I was lucky enough to have one of my earliest designs (Cartouche Shawl) published in Knitty magazine. So it is such an honour to have my newest design featured as one of their Winter 2014 surprises.

Introducing Twisted Circles Shawl, the companion piece to Twisted Circles Cowl which I posted about yesterday. Coming soon – a blog post about utilizing the same stitch patterns to such different effect in these two pieces.

I’m thrilled to finally release Herzblut Scarf. This scarf has been ready for a while but I was saving it to release during the Indie Designer Gift-A-Long 2014. This scarf is perfect for chasing away winter blues. Select a brilliant jewel tone like the deep red shown in the sample or something that will make you smile on a grey day. The scarf is designed to take advantage of the generous yardage of Wollmeise ‘Pure 100% Merino Superwash.’

It’s that time of year again, your airwaves will be filled with stores trumpeting their Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales to anyone who will listen. How to cut through the noise and find out if your favourite designer or yarnie is having a sale? Marlybird knows and she’s once again created a comprehensive list of designers, yarn companies, etsy sellers, etc.

Most sales start on November 28 and run through to end of day December 1. Double check the list however, some have special codes good for one day only.

Once again I am participating – this is your last chance to buy one of my designs on sale, until November 2015 that is. Use the code bfcm2014 for 20% any of the designs in my Ravelry store.

I had fully intended to send out a newsletter over the summer but somehow it just never happened. Really, that seems to be the way with a lot of things I intend to do during the summer. This issue talks about the Gift-A-Long and Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales (hint – they are the only time in the year that my designs go on sale) and a bit about the newest designs.

Question: Ever considered test knitting or sample knitting? I’ll be looking for some experienced knitters to do some sample/test knitting early in the new year. If you’re interested, please look for the sign up form in the sidebar and add your name to the newsletter list. The first call for knitters will go out to newsletter recipients.

Read the latest issue of the newsletter here!

Everyone is quite excited that the Indie Designer Gift-A-Long 2014 will start in two days. I have selected 20 of my designs that will be on sale for 25% off from Thursday, November 13th at 8:00 pm US EST – Friday, November 21, 2014 at 11:59 pm US EST. The collage below is the one I developed to promote my bundle of sale patterns. Edited to note: since the sale portion of the GAL is now over, I have removed the link to the sale patterns and linked to my full portfolio instead to avoid any confusion.

Join today! There are thousands of prizes to be won, lots of chatting in the GAL threads and holiday knitting/crocheting to be completed.

From the Ravelry Group:
What is Gift-A-Long? It’s a multi-designer promotion to help you kick your holiday gift-making into high gear!

The Indie Design Gift-A-Long is a 2 month long KAL/CAL of holiday gifts made from patterns designed by a rather extensive list of independent designers. From Thursday, November 13th at 8:00 pm US EST – Friday, November 21, 2014 at 11:59 pm US EST tons of indie designers will be discounting between 4 – 20 of their patterns 25% for this event. You can read all about the details in this post: click here and find a list of the 293 participating designers, with photos, here.

Once you’ve got your Gift-A-Long patterns, we encourage you to join a relevant KAL/CAL! (For instance, if it is a cowl, please join the cowl KAL/CAL.) To join, simply write a post in the KAL/CAL thread you want to join, including the pattern name you will be knitting and a link to your project page. KAL/CAL participants are eligible for lots of lovely prizes but you gotta post to win!

80skeins collated all the stats and created the amazing infographic below. The organizers have put a lot of effort into this event, I think we’re going to blow last year out of the water. I have my cast on for Thursday night already planned!

The Sinuosity Shawl went live a few weeks ago, but somehow time flew and I never managed to post a blog entry for it. Sinuous waves flow through the body of this top-down, triangular shawl, highlighted by the luster and drape inherent in the longwool fibres of the Blue Faced Leicester fibre (String Theory Hand Dyed Yarn ‘Bluestocking’). If substituting yarn, select a wool blend that has contains silk to achieve the same amount of drape.

Construction Note: Sinuosity Shawl begins with a lace “tab,” a common method for beginning top-down, triangular shawls. As the Sinuosity Shawl has a panel down the centre, the tab “strip” is longer. A link to instructions for this technique is provided in the Links section of this pattern. Instructions are included for both a narrow (shown in sample worn by model) and wide (shown in edging close up) edging option.

Note: Sinuosity Shawl is part of Gift-A-Long 2014. My bundle of participating patterns is a collection of accessories – perfect for your holiday knitting. Happy knitting and gifting! 25% off these during the GAL sale from November 13-21 with the code “giftalong2014”. Learn more about Gift-A-Long 2014 here.

Fossetta means “dimple” in Italian and this stitch pattern really reminds me of dimples in fabric. It may be late for winter in some parts of the world, but really, can one with ever go wrong with a cozy cowl or hat?

The red-brown cowl is knit with Verdant Gryphon’s beautiful Mondegreen worsted yarn, a divine concoction of Blue Faced Leicester, Silk and Camel. (A mondegreen is a misheard phrase, especially a song lyric and this colourway is “I Like Smoking Ice Cream”) Mondegreen is a seasonal yarn for Verdant Gryphon – carried only in the fall and winter – and they have good stock levels at the moment. Once you knit with this yarn, you’ll want more of it so this is the time to stock up. The cowl uses two skeins and the hat one.

The blue set is knit with Lang Yarns’ Yak, another luscious yarn made up of 50% merino and 50% yak. Seriously cuddly stuff (and if you want mittens to go with it, I recommend this pattern knit in this yarn).

Get all the details of the Fossetta set here.

