Knitting Machine Prints Photos!

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I have a new thing on my wishlist.

Contest Winners

It was a rainy Monday morning in September. A random number generator was consulted. The meaning of life was not revealed but three numbers emerged. These numbers were aligned with three names... we have some winners, people!

1. WordLily
2. Ridgely
3. Allison

You three have all won copies of Socks For All Seasons! Please let me know your Ravelry names (or if you prefer, your email) so I can deliver them to you.

Thank you for entering this contest! If you didn't win (I'm sorry) might you consider picking up the collection anyway? It's available at an introductory rate of $15.99 until December 19th. Then it will cost $24.99. Don't delay!


Socks For All Seasons - 13 patterns, only $15.99 (limited time)
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Book excerpt:


Life Cycle Socks - September

These socks pay tribute to the time of harvest, the culmination of a thousand tiny miracles that embody the growing season. Earthworms work the soil at your feet, restoring the biological dross of previous years to the promise of new life. A leafy stalk, heavy with fruit, bursts from the gusset on top of your foot; there to dry in the waning summer sun, in anticipation of the approaching harvest. Sow your stitches carefully and prepare to reap a beautiful pair of hand-knit socks…as the cycle of life continues.

Have a treat today, for it is Monday and you deserve it. For those with a real case of the Mondays, click here. This is for you.

New Club Tease #1

Hello there knitter friends and friends of knitters,

The new club is coming soon and I'd like to let you in on the early details now. Got a minute? Pull up a chair and pour yourself a nice something. While you're at it, I'll take one too. Ready? Okay.

Introducing... Stumptown Knits

Stumptown Knits is an accessories collection designed to honor the place you live and the place you love. For me, it’s inspired by Portland, OR. What will it be for you?


photo by StuSeeger via flickr

This club will run for 6 months and will feature 6 patterns.

When finished, the club's patterns will be compiled into an e-book. The e-book will be included in the cost of the club.

Anyone who was a Socks For All Seasons club member will get a discount code to join Stumptown Knits if they want to.

Anyone who buys the Socks For All Seasons ebook (within a specified time range TBD) will also get a coupon code. More on this later.

Right now 3 of the 6 patterns are:

Socks with stripes and lace
Scarf with variegated sock yarn
Hat with cables


photo by rynosoft via flickr

Are you a Ravelry member? Vote here on what the last 3 patterns should be. Of course, I will have final say. We're not designing a camel here, people.

More details will follow as they unfold...

Hey! Before you go, be sure to enter the giveaway below if you haven't yet. The deadline is Sunday (tomorrow) night. I'm consulting the random number generator on Monday morning!

In closing, a word about the pictures here. The first one is a classic shot of the Willamette river dividing east and west Portland. The second is a classic scene of bikes parked (even though it is raining) and one of the bikes is a clown bike. This last gem is a unicycle rider in a kilt playing the Star Wars theme on bagpipes. I am not exaggerating when I say this is very very Portland.

Happy Hobbit Day!

In honor of Frodo's birthday and Bilbo's birthday, I've got a one-day only sale happening!





I've got two patterns that are nerdy enough to honor hobbit-y things so I think they should go on sale today. That's right, better hurry!

The Hobbit Cakes Sock pattern is usually $3.99 - Today only it's $2
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Mithril Cowl is usually $4.99 - Today only it's $2.50
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Socks For All Seasons e-book!

Hello lovely knitters. The day has come... I've got an 85-page, 13-pattern e-book to share with you! (and a giveaway!)







It all started long ago as a pattern club. Once a month for an entire year, members received a link to download the patterns that are now compiled into this collection. The patterns are now available for individual purchase or as one mega-collection - this here e-book.

Features:
-All of the patterns in the club plus one new one: Pinata Toddler Socks
-The cover is a collection of thumbnail images - click on any one to jump to the pattern
-All of the latest versions of each patterns
-Life Cycle Pattern had a complete overhaul and now has all new charts and instructions to be easier to follow
-Clickable Table of Contents allows you to jump to the Legend or any other place in the ebook easily.
-All of the patterns are represented here in the pictures in this blog post

The e-book is now available at an introductory rate of $15.99 for three months. On December 19th, 2011, the price will go up to $24.99.







Also, I will be announcing the details of a new club soon. I'm really excited about the designs for the new club - and it's not all socks! In preparation for the club I'd love to get some feedback about the last one. I set up a survey which is for you to anonymously give honest feedback about your experience. There are only 8 questions and I really hope you can spare a couple of minutes to fill it out:

take the survey







What's this about a giveaway? I will give away three free e-books to folks who leave a comment here on the blog. Just comment below and let the random number generator do the rest. Winners will be announced in one week - Monday, September 26th. Help me spread the word!







Thank you to the club members, testers, editors, collaborators, friends, and family from the bottom of my heart. This has been an amazing year full of challenge and wonder... I am so lucky to have shared it with you!

Love Always,
Star

13 patterns, only $15.99 (limited time)
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I chose this picture because she looks so darn happy

The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.
-Eleanor Roosevelt

I believe. Do you?

This is your thought for the day. I am going to try to keep it in my heart while I wrap up a project that has been in my life for over a year. Tomorrow, the ebook goes live.

Gilda Radner

I seriously love this woman


photo by AbbeyRoad61 Via Flickr

"I wanted a perfect ending. Now I've learned, the hard way, that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next. Delicious Ambiguity."
- Gilda Radner (1946 - 1989)

Song I woke up singing

Will you still love me tomorrow?

Such a beautiful song! Written in 1960 by Carole King and performed by the Shirelles, the original recording has the honor of being the first song by an all-girl group to reach #1 in the US. This video here is an interesting live recording with some crazy band trying to put themselves into it in a weird way. Maybe I'm just used to the strings in the original?

I imagine people at the time feeling like this was a wedding song, just like people thought Bruce Springsteen's Born in the USA was patriotic or REM's The One I Love was a love song.

Alas, this is not a love song. This really isn't a wedding song. This is about trying to avoid a one night stand. AND it's a perfect pop song too.

Every time I hear this song I think about the millions of women who have their hearts broken. Those who wanted love and chose poorly. Those who gave up that thing in the hopes of something more. Only to find themselves sitting by the phone that never rang (In the old days phones were in your house, plugged into the wall. I know, crazy). There are so many ways for people to not get in touch with you now.

The phone thing has changed but the message is timeless.