Another Look

Peas For Your Trees!

Hi Knitters!

Have you been to www.betzwhite.com? Well, you should go there and look at her beautiful felted work, and you should visit her blog! It is filled with her work and some wonderful tutorials. She is a big talent, and she recently signed a book deal with Northern Lights publishing. She lives very close to me, so that is fun. Congratulations to Betz!

Anyway, my knitted Christmas Peas ornaments are inspired by her pea ornament which she made with felted balls and a recycled felted sweater. Really, you have to check Betz's out. I have had a thing for pea pods forever. I have pea pods in my online store on hats and I have a fun take on a pea pod in my new book, which you will have to wait to see. I loved the ornament idea. Pretty much every year I do some sort of knitted ornaments to give away as gifts for the holidays. So the Christmas Peas are it this year! So far I have made five pods and I will do some more. I used a thin piece of silk ribbon for the loop. The pods are about 2 inches long to give you some sense of scale.

I am extra excited that I have figured out how to do a close-up with my camera to give better detail on my photos. I am learning new things every time about photography. I am starting with no knowledge at all, so be patient with me.

It is so beautiful today in Madison. It is sunny and warm-ish for us, maybe 50 degrees. I am heading outside to enjoy this brief reprieve from the cold. Happy Sunday!
best, susie

I Spy

Hi Knitters!
I spy with my little eye....
1. 2 itty bitty stripey stocking caps
2. 2 yarnplay sidetracked hats
3. 1 ceramic hen
4. 1 Workman address change postcard
5. 1 manos sunflower
6. 1 stripey baby sock
7. 1 itty bitty felted flower
8. 1 purl postcard
9. 1 purl patchwork postcard
10. 2 Rowan cotton braid flowers
11. 2 balls of 127 print
12. 1 messy studio!
best, susie

Julia's Sweater

Hi Knitters!

Now, guess where that camera was? On my dresser, of course. Here I go blaming the kids, and the missing camera was all my fault. Sorry kids.

A couple of posts ago I talked about a sweater that Julia Roberts helped design a long time ago, well this is it. The sweater was on the cover of a women's magazine, a non-knitting magazine and I liked it. This was about 8 years ago or so, and I have no idea what kind of yarn this is. It is wool, and it is very soft. I stored it in a cedar chest and when my daughter put it on, she scrunched up her face and said, "It smells like grandpa's house." That made me laugh.

Anyway, it is looking pretty cute on my 10-year-old daughter. I am starting to feel like a lot of my things are looking better on my daughter than on me, and that's how it should be. I guess that's what happens as time goes on. She is a tall, tall girl and that is something I will never experience.

We just had parent-teacher conferences for the kids, and all is going well. It is a good feeling to know everyone is working hard and most importantly, everyone is happy.

I finished another Christmas hat this morning and I have 2 more to go. Believe it or not, I still get a major thrill when I finish a new hat for a child!

best, susie

Itty-Bitty Hats Corrections

Hi Knitters!

I have been looking for my camera all day today, and guess what? I can't find it. That's what happens when you have four kids, things mysteriously disappear and no one knows anything about it. I have some fun hats that I am knitting for Christmas gifts that I want to share as soon as I find that camera!

Ok, about those book corrections or errata if you prefer, I can't tell you how much it pains me to have any corrections to my book at all. It hurts, it really hurts. I apologize. I have written them down to the best of my knowledge, and they are posted on my online store address at www.shopabcsoup.com. I will get a permanent link up here soon, but not tonight. Anyway, there aren't many errors and they will be fixed in the next printing of Itty-Bitty. Check it out if you are knitting from the book to make sure you have the updates.

