Mall of America Knit Out 2008

Hi Knitters,
Well, I am finally sitting down to share the Minneapolis Knit-Out at the Mall of America. What an experience. The mall is massive, the crowds were massive and best of all, the love of knitting and crocheting was massive. The turn out for the event was absolutely staggering, literally thousands and thousands of knitters were in attendance.

Above is an example of the demonstration areas that were blocked off for instructors. This is Isela Phelps who has written a book about loom knitting. She creates beautiful work using those plastic ring looms. She makes lace, cables, scarves, hats, anything you can think of with the loom. I was following her at this spot so I was pleased I got to see her demo because I don't really know much about this technique. I think it looks interesting. Her husband is the man standing directly behind the rope and he was so attentive to her every need. It was sweet, indeed.
What would my travel post be without a fuzzy photo of something? Right next to my demo was the fabulous Kim Werker of Crochet Me and Interweave Crochet fame. She was crocheting up a storm and I wish I could have joined right in.

I did two demonstrations, one each day, and they went well, but man, it was loud there. You literally had to shout to be heard. That was a bit tough.

You have to see what was going on right next to my first demonstration here. Yep, that's Annie Modesitt herself and yep, I was right next to her. Did you see those ginormous needles? She had such a massive crowd that my table had to be scooted back a bit. That makes me laugh, that is so me. I had a nice-sized group but she drew crowds. That was fun to see.

We also had these things called Author's Forums where a group of authors would go on the stage in a large rotunda area for a question and answer session led by the adorable Vickie Howell of the Knitty Gritty show and the author of many books. It was fun to meet her in person.

The woman in the green jacket is Edie Eckman, who most recently wrote the Crochet Answer Book, and look, she is crocheting away during the forum. I love it! I got to go out to dinner with Edie and she has an interesting and long career in the knitting/crochet industry. I really enjoyed her and learning about all of the things she has going on. She has a great new book coming out soon about crocheted motifs and it looks so fun. I had the chance to see a bunch of the motifs that are in the book and they are beautiful. I will definitely be getting that one when it hits the market.

I snuck this quick shot while I was sitting on the stage. This was Sunday and it was well attended. The Saturday crowd was much bigger. See how there were two levels? On Saturday that upper level was jam packed with people and the seating area was standing room only. I loved that there was such a high interest level for a knit-out. I think I know why the crowd was so large on Saturday and it may have been due one certain author.

I don't have a picture of this but I did get to meet Debbie Macomber and that was a treat. She is the author of countless fiction novels and the Blossom Street knit shop based novels. She is wonderful and her following is like nothing I have ever witnessed before. On Saturday, while I was sitting at the tables with other knitting authors for book signings there was an enormous line wrapping around our tables. I was trying to figure out what all of these hundreds of people were waiting for and then I realized they were waiting to meet Debbie! When I met her I discovered that all of the proceeds from her knitting instruction books goes to charity. She has made thousands and thousands of dollars for charities through these knitting books. I was hugely impressed by her. I can see why she is so beloved.

I had the huge pleasure of meeting new author Karen Thalacker, a knitting family law attorney from Iowa. Her book, Knitting with Gigi, is completely adorable and it teaches kids how to knit. Karen has four lovely kids of her own and her husband is a judge. How's that for a fun family? She is cute as can be and she seemed to be having such a good time taking it all in. It was really fun to get to sit with Karen and meet her family. I think she has a second book coming out soon along the same lines as the first.

These were the signing tables we sat at and this first person is Melissa Morgan-Oakes sitting next to Kristin Nicholas. Melissa and Kristin actually live about 15-minutes away from each other in Massachusetts and they know some of the same people. What a world. Melissa's new book teaches you how to knit two socks at a time on one long circular needle. It is a great technique for finishing both socks at the same time.

Okay, I know I have talked about Kristin to no end but just one last plug about her. She was just interviewed for the latest show for the Craftsanity podcast. Please listen to this if you are at all inclined. You will instantly see why I am enamored. She has great stories about starting out in the knitting industry, Martha Stewart, pre-computer days in publishing, farming, etc. Jennifer Ackerman-Haywood does a fantastic job interviewing, as always. I know, enough already. I can't help it.

Here is Antje Gillingham with her circular needle sock book called Knitting Circles Around Socks, Edie Eckman (still crocheting), and next to her is Nicky Epstein, who I loved meeting. If you aren't familiar with Nicky's body of work just type in her name on amazon and you will be hugely impressed. She now has her own book imprint called Nicky Epstein Books through Soho Publishing, the Vogue Knitting publisher. She was great to meet. I have been a long time fan.

There were many others I met and saw from afar like Brett Bara (Crochet Today editor) and Candi Jensen (check out her crochet baby books, too cute) and they were filming for the Knit and Crochet Today show which is on PBS. Both are so nice and talented. Kristin Nicholas and Maggie Pace (the pick-up sticks woman) are both going to be contributing to 13 episodes of this show. I don't think we are getting this show in my area (anyone?) but I sure would like to see it. Also, the wonderful Tanis Gray was at the mall for Soho Publishing and she worked so hard all weekend. The hotel I stayed at was so packed full of famous knitters, it was crazy. You never knew who would get on your elevator, great fun.

To end the weekend I watched the international fastest knitter contest. It was amazing. I don't even know how to describe these women. They were having so much fun and their fingers are like no others.

When we were waiting for the shuttle to the airport, Kristin spotted the winner of the fastest knitting contest and brought her over. Her name is Hazel Tindall and she is from the Shetland Islands. She is the most incredible knitter I have ever seen. She told a story about her knitting as a child, she doesn't even remember learning to knit, it was simply a given.

