Episode 76

Shownotes:

The Beekeepers Quilt

Juniper Moon Farm

Moonshine

Yarn

Bobbles

Dried Sedge

Latouche

Snow-Capped Yarns

Shelly Kocan

The Net Loft

Cordova, Alaska

The Net Loft Fiber and Friends Retreat

Reba's Website

Follow the Yarn

Join the Never Not Knitting Ravelry Group

Enter to win this copy of Follow the Yarnby Reba Linker along with a skein of Snow Capped Yarns Latouch DK in the Dried Sedge colorway provided by The Net Loft by leaving a comment under this post by December 15th. Please remember to include your contact information. Only one comment per person please! The winner will be announced on Episode 77.

Thank you for listening!

In looking for botanical inspiration for my new book, I stumbled across this beautiful photo online by photographer, Steve Stenzel.

I love this photo for so many reasons but I especially am impressed by how it represents the life cycle of this particular plant. From the new growth of spring all the way to the end of autumn.

I am so drawn to this natural color palette.

So much so in fact.. that I showed this picture to the ladies of Spincycle Yarns and they used it in creating a special new colorway just for me. 

And they did such a phenomenal job!

 This beautiful yarn perfectly captures the colors of changing leaves. 

The way that the colors subtly change from one to the next perfectly expresses this idea of the natural life cycle of spring to autumn. I am not usually one to go for multi-colored yarn.. but this one I love.

With this yarn I created my "Life Cycle" scarf design. This is an accent scarf consisting of a string of big leaves.. one growing out of the next. 

It works so perfectly with this yarn and I am so happy with it.

This scarf pattern will be included in my upcoming book, Botanical Knits 2.

The scarf pattern will call for 2 skeins of Spincycle Dyed in the Wool yarn. 

This special colorway is called "End of Summer" and is available HERE.

Episode 75

Shownotes:

Knitscene Winter 2013 Article

Sprig Pattern

Sprig Forum

Owl

Canopy Worsted

Cotton Comfort

Ultra Alpaca

Cascade 220

My Design Progress Pictures!

The Nature Conservancy Magazine

Cover Story about Patagonia Partnership

Conservancy Talk Blog with the awesome "Farm to Closet Series"

Kaileen on Ravelry

Kaileen's Blog

Join the Never Not Knitting Ravelry Group!

Photo courtesy of The Nature Conservancy / Lori Johnson

Enter to win 2000 yards of this gorgeous certified sustainable wool yarn from Patagonia by following the Nature Conservancy on Twitter or Facebook and then leaving a comment under this post by November 15th. Please remember to include your contact information.

Only one comment per person please!

Three winners will be chosen and announced on Episode 76!

Thank you for listening! 

Oh how happy I am to say that my new Sprig sweater pattern is now available to purchase.

This pattern has been in the works a long time and I am so excited that it is finally ready!

This is a top-down raglan pullover with a very unique construction. One that I think is fun and will catch you by surprise.

The raglan itself is knit asymmetrically and also paired with an asymmetrical neckband. All of this asymmetry when paired together.. results in a symmetrical sweater. It is tricky that way!

It also includes dart like waist shaping for a flattering fit.

Here is the pattern information for those of you interested:

SIZE

33.5 (36.75, 40, 43.25, 46.5)[49.5, 52.75, 56, 59.25]” / 85.5 (93.5, 101.5, 109.5, 118)[126, 134, 142, 150.5] cm

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS

Chest: 33.5 (36.75, 40, 43.25, 46.5)[49.5, 52.75, 56, 59.25]” / 85.5 (93.5, 101.5, 109.5, 118)[126, 134, 142, 150.5] cm

Length: 24 (25, 26, 27, 28)[29, 30, 31, 32]” / 61 (63.5, 66, 68.5, 71.5)[73.5, 76, 79, 81] cm

Shown in size 33.5” / 85.5 cm. To be worn with 1-3” / 2.5-7.5 cm of positive ease.

MATERIALS

Quince and Co. Owl  [50% American Wool, 50% American Alpaca; 120 yd / 110 m per 3.5 oz / 50g skein]; color Chamomile; 7 (8, 9, 10, 11)[12, 13, 14, 15] skeins or approx 825 (925, 1025, 1150, 1250)[1375, 1500, 1650, 1775] yds / 750 (850, 925, 1050, 1150)[1250, 1375, 1500, 1625] m of a dk or light worsted weight wool or wool blend.

