The Quilting Three-quel

Third quilt in like, a month.
I hope she likes it!

This time I did a lot more actual quilting. I dig the look. And now have little ideas bouncing around in my head for the next birthday quilt in November.
Muwhahaha!

Why the evil laugh, you say? Well, I find there's just far too few instances in your daily life where a muwhahaha laugh can be used. And a blog is nothing if not a personal indulgence.

Indie Designer Revisit

Designer: Susi Ferguson
Blog: runningsusi
Rav ID: runningsusi
Some Great Designs: runningsusi's Rav Designer Page
Original Indie Designer Post: September 3, 2010

Susi Ferguson's been quite a busy designer!
I sort of don't know where to start, what with all the cool stuff. So I'm going to point-form it for ya:

• She tells me she's in the process of writing a book about Fair Trade with lots of new patterns, some using with fair trade yarn, some inspired by fair trade products. The book will also include articles about fair trade around the world. The book will come out some time next year. Watch her blog for details.
• I'm rather jealous that she lives in the mountains in southern Germany and many of her designs are inspired by the scenery and moody color changes of the mountains. Just check out the gorgeous vest that she's currently testing on her blog.
• She's recently I had designs published in Clotheshorse magazine (Naana and Glaser). I love the colourwork! Susi's let me know that sometimes the colours she originally envisioned for the pieces are changed by the magazine editors to more closely match the story theme. "I find this an interesting challenge that takes me beyond my comfort zone (of infinite blue shades) to playing and experimenting with completely new colors. I love that!" 
• There's also the Riga sweater, a men's design, published in Cooperative Press' Fresh Designs: Men. A handsome piece indeed!
• And finally, there's the very pretty independently-published Autumn Frost Socks (in the pic). I have a thing for complex colourwork lately. It's just getting my heart all a-flutter!

Capra Collection Winner!

Thanks to everyone for entering. It was great to read about your favourite projects.
And now, to announce the winner of Knit Picks' Fall 2013 Capra Collection, lisateapot!

The random number generator has chosen you! Congratulations!

In other news: I've been speed-knitting, and arranging up the details of the next installation of Hinterland. Can't wait to share it with you all!

Quilting Continues; Or, September Birthdays Ahoy!

I know lots of people with September birthdays.
I've also decided that it's just about time for me to actually make use of all the lovely fabric I've been hoarding.
Hence, we get the glut of quilty birthday gifts!

You saw the first one in August; here is the second.

It's gone to a good friend who's a Wizard of Oz fan. I LOVE that ruby slipper fabric!

Looks like Elbie does too.

Last Day for the Birthday Week Sale! And, Some Cool Fabric

This is just a quick reminder that today is the last day of my Glorious Birthday Week Off Sale!
You get 20% off any of my patterns using the coupon code blogbday2013 upon checkout on ravelry.

Also:

I'm a lucky duck since my friends are those talented, creative types. The sorts who make ya stuff for your birthday.

This here is a totally cute project bag (that came filled with goodies - thanks Deb!). How awesome is that fabric?! It's a Michael Miller, called "Knitmare on Elm Street".

So yeah, two of my favourite things collide here: knitting, and HALLOWEEN!

I figured some of you out there might appreciate the fabric, as I suspect you're all those talented, creative types ;)

Indie Designer Day

© Alex Jardine

Designer: Patti Waters
Rav ID: Patti
Some Great Designs: Patti's Rav Designer Page

You might recognize this week's designer from her amazingsauce pattern from Knitty's First Fall 2011, Dragon Wing Shawl. I could wax poetic about that forever, but I'm going to focus on a more recent piece, and a piece that shows off her sock-design abilities.

Titan Jacket is a deliciously-cabled piece. It looks so cozy and warm and like something you're going to knit and wear until it's worn out. It's the first part of a collection called "The Universal Collection". Keep your eyes peeled for this one!

Now to show off her sock skillz; Alice Socks. Again, Patti strikes with her amazing cables. This is a top-down pair, and something that also has the warm, cozy quality you see in her Titan Jacket.

She's a rather prolific designer, with almost 50 patterns listed on ravelry so far. I've given you just a small taste of her work. Go check out her designer page from the link above!

It's My Birthday! Is it Yours Too?

