Holla Knits Home Collection: Blog Tour

Capricorn constellation on What's Your Sign

I'm very excited to be featured in the latest issue of Holla Knits. With a focus on items you can knit for your home, it's filled with fun patterns that are the perfect complement to this warmest of knitting seasons. Cause really, if it's possible, I'd totally be knitting on something small and portable in the hot hot heat of summer!

My pattern, What's Your Sign, is all about astrology.
Now, if you've read my blog before, you may know I get a kick out of the baseless personality profiles of the zodiac. It's fun! Imagine if it were that easy to know someone's personality!

And it doesn't matter what your view on the astrological signs are: just about everybody knows where their birthday falls. What's Your Sign makes a great gift for just that reason. It's a small, portable knit that's great for gift-giving (and for keeping for you too!). You get a does of relaxing stockinette and simple texture, plus the healthy dose of duplicate stitch for those pretty constellations.

I'm quite excited to offer TWO giveaways on this blog tour stop!

FIRST: The pattern

Virgo constellation on What's Your Sign

Want to win a copy? Just comment on this post with the word "pattern".

SECOND: The personalized horoscope reading
Put me to work for you! I'll comb the internet and my copious astrology book collection to gather all the data about your birthday! Want to win this prize? Just comment on this post with the word "zodiac".

Winner will be drawn on Monday July 21.

Click over to the Holla Knits blog for more on What's Your Sign.

Keep up with the rest of the blog tour!

July 7: Launch
July 8: The Sweatshop of Love - pattern giveaway and SEG: Kit
July 9: Jean Chung - pattern giveaway
July 10: Emily Ringleman - SEG: Kit
July 11: Klever Knits - Louet Linen skein of winner’s choice + pattern SEG: 4 skeins CotLin in Canary
July 14: Canary Knits - an amateur's personalized horoscope for one winner
July 15: Louet Blog - pattern giveaway
July 16: Laura McDougal - pattern giveaway
July 17: Knits in Class - pattern giveaway

Book Review: Knits that Breathe

©  Zoë Lonergan

I've had the great pleasure of working with Julie Turjoman in the past. She's the author of Brave New Knits, in which she brought together designers both new and established from around the internet.

This time, she's published a book full of her own beautiful designs! Happily, I was able to cross paths with Julie at TNNA a few weeks ago, and she agreed to send me an e-copy of Knits that Breathe so that I could review it here for you all. AND host a giveaway! But more on that shortly.

Knits that Breathe: 12 Breezy Projects to keep you cool is a book that you want to get. Inspired by knitter's desires to keep on knitting even in the hot hot heat, this book is filled with sweaters/tops for women that are graceful and pretty.

“[L]ife in a warm and humid climate, an unpredictable internal thermostat, or sensitivity to animal fibers – KNITS THAT BREATHE has you covered.”

I like this book because:

• It has a fibers resource guide: I LOVE charts, and this one gives nine different fibres, and info like drape, hand, elasticity, source, antibacterial, strength, and more. VERY interesting.
• Large size range: “More than half of the projects are sized up to a 54" bust or larger, with special instructions where necessary to achieve optimal fit.”
• Gives you sweaters you can knit for the HOT weather for those of us who love to knit sweaters, and don’t like the idea of working solely on accessories in the summer.
• Each pattern has a nice intro, clear diagrams/schematics and the  ebook has links from each pattern to its accompanying page on Ravelry
• The book is styled in such a way that I want to just have it on my shelf; it’s aspirational and achievable beauty, making THIS summer-hater think more kindly on the season



©  Zoë Lonergan

• These patterns are the sort of designs that can suit a very wide age range of women.

If I had to pick a favourite pattern: hard to choose, but I think the Flutterbye Silk Tunic is a good example of what this book has to offer.
This design shows you what a silk lace yarn can do. It's for more than just shawls; it has the drape and beautiful sheen to make a top that can in turns be a relaxed casual piece and a more formal, feminine piece depending on how you style it.

Knits that Breathe group on Rav

Buy the book in hard copy or ebook form

But wait! You could win a copy of the ebook.
I highly recommend you enter yourself into this giveaway. It's a great book.
To enter the giveaway, just comment on this post with your favourite warm-weather fiber (eg: cotton, silk, bamboo, linen, etc…)
Please remember to leave me a way to contact you, preferably your Ravelry ID should you have one.

The winner will be drawn and announced Wednesday May 28.
Good luck everyone!

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!

Winners!

Thank you to everyone who's entered the Thick Chill giveaway, both on the blog and through the email list.

The winner of the blog giveaway is #38, as determined by the random number generator: Greta!
The winner of the email list giveaway is #12 (in order I received your entries): elenaknits!