Alternate Yarns: Cascade 220 Heathers

1 US6 / 4 mm 24” / 60 cm circular needle

1 set of US6 / 4 mm double-pointed needles

Stitch markers

Stitch holders

Cable needle

Tapestry needle

Two 3/4" / 2 cm buttons for optional button-loop closure on the sleeves

Sewing needle and matching thread for optional closure on the sleeves

GAUGE

20 sts/ 28 rows = 4” / 10 cm in St st on US6 / 4 mm needles or size needed for accurate gauge.

Keeping with the botanical theme, a sprig of foliage begins on one side of the neckline and gracefully wraps around one side. My favorite sweater detail is how these little leaves drape over one shoulder.

The other special detail is on the sleeve cuffs. The leafy sprig is mirrored on the cuffs of the sleeves with the leaves wrapping towards the back just like the neckline.

 The pattern also offers an option for a button-loop closure on the sleeve just for fun.

This is a special sweater full of all sorts of fun little botanically inspired details that I hope you will enjoy!

Please remember that this sweater is just a preview of my collection for the upcoming book, Botanical Knits 2. This pattern will only be available individually for a limited time only.

I have arranged for the entire cost of the pdf to be applied towards your future purchase of the new book once it is released next year. Please note the following instructions so that you can receive this discount in the future:

After purchasing Sprig, PayPal will send you an email as a receipt. 

PLEASE KEEP THIS EMAIL. YOU WILL NEED IT LATER. 

On the email you will see an 16 character code called a "Receipt No." or a 17 digit character code called a "Transaction ID". 

These numbers will serve as your coupon code to receive $6 off of the Botanical Knits 2 purchase price when it is released.

I wanted to offer this as a way of saying thank you for all of your patience with me as I have been working so long behind the scenes on this new book. I felt bad having so much time pass between releasing new patterns!

I really hope that you will enjoy this one. Be sure to pop into the Botanical Knits Group on Ravelry to share your pictures!

After months of working at a very comfortable pace, I woke up one morning a few weeks back with a sudden case of "finishing fever" and decided that I had to finish up my 

collection for Botanical Knits 2... right away. 

As in NOW. As in yesterday.

I don't know where the sudden rush of motivation came from.. but I have been working like a crazy person ever since. I am determined to get these knits designed and done as soon as possible.

That means... a lot of knitting... and a lot of playing with new yarn. It could be worse, right?

I thought I'd share with you some of the highlights from my past few weeks of work.

Firstly, I got these gorgeous special skeins of Spincycle Dyed in the Wool yarn in a brand new colorway to test out. I am so excited to see what they will knit up like! The colors are so rich and beautiful.

I also finished a new shawl design that I just love. 

It's a new and updated take on my Cedar Leaf Shawlette and all of the other leaf bordered shawls floating around out there in pattern land.

Its cool and whimsical and I am really happy with it.

And I love the way that this gorgeous purple yarn goes with the other colors I'm using.

I am also knitting a sweater out of this rich glowing brown yarn.

Perhaps it would be more accurate to say that I am "un-knitting" a sweater out of this rich glowing brown yarn.

I have spent a fair amount of time ripping back today as I learned an invaluable and unfortunate lesson about the placement of bobbles on the front of a sweater. 

Turns out a bobble put in the wrong place on a sweater front can look rather inappropriate. :(

Speaking of sweaters... do you remember this lovely little green sweater?

Oh good.. I'm glad. 

 I promise that I haven't forgotten about it. 

I still have plans to release this pattern individually very soon.

Thank you for your patience with me. 

Back to work I go! More updates soon!

I can't quite tell you how happy these little knitted leaves are making me right now.

They are so fun to make!

These tiny ivy leaves will be a new pattern to be included in my upcoming book, Botanical Knits 2. 

I just got the Winter 2013 issue of Knitscene magazine in the mail...

and was delighted to see my article published!

I was quite flattered when Amy Palmer, the editor of Knitscene, asked me to contribute an article. I've never written something like this for a magazine before, but fortunately it came quite naturally. 