I'm quite happy that it's my birthday today. I haven't gotten over that childhood excitement that YOUR special day on the calendar brings.

When I was a kid, I was the only September birthday person I knew.
Now, I know so many!

And even, a few who share September 19th with me!

Hilary, Alison, and hobbit-y me.

There's my designing friend of many years, Hilary Smith Callis. Hop on over to her blog to see so much wonderful work!

And there's a new friend, Alison Green. Another very talented designer (and one-time TNNA roomie)!

Both these women have a design aesthetic that I aspire to; dedication and workmanship that shines through in their always-amazing work.

So I'm wondering: are YOU a September 19 baby? Do you know a bunch of people who share your birthday?

Win Yourself Some Capra Collection!

Last week saw the launch of Knit Picks' new Capra Collection for 2013.
And I was lucky enough to have a pattern included!
It's Dendrochronology: check it.

I'm delighted to offer the entire ebook in this giveaway (srsly, can this week get any better? Sales and giveaways abound!)

The ebook has six patterns. You can see more about them all here.

There's Phoenix Sweater, a cozy-looking, long-sleeved, wide-striped sweater.

And the Dianthe Cardigan, a beautifully-cabled piece.

Blazing Autumn is a lovely, dancing-sort of scarf.

And the Genia Pullover is a happy riot of textural glory.

Don't forget about my designer-friend Hilary Smith Callis' pattern, the Beau Cardigan. Ruffles and pockets and cozy!

Anyhows, here's what you do to enter the giveaway:
Reply to this post and let me know what project you've had the most fun knitting. It could be fun for any reason, in any season. On a boat, made with a (angora) goat. Under a table, with loads (or none) of cables!

Sorry for the Seuss-i-ness.

The giveaway closes on Tuesday September 24, and the winner will be announced on Wednesday September 25. Good luck everyone!
ps: don't forget to include some way for me to contact you, should you win!

Hinterland Autumn; Sneak Peek The Second

I can't WAIT to start wearing this; walking through the leaves, happily crunching them underfoot.
Feeling a crispy air and holding a hot apple cider.
Watching the birds migrate and the trees change colour.

The bee-oo-ti-ful yarn is none other than Zen Yarn Garden. I'm sure you're not surprised!
(though my photo doesn't communicate the beautifulness!)

My Fabulous and Glorious Birthday Week SALE!

My fifth birthday. Crowns ahoy!

I've made it a tradition for a few years now to book my entire birthday week off. This year, I was thinking, I need to extend this birthday fun to others!

So for this entire week, you can get 20% off any of my patterns.
(that is, Monday September 16 - Sunday September 22).
Just enter the code blogbday2013 upon checkout on ravelry.

Thanks so much to you all for your knitterly encouragement and support.

Indie Designer Day

Designer: Audry Nicklin
Blog: Bear Ears
Rav ID: bear-ears
Some Great Designs: bear-ears' Rav Designer Page

I don't usually include images of man-knits, but I LOVE this one so much I had to. I just had to, peeps.

This week's designer has a fantastic track-record of amazing knits. I'm going to focus on her most recent publication. Mostly because I love it so, but also because this is my blog, and I do what I wanna.

Robin Hoodie, that gorgeous knit pictured there, is from Lit Knits, bear-ears' most recent publication (see a woman wearing the hoodie here).

This is a 10 pattern collection that focuses on literature-based inspiration. All the pieces have that gorgeous aesthetic; you can read more about it here on her blog.

I'll point out two more:

Avonlea. I can't ignore a pattern inspired by one of my favourite characters!

Behind the Garden Wall. You need to check out the pics of these socks. It's such a sweet and pretty and clever way of integrating inspiration from a novel into a knit. It's based on The Secret Garden, of course, and have beautiful colourwork leaves creeping up the legs of the socks. But my fave bit is the adorable little colourwork key that's knit on the bottom of the foot. I'm so charmed by that. Clever and adorable.

So, I hope I've sold you on her work, and specifically Lit Knits. If so, this info might be important to you!:

If you preorder the book by September 25, you will get a complimentary copy of the e-Book immediately with your order. After September 25, the e-Book will only be available as a separate purchase. 

So yeah, I'd say, order now peeps!

New Pattern Huzzah!; Or, Dendrochronology and Knit Picks

 

Out today is the new Capra collection from Knit Picks, and I'm very happy to announce that I have a new pattern included!

