When tragedy strikes: coping with a failed gusset

I’ve been working on a new pattern all week. I started it last weekend, and since then my work has resulted in:

• 3 complete restarts. Everything ripped followed by a new cast on.
• 4 partial rips: most of these rips removed 50% of the current progress. I could have had the whole thing done if only I’d avoided this.
• 1 new technique incorporated. Ironically, this has been the smoothest part of the whole design. Go figure.
• Lots of questioning of my previously very solidly held belief that this design was, indeed, very clever.

In the course of the entire week – we’re talking daily work in this rather diminutive garment – I’ve not even used up all the yarn freed from previous ripping sessions. I have mixed feelings about ripping out knitting. In days past, I would do anything to avoid ripping out my work. It was tragic. It was soul-wrenching. All that work disappearing into the ether…..never to been seen, used or loved.

In more recent days – or in the days since I’ve started designing I’ve embraced ripping out my work. When you’re publishing, things have to be as near to perfect as possible. Missed stitches, wrongly crossed cables, and questionable design decisions all have to come out.

While rambling down the road to knitterly perfection, I’ve learned that no matter how precious my knitting is to me, I feel better when I’ve recognized and fixed my errors. I like that my work is quality, and value that more than the mere production of knitted fabric. I feel that I’ve grown as a knitter. That by pushing myself to work outside my comfort zone I’ve improved my skills, patience, and the quality of my finished knitwear. I like that.

This week’s challenge has been the gussets on this sock. They just will.not.work. I’ve designed, redesigned and reredesigned. Colors have been changed, the stitch pattern has been rethought and reworked. Last night I came to a conclusion. It may have been inevitable. It may have been fate.

These socks aren’t going to have gussets.

So despite my very firmly held belief that all socks should have gussets, I’m giving in to the impulse of the design and leaving them out. It’s the best thing for the pattern. It still fits the foot for which it was designed. Since I’ve stepped outside my comfort zone (I love gussets! They’re my favorite part of any sock pattern!) I’m going big and going to do an afterthought heel. Ooh, the drama of design!

So if you are fighting with your knitting, stop. Listen. Be un-afraid to quit fruitless attempts to mash a project into your ideal and find it’s hidden potential….even if that means doing something new.

Yarn Baby is cute – or the heart of being indie

You know, working out of your home – even when you have dedicated studio space – while balancing the needs of your family is a challenge. Many indie artists face this challenge everyday. For me some days are quite hard – the business must wait because my children need me. This can cause me stress and frustration as my deadlines and daily strategies are altered or disappear all together. Other days we all work in harmony and I make great yarny accomplishments! They are satisfied with their work and play, and I accomplish what must be done and more. As an indie artisan, I feel the tug of many tasks that need my attention. I make lots of lists in order to a.) remember everything and b.) prioritize my tasks c.) ensure both the household and the business is running smoothly.

To me, this is the heart of being an indie artisan. Bringing my career, and money making pursuits, into harmony with my life and my family. I feel this indie life is a great blessing to myself and to my family even while it is one of the most challenging pursuits of my life to date.

Case in point: I am currently working on a tight deadline for publishing two patterns. Contracts have been signed, and my professional image as a designer is riding on me getting my patterns and samples in on time. Due to the crazy forces of mid-winter holiday madness, I had 5 pattern deadlines changed by the publishers during the month of December. Even though I have been working days, nights and weekends on these two particular patterns, I had to write for an extension.

I felt terrible. I felt unprofessional. Luckily, the project is not as time-sensitive as most & the publisher granted me a bit of extra time to get everything in order. It was a huge weight off my shoulders, but I’m still working like mad.

Yesterday, I looked downstairs as I was cleaning up from breakfast to see my youngest son (16 months) playing with my yarn cakes for this pattern sample. We’re talking custom spun yarn that I’ve hand-dyed and hand-wound and are integral to this project which I’ve been trying not to stress over.

And I smiled. Because my yarn was ok. My pattern and sample are progressing daily. And my baby found joy in something I created.This is why I am indie.

My boy.

And his yarn.

 

Meet Ruth of Rock + Purl – now with a pattern giveaway!

Meet Ruth from Rock + Purl. This is Ruth here, isn’t she lovely?

