Am-nimals, a pattern and a book review

Okay,where're all the sheep? We-e-ell,



No, no, we don't want to go there. So let's look at sheep and goats and buns -- NOT on a bun.

Oh, hai.

Fluffeh bunneh

One of Kid Hollow's goats (I bet Mindy knows his name)

Got hay?

I didn't get any photos of the babies but this vendor had the most teeny, tiny, adorable baby bunnies. I really, really wanted to bring one home.

Alpaca

Now that you've gotten your fix of the fiber-givers, you can click on over to Knotions. The summer issue just went live, and you can help yourself to a free pattern by me, called "Sunny, Sunny, Sunny," modeled by the (occasionally) charming G.





The bodice is knitted, and the skirt is a simple fabric panel, gathered and sewn on (why, yes, that is a Kaffe Fassett fabric, from the glorious Liza's fabric-topia). The yarn is Nashua Handknits Creative Focus Cotton DK, which was a pleasure to work with, with excellent stitch definition.

You will also find a book review of Marianne Isager's Japanese Inspired Knits which is a great new book by the Danish superstar designer. I believe that Loop is the only Philly-area shop carrying the Isager yarns, and they are indeed spectacular.

Two new sock patterns

It's official: the spring issue of Knotions just went live. In it, you will find two sock patterns of mine, both well-suited for handdyed yarns. The first is the Sunrise Chevron socks, which were knit using a BBF sock flat:


There are still some sock flats left at the BBF shop and I'm dyeing some more (hopefully tomorrow). I think the pattern would also work well in self-striping yarn like the Kaffe Fassett stuff from Regia, or the Trekking XXL colorways that meld into each other. (Which is one of my favorite things about teh internet: being able to see other people's versions of my patterns using different yarns. So don't forget to put those projects up on Ravelry!)

The second pattern is a quick "fair isle" project, using two muted multicolor sock yarns instead of solids. I hadn't done any stranded knitting in a little while, and these socks reminded me how much fun it is:



I've also done a review of the new Nashua Handknits magazine, which premiered this fall. And Knotions also has some very pretty patterns for a lovely lace stole, two more sock patterns, a textured vest, a stranded-style cardi and a baby blanket and a cool belted cardigan...so there are plenty of goodies for you to explore over at Knotions today.

Knotions preview is up!

Go to Knotions here and see the spring preview: the issue goes live next week. I've got two sock patterns in this Knotions and they are free (Jody pays us through advertiser dollars -- so business-owners: buy ad space! and if you need something knitting-related, patronize those advertisers!). There are some lovely patterns in this one; that cherry-red t-shirt sweater would be awfully cute (knit in pink, of course) for my daughter. . .

Updates (or today, it's all about ME)

Listen to me

You can hear my mellifluous voice on the WEBS podcast from this past Saturday; it's downloadable from this link or via I-Tunes. Kathy and I have a great time doing these and we talked about some of the things we were looking forward to in the knitting world this fall.

Read me

I'm also pleased to announce that I have become a staff member of Knotions, the new on-line knitting magazine, and one of my first regular jobs will be to do monthly book reviews. If you haven't discovered Knotions yet, the link is here. I'm waiting for my first review book to arrive. . .

Knit with my yarn

Today is a long overdue update to Black Bunny Fibers, featuring some limited edition yarns (meaning I can't rely on being able to get the base yarn again). One is a sportweight 100% Blue Faced Leicester, each skein about 167 yds/50g:



and the other is a cashmerino blend (80% superwash merino/10% cashmere/10% nylon); each skein is 113 yds/50g, so we're talking worsted to DK weight. I'm told 2 skeins will make a decent-sized pair of socks given the gauge, but this would also be nice for fingerless gloves or mittens.




Stop by Black Bunny Fibers around 2 p.m. EST if you're interested. I'm trying diligently to get caught up with my BBF stuff -- I'm working on shipments for the various clubs and general restocking of the store.