On to happier news, my next book is on the way to the technical editor! The photographs are in and they are beautiful. I am so excited about this new book!!! I can't wait. I'll get it back in a couple of weeks, and then I will be back to work. In the mean time, it is Christmas prep overload for me. My manuscript is due back in New York on December 20th, just in time for Christmas. That means I have to be organized this year. I usually work on getting ready for Christmas right up until the last minute. Oh well, it may be fun to try to get ready early for once. We'll see if I can actually pull it off.

best, susie

Table of Hats & Some Knitting News

Hi Knitters!

Well, I have been busy knitting, as always. I am selling my wares, or hats in this case, at an upcoming show. The art gallery show is called, Colored Threads, and it is a wearable art show. I have done this show a couple of times before, and it is a lot of fun.

The Colored Threads showing is from November 22nd through January 8th, at:

Katie Gingrass Gallery
241 North Broadway
Milwaukee, WI 53202
414.289.9255
www.gingrassgallery.com

I am selling 25 of my original hat designs, knitted by me! Also, I have autographed copies of Itty-Bitty Hats to offer. I don't know the other artists who are in the show, but in the past there were handbags, jewelry (loads of), woven shawls, handmade clothing, etc. It has been great before, so hopefully it will be this year, too!

If you are wondering about my crazy coffee table, I will post about that soon!

I have discovered 2 new podcasts that may be worth a listen, Sleepy Eyes Knits and Sticks and String. The latter is a man in Australia who is rather interesting. Sleepy Eyes Knits is a 33 year-old mother who has a cute voice, and a fun take on knitting! Try these out and see if you like them. I am definitely tuning in again. You can find out about these on itunes.

Also, did you see Julia Roberts is set to star in and produce The Friday Night Knitting Club? This is a novel about a knitting group that is set to be released in January 2007. I love it that Julia knits, and in fact I knitted a sweater she helped design many years ago that was on the cover of a non-knitting magazine, like Redbook or something. It turned out really cute! I should find that and take a picture.

Anyway, the more knitting that is out there, the better! Julia even worked her knitting into a scene of the Broadway play she was in recently. Gotta love that.

Happy knitting!
best, susie

Loop-d-Loop On My Girl-e-Girl!

Hi Knitters!

Loop-d-Loop by Teva Durham is one of my favorite books. It is so innovative and inspiring. I read it like a novel from cover to cover, and I revisit it often. I have knitted many of the projects from this book, and I have many lined up waiting to be knit. Here is one of them completed. This is my youngest daughter wearing the "child's geek spiral pullover."

I had to do a lot of remedying on the sizing because it was running very small and the neck opening was so tiny. Cotton chenille has no give whatsoever, so keep this in mind when using this yarn. I also added a picot edging on the hood with a crochet hook and the dark pink chenille. I made the largest size that is a 4-6 years. I made this 2 summers ago, so my daughter would have been 5 years old. It was not even close to fitting her, thus the extensions on the bottom and side edges, and she is average size. I still love the sweater and even with the funny add-ons, it looks great on her.

I used the Crystal Palace cotton chenille and a US size 6 needle. It was so much fun to knit the patterned front. You should try this pattern and you will quickly see how simple and fun it is. You start in the middle and work your way out and around picking up stitches and making triangles. The swirling front would make a fantastic pillow or baby blanket as well.

Anyway, this has turned out to be one of her favorite sweaters and she wears it often, like several times a week, even to soccer games in the rain and mud and for messy pumpkin carving. I love seeing her in it. I have washed the sweater repeatedly in the machine, and I lay it flat to dry. It holds up well.

Teva is a genius in Loop-d-Loop. I hope she has a second book very soon, I will buy it sight unseen! My rating here is a double thumbs-up!

best, susie

Tilli Tomas, Cereal and Coloring?

Hi Knitters!

This is my youngest daughter, my budding artist. She dreams of crafts and colors all day long. I eat it up! The top of her name poem says "m is for makes crafts." She is dear to my heart.

She is wearing a scarf I finished recently. It is made from 2 skeins of Tilli Tomas Disco Lights. I used US size 8 needles to create a basket weave stitch. The drape on this scarf is incredible. I absolutely love the finished result.