She’s awesome, and so are her designs. I got to know Ruth via Twitter and Ravelry. I immediately loved her design aesthetic and her quirky personality. She’s full of good information; I’ve heard her discuss everything from the proper way to cook a paella to how short rows make a sweater awesome. If you follow me at all, you know I love all things food and knitting related. You can easily see how Ruth quickly made her way into my heart.

 

For November’s sock club colors, Ruth provided me with a photograph as a starting point for a brand new colorway:

Then I translated it into yarn form:

Since I try not to double up on colors for the sock club members (just in case they don’t like a particular hue) I created a second color choice that follows the same theme, in a different palette.  Just Before Dawn follows the sunrise/sunset theme, and mimics the way the sky looks out my window at dawn:

Now a little more about Ruth. She has many beautiful designs. In particular, I fell in love with her She Wore Blue Socks, and knew I just had to interview her for the blog. If you’re a member of the Sock Club, you’ll be receiving a free copy as your November goody!

 

If you’re not a sock club member, no problem. Ruth has generously provided a copy of the pattern to one lucky blog reader. Simply comment below to enter!

 

My questions are bolded, and Ruth’s answers follow. Without further ado, here’s more about Ruth and how she designs!

K: Where in the world are you located?

R: I was originally born in Spain but have spent my adult life in the UK – I live in West Sussex, a mostly country-side county in the South of England.

 

K: How long have you been designing, and what inspired you to start?

R: From the start, I added my tweaks and preferences to other people’s designs (I was one of those knitters who know how to manipulate measurements to make things fit me), and with a father in fashion, it’s always been in the back of my mind. When I found myself out of a full time job and wanting to take more control over my life, I chose to start small (all my first designs are accessories) while I “honed” my skills at grading/pattern writing!

 

K: What inspired you to design She Wore Blue?

R: I was playing with yarn – initially it was only lace, and browsing through stitch dictionaries, I found a way to include the cable in my lace!

 

K: What is your favorite color?

R: Oh, that’s too difficult to say!! I love anything bright – I don’t like dull colors or colors that don’t inspire a smile!! I guess if I had to choose it’d be red or yellow.

 

K: What’s your favorite knitting technique?

R: Cabling without a cable needle. Many of my designs feature cables, and it’s the fastest trick in the book!!

 

K: How can we keep up with you & your designs?

R: I love hearing from people on twitter (@rockandpurl) but I recently opened my Facebook page (http://on.fb.me/rockpurl) and can’t wait to see more knitters joining!

 

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A huge thank-you to Ruth for teaming up with me on this month’s yarn, taking the time to participate in the interview, and providing a great pattern giveaway. If you haven’t yet, comment below for your chance to win!

 

 

free sock pattern + hand dyed yarn by Yarn Love

Winner Update!

And we have a winner! Nan who wrote “LOVE the new colors, especially “New” Allure!” gets the prize package! Congratulations – I’ll be in touch shortly.

If you didn’t win this time, don’t be too disappointed, I’m planning on doing drawings about once a month on the blog. I love all the comments! In the meantime, perhaps you all could bribe the random number generator I used for the drawing……

If you didn’t win, but would still like the pattern, stop by Never Not Knitting. There’s a 25% off coupon for all my patterns and overstock yarns there.

After a brief interlude for delicious baking (oreos = yum!) we now return to our regularly scheduled knitting! I’ve just released a new sock pattern: Grecian Goddess socks! They’re a lovely combination of diamonds and eyelets adorning the instep and cuff, plus a lilting cable twirling along the gusset. I seem to have a “thing” for cabled gussets….they’re just so pretty! Grecian Goddess is shown here in Celestial Rose (on Juliet hand dyed by Yarn Love).

This pattern is suitable for intermediate knitters (or an adventurous beginner). All the stitch patterns are given in chart form, because that really is the easiest way to covey the large stitch design. Though you will need to work from multiple charts at once, the good news is that the instep and cuff charts are nearly identical so working them up is actually easier than you might think at first glance. Plus – cabled gussets! You need these daintily cabled gussets!

14 New Semi Solid colors from Yarn Love
Yep – I just finished uploading 14 brilliant new shades to the Yarn Love website. That means they’re officially released. Check them out here – they’re beautiful. I’ll be telling you more about how they’re dyed and why you want them in a future post….but for now ogling them is sure to brighten your day!

