Sneak Peek

My kids sweater for Lanas Puras is all done! Just need to write up the pattern and send it off. Here's a little sneak peek:



I just love these buttons!

This pattern should be available soon, but in the meantime, you can get your Lanas Puras Melosa fix with this pattern by a certain pretty well known designer. There are going to be some very well dressed kids out there!

Organizing the Fun Way

I finally treated myself to a lovely handmade needle organizer from honeycake design. It is so well made and I am just in love with my new combination case!





I actually didn't have quite as many needles as I thought and thankfully no duplicates! I ended up getting rid of this lovely pile of cardboard and plastic though.


Now that I have a nice place to put them, maybe I should invest in some lovely Lantern Moon Rosewood needles. Mmmmmmmmmmmm.

And in other news, I found out last week that my application to the Association of Knitwear Designers was accepted! Yay!

Sundry Things

First up we have some progress on my next Secret Project for One Planet:


We won't even talk about the fact that this is a "third" sweater. If you have heard me talk about my "every third sweater curse", then you already know what I mean. Luckily, the joy of working with the Lanas totally makes up for having to rip back 11" last week.

And we have our first finished object of 2007!


Shedir designed by Jenna Wilson
Started: Jan 11, 2007
Finished: Jan 14, 2007
Yarn: Rowan Calmer 1 1/4 balls
Needles: Size 3 circs

I made this for DB's Mom, who unfortunately will be using the hat for it's intended purpose. I got the call that she needed this fast last Thursday night and I was hoping to get it done before I left Jersey on Sunday. I finished on Sunday, but not before I left Jersey, so it will be delivered this Friday. I hope she likes it and it brings a little bit of sunshine into an otherwise cloudy time.

Then we have some after Christmas presents for myself:

I scored some Yarn Pirate from One Planet in the Punkin Head colorway


And some new additions to the library courtesy of a gift card from Mom


I love books! I also got Knitting Nature, but it's still at work. I just love Norah's interesting construction techniques and approach to designing.

P.S. One Planet is looking for designers! For more info, go here.

Knitters Against Global Warming Pt. 2

Thanks so much to anyone who has put the button up on their blog. I feel that even if we make one more person more aware to what is going on, it's a very good thing!

I just wanted to post one more time on this issue to share some info from commenters and some links that I found.

- Almost everyone mentioned Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth. If you haven't seen it - run, don't walk to your nearest Blockbuster! I have to admit I have not seen it, but I am making a point to see it this weekend.

- When searching around this morning, I found Share the Truth. Check it out and while you are there, get some good karma points by following the link to request and make sure Apple carries Gore's movie on itunes.

- With the 2008 presidential election coming up sooner than we know it, Gleek mentioned supporting candidates who are willing to make global warming part of their platform. We need someone who is going to strengthen environmental regulations, not weaken them like the present "W" administration.

- And "allergicmom" dropped a link where you can download the movie for free.

- And finally, follow this link to find the contact info for you senator and congressman. One email or letter is all it takes! Just 5 minutes of your time to help make your voice heard.

Knitters Against Global Warming

I say we seriously have to start a campaign - Knitters Against Global Warming!

It should just not be 70 degrees in NYC on January 7th! This is just not normal!

Of course, we should certainly be most concerned about why this is happining and bug our legislators to pass some laws here - but seriously - we spend so much on yarn, and we can't even wear our sweaters people!!!! For that matter, we really can't wear our scarves, hats or cute mittens either.

I say we start a little campaign - knitters can be strong in numbers and voice! Let's prove it guys! Look, I've even made a button!


Here's what you do:

Write a letter, sign a petition, volunteer, contact your senator and congress people, donate money to environmental groups - do whatever you can - little or big. Let them know we need a tougher commitment to fixing this problem before it's too late!

Remember the planet and your knitted goods are in jeopardy here! Speak out!

2007! Woo!

Hurray for 2007! I'll spare you the details, but 2006 was such a b*tch of year for me personally I am not sad to see it go!

I feel like I've been so productive already:

- I sent off my first sweater and pattern for the maternity knits book.

- I cleaned out the 1800 or so posts from bloglines to start fresh for the new year.

- I got together my application to join the Association of Knitwear Designers.

- I'll be finishing my 2nd maternity sweater tonight to send out tomorrow.

Yay!

I also started another secret project for One Planet. This time I am working with their worsted weight Lanas Puras.


Let me just say that I love, love, love this yarn! It's probably the softest merino I have ever worked with.

I've been thinking about my resolutions for 2007, but I really think that it all comes down to one thing - organizing my time wisely. I did more than I ever thought possible with knitting last year and hope to do even more in 2007. It's all about using time productively and keeping off the darn time sucking internet (or at least that's a start)!

