weaving yarn!

We Interrupt This Blog

There I was, all set to hit publish on my pattern on Ravelry...and our internet went out!  (I am blaming it on construction down the road, but who knows!) So please forgive the delay in the Newsletter and Pattern Release!

Presenting....

Second Saturday Shawl, by yours truly!

The invitation said “You’re Invited! Second Saturday, event to be held outside weather permitting.” But, what to wear? You want something elegant, but not too dressy, comfortable to wear inside in air-conditioning and outside in the sun, but not too casual. A linen shawl, with a lot of texture and a little bit of lace will fill that need. Shown here in two sizes, a big wrap you up shawl and a smaller accent piece, will have you covered for any weekend spring, summer or early fall event. Equally at home for a casual jazz concert in the park or an elegant wedding on a beach, this shawl will be the one you
reach for time and time again.




















This linen shawl is presented in two sizes, but of course can also be made larger through careful repeating of the charts.

Large: 34 inch drop and 66 inch wingspan [85 cm by 165cm]
Small: 24 inch drop and 48.5 inch wingspan [60 cm by 121 cm]
Yarn Katia Lino 100% Linen 164 yds [150 meters] 50 gms [1.75 oz]
Large: 7 balls, Small: 4 balls
Needles Size US 5 [3.75mm] 47 inch [120cm] circular needle or size required to obtain gauge
Notions
Stitch markers, large eyed tapestry needle for weaving in ends, smooth waste yarn for provisional cast on.

This pattern is presented in charted form only, no line by line written instructions.

Special Shout Out to SkeinShop, who provided the yarn, models and photography for this pattern through their Independent Designer Program.

If you subscribe to the newsletter you got (or will get shortly) a printable copy of the second pattern that was created during my "adventures in swatching and designing with linen yarn", The Linen Swatch Cloth, but for those who don't subscribe already and missed out, it does come free with the pattern, or is available for individual purchase.  A non printer friendly version is available as part of a blog post I wrote for Skein Shop as well.

Paired with a nice soap it would make an excellent teacher gift for that special teacher!

I hope you like the shawls and the swatch cloth as much as I enjoyed making them!

Happy Knitting!

~M

Feathers! Again

But not a cardigan this time!

As many people know, on Saturday afternoons and Sundays I am making it a point to knit the designer of other designers.  There are many good (for me at least) reasons to do that, not the least of which being I can play along in the knit along that I am co-hosting with Evie Scott Designs and Peggy Jean Kaylor on Ravelry.

My first project for the KAL was Attack of the Killer Rabbits cowl, by Peggy Jean Kaylor, and you got to read all about it last week in a Finished Object Post.

So on Saturday afternoon I cast on a Quill Cowl by Evie Scott Designs.

I am not very far into it yet, with feathers going both directions it is not tv/movie watching knitting.

But it is an awful lot of fun and I can't wait to pick it back up Saturday afternoon!

In other news, if you hurry up and sign up for the newsletter, today, you will be getting a discount code for my next new release shawl and a special free pdf pattern for the Linen Swatch Cloth that was posted on Skein Shop's Blog last week.

Want another teaser picture?

Skein Shop found some great models....but more about that tomorrow!

What's on your needles this week?

~M

Happy American Mother's Day (With Sneak Peaks)

                  

Friday on Saturday

Sorry about the delay, I had a bee in my bonnet about cleaning out the pantry and actually taking stock out what I had out there before going to the supermarket this week.  So a day late, but....

Presenting Attack of the Killer Rabbits Cowl by Peggy Jean Kaylor, knit by yours truly!

I knit mine with some Wool of the Andes Superwash in Bittersweet Heather (a pretty dark brown) and some mystery yarn from the thrift store.  A burn test says that the mystery yarn is wool, a quick wash of a swatch test says it is not superwash!  In fact, it would be great for a felting project!

I did modify the pattern a little.  In the original, you use the darker color for one edge, then swap to the lighter color for the other, but...well...I am a matchy, matchy gal at heart....so my cowl is brown on both sides!

This would be a very easy pattern to adapt to any gauge yarn, the pattern stitch is simple enough to memorize, yet holds your interest during the knitting.  It can be worn just casually looped around your neck, or doubled for a double thick, warm, cozy cowl.

And...as with so many of my hand knits, I waved good bye to it after the photo shoot!

Having finished this knit, it can only mean...another item in the 2017 Small Accessories KAL jumped on my needles.  Tune in Wednesday to see all about it here, or join us for the KAL and read all about it there!

~M

The Day Got Away From Me

Tune in Saturday for a FO post...the day got away from me!

But....the pantry is cleaned and organized (again). 

College Placement testing is nearly done.

Coaching is (nearly) complete.

And I have wine, dinner and a movie to watch!

I'm all About the Swatch

Hey, "Take Time to Unwind" and drop on over to the Skein Shop Community Blog to read a post about me, a ball of linen yarn and a swatch!

(It is part of the pre-release of my next shawl pattern, coming next Thursday, May 18th, 2017.  Sign up for my newsletter to get a discount code and free pdf of the pattern that is included in that blog post!)

