Giftalong 2020 has just begun!

 

What is Giftalong 2020?

Now in its eighth year, the Indie Designer Giftalong is a celebration of independent knit and crochet designers combined with a massive make-along to encourage knitters and crocheters to have fun together while they get their holiday gift crafting done. The event mainly happens on Ravelry, but this year more will be happening on Instagram to support those who cannot use Ravelry safely.

Here is a link to the Indie Design Giftalong Group on Ravelry where you can find details on the kick-off pattern sale, view the tremendous list of participating designers, and learn how to join in on the make-alongs. Fun games, friendly chatter, and prizes galore to encourage you through your 2020 gift making right through the end of the year!

Here is the link to the Instagram Giftalong Account where you can find details on how to participate if you are not on Ravelry.

I have been a participating designer in the Giftalong for eight years in a row. This year I am offering 18 patterns which I sell on Ravelry with a 25% discount using the code giftalong2020 through November 30, 11:59 EST.

Please know that there are hundreds of designers offering thousands of patterns with the same discount code, and that you can participate in the make-alongs after the sale (through the end of the year) using any of the participating designers (not for free) patterns.

Happy Giftalong2020!!!

Contorta

Hello there!

2020 has been the worst. 

I am still here (in my own quiet way) just being me.

I do hope that you have been spared the worst and you are also able to just be you.

I did not yet post to my blog about Contorta...

I love this top over (over the top) photo.

Beautiful depth.

This was my "pine tree story" which was one of 11 "modern, minimalist" patterns featured in Issue 2 of Making Stories Magazine. The magazine was released in October 2019. I now have the rights to the design.  

 

This pattern will be one of 18 that will be offered in my Ravelry store at a 25% discount from Nov 24 to Nov 30 2020.

Thank you for reading and sorry it has been a while......... 

 

New Design: SIDEREAL CHECK COWL

I have released my new stranded colorwork design, SIDEREAL CHECK COWL as promised. It is a companion piece to my recently released SIDEREAL CHECK HAT.  The pattern is available on Ravelry with a 25% introductory discount through midnight (EST) December 16.

As I mentioned in my last post, I was very fortunate to have my designs selected for yarn support by The Fibre Co as part of Autumn/Winter Yarn Support Programme. Their gorgeous, Arranmore Light is a new favorite of mine. It blends cashmere and silk with merino wool to create an autentic tweed yarn of the highest quality.

The reversible cowl, with one side in stranded colorwork and the other in a two-row stripe, has picot edgings. It begins with a provisional cast on and ends with three-needle bind off.

Finished Measurements 
33” 84 cm circumference and 9½” 24 cm height

Yarn
DK weight yarn 
348 yd 318 m Main Color (MC)
180 yd 165 m Contrast Color (CC)

Note: If making both hat & cowl with Arranmore Light, two skeins of the main color and one of the contrast color will be more than enough.

Thanks for reading!

xoxox

New Design: SIDEREAL CHECK HAT

I am happy to finally introduce my new stranded colorwork hat pattern in two sizes, SIDEREAL CHECK HAT. This pattern is available on Ravelry with a 25% introductory discount through midnight (EST) December 2.

Earlier this year, I was thrilled to learn that I had been selected for The Fibre Co’s Yarn Support Programme AW 18/19. Their Arranmore Light blends cashmere and silk with a fine merino wool to create an authentic tweed yarn of the finest quality. I have always loved colorwork with tweed yarns.

I actually received yarn support for both the hat and a coordinating cowl that will be released two weeks from today, on December 13. These colorwork projects were inspired by high fashion garments featuring graphic variations of houndstooth check. I enjoyed charting some of these checks for stranded knitting.

The check pattern I use here was one of my favorites. I love how the background color appears as a series of four-pointed stars. ‘Sidereal’ means of or relating to distant stars or constellations.

The hat, with optional pompom, may be made in one of two sizes to fit most women (men).

Finished Measurements
18¼ (19¾)” 46.5 (50) cm un-stretched brim circumference and 10¾ (11¾)” 27.5 (30) cm un-cuffed height, will stretch to fit heads up to approximately 22 (24)” 56, (61) cm

Yarn
DK weight yarn
For hat:
152 (178) yd 139 (163) m Main Color (MC)
38 (44) yd 35 (40) m Contrast Color (CC)
For optional 3⅜” (8.5 cm) pompom:
additional 43 yd 39 m CC

Note: If making both hat & cowl with Arranmore Light, two skeins of the main color and one of the contrast color will be more than enough. (Arranmore Light has an amazing 328 yds per skein.)

