Madelinetosh Tosh Sock is of my favorite yarns for designing cable patterns. It has fabulous stitch definition and the subtle depth of color makes cables look extra luxurious.
The month of May is “Mad May”… a huge celebration of everything Madelinetosh. I’m participating this year by offering a 25% discount on selected patterns that would look perfect in Madelinetosh. Just use coupon code MadMay2016 at checkout from my Ravelry shop before midnight on May 10, 2016.
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The pattern for Switch Point Socks is now available to everyone! This design was one of the station stops on the 2016 Canadian Crazy Train sock knitting caper and was exclusive to that event for several months.
These highly textured socks feature an intricate cable and braid panel framed by pretty cable columns. The socks are worked from the top down and the left and right socks are identical. The photo shoot for this design was held at an outdoor mining museum in Yellowknife, NT. Pit railway tracks and equipment once used to move miners, equipment and ore in and out of underground gold mines feature as the backdrop. Valentine’s Day is fast approaching! I learned long ago not to expect any special surprises given that my husband is not exactly the romantic type. He once gave me a belt sander for Valentine’s Day! He’ll never live that one down.
So I thought I’d recognize the day with a mini-sale on selected patterns over in my Ravelry store. Razzle Dazzle Socks, Stoloniferous Fingerless Mitts, Sunrise Ridge Socks, Cordelia Fingerless Gloves and Orelia Rose Socks will be 30% off until February 16, 2016 using coupon code VAL2016. One of the best parts of Indie Gift-a-Long is the chance to discover and connect with other designers. This year, I've had the pleasure of "meeting" Denise Lavoie of Voie de Vie. We share an interest in floatplanes and she has actually published a collection of knit and crochet patterns inspired by early women in flight. Check out Leather, Lace, Grit & Grace! I'm really partial to the Leather + Lace Aviatrix Cap, even though my crochet skills are lacking, but all the designs are fabulous. Denise kindly agreed to let me interview her, so keep reading to learn more about her designs and their inspirations... Why did you start designing knitting and crochet patterns and what are your favorite items to design?
My transition to designer was a gradual one, and grew out of my genuine love of most all things artistic. At one point I instructed design school students in non-design courses (mainly English, ethics and history), and during my instructor days I decided to pick up a paint brush and just started painting. Some time after that I took an unfinished shawl pattern from a Ravelry friend, Lyn Robinson, and turned it into a finished design, the Festival Shawl. After that, I pretty much didn’t look back! In terms of my favorite items to design, of course it’s the one I’ve yet to design! I do love shawls and cowls and other neckware (especially cowls at the moment), jewelry, bags, skirts and sweaters. I also have a weakness for big, cushy interior design items Where do you find inspiration for your designs? Literature and mythology, art and culture (and I include the runway in that category), nature, color, the clean lines of certain furniture and interior design, as well as sleek cars. What’s the inspiration behind Leather, Lace, Grit & Grace? I’ve loved flight since I was a kid, and in the mid-90s I visited Kill Devil Hills (it’s changed a lot since that first visit, so perhaps I need to go back again). Sometime afterward, I started to research and read about famous pilots, and eventually came across Harriet Quimby’s story. Many people still do not know of her famous first flight across the English Channel because of a bad news day (the Titanic sunk the previous evening). Since then, I had been slowly amassing research bits and pieces on various female pilots, which eventually led to the book. Can you give us some hints on upcoming designs for 2016? Hmmm… well, I’m not too big on hints concerning my own work, although I can tell you that I’ve already got several individual designs that will be published by third parties in 2016. Additionally, I have a few projects of my own scheduled for next year which I’m really pretty excited about, so I’m thoroughly looking forward to 2016. I've just released the pattern for Midas Touch Scarf. This luxurious little scarf requires just a single skein of laceweight yarn. My sample is worked in qiviut, yarn spun from muskox fibre, which is incredibly light yet delivers exceptional warmth and softness. A laceweight or light fingering yarn with mild halo is recommended for this project.