After all.. This is on one of my most favorite subjects. :)

I hope that you enjoy reading my article on pages 26-28!

Episode 74

Shownotes:

Pictures From My East Coast Book Tour

Botanical Knits

Argyle Yarn Shop

Loop

Looped Yarn Works

Whatcha Swatchin Video Podcast

Hannah Fettig

Coastal Knits

Neesha Hudson

One + One Hats

The Ultimate Hat Book

Margaret on Ravelry

Join the Never Not Knitting Ravelry Group!

Enter to win a copy of these two books, One + One Hats, and The Ultimate Hat Book by leaving a comment under this post by October 15th. Please remember to include your contact information. Only one comment per person please! The winner will be announced on Episode 75.

Thank you for listening!

Awhile back I talked of a new sweater design on the needles out of the beautiful Quince and Co. Owl yarn.

I am happy to report that this sweater has now been completed and I am really enjoying the little details that make this piece so unique.

A little button and loop closure on the cuff...

 A sprig of foliage winding around the asymmetrical neckline...

and the way the leaves gracefully drape over one shoulder.

This design was created for my new book Botanical Knits 2, but I can't wait until then to share this sweater with all of you!

Soon I will have this individual pdf available as a limited time purchase. And... not to worry.. the entire cost of the pdf will be applied to your future purchase of Botanical Knits 2 when that becomes available next year. 

This is just a little thank you for your being so patient with me as I work on the patterns for the upcoming book.

I hope to have this pattern available soon! 

I am back home with my kids and my normal routine after one jam packed week of traveling with my husband. Last week I had the amazing opportunity of being hosted by 3 amazing yarn shops and getting to explore the Eastern coast of the United States. In one weeks time we traveled through 5 different states on 8 different plane trips, 2 train rides and multiple taxis, buses, and subways. 

Whew. It was fast paced.. but I'm not complaining. We had an amazing time!

My first stop was Brooklyn, New York where I got to visit the fabulous and cozy Argyle Yarn Shop. 

The husband and wife owners, David and Esther, were so helpful and accommodating. The book signing and workshop was amazing and I got to meet some very enthusiastic Never Not Knitting blog readers. As for New York itself.. wow. What an overwhelming difference from the small town I live in. 

There was just so much to see... 

The next day we took a train to Philadelphia and were awestruck by this beautiful city. I spent a wonderful afternoon at Loop yarn shop. Between the cupcakes and beautiful Botanical Knits display, the owner, Craig, and all of the knitters there made me feel so welcome. I had a great time visiting with everyone!

The city of Philadelphia was so fun to walk through. We of course had to have a "Philly Cheesesteak" and see all of the beautiful colonial sites. 

My next stop was Looped Yarn Works in Washington, DC, and what a charming little store this was! The shop was made up of two octagonal upstairs rooms with lots of windows and sunlight streaming in. It was a very cozy space with a great yarn selection and comfy couches. The owners Janie and Susan were so fun and supportive. I am so grateful to them both for inviting me to the East coast in the first place. The knitters I met in DC were also amazing. So supportive and sweet. I loved the time I spent here.

After 3 yarn shop events in a row, we traveled through Maryland and up to Maine, where I got to visit with my friend, Hannah Fettig after 5 long years! We have kept in touch and worked together via phone and email during this time, but it was so nice to see her in person once again. Her husband and family showed us around the beautiful coast of Maine and took us to several locations featured in our Coastal Knits book. Hannah even kindly gave me one of her extra Rocky Coast Cardigan samples which I was able to wear at Two Lights State Park. I felt like I was in the pages of our book. :) We were amazed by how truly beautiful this state is.

I was also excited that we were able to meet up with Neesha Hudson, the illustrator of our Coastal Knits book as well as Annie and the Swiss Cheese Scarf and Botanical Knits! 

What a treat to finally meet her in the flesh!

Thank you to everyone who stopped by these yarn shops to say "hi" and to these amazing yarn shop owners who made this trip possible. We had a wonderful, wonderful time that I will never forget!