Dendrochronology!

A friend of mine inspired this piece; it's a long, loose, and malleable shrug, with drape and the possibility of flourishy flair when you flip one of the front panels up over your shoulder. It's cozy and comfy, a knit you can throw on over top of any outfit to keep you warm and finish a look.

The Capra yarn keeps this knit an affordable luxury, so soft and wonderful!

You can buy it here on Knit Picks; there's the option of individual pdf purchase for $4.99, purchase with the yarn, or purchase of the entire Capra collection for $9.99.

If nothing else, you should totes check out the other patterns in the collection - they're all lovely!

Garden-Given Great Gastronomy

This year my garden focus was mainly on tomatoes.
And whoo boy, do I have tomatoes!

Saucy!

I've made a few batches of sauce so far, and the most delicious tomato jam evar.

Here be the recipe:

Tomato Jam

3 lbs fresh tomatoes
9 cups (but I only use 4!) sugar
2 lemons
fresh ginger (1" thinly sliced)

In a large pot on medium heat place the tomatoes, cut roughly into chunks, lemon juice and ginger.
Bring to a boil and reduce the heat.
Cook slowly for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
Add sugar and stir until dissolved.
Boil slowly for 30 minutes more or until desired thickness is reached.

And, to go with that jam, the worlds greatest Cheese Crackers:

1 cup butter
1/3 tsp salt
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
1/3 tsp cayenne pepper (more if you prefer spicy!)
2 1/2 sups flour
1 tbs water (approximate)

Blend all ingredients together to make dough. Roll out to approx. 1 cm width and cut with cookies cutters (alternatively, you can roll it into a log and just slice "coins" of dough that are about 1 cm wide).
Bake at 375 degrees F for about 12 minutes.
Best served hot!

Spotty apples!

I've also been gifted loads of pears and apples from my parent's place, with the promise of yet another year of apple butter making ahead!

Indie Designer Day

Designer: Nicole Eliza
Blog: Singing of Hope
Rav ID: singbluebird
Some Great Designs: singbluebird's Rav Designer Page

Depending on where in the world you are, a glance out your window may show you some leaves turning and winds blowing. Autumn is coming on in!

And the joyful uproar from the knitting community is great: it's sweater time, people! Hats! Gloves! Scarves! Cowls! Oh be still my heart!

So it's really rather timely, then, that I feature this designer with her pretty pair of patterns,

Autumn Cowl and Gloves . These are by no means her only two works, but are indicative of her classic and fun style. The colourwork is strong, structured, and pretty. I very much appreciate the colours she's picked for the samples!

If you follow the links above to her rav designer page, you'll find plenty more of that great colourwork, as well as a selection of other great accessories, perfect for this incoming season!

Lady Bats Flying By

I design knitwear mainly because it makes me so happy to see other people creating an FO from something I wrote. It's really cool.

So I thought I'd take this opportunity to show you some of the recently finished Lady Bats.

quiteamuzing, on ravelry, has knit up a fancy looking LB in black.

©quiteamuzing

 sayaka818 has a pretty white one.

© sayaka818

 And knitwin has created this pretty orange one (my favourite colour!) for her daughter.

©knitwin

I'm flattered and pleased to say knitwin's received a request from her daughter for another one :)

Thank you! You guys made my day, and keep me happily designing away.

Elbie is Famous!; Or, Embarrass the Bird in September

September sees Elbie live out a famous movie poster. Didn't you always see Charlton Heston as a  wee green birdie?

Augustus, in August
July, Elbie always gets his man!
June, as a very dashing Red Coat.
May, as Indie!
April, as the WWI fighter pilot Billy Bishop.
March, as a sea captain.
February, as a debonair monsieur.
January, as a Bavarian.

September October November December Fabulous

It's a tradition for me to squee with my joys that it's this time of year.
2012
2011
2009
2007

This autumn and early winter will see a lot of activity around here at the CK HQ. I'm currently in the works with patterns to be published in a variety of mags in 2014 (secret! I cannot tell!), as well as a bevvy, swarm, and even skein¹ of new patterns.

Enjoy this sweet, sweet September.

____________
¹ Insert your collective noun of choice. Though I think skein may be my new favourite.