This might be a duplicate to those who are customers of the shop

and get the Newsletter so just ignore it if it is!

Happy April! I’m starting off the month with a bang with a huge shop update. I’ve just received my 4th shipment of Pattern Tamers as I still can not keep them stocked. There are 5 different tamers in stock as I send this email. I am also excited to have the Stitch Savers in the shop as mentioned in the cool stuff section of this issue of knitty.com. Speaking of knitty.com and Amy Singer I am proud to present the new Soak Wash called Scentless.”Finally, a delicate wash that’s scent free! No scent for me!” says Amy Singer of knitty.com. “Try Soak Scentless if you have sensitive skin or allergies like I do.” All of the Soak products have been restocked too.

The other cool new swag is the new collection from Haiku Bags. I am one of the first to carry these new bags. Karma Neutral is inspired by sustainable business ethics that address the need to utilize renewable materials and continue to deepen the commitment to long-term relationships with producers, retailers and customers. The fabric utilized in the body of these bags is 50% jute which is considered a sustainable fabric due to its rapid growth rate and the fact that no pesticides or fertilizers are used in its production. The Leaves collection features the unique appliqué and top stitching details found only on a Haiku bag. I have had the Nori Grab Bag now for a little while and get compliments all of the time. If I sell right out of these I can take more orders on a pre-sale basis until I get the next order in. So don’t worry! Just email me and let me know.

Pshew! I think I got everything. If not you can always just click on the New Products link and that will show you what’s new in the shop.

Take care and have a great weekend!

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We have less than a week until the lottery goes up and Adam got the page ready for all of you to bookmark. Here is the page where you go to sign up to get in to the lottery. I am reposting the information to make sure it all makes sense. Please let me know if you have any questions at all. I really want to make sure it is very clear. Also? Let your friends know too. I really think this round will be fun with your collaboration with me. (each month one person will be chosen from the membership to help design a colorway for the club that will then become a gallery colorway!)

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The news you have all been waiting for! Did you notice the name of the sock club is different? That’s because I decided for Round III to make it just a sock club BUT with a cool little twist. This time there will not be Indie Swag to go along with each exclusive colorway. As much as I’ve loved working with all of my Indie peeps it’s a lot of work for everyone involved and I need to simplify things for this year. I have a lot going on and I would rather open up a few more spots and dye some more yarn and keep it all a bit more streamlined. So what is the twist? Well, every other month for the yarn, I will randomly select one of the club members to collaborate on a colorway and name for the yarn! I think this will be really cool to work with six of you over the year to create some hot new colorways to eventually add to the gallery. I wanted to do something different than anyone else is doing and I really think this will be fun. I also really liked the idea of keeping the prices down and taking out the Indie Swag part knocks off quite a bit of money. As you can see below, I also give discounts if you sign up for 3 months or 6 months.

So the details for this round. It will be a bi-monthly sock club where you the first month of yarn will be mailed out the last week in April. (then again in June, August, October, December, February) I will do what I did last year with the lottery. It’s the most fair way for me to allow people to get the very few spots I have for my club. Right now I am going to say there are 40 spots BUT I might make it 50 depending on how many people want in.

The memberships will be offered as follows which equals 40 full spots:

(these prices do not include international shipping which will be a separate charge)

34 (6-month) subscription for $160

6 (3-month) subscription for $80

12 (1-month) subscription for $30 per month

If you want in, please only sign up for ONE spot. We will delete your name if you sign up for all three spots. Also, to clarify, if you get a 1-month subscription, you will be chosen to receive yarn in only one of the months in the club. You might be chosen for February 2009 so be prepared to wait if you choose one of those memberships! Once we close the sign-ups, the program will then randomly pick the people for the club. For current club members? If you want in again, Adam is making the program enter your name in two times so you have a better chance to get in this time. With such a small club, it’s honestly the only way I/we can think of to make it fair for everyone.