Hazel's knitting group heard about the fastest knitter and the winning number of stitches was something like 170 stitches in three minutes. Her group didn't think that was very fast at all. They did a trial run and they all smashed this record with Hazel leading the way. This is when she realized that she was incredibly fast. Her record at the knit-out was a staggering 265 stitches in 3-minutes. Wow. Her fingers flew like the wind with almost no motion at all. Hard to believe. I was honored to have a picture with her.

Take care and have a good weekend.

best, susie

Color with Kristin

Hi Knitters,
Well, I'm back to share my fuzzy travel shots with you. What is it that I can't take a clear shot when I am on the road? Be patient and squint your eyes because the content is more important, I hope. Last Friday night I got the opportunity to attend Kristin Nicholas' Color Workshop at the Minnesota Textile Center and it was such a treat. I want to share the evening with you, at least a little bit. In case you don't know Kristin is a designer/author who has had a major impact on me for many years. For me her workshop was a big deal. When Amy Greeman (Kristin's publicist from Storey Publishing) introduced Kristin I have to admit I got a little misty eyed. I can't believe my good fortune. While Kristin was speaking I realized my face was starting to hurt from smiling, good thing it was a darkened room and I was in the back.

The attendance was huge, standing room only. It felt so good to be in a room honoring such a talent. The energy was amazing. Kristin had a wonderful power point presentation to illustrate her main point about color being, be fearless and jump right in. As a color-loving designer myself, I have to whole-heartedly agree with everything she said. If in doubt keep your eye on nature as a guide.
Kristin lives on a beautiful New England farm where she has sheep, lambs, chickens, dogs, cats and more. The animals and landscape are breathtaking. The power point transports you to Kristin's doorstep. You get to see what she sees every single day. She shows pictures of flowers and backdrops and ethnic embroidery pieces and swatches. She demonstrates how backgrounds can influence color shades at the blink of an eye. With her life's setting it is no wonder her design is a color whirlwind.
She shared pictures of her painted walls, and I mean she paints pictures on her walls, it is so excellent. Her old farmhouse is infused with color with a rich quality that is beyond fantastic. One room is chartreuse and it looks fabulous.
Kristin's speaking style is natural, funny, interesting, smart and most of all, she is just being herself. She is humble and honest. The large crowd adored her and her work and her yarn. If your local yarn shop is not selling her yarn, Julia, you should make a request. When I saw and touched her samples, all knit in Julia, it is a match made in heaven. It is a worsted weight, my favorite to work with because of its versatility.
As Kristin met her adoring fans...
others devoured her sample tables. Don't forget about Kristin's stitchery. She has two books on her stitching and I have them both. I highly recommend each of these books. Her instruction is crystal clear and a little embroidery can add so much to any project, knitted or fabric.
I could barely get pictures of the samples because of the crowds.
Happy knitters enjoyed the samples and atmosphere...
and happy Susan enjoyed one of her idols. The best thing about getting to spend a few days with Kristin was that I like her even more now which is almost impossible. Kristin is down to earth, smart, and talented. What is so refreshing is that I truly don't think she knows how influential and revered she is. She is completely humble and that is perhaps her most endearing quality. What a lovely woman.

I'll be back with more about the knit-out soon.

best, susie

Sweet Valentine

Hi Knitters,
My daughter came out of piano lessons today with a special gift for me. She wrote me a song for Valentine's Day called, Knitting. She was so proud and excited to tell me about it. Her teacher, Amy, does such a great job getting the kids interested in all sorts of different ideas about music and piano. I certainly don't think my daughter thought she could write a song at this point. My daughters are lucky to have an inspiring teacher like her.

Anyway, since it is a song called Knitting, I thought I would play it as my gift to you for Valentine's Day. It isn't much but here it goes:

Phew! My recital days came back quickly. I always got so darn nervous for those things.
Valentine's Day is a fun holiday, not much pressure just hearts, candies, chocolates, cards and a hug here and there. I pretty much love this little holiday. Plus you can't beat Valentine colors. We made heart cookies for both of my daughter's classes. They did most of the work.

I'd like to say I did all of the dough making but I bought the mini-hearts frozen and ready to bake at a store called U-Bake. This is my new home away from home. For these cut-outs it is a gift from heaven. You couldn't make them any better yourself and since you have to bake them your house smells cookie delicious.

U-Bake also has that glossy frosting that hardens. Perfect. The colors are already mixed for you and they can sit right on your shelf, no refrigeration. How's that for an advertisement? I have used this store's cookies more often than I could count.

Happy Valentine's Day, knitters. I appreciate you.

This was from last year's Valentine's Day. What a year it has been...

best, susie

Snow Globe

Hi Knitters,
I now live in a snow globe. It is hard to get a picture of the massive amounts of snow we have here in Madison. You can't see that it is snowing hard in this picture, thus the hazy look. That light post is about 8-feet high and that little brown thing right behind the light is the top of my mailbox. At this point we have had about 80-inches of snow.

It is an impressive winter good for daily sledding and loads of hot chocolate. I bought the king-size jar of marshmallow fluff the other day to go along with my gigantic tub of Swiss Miss cocoa. We just can't get enough. At about 3:00 I start heating up the water to be ready for the kids walking home from school.

I don't have too much to share knitwise. I am sending off a package of finished knitted work for another book. I was invited to submit a pattern for a compilation book. I just made that deadline by the skin of my teeth. The deadline is Feb 14th. Phew! FedEx two day delivery here I come.