You can win free yarn!
I’m celebrating my recent productivity by giving away two skeins of Elizabeth Bennet yarn plus a PDF copy of my Grecian Goddess socks! Awesome – free hand dyed yarn! Free sock pattern! Please leave a comment below telling me which if the 14 new colors is your favorite. (Hint, the new colors are the ones labeled *new* right here.)

If you link to this post via Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr or your blog, comment with the url to your post and we’ll enter you a second time. I’ll choose the winner Friday, February 4th – so please enter before noon 2/4/2011. Good luck!

It’s hot here in the Midwest. And really humid. We’re only a couple of inches of rainfall away from breaking the “most rainfall ever” record for our state. The rain plus the mid-90 degree heat (Heat index in excess of a 105 degrees, anyone?) Has got me feeling a little bit melty here in the studio. And it’s actually slowing down the dyeing as it’s so hot that I have to strategically plan my dyeing so I don’t kill the studio air conditioner. Yesterday, it was 83 degrees here until well after sundown even with the A/C running continuously. eeek!

Despite the heat, boxes of yarn are still arriving here in the studio. These are the three that arrived this week, so I can finish up my last couple of orders before taking maternity leave. For size reference, that big one has about 40 lbs of Elizabeth Bennet inside. It makes the others look positively petite!

I’ve also been working diligently on writing and knitting up two new patterns. I have a new shawlette pattern being test knit right now, plus a cabled beret & mitten set. I might be crazy for working on cold-weather patterns during the hottest part of the summer, but it should mean they’re ready for you when the cold weather comes calling. I’ll post pictures as soon as I can get the mittens to behave!

Yarn Love shawlette just off my needles!

I’m so excited! I just cast off a beautiful shawlette last night. It’s my first shawl ever, and even though it’s small, I love it. I wasn’t aiming for a full sized shawl – more of a shoulder and neck wrap for the cold drafts of fall & winter. (Which is really ironic considering we have heat alerts in our area today for heat index above 105 degrees.)

The main color is Solstice – and the contrasting colors, in order from left to right are Art Deco, Pizzaz, Stallion, and Martini.

I still need to finish weaving in the ends, and then get to go on my first ever lace blocking expedition. I hope it’s as fun as most lace knitters claim.

Specs: triangle shaped shawl with a simple 8 stitch central lace pattern ending in a modified feather and fan garter st border.

Yarn: 90 grams of MC used, plus about 20 grams of each CC color. Shown on Juliet. Easy to incorporate sock leftovers in a beautiful new garment.

New, exciting! Interesting tidbits for knitters

Fit to Flatter – a series of tutorials for knitters

If you haven’t already run across this series, go check it out now! Currently it’s on installment 4 of 10 and already has the makings of a well put together and extremely informative tutorial. It begins by showing you different body types and how clothes flatter (or don’t) based on body type and the construction of the garment. The second installment starts with more information on basic shapes and finishes up with many details specific to each body type mentioned. The third installment builds on the information by moving from general principals into how to make good project choices based on your body type. Now, the fourth installment is the most thorough tutorial on taking measurements to ensure perfect garment fit.

This series is the most detailed information I’ve found on fit, which is quite remarkable as I’ve spent quite a bit of time looking in order to enhance my knitwear designs. Today is a sick day for me, and I’m going to run myself through the fourth installment pictorial and measurements guide despite being 23 weeks pregnant, just for the experience.

Interweave Press Spring 2011 Moodboards are out

There’s been quite a bit of discussion on the Designers board over at Ravelry on when Interweave would be publishing their new knitting moodboards. If you’ve been waiting, head on over there and check them out. You could be the next great Kate Gilbert or Ysolda.

I am undecided if I’m going to submit for the Knits spring issue. I have several submissions out currently (for winter 2010) and am in the midst of putting together another, also for winter 2010. Plus, rumors are that I will have to have the pattern & project completed around the end of September – which is when I’m due to have #4. It’s probably smartest to hold off….at least that’s what I keep telling myself.

That’s it for today. I’m off for another cup of Throat Coat while I attempt to recover from a nasty cold I came down with yesterday!