Thanks for reading!
xoxox

I hope you are out there somewhere!

For many weeks, I have worked on design samples and pattern-writing for my upcoming designs... A hat design will be released in two weeks and a cowl two weeks later.

My original swatch in The Fibre Co's Arranmore Light is where it all began. The Fibre Co. selected my proposal for their Yarn Support Programme AW 18/19. They provided yarn (in a very different color scheme) for both projects.

I am in need of a couple more test knitters for these designs (especially the cowl). Please consider test knitting one of these for me, if you have some experience knitting stranded colorwork from a chart.

For a lot more information on the hat test knit see this post on Ravelry.

For a lot more information on the cowl test knit see this post on Ravelry.

I have made the deadlines for these projects quite flexible. I only ask that you would have a Ravelry project page with flattering WIP photos ready to link to my pattern page on its release date.

Sidereal Check Hat coming November 29!
Sidereal Check Cowl coming December 13!

I look forward to hearing from you!!!
xoxox

Officially Launched: Swatch Warriors

www.swatchwarriors.com

This has been a busy fall... During the weeks that my Trinity Mountain Hat and Daphnis scarf designs were released I have spent time promoting them... I have also been working on two more designs that will definitely be released in 2018... A couple more are in the works and may be released shortly thereafter... These are also the weeks of the year when publishers everywhere are seeking design submissions for next fall........

I am interrupting all of that to announce the official launch of a brand new pattern website!!!

~  Swatch Warriors ~

The site is the brainchild of Yurika Kotze of South Africa -- a crochet designer who has a dayjob building ECommerce sites. This summer, after months of work, Yurika put out a call to designers on Ravelry to gauge interest in her yet to be launched curated pattern site. Enough designers, including myself, came on-board for the launch.

Swatch Warriors is a deeply curated collection, quite different from Ravelry, whose primary goal is to be an all-inclusive fiber-arts database. Swatch Warriors sets itself apart with Yurika's curation. She has used her designer's eye and aesthetic to sift out what are the most beautiful, fresh and forward-thinking patterns that designers have to offer. The website is lovely and easily navigated, first by tool (needles or hook), and then by category. There are new patterns being added every week, and a fun featured 'Pattern of the Week'. I hope to contribute more designs to the site in the future.

Please check it out. I think you will be glad that you did!
xoxox

DAPHNIS -- Scarves etc 7 is here!

I am happy to announce the release of my scarf design, DAPHNIS.

Daphnis is just one of 10 beautiful knitwear designs for hand-knitters included in Quince and co's annual neckwear collection, Scarves etc, 7.

The cables of Daphnis are very round and flowing. Its generous size makes it a statement piece.

The cable crossings are unique in that three groups of stitches are crossed using two cable needles. (I found using two bamboo double-pointed needles worked even better for me than using cable needles.)

The cable crossings are all the same and there are over 100 of them.

I loved using Osprey for Daphnis. It is a lofty, soft, plump and round wool yarn that has tremendous stitch definition -- perfect for the triple-cross Daphnis knitted cables. The Aran weight Osprey worked up beautifully to make a substantially-sized piece that is light and lofty. The Nightshade colorway is a favorite of mine, but there are dozens more to choose from.

Thanks for reading!

xoxox

💗

Coming Soon: Scarves Etc 7

The first one was Scarves etc 2012. I was very lucky that year, as a new knitwear designer, to have my cowl, Jonna selected for Quince & co's first annual collection of scarves, cowls, wraps and shawls.

  Jonna, Carolyn Kern 

 Scarves, etc 2012, © Quince & Co.

Every year since 2012, the yarn company has put together a Scarves etc neckware collection, having published a total of 76 designs in six years. A handful of times over the years, I have submitted design proposals when I have seen their calls for submissions. My ideas were not selected until the call late last year...

A new design of mine will be one of 10 in the new Scarves, etc 7 to be released on Thursday, October 11! It is so rewarding to have finally got back in again!

Quince is so amazing to work with. One of my favorite people at Quince is Jerusha, who just posted about Scarves, etc through the years.

As before the release of Jonna, I have not yet seen any of the Quince photography for my new design with the sample that I made this spring. I can hardly wait to see them, and the other 9 designs in the Scarves etc 7 lookbook on Thursday!

You can go to the post by Jerusha, and click through the link at the bottom to sign up for Quince email announcements... or follow me here, or on Ravelry, but especially on Instagram.