Now I have to plan my Knit-Out demonstration stuff over the next couple of days. It is good to be prepared for anything. I think I will drag along most all of my samples from my books. Having fun knitted baby things to look at and touch always makes for good times. I need hand-outs and demonstration samples ready to go. Oh yeah, and I have to think of things to wear over the weekend...not something I usually think about much at all in my daily life.

I got my wonderful sunshine yarn in the mail the other day. It is so beautiful. The colorful skein is called, Weasley's Wizard Wheezes (from the Harry Potter line) and the other is a new speckled technique Dani's been trying out called, Graffiti Pink. Love them both!

Have a good Tuesday, knitters.
best, susie
p.s. Here is another great hat pattern I plan on knitting, scroll down to see the English directions. I am not sure what a KKS means, anyone out there know the answer? Amy Singer knitted this for her husband which you can see here on her Feb. 1rst entry.

Is it Saturday already?

Hi Knitters,
Did you all have a week like I did? It was a blur. Madison added another 13.5-inches of snow on top of the 60-inches we already have had. Some of it had melted but there are mountains of snow everywhere you look. There was a snow day on Wednesday, which meant all four kids home and their friends. At one point I counted 12 kids at our house. That was fun. This kind of thing always throws a wrench in your plans. I guess we are setting new records with the snowfall here this winter. The mailboxes have to be shovelled out because the snow is covering them. The day after we got the new snow I went for a run and it was so beautiful and peaceful and sparkling, love it. I can't say that I mind the snow in fact I kind of enjoy the whole thing.

I still got some knitting done this week as was my goal. It is mainly work stuff so I don't have much to share. Above are two hats that I think people might be interested in. They are hats for my boys and they are made out of Cascade 220 held double. As soon as I get a chance I will make the pattern available. It is a good, quick and easy hat.

I have some news-type stuff I need to share. I will be in Minneapolis next Friday through Sunday at the CYCA Knit-Out 2008 at the one and only Mall of America. So here's the schedule:

7:00pm Friday, Feb. 15th:
I am attending Kristin Nicholas' presentation called the Joy of Color at the Textile Center of Minnesota. I am telling you if you are in the area you should really attend this. How often does an opportunity like this come our way to the midwest? Practically never! There is a beautiful downloadable poster available on Kristin's blog to paste up around Minneapolis yarn shops and anywhere else you see fit. Let's take advantage of this chance to see Kristin talk about color. Ooooh, I can't wait! Hope to see you there.

Saturday, Feb. 16th:
11:00am: I am doing a demonstration at the Sears' Court, Table G. This will be a 30 minute demonstration where I will share a few tricks.

11:30am: An Author's Forum on the Rotunda Stage is scheduled. This is hosted by Vickie Howell, of Knitty Gritty fame. She is so darn cute, it will be fun to meet her. Immediately following this short introduction of the authors attending the event, there will be tables set up to meet the authors and to get your book signed if you like.

3:00pm: Another Author's Forum is scheduled and immediately following is another meet and greet.

Sunday Feb. 17th:
10:00am: The Knit-Out opens.
11:30am: Demonstration in the Sears' Court, Table D.
12:00pm: Author's Forum on the Rotunda Stage followed by a final meet and greet.

I hope you come out to this great event. I had a comment on the last post from someone in Minneapolis and she said I am not on the schedule for the event. I checked and this is true, for some reason I am not on the schedule (bummer), but I really am going to be there!
There has been a great response to the Itty-Bitty Nursery trunk show. The samples are going to be all over the country, on the road, traveling to over 30 stores. When things get finalized I will post about the stores and places you can visit the trunk show. Thank you to every shop that responded, that is so fun. I think Jaime told me the show is already scheduled out for well over a year. Yay!

While all of my knitting is hitting the road, I need to be home de-junking my studio. The more I work, the more cluttered my shelves become. It is funny though, I actually know where everything is located. That's kind of sick. It needs a complete re-working to function better. I think if I just took a couple of days I could really make a difference in here. It just seems there is always something more pressing.Have you read on other blogs about the You Make My Day awards? This is a sweet, casual award that bloggers are giving out to each other where they list and link to the blogs that make their day on a regular basis. All of the blogs on my sidebar make my day all of the time so please check those out so they can make your day, too.

There are other blogs I enjoy and I am going to add onto my sidebar at some point soon. Here are a few of them:

iHanna-inspiring, sweet, colorful, creative, upbeat, pure fun
Hello Yarn-a recent enjoyment of mine-her new mitten kit is to die for (I want this kit big time), talent galore
In the Midst of It-reminds me of when my kids were all little and crafting kept my sanity, sweet to the core goodness
Wool Windings-generous, good-hearted, talent, charity knitter, hats aplenty, she knits bereavement gowns (which makes me feel like crying) which makes me a fan forever
The Plucky Knitter-talented yarn dyer, fun stories, fun to watch her talents grow and change
Be*mused-newish to me, great knitter, great looking blog and projects, quilter extraordinaire
Teruko-san-although I don't read Japanese, Sunny's pictures are the best, check out her flower paci-clip, too cute

There are many more blogs I could list and I will list them at some point soon. Thank you to all of these writers and knitters who inspire me to no end.

One last thing, did you see the White Witch Mittens by Laura Rintala? This is a free pattern from knittingdaily. I am making these for sure. I have been drooling over all of the stranded mittens out there lately. The white witch mittens are made out of Blue Sky Alpaca sportweight of which I have a ton. Mine will be different colors but I can't wait to start.