Scarf pattern:

Cast on 40 stitches.
Row 1: (k5, p5) repeat to the end of the row
Rows 2-6: repeat row 1
Row 7: (p5, k5) repeat to the end of the row
Rows 8-12: repeat row 7

Continue repeating rows 1-12 until you reach the desired length, and bind off.

My scarf is 74 inches, 8 inches wide, knit at 5 stitches per inch. I have bought this yarn at both kpixie and purl. The basket weave is the perfect stitch to show off the natural beauty of this yarn. Tilli Tomas is beautiful, rich, drapey silk, run with sequins, beads or crystals. Check it out when you get a chance!

best, susie

Braided Mischief at Knitting for Noggins

Hi Knitters!

This scarf is from Scarf Style and is called "braided mischief" by Teva Durham. I used US size 10.5 needles with a double strand of Elsbeth Lavold's silky wool in ivory. I love this cabled pattern and it is so easy to memorize. With one repeat, you will have it down. I didn't add the tabs at the edges as I like it as it is.

I started this scarf when I was coming home from Little Rock, Arkansas where I was the guest host for the Knitting for Noggins charity knitting event. Boy, did I have a great time down there. You should check out the website for this charity hat knitting drive. It is at www.archildrens.org and it is under Knitting for Noggins. There you will find free hat patterns, photos from the knit-a-thon, and there is even a webcast of me speaking at the event. Really, I was so impressed with this event. The woman running everything, Robin Armstrong, was so kind, and she did a super job raising 1,400 hats in just one day. They already had 5,000 hats sent to the organization, which is a children's hospital, and their goal is to raise 10,000 hats. I don't know the current number they are up to, but I am sure it is high.

I created a free pattern, amongst other people, for a helicopter hat. It is a great hat, but the photo doesn't show the helicopter feature very well. You will just have to trust me and make it anyway!

The Knitting Tree event last week in Madison was terrific. The turn out was good, and we had a wonderful time chatting about the book and knitting in general. Thanks to everyone who came, both new and old friends, I appreciate it. This is a treat of a shop, which was recently featured in a new book about Wisconsin with a photo spread. I can't remember the name of that book, but I will find it. Please patronize this shop if you are in town, and you will be pleased with the wonderful staff and wide selection of beautiful yarns.

best, susie

Knitting Tree Window

Hi Knitters!

This is the Knitting Tree window display with some of the hats from my book. This quaint little yarn shop is on Monroe Street in Madison. This street is quintessential Madison to me, and I love it. There are schools, locally owned shops and restaurants running up and down the street that leads to the University of Wisconsin stadium. There is much cultural flair and color nestled into this bustling area. Monroe Street really comes to life in the fall and it brings back a lot of memories for me.

Anyway, I am looking forward to the event tomorrow night. I am glad to have the opportunity to spend some time here.

best, susie

Halloween in Noro

Hi Knitters!

Here is my Halloween costume for 2006! I really went all out with my disquise.

Yesterday I had an interview with Jennifer of Craftsanity. I am going to be on an upcoming podcast. It was very fun talking with her. When I was on tour for Itty-Bitty in Grand Rapids, Michigan she came to my event. We had lunch the next day and had a good time chatting about knitting and crafting. For the interview we talked for almost 2 hours, but it went so fast that I didn't even realize it was that long until I glanced at the clock at the end. That is a good sign, I hope!

On Thursday, November 2nd I am giving a talk and having a book signing event at The Knitting Tree here in Madison from 6:30-8:30pm. I hope to see lots of Madison knitters there. It is on Monroe Street and the new owner Jackie Shanahan is just wonderful. I am going to sneak down to take some pictures of the cute window display we set up last week to show the hats from the book. I will post that later.