The lace pattern is provided in both written directions and chart form. The pattern is easy to memorize and allows for relaxing knitting while enjoying a special yarn. Blocking is required to fully reveal the lacy pattern. Size after blocking is approximately 5” wide and 48” long. Length can be easily adjusted as permitted by available yarn. Indie Gift-a-Long 2015 (GAL) is underway! Come join us in the Ravelry group and get started on your gift knitting. We have over 300 talented designers participating this year so there's bound to be the perfect pattern for every taste.
Each designer is offering between 5 and 20 patterns at a 25% discount during the sale portion of the GAL. The sale runs from November 19 through November 27, 2015. The Ravelry group provides access to all sorts of cool tools to help you find the sale patterns: Pinterest collections, searchable group bundles, designer maps, and more. The GAL even includes lots of digital and physical prizes. Any paid (not free) pattern by a participating designer is eligible to win prizes in the KAL portion of the GAL and it continues until the end of the year! Fun games are running all the time and offer even more chances to win prizes. Take a look at the collage below for a peek at just some of the patterns that I'm including in the sale portion of the GAL. New pattern release... Stoloniferous Fingerless Mitts! These casual fingerless mitts feature a classic cable panel over the top of the hand with comfortable stockinette stitch for the palm and thumb. The left and right mitts are similar but not identical. The pattern is now available in my Ravelry store and on LoveKnitting, Craftsy and Patternfish.
Winter's back! So it's time to look forward to cross-country skiing and snowmobiling, and to host my annual First Snowfall Sale on Ravelry. Details in the poster below.
Introducing Resonator... published in Knitty Deep Fall 2015! Resonator guitars are showpieces of the acoustic world, thanks to their shiny facade and clear tones. These gloves capture the same crispness and flair in their intricate cables. I'm still pinching myself to make sure I'm not just dreaming about having a design published in Knitty! The first hurdle was finding the courage to submit a design for consideration. Amy's class called "Making the Next Monkey" helped immensely. Her class was brimming with useful submission tips and personal encouragement. The next hurdle was waiting for acceptance or rejection of my submission. Time eventually brought a happy response. The final hurdle was tech editing and keeping quiet until publication. Kate 's passion for editing and perfecting patterns improved the design immeasurably. Through the tech editing process, changes were made to the Resonator charts to facilitate grading and accommodate the publishing format. The draft design included thumb gusset charts which were replaced by written instructions in the final version of the pattern. But, since some knitters might find those charts useful, I'm making them available here as a supplement to the Knitty pattern. Just click on the download link below to access the file.
To celebrate my excitement in having this design published in Knitty, I'm offering a 25% discount on my other patterns through September 25, 2015. This discount applies to purchases through my Ravelry shop only. Just use coupon code KNITTYRTG at checkout.
The first of a bunch of super-secret design projects for 2015 can finally be revealed! Razzle Dazzle Socks was released today and is available to everyone right away. The pattern was designed for YarnBox to accompany the sparkly MollyGirl Diva yarn contained in its June 2015 SockBox. It's a thrill to be a featured designer for YarnBox and it was great fun designing sparkly socks in this fabulous yarn!
These socks have it all… lace, cables, twisted stitches and plenty of glitz and glamour! These beauties combine small sections of twisted stitches, cables, and lace to create an intricately feminine design. They'd be perfect for that special occasion when your feet need to feel extra pretty. It’s spring! The snow has almost vanished from my yard and the snowmachine has been tucked away for the season. Just a few more weeks until the lakes are open and 6-foot ice is a distant memory.
To celebrate, I’m having a Socks for Spring sale on selected sock patterns. Spring Haze Socks, Sunrise Ridge Socks, Twisted Maze Socks, Falling Fern Socks, Grecian Columns Socks, Orelia Rose Socks, Ribbed Rope Socks and Palisades Socks are all 30% off until May 31, 2015. Sale applies to purchases through my Ravelry shop only. I’m excited to announce that the pattern for Spring Haze Socks is now available to everyone! This pattern was originally designed for the Barking Dog Yarns Sock Club and was exclusive to club members.
