Part of the Joy of Knitting this year is knitting for others. When it comes to the knitworthy, my list is long, but there is one name at the top of it, camera mom! Who’s on your knitworthy list? As soon as camera mom saw this yarn in late April, she claimed it! So, naturally it became her Mother’s Day present. Because I’m not THAT fast a knitter, I worked on it over last summer, and we shot it just before the final blossoms disappeared. The funniest bit was upon arriving back home, she promptly placed it in her closet! Something I have loved teasing her about these days leading up to Mother’s Day. Hmmm, perhaps I should snag it …
Extra extra read all about it
I had the honor of being interviewed about my design process by one of the software tools I use to create my designs! Head over to Stitch Mastery to read the inside scoop: URL – https://stitchmastery.com/interview-series-40-lindsay-lewchuk/ Of course, I couldn’t talk about designing without GDCSJ, Puddles
Calla Lily Wrap
The next release in the Technicolor: Matinee eBook is Calla Lily Wrap by Carol Herman (aka Knit Equals Joy). I love Carol’s blending of highly textured sections with easy sections. Curiously enough we both picked the same pattern from the 4 to use and were both inspired by Katherine Hepburn! 1. Which came first, the movie or the design? The design came first, based on the stitches our group of designers selected. My original hope had been to come up with a colorwork design, but our choice of stitches ruled that out. Once the design became concrete, it led me to think of Bringing Up Baby and other madcap romance/comedies of the 1930’s and ‘40’s. 2. Is your design something …
Steam Heat
The next release in Technicolor: Matinee is Steam Heat by Laura Patterson. We may have totally different design processes, but one thing we do both love is jazz in movies… especially when sung by power-house singers! More about how this relates to Laura’s design in the essay section of Technicolor: Matinee ;-). 1. Which came first, the movie or the design The movie. Actually, a set of movies came first. Starting with old black and white movies, and progressing to pictures that are much more current. Parts of each of these movies shared a feeling, a theme as it were, in a certain kind of scene. 2. Did the movie play a role in your yarn or yarn color …
Silvia Needs a Bag
The next release in the Technicolor: Matinee eBook collection is Silvia Needs a Bag by pattern engineer, Christine Guest. Christine’s designs fascinate me! She incorporates such incredible detail scientifically proven to work together in beautiful artistry. I’ve had a few peeks into her process and her pile of swatches to get everything perfect is mesmerizing! I’m also privileged to be test knitting an upcoming release of hers, a men’s sweater, and am loving her attention to detail. The care she takes to make sure patterning develops in a beautiful method even when doing something like increasing for a sleeve – wow! But you’ll hear more on that a little bit later. For now, Christine was kind enough to let me …
FOYAL Question
It’s almost that time of year again. Soon I too will be picking out my cast ons, but before it begins, I wanted to know what you have your eye on! Email me (knitecochic at gmail) with your favorite 5 patterns and help me create my FOYAL sale bundle! Any patterns or eBooks posted on my Payhip shop are eligible for voting this year. (And yes, I’ll be running the sale on Payhip and Ravelry, but my Payhip shop is smaller, so please check that link when voting for the pattern you want to see included in the sale.)
Tassels
Tassels and plant-based fibers can tend towards a bit of a love-hate relationship. Love the look, but do they ever tatter quickly! Without the natural felting abilities of wool and depending on the yarn twist, what looked lovely, can, after just one wash look like it was chewed to death by an active Great Dane 😉. Don’t fear there are solutions! The “ends” feature in the new release, Autumn Sense, in our Hems and Ends year showcases one very easy solution… Don’t cut the yarn… leave them loopy! Cut, bead, and knot – okay, I know this is fringe and not a tassel, but you can use it on tassels, too. If going this route, you may wish to decrease …
Introducing Barnabas Notes
I’m thrilled to introduce you all to Barnabas Notes!
Around the Arm Openings of Summer Hideaway
An interesting conversation came up during the testing / TE period of Summer Hideaway. How can the same pick up around the arm opening result in the tank and sleeved versions having two different lengths on the schematic? If the pick up stitch count is the same, shouldn’t the schematic be the same? It’s really a nerdy answer, but in short, the proof is in the pudding. See the difference when they are laid one atop of the other? The reason is it isn’t just a matter of the pick up stitch count, it also depends upon what happens to those stitches after you pick them up. On the tank, the stitches are picked up and immediately bound off (loosely!). …
Tips for Floral Chic
Creating petals and leaves in stitches was an unexpectedly fun experience, but also one with a lot of frogging. So, as I travel the journey back through the process, here are some tips for you to succeed the first time through! Tip 1: picking yarn colors – check the grey scale. I asked Diane at Eco Stitch to pick out the colors for me with the caveat that they were 2 color families – I picked pinks or purples and green – and they were highly contrasting. Here is what she surprised me with! Checking the colors out on grey scale reveals the amount of contrast between each color. When picking your colors make sure you have a contrast between …