I'll be contacting both of you in the next couple of minutes to get your mailing addresses.

Onwards! It's time for me to start polishing up some knits for the Autumn edition of Hinterland.

ISLAND: Jane Richmond Blog Tour and Giveaway

© Nicholas Kupiak

I've been a Jane Richmond fan for years. Her work is consistently impressive, wonderfully wearable, and fashionable.
Her aesthetic is on display in her new book, ISLAND.

More than just a knitting book, ISLAND is a visual and creative experience showcasing the majestic beauty of Vancouver Island. Filled with designs & fibers that are true to Jane's classic and modern aesthetic, ISLAND not only makes you want to knit, it also inspires you to lose yourself in an adventure of your own.

This really is more than a knitting book.
Flipping through this book will transport you, and put you in the best of moods. It's like a coffee table book; fantastic photography dominates the first half, with the pattern instructions and details following in the back.

And these patterns exhibit that wearable and fashionable Jane Richmond aesthetic .

© Nicholas Kupiak

There's five pieces in total:

Arbutus
A beautiful, one-skein cowl, (check out all the lovely FOs on Ravelry!), this piece plays a great little knitting trick: it appears to be wrapped around in layers, but utilizes short rows to achieve this effect instead.  

Grace
Fingering-weight knits always steal my heart, and Grace is no exception. It's a pretty, simple cardigan, one you can imagine yourself wearing all the time. It has a wide size range, from 30"-50" bust measurements.

Renfrew
This toque is knit from the bottom up, but inside out. Very cool! I love this idea, as it maximizes the use of knit stitch. You also get instructions for a shorter, beanie version and longer, slouchy version with this pattern.

Strathcona
An all-season accessory, this light and airy scarf will be at your side the whole year round.

Rathtrevor
A pair of fingerless mitts that anyone would love, Rathtrevor are sized to fit an average woman's hands. They make a lovely pair with the Strathcona scarf!

Good to Know:
-ISLAND is a beautifully photographed book with five new patterns from Jane Richmond
-you can purchase each of the patterns individually as pdfs on Ravelry
-there are ebook and print versions
-ISLAND is available for purchase online at Ravelry, and on Amazon.com, Amazon.ca and Amazon.co.uk
-you get a selection of adaptable and unique accessory and garment patterns
-listen to this episode of the Pagan Knitter podcast for an interview with Jane about ISLAND
-read details about the book on Jane Richmond's site
-read info about the design process for each pattern here

Giveaway
You can enter to win a signed copy of ISLAND!
Just comment on this post with your favourite pattern from ISLAND to be eligible. And please remember to leave your contact info so I can let you know if you've won!

Contest closes January 29th. Winner announced January 30th.

Follow along with the ISLAND blog tour for more chances to win signed copies of the book!

J A N U A R Y
8th - Vancouver Yarn
10th - KD Quilts
14th - Canadian Living
17th - Celtic Cast On
22nd - Canary Knits
24th - Hey Jen Renee
29th - The Yarniad
31st - Knitted Bliss

F E B R U A R Y
5th - French Press Knits
7th - Truly Myrtle
12th - Noodlehead
14th - Miso Crafty
19th - SweetGeorgia
21st - A Playful Day

This is for the Commenters

I'd like to take some time out to salute, thank, and otherwise recognize all you wonderful readers /commenters on this blog.

To show my appreciation, I'd like to give away to one winner their choice of one (or, if you like them all, I'm happy to forward each!) of my for-sale patterns:

Dolce Far Niente

White Horse Hill

Amie Mitts

Just comment to this post (and let me know how I can get in touch with you if you win!) by 11:59 pm on February 15th.

I'll be drawing the winner via random number generator on Thursday February 16th.
For the winner, I can email you the pattern, or gift it to you on Rav.

Good luck everyone!

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

I'm here to announce the last winner of the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to the winner, Susan! I hope you enjoy your KnitPicks gift certificate :)

Message me on rav (canarysanctuary) or email me at canarysanctuary at yahoo dot com and I'll get that prize emailed off to you asap!

Thanks so much to everyone for reading, participating, educating and commentating.
I appreciate your support very much.

Hope you all had a good summer!

And now, on to knit :)

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

Welcome to the last installment of the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to last week's winner, Hilary! The package will be heading your way after the long weekend :)

And now, for the last week!

Up for grabs this week...
-a $10 KnitPicks e-gift card (that's USD)

Good Luck to everyone!

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

Welcome to the ninth installment of the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to last week's winner, Julie of Team Knit! You can message me on Rav or email me at canarysanctuary at yahoo dot com with your mailing address and the package will be heading your way!