I know. You want to know when you can sign up. Monday, March 10th will be the date for the sign up. We will put it up at 6:00 MST. (8:00pm EST/5:00PST) Make sure you sign up with an email you use for Paypal as I will bill you as soon as we pick the club. We will allow sign-ups for 24 hours. And there you have it. The new Indie Swag Club will be selected. The first shipment will be mailed out in the last week of April. Once you receive your Paypal Invoice you need to pay that within 24 hours. Otherwise I will give your spot to the next randomly chosen person. I ran into problems last year with some people not paying right away and I really don’t have the time to repeatedly email people to get them to pay. I don’t mean to sound harsh but this whole thing takes a lot of time to do fairly and properly!

Please let me know if you have any questions at all. I know a lot of people want to get into the club and want to make sure you understand everything before you sign up! As we get closer I will give you the proper page to bookmark for when it goes live.

I need a nap after that. So who’s in for Round III!?!?!

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I’m taking Eye Candy Friday literally today.

I was so fortunate to finally meet Jenny Esperanza the other day. If you have not seen her work you need to sit down and take the time to go through her stream. When I first joined Flickr, Jenny was one of the first people I *found* who just left me so inspired and excited about photography. One of my very first shots I fav’d on Flickr was this shot of hers. I remember it so clearly. So it was extra special for me to meet someone who had and still has such an impact on my photography.

Not only is she immensely talented but she is such an amazing woman and mother. I can’t wait for us to be able to hang out again without being so rushed. We didn’t take many shots but I asked permission to take this one because it ranks up there as one of the coolest tattoos I’ve seen. It is based off of “Tears” (Larmes) by Man Ray.

Make sure and check out her website too. It’s just fantastic. Also, if you live locally, she has a huge 8-page spread in the February issue of the New Mexico Magazine.

Happy Friday my friends!

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I decided to have a sale on my favorite little bags in the shop for Valentine’s Day. I absolutely love my Grab Bag and thought I would mark them down 15% until February 14th to spread the love! The Grab Bag comes in Brown and Blue. I use mine every day as my little purse and get compliments on it all of the time.

I have finally updated the yarn gallery page with six new colorways. Actually, Adam did it for me since I can’t figure out Dreamweaver. I would be lost without him. The new additions are - Convergence, Hokies, Lavender Mint, Lederhosen (The Knitters Uncensored colorway), Loops ( for Kirsten’s sock pattern Sigrid) & Power Couples.

Right now I am saying I am out 3-5 weeks on all orders but if the weather cooperates, it could be sooner. If you want yarn, just go to gallery page for all of the details. I am now selling 100% silk in laceweight that is simply gorgeous. But I’m pretty dang caught up which means I can take more orders. I feel like it’s the first time since, oh I dunno, June that I’ve been able to catch my breath!
I wanted to also let you know that soon I will be announcing information about Scout’s Indie Swag Round III. I have some different things in store for this round which even includes customer-colorway-collaboration! The new round won’t start until April but the sign-ups will be in March. In a few weeks I will let you know all of the details. So if you have been waiting to hear about the next round it’s coming up! I will also be making the size a bit bigger too. I hate not letting everyone in who wants to take part.

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I was lucky enough to be able to interview Shobhana again to help promote her newest book YARNplay at Home. For those of you who are looking for ways to be able to add really cool knitted accessories to your home, this is definitely the book for you.

Let’s talk about cozies! First of all I’m curious to know how you came up with the idea for the French Press Cozy?

When I was compiling the project list for this for this book I asked my blog readers what type of cozy pattern would they most like to see in a book and many of them requested a French press cozy. It’s something that I had been thinking about designing for a really long time. There are so many amazing teapot cozies, but I had never seen one for a French press. I think it’s very modern take on the cozy.

Is this how you drink your coffee?

Not really. I’m more of a one cup in the morning drinker. Actually, it’s one bowl. I have my coffee in a Babar latte bowl. I use my cozy to store my French press. It looks great sitting on my kitchen counter. Also, it gives a bit of cushioning in case of a fall!

I dyed the pretty colorway for this pattern in your book; can you tell me how you came up with the idea for it?

