My Cubix pattern is live!!!

Yay, the new issue of Popknits is live! Check it out http://www.popknits.com/. I am so excited to be the featured pattern on the front page!

My Texturize Pattern is Up!!!

After having a lot of problems with the website, the Winter 2008 issue of Knotions is up!! There are a lot of great pattterns in this issue, including my hat pattern, Texturize. Be sure to check it out! http://www.knotions.com/

Knotions Winter 2008

The preview for Knotions Winter 2008 is up! I am so excited to have a pattern published in it! Woohoo! My pattern is a hat called Texturize and it incorporates 6 different sections of textures. The preview can be found here http://www.knotions.com/issues/winter_2008/preview.aspx

Exhausted!

I am finally, FINALLY finished with my pattern submission for the winter issue of Popknits. I spent the entire weekend and a good portion of this evening crunching numbers for my pattern. I thought to myself last week, oh that shouldn't be too hard I could do it in a day. And yet all that math was bending my brain all weekend long. Sometimes the numbers just don't add up and I yell to myself WHY WHY WHY??? I have a degree in fashion, sat through all those patternmaking and grading classes and yet it still all baffles me. Makes me wonder if all the fabulous knitting designers that I admire (Ysolda Teague, Joan McGowan-Michael, etc) have problems grading their patterns too.

But now I can relax for awhile and dream up new ideas for spring. Oh, and I can spend more time with my part-time (soon to be full-time) dog that insists on sitting on my lap while I'm trying to work.

LA County Fair

Went to the LA County Fair last Saturday. It was a lot of fun! Quite humid in the morning and then HOT in the afternoon, but definitely worth all the sweating. Of course, the first thing I did was run straight over to the Tapestry building. I entered 3 projects: a handwoven faux ikat shawl, an entrelac scarf, and a burgundy cardigan using Joan McGowan-Michael's pattern "Colette". Of all three projects, I thought the handwoven shawl would have won something, but the judges surprised me. No ribbon for the shawl, but I was lucky enough to get 2nd place for my entrelac scarf and third place for my cargidan.

Someone working for the fair saw me taking a picture of my cardigan and asked me what pattern I used and where she could buy it. I was happy to tell her (it is a great pattern, after all). She said she wasn't a judge but she was there while the judges were going over all the projects, and apparently they really liked my sweater, but thought I didn't do a good job of blocking it so they took off a few points. Oops.. I guess my blocking skills need some improvement. I think that sweater was my first attempt at sewing pieces together and blocking.

I'm already thinking about what I can enter in the fair next year! I guess I have a lot of time to think up something fabulous, and to practice blocking :)

After visiting the Tapestry building, I went over to see all the barnyard animals. I loved the petting zoo, I tried to makes friends with the goats but they just liked me for the food I had in my hand. There were a few sheep that looked like they desperately needed to be sheared, I can't imagine how hot they were in the 90 degree heat.

Accepted!!!!

Yay!!! I am so excited!! Finally, one of my designs has been accepted! After several rejections, I finally got to read those magic words, that my design has been accepted. It will be in the Winter issue of Popknits. Of course, I can't give away any of the details ;)

This is really great news because the last week was a bit lousy. First I got a flat tire, which isn't too bad but still an annoyance. Then the next day I got into a fender bender on the freeway. It was my first car accident, and getting hit at 50 mph was pretty scary. My bumper is hanging off and my trunk won't close, so I'm trying not to drive too much. I spent the weekend at home and couldn't even go visit my boyfriend because he lives 20 miles away. I mostly watched Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly musicals on TCM, and I feel like at any moment I'm going to break into song and start tap dancing. But now it seems like things are looking up. I'm getting my car checked out tomorrow, and hopefully take it to the body shop to be fixed.

Sending in my proposal was the easy part, now I have to get knitting! Going off now to click my knitting needles.

98 cent store is a mountain of gold

On my way home from the gym today, I remembered that I wanted to get some blank notebooks to organize my knitting notes. I had already passed the office supply stores and didn't want to turn around, so I had to think about what stores were on the way home. I remembered there was a 98 cent store I had never been to, so tonight was the night to check it out. I walk in and was amazed to see row after row of narrow aisles jam packed with stuff. Videos, light bulbs, cleaning products, food, you name it and it was there. I found my notebooks right away and just wandered down every aisle. And then I saw it, hidden in the back corner. Is it?... yes, it is. Its yarn. YARN! I practically leaped over a stack of bottled water and was faced with a wall full of yarn. It was cheap acrylic yarn, but for 98 cents, who cares? They were in very pretty colors and the yarn label claims the yarn is finished with aloe, so it isn't too scratchy. I am planning on making a dog blanket, so this was the perfect find. They were many variegated colors, which I am a big sucker for, so I just started pulling out ball after ball of yarn. My arms were completely filled, and of course I hadn't gotten a basket on the way in (because I was just getting notebooks, right?). Well I didn't want to go all the way back to the entrance, so I hopped over to the laundry aisle and got a big plastic basket and I filled it with yarn. Yes, I think I have a problem. I had better find a lot of dogs to knit blanekts for. Sorry the picture is blurry, I drank coffee today and it makes me a little wacky :)