After I finished my Blue Shawl, I had to get crackin’ on my potholders for Adrian and Maritza’s Hotpad and Potholder Swap
This was a great exciting idea, but I really should have left more time to make these, even though I am extremely happy with them. I think they are more decorative then functional, but so pretty I was sorry to have to send them away!
For more info, Ravel them here.

Filed by Julia at 5:03 pm under General
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Those of you who read Claudia’s Blog will already know about this, but for those who don’t, let’s get you educated.
For the last few years, my friend Claudia and her husband ride a Tandem Bicycle 75 miles to raise Monies for MS. You can (and should) read more about it here.
Claudia’s is one of the first blogs I ever started reading, way back a whole bunch of years ago now. It was a particular pair of socks that she knit (these ones here) that made me really want to knit socks for the first time ever.
Just think, if I hadn’t seen those socks, I may never have knit a pair, if I had never knit a pair, I might not have wanted to play with kool aid to dye my own sock yarn, and If I had never wanted to play with dye, I may not have started my lovely sock yarn business, and if I hadn’t started my lovely sock yarn business, I wouldn’t have met half of the you that I have met, and that would be a damn shame.
So. In the interest of giving back, and supporting a very good cause, I have donated some lovely things to spur on the donations.
First, I have donated a few copies of my Chevron Love Mitten pattern, to be sent via email to the winners.
Second, and this is a good one, I’ve made up a special Mitten Kit, in a colorway that I’m sure made Claudia shout out loud, (their Tandem bike is a great shade of orange!)

And lastly, and you’ll love this, I have donated not one, but TWO subscriptions to the upcoming Summer Vesper Sock Yarn Club.* Oh yes I did. The winners will get three skeins of special sock yarn total, one skein sent to them once a month, for three months, July, August, and September.

For every $10 you donate, you get one raffle ticket. One Raffle ticket gets you a shot at All These Amazing Prizes. Seriously, click that link, the prize basket is OVERFLOWING with goodness, and there’s still more to come.

*The Summer Club Subscriptions will go up in my shop for Renewal/New Subscriptions early next week. If you buy in, but then OMG you WIN a subscription, I will of course, happily refund you your payment.

Filed by Julia at 1:38 pm under General
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This is the finished, but as yet unblocked beaded shawl I started back in April. This was a great knit. Even with the tedium of placing all the beads, which are put on with a hook, instead of pre-strung (there are 1500!) I really enjoyed it. Not being much for lace knitting, this is the second lace shawl I’ve ever knit, the first was my Charlotte’s Web, which took the knit blogs by storm a few years back.
It is crazy big, in the photo, it is unblocked on a KING SIZE bed. It is huge, I went and bought wires to block it, I don’t think there are enough pins in this hemisphere to block it with! Rav the details here.

Filed by Julia at 12:29 pm under FO!, Knitting
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Oh my goodness, where did May go!?! Its been busy and crazy over here lately, and summer-itis has officially set in. I won’t even try to recap May, but I will tell you about the last 4 days.

We have been building! Brandt and I finally decided on what to do with out concrete slab of a back yard. We spent Memorial Day weekend building a deck, and it’s full of awesome.

The Before:

We started Friday, after the lumber finally got here, thanks for that after 3pm delivery, Home Depot, it’s not my problem if you tell me between 8am and noon, but all your drivers take the weekend off.
But it got here, and after loading it into the neighbors back yard (sorority girl renters, they totally don’t care, we asked) we got to work, constructing the frame,

Brandt totally gets all the credit for understanding how to make it level, not easy with a difference of 11 inches in grade. I’m not kidding.

By a few hours into day two, we were ready to start the decking, and by the time we were so physically exhausted and ready to call it a day, we had this,

Day 3 we only got a little bit done, before we got rained out. That turned out to be a good thing, because we so needed a rest. Monday, we powered it out, and finished up the corners, and we enjoyed a little cookout. It held five people without flinching, I’d call that a success. A few details aside, we are done, and loving it so much. Not to shabby for two people who’ve never built a deck before. I’m not the least bit surprised though, we are both nothing if not extremely handy, and we work very, very well together.

For more photos and details, visit my flickr set!

Filed by Julia at 11:30 pm under General
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Finally! I finished it about a week ago. It’s just as fabulous as I wanted it to be, fits perfectly, and is the best shade of red. Rav the details here.

As much as I procrastinated at the end there, I so want another one of these. Actually, several, in many different colors and weight yarns. I do loves me some basic sweaters.

The drive to finish for this was spurred by the shawl I wanted to knit for my sister’s upcoming wedding. It’s the super romantically titled Beaded Shawl #10, from Vogue Knitting Holiday “08.