I think, at the time, I was using a lot of reds and pinks in the book, so I needed to branch out and chose a different colorway for this. I’ve always loved blues and greens together. This colorway, Blue in Green, reminds me of summertime, green grass, and swimming pools.

If you were to knit this cozy which of your colorways would you choose? Or which of colorways would you suggest to knitters who want to knit this project?

Well everything in my kitchen is black or silver so I would probably go for something that would fit in and look nice and sleek. Really anything with black probably. In terms of recommending it for other people? I would say go with what you like. You could either go for something that blends in or take advantage of this project to make it pop with color on your counter!

What are some of the other cozies in the book?

There’s a CD cover cozy. I came up with this idea a while back when I was broke and needed to come up with a unique and inexpensive birthday present. I love to give mixed CDs to my friends. And I love it when I receive one with a great cover. Since graphic design isn’t really my thing, I decided to knit a cover. I made it with leftover Koigu scraps. It was a bit hit! You want to use a fingering or sport weight yarn for this one.

There’s also a wine bottle sweater (cozy). This was a quirky idea that popped into my head. I think cozies should have a sense of fun. You could make one to dress a bottle of wine that you’re taking to a dinner party or you could use it to decorate an empty wine bottle. This one uses an arrant weight yarn.

Which yarns do you think are best for the cozies?

I suppose it depends upon how you intend to use them. I can’t imagine that mine will need to be washed very often, so I’ve chosen yarns that I love regardless of the care factor.

Do you think that stripy yarn or variegated yarn looks best with the cozy patterns?

Either would work well, it’s just a matter of what turns you on, really.

I love how the Blue in Green came out almost like a swirly pattern! Was it fun to knit with hand-dyed yarn where you didn’t really know how it would turn out?

It was exciting! You custom made this color for me and, I have to tell you, I was stunned at your ability to give me the exact colors that I requested. From the moment that I cast on, I knew that it would be really lovely.

If you could pick one project from your new book to be your most favorite one, what would it be and why?

I’ve already talked about my favorite afghans. of the smaller projects my favorites are the Ooh La La French Press Cozy and the Chain Maille Curtain.

What do we have to look forward to from you in the future!?

I’m hoping to create some one of kind pillows to sell on Etsy. Stay tuned!

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It’s that time of year when everyone I know is compiling their knitting wish-lists for their loved ones and I wanted to help make it easy by telling you about a few things to add to your list. First up are a few new knitting books – Knitspeak: An A to Z Guide to the Language of Knitting Patterns, Knitting New Scarves & KnitKnit: Profiles + Projects from Knittng’s New Wave.

knitspeak: An A to Z Guide to the Language of Knitting Patterns, by Amanda Berman-Price. I love how little it is and how conveniently it fits in even one of my small GoKnit Pouches with my knitting. Pattern Language Demystified - Finally! Knitspeak, a knitter’s dictionary that disentangles the mysteries of pattern language and translates into plain English. Hello!? How much more perfect could that be? You own cute little teeny pink knitting dictionary? Sorry, but the geeky teacher in me adores this. The Knitspeak website can be found here.

I saw that Lime & Violet already did a review on their Daily Chum about Knitting New Scarves, by Lynne Barr. I’ll wait for you to go read it…..you back? Yet? Okay. This book has the most fantastic patterns. If you are tired of the same ole patterns you see everywhere and love knitting scarves I highly recommend this. The two that immediately caught my eye are called black pearl & circles. Check out the gallery at Melanie Falick’s blog to see some of the other scarves. See. I told you. There is also a knitalong blog too!

KnitKnit: Profiles + Projects from Knittng’s New Wave by Sabrina Gschwandtner. Do you ever take the time to browse around a bookstore? Do you ever find a book and as you flip through the pages you get lost in the images and the words? All of the sudden you realize you have been looking through the book for a very long time and have been almost transported to another world outside of the bookstore? This is that type of book.

