Madam MIA: Or, This is How Busy Life Can Get

Please see Vegan Yum Yum blog for a how-to for these fabulous knit-themed cupcakes.

I'm popping on the blog here for a mo to let ya'll know I could very possibly be a bit MIA for the next couple of weeks.

My life has suddenly become busy busy bee:

My sister is getting married on Saturday, and I'm one of her bridesmaids!
I have my 29th birthday on the 19th!
Currently, I'm living in the land of boxes: I'll be moving to a new place at the end of the month!
Oh yes, and I have a number of lovely and very fantastically fun and exciting super secret projects I'm working on!

Allllll in September!

I suppose you didn't think I could fit a whopping 5!! (now 7) exclamation marks in one lil' post.

See you soon! (8)

Indie Designer Day

Designer: Fiona Barnett
Blog: de minimis
Rav ID: FionaJL
Some Great Designs: FionaJL's Rav Designer Page

Just in time for the start of school, here's a designer with a lovely cardi named Academia. Here's the designer's notes about this knit:

"Conceived, partly designed, and occasionally knitted on in the Palace Green Law Library at the University of Durham (UK), this cardigan is simple, elegant, and light but still warm. It’s perfect for knitting and wearing when your mind is focused on higher pursuits."

Fabulous, no?

FionaJL has a plethora of great patterns, and because it was so difficult to choose, I've listed (almost) all of them here!

Uskglass is a winter toque with absolutely incredible texture; thick cables mix together to form a hat that I just can't seem to take my eyes off of.

November beret is another example of great hat design, and it highlights her talent for using great textures and cables to wonderful effect.

And finally I'll point out to you her Morstan mittens; I think her notes say it all:
"Who says lace can’t be warm too? With the addition of a healthy dose of garter stitch, these comfy, speedily knit mittens are just the thing for a bit of selfish knitting. Instructions are also included for fingerless mitts."
I've often dreamed about winter lace - this is a fantastic way to incorporate it into your wardrobe!

YearLong YarnSong; September

Hello one and all!

This time has finally come for me to post the first edition of my twelve part project, YearLong YarnSong.

It's September!

This issue contains 4 patterns, which you can download by clicking here.

Dancing Fields;
a sweet pair of ruffled armwarmers
Sizes S/M and M/L


Corn Moon;
fingerless mitts with a corn-inspired twist!
Sizes S/M and M/L


Mead Harvest;
a simple, long cardigan with ruffled bust and puff sleeves
Sizes XS - XXXL


Autumnal Flight;
a single wing covered with beads, this shawl is unique, airy and beautiful

Indie Designer Day

Designer: Arianwen Jackson-Verschaeve
Blog: The Silver Spider Presents
Rav ID: Arianwen
Some Great Designs: Arianwen's Rav Designer Page

Oooo, I'm getting excited, folks! It's my favourite four-month run of the year.
September brings all sorts of wonderful things, including that perfect crispness to the air.
A perfect crispness that is complemented perfectly by cowls!

This week's designer has a pair of pretty cowls.
First you see pictured Garter Stitch Cowl. I dig the simple, big stitches and shape of this piece. Great for keeping you warm, fab for looking awesome, and superb for a nice, easy knit.

Second, there's the more wee cowl Patience.
I like the pretty lacy detail, and the photo with the pin placed so perfectly (I must invest in more pins. I see photos like this where people use them to such nice effect, and I wish I could do it too!)

Indie Designer Revisited

Designer: Morgan Forrester
Blog: My Amphetamines and My Purls
Rav ID: pomoboho
Some Great Designs: pomoboho's Rav Designer Page
Original Indie Designer Post: Friday October 17, 2008

Pretty whimsies is a wonderful way to describe pomoboho's (which is such a great screen name!) designs.

My first profile of this designer was almost 3 whole years ago, and since then she's been creating even more lovely little patterns in both knitting and crochet.

The pictured pattern here is Lady Parker's Beret. Perhaps I just have a thing for lovely berets, but I think this is a very attractive pattern; nice texture, great wearability, and certainly a practical piece of crochet.
(ps: I love the fibrey flames and the adorable sweater she's wearing. In fact, she inspired me to knit one of my own, lo these many years ago....)

I have little daydreams that I could be a ballerina (yes yes, I know...) and this pattern, Sugar Plum Thrums makes me want to get out there and earn those pointe shoes.

Once you've done your dancing, you can sit back and relax with these sweet Twee Cups. These are really very adorable, lacey crocheted tea cup and saucer! They're actually functional too, good for holding little objects and looking lovely!

While you're sitting "sipping" on your Twee Cup, you can cushion yourself with the pretty Pinwheel Pillow. I really love this pattern. I can't wait to make some up for me!

Also, you can check her out on the LYS The Loop's blog. It's a lovely place to visit!

September Teaser

This here is the last teaser photo for the September issue of YearLong YarnSong.

Just about one more week, and it'll be ready for publication!

Thanks to everyone for your wonderful and helpful comments on my previous post.
Soon, you'll be seeing some changes around here :)

Making Me Readable; Or, How to Improve This Here Bloggy

Hey everyone,

I’ve had my blog for over 5 years now. I love writing, posting, and otherwise sharing with the knitting community. I’m always very excited to publish new posts!