I tried to ask for "the gift of time" on my Christmas list, but it didn't happen!

I bought some yarn for Eunny's Endpaper Mitts yesterday. I hope to be able to fit in a row here and there while working on the "deadline" projects. I just like them so much and need them now!!!

Last Post for the Year

I can't believe 2006 is over already! It has been a trying year for me in so many ways, but there were a lot of good times too.

And looking back on my resolutions for 2006, this one stuck out...

"2) To design more of my own knits"

I can certainly say that I was not without a secret project or two this year! :) I hope the trend continues, but I also wouldn't mind some free time to knit some things for me this time around!

And finally, we end with a meme - I was tagged by Lis before Christmas, but am just getting around to it.

Five Weird Things About Me (though I don't consider them weird at all - it's just how I am!)

1) I'm not only a sweater designer, but a mechanic too! Don't believe me, here take a look:







This is my 1972 Dodge Dart that I started to refurbish a few years ago. Now it's just sitting in DB's yard crying out for attention. I don't really have too much time for it nowadays. It makes me sad to see it unfinished!

2) Sometimes I think I have slight psychic powers.

3) I eat the same thing for lunch every weekday - a turkey burger with goldfish crackers. This boggles the minds of my co-workers, but it makes my life and shopping list easier!

4) I'm either extremely productive or extremely lazy. There is no middle ground.

5) I picked a fiance who is intrigued with little hampsters that sing "Everyone was Kung Fu Fighting". Ok, that's a cop out, but really, I don't think I'm that interesting or weird!

Happy New Year!

Life Can Be Crazy Sometimes

It seems like with all has been happening lately, it feels like forever since my last post! I don't like to mention personal things here too much, but there have been some major health issues with my fiance's Mom and my Grandfather and Grandmother both fell in the same week. Luckily Grandpa was ok (just a few stitches on the noggin), but Grandma didn't fare as well and had to have a pin put in her hip last week. She is in good spirits, but she'll be in therapy for 6-8 weeks. Just way too much to deal with so close to the holidays!

Then I have my year end rush to get my two maternity knit projects out on time. The first is due January 2nd, the other on January 9th. I would love to get them both off before I leave for Jersey on Friday, but I'm not sure that is going to happen.

And to make up for my spotty posting lately, here's some luscious yarn pics:

I apologize for the slightly blurry pictures, it's the crappy work camera!


Lanas Puras worsted in Margarita - for my next design for One Planet


Lanas Puras fingering in Camoflauge (go to the site for a MUCH better picture - the color is gorgeous!)


Some 2 ply cashmere Lis handdyed

And last but not least:

Some more roving to practice my hand spinning

Happy Holidays everyone!

Sapphire Wrap Revealed

And we have another secret revealed!



Sapphire Wrap
by Melissa Wehrle

Difficulty
Intermediate/Advanced

Size
XS (S, M, L, XL, 2X, 3X)

Finished Measurments
Chest: 29.5 (33, 37, 41, 44.5, 52, 56)”
Length: 22 (22.5, 23, 23.5, 24, 25, 26)"

Materials
- Black Pearl Yarns (100% Pure Cashmere, 2 oz, 200 yds), 4 (4, 5, 5, 6, 7, 8) skeins Zen Blue
- 1 pair US size 5 (3.75mm) straight
needles or size needed to obtain gauge
- 1 US size 5 (3.75mm) x 20" or longer
circular needle
- Tapestry needle
- 2 stitch holders
- 2 or 3 yds 1 3/8" wide ribbon (Double sided silk used for sample pictured)

Gauge
21 sts and 31 rows = 4"/10cm in Arrowhead Lace Pattern

Pattern is available for download on the sidebar or at One Planet Yarn and Fiber .

P.S. And that same little birdie says if you need the yarn now, there just might be a discount involved with pattern purchase!

I'm on Kpixie!

I'm sooooooo excited! Kpixie is carrying Black Pearl Cashmere and has decided to pick up the pattern line too! So Georgia is up right now along with 3 other patterns from our other talented designers!

I know it stinks that I can't show you some of my finished sweaters right now, not even in little pieces.....but.....I can show you some goodies I have laying around right now.

First we have some luscious Black Pearl cashmere in Espresso that is waiting for the needles.



And look! Handspun!

You Have to See This!

If you don't happen to know of Lolly's blog, and haven't seen this, you really need to go take a look! NPR's ornaments are hilarious!

I finished the KSH maternity sweater! Yay! One down, five to go! Back to work...

P.S. Thanks to everyone who left nice comments about Georgia! You guys are so supportive and I really appreciate it!