All over North America and Europe, a brand-new generation has taken up knitting—and is transforming the venerable needlecraft by blurring the boundary between craft and art. In Copenhagen, Denmark, Isabel Berglund hand-knit an entire room. In New England, Dave Cole constructed an enormous “knitting machine” (he used excavators and utility poles) that knit an 800-stitch, 35-by-20-foot American flag. But the projects aren’t all of a monumental scale. In Los Angeles, Bridget Marrin knits little dollhouses—complete with lawns, shrubbery, and smoke-filled chimneys, all made of yarn. Using surgical wire, Indiana-based knitter Althea Merback hand-knits sweaters smaller than a dime.

Five years ago, Sabrina Gschwandtner founded a ’zine to tackle the blurry edge between craft and fine art. Now, her book KnitKnit brings together profiles of 27 of the most talented artist-crafters knitting today. But KnitKnit does more than just document their ingenious creations. Each of the profiled knitters has contributed a project—a sweatshirt kimono, a mohair and metal belt, a pair of high-heeled boots, a geodesic-patterned cap, even a teddy bear knit from fiberglass insulation—meant to inspire you to find and follow your own creative path.

I’m telling you, this book is absolutely fabulous. It gets the Scout’s Stamp of approval for sure. I can’t wait to have some more time to look through it. Melanie has a gallery of a few of the images from the book so you can take a peek. Sabrina will be in San Fransisco tomorrow for a book signing. Who lives there and can go!? Let me know if you go or have been to one of her signings. I’d love to hear about your experience and see pictures if you got any. You can see more KnitKnit pictures here on Flickr too.

I am also so excited that Shobhana’s new book is out and I have some yarn in it! Yarnplay at Home: Handknits for Colorful Living, by Lisa Shobhana Mason can now be bought everywhere. The new book features cozies and cushion covers and afghans and lots of other things for the home. There are projects for every budget and skill level. I dyed her a custom colorway called blue in green that is up in the gallery she used for a french press cozy pattern.

I can’t wait to see the book in person. But yet again another really fun book by Shobhana. She is also looking for looking for participants for a blog tour for the book (tentatively scheduled for mid-January) and you can email her (mylifeinstitches at gmail dot com) if you are interested in hosting.

And finally I have an Etsy shop for you to go visit. I met Deatria when I was up in Taos for a weekend with T. last year. She and I ended up chatting for a while and I told her what I did. I gave her my card and promised her I would let all of my friends know about her when she put her work up on Etsy. Gogy’ is her shop. Her work is stunning. She also just had some pieces worn during NY Fashion Week by some folks in the industry. Pretty cool. Since I know what it’s like to start up a business I am more than happy to link everyone I know over to her shop! Definitely take a peek and read about her. She is such an interesting woman and I am so glad to have met her.

Well folks. That’s about all I have for now. The kids are asking for dinner so I need to figure out what the heck we’re having. I just got back in stock a whole new stack of signed Cat Bordhi books and still have plenty of the cute Haiku Grab Bags. I should have a new order of GoKnit Pouches in any day. Hope the Holiday season is treating you well so far. Which reminds me…..it’s the last night of Hanukkah and I need to see what Harry Hanukkah brought for the kids. *cough*

Until next time my friends!

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(to those who celebrate it of course) May you and your families all have a wonderful day. My kids wish you a Happy Thanksgiving too.

Yes, this was an outtake from a session I did with them yesterday for our holiday card. I should just use this one as it pretty much sums them up. Nothing like having your sister try and strangle you! In the end I did get a few really great shots of them. But still. I should have never told a friend how great they were about taking pictures. I totally jinxed myself.

For all of my Holiday shoppers out there I have a HUGE shop update. Some of you get the newsletter but even since then I have put more things up in the shop. First of all, the Cat Bordhi books are just in. I put them up about five minutes ago. Ever copy I have is signed by her and it is more than just her name. You just have to buy one to see! I also updated the tape measures this morning too.

If you didn’t see, due to the overwhelming response, I am pre-selling the new Haiku Grab Bags. I think there is only one Chocolate Bloom left. I will try and get another order placed next week. They are the cutest little bags! The Go Knit Pouches are restocked as well.

