Happy New Year and a Pattern Promo!

Much has happened since the last post, and not just the holidays!


There has been knitting and traveling and working, but necessarily in that order. I wish there had been more knitting, but it just hasn't worked out that way!

As requested, I sized up the original Pop Top Mittens to make a new pattern, Pop Top Mittens for Adults.  These are written in 7 sizes for 7-10" palm circumferences. That should fit just about everybody! They are easy to lengthen or shorten to accommodate specific hands. (For the record, that big 'ole pine cone is a North Carolina special... I would be shocked to find one that size here in Kansas!)

From now through February, the bundled mitten patterns are on sale in my Ravelry shop. If you bought the original Pop Top Mittens (kid's sizes 2-10 yrs), you will get the same discount for purchasing just the adult pattern. 


I knit these mittens while traveling, one mitten flying east, and one mitten flying west. On the first flight, one of the attendants was a knitter. She challenged me to get one done before we landed... and, well, I made it, except for the thumb!

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On a personal note, the traveling was not all in fun. Thanksgiving on the east coast was an in-place plan. However, by mid-October my Dad's health began to deteriorate rapidly, so I flew out for a last visit, only to return a week later for his funeral.  Dad was the original catalyst for starting me down the stitching path. Somehow he had the insight to know I would enjoy it. He started me out by ordering printed cross stitch kits from Ladies Home Journal. Those kits evolved into a love of embroidery, sewing, knitting, and crochet. I know he was proud of my knitting, I'll never know if I would have ever found this passion without his gentle nudging so long ago.

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What will 2012 bring?  As usual, there is much more in my head than I can possibly ever humanly produce. First up, I will be repurposing a sweater that I knit about 20 years ago for my Grandmother with some really special German yarn. Styles and body shapes are much different.... I'll post about it when this evolution is complete.


Happy stitching!  And be on the lookout for a new edition of Petite Purls next week!

Hannah's Hugs

Woo Hoo!! It's knitting season and I just released a  new pattern... introducing Hannah's Hugs!  

Not only do I love the design, but the model is just too darn cute!  This is a classic, warm, layerable (is that a word?) winter dress for little girls.

The dress instructions call for DK yarn with sock yarn edgings (doesn't take much, so it's a great use of leftover sock yarn!). The edgings can be knit or crocheted - your preference. Instructions are included for both techniques, with the resulting edging being the same. The cord can also be knit or crocheted.  Hooray for versatility!

Cast on at the hem edge and work skirt in one piece to the underarms, then the fronts and back are completed separately. Sleeves are worked in the round, then set in to the armholes. Instructions are completely written for sizes 12 months - 6 years; schematics are included, as are charts for the pattern stitches.

Sorry, pink boots aren't included  : ( 

As My World Turns...

The month of September has flown by!

We began the month with a Labor Day trip to St Louis to see DD and her fiance. Good times!  DD knows I love Snoopy... 

This was an early birthday gift. 

This photo was taken in a macro photo studio that DH and I made with materials on hand + less than $3. We found the instructions to make it here. I wish I had done this sooner. It's been fun playing with the camera and lighting.... indulge me, and you'll see more pics like this below!  : )

Next stop: Aspen, Colorado. What a beautiful place to spend my actual birthday.  

Pyramid Peak - approach road to Maroon Bells, early morning 9/12/11

The leaves were just starting to turn while we were there. 

This was our biking trip and Aspen did not disappoint. We were very fortunate that the rain throughout the week was so patchy that it never interfered with our plans. We rode many, many miles on the Rio Grande Trail, part of the national Rails to Trails initiative. 

Didn't we all read the Boxcar Children book series when we were kids? These rail cars are actual residences - with plumbing and outdoor decks. Not quite a boxcar, but interesting!

As always, I like the wildflowers.

We also rode the open sections of Glenwood Canyon along the Colorado River which parallels I-70 (part of the trail was washed out in the spring floods and is under repair). 

We stopped to watch an eagle soaring along the high rock faces of the canyon. I think that was the one ride when I didn't have the camera - darn! 

Our big achievement was riding to Maroon Bells - 11 miles of steady uphill riding from Aspen, ending at about 9600 ft above sea level. That's mighty thin air!

We stopped a couple of times along the way for 'photo ops'. Translated, that means we stopped to let some oxygen back into our lungs and muscles - we are 'flat-landers', after all! The ride down was scary fast!! This ride was much more difficult than the Rio Grande or Glenwood Canyon Trails, but what a sense of accomplishment when you get to the top! 

Vacation always means shopping for yarn souvenirs.

I bought this yummy Manos at the Aspen Yarn Gallery, a fun little shop in the heart of town. If you go there, look up. The shop is on the second floor. The owner, Jan, stocks her shop with some really fun and funky stuff. This colorway is #798, Pansy.  I took it to my hometown LYS last week and matched it up to another yarn. This will be a great accent to a design that is still spinning in my head.