Here we go with week nine.

This week we have:

-one small purple purse
-one page of accessories to knit and crochet, from the 1970s
-one McCall's Needlecraft magazine, October 1984
-one Woman's Day magazine from 1985, including 101 needlework and sweater ideas
-a selection of various purple and black cotton fabric squares and scraps

Good Luck!
There's only one week left for the giveaway - stay tuned :)

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

Welcome to the nineth installment of the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to last week's winner, Unraveling Sophia. The package will be heading your way in the post, post haste!

Next week I'll be taking a break from the giveaway, because I'll be cottaging.

But for now, we go on with week nine.

This week we have:

- a knitting project bag, with several comparments, slots for needles, and a drawstring top
- a matching needle holder, which includes three sets of straights, 8mm, 9mm and 10mm
- a three-pack of needle point protectors
- two hanks of Belle Vallée Wools. This is a hearty 100% wool yarn, one is a lightly heathered grey, and the other a creamy white
- and of course, one wee cute polar bear

Good Luck!

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

Welcome to the eight installment of the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to last week's winner, Jessica. You can message me on Rav or email me at canarysanctuary at yahoo dot com with your mailing address and the package will be heading your way post haste!

Here we go with week eight.

This week we have a plethora of patterns!

-one afghan booklet, circa 1970s
-one "Bazaar Novelties and Gifts" booklet, circa 1970s
-one "Pre School Fashions" booklet, circa 1960s
-one baby set of hood and jacket, circa 1970s
-one collection of infant knits for "The First Month" circa 1950s/60s
-two sheets "Easy Accessories in Big Needle Knitting" circa 1970s
-one child's hoodie pattern, circa 1980s
-six single sheet patterns, all from circa 1960s/70s, including hats, scarves, slippers and mitts for all the family and some cute little head kerchiefs for ladies

Good Luck, and thanks for reading!

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

Welcome to the seventh installment of the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to last week's winner, Hilary.

I'll be taking another break next Sunday from the giveaway. It'll return on August 9th.

Here we go with week seven.

This week we've got:

-one Baby Book of patterns from the 50s or early 60s
-one single pattern sheet of mitts from the 70s
-three wee sheep, made by me, with purpose unknown. I originally wanted to make stitch markers, but they don't function quite as well as most other stitch markers. They're still cute!
-two small felt owls
-one cotton purse/bag
-one Singer Home Decoration Guide from the 50s. This one is a real gem. It's got how-tos for draperies, slip covers, colour charts, etc...

Good Luck, and thanks for reading!

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

Welcome to the sixth installment of the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to last week's winner, Ellen.

Yippee! We continue on to week six.

This week we've got:

-one leaflet pattern from the 70s, with winter hats and scarves
-one leaflet pattern from (probably) the 70s, this time with mitts!
-one child's sweater pattern (guessing it's from the 70s again)
-one wee keychain (says Canada on it)
-four different teas for happy sippin'
-one Good Housekeeping Needlecraft mag from 1978/79

Good luck everyone!

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

Welcome to the fifth installment of the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to last week's winner, andrea.

Yippee! We continue on to week five.

This week, up for grabs:

I'll send you off a free copy of my Dolce Far Niente pattern.

If you're on Ravelry, I can simply send you the pattern across the virtual Rav space.
If not, I can email you the pdf.

Been busy this week! Next week I'll have a chance to gather a prize package for mailing.

Thanks everyone, and good luck :)

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

Welcome to the next installment of the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to last week's winner, patricia.
You can message me on Rav or email me at canarysanctuary at yahoo dot com with your mailing address so I can get the goodies out to you pronto.

Yippee! We continue on to week four.

This week we have:

-one McCall's "Pillow Book" (from about 1974), including 60 different crochet, knit, embroidered, quilted, etc... pillows!

-one photocopied Patons "The Great Outdoors" (from about mid 1970s). Focuses mostly on adult sized cowichan-style sweaters.

-two pattern leaflets, from about the mid 70's as well. One is for berets and scarves, the other are "mini tops" (both leaflets include knit and crochet)

-two booklets of patterns. One from 1982, including patterns for kids (check out the awesome hamburger sweater pictured here!), the other from the early 80s as well, including patterns for kids and adults (with sweaters and accessories)

-two skeins of Rosarios 4 yarn - one a green/white/grey twisted blend (about a worsted weight) and the other a slubby greenish grey, 100% wool,130 m.

-one wee teddy bear, handknit by me! (his name is Emerald Joe)

FYI: Next Sunday, July 5, there won't be another draw. I'll try to get in touch with this week's winner on July 5, but failing that, it will be announced when the giveaway returns on July 12.

