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.

More Trendy Knitting

For some reason a blog post I wrote in 2008 pops up when you google "Trendy Knitting Patterns." At the time, I was exploring the most popular patterns according to Ravelry. Here we are, three years later... I guess this means it's time to make an update!

Ravelry has over 1.5 million members now! The information you read here is based on the statistics of their members. Obviously there are more knitters in the world than those who have joined Ravelry and uploaded projects but I find this to be interesting anyway. See what you think.

First we will examine what is called "popular." Ravelry uses some kind of magic to determine popularity. I think it's a blend of number of projects, number of hearts (when another user "favorites" a project), and number of queues (others who want to knit it). If anyone knows the formula, please let me know!

Here is where I would put all of the questions about the magic formulas that determine popularity of people, places and things of the world throughout time and space. Just push that schoolyard junk out of your mind for now if you can. This is about knitting, people. Knitting is safe and we are all included in it. It's ours!


My Monkey Socks

On to the trendspotting!

Back then, the most popular knitting patterns (in order) were:
1. Monkey by Cookie A
2. Fetching by Cheryl Niamath
3. My So Called Scarf by Allison Isaacs
4. Clapotis by Kate Gilbert
5. Jaywalker by Grumperina

According to Ravelry the top five most popular patterns now (in order) are:
1. Ishbel by Ysolda Teague
2. Citron by Hilary Smith Callis
3. Traveling Woman by Liz Abinante
4. Turn a Square by Jared Flood
5. Star Crossed Slouchy Beret by Natalie Larson

Observations: three years ago it was socks, fingerless gloves, scarf, scarf/shawl, socks. Now it's shawl, shawl, shawl, hat, hat. Back then socks were more popular. Now, there isn't one sock pattern in the top 40 most popular patterns. Fascinating!

It's safe to say shawls are the thing now. Looking at the top 10 most popular patterns, 7 of them are shawls.

Also, let's look at price. Back then, all of the top five patterns were free. Now, three of them are. This is too small a sample to make a conclusion but it's interesting to me anyway.

Okay, let's now look at the patterns with the most projects. There is some overlap, but not as much as you'd think.


My Clapotis

The top five with the most projects right now are:
1. Clapotis by Kate Gilbert (18244 projects)
2. Fetching by Cheryl Niamath (17891 projects)
3. Baby Surprise Jacket by Elizabeth Zimmermann (15353 projects)
4. Monkey by Cookie A (14730 projects)
5. Calorimetry by Kathryn Schoendorf (13325 projects)

Observations: Even though patterns like Clapotis, Fetching, and Monkey aren't considered to be as popular as they once were, they have stood the test of time. They have been knit by many and will endure, I'm sure. Monkey is 53rd on the most popular list and Fetching is 145th! What was the formula for popular again?

Compare these numbers to the top five most popular projects right now:

Ishbel 10157 projects
Citron 7752 projects
Traveling Woman 6492 projects
Turn a Square 8791 projects
Star Crossed 7919 projects

The numbers are way lower. What does it all mean? Dunno. But it's neat to see.

Finally, the Baby Surprise Jacket needs a special mention. It was first published in 1968, making it the oldest pattern on the list by a good many years. It's 10th most popular and has the 3rd most projects. Everyone has an opinion on it and making one is a rite of passage. One could write a great deal about this pattern but I'll leave it for now. I just wanted to shine a tiny light in it's direction.

All of the patterns and designers mentioned here are awesome. It's likely you've knit or thought about knitting something on here. I've made the Fetching, Monkey and Clapotis. How about you?

Mithril Cowl

Hi friends! I've got a pattern to share with you today. Meet the Mithril Cowl.



Mithril is a strong but lightweight rare metal appearing in J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Gandalf even rated Bilbo’s mithril coat (later inherited by Frodo) as "greater than the value of the whole Shire and everything in it."

While you might not need the same protection a hobbit on a long journey would, surely a fine lace cowl will provide some beauty along your own path. This pattern has two versions: a complex lace and cabled cowl or a simpler lace and stockinette cowl. You pick!



Details:

Cowl Size: One Size. Measurements taken after blocking.

Cowl Circumference: 28 inches (71 cm) Cowl Length: 11.5 inches (29 cm)

Needles: 1 set US #3/3.25mm 24” circular needle or size to get gauge.

Gauge: 22 sts/28 rows = 4" in Stockinette St.