But, I have wondered: how can I make this blog better?

If you don't mind sharing, I'd love to know:

What makes you return to a certain blog?
What encourages your loyal readership?
What would you like to see on CanaryKnits?
Is there a feature, idea, etc that you think would improve it?

Thanks so much for your input!

Indie Designer Day

Designer: Worsted Knitt
Blog: Worsted Knitt
Rav ID: WorstedKnitt
Some Great Designs: WorstedKnitt's Rav Designer Page

I can't wait for summer to be over. It makes me so happy to be looking at lovely, cold-weather knits.

This week's designer has a nice selection of thesesuch knits, including the pictured
Kuebel Hat. I like the little colour-changed detail running along the bottom edge.

Another great topper is WorstedKnitt's Chubby Cat Hats. How cute is this hat? I can't tell you how very many be-eared heads I saw jaunting around last winter. These toques were the thing to sport on your noggin! I think it's high time I make one for meself as well.

And, just for a taste of something different, there's Lacey Bubblegum Punk Mitts. These are a nicely detailed pair of fingerless mitts. I like the use of lacey elements, while still keeping the functionality and practicality of a good fingerless mitt.

Little Seasonals Autumn

I'm very happy to announce that the Autumn edition of Little Seasonals is live and ready for your downloading pleasure!

Just click on this link which will whisk you away to lulu.com, where you can purchase the four-pattern ebook.

Mousewife and I are quite proud of this edition. It includes two patterns by each of us. Hannah's got a pretty set of fingerless mitts (her specialty!) and matching cabled cowl.
My two patterns are the Autumn Turret Scarf and Legwarmers.

I was inspired by the pretty crenellated edging design from Barbara Walker's second treasury. I'm particularly happy about the scarf, which makes use of some ribbon to prettify it up, as well as give you the ability to cinch up the scarf and make it a wee bit shorter.

The legwarmers are a tall and slouchy pair which make use of the lovely colour changes that Noro does so well. The edging sits on one half of the top of the legwarmer, and you can wear it turned out to the side, along the back, or anywhichway you please!

September Teaser

Monday teaser!
Pattern the third from September's YearLong YarnSong.
I really can't wait to share this with you all.

Indie Designer Day

Designer: Lucy Hague
Rav ID: franticthumb
Some Great Designs: franticthumb's Rav Designer Page

Organic forms abound in the patterns of this week's designer, franticthumb.

Pictured is the lovely Inganess, a shawlette (also with longer, shawl instructions) with eye-catching points and very tempting texture. I love how this seemingly simple lace pattern comes to life in this shawl, layered upon itself when wound around neck and shoulders.

Amerie is another fine example of simple lace with fantastic, layerable results. This cowl, designed with ease of knitting and speed of finishing, works with a two row lace repeat and aran weight yarn. The amazing thing? It looks so delicate in the photos, I wouldn't have guessed it was such a heavy weighted yarn!

Finally, I'll point out her Hands of Blue

September Teaser

Monday teaser! Here's another project from my upcoming ebook.
Set to be published on September 1st.

Have a great Monday all!

Indie Designer Day

Designer: Irina Dmitrieva
Blog: My Knit land
Rav ID: pinkerston
Some Great Designs: pinkerston's Rav Designer Page

Even a quick perusal of pinkerston's designer page will demonstrate her knit strengths: pretty, lace, wearable hats!

First I'll point out the recently published Yellow Dandelion Beret (pictured). At first I suspected my love of this hat was based (mostly) on that beauuutiful colour, but peeking at her other hats shows that it's more than just a hue: it's a design aesthetic.

A good example of this is Snowflake Hat. I love the (very satisfying) repeated cables and eyelets running up the sides, and I superlove the pom pom. I don't know what it is about a great pom pomed hat. Possibly a nostalgia thing, but this toque really does it for me :)

And, in a nod to unisex design, I'm highlighting her Men's Ski Hat. This is a very attractive, structural hat, wonderfully geometric without being overly manly or plain, and retaining the beauty of knit cables.

Sad Face Broken Needle

It's been quite a while since I was enamoured by my straight needles. The Death Knoll tolled years ago, when I first discovered circulars.
I still have many straights, but most of them sleep in the needle-roll I sewed up ages ago.

Recently, I decided I'd get all retro up in here and pull out my pretty Brittany wood needles. I happily toted them along with me to my family's camping trip at the beginning of July.

Witness their physical demise, above.

They were sitting happily in my knitbag, overjoyed to be once again in use, when suddenly a Coleman cooler lid was slammed shut on one. Snapola.

The funny thing is, my sweet and very wonderful mom was the unfortunate murderess of said needles, and was afraid to tell me what had happened until the next day. She didn't want to spoil the evening's campfire, marshmallow roasting and other such funstuffs.

So I Macguyver-ed together a "solution", so that I could indeed knit on during the holiday. A simple elastic band did the trick.

So, the moral of the story... hmmm... well, perhaps the best travellin' needles are not the pretty wood ones.

September Teaser

Hey hey, it's teaser Monday!

Here's a pic of one of the four patterns I've got designed up for the September issue of my upcoming 12-part eBook, YearLong YarnSong.

I really can't wait to show you this one, I'm quite pleased with it.