Designing Knitwear with Kat

I cheated on my socks :(

There....i admitted it! Yesterday was downright awful and after my desperately needed nap I wanted to knit something that didn't require the use of toothpicks (aka my size 2 dpns.) So I chose the Lace Sampler Shrug from Vickie Howell's new book Knitty Gritty Knits. (it's on pg 51.)

Isn't it cute!? I almost finished the first half of the shrug but I got to the middle of the bind off row and ran out of yarn! Maybe I can sweet talk Jonelle into giving me the Gianna necessary for the other half. Or maybe I can trade her for a pretty pen. Last week, I traded my all-time favorite bright pink Sharpie for her extra copy of the domiKNITrix book. IMHO, the trade was totally worth it.

Anyway, tonight I'm going to an ASU Mainstage Play so maybe I'll have a while to work on finishing my first sock so that I can do the other one right away. Marly is right, if I put off starting that second sock I'll never finish the pair!

P.S. My best friend, John, found the coolest knitting thing ever last night. Have fun!!

I've been converted

I have never had any desire to be a sock knitter. I mean it! None whatsoever.

Having said that, you can imagine my shock and surprise (not to mention Jonelle and Mindy's) when I announced that I had purchased my very first pair of dpns with the intent of knitting a pair of TOFUtsies socks. I chose a pretty easy cuff-down, footie-type pattern written by Amy Polcyn for my first pair. I was able to get all of the stitches cast on and a few rows of ribbing done on the flight to San Jose for Stitches West. DPNs used to be really scary to me but I think I've gotten the hang of it and I don't feel/look nearly as awkward knitting with them now.

Anyway, after 3 attempts at the heel (1 failed due to my inability to read and remember anything, 1 failed due to my inability to count, and 1 failed due to my inability to stay awake) I finally managed to turn the darn thing and started knitting the foot part of my sock. I got to the point where I thought I could start the toe but I was wrong and will be ripping out a few rows tonight after class.

I'm glad that I got over my fear of dpns and my aversion to sock knitting in general because truth be told, I think I'm totally addicted to socks! Or maybe I'm just addicted to TOFUtsies because the yarn is so darn soft and comes in bright colors. Without further ado, here is my sort-of-sock!

Men's Sock Patterns

I just got a very nice e-mail from a lady looking for a sock pattern for her son and it suddenly struck me - all of our sock patterns are definitely for the ladies! AHHH!

So, bust out those DPNs/magic needles/two sets of circs and start swatching! We have a few colors in the Tofutsies collection that we think are great for men. Plus, Jonelle and I have been tinkering around with new colors for Fall/Winter 2008 (insert "I have a secret/evil laugh" here).

Today I was also thinking about our Gianna collection and what kind of patterns we need to add.  At the very least, I think we need a nice big pair of mittens! What are some of your favorite wintery things? It's so hard for me to think winter right now since I spent my Saturday afternoon poolside working on my tan. It was 83 degrees, sunny, and absolutely perfect. I had to call my mom to brag. I know, I'm so mean!

Attn: Sock Knitters

As much as I hate to admit it, I have made a big goof! I have, in my hot little hands, a super lovely sock pattern that I can't identify.

If this sock belongs to you, or you know who knit it, pretty please tell me!

katherine@soysilk.com

I made yarn this weekend!! Sort of.....

This weekend was so much fun! I joined the Raffino family at Sophia's birthday party and spent the whole time knitting and learning to drop spindle with Mindy and Jonelle. (Jonelle didn't have much time to knit though because she was busy chatting and glowing about her beautiful new book! It's called Purls Forever and I got to read it before it was even printed.....I laughed and I cried. You all will love it so be sure to pick up a copy at your LYS soon!) 

First things first! Here is my knitting project du jour.
It's going to be a cabled purse and matching scarf when it grows up. The real dilemma is deciding what to forego in order to finish it: food or sleep. I'm opting for food.
This little baby is knit out of Gianna. (If the link doesn't work it's because we just got a brand spankin' new beautiful website and I need to fix that page because I messed it up.) Anyway, I just love this yarn and it's a super quick knit. I'll post it on the Free Patterns page when I'm all finished with it.

Moving right along. Here is my new pride and joy:
It's yarn!!! (sort of) For Christmas, Mindy gave me my very own drop spindle and some merino wool to learn to spin. (She's been spinning for years and shows off her skills every year at the Renaissance Festival.) I didn't have a lot of time to practice this weekend but it was so fun I'm going to have keep trying.  We have a running joke around here that Mindy is stealing fiber for her stash because every time she winds a bump for an order it ends up all over her. From now on I'll be shouting, "It's ok Mindy! I'll wind that bump!! *rubs the fiber all over to get nice and fibery*" Like I need another stash!

0 Posts in 2 months? MADNESS! (lol)

Ok, so again, I'm the worst blogger in the entire world. Most days I think to myself, "Self....you really ought to blog about something - anything - today." .....And then the phone rings, I get an interesting e-mail, or Jonelle is hollering at me with an idea she's had (which is usually worth hearing!)

So back to the design stuff! Jonelle and I have been talking a lot about doing smaller, more accessory-ish stuff for the Vickie Howell Collection and our own. What are your thoughts/ideas? Are you all just about wrist-warmered out?  How do you feel about home decor items? Please e-mail me with your ideas! I know there is *a lot* of talent out there just waiting to be discovered! So pretty please - don't be shy!

Speaking of wrist warmers.......I had the distinct pleasure of dining with Lauren last night and I have to say that I had a really great time.  The restaurant, wine, food, and company was great. The topics of conversation were varied but included yarn (duh), school, families, and *gasp* World of Warcraft!! (This is hardly news to most of you that know me, but....I'm a closet MMORPG nerd.) Lauren is a wonderful knitter with excellent taste. I hope we'll be able to do some designs together in the near future.

Anyway, I'm off to Jonelle's office to talk about yarns and colors. Happy knitting! (or crocheting!)

P.S. Don't get me wrong at all....I totally dig wrist warmers!!