Within the next few days I should also have more Yarn Ball Boogie key-chains and Yarn Ball Earrings from Romi. There are aslo a few new patterns coming in from MimKnits and Pick Up Sticks so keep checking in the shop. You can bookmark the *New Products* page to make it easier to see what I’m putting up. I’m sure I’m forgetting something…..I’ll come back if I can remember anything else. Otherwise? Happy Shopping!

Have a great week/weekend too!

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I really hope I can get some good feedback from all of you out there. I have a few questions. In preparation of the holiday season I’m stocking the shop with a few new items. The first thing comes in the the form of a new yarn. I recently dyed a few skeins of this yarn with sterling silver in it. It’s a blend of superwash merino, nylon and sterling silver! I am so, not, a novelty yarn girl. But trust me. This yarn is gorgeous. I am able to get it but it’s definitely more expensive than my base superwash. But look at it. It’s so pretty! The cost is twice as much as my base yarn but the retail price would be $36.00. It’s a teeny bit heavier than a fingering weight and has 420 yards per skein. So let me know what you think. If it seems that a lot of you would want this. I will order it. It’s definitely something I would use. It takes the dyes beautifully. I’m also getting a new superwash nylon sock yarn and worsted weight superwash from them too. I really liked it when I dyed it!

The next item I’m want to carry are Cat Bordhi’s books. (hopefully signed ones!) I think Cat is super-fabulous and her books are amazing. I had so much fun meeting her when we both did our Knitty Gritty shows and I would love, more than anything, to support her and her talents. Her new book, New Pathways For Sock Knitters, is amazing. I mean, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. She is a genius. If you haven’t seen her new book you absolutely have to get it. I’m not sure which other ones I’d carry but most definitely this one.

New Pathways to Sock Knitters will soon be in the shop and I can’t wait! Which other ones would you like me to carry? Socks Soar on Two Circs, and both of the the Treasury of Magical Knitting books are fantastic too. So help me out my peeps. I like to sell the things you all love the most so please let me know what you think. I will order them right away and hope to have them right away for Holiday shopping! Also, I am always on the lookout for cool new swag for the shop. Don’t ever hesitate to drop me an email if you see something you think would do well in the shop. I love hearing from my friends and customers. If it wasn’t for one customer I would have never heard of the Haiku Bags. And now they are featured in one of the big knitting magazines as a great knitting bag! Ohhhhh that reminds me. Within the next few weeks I will be getting in two of the newest Haiku Bags. The Grab Bags are sooooo cute! Check them out. They will retail for $36.00. I am totally buying one for myself.

I think that covers it for now. I have been straight out with company, photography jobs, kids home for five days in a row and a trillion other things. This weekend I am in a soccer tournament and next week I’m having almost 20 people here for Thanksgiving. I don’t see an end in sight. But it’s okay. I’d rather be busy than bored so I guess it’s all cool. There is still time to get yarn orders in before Christmas too. I just dyed a bunch today so I’m feeling pretty good.

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I’m on my way to court with a quick little FO with me. See, a good friend of mine is a lawyer and she’s going to hopefully either get me out of a ticket or get it reduced. I got one of those photo tickets and it’s for $150.00! That seems like a ridiculous amount for a little speeding ticket. There are all kinds of people up in arms over these camera tickets so I guess we’ll see. Remember the cute little lengthwise scarf pattern I wrote up last year? I love it because it only takes a few hours and it’s beautiful. I made this for my friend as a thank you for helping me today.

So I took these.

and a few hours later I had this

The yarn:
top - Ironstone Yarns - Paris Nights (made in Las Vegas, New Mexico!)
left - di.vé - Fiamma
right - Trendsetter Yarns - DUNE

I think I only cast on about 150 stitches and then did about 9 or ten rows. I want one for myself. I think these three yarns look fantastic together! And hey….. I have a finished object! Who cares that it only took a few hours.

I put it up on Ravelry for anyone who wants to put it in their queue.

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