Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Another one down...

I am pretty excited, I finally finished a prototype that I have been working on for weeks.  Unfortunately that is all I can say.  Sorry, I am submitting this baby as part of a design proposal, so mum's the word.  The bright side is, for now, I am done working on proposals for publication.  That means I will actually be able to talk about what I am knitting!

Before I finished my prototype, I started swatching different colors for Olive.  I have been in love with this design since I first laid eyes on it!  Luckily, the designer/yarn company recently made the pattern available for download, so I was able to get a hold of it.  Of course knitting a sweater out of sock yarn is a bit masochistic...especially considering I have two other sweaters on the needles, one in lace and one in sport weight yarn. 

Once I finish (or frog) everything I have hanging around, I am going to knit or design something in a nice bulky yarn! Knitwear in fine yarn is lovely, but such slow going!  Sometimes I wish I lived in a much cooler part of the country so I would have a use for bulky knits.  I'll probably knit up a sweater for my nephew...nothing like a toddler sweater in bulky yarn to make one feel like they are getting some knitting done!

Friday, May 7, 2010

This and That.

I feel bad that I haven't been able to update as much as I would like lately.  Many of the projects I have been working on are top secret!  Well, reavealing them wouldn't get me thrown in jail or anything, but they are all pending submissions.  That means, unfortunately, no blogging about them.

I do have still have a cardigan in the works, but there are so many things with looming deadlines, it has taken the backseat for now.  At this point, it has two possible futures, depending on what happens with the other designs...hang out on the backseat even longer if my proposal(s) are accepted or it gets first priority as soon as the rejection notices come in.  Of course I am hoping for the former, but I would like to see my little sweater finished sometime in the near future.

Right now, I am easily distracted by so many different options for my designs.  There are so many choices, it is amazing.  Self-publishing is the easiest option to me which can include e-books and even small print runs, then submissions to companies like Knit Picks, then books and magazines.  Plus there are probably a million different variants on those possibilities as well.

My current issue, shall we say, is trying to figure out exactly which I want to focus on.  So I am currently experimenting with a majority of them.  The pros of self publishing, are no deadlines, other than the ones I set for myself.  All other forms need at least a rough deadline, in which you are accountable to someone else.  Of course going through a yarn company, book or magazine can mean a lot more exposure than I could get on my own as a brand new designer.

So that is where things stand.  Some other exciting news, I got my first pair of Signature circular needles.  These things are awesome, pricey, but so worth it! I figure with the amount of money I spend on yarn, I should have nice needles to knit it on!  Hopefully they will offer more sizes soon, or my ultimate dream...a set if interchangeable needles.  Right now I am working with my pair of 32" size 6 circulars with stiletto points, and I think it is time I got back to my knitting!

Vixen, Finally!

I am so excited, my Vixen shawl was released yesterday!  It is part of Knit Picks Independent Design Program, which is such a wonderful idea.  You can find the pattern at Knit Picks or on Ravelry.  It has been such a wonderful journey creating the pattern and learning evermore about knitwear design!  I would like to say a big thanks to Knit Picks, all my wonderful test knitters and my awesome tech editor!