All is well on this chilly, but sunny Halloween day. My kids are so excited to trick or treat tonight. Our neighborhood really does it up big, so it is extra fun! My sweet Noro skinny rib will keep me toasty I am sure.

best, susie

Wisdom

Hi Knitters!

The wisdom teeth extraction went fine. It is difficult to see one of your children go through pain to say the least. Today is a better day for him and all seems fine.

I am on the last sleeve of my Kureyon skinny ribbed sweater. It is delicious. I was knitting in the waiting room yesterday and the receptionist called me over to look at this sweater. All of a sudden there were 5 office people gathered around admiring the colors. They were so interested, I told them they definitely needed to start knitting! They all laughed.

Sometimes when you knit in public you can attract a lot of attention, like it or not. I usually sit in a corner or out of the way seat in waiting rooms, so I don't gather attention while I knit. I also knit low in my lap so people don't notice as much. Anyway, the knitting was a good distraction to have to ease my worry in this case. I knit in public all of the time, almost every day, but sometimes I don't feel like talking about it or answering lots of questions. Other times it is fine. It just depends on the day and the situation. I am always cordial no matter what because I like to promote knitting as much as possible when people approach me. I think public knitting can spark an interest in non-knitters.

I promise pictures of the sweater as soon as I finish.

best, susie

Yarnplay Hat

Hi Knitters!

This is my son in his hat from Yarnplay. I think it looks terrific!

Tomorrow he is getting his wisdom teeth removed. He is a calm, good sport about everything, so I know it will be okay.

best, susie

Yarnplay by Lisa Shobhana Mason

Hi Knitters!

I just finished this scarf for my father-in-law's birthday gift for the upcoming weekend. Let me tell you a brief story about the hat that lead to this scarf.

My son, who is just shy of 15, asked me to knit him a hat. I jumped at the chance to knit my teenager a hat, what could be better than that? I had just bought Yarnplay, by Lisa Shobhana Mason, which is a great book, by the way, and it was laying about the house. He apparently looked through it and picked out "sidetracked" as a hat he wanted to wear. Again, I was thrilled.

We sat down and ordered the yarn online, he wanted the exact colors in the book, so that's what we did. We waited anxiously for the yarn to arrive, it came quickly from www.yarn.com and www.jimmybeanswool.com, two of my favorites. The hat is made from 3 colorways of Filatura di Crosa 127 Print, and it is striped throughout the hat. I didn't take a picture of the hat to share, because he has it with him right now. I'll see if I can catch him later for a photo.

Anyway, being a hat designer myself, I really wanted to make my own pattern, but with him identifying with the hat in the picture so positively, I thought it was best to stick to the pattern. I haven't followed a hat pattern for years, but I did just that! It is a terrific pattern, and the colors look great together. I made the medium size hat on size 9 needles. It fits him like a glove. I finished the hat in a matter of a couple of hours of off-and-on knitting, it is an easy, fun pattern-good job Lisa! He slapped it right on and wore it to school the next day. I am so happy about it, and he is, too. It was a fun project to do together.

Quick-Tip for hat knitting: Measure around the person's head (the head that will wear the hat of course!) at the forehead just above the eyebrows, and just above the ears. Whatever this measurement is, subtract 1 inch. This is the measurement you should use to determine the size of the hat you are making. Hats should be snug on the head! By subtracting the inch (sometimes I even subtract 2 inches depending on the hat), you insure a better fitting hat. No one wants a loose, baggy cap.

Now about that scarf, I had a lot of 127 Print left after the hat. My father-in-law is turning 74 this week, and we are going out for dinner to celebrate with him this weekend. He has everything, so it is difficult to think of an exciting gift to give him. I decided to make him a slight variation of the "sidetracked" scarf from Yarnplay. I used the 3 colorways of 127 Print which are numbers 14, 18, and 21. I then added tan, teal, and moss colors of Montera by Classic Elite. This was in my stash and has a similar quality to the 127 Print, and is about the same gauge. I casted on the long way with size 9 needles (circular Knit Picks Options, 32-inch). This pattern I really didn't follow exactly. I just alternated garter stitch and seed stitch and colors as I went. I just do what feels good to my eye. I think this is a great pattern from Lisa no matter how closely you follow it. I haven't made men's scarves so it is great to have a guide on length and width.