Cashmere Reveal

I'm pleased to announce that my first pattern for Black Pearl Yarns is now ready for purchase! You may purchase the instant download pattern on my sidebar or go to One Planet Yarn and Fiber, where they are offering the pattern as both an instant download or hard copy. To buy their beautiful cashmere yarn for this pattern, go here!

Georgia by Melissa Wehrle




Difficulty:
Intermediate

Size:
XS (S, M, L, XL, 2X, 3X)

Finished measurements:
Chest: 30 (33, 37, 40, 44, 49, 54)"
Length: 22.5 (23, 23.5, 24, 25, 25.5, 26.5)"

Materials:
- Black Pearl Yarns (100% Pure Cashmere, 2 oz, 200 yds), 3 (4, 4, 5, 5, 6, 7) skeins Ginger Peach
- 1 pair US size 5 (3.75mm)
straight needles or size
needed to obtain gauge
- 1 US size 5 (3.75mm) x 20"
circular needle
- 2 stitch holders
- Tapestry needle
- 2 (2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3) yds 5/8" wide
ribbon

Gauge
24 sts and 30 rows = 4"/10cm in
Stockinette St
24 sts and 32 rows = 4"/10cm in
Eyelet Pattern

P.S. Do you really need and want that yarn now? If you email info@oneplanetyarnandfiber.com, a little birdie told me there just might be a discount code available with pattern purchase.

Relaxing Holiday

Ahhhh, there is nothing like a relaxing holiday to rejuvenate and rest up! Turkey day was good and on Friday night we headed back to the city. Usually, I would spend my time in Jersey, but there were a few things we wanted to do in NYC this time around.

On Saturday we went to the New York Botanical Gardens to see the Holiday Train Show.


(Brooklyn Bridge, St. Patricks Cathedral, Olana, detail shot on Vanderbuilt(?) mansion, one train of many, and DB giving the "yay, fun" thumbs up)

The lines were really long and the adults were a bit pushy (hence the "mission accomplished" shot by DB), but a good time was had by all. I was just in awe over the historic buildings of New York worked up in bark, branches, leaves and flowers.

My favs were the Brooklyn Bridge and Olana. They are both great representations of the original.


Olana Fall 2005


Olana miniature

I've also gotten tons of knitting done on the KSH maternity sweater. The front should be done today. I am so happy this has been going a bit faster than expected. I need to get going on the second one soon!

Today I got to catch up on some of my blog reading (only 895 posts to go!) and DB is watching the Jets game. I'm not a football fan, but man, the Jets really have helped my knitting big time! In fact, my IKEA chair and KSH are calling! Happy knitting!

Quick Note

Just a quick note to say that the One Planet Yarn and Fiber webstore is officially open! I hope to be able to reveal some more secrets soon too!

Also, if you sign up for the mailing list this week, you will receive a discount code good for several brands of yarn and other products, and it's good until Dec 31st!

Happy Knitting! It's back to the KSH for me!

Knit, Knit, Knit

Knit 6 rows on the subway, 2 rows while lunch is cooking, 5 rows while waiting for email to load - this is my life now! Knit a row here, knit a row there. It has seriously paid off too! I have knit 16" in KSH on size 4's in 4 days! I am on a roll and there is no stopping me now. Now if I could only figure out how to sleep and knit - I would be set. There hasn't been much sleeping going around these parts lately.

Luckily a few of my projects have been pushed back, so that gives me a bit more breathing room and less stress for the moment. However, I have picked up another job that I am very very excited about. I am the new Creative Director at One Planet Yarn and Fiber (website coming soon!) - the parent company of Black Pearl Yarns and Yarn Botanika. This is in addition to my full time job + the handknit design, but I'm always up for a challenge! Lis and Jodi are so great to work with and I am so thrilled that they have given me this opportunity to work with their company.

And here is a little treat for you guys - I can't have a pictureless post! Here is a small peek at the Zen Blue sweater. It was finished up last weekend and I ended up with 3 yards of yarn left over! Ha! Blue sweater, you could not defeat me!



And last but not least - a little yarn porn.


Andrea from making things was kind enough to send me a color card and a sample of yarn from her company Fable Handknits. It is 100% baby alpaca and is so beautiful and soft. When things slow up a bit in the new year, you just might see a pattern for this beautiful yarn soon! And just to be an enabler - you can get it here.

Thanks so much to everyone who left a comment about my Tatami sweater in the last post! So glad you guys like it!

Secret Revealed!

I know you all have been anxiously waiting for some of my secrets to be revealed. Well today, you are in luck!

"Tatami" by Moi for Sundara Yarn



To buy this pattern and for more info, go here.

Weekend Fun

The curse of the 3rd sweater seems to finally be broken! I had to rip out a few more times before I almost lost my patience - then it worked. It was fine. The stitch count was fine. The pattern was fine. What a relief!

