Tag Archives: Knitting & Spinning

Congrats to #9, Doreen!  I’ve emailed you.

Stitching in the Stacks, edited by Sarah Barbour, Cooperative Press, 2013, 178pp.

See all the patterns here on Ravelry.

Sarah’s collected a fantastic group of designers & designs to round out her librarian-themed book. She was careful to avoid the overtly ‘sexy librarian’ stereotype, instead opting for class and grace.

Women’s garments, men’s garments, and a variety of accessories are included.

Women’s sweaters are generally sized XS-2X.

Techniques run the gamut — lace, textured, stranded, cables, etc.  I’d be surprised if you couldn’t find at least a couple patterns you want to knit out of this book!

I count the following:

• 3 Shawls/scarves
• 9 Women’s garments (including 2 skirts)
• 2 Men’s garments
• 3 Fingerless mitts
• 3 Hats
• And a variety of 9 bookish patterns include bookweights, pencil bags, bookmarks, bookend cozies, bookcovers, eReader cozies, and even a bookworm.

My favorite patterns include Rachel Erin’s Hypatia with its mix of simple lace faggoting & ribs,  Kristin Hanley Cardozo’s Aurora Teagarden with its vibrant colors, and Stereotypical.  I’ve had to start using reading glasses, and a pretty case for my glasses for around the house would be a nice treat.

Leave a comment on this with your favorite pattern from the book by midnight PST 7/17/13 to win your own PDF copy of Stitching in the Stacks.

All photos © Caro Sheridan.

Note: My review copy was given to me by the author.  All opinions are my own.

Congrats to #12, Ann!  I’ve emailed you.

Handmade in the UK:  luscious lace + artisan yarns,  by Emily Wessel of TinCanKnits,  52pp. (Find it here on Ravelry, $16 CAD.  You can preorder the print version at TinCanKnits.)

This lovely collection of lace items offers a little something for everyone: 3 sweaters (1 cami, 1 cardi, 1 pullover);  3 different shawls; 1 pair of socks; 1 pair of mittens; 2 hats; and a baby blanket.

The sweaters are sized generously, from XXS to 4X for all; Windswept & Lush also include baby & child sizes.

(The hats, mittens and socks also come in multiple sizes:  bravo!)

Bonny is probably my favorite of the sweaters (all are gorgeous).  The neckline detail is so lovely.

Of the shawls, Botany, a half circle/ crescent available in two sizes, shown below, is my favorite.  I love how the stitch patterns are integrated.

The book itself is so pretty — Emily includes sketches and landscape/cityscape photos to round out the book, making it something fun to spend some time looking at, not just working from.

Emily took the time to carefully source her yarns from local indie dyers & small yarn companies, and includes a charming map of where they’re located & a photo with all the yarns & their inf0.

She also includes a small techniques section, referring the knitter to her website’s list of tutorials for further help.

Want to win your own PDF copy of the book?  Leave a comment on this post by midnight PST July 9th 2013 with your favorite design(s) from the book.   I’ll contact you for your Ravelry name & Emily will gift you a copy of the PDF.

Note: My review copy was given to me by the author.  All opinions are my own.

Oooh boy. First off, I got sick starting Sunday night/Monday day, and am a bit woozy still while typing this, so apologies re: the tardiness of this post & lack of pics.

TNNA went well — it’s always great to catch up with fellow designers, yarnies, etc who I only get to see once or twice a year.

I dropped off proposals & samples.  I also picked out yarn for a couple upcoming projects (thank you Felicia from Sweet Georgia, Jeane from Elemental Affects, and Sabrina from Anzula!).  I chatted with folks from different segments of the industry about possible future endeavors.

Marly’s designer dinner was fun as always (I won a prize based on my birthday being the closest, some benefit to getting older, lol).  Sponsors included Bijou Basin, Boye, Cascade, Chica, Classic Elite, Craftsy, Eucalan, Fiesta Yarns, Jill Zielinski Designs, Knit Picks, Knitterella, Kollage Yarn, Lion Brand, Love of Crochet, Love of Knitting, Malabrigo, Namaste, Prism, Red Barn Yarn, Red Heart, Rowan, Schachenmayr, Signature Needles, Stacey Charles, Sweet Georgia, The Crochet Dude, Webs, Yarnbox, & YarnSisters/ Zealana, and probably a few more I’ve forgotten.  Because I just had a carry on, and intended to leave with just a carry on, my roommate, a talented crochet designer who hadn’t gotten to go to the dinner, went home with a bunch of stuff too!  I’ll try to follow up with a couple pictures of things I brought home.

I ate at Knead (always delicious), North Market (must remember doesn’t open on Sundays til noon, and that not everything is open on Monday), and Barley (?) (the pub across the street from the Convention Center).  I missed Jeni’s due to being sick on Monday.

Columbus Pride was going on, and the Pride parade went right be the Convention Center.  Everyone seemed so happy — I’m sure there were dissenters, but I only saw crowds happy to participate in the fun.  (Can you imagine had the weekend been scheduled after the DOMA/ Prop 8 decisions?!)

A week and a half ago, Holly and Lars of Suburban Knits posted a call for submissions for designers to donate the use of previously published patterns (they needed to be already tech edited and so on, totally ready to go) for K*tog:Oklahoma Tornado Relief eBook, with 100% of the profits going to Other Options.

From the previews I’ve seen, it’s an amazing eBook.  You can purchase here;  per Holly, it will soon be available for Kindle and on Ravelry.  It’s only going to be available for a limited time, through August 30th.

$20 gets you twenty different patterns, ranging from accessories to garments to toys.  My Malaga Cove Mitts are included.