I also bought 4 feet (yes, it is sold by the foot) of "dreadlock yarn" in shades of purple. The wool is from the curly hair of Surry sheep. The flock is from Fort Collins, CO, but the spinning and dyeing is done in Taos, NM. You can find it here or here. This will be a fun accent to something... not quite sure what, but it won't sit around for too long. Notice there is a purple theme going here? This yarn reminds of Ozark Handspun, if you're familiar with that.

Finally, on the way back out of the mountains, we stopped for lunch in Frisco, CO, and, as luck would have it, there was an LYS on the main street of town. Inside, I found a happy group of knitters (who recommended a great lunch spot) and some Mountain Colors Crazyfeet - hand painted yarn in the Red Willow colorway. This is definitely destined to be a pair of socks. 

In between there has been a lot of tech editing. A new issue of Petite Purls went live a few days ago, and I am hard at work on lots of other projects.  

I was pleasantly surprised that Knit Picks featured my Pop Top Mittens in their current catalog - I can never complain about free advertising! 

A few sts get knit here and there. DD#2's college soccer conference games begin this weekend, so there will definitely be some short road trip knitting!

Three cheers for fall weather!  ~~ 'til next time,  Joan

After the Dry Spell

I have finally managed to put the finishing touches on a new crochet pattern, The Delano Shawl. You can follow the link for all the specifics. Pattern includes written instructions and charts.

There is something about this pattern that I really love... not sure if it's something specific, or it it's the overall look and feel. The design just seemed to come together perfectly.

I like that the body starts out on the long edge of the triangle and gets smaller as you work. 

I love that the body is only a 2-row repeat (please forgive the fact that this photo is upside-down).

I like the ruffle that was definitely inspired by Kate Middleton. You don't even have to include it if you don't care for ruffles. You could easily stop after the Puff Sts. And if you are not a fan of Puff Sts, you could substitute 3-dc Clusters for those. 

I love the colors, even though the orangy/rusty/salmony palette is not the best combo for me (I'll end up gifting this, most likely). 

 I didn't like the fact that it was 100+ degrees when we photographed it. :(
I can attest that this is a warm shawl!

I have a couple more fall patterns nearly ready to go... but there are a handful of indie patterns and a couple of bigger tech editing projects in my queue that stand in their way. Plus there's a long anticipated vacation that is now only a week away!!! I am looking forward to stitching time and a vacation LYS excursion.

Be on the lookout for Mr Moose, remember him?  

He will definitely be making a pattern appearance soon!

Necessity IS the Mother of Invention!

Yet another lapse in posting. Once again I am full of good intentions, but not too great at acting on my good intentions.

A couple of months ago while hobbling around on crutches and depending on DH and DS#2 to bring things to me, I came up with the idea to crochet a pretty alternative to sports backpacks. Being so dependent on others was tough for me. A backpack allowed me to carry a book/camera/magazine/yarn, etc... from place to place all by myself. Thus, Mill Stream Backpack (Ravelry link) was born. Nowadays, with a healing leg, Mill Stream has become my biking backpack. This would be a perfect gift for a busy Mom of little ones, too.... really for anyone who needs the use of both of their hands! It works up fairly quickly, especially the lace section.

The cords are anchored through hammered-in eyelets (available in fabric stores).

I double-lined this project; white fabric on the outside to provide contrast to the yarn and show off the lace, and a coordinating print on the inside. The pattern includes a diagram for weaving the cords. Complete text instructions are included and there is a stitch chart for the lace pattern. I used Nomotta Catania for my backpack, but any lightweight cotton that is spun firmly would work (Patons Grace, Katia Bombay or Tahki Cotton Classic Light come to mind).

Last weekend, we made a day trip to Kansas City for Father's Day. We brought DD#2's bike to her, and together we biked a section of the Mill Creek Streamway path (hence the name for this design). It was HOT, so we especially enjoyed the shady stretches along the water. There are more hills in KC than in Wichita - good training for our September bike trip to Colorado (more on that in the fall, and I have already mapped out LYS to visit!).

Summer is in full swing. I stepped out to check the mail, went back for my camera, and this butterfly was still on my coneflowers when I returned.

Knit, Crochet, and.....

Multiple choice test:

Why has it been so long since I updated this blog?

(a) I spent all my spare time knitting and crocheting.

(b) I have been too busy tech editing patterns to update.

(c) I broke my leg and had surgery.

(d) I was away on vacation.

(e) I took a photography class.

(f) All of the above are at least partially true.

The correct answer is (f) but things didn't necessarily happen in that order. While I was away on vacation, (c) happened. That was a month ago. Breaking a leg is not recommended, especially on vacation. And breaking both your tib + fib so that now you have a titanium rod and 5 screws is really not recommended. I am currently a cabin-fever crazed woman who is looking forward to walking without crutches (and I am working on that). I will spare you the photo (HIPAA??? - ha, my kids had the xrays on Facebook the night it happened), just know that it doesn't take a trained eye to see that I did a grand job.