Have a good weekend, knitters.
best, susie

Still Going Strong

Hi Knitters,
When I opened up the dashboard to my blog this morning I realized that this is my 201rst blog entry. Phew! That seems like a high number. Thanks for coming along with me so far and I am still going strong. I always have more to say than I could ever write down here on the topic of knitting, never lacking.

I thought I would mention a couple of other things that are still going strong and that are keeping me interested along the way. One project that I can't get enough of is the beloved Clapotis. (The weather here is so constantly dreary that I can't get any good lighting for photography, but I tried.) I finally ordered more Lorna's Laces Lion and Lamb to make another one. I am wearing my first clapotis out. The Lion and Lamb is pricey but for the amount I wear this wrap, it is worth it to me. The drape and feel and warmth of this beautiful silky yarn is like no other. The new colorway is called tuscany and I ordered it from here. I also was motivated to start mine up this weekend due to spying this completed clapotis made in Noro Silk Garden.

A quick tip for anyone just starting this project out is that instead of putting all of those stitch markers on while knitting, I just purl the stitch that is after the stitch marker (or where it should be in this case). This purl stitch is the one that is eventually dropped toward the end. That way you don't have a dozen or more stitch markers to lug around. I like this way better.
Another project that is still going strong are fingerless gloves. Just look on ravelry and you will see that the queen of all fingerless mitts is still being knit like crazy. I have to admit I have only made two pairs of fingerless gloves before and I gave them both away. I made them from a pattern I found here. This is a fantastic book by the way, I have used many of these patterns. The gloves I made were in Koigu Kersti which is one of my most favorite yarns. If you haven't used this and you are looking for a fantastic merino wool, dk weight you should consider this. There are solid and variegated options.

When I went to Philadelphia last fall I found this great free pattern card at loop. They also have a great selection of Koigu Kersti which is what their pattern calls for. I bought a few skeins to whip up some of these but I haven't done it quite yet. Maybe for teacher gifts at the end of the year... This pattern has both a men's and women's version and the women's version has a picot edging edging that is cleverly folded and hemmed using a provisional cast-on. This is something new for me so I will learn as I go! I'll keep you posted on this.

I picked up this book, The Secret Between Us, by an author who is still going strong. I read a terrific review of Barbara Delinsky's latest novel and I just had to get it. I will bring this on spring break with me this year as last year I spent spring break with another of Barbara's novels. Remember Barbara came to my book signing in the Boston area last fall? I was pretty excited about that.

I have to tell one quick, funny story about Barbara Delinsky. I know I have mentioned only a couple of times how much I love the show Project Runway. I think for anyone designing in any medium it is a must see or if you just have an interest in making things. I have to say that this week they are designing women's wrestling costumes and I am not looking forward to that but I will watch for the antics regardless.

Anyway, I was watching a show about Jay McCarroll, who won the first season of Project Runway, called Project Jay. They showed him after the show and how his life had changed. Jay and his friend were out walking around and a fan ran up to him to get an autograph and the only thing she had on her was a Barbara Delinsky novel for him to sign. They talked about her book and read the title and then he signed it. I thought that was so wonderful and I thought to myself, I know her! That is so cool. She is one talented and prolific author who has kept going and going to great success. Barbara Delinsky and Project Runway, two of my favorites all rolled into one moment!

I will put up some Minneapolis Knit Out details soon. I am going to be there, I had someone asking in the last post's comments, but I don't have all of the details quite yet. I am pretty laid back about stuff like that, I just go where they (my publisher) tell me to go. It is funny actually. I am attending a Kristin Nicholas workshop on color work which I will also post information about shortly. I hope she gets a great turnout for this.

Have a safe and warm Monday, knitters. I am planning on a very productive week this week knitting wise. Over the last couple of days I have completed several projects for work stuff so I hope I am getting some momentum going. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

best, susie

p.s. Here are a few more patterns I am in love with and plan to make. You might like them, too: Here and here and here.

Crochet Answers and Copyright Questions

Hi Knitters,
Here is one quick knitting update, I finished one Vesper Knit and Tonic sock yesterday. It's a beauty. I have already started the second sock.

I tallied up the responses I received about crochet being added on a knitted project for trims or for embellishments. There were a good number of comments left and I received quite a few emails on the subject as well. I know this isn't a huge study but the results came out kind of how I thought they might. About 75% of the responses were positive to crochet being used in knitting projects. In fact many said they love to crochet and learned to crochet prior to knitting. The other 25% were mostly against ever using crochet for anything. There were a couple of maybe someday crocheters thrown in there, too. I find it all interesting. I had a couple of knitters suggest that if I use a crochet aspect in a pattern there could be a knit alternative as well. I also had quite a few people who are like me, if I like a pattern enough and it has a skill I don't know then I learn the technique needed to make the project. I work on a learn as needed basis a lot and it works well for me. This way I am always adding to my repertoire of skills which is good. Thanks for letting me know how you feel about crochet being combined with knitting.

I have one last topic that I have been thinking about mentioning for quite some time now. Every week I get a number emails from sweet and kind knitters who are requesting permission to knit my designs and sell them for profit. I also receive many emails from concerned knitters who are alerting me to sites, blogs and etsy sellers who are knitting and selling my designs.

I have been writing individually to the people who email me but it has become increasingly difficult for me to keep up with these requests. I think if I make a statement here it might help clear up some questions people have on this subject. I will be adding a copyright statement to my sidebar as well.