Yarn: Any Fingering-weight yarn that gives you proper gauge. Sample shown: A Verb For Keeping Warm Creating [100% merino wool; 385yd per 100gr skein]; color: Asterix: 1 skein.

Notions: Stitch marker, cable needle (for complex version only), tapestry needle.

Skill level:
Simple version: Advanced beginner - Worked in the round with picot edges, simple lace and stockinette body.

Complex version: Intermediate to advanced -
Worked in the round with picot edges, complex lace and cabled stitches.



I hope you like it! If you are interested in knitting your own mithril cowl, follow the links below.

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Thanks to Sorren Kerr for modeling and test knitting and Vivian Aubrey for the photographs.

Mitten Time

"For the compulsive knitter, hot weather need not put a crimp in his or her activity. Large projects may lie heavy and warm on the lap, but small things like mittens and socks are easy to carry about outdoors and can be made surprisingly fast. Stash them away as they are finished, and when the time comes, next winter, you can deal them out with a liberal hand." - Elizabeth Zimmermann (Knitter's Almanac, 1974)


photo by hyku

I am designing my first pair of mittens right now and I'm surprised by how much fun I'm having with them. Mittens, you say?

Mitten things:

1. Faster and easier than socks, but you still need to make two.

2. Designing one pair leads to designing several pairs. I have several new ideas now. Yeah!

3. I can count the number of times I've actually worn mittens on one hand. But not if that hand was wearing a mitten.

4. A list of five things is way better than a list of four things. Everyone knows that.

5. I could leave you with a cutesy rhyme of kittens with lost mittens but I am more inclined to share with you this gem from Northern Ireland instead:

A Mitten lost on Brighton Pier
by Patrick Daniel Toland

It is the most
inconsequential of things -
fallen there among wrappers,
fortunes and evening tears.

The karaoke bar is singerless,
the washing waves are morning post
waiting for the sort.
The seagulls pair and criss
and confident in their kind.

Out there, perhaps someone walks,
hand to pocket, unbalanced,
out of sight.

Sock Summit 2011 Aftermath

It was a lovely event and I am lucky to have been there. I should have taken 100 photos but instead I have a few. Wanna see? (Click on any of them to see them bigger)

The location:



My Classes:





The stuff:




My first Signatures!


Thing-a-ma-hook:


Speaking of Spindle Cat Studios, here is the aluminum foil sock:


Here is Stephen HizKnit hizSelf:


I posed for a project connected to a neat new book, My Grandmother's Knitting by Larissa Brown. As you can see, it was my own grandmother who taught me how to knit. I'm happy to see a book that honors the tradition, instead of the typical "This ain't you grandma's knitting" type of marketing we've had to endure.


photo by Larissa Brown

In summary, I loved seeing old friends and making new ones. I loved the classes I taught and took. I loved the marketplace and having friends there to share it with. The best parts for me were the little things too small and numerous to list.

Also, I came away feeling like I will be able to start designing again in full force this fall. Thank you Sock Summit, you magical beast. I look forward to your return in 2013.

Yes, you are in the right place

I updated the look of this blog!

The blog looked the same since 2006. It was time, people.

Heart of Gold

Sock Summit ended today. I was very lucky to be able to attend and witness the full banana. After a little decompression I will share more of my Sock Summit experiences with you, promise. But for now, I am overwhelmed. Tonight I find myself unable to sleep.



Do you have a few minutes to spare? This is a gem!

Recorded live in 1971, here is Neil Young performing a then-new song Heart of Gold. This song was officially released the following year on the now classic album Harvest. Great album, yes. Can I say I always feel like there is a song that doesn't belong on there? I often skip it when I am paying attention. It's A Man Needs a Maid, and it's kind of a bummer (to me).

Regardless, take a moment if you would. Perhaps it's the insomnia talking but the lyrics seem to be really mirroring my life.

"Heart Of Gold"

I want to live,
I want to give
I've been a miner
for a heart of gold.
It's these expressions
I never give
That keep me searching
for a heart of gold
And I'm getting old.
Keeps me searching
for a heart of gold
And I'm getting old.

I've been to Hollywood
I've been to Redwood
I crossed the ocean
for a heart of gold
I've been in my mind,
it's such a fine line
That keeps me searching
for a heart of gold
And I'm getting old.
Keeps me searching
for a heart of gold
And I'm getting old.

Keep me searching
for a heart of gold
You keep me searching
for a heart of gold
And I'm growing old.
I've been a miner
for a heart of gold.