Truly, the point of this post was supposed to be the introduction of a new pattern, Lattice and Ivy, not just to play catch-up. I crocheted this shawl last summer, created charts, but never quite managed to put it all together until now. The center of this shawl works up really quickly. The Irish crochet leaf edging takes a little more time, but as the focal point of the shawl, the leaves are worth the time.

In my absence, winter turned to spring. Despite the leg, I managed to plant some primroses in the container on our front porch. That was something I could do sitting down. : ) Carrying liquids on crutches to water said plants is a tall order, so DH has obediently watered them for me.

He has also played the valiant role of taxi driver and sous-chef. He sets me up for the day before he goes to work and usually comes by at lunch to see if I need anything. He is a bit blown away by all the extra stuff he does on my behalf. I can't imagine what we would do if I worked outside our home.

I have been knitting. Actually, I have probably knit and crocheted more than usual. I can't vacuum or drive or do a lot of cooking, so I have taken full advantage of the down time to work on a few projects. Heck, I even had to sew one of the velcro straps on my orthopaedic boot back together. That means I operated the sewing machine with my left foot. It felt weird.

The yarn that I last posted about is now a scarf.

I call it the Cabbage Scarf -- I think it looks like a cabbage when it's rolled up. Actually, in this photo it also looks like a backwards apostrophe or a comma. The ruffles are kind of fun and different. The pattern link is here.

I got a little obsessed with using up scraps of cotton yarn and turning them into coasters. I love a 20 minute project! Except that I made 40 of these 20-minute projects and I still have scraps of cotton. I will be gifting some cotton coasters.

On the tech editing front, another issue of Petite Purls has gone live and another one is in the works. Dutch Knitting, My Little CityGirl, Woodhouse Knits and NelkinDesigns have kept me busy (to name a few), not to mention Leisure Arts.

And Easter is just around the corner... look who stopped by my desk window today. I did take a photography class in Feb-Mar and learned a lot, not that it's evident in this shot, but I didn't want to miss the opportunity.

He ate a dandelion but left my plants alone.... and he best not go near my strawberries!!!

More knitting. I finished a really different poncho that I will write up and release for the fall. I have a summer top on the needles at the itty-bitty gauge of 6.5 sts per inch. The colors in it remind me of Indian Blanket.

Stay tuned. I'll be back before another 3 months have gone by. Until then, beware of the crazy woman who drives the electric carts at Wichita stores!!!

It's Not Winter Today

Yesterday and today have been a welcome mid-winter respite with temps in the low 70s. Notice the salt on the driveway?! That's a sure sign that the cold is not gone for good.

Of course the freaky warm days won't last, but we took advantage of it while we could. Tomorrow will be back to chilly, and by the middle of the week, it will be snowy and downright cold again... stay-inside-and-knit kind of cold... with a daytime high of 17. Hrmph! It seems like a recipe for pneumonia after these warm days! DH and I enjoyed a long bike ride late yesterday afternoon, and I rode again today to do some errands. Do you think anybody at Hobby Lobby or the grocery cared that I had helmet hair? Too bad!

DH and I are hoping to bike up to view this in late September. Seeing Aspen in the fall has been on my bucket list for a long time! We are challenging ourselves to the 10-miles-uphill-in-thin-air trip. The ride down will be fun! Stay tuned... and I wonder if there is a LYS in Aspen?

Stash enhancement! I stopped at Hillcreek Yarn Shoppe in Columbia, MO on the way home from St Louis a couple of weeks ago. The shop is literally a half block off of I-70 (exit 127 - I know it by heart, and the shop is on the left, just south of the highway). DD#2 was with me and picked out the RainForest colorway for this quick and fun scarf. It's Liberty Wool from Classic Elite and it's a washable merino - love that. The variegated colorways are all very pretty!

Why was I in St Louis? DD#1 is getting married to Mr. Wonderful (yes really), so we shopped for her gown (found it), looked at bridesmaid's dresses (picked one), and looked at venue choice #1 for the reception (fun, fun, fun place!). DD#1 and her fiance are going to "crash" a party in a couple of weeks to see how the place looks when it's full of people and all decorated. I think they will see that it will work for them. It was a whirlwind of a weekend, but a lot was accomplished.

Here's the view from our hotel room. How cool is this? DD's future MIL found an awesome deal on a travel web site and invited me to share this room. We were like teenage girls (or maybe even preteens) talking until all hours of the night. Too much fun!

I haven't spent much time knitting lately - too busy doing other things (mainly tech editing knit and crochet patterns for others). I'm inspired by all the creativity. I just wish I didn't have to sleep so I could do more of it myself!