In general, I do not give permission to others to sell my designs in pattern (written) form or knitted form for online retail, retail shops, resale or for wholesale ventures. My designs in written and in knitted form are for personal use only, not to be used for commercial sales of any sort.

On the other hand, I have given and do give my permission for my designs in knitted form to be used for charity donations of any kind like school fundraisers, hospital fundraisers, shelters, silent auctions, etc. Any type of charity knitting is an absolute yes from me! I love that people knit baby hats and baby items for charities, nothing could be better than that. Yay for charity knitting.

best, susie

p.s. Dani of Sunshine Yarns just opened her new online shop and it is beautiful. I've already made a couple of purchases.

Do You Crochet? Elefante Ear Demo

Hi Knitters,
I have been surprised about the number of knitters I have talked to or read about on ravelry who don't want to crochet at all, not even a simple edging or an ear, in elefante's case. A lot of people are substituting the crochet ears for knitted ears. I really didn't know that people felt this way about simple crochet that is added on a knitted item. Then I was reading Wendy's blog about adding a crochet edge on a baby blanket. She stated the same thing I had been reading and hearing about. People groan about a crochet edging. Wendy knew people would complain but she went with the crochet edging anyway. It is a really cute, beautiful blanket she designed for the preemie project.

Let me know what you think of this topic. I would love to hear about it and it would help me when designing projects.

Anyway, with this in mind and a few requests from elefante knitters, I decided to make a video tutorial of how to crochet a circle. The ear for the elephant is a crochet circle folded in half and then slip stitched together with a contrasting color. I also used crochet circles in itty-bitty hats and itty bitty nursery. I used crochet circles for the tops and bottoms of the cupcakes and ears for the elephant pacifier clip. The cherries for the hat and scarf on the cupcake set are crocheted in a similar way.

I encourage you to try this simple crochet technique. It really is easy and you can whip up these circles in no time at all.

Hope you all had a good and peaceful weekend.
best, susie

Je T'Adore, Giacomo

Hi Knitters,
If you missed this free pattern let me direct you to it. Run, don't walk! What a perfect baby hat. I happened to have all of the yarn in my stash leftover from the book pillow/sweater/slipper set I made for itty-bitty nursery. Also, let me recommend the purlbee, it is a terrific resource for sewing and knitting. I made this up yesterday, only working on it sporadically throughout the day. When I say this I am not trying to brag but rather I want to let you know how quickly you can knit up a tiny hat like this too. It is so d0-able!

The fair isle pattern is super easy and fun. If you are wanting to give fair isle a try this is the place to start. You only work in 2 colors at a time for 19 rounds, the rest of the hat is simple. Working with the Blue Sky Alpaca sportweight alpaca again only refreshed my love for this yarn. It is soft and clear and beautiful. I have to design more using the sportweight. It is too good for words. As you can see from the leftovers, you could make many hats from 4 skeins and my skeins were all partially used when I started.

The pattern calls for US size 4 and 5 sixteen inch circular needles and US size 5 dpns for the top decrease. Make sure you read the tips from the designer, Whitney, as she offers some great simplifying ideas. The size in the pattern suggests it will fit a 6-18 month-old. I knitted exactly to gauge and the finished hat is teeny, teeny tiny, it would not fit an 18-month-old by any stretch. I could barely fit it on my hat stand. I would say more like 0-6 months, maybe 12-months, that's just my opinion. I used my pom-tree on the 2-inch width and did more wraps than I could count, it is a thick pom-pom.

I know just the baby for Giacomo's Baby Hat! I can't wait...

On to other business, I had a lot of emails asking about the bunny hat I made my daughter. Here's what I did. I took the ear flap pattern from the Inca Snowflake Hat in itty-bitty hats and then I continued on with the pattern on the back inside cover from the book, which is a great pattern. I made up the random striping pattern.

Please take note that I made the largest size in the storybook that is suggested to fit a 3-year-old. My daughter is 8-years-old and she is average size. I keep repeating this about hat sizing because if you realize that a 2-3 year-old's head can sometimes be as big as an adult's head, it opens up the doors for so many patterns. Hat patterns for adults can be used for kids and the other way around! Measuring first is always the best, of course.

I have an exciting announcement! The samples from Itty-Bitty Nursery are going to be made available as a trunk show for yarn shops everywhere. Jaime, my publicist from Workman, is setting up the tour right now. If you are interested in having the fun baby items from the book in your store you should contact Jaime directly here. You can also email me (see sidebar) and I can send the message on to Jaime. I love this idea because seeing, touching and playing with the actual knitted items from a book is so much fun. The trunk show tour gives many more knitters a chance to enjoy the samples. By the way, I knitted every sample from the book myself which makes it fun, too.

Have a good Wednesday. Maybe you'll knit a Giacomo today...let me know!

best, susie

Shall I Knit You a Hat?

Hi Knitters,

Have you ever been inspired to knit from a picture book? I am all of the time. My daughter and I share a serious love of picture books. Every week she brings home a variety of carefully selected books to read with me and I look forward to it every time. At the end of last week she introduced me to one of the sweetest picture books I have ever read. Shall I Knit You a Hat? is written and illustrated by sisters Kate Klise and M. Sarah Klise. I love the sister connection. The text is wonderful and the illustrations transport you to the home of two bunnies, a mother and child.