So I spent Friday night and Saturday morning working furiously trying to catch up on lost time. I did pretty well for myself and managed to finish the first front last night and should be able to finish up the second half tonight. Then it's off to sleeve land. It might be a race to the finish with the yarn though - see, the sweater might still have one more trick up its sleeve! Luckily, it's not a problem to get more, so hopefully the sweater will just leave me alone!

On Saturday I also visited the Edgar Allan Poe house in Philadelphia. Poe didn't live at this location for too long (1843-1844), but he did write a few of his better known short stories here. Poe has always fascinated me and I learned so many new things about him on our little trip. I hope to visit his cottage in the Bronx someday soon also. The Bronx site is actually furnished and has been restored to it's original appearance. The Philadelphia house looks nice from the outside, but unfortunately, the inside was nothing more than bare plaster and painted over hardwood floors. But the spirit and feeling of the house made up for the appearance of the rooms.



Well, I've wasted enough time on the internet for now. My knitting is never going to get done at this rate! By the way, did anyone out there listen to episode 39 of Cast-On? There is a lovely poem titled, "The Romney" which is a take on "The Raven" by Poe. I just listened to it last night and had a very good laugh!

More Yummy Yarn

Today I received more yummy yarn for my other maternity sweater project for Lark Books. (You guys are so smart! How did you ever guess!)


This would be Sundara Yarn Worsted Weight Merino in a beautiful chocolate brown color she dyed up special for the project. The editor wanted a dark mahogany or chocolately brown color and added one more week to my deadline to accommodate the search for new yarn. Man am I glad to have a hand dyer on my side! Sundara, as always, did a wonderful job.

And in Blue cashmere sweater news: I started one front, then at a major graphing decreasing point, I realized I left my graph paper and sketchbook at work! Luckily I had some stitch holders with me and had just finished a ball of yarn, so I just started the other front, ahem, 3 times. That's better than the first front though, I restarted that at least 5 times. And would you believe I made the exact same mistake in the exact same place in the pattern on both front pieces?

I think that we have a new curse on our hands.

I call it the "Every 3rd Sweater Curse." Every 3rd sweater I design tries it's best to torture me. It doesn't even matter if it's difficult lace or just plain old stockinette - it makes no difference. I've made it out alive and have lived to design again for the others, so hopefully this one will not be any different!

Moving Along

Disaster has been averted, yarn has been received, yarn has been sent and knitting has been done. Whew!


I didn't let the blue sweater get me down. In fact, I bound off stitches for the armholes last night. I don't think this is going to be another 2 week sweater, but I think I can live with that. I'm just happy try number 2 worked out and the gauge behaved this time.


My Rowan KSH arrived yesterday! There is nothing better than free yarn! Unfortunately, I will not be able to wear the sweater I am making until I am in a more delicate condition. (hint, hint)

And my Sundara Worsted Merino is on it's way over as we speak. I can't wait to see what Sundara came up with! Again, unfortunately the sweater will not be for me, but possibly will be ok at a later time.

When Gauge Swatches LIE!

Had a bit of a stressful day at work and my fiance didn't end up driving up to NYC tonight as I had hoped. So I decided to wind down, go downtown and meet the Spiders. I had a lovely time and got to meet quite a few faces behind some of the NYC blogs on my list. (Sorry if I missed anyone - there were so many of you!)

And now....Why Gauge Swatches Lie:

When I got home, I sat down to knit some more - I was so close to starting the armhole. When I finally reached the correct number of rows, I laid it out for a measuring session. Hmm, 18 inches long - that can't be right!


18 inches long
"Ok, calm down and breathe. Where is my sketch book?"

Hmm, should measure 14 1/2 inches. Find the gauge swatch, recheck gauge. Then I check the gauge on the sweater, here are my findings:

Swatch originally: 5.75 sts x 9.5 rows per inch

Swatch now: 5.75 sts x 8 rows per inch

Sweater: 5.5 sts x 7.75 sts per inch

ARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH! I hate it when gauge swatches lie, cheat and steal! The sad thing is, I am so careful. I knit a BIG swatch - at least 6 x 6. I let it settle after I steam it. I wait til the next day to check the gauge and then recheck it again and again. Why, gauge swatch, why?!!!!


So here I am again, back at square one. Luckily I am patient and I realize this is just part of the process sometimes. (Luckily not all the time!) Stuff happens and I'm not going to let it get me down! In fact, on Monday I'll probably be right back in the same place - only it will be the correct place this time! So take that gauge swatch!

And before I go, here is my progress on my lonely Embossed Leaves sock for Socktoberfest. Don't worry little guy, you'll be finished one day!



P.S. Thanks for all the nice B-day wishes everyone!