I will close with a teaser photo and a a secret that I learned along the way about #7...

There will be a good number of cables.

xoxox

New Design: TRINITY MOUNTAIN HAT

My latest design, Trinity Mountain Hat, was recently released by Green Mountain Spinnery. It was a fun and colorful project!

I designed the hat to show off GMS's brand new DK weight Ragg-Time yarn. This 100% wool yarn comes in many stunning colorways.

The "Holiday" colorway, on top above, was sent for me to work with for my hat design. This colorway is actually more of a gradient yarn with long lengths of color that do not repeat within one skein. This became evident once I wound my skein into a ball.

I selected a highly-textured stitch pattern most commonly known as Trinity Stitch.

The stitch pattern continues through the decreasing of the crown. The pompom is optional.

Details

Finished Measurements

13¼ (16½, 19¾)” / 33.5 (42, 50) cm un-stretched circumference
 (will stretch to fit heads up to approximately 19 (22, 25)” / 48.5 (56, 63.5) cm).
  10½ (11½, 12)” / 26.5 (29, 30.5) cm un-cuffed height.

Yarn250 - 300 yards (229 - 274 m) DK weight yarnOne skein of Green Mountain Spinnery Ragg-Time will be enough to make a hat in either of the two smaller sizes along with a pompom similar in size to sample hat.
 If making the largest size hat, a smaller pompom could be made.

Needles

                 - Size US 3 [3.25 mm] needles: 16” circular (cir) 

                 - Size US 6 [4.0 mm] needles: 16” circular (cir) and set of double-pointed (dpn).

Adjust needle size if necessary to obtain the correct gauge.

View the Trinity Mountain Hat on Ravelry for more information.

Both pattern and yarn are available at the Green Mountain Spinnery website.

Also see this GMS blog post for more information on Ragg-Time yarn and other ideas for using it.

Thanks for reading!
xoxox 

Our Rocky Mountain Trip - Part 3

Best shots from Yellowstone...

Paint Pots

The Falls

Old Faithful

And us

Our Rocky Mountain Trip - Part 2

It has been a year now since our trip to three national parks in the Rocky Mountains. (I have been told that it may not be correct to group all of these mountains together with my "Rocky Mountain" label, but it works for me.)

This first photo is my favorite shot from Glacier National Park on the Canadian border in Montana. I did not take it. Dave Kuharchick, a local TV personality who was touring with us, shot it with my iPhone 7 plus. He was sitting at the window during that part of our Red Bus tour. I learned a lot while watching him (quickly) set the focus and zoom.

We were sincerely told that our views on that rainy day were far better than those we would have seen on days (before or after) when the smoke of wildfires dominated.

We learned a lot about why natural, controlled, forest fires are both healthy and necessary for the ecosystem.

All of these shots were from the Going to the Sun Highway. (The roadway is the first to have been registered in all of the following categories: National Historic Place, National Historic Landmark and Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. The length of the road is approximately 50 miles and spans the width of the park between the east and west entrance stations.) 

My Part 3 Rocky Mountain Post will be all about Yellowstone.

It is very possible that new knitting will come sooner...

(didn't know I was) Playing Yarn Chicken

One of my knitwear design highlights in 2017 was my No-Wrong-Side Hat which I created for The Fibre Co’s Fall 2017 Yarn Support Programme.

No-Wrong-Side Hat (for Mr K) Dec 2017 (with just one skein of Tundra)

Please see my design release post from November to read about the reversibilty of this hat (two hats in one).

The pattern has three sizes: 15½ (18¼, 20¾)” [39.5 (46.5, 52.5) cm] circumference. The two smaller sizes can easily be made with one skein of lovely, silky and lofty Tundra. The largest size will take a bit more...

Or so I calculated.

I did NOT make the largest size No-Wrong-Side Hat in Tundra before I published the pattern. (My test knitters did but with other yarns.) Shortly after publication I made one for Mr K, and...

It only took one skein!

With only one yard to spare!!! (as shown in photo)

I have been adding 5% to my yardage calculations for a long time now. This was originally suggested to me by the tech editor for my Socks That Rock Design, Sandy Rosner, and it only makes sense...

Using my swatches and design samples, I do my best to calculate yardage requirements, and then I add 5%. I strive to guarantee that others have success knitting my designs -- which means not having to play the game of yarn chicken (i.e., will I, or won't I, run out of yarn?).  

In the case of the largest No-Wrong-Side hat in Tundra, a 5% buffer means that you will need a second skein to be certain that you will not run out of yarn. But, of course, you may not need it...