The mother notes that a blizzard is coming their way and she offers to knit her little bunny a hat. The bunny loves his hat but then he gets concerned about his friends being cold as well. The mother agrees to knit them hats, too. They start off on an adventure to sneakily measure the heads of all of their friends. The friends consist of a horse, deer, squirrel, cat, goose and a dog. Each hat mother bunny knits is carefully designed to meet the various needs of that particular animal. For example, the goose's hat has a long scarf attached to keep her neck warm, the horse has a blanket attached for sleeping in the snow and the reindeer hat accommodates his antlers. This is my favorite hat as each antler has a pom-pom hanging off on a string. Love it!

The ending of the story is so tender and true. The story isn't so much about Christmas, it is about giving to others and spending time together and the wonderful feelings all of that brings. The last page of the book is a hat pattern for making little rabbit's hat with the wonderful long rabbit ears.

Just look at rabbit's fantastic stripey hat. The pattern offered in the book is a perfect pattern but it didn't include ear flaps and ties. My daughter had to have the flaps and ties just like the picture so certainly I added those on. We carefully selected the yarn and although it isn't exactly like the hat in the pictures, it is reminiscent of the hat in the book. We finally concluded that my stash of Blue Sky Alpaca cotton would suit us fine.

Of course I added a little fleece lining for that extra comfort. I made the ties about a foot long and just braided the strands together with an over-hand knot at the end.

I started it yesterday and today she is wearing it proudly. The extra-special treat about Shall I Knit You a Hat? is that it was her teacher's book. My daughter wanted to borrow the book for the weekend so I could see the pictures to knit up the hat. When she asked her teacher about borrowing it she told her she had bought the book with us in mind. Isn't that cute? She gave the book to my daughter to keep. The smile on my little girl's face when she was running out of school on Friday was priceless. She couldn't wait to tell me about our gift. I started knitting right away.

The littlest things can mean so much.

I hope your hats are keeping you warm on this bitter cold weekend.
best, susie

p.s. Thank you, Sylla, you are a wonderful teacher. We are lucky bunnies.

p.p.s. The book was published in 2004 and was just released in paperback in October 2007.

Don't Poke Your Eye Out

Hi Knitters,
I was looking at my unfinished socks this morning and all of a sudden all I could see was how many needles are involved. I have a mere 16 US size 2 dpns spinning around here. If a new knitter was looking at this mess I am sure she would run for the hills. To me it makes perfect sense and having four socks going doesn't bother me in the least. That's part of the problem, I assure you.

On the trip to Long Beach I started the Knitpicks sock with the yellow, light blue and gold stripes, for my daughter. She picked out the yarn for this pair. They are kind of cute. I hadn't knitted with this yarn before and it is fine but nothing to write home about. The yarn I should write home about is the Knit and Tonic Vesper, which is the blue/green striping sock. This colorway is spectacular and this yarn is so good. I started this on the trip to Long Beach, too. The other two I have written about before, the sKNITches breathmint and of course the pumpkin spice yarntini. Two great socks that I can't seem to focus on long enough to finish. I will triumph eventually.

Switching subjects here, I ran across this clay project I made in elementary school I had recently shoved onto a cluttered storage shelf in my studio. I remember making this so clearly, so much detail for my little fingers. Note the stripey hat with the large pom-pom on top. That should have been a sign. There was another person walking on the sidewalk but when the piece was fired he broke off. I remember being sad about that but then I made his foot into a snowball (you can tell the snowball further back was originally a shoe). Then I added a second snowball on the sidewalk to make it look like it was supposed to be there, good thinking, huh?

I was absolutely entranced in this project. I believe I was in the fourth grade, about 10-years-old. I also remember it was put in a glassed-in display case in the hallway of my school where it stayed for many months. I was very proud. I even made my mom walk by the case when she came to school for some event. When I finally brought it home my mom displayed my creation on a shelf next to her piano. There it sat for over 30 years. I used to look at it all of the time at her house. Today I set it out in my house. I'm still proud, I guess, but for other reasons.

This is how I feel this week. I am spinning around and not getting anything accomplished. Maybe next week will be more productive.

best, susie

p.s. That wooden marble construction toy is the best ever. It is called Quadrilla and we have the basic set. Since Christmas I think my kids have made about a dozen different constructions. It is awesome.

Lots of TNNA Stuff

Hi Knitters,
I am home and let me just say it is a messy one! Well, there were lots of adventures over the past days and I want to fill you all in a bit. First things first, you can't bring cameras onto the floor of the convention at tnna. I guess this is due to new products being introduced and maintaining some control by the companies. So although I don't have lots of pictures from the event I have some good stories to share and a few pictures of some of the goodies I collected. Pictured above are two mini-pears I took from the hotel breakfast buffet to bring home for my girls. Aren't they cute? They are less than 2-inches high, very petite. My girls were thrilled and loved eating them. That's an easy gift, right?

I flew into LAX around noon on Thursday and grabbed a taxi to my hotel in Long Beach. I really had no idea how long this ride would be and was pleasantly surprised to find out is was only about 20-30 minutes. I had to kill several hours because my room wasn't ready yet. The man at the front desk said my room was vacant but it would take 3 hours before it was cleaned. He even called for a rush job on the cleaning and I was hopeful it would be ready sooner. Nope, no luck, 3 hours. I checked my bags and took off walking. I found the convention center and as I walked around I started seeing a ton of women wearing knitted garments. It was a strange feeling being surrounded by knitters out on the street. I felt I was entering a whole new world, full of knitters, full of yarn and full of sweaters of every sort imaginable. Heaven.