These socks feature a simple 6-stitch cable combined with an easy lace pattern to create an open and airy fabric perfect for the spring/summer socks. I love the cheery color of the Barking Dog Yarns Achilles colorway used for the Sock Club but can’t wait to see the pattern worked in other colors. This pattern is featured in my Socks for Spring Sale on now through May 31, 2015 on Ravelry. Treat yourself to some fresh new socks for spring while I watch the last few piles of snow evaporate from my yard! I recently released the pattern for Pit Railway Socks. This pattern was originally designed for the 2015 Canadian Crazy Train sock caper on Ravelry. These socks feature a complex cable panel framed by simple cable columns. They are worked from the top down. The pattern includes charted cable patterns.
The train theme presented a bit of a challenge since the Canadian railroad system never extended as far north as Yellowknife. Inspiration was instead drawn from the underground pit railways used to move miners, equipment and ore in and out of local gold mines. The photographs were shot using historical pit rail tracks and equipment as the backdrop. As part of Indie Gift-A-Long 2014, I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Jennifer Beaumont aka Jenmama on Ravelry. I love her patterns... she does some amazing things with pixellation! Here's what she had to say about her designs...
Tell us a little bit about yourself... I work from home, teach part time, and homeschool with our two young children. This is a very busy time of life! Knitting and practicing yoga help me find quiet. How long have you been designing and what led you to design? I started designing when I couldn’t find patterns to create a design I had in mind. It was also around the time when I really took off with stranded knitting. Stranded knitting (colorwork) really ignited my interest in making my own designs as a way to play with color. I started to design my own accessories and sweaters and other knitters asked me to write the patterns for the designs, so then I worked at learning pattern writing. Where do you find the inspiration for your designs? I am inspired by color combinations: I may see them as some yarn I have in stash, a photograph or painting, a fabric from the fashion runway. Sometimes the pattern for the colorwork comes first and sometimes later and may be inspired by something I see and then combined into a flattering garment that I would like to wear. What is your favorite of your own original designs and what makes it special to you? I continue to be inspired by the color work patterns in my Pixelated Pullover. What is your favorite fibre to design with and why? I really have stuck to 100% merino wool, which is both warm and soft enough for my sensitive skin. My design work is inspired and made possible by the amazing hand dyed yarns by dyers like The Plucky Knitter, which is local to where I live; some of the small indie dyers like Black Trillium Fiber Arts and Rain City Knits Fiber Arts, and of course, Madelinetosh. Where can we find your designs? My patterns are available on Ravelry and there will be a stranded sweater design knit from Dream in Color yarns published by Stitch Seekers in February 2015. Another sweater design in The Plucky Knitter yarn will be published this summer in the Midwestern Knits book. Can you give us some hints about upcoming designs? Polar Prism Cardigan is up next and will be self-published in January. I also have plans for a jacket/cardigan designed with Rain City Knits yarn and also a couple of children’s stranded sweater designs inspired by own my kids. Indie Design Gift-A-Long is back for another gifting season! We have 293 designers involved in the Gift-A-Long this year and we’re all offering select patterns at a 25% discount from now until November 21, 2014. Check out the Ravelry group for lots of exciting information, including KALs, fun games, and tons of prizes.
The participating designers are all showcased with cute collages in this thread. A snapshot of my collage appears below to give you the idea. We even have Pinterest boards showing all the eligible patterns by category. I’m going to spend some quality time with Ravelry and a nice cup of tea tonight to shop for new patterns and start some gift knitting of my own! Let me know what you find to tempt you and post some photos of your projects. I have officially become a major fan of pretty stitch markers. For many years, I didn't bother using markers at all. But eventually I started using little silicone ring markers and discovered their utility. And then my husband gave me some cute crocheted ring markers as a Christmas stocking stuffer. And then an indie dyer friend started sneaking tiny beaded markers into her sock club shipments. I slowly started to get hooked.
And then... during a recent trip to Knit City in Vancouver, I succumbed to the allures of beautiful stitch markers from Caliope’s Fibre. I browsed the offerings, debated choices, and selected two set of makers that may have launched an obsession. Now I find myself searching for excuses to use markers. They just look so adorable lying against my WIPs. It’s that time of year already… snow has officially returned to my town! So instead of fretting about the departure of summer, I’m shining up the snowmobile and running my annual First Snowfall Sale through my Ravelry store.