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

Herebe the next installment of the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to last week's winner, theyarniad.
You can message me on Rav or email me at canarysanctuary at yahoo dot com with your mailing address so I can get the goodies out to you pronto.

Huzzah! We continue on to week three:

-one Spring/Summer issue of Good Housekeeping Needlecraft, 1973
this mag is particularly interesting, because it includes quilting, knitting, crochet, and other crafts

-one pre-wound (by me, hehe) wool laceweight yarn. Sorry, no specs. I bought this one online, and in anticipation of using it directly, chucked the label many ages ago

-one skein Lacet (50% cotton, 50% acrylic, 150 m)

-one skein Paton's Bohemian (polyester and acrylic, 62 m)

Here you see an example of the Simplicity patterns they feature (though unfortunately the pattern itself isn't in the mag).

Thanks everybody, and good luck!

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

So continues the Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Congratulations to the first winner, Ellen.
You can message me on Rav or email me at canarysanctuary at yahoo dot com with your mailing address so I can get the goodies out to you pronto.

And now, on to week two:

This week's items are themed.

The Knit Chill and Thrill Pack!
Up for the winnin' are a selection of tea
(this includes 15 different kinds)
and
a pair of cds, filled with music I love to knit to.
One cd is the "chillax" music, and the second is the "rawk" music.
Choose music appropriate to your knitmood :)

Good Luck everyone!

Reader Appreciation Summer FunTime Giveaway!

As I mentioned a while ago, I'd like to thank all you wonderful readers for your support, comments, suggestions and all round warm & fuzzy feedback :)

And to demonstrate this gratitude, today begins my Reader Appreciation SummerFunTime Giveaway!

Over the course of the next few months, I'll be holding draws for various knitterly prizes.

How the Draw will Work:

What I'll do is publish a post on Sunday, where I'll give you a pic and short description of the prize. To enter, all one need do is comment to the post itself.
But here's where your previous comments pay off:
I'll add your name to the "hat" for every comment you've posted in the past 6 months - that's January 1. 2009 to June 7, 2009 (but, if you aren't interested in that week's prizes, all you need do is not comment on said post and you won't be included in the draw at all).

The winner will be drawn on Saturday and announced on Sunday.

Sound good? Alright, let's get to it:

Here is the prize for this week. An enticing selection of retro 80s patterns - it includes:

-4 small booklets
-1 Woman's Weekly magazine, 1984
-12 single and double pattern sheets
-3 larger booklets

Here are a couple pics of some of my faves from the lot:

A pretty white sweater
and
a cute sleeveless top for the summer.


Thanks again, everyone, and good luck :)

Lilac Lova; And/Or, How I Thank You Readers

I've gone nutty.
Spring has somehow settled in my veins and brains, and I now run the risk of turning this into a consta-pretty-nature posting blog.

Here you see a selection of lilacs happily bloomed just outside my place o' work.
Though the pink ones are very charming, the purple have the best scent ever.

My knitting mojo hasn't stopped. Quite the contrary, actually.
Astonishingly I've been on a "finish the damn UFO" kick, and have polished off one in the past couple of days, and have now voraciously moved on to two more of the proverbial monkeys on my back.
Hooray for knitmojo!


I'll hopefully have some FO pics for you all tomorrow (which I plan to spend on a Mr. Toad's Wild Ride of bridal crap shopping and Royal Botanical Garden frolicking).

In the meantime, I leave you with an adorable birds-bathing-in-fountain pic.
___________________
On a separate note - I'd like to thank all you wonderful readers and commenters. Unfortunately, blogger doesn't really facilitate easy thanking-and-feedbacking for authors, so I'll be holding a Reader Appreciation Giveaway instead! It'll begin in the next few weeks. I've yet to iron out the details, but stay tuned!
___________________

'Twas the Giveaway before Christmas...

Congratulations to last week's winner, The Yarniad!

This is the last week of the Giveaway before Christmas. Thanks to everyone for your participation.
eta: a very good question was asked of me re: how winners are picked. I use the lovely Random Number Generator on the interwebs. People are assigned a number in the order in which they responded to the question, and the Generator does the rest!
___________________________
Last week before Christmas and one item remains,
only one question this rhymey contains!

1) Do you want this sweater?


sweater details:
measures
waist - 14"
hips - 17"
bust - 17"

reason I'm giving it away: it's just a touch too big for me liking.

...and here's what else you'll get:

-one ball of Knit Picks Elegance (in same yarn and colour as in sweater)
-two hanks of Knit Picks Shimmer
___________________________

Thank you to everyone and good luck!