I finally got into my room and by that time Regan Clancy of Workman had called to check in with me as she was in charge of the dinner that night with the Royal book distributors. I was so excited to go to dinner that night with a bunch of fun people and knitters. A few you will recognize like Kristin Nicholas, Judith Durant and newcomer, Melissa Morgan-Oakes. Regan picked me up and we walked over to Tequila Jack's. Everyone was pretty tired out from the travels, especially the knitters I mentioned before because they all flew from the East Coast. I sat especially close to Judith and Melissa, who are both lovely and fun. Judith is very interesting and has great stories and a long industrious career in the knitting world. She worked for Interweave Knits for awhile and she has done many beading books along with the popular 101 One Skein Wonder books, very impressive. I think she has about 3 or 4 more books currently in the works right now. How does she do it and remain so fun and calm? Melissa, who is a teacher for Webs, just released Two At a Time Socks. I paged through this and it looks fantastic. If you are interested in this technique you should definitely check this one out. I think it is great that she has taught this technique so many times because this helps for writing a technique book.
Kristin came in a little later and we were already seated so I really only briefly said hello that night. Not to despair, I knew I was dining with her again the next night. You know my admiration for her. Above is some specially selected hot sauce I got for my brother at a small shop called, Hot Licks. He enjoys a painful hot sauce and I just envision him sweating and gasping as he tries these selections out. What a thoughtful sister I am.

Later that night my beloved, and somewhat famous, Workman publicist, Jaime Harder made her way to Long Beach. She called in the morning and we quickly grabbed breakfast and headed straight over to the convention. I was so glad to have a buddy at this enormous show. I know the Workman people would have included me but Jaime is a friend and she is just good fun to be around. We got right in there and started going through the aisles. I loved all of the products but much more so I loved spotting the famous knitters. Really, it was almost too much.

I stood only a couple of feet away from Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably. Kaffe is taller than I thought. He looks just like his pictures. He is one of my knitting heroes from over 20 years ago. I also love his mosaic book, it is fabulous. That was fun for me. I tried to tell Jaime what a moment that was for me but it is hard to explain.

We walked by Soho Publishing (Vogue Knitting) and met Nicky Epstein. She now has her own book imprint and has a new scarf book coming out. I told her I had just met Tanis Gray and Faith Hale when I was in New York and she quickly took us over to meet Adina Klein (editor in chief of Vogue Knitting) and Carla Scott (executive editor of Vogue Knitting). They were very friendly and Adina commented how she has been knitting for a special baby in her life lately. If you have the latest Vogue Knitting be sure to look at Tanis' latest design (number 12 on page 77), it is a cashmere hat and scarf set in off-white. It is to die for. I looked up the yarn she used and the set would cost well over $200 but there is always substitution and a dream...

I met Luisa Harding at her signing. I introduced myself, she had no idea who I was but I didn't expect her to. She was very sweet and English looking and she was dressed just like her new book. I have long admired Luisa's designs for Rowan and on her own, she is a talent.

I met Mags Kandis very briefly as she was waiting for her signing. She was signing her newest book for Interweave Knits, Folk Style. She was so fantastic looking, so well traveled and stylish. She wore brown cowboy boots and textured tights and carried a bag from some far off travels she told us about (can't remember where exactly). She was friendly and wonderful and just how you'd hope.
We ran by the Koigu booth and the wonderful man working there, I believe he was the husband, gave us handfuls of these little skeins of Koigu. He wore this great sushi printed shirt and was super friendly and funny. Later that night Jaime and I ran into him and his wife on the elevator, he still in the sushi, she wearing a full-out mitered square koigu sweater, so cool.

I made sure I stopped by the knitting at knoon booth. Chris is a great designer and she has a new line of knitted dinosaur toys that are so fun. She came to see me in Grand Rapids and she made an impression on me. I ran into Craig Rosenfeld the proprietor of loop in Philadelphia. He is always fun to talk to. He was taking a break from his knitting class with Brandon Mably. It was great to see him again. As we were running down the stairs, I introduced myself to Melissa Leapman. I have many of her books and love them.

Kristin Spurkland walked by after teaching a class on top down hats. She had a signing in the Unicorn booth on Sunday for her new book. My friend Alison Barlow from The Wool Cabin in Salt Lake City was in her class and came out with a great start to a hat. Alison's book is coming out in paperback soon, that's exciting.

Jaime and I stopped by the Skacel booth to admire the addi turbos and we were given a free pair of the new lace needles. They have a gold plated needle with an extra-long point and a red cord. Mine are size three and they are excellent. While we were there we talked to a woman named Joanne. She told us about a huge yarn festival in Seattle in July and we talked to Rob who is in charge of the whole thing. If I can swing it, I may just go and teach there. I would love to go to the northwest, it would be fantastic. Joanne gave us a boatload of shops to visit. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

My tag, above, has the ravelry dog, Bob, pin. I was hoping to get one but the only way to get a bob pin was to meet the inventors of ravelry, Casey and Jess. Jaime and I finally tracked them down in the lobby of the convention. They are superstars and everyone wanted to meet them. How can we thank them enough for creating such a fantastic resource for knitters. They were kind and gracious.

Are you wondering what type of yarn you are? The Potter Books booth had the cutest quiz you could take to find out. I am an angora and Jaime is a mohair. I can't remember what either of those are exactly but it was all good things. It was a cute idea and everyone loved the pins. My favorite was the odd ball pin. I sometimes feel like an odd ball but I am kind of glad I am not officially odd.

We met the Soak inventor and her mother. This product is on fire. She has gotten coverage in every major magazine and she is now having guest soak fragrances. See the green sample? That's Amy Butler's signature fragrance of Soak. I can't wait to try out these samples. The notebook is a gift from Jaime. It is filled with funny patterned paper and I love it, everything from beans and rice holding hands to a tomato pin cushion and pins.