It’s June, which means (at least for this year, since, as it stands right now for next year, everything’s changing)…summer TNNA!  It’s in Columbus again, so of course I’m looking forward to some ice cream from Jeni’s.   (Let alone, of course, seeing all my designer & yarnie friends who I only get to see at TNNA and conferences!)

If you’re a designer going for the first time, check out my Designers’ Guide to TNNA post here.

My list of things to do at TNNA isn’t that extravagant.  I’ve found the less I expect to do, the more that I get out of going, and the less frustrated and stressed I am before, during, and after.

I’ll be at the Cooperative Press booth helping out, of course.

I’ll be touching base with all the yarn companies who will be at TNNA who’ve given yarn support for Hitch and for my next book:  Anzula, Blue Sky Alpacas, Elemental Affects, Knit Picks, MadelineTosh, Shibui, Sincere Sheep, Sweet Georgia, & Zen Yarn Garden.  Elizabeth at Cooperative Press has told me we should have a look book for Hitch.  I’ll have a look book for my next book as well.

Roxane and Neville at Zen Yarn Garden will also get a peek at the twisted stitch cowl, the pattern for which I’m hoping to be releasing quite soon.

At the last winter TNNA, I met with Erika Knight (who is just amazingly gracious and funny).  Her US distributor, Blue Water Fibers, sent me home with a ball of her British Blue Wool in all but one color (of which they were out).  I’m planning on stopping by & dropping off proposals for some accessory patterns.

There are several designer meet ups:  Marlybird‘s designer dinner, a lunch on Sunday, the official TNNA designer/teacher meeting Sunday night, and probably more I don’t know of yet and may crash, lol.

I had an Airbnb room set up — it looked wonderful — but was too far from the convention center (didn’t find out til after booking) and had to cancel (which means it’s available to anyone who wants a bit more exercise to & from the convention center!).  I’m now sharing a room at the Crowne Plaza, which is connected to the convention center.

Are you going to TNNA?  leave a comment if you are & would like to meet up!

I still have some lovely yarn for sale, please check it out here. See books via the Amazon link.

Sales this weekend, with part of the proceeds going towards veteran’s groups.

Did you know I graduated from West Point 24 (gulp) years ago?  I served as a Military Intelligence officer for four years, including deployment for Desert Storm with the 1st Armored Division.  

Overwhelmed by the sheer number of things I have to get done, I’m procrastinating by going into a flurry of organizing & decluttering.  (In my defense, the sense of accomplishment and peace achieved does result in increased productivity post-procrastination.)

This time decluttering includes destashing some personal yarn, knitting bags, and books.

Bags are listed on Ravelry in the Knitting Bag Lust group here.

Books are up on Amazon here.  If you see more than one book that you’d like, email me & I’ll pull the listing off Amazon so shipping can be combined.

This yarn is lovely yarn that, in a perfect world, I’d have time to use.  But I don’t foresee using it any time soon (i.e. in the next, oh, five years).  Which means it would be better off in your hands!  US shipping included in the prices.

Fiberphile Merino Nylon sock in Pumpkin Spice (top) $22 & Fiberphile MCN sock in Siren Song  (bottom) $22

Martha’s Vineyard Fiber Farm Spring 2009 Cormo CSA Share. 600 yards, undyed. $35  sold

Rowan Magpie 9 skeins. $85  sold

Sundara Sock in the following colorways (now on eBay, user dschalek)

• Embers over Flame
• Sangria over Garnet  sold
• Chocolate Covered Caramel sold
• Cha Cha
• Brambleberry
• Magnolia

Dyed by Danido Luxury Sock in Hazelnut. Gorgeous.  It’s nestled in between the Magnolia & Brambleberry, above.

Slackford Pathway Sock (top) $18 & Slackford Hedonist Sock (bottom) $20

A slew of Campion.  See my Rav trade page here for more info on colors etc.  (now on eBay, user dschalek)

Designing

Though I can’t post many details about what I’ve been working on, there has been a lot of designing and knitting going on!

I’m still at work on the twisted stitch cowl.  Have I said how much I love Serenity Worsted?  It’s like buttah in your hands.  (In a good, non greasy way.)

I’ve also cast on & am about 4-5″ into the back for a sweater for the next book.  Every time I see Sabrina from Anzula I’ve sworn the sweater with her yarn will be next big thing I’ll be working on for the next book, and every time other deadlines come up.  Finally I’ve started it!  The main portion of the sweater is in Oasis, with details in Breeze.  Bottom up, in pieces, with set in sleeves worked topped down post-seaming.

My goal is to have both the sweater and the cowl completed before TNNA (so I can bring them along  and show them to Roxanne & Neville and Sabrina).  I’m also planning on having some swatches done for some other projects, again to present to the respective yarn companies.

I did  just finish a hat for the next book, with Bijou BasinBijou Bliss.  This hat went through two or three incarnations involving copious frogging before I settled on the (much simpler but oh so lovely) final version.

I also finished a big secret project, which winged its way across the country last week.

Teaching

As noted before, I’m teaching in Taos this fall!  Click here and here for info on my classes. I’m also thinking of doing some LYS appearances.

Blog

Update still in the works. Tech editing, Hitch, designing, etc has taken priority.

Tech Editing

Tech editing-wise, I’m still not accepting new clients, and don’t know when I will be.  I’ll post on the tech editing page when I am.

Misc

Vet work is picking up, which is good both monetarily and professionally.

I’ve started (am in Week 4) of the Zombies Run 5k training.  See my progress here.

I also have very sad news about Obi.  He passed away last week.  It’s still too raw for me to do a blog post about him — I’m getting teary-eyed just typing this.  He’d been sick the last couple years, but really crashed last week.  A vet friend at a local clinic euthanized him for me while I petted him.  We’ll be getting his ashes back.