I think it is a masculine and handsome scarf that any man would wear! I hope it is a hit. Get this new book, Yarnplay, it has a lot to offer!

best, susie

One Bowl of Kureyon, Please!

Hi Knitters!
Here it is, in its complete glory. It looks like Kureyon on a platter from above. Where's my fork?
best, susie

New Sweater, Old Yarn

Hi Knitters!

This is the sweater I started yesterday. The yarn is Noro Kureyon, I don't know the number. My sweet sister gave this yarn to me last year for my birthday and it has been so hectic that I haven't gotten to it yet. This Kureyon has been on display in my family room in a ginormous green bowl for all to enjoy, mainly me. I am loving it knitted up, even more than I anticipated.

The pattern is a skinny ribbed sweater from the Noro 2 collection by one of my all-time faves, Debbie Bliss (j'adore!). I have already knit this sweater before in a different color-way of Kureyon many years ago. How boring, you wonder? No way! I love, cherish and wear this other sweater to death all winter long. I could really use another one. This style of sweater is my favorite, simple lines with a turtleneck.

I am knitting it on a size 8 needle at 4 stitches per inch, with my new Knit Picks Options needles. The binder is great, but I do need a few more pockets. The needles on the right side of the binder are the double-pointeds, which I have yet to try. A review will be coming soon...

My sister, mom and I went to lunch yesterday for my current birthday. My sister came through again with a gift certificate to Lakeside Fibers, a local yarn shop. Love her! Even better she bought the certificate at her school's silent auction so the money went to the school, how smart is that?

I will write about Lakeside Fibers at a later date because it is one of the most exquisite yarn shops around, and it is right here in Madison. We are lucky.

best, susie

Uh-oh Addi Turbo

Hi Knitters!
I am starting a sweater (pictures to come!) with my new Knit Picks Options needles and are they ever fantastic! I have had a love of Addi Turbo needles for years, but now I am highly suggesting the Knit Picks Options. Here's what I like about them:

1. The point of attachment of the needle to the cable is incredibly smooth, no snags here.

2. The needle itself is smooth as silk, it has a great slide factor. The faster the better!

3. The cable is very flexible, but not flimsy, plus it is purple which is kind of fun.

4. The price is right, what a steal for a fantastic product. Really, check out the prices. Compared to the Addi Turbo needles, it is a huge savings.

5. The most important and unique feature is the point of the needle. It is sharp, the sharpest I've ever used and I love it! I really can't get over how sharp the point is, it is excellent.

Check out these needles at www.knitpicks.com. You can buy an entire set or just try out a single size, there are also double-pointed needles, too.

I will have pictures up soon. Right after I posted for the first time, my camera dropped and stopped working. I had to pick up a new camera and I will get that going in the next couple of days.
best, susie

A-#1 post!

Hi Knitters!

I am starting this blog to keep in touch with all of the wonderful people I have met on the road this past month while touring for my first book, Itty-Bitty Hats!

This will be a short post due to the pending deadline for my second book! I am plugging away as always on my manuscript, but am so short of time right now. I have just over a week to finish up a huge amount of writing. However, I just wanted to get this started once and for all! I have been dreaming about this blog for months.

Thanks for all of the wonderful support, it has been great. I will post again soon with lots of knitting news and descriptions of my knitting adventures.

I completed these socks over the last couple of weeks. They provided some much needed company while traveling alone. I had my 14-year-old son take this shot and help me load it onto the blog. I don't know how to do this myself yet, but I plan on learning quick so I can share my many projects with you.

Check back soon for more!
best, susie