Episode 73

Shownotes:

My Lace Shawl Pattern Sneak Peek

Madelinetosh Merino Light

Susan B. Anderson

My Susan B. Anderson Podcast Interviews HERE and HERE.

Itty Bitty Toys

The Reversible Egg to Bluebird 

Topsy Turvy Inside-Out Knit Toys

Check Out This ADORABLE Video about the Book!

Anna Zilboorg Cones #2 Hat

Toddie Downs Blog

My East Coast Tour Schedule

Botanical Knits

Join the Never Not Knitting group on Ravelry

Enter to win a copy of Topsy-Turvy Inside-Out Knit Toys by Susan B. Anderson by leaving a comment under this post by September 15th. Don't forget to leave your contact information! Only one comment per person please.

The winner will be announced on Episode 74.

Thank you for listening! 

Big news! I am coming to the East Coast! 

Next month I have the privilege of doing a small East Coast book tour for Botanical Knits!

I will be visiting 3 awesome stores in 3 different states to do a book signing and teach a sweater finishing workshop. The workshop will guide you through some of my favorite sweater finishing techniques for a professional looking garment including invisible seaming, blocking, and weaving in yarn tails. 

Here is the schedule:

First stop

Argyle Yarn Shop

Brooklyn, NY

Book Signing 6-7 pm, Friday, September 6th 

Sweater Finishing Workshop 7-9 pm- Limited space available

 Please call 347.227.7799 to reserve class space

Second stop

Loop

Philadelphia, PA

Book Signing 4-6 pm, Saturday, September 7th 

Sweater Finishing Workshop 2-4pm- Limited space available

 Please call 215.893.9939 to reserve class space

Final stop

Looped Yarn Works

Washington, DC

Book Signing 12-1:30 pm, Sunday, September 8th 

Sweater Finishing Workshop is FULL

I am so excited about this trip! If you live nearby, I hope that you will stop by even just to say hello. 

I am so looking forward to meeting you!

I just finished my very first lace shawl design and I am feeling over the moon.

Not just because I designed it. But because it is finally. off. my. needles. And because I didn't kill anyone in the process of creating this lacy beast.

This shawl was ripped out and re-knit so many times that I lost count. Or at least I have repressed the memory. Being the lazy and over confident knitter that I sometimes can be, I could not be bothered with putting in lifelines. Instead I fearlessly shoved hundreds of lacy stitches off of the needles, ripped back and tediously had to feed all of those tiny yarn overs and decreases back onto my circular needle... over and over and over again.

Several times I wanted to give up. Several times I wanted to disown this project.

But in the end, I kept with it. I conquered the beast. The battle has been fought and won.

Hopefully my pain will result in your knitting joy. 

Look for this pattern in my upcoming book, Botanical Knits 2!

ver·dure

  [vur-jer]  

noun

1.

greenness, especially of fresh, flourishing vegetation.

2.

green vegetation, especially grass or herbage.

3.

freshness in general; flourishing condition; vigor.

I felt that the word "verdure" was a great title for this new little botanically inspired pattern.

These mitts feature a fun twisted stitch, sprouting plant motif on the back of the hand. 

It is so fun to watch it grow as you knit!

The pattern calls for only one skein of Madelinetosh Tosh DK. I used the Grove colorway which is such a perfect shade of green.

photography by Vivian Aubrey

I have designed these mitts to be included in my upcoming pattern book, Botanical Knits 2. But I am happy to announce that this pattern is available individually for a limited time as part of
Twisted yarn shop's Mad About Tosh Club 2013.

The pattern is available HERE.

Enjoy! :)

I always feel so honored when knitters choose to knit my patterns. 

There are just so many patterns from so many amazingly talented knitwear designers out there. I am so grateful when one of my designs is chosen from the vast sea of available options.

But nothing is quite so special as when one of my designs is chosen to be knit and worn for one of the most important days in one's life.

A wedding.

I was beyond flattered when Allison Scoon (sticknspokes on Ravelry) contacted me last year to tell me that she would be knitting my Wildflower Cardigan for her upcoming wedding on the Isle of Mull on Scotland's west coast.

What a romantic location.

When she sent me these pictures, I was blown away. 

The cardigan turned out so great and she looks so beautiful in it!

As an avid knitter, it was very important to Allison to have handknits prominently featured in her wedding. 