I’m knitting it in heavier than called for yarn, Louet Gems Fingering, in Caribbean Blue. In case you didn’t know, this stuff does indeed come in an 1/2 pound (that’s 8oz) cone put up. I think I will probably use just one, but I have two, just in case. If I do end up only needing one, I know a certain man who will be receiving many new blue socks. Yup indeed.

Filed by Julia at 4:41 pm under FO!, Knitting
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It is ridiculous that this thing isn’t finished yet. Completely ridiculous. This should have been a 3 week sweater, at best, and here I am, coming up on 2 months. For the last 3 weeks, all it has needed is 3/4’s of a sleeve. I’ve been run around crazy busy, and I love that, but I keep thinking if I had pushed just a wee bit harder, I could be wearing this today. On the day it’s cold and crappy and snowing here in April. Boo.

I’m also needing to start my next project, which you’ll see, and that needs to be done by about June. I’m also crocheting potholders for Adrian and Maritza’s Hotpads and Pot Holders Swap. Because I’m apparently a nutter.

Sadly, by the end of the day, all I want to do is sit. I’m betting my motivation will come back with the good weather. Summer, pls hurry, thx.

Shop Stuff-
*I am currently taking renewals for the Vesper Sock Yarn Club, for Spring, with new spots opening this evening, around 8pm EST or so.
* New mitten kits will be up on Saturday, time TBD
* These beauties will be available tomorrow, and I’m very excited about that!
* And one last thing, I recently and my blog and cart programs upgraded, which was so much needed, I can’t even tell you. I’m going to be doing some tinkering soon, so if things are a little wonky, that’d be the reason

Filed by Julia at 7:22 pm under General
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After many, many hours spent knitting, winding, kitting, and pattern writing, I am jump up and down happy to release my Chevron Love Mitten pattern (and kits!) into the wild.
I have made the pattern available through Ravelry, and the kits available through my shop.

I knit this pair in Brown Sheep’s Nature Spun Sport, and that is what the kits contain. They each have eight 20g skeins in eight coordinating colors. I had the hardest time ever picking out colors, the nature spun line as something, like, almost 80 colors to choose from. Which is crazy, but the people at Brown Sheep are wonderful, and great to work with. They are also really great about working with the indie dyers, and conveniently, lots of there yarn comes in cone form.
I knit these on US 3 needles, magic loop style, and wrote the pattern in one size, but it’s a cinch to up size the mittens by using a bigger needle. They are warm, and the fabric is so. nice.
I have about eighty million more colorways in mind, so every 2 weeks or so I’ll have new kits up, and of course I’ll repeat previous colorways too. I also owe a great big hug and thank yous to my test knitters, Adrian, and Elinor, who both did a fantastic job creating their mittens, and helping me through the particulars. You can see their mittens here, and here.

Filed by Julia at 6:09 pm under Chevron Love, Knitting
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My Chevron Love Mitten pattern is finally ready for it’s release! I’ve been working on getting this out for awhile, now, and finally, the pattern is ready, they have been test knit, and kits are kitted.
I will release them into the wild, tomorrow, March 23rd. I will have many kits available in my shop, and if you’re interested in the pattern only, it will be available through Ravelry, and more than likely I’ll throw a button up in the sidebar.

Filed by Julia at 12:18 am under Chevron Love
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So the Homespun Yarn Party? Awesome. I had a great time, and did very well, and I have to say as long as timing permits, and they continue this show, I will go back every time. It was at a great venue, one that really fit the show well, I think, it was bright, and open, and was big enough that even when it was really crowded, I don’t think it was ever uncomfortable. I met a bunch of great people, who I had only known online before that.

I brought a ton of sock yarn with me, and most sold really well, the Wee Kits were a huge hit.
I will have a small update for tomorrow, and as I have no upcoming shows, regular updates will be back. Also, a special treat for next Monday, something new and super fun. I’ll share that in a day or two!

Filed by Julia at 5:54 pm under General
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I’m happy to tell you all this silly blog silence will end next week. For the last 2 weeks or so, I’ve been gearing up to vend my second show ever, the Homespun Yarn Party, in Savage, Maryland, which is not that far from Baltimore. I think.
The same friend that I vended the Pittsburgh show with talked me into it. That would be Local P’burgh fiber artist Cosy, of Cosymakes, and author of Knit One Embellish Two. This should be a great little show, TONS of indy crafters and yarnies. The show is Sunday, from 12 to 5pm, and admission if FREE. Free, so you have to come, yes you do. There will also be free workshops, definitely worthy of checking out.
I will have more Vesper Yarn with me there than has ever been seen in one place at one time, and Wee Skein Kits too, and bunches of roving. In case you needed incentive. Just saying.

Filed by Julia at 6:48 pm under General
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