Today is the last full day I’ll spend in Maine and there is only one yarn shop on the agenda today. I traveled to Blue Hill, ME to visit String Theory Hand Dyed Yarn. Knit and chats are held on Saturday mornings and I timed my visit to be able to join them to work on my unfinished Rhinebeck sweater. Tanis Williams and the Saturday morning knitters were very welcoming and I ended up joining them for their regular sandwich lunch and part of the afternoon.

If you’re ever in the area you should definitely visit the shop. Not only is it housed in a beautiful, historic house (Eben Mayo House) with many fabulous hardware details, but it may be the only opportunity you have to see some of the yarns in person. String Theory only wholesales a few of their lines to other yarn shops. Some, like Caper Lace, are only available online or at their shop in Blue Hill – and this is one yarn that has to be touched to truly be appreciated.

The other reason to visit is their sale section in the seating area and the “fusion” colourways. Fusions are one of a kind colourways that won’t be repeated or are test dyes. Some of them are absolutely stunning. I picked up an Autumn Fusion in the Bluefaced Leicester wool base that is absolutely stunning.

I forgot to pull out my camera to take shots of the shop so instead I’ve included a photo of my Flower Bell Stole, size large, knit in Caper Sock in the Cactus colourway.

My day started with a visit to One Lupine Fiber Arts, a gallery featuring local artisans’ work on the main floor and with a yarn shop on the lower level. While they carry a few commercial yarns, the main feature is their line of hand-dyed yarns and fibers.

I headed south out of Bangor to my next stop, a visit to Swans Island Company’s showroom and weaving studios. Swans Island’s yarns are dyed with all natural dyes resulting in soft, variegated hues. Visitors to their heritage farmhouse (c. 1780) have the option to rummage through the yarns on the sun porch. These treasures are experimental dye batches or colours that didn’t end up exactly right, and are available at a reduced price. I was lucky enough to grab some of a blue batch that turned out a bit too purple, along with several other treasures. While tempted by the entire shelf of Bittersweet, I managed to walk away with only a few skeins in fingering weight.

One of the weavers kindly provided information on the weaving processes used in their blankets and I got to experience one of the looms up close. Their exquisite summer and winter weight blankets have been added to my wish list.

A number of knitters had told me that I had to pay The Cashmere Goat in Camden, ME a visit. The large shop is in one of the few wooden buildings in downtown that survived the Great Fire in November 1892. Barbara (owner) and Misty were both in the shop when I arrived and were very welcoming and responded warmly to my designs. Misty eagerly introduced me to one of their favourite fastenings – the Jul leather closures that screw into place. I was immediately drawn to the French Curve Leather Closure. It attaches to your garment with 2 pedestals on either side and closes your garment with a button like movement in the leather. No marring your garment, no need to make buttonholes. It’s a fantastic afterthought closure.

The Cashmere Goat has a variety of buttons but I was drawn to Laura Pierce’s Sea Buttons, made from items found on the beach. I was torn between these stone ones and some made from white china with green patterns but in the end decided on the stone ones.

After I tore myself away from the friendly atmosphere of The Cashmere Goat, I moved on to Over the Rainbow Yarn in Rockland, ME. This is a bright, welcoming shop just off the main street; however, what impressed me the most was the display of local yarns just steps inside the front door. By the way, if you’re in the area on November 2, my fellow Ontarian, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee will be at shop. She’s a great speaker!

The last stop of the day was in Belfast, ME at Heavenly Socks Yarn. Tucked away in a basement on Main Street, this store stocks more than just sock yarn – despite the name. Their shelf of Peace Fleece had been just been restocked the day before I visited. Is it just me or has this yarn become softer than it was 10 years ago or so? After seeing the beautiful sweater worn by the staff person on duty, some Wild Mustard ended up in my knitting bag.

Before heading out to Maine, I had one final shop to visit in Newburyport, MA. A Loom with a View is a small yarn shop with a big presence. I arrived at opening time on Thursday morning and enjoyed a few minutes with Elaine and Betsy before their morning class arrived.

In addition to a diverse collection of yarn, they also offer a selection of vintage buttons. One of their customers shops estate and antique sales hunting for unusual buttons and provides them to the store. I ended up buying this gorgeous button with red glass.

After leaving A Loom with a View, I drove to Kennebunk, ME for a quick stop at The Ball and Skein. I arrived just as the morning UFO / Pick-Your-Own-Project class finished. I was impressed with the bright, natural light in the class area and selection of local yarns.

My next stop was Portland, ME and Knitwit Yarn Shop. This unique shop reminds me of an old general store. The long, narrow shop is lined with tall, wood shelving and at the back is a knitting bar with stools (love!). Knitwit, as the original flagship store for Quince & Co. yarns, carries the full range of yarns and colours. It was a delight to meet Suzie who was so enthusiastic about the Flower Bell Stole that she wore it around the store for a while. I left with a skein of Swans Island fingering and a commemorative Knitwit project bag printed with their “yarn on the brain” artwork.

A few blocks away is Portland Fiber Gallery, a spinning and weaving studio and gallery space. If you can’t make it in person, you can purchase their hand-dyed fibers and yarn through their etsy shop.

Several avid spinners were on-site while I visited, including Ray who also makes stunning metal buttons. I couldn’t leave without these gorgeous copper hearts.

My final stop of the day was at Purl Diva in Brunswick, ME. I was welcomed by owner Ellen and Loki (the friendly shop dog). Ellen shared her difficult decision to close her shop after running it for the past seven years. She’s moving on to new adventures and is currently running her closing out sale. You can stay up-to-date on the store’s Facebook page. Wishing you all the best in your next endeavors Ellen!