We did see Joelle and Jennifer Hoverson, from purl and Last Minute Knitted Gifts, picking out books at the Unicorn books booth. I wanted to say hi but they were so entranced in the books that I didn't want to interrupt. I was happy to just see them from afar, they are so wonderfully creative.

Diane, I tried spinning! This was the wheel I tried and I was really into it. However the sad news is that I wasn't very good at it and the wheel wasn't pulling the yarn onto the spool so the woman had to keep fixing it. But I really liked it and I think I could do it with a little practice. I kept looking for the Ashford booth but I never found it. Anyway, I was encouraged. This is something I would like to pursue a bit in the future.

Okay, Clara Parkes signed at the Unicorn booth. She is a delight and I was dying to meet her. Her new book is incredibly well-received, just as you'd imagine, and I am so glad to have a signed copy. This book is a solid investment as it is crammed with information about yarn. Plus there are about 40 terrific patterns included. This book must have been an enormous undertaking and I am glad for Clara that knitters everywhere are enjoying it.

I met the author of Mr. Funky's Super Crochet Wonderful, Narumi Ogawa, and let me tell you, she is as adorable as her creations. North Light Books handed out the cutest buttons to go along with their books and I collected a few.

My sweet friend, Betz White, was represented at tnna. Her new book, Warm Fuzzies, shows off her talents to the fullest. This is not a knitting book but more of a fulled sweater and sewing book. If that interests you please check this one out. There are the ever popular cupcake pin cushions in the book but there is so much more to Betz than cupcakes. She is a phenomena! There are all sorts of patterns in the book from kids clothes, home accessories and adult accessories. She did an excellent job with this book and I am glad I got a cupcake pin. I didn't get the book at tnna, that's my own copy.

We stopped by the O-Wool booth to say hi. I am using O-Wool Balance in my newest book and I plan on using more from their line for more projects. This is great yarn and the people are super nice.

Friday night we went out to dinner with the Unicorn Books group. This is the booth where I had my signing. What a great, hard working group of people. The Unicorn booth always had a buzz about it through the entire weekend. I was impressed by how knowledgeable th staff was about the books and it showed in the reaction they were receiving. I enjoyed them very much. At this dinner I sat next to Kristin Nicholas, she's a joy. Kristin made sure to come over and say hello since we didn't really get to chat the night before and then I got to sit right by her. She is just how you'd think she'd be, comfy and warm and smart and really funny. She's a gem. I loved hearing about her farm and sheep and her yarn adventures. This was a highlight of the trip for me. The next day she took me under her wing a bit and introduced me to the fine people at Westminster Fibers, the distributor of her yarn, Julia.

The other fun knitter at the table besides Melissa Morgan-Oakes and Judith Durant was Debbie Stoller, whom I've never met before. She had great stories and it was fun to meet her. Her new book is doing well and Debbie's been touring up a storm so be sure to check out her schedule if you are interested in meeting her in person.

Be Sweet was there with their full line of yarn and bags. You've got to check these out, they are all simply wonderful. Jaime got that black bag with the white spots.

The yarn, the yarn, the yarn...it was fabulous. I loved the Shibui yarn people and they gave out balls of yarn and chocolates. The Potter booth gave out hand balm in cute tins. And my favorite was the Blue Sky Alpaca booth. I could use their yarns for every project I ever make it is so delicious. They gave out that crocheted bracelet which I wore all day on Saturday. This company is located in Minneapolis and the owner's parents live right down the street from me in Madison. I love that. I plan on using lots of blue sky in my next book and I got to check out all of their newest stuff, so fun.

Oh yeah, and then I had my signing at the Unicorn booth. Jaime snuck my camera out to get a few sneaky shots. It was great and I can never get over how fun it is to meet all of these knitters. Their enthusiasm touches me to no end. I will never tire of hearing about a baby or grandchild because there is nothing better than that. So keep the stories coming. We quickly went through all of the books and all was wonderful. Thank you to Unicorn for inviting me, I appreciate it.

I sure hope Brenda reads this blog because she was my favorite visitor of the event. She was an Itty-Bitty fan and she made me feel so good. Thank you so much Brenda for coming to see me. I loved meeting you.

Look at the basket in the picture. I just want to point out that Jaime, who I wish I had a picture of at this event, knitted all of those Itty-Bitty Nursery projects for a give-away for shop owners who ordered five or more copies of the book. They were entered in a raffle and I chose a shop out of Mississippi out of a bag for the win. She knitted the cupcake set, chickens, pacifier clips and the grumpy bear, all to give. I thought this was wonderful. All of the Workman people are the best, Regan and Kim, you are fantastic and I am glad to have spent time with you both.

Jaime and I ended our journey with a dinner with two of my all-time faves, Suzette and Alison, the owners of The Wool Cabin in SLC. These two women made me laugh so hard and that felt so good, you have no idea. You are fun and silly and two of the absolute best around. I can't thank you enough for taking the time to dine with us. I cherish the fact that I know you. And hi Kristi! I miss you!

One last thing, to Teruko, my new friend, thank you for driving to Long Beach. Your work is beyond beautiful and your daughter is spectacular. You inspire me. Thank you and let's keep in touch. There will be a next time, soon I hope!

If you are still here with me, and I am barely here, then I thank you for reading. I started this in the afternoon and now it is time for my kids (and me) to go to bed.

I missed you, knitters.

best, susie

p.s. Congratulations to Renee on her beautiful baby boy, William Tyler! He is a beauty.