October Traditions Tam

The pattern design that has been most popular this fall is my new "October Traditions."  We made up kits using the JaggerSpun colors I designed it in originally....

October Traditions Tam in JaggerSpun as in our kits

and then I began trying some Cascade 220 fingering  colors that I bought at Over the Rainbow Yarn in Rockland, Maine.  Since I bought a full skein each of 8 different colors, I could knit several hats, rearranging the colors any way I liked.  

October Traditions tam in Cascade 220 fingering

 Aren't they pretty!?  I think the mostly-rust one in the center is my favorite.  In the JaggerSpun, I really counted on their mustardy color called "Curry".  They have no good orange.  Cascade, on the other hand, had a good orange, but nothing like Curry.

Another autumn hat I enjoy knitting was originally designed in spring/summer colors.   It takes on a whole new look in autumn...

Trees in JaggerSpun

I really like the new look, and am going to use some Cascade to do it again.  

Random, Washable, One-of-a-kind hats

Norwegian Star

Pink Star

Burgundy Swirls tam

Burgundy Swirls tam

 I've been knitting away, enjoying the experience and letting the yarn tell me what it wants to be!  Self-striping sock yarn creates such lovely kaleidoscopes!

Swirls Flower slouch hat

Swirls Flower slouch hat

Swirls stocking cap

Swirls stocking cap

Want one?  Message me, as they are for sale!

Rainbow Slouch hat

Rainbow slouch hat

Rejoicing!

We will be busy this summer!  We are working now to fill an order for kits to be sold through The Mannings at the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival next month.  Then we must also get kits made up to sell at the Boothbay Harbor Artisans co-op and the Lupine Cottage this summer.  Busy, busy, busy!!
We are putting our patterns up for sale on Ravlery, (go to Ravelry if you're a member) but if you want to make them using the same yarn and colors that I favor - buy a kit!  It's much better!

Rambling again... Rockland, Camden, Belfast

A few months ago Stan got a "Deal Chicken" deal for two nights at Camden's Country Inn.  We used them this week to visit the sights, yarn stores and friends in that area.  I also did a lot of reminiscing, since I went to high school in Rockport back in the '70's at  Glen Cove Christian Academy.

We enjoyed wandering around the "gift shop" districts of the sea port towns.  While we wandered around exploring Camden we discovered a new yarn store, the Cashmere Goat .  Misty took our card and went online to view our hat designs.

In Rockport, we left off some of our new designs at Over The Rainbow, a shop that already stocks our kits.  The staff there is always so friendly that I look forward to every visit.

The next day while we were exploring Belfast's shops, we came across Heavenly Socks.  Helen and Liz greeted us enthusiastically as we entered the shop, because I was wearing the Supreme Court hat, a design still in the prototype stage.  They were eager to ask about  it, so we had a great conversation.  Liz had lots of advice for us about how to sell the kits through Ravelry, so we came away from there with a bit of marketing education for which we are very grateful!

Then today - back at home - I got a phone call from Tammy at Maine Made.  We've been accepted into that program, and will be introduced on their Facebook page on April 24th... now to get a good photograph.  That was a struggle today as photography is not one of our best skills!  Miriam's helping, so we'll get it done.

Whew!  It has been an eventful week, and I'm ready to just sit and knit a while!

Rambling -- a little get-away to Seattle

We've traveling!  Stan and I have been holding on to some air-miles, and if we don't use them soon they'll expire, so we're going someplace we've never been.  Seattle.  Friends have given us some tips on the "must-sees" there.  AND... I was trying to decide what my travel knitting would be when the colors arrived for me to knit the Trees-at-Dusk/Summer Sunset hat out of Palette for the Knit Picks IDP.  So that's what I'll be working on while we travel.  Also have my Kindle all charged up, so I can read, too.

Bookworm Vest Raveling

Seth asked me to knit a poncho for Alyssa for Christmas.  He paid for yarn and sent me buttons.  It took only half the yarn and less than half the buttons to make the poncho, so Seth said I could keep the extra.
It was perfect for the Bookworm Vest I've wanted to make from Folk Vests by Cheryl Oberle.
I'd been looking at the picture in the book rather than the stated measurements, so was rather surprised to be making such a roomy smock/tunic rather than a fitted vest.  Oh well, I like that too.  Some of the numbers are incorrect, so I spent a few hours researching errata, and reading Ravelry comments.
Now, with all that worked out, I've made a mistake of my very own.  I put the buttonhole band on the wrong side.  Which I might have been able to live with if it hadn't been for the fact that the neckband has an overlap that would end up lapping to the wrong side.  Guess I'd rather ravel.

But this is good, because it gives me a chance to change the size of the buttonhole from 4 sts to 2 sts to better accomodate the 1" buttons instead of going out and buying 1.5" buttons.  Also, now I can put in 5 buttonholes where there were only 4.  Happy accident!