Perhaps you can ask about the return policy where you purchase your yarn... Perhaps you can make a second hat... Perhaps you can wait a bit for the release of my next mitt design...

A pair of mitts will take far less than one skein of Tundra.
I will keep you posted. 😉
❤❤❤ 

Revisiting: Equilibrium Cowl -- Now a kit!

This seems a very good time to revisit my Equilibrium Cowl design which was originally published in Knitscene Accessories, 2012. (My first magazine!)

This reversible cowl was designed to be a great learning project in stranded knitting. You can learn much more about the technique in my own Two-Handed Stranded Colorwork Tutorial. In fact, all of the photos in my tutorial are of me knitting the Equilibrium stitch patterns.

If you are a Knitting Daily email subscriber you might already know that Interweave is currently offering an Equilibrium Cowl Kit with 2 skeins of the very same yarn that I used for the original design sample... 

Cascade Yarns Eco Alpaca (100% undyed alpaca; 220 yd 201 m/100 g) 
• #1520 black (MC), 1 skein 
• #1510 natural (CC), 1 skein

Included in the kit is a digital copy of Knitscene Accessories, 2012.

In addition, you will need a 16" circular needle to get gauge (US Size 8, 5mm recommended), a stitch marker and tapestry needle.

Knitscene editor Hannah Baker wrote a lovely article describing the cowl, Irresistible Reversible Knits: One Cowl, Two Ways. Please check it out if you have the time.

There are currently 88 Equilibrium Cowl Projects on Ravelry in every color of the rainbow!  

Thanks for reading.❤❤❤

All photos ©Harper Point Photography and used courtesy Interweave.

New Design: NO-WRONG-SIDE Hat

NO-WRONG-SIDE Hat
(right side when knitting)

I am very happy to introduce my bulky weight, reversible (2-hats-in-1), design in three sizes, NO-WRONG-SIDE Hat.

Earlier this year, I was thrilled to learn that I had been selected for The Fibre Co’s Fall 2017 Yarn Support Programme! The Fibre Co's Tundra is the the perfect blend of baby alpaca, merino and silk, worked into a 2-ply that gives it a pleasing, well-rounded appearance for great stitch definition. Though a bulky yarn, it is very light in weight, lofty and extremely warm. It is perfect for the deep texture / cable stitch pattern of the No-Wrong-Side Hat.

This design was originally sparked by the photo of the “Sunburst Check” stitch pattern on page 202 of A 2ND TREASURY OF KNITTING PATTERNS by Barbara G Walker. I was fascinated by the depth of texture in the photo. The poofs of stockinette push strongly forward leaving little pockets of reverse stockinette like pools beneath them. 

When I swatched this stitch pattern, I was quite surprised to find that the reverse side of the fabric was a stitch pattern in itself – a very fluid rib-cable. It did not look like the “wrong side” of a piece of knitting. I worked out a double brim that compliments both sides of the hat. I also created a decreasing crown that flows from the stitch pattern on both sides of the hat.

NO-WRONG-SIDE Hat
(reverse side when knitting)

The brim of the hat is folded on a purl ridge and knit together creating a double layer brim. This requires a provisional cast-on and a later “knitting two layers together round” (much like three-needle-bind-off, but with both knit and purl stitches). Next there is an increase round with specific purl increases. For the remainder of the hat, both charted and written directions are provided.

Hat swatch showing purl ridge and double layer brim,
(knit with Tundra in the Boreal colorway).

PATTERN DETAILS

Finished Measurements
15½ (18¼, 20¾)” [39.5 (46.5, 52.5) cm] circumference and 8¼” [21 cm] high,
will stretch to fit heads up to approximately 19 (22, 24)” [48.5 (56, 61) cm].

Yarn
Bulky weight yarn,
approximately 96 (112, 128) yd [88 (103, 117) m] for hat.

Shown in:
The Fibre Co. Tundra (60% alpaca, 30% wool, 10% silk; 120 yd [110 m], 100 g)
 Tiaga colorway, 1 (1, 2) skein(s).

Needles
- Size US 9 [5.5 mm] needles: 16” [40 cm] circular (cir).
- Size US 10.5 [6.5 mm] needles: 16” [40 cm] circular and set of double-pointed (dpn). Adjust needle size if necessary to obtain the correct gauge.
- Spare US 9 [5.5 mm] or smaller 16” [40 cm] cir needle to hold hem stitches.