She knit her husbands tie and kilt hose as well as her two lovely daughter's bridesmaids cardigans. 

Truly a handknit wedding! Every knitter's dream.

I am so grateful to Allison for choosing my cardigan design for her special day and for allowing me to share it her amazing pictures with all of you. 

Congratulations Allison and Malcolm!

Wildflower Cardigan pattern available HERE.

Pictures copyrighted by Allison and Malcolm Ward and ewanbaxterphotography.com

Episode 72

Shownotes:

Botanical Knits

Argyle Yarn Shop

Loop

Looped Yarn Works

My Swallowtail Shawl

My Gail Shawl

Owl

Sylvan Spirit

Sunshine Yarns Merino Sport

Loft

The Wool Tree

Black Pearl 

The "Sweater Surgery" Sweater Pattern, Vivian

Ysolda on Ravelry

Ysolda's Blog

Strokkur

Orchid Thief Shawlette

Join the Never Not Knitting group on Ravelry

Enter to win these 2 skeins of Black Pearl laceweight yarn from The Yarn Sisters Co. along with Ysolda's Strokkur and Orchid Thief Shawlette patterns by leaving a comment under this post by August 15th. Dont forget to leave your contact information! Only one comment per person please.

The winner will be announced on Episode 73.

Thank you for listening!

I am still working away over here on my designs for the upcoming sequel... Botanical Knits 2! 

Right now I have the pleasure of working with Quince and Co's new yarn, Owl. Wow. I love it!

It's a 50/50 wool and alpaca blend that is lofty, soft and full of texture all at the same time.
It is amazing to knit with, and the fabric it creates is just lovely.

I am working up a new sweater design that I am really excited about. It has a design feature that I have never seen executed on a sweater before and is one that I feel is very fun to knit.

Thank you for your patience with me as I work hard behind the scenes to get these patterns ready for you. I am super excited about the work I have accomplished thus far.

You will have some more vague progress shots coming your way for awhile.. until I get ready for this collection's big reveal! :)

Episode 71

Shownotes:

TNNA

Annie and the Swiss Cheese Scarf

Stitches West

Becoming Art

Cephalopod Yarns

A Verb for Keeping Warm

Spincycle Yarns

Eurosteam Irons

Botanical Knits

Spincycle Yarns design swatch

Uncommon Goods

Birdie Yarn Bowl

Sweater Curse; A Yarn About Love

This is my yarn bowl posing with my skeins of Spincycle Dyed in the Wool yarn.

Enter to win a "birdie yarn bowl" from uncommongoods.com just like mine (yarn not included.. this yarn is all Miiiiinnnee) by leaving a comment under this post by July 15th. Please only one comment per person and do not forget to include your contact information. The winner will be announced in Episode 72.

Thank you for listening! :)

You may remember me mentioning this gorgeous yarn I found at Stitches West this past February. This is Spincycle Yarns Dyed in the Wool and its AMAZING.

It has the look of a handspun, but is actually a lovely commercially spun yarn with gradient color changes. 

It is extremely addicting to work with.

Today I have been playing around with this gorgeous yarn for a new leafy design for Botanical Knits 2.

I just want to keep knitting and knitting to see what color is coming next.

With my baby boy getting older, I am now starting to think more seriously about traveling for book signings.

I was honored when one of my stockists, A Yarn Less Raveled, invited me for a Botanical Knits book signing and event in Danville, California. A town right outside of San Francisco.

When I walked into the store, I was overwhelmed by the kindness and support from the store owner, staff and customers. The entire shop was decorated for the event with signage, beautiful displays, and even themed refreshments. I just loved the little details like the autumn leaf cookies and the little knitted leaves scattered about the tables. The shop staff and customers even knitted several items from the book for display in anticipation for the event.

The event itself was a huge success. I met so many wonderful knitters who were so genuinely excited about the collection and my patterns.

I especially enjoyed seeing these ladies again. They refer to themselves as my "#1 fans" and are amazingly enthusiastic.

I really received a VIP experience from this wonderful shop. I couldn't have had a better time. They made me feel so welcome and so special

 I hope to visit this friendly shop again next time I am in the area and I hope you will too.