Happy Swatching!

~M

Now That's a Pickle

It's Wednesday in my part of the world, which should mean a Works In Progress Post, but I have a problem.

See these?

They are the only current things on my needles and I can't really talk about either one yet...so instead, as I don't have modeled pics I will dazzle, amaze and bamboozle you into hunting for rabbit icons in the project I actually finished on Sunday, but don't have modeled pictures for.

More about that for Finished Object Friday!  :)

What's on your needles?

~M

Peace and Quiet

And Now for Something Completely Different....

I actually have finished objects that I can talk about!  (Actually four of them, but I will do them one at a time so that I don't look like I never post a FO Friday....)  But First.....

I think we will start with....

Acropolis!

As I might have mentioned, one of my personal goals this year was to spend some time knitting other designers patterns.  Mostly so I didn't go nuts only working on my own stuff, but also, so that I can do a little bit to promote the designers you may not have heard of. (There are some great ones out there!)

Acropolis by Linette Grayum is a super cozy hat with a bit of a twist!  You start with the fancy cable brim and an "almost" i-cord cast on.  The brim can them fold up to give you double warmth over your ears, which in Ohio on a typical winter is a really great thing!












 I knit mine in some Knit Picks Special Reserve Highland Wool from  their Cyber Monday Sale a couple of years ago, but any Aran Weight yarn would work.











The pattern itself is well laid out and includes pictures showing how the cast on for the body of the hat is incorporated into that cable.














All in all, it was a rather fun knit!  And the hat fits perfectly - except...even though it is cool and rainy here, no one wants to wear a wool hat for me to get modeled pictures!

 In other news, there is still time to join the Knit Along that is being held on Ravelry!  The first round of prizes is being handed out tonight!  Yes, prizes this early in an KAL.  There are more prizes in the bag-oh-tricks, so come on over and join the fun.

Click here to get the details and  join.

 

 

Thanks for dropping by!  I am off to join the chatter threads in the KAL, and bask in the glory of being in a book!

~M

Happy Star Wars Day!

May the Fourth be with you!

There is Nothing Like a Book

I love libraries!  Both the real ones I have visited, and the imaginary ones that I have in my head. Public Libraries that have, or can obtain, just about any book you would care to read.  Private libraries in grand mansions, or even just book cases lining the walls of an entertainment room in my house.

I love the feel of holding a book in my hands when I read it, or putting post it note book-marks in my reference books.

I love visiting old friends, like Alice in Wonderland, and finding new ones like The Raven Cycle. So much inspiration to be found in dusty pages. (And you can't get dusty pages from your Kindle!)

I miss encyclopedias and atlases, but, in the world today electronic is the way to go for those, because the information is changing so rapidly a paper book could possibly (probably) be out of date before it was finished being printed. Not to mention the cost of the paper and bindings, delivery and storage.  With e-readers and computer screens, apps for you tablet and phone, you can read anything, anywhere!  Self publishing is easier, and cheaper than it has ever been.

But, for me, there is still something about being able to hold a solid book in my hand.

Why all this talk about books, you might ask?  What does it have to do with knitting?

Well.....

Today, Knit Picks released a book with one of my patterns in it!

Artful Arches is all about taking that hand painted or tonal skein of yarn and making the subtle (or not so subtle) color variations really shine.








My contribution started months, and months ago with my spying a call for submissions for socks using hand-painted or tonal yarns, and as it happens I love them, so coming up with an idea was easy.

 But, why knit a swatch type swatch when I could just knit a pair of child sized socks...so I did.


And I wrote up the submission and waited.








When the acceptance email came in, I was...well excited doesn't really cover it because, as I said before I love books and now I was going to have one of my patterns in one!

Knit Picks is ever so easy to work with, within a couple of days they had sent me yarn to knit up my real sample and given me the style sheet so I could write up the pattern  and deadlines and a contract.....

Followed by more waiting.  Waiting for their sample knitter to knit the socks.  Waiting for their tech editor to edit the pattern, then the worst wait of all...waiting for the pattern, the photos and all the hard work layout artists and graphic designers and editors and co-ordinators had gone through to actually become, well, a book!

You can buy the patterns included, 12 in all, separately as individual downloads or just grab the book and get lots of inspiration for your next pair of hand painted or tonal socks.

“Will you, won’t you, will you, won’t you, won’t you join the dance?”
-The Mock Turtle, Alice in Wonderland

Starts the write-up on Ravelry for my Mock Turtle Socks...

"You’ll be all set for the Lobster Quadrille with these fancy feet. The slip pattern uses unique stitches to create a paneled look, similar to the shell of a turtle, while still allowing the brilliant handpainted color to take center stage. So slip on these fancy feet, grab your crustaceous partner, and join the dance!"

As is my usual I worked them cuff down, with a slipped stitch heel and standard gusset.

A slip stitch motif is centered on front of ankle, with a ribbing on back of leg.

And while I was waiting to be able to talk about them?

Well, I might have ended up knitting myself an entire set!