My No-Wrong-Side Hat pattern has been carefully written and tech-edited.

Three of my local knitting friends kindly and helpfully agreed to test the pattern in the Fibre Co Tundra. After which, I ran a successful second test knit on Ravelry. (I love all of my test knitters!)

This pattern is now available on Ravelry at an introductory reduced price of $3.75 until the end of the day (11:59 EST) December 4. After that, the pattern will be available at its regular price of $5.00.

My No-Wrong-Side Hat is a fun and quick-to-knit project... perfect for gift knitting. Because I am a participating designer in the Ravelry Indie Gift-A-Long, this hat is an eligible pattern for participation in the GAL2017 HATS & OTHER HEAD THINGS KAL/CAL, where you will find all the love and support you could wish for... as you finish your own gift knitting goals... along with fun games and many prizes.

Thanks for reading!

Thanks for your support of indie designers!!!
xoxox 

The 5th annual Gift-A-Long

The 5th annual Ravelry Indie Design Gift-A-Long is almost here! I am super excited to announce this multi-designer promotion to help you kick your holiday gift-making into high gear!

The Indie Design Gift-A-Long is a 6 week long KAL/CAL of holiday gift projects made with patterns designed by an extensive list of (would you believe 312 in 2017?) independent designers. And, it all begins with an enormous pattern sale!!!

The Gift-A-Long:

From November 21, 2017 at 8:00 pm US EST to December 31, 2017 at midnight US EST there will be fun games, contests, tons of prizes, and 8 KAL/CALs that will help you get your holiday knitting and crocheting done with companionship and fun! This party will be happening in the Ravelry Indie Design Gift-A-Long Group.

The Sale:

From November 21, 2017 at 8:00 pm US EST to November 28th at 11:59pm US EST (312, including me) indie designers will be discounting between 10 to 20 of their patterns 25% for this event. Use coupon code: giftalong2017.

Most of my Ravelry patterns are included in the sale.

Once you’ve got your Gift-A-Long patterns, I encourage you to join a relevant KAL/CAL! (For instance, if it is a cowl, please join the Cowls, Scarves, & Other Neck Things KAL/CAL.) To join, simply write a post in the KAL/CAL thread you want to join, including the pattern name you will be knitting and a link to your project page. KAL/CAL participants are eligible for lots of lovely prizes but you’ve got to post to win Please Note: all prize winners must be (indie design gift-a-long) group members! 

KAL/CALs will run from November 21, 2017 at 8:00 pm US EST to December 31, 2017 at midnight US EST, plenty of time to knock out all your holiday knitting and crocheting. We have tons of prizes, games, and great conversation, plus a lot of other fun, so pull up a chair and join us!

On your mark…get set…. GIFT!!!

The Fibre Co Tundra

To sum up my last post:  I was selected as a designer for The Fibre Co’s Fall 2017 Yarn Support Programme. My new hat pattern will be released on Ravelry on November 28. It was July when I took this photo of the Tundra yarn that TFC sent for my hat.   

The Taiga colorway is a sort of rustic teal with subtle, tonal gray-brown fiber worked in. Its tones echo the color in my barn wood. Very lovely.

I want to tell you more about this fabulous yarn that is Tundra. The fiber content is 60% baby alpaca, 30% merino and 10% silk. A 100g skein measures 120 yards (110 meters).

In the words of The Fibre CO, "Tundra, began life as the search for the answer to a simple question, 'If The Fibre Co. were to create a bulky yarn, what would it be?' Our answer came from our passion for all natural fibre content that add depth and softness to hand mades. We took a much loved formula of baby alpaca, merino and silk and worked it into a 2 ply that gives a pleasing, well-rounded appearance."

As I told my first group of test knitters, "It is honestly the lightest and softest bulky weight yarn I have ever used." Its warmth and softness are irresistible. The silk adds drape and shine and a touch of luxury.

One skein of tundra will be enough to create a hat in either of the sizes to fit most children and women (15½ and 18¼" circumference). A second skein is needed for the larger (20¾") size to fit most men.

The round smoothness of the yarn adds great stitch definition, which you can see here in the swatch photos that were a part of my design proposal. The stitch pattern is named "Sunburst Check" in Barbara G Walker's Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns. The swatch was knit in the Boreal colorway.

A single swatch for a hat that has no wrong side. The top photo shows the right side when knitting... the lower photo shows the reverse side. Turn the hat inside-out... to find a new hat.

My No-Wrong-Side hat pattern is coming to Ravelry, with an introductory discount, in just two weeks.