Grab your needles and enjoy a 25% discount on patterns to warm your hands over the winter months…Snow Flurry Mittens, Checkmate Fingerless Mitts, Vertigo Fingerless Gloves, and Cordelia Fingerless Gloves. This promotion, available on Ravelry only, runs from October 18 through October 26, 2014 using coupon code Snow2014. Stash enhancement from my recent trip to Knit City in Vancouver... Clockwise from top left: Muse Fibre Works Merlot Twist Sock, Spincycle Dyed in the Wool, Ancient Arts Yarns Fingering/Sock in both 3ply and 4ply, and Indigodragonfly Merino Sock and MerGoat Sock.
With the optimistic belief that spring must arrive eventually, I’ve put together a collection of sock patterns that make me dream of warmer days. It includes Grecian Columns Socks, Orelia Rose Socks, Twisted Tendrils Socks, Quail Trails Socks, Falling Fern Socks, and Palisades Socks. Each of these patterns will be 50% off in my Ravelry store until April 30, 2014.
I'm facing a bit of an emergency today. I just discovered that the majority of my everyday handknit socks are riddled with holes and thin spots. They're well worn but failing in critical spots. Guess I've been too busy designing fancy socks to pay attention to my stash of ordinary wear. Time for drastic resuscitation measures.
Luckily, I recently stumbled upon some great instructions for repairing handknit socks without darning. It allows you to knit a patch right into the sock! Check out the Cookie A blogpost for an excellent tutorial on the technique. I'm going to try it out right away. It has the potential to be a true lifesaver. Just before Christmas, I participated as a designer in the Indie Gift-along on Ravelry. One of the best parts was the chance to get to know other designers and become familiar with their work. Alicia Landi of Woolen Diversions is one of my new favorites and she kindly let me interview her recently! Read on to learn more about her and gaze at some of her fabulous and wearable designs... Why did you start designing knitting patterns and what are your favorite items to design? I started writing knitting patterns because I had particular items I wanted to design for myself and thought others might like to make them too. I enjoy both writing and teaching and knitting patterns feels a little bit like teaching people through writing. My favorite items to design are accessories: socks, hats, cowls, and mitts. I have a few shawl and scarf ideas kicking around as well.
Where do you find inspiration for your designs? Sometimes a design is based just on something I want to knit or wear: usually something pretty simple to work with a fun detail or two to keep things interesting. Most of my knitting gets done on the run so it needs to be good multitasking knitting. Since I’m a biologist, I’m often inspired by nature as well, like with my Dissipative cowl. Can you give us some hints on upcoming designs for 2014? 2013 was an unfortunately slow year for designs as I began a new job and worked on wedding planning and writing a science publication, which cut into my design time. This means I have a whole backlog of designs I’ve been itching to get developed. My first will be a sister pattern to Dissipative, a coordinating hat. Have you heard about the Indie Design Gift-a-long? It’s time to prepare for
gift season and indie designers want to help. There are about 175 designers involved in the Gift-a-long and we’re all offering select patterns at a 25% discount from now until November 15. Check out the Ravelry group for lots of exciting information, like KALs and tons of prizes. Look around Ravelry for the cute Giftalong tags identifying participating designers and patterns. There’s even Pinterest boards showing all the eligible patterns by category. Now I’m off to shop for some new patterns and start some gift knitting of my own! Let me know what you find to tempt you and post some photos of your projects. I’m definitely starting with the Uchiwa mittens and hat. It’s that time of year again… snow returns to the Canadian north… so it's time
for my annual First Snowfall Sale. Welcome winter with a discount on patterns designed to keep you warm and cozy as the weather turns frosty outside! I'm offering a 25% discount on the purchase of the patterns for Snow Flurry Mittens, Lychgate Socks, Precambrian Cable Socks, and/or Vertigo Fingerless Gloves from October 24, 2013 through October 31, 2013. Offer applies only to purchases through my Ravelry shop using the coupon code SNOW2013. Find details of the sale in the dedicated thread in my Rav group. |