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My Favourite Shawls of the GAL

November 23, 2015June 21, 2016Leave a comment

I have a series of posts coming, each featuring a set of my favourite patterns from Indie Design GiftALong designers. This first set is a collection of fabulous shawls. Without further ado, here we go!

First up is Amille by Emily Ross. Seriously, I’ve been drooling over this pattern for years. It’s one of the most spectacular knits I have ever seen. Maybe someday I’ll get brave enough to try it.

Amelie — copyright Emily Ross, used with permission

How cool is Big Dotty? I love the use of texture here by Libby Jonson, it really is perfection.

Bricktown by Beverly S. is one of those great projects for using contrasting variegated and solid coloured yarn.

Crossfire by Jennifer Dassau caught my eye in last year’s GAL, it’s such a great way to use colours together.

How gorgeous is D’oiro by Ines Sousa? The colours and photography are beautiful here, but the shawl itself is a stunner too.

Galcantray by Emily K Williams is another one I’ve been admiring for a while. I’m sure it would be an everyday scarf for me.

The Indulgence Wrap by Michelle Krause is a new design that I’m sure is going to be popular for a while. It is so classy and elegant.

One of four male participating designers this year, Josh Ryks has a stunner here with Greek Fire. There’s just so much going on in this shawl, I love it!

Notting Hill Gate by Toby Roxane Barna is great of using one of those beautiful skeins of handpainted yarn you couldn’t help but buy.

Knotting Hill Gate — copyright Dennis F Barna, used with permission

And here’s one that’s right up my alley, with beautiful colours and clean lines. This is Notions of Colour Shawl by Heike Campbell.

Penultimately (I really just wanted to use that word), is the Puaka Shawlette, just one of Francoise Danoy’s beautiful designs.

Finally, we have Yarden by Nancy Whitman, a gorgeous combination of colours and lace.

So that’s my wrap-up of gorgeous shawls that caught my eye from this year’s GAL. Tune in again tomorrow when I’ll cover my Favourite Colourwork Patterns of the GAL.

It’s Gift-A-Long Time Again

November 19, 2015Leave a comment

For those of us involved in the inner workings of the Indie Design GiftALong, the excitement has been building for months. There’s a lot of work that goes into putting on the big show so for us it’s been a slow but steady buildup.

But, for the participants, now is the time to start getting excited! It’s time! Starting tonight, specifically at 8:00 pm EST November 19th, the sale begins and the crafting gets underway. The knitty-gritty of it is thus:

Infographic created by Kimberly Golynskiy

There are 335 participating Independent Designers, who offer knit and crochet patterns. They have selected 5-20 of their self-published patterns to offer at 25% with the coupon code giftalong2015. This sale will run from November 19th at 8pm EST until November 27th at 11:59pm EST. To find out which designers are participating and which of their patterns are on sale, check out this Ravelry thread. Clicking on the designer’s name in their post will take you to their Ravelry store, and further clicking on their GiftALong bundle will take you to their collection of sale items.

The next part of the fun is the actual GiftALong. Join the Indie Design Giftalong Group and join in the chat and crafting in any of the categories with any pattern from a participating designer. There will be lots of games and prizes given out, and anyone working on a not-free pattern from one of the participating designers will be eligible to win. This part of the GAL will run until December 31st at 11:59 pm.

So, if this sounds fun and interesting, as it should, head on over to the group on Ravelry and read the more comprehensive explanation and rules and join the fun! I will be posting more about the GAL and some of the talented participating designers over the next weeks, so stay tuned for more!

Introducing the Mount Rundle Mittens

September 14, 2015Leave a comment

Hello! Long time, no see! And boy, has life been happening since I last posted. Most of the radio silence of late was a result of a move to a new continent. My husband’s office in Calgary was closed down, and he was lucky to get an offer to transfer to the office in London. Three months later, here we are.

In order to focus on the logistics of moving a whole family across an ocean, I put designing aside until we got here. I gotta tell ya, that was not easy! Ideas were festering in my brain and I so itched to get at my yarn and spreadsheets. But there was so much else going on, I knew it had to wait.

Luckily, I had a pattern that had been completed back in June that was waiting for the right season for publishing. As the days have started getting shorter and colder here, I’m feeling confident that now is the time. So, I present the Mount Rundle Mittens.

These mittens were originally designed for an event at The Loop, my local yarn store in Calgary. They had a Craft Cruise coming through and wanted some patterns and yarns from local artists and I was fortunate that they asked me. These mittens are my homage to the tall mountains and sunny skies of Alberta.

The original sample was knit in my own hand-dyed yarn. I loved how it looked in the navy blue and silver. But, when moving, I decided that the yarn-dyeing operation was best left on hold. Then I was left not wanting to have a pattern only suggesting a yarn that wasn’t commercially available. So, I picked up some incredible Mrs. Crosby Trunk Case from The Salty Sheep while on vacation in Swansboro, NC. The new sample is knit up in Hollywood Cerise and African Grey – both stunning colours with such depth and subtle variation.

The pattern is now available for purchase on Ravelry and Love Knitting. I hope you like it, happy knitting!

Introducing the Fundy Tides Collection

March 20, 2015Leave a comment

Along with the release of Ribbon Weed, I’ve also published the first installment of the Fundy Tides Collection.

This collection features cable patterns that remind me of the shapes of the sea weeds and you’ll find variations of them on each of the pieces. The Ribbon Weed throw has large cables knit in super-bulky yarn for a dramatic effect. The cables on the Sea Oak pillow are more understated, while the Dulse pillow is a celebration of cables.

All of these patterns will be available individually or together as part of an e-book. The patterns will be priced at $5 USD each.

The e-book will ultimately be priced at $10.50 USD, a savings of $4.50 over buying the patterns individually.

But the book will be available at a lower price while it is not yet full. Each time a pattern is added, the price will go up. The introductory price, available when it only contains the throw pattern, will be $6. Once the 2nd pattern is added, the price will go up to $8. When the final pattern is added the price will be the full $10.50.

Each time a new pattern is released, the e-book will be updated with the new pattern. Customers who have already purchased the book will receive an email notifying them that the book has been updated.

So, my advice is to get it while it’s hot! Click the Buy Now button below while the book is available for the lowest price.

Introducing Ribbon Weed

March 20, 20154 Comments

Not only have I chosen my favourite set of names from the naming contest, I’m ready to announce the publication of the first pattern from the collection.

Without further ado, let me introduce you to Ribbon Weed, a super-bulky cabled throw.

You will be able to whip up this cabled throw in no time! The Cascade Magnum produces a luxurious and stylish fabric that is super cozy to snuggle under.

The throw features large double-seed-stitch-filled cables nestled in reverse stockinette stitch and a garter stitch border.

The pattern is available for purchase individually or as part of the Fundy Tides Collection, which will also include two pillow patterns. You can find more information about the collection here.

Once again, thanks go out to Eleanor Dixon for technical editing. And this time a huge thank you goes out to my mom, Pat Bostwick, for test knitting, proof reading, and coming up with the great names for the collection.