28 June 2009 · No Comments
As promised, the rest of the news.
First, I’m thrilled to announce I’ll be designing a sock for another yarn/pattern club. This one is a little different. There is a theme – Wicked Women – and it’s a joint effort. It’s a three installment club with an exclusive yarn and a specially designed pattern shipping out every other month from September to January. Mine will be the January sock. All the details are over at the Yarnarina’s page. Go sign up before the spaces run out!
Next, the questions I asked earlier and their answers. It was great to read your thoughts, especially on the issue of combination packs. The consensus seems to be that deals are great, but that I should try not to penalize those that have already bought the patterns by making them re-buy things to get new socks. That sounds like a totally valid concern, and I’ll probably lean towards offering a buy x get y for free deal rather than tying an exclusive pattern to the purchase of a group of other patterns. As for the comments, we didn’t quite reach the number I was hoping for to do a giveaway. I think what I’ll do is save the email addresses of those of you kind enough to answer and put them in future drawings for goodies. I have entirely more yarn that I can use, and I’d rather give it away than have it go to waste, so there will be giveaways in the future.
On the knitting front, things are, alas, slow. The real (or at least non-knitting) world is continuing to demand my time, and my arms are limiting the amount of knitting I can do without pain. The big project is done on Wednesday though, and I plan to indulge in some knitting to celebrate its completion. However, I did get The Boy to model the current socks and let me take pictures of them (his comment – you want me to put them on the ground? Outside? But they’re hand knit socks! I have an awesome Boy.) Here’s a peek, and wow is it easier to take a picture of someone else’s feet than of your own.
26 June 2009 · 1 Comment
Pardon the uncharacteristic quiet. My non-knitting life has been intruding to an entirely unjustified degree on my knitting. I’m in the final week of a 6 month project and busy writing my little graduate student heart out. By the time I’ve met my writing quota for the day my arms ache too much to knit. This does little to help my overall mental well being.
However, this lack of actual does not mean that there is no knitting news.
I’ve got a few interesting collaborations coming up over the next year. Some have been confirmed, and some are still being hammered out. Looking at the confirmed plans and taking them in chronological order:
- I’ll be designing a sock for a mystery sock knit along for the Solid Socks Group (rav link) on Ravelry. I’ll be using one of The Yarnarina’s lovely yarns. The pattern comes out in about 3 installments over the course of October. It will be available for free during the knit along, and I’ll post more information about how to sign up for it as we get closer to the date.
- I’ll be designing another sock for Gaia’s Colours new Yarn Club. The pattern will be a club exclusive, and should come out in February. I’m not sure quite how much information I can give away just yet, but I will say more as we get closer in. For now, I’ve got the yarn in my hands, and I can say with absolute certainty that these will be some marvelous feeling socks, just the thing to ward off the February blues.
- And finally, I’ll be designing yet another sock (really, it’s just about all I knit) for a newly announced sock and fingerless glove club offered by From Robin’s Nest. I’ll be doing the pattern for Summer, out of a yarn custom dyed for the club by The Craft’s Meow.
Details on all three partnerships as well as how you can get the patterns (including the free one in October) will be coming in the weeks and months ahead. I’ll be back with thoughts on the questions I asked in the last post in a day or two. For now, I have to go ice my arms before my hands fall off from too much typing. I think that would really slow down the sock prodcution rate.
22 June 2009 · 9 Comments
So I’ve been just thrilled by the response I’ve gotten to the patterns I’ve made available for sale. Seriously, thrilled. The Boy can attest to the rather ridiculous happy dance and squee of glee that accompanies most checks of my sales and website statistics. More people have bought my patterns than I ever thought possible, and I appreciate each and every one of those purchases. So far, I’ve been successful enough to more than pay for my classes at Sock Summit. With a bit of luck (and the release of a few more patterns) I might just make enough to offset the whole cost of the trip.
Given the success (and the resulting glee) I definitely plan to keep knitting socks and witting up the patterns. I was going to keep knitting socks no mater what, but this makes it even more fun somehow.
So, if I’m going to keep doing this, I guess I’d better get a sense of what you guys want and like. I’ve got a couple of questions, and I’d really appreciate it you’d take a second to answer some of them in the comments if you’ve got a moment.
- First, would you be interested in a combination release of all the patterns together as a group at a reduced rate? I’m thinking of doing a package deal after I finish up Propitiate, maybe even something with a pattern exclusive to the package.
- Second, what difficulty level are you looking for in your patterns? Are the ones you’ve seen from me so far too hard, too easy, just right? Related to this, how much detail do you like in a pattern? Am I losing you in a sea of unnecessary verbiage, or do you like a bit of detailed explanation?
- Third, do you like instructions for (and maybe even pictures of) alternate versions? Do you prefer to come up with such things on your own, or do you like having a few suggestions provided?
I’d love to get your thoughts, and it seems only fair to offer something in return. Lets try this. If I get at least a dozen comments with answers in the next 72 hours or so, I’ll pick one of the comments at random and pack up some of the loot I got at Knitters Connection and send it your way. Don’t leave your address in the comment, just be sure to use a real email address and I’ll get in touch with you if you win.
21 June 2009 · 1 Comment
The first of the Propitiate socks is done and the second cast on. The first draft of the patten is written, and I’ll likely have it out to testers next weekend (and hopefully available about two weeks after that). This pattern is going to include instructions for the sock as it’s shown here (with the slanting rib) and for a second version with straight ribs.
These are meant to be for The Boy, but his feet were unavailable for a photo soot, so you get mine instead. Pardon any bagginess…they fit his feet much better than they do mine.
20 June 2009 · 2 Comments
The next step on the path to Violently Domestic’s world domination has been taken. The pattern for Embonpoint is finished, tested, and available for sale!
These socks are intended to be worked on slightly thicker yarn (they were designed specifically for Schaefer Yarn Company’s marvelous new yarn Nichole yarn) and so knit up quickly. The pattern includes three different ways to do the cuff, just in case you feel like making a modified version. The gusset is a little different than what you find on most top-down socks, but I promise it’s not hard. Enjoy!
19 June 2009 · 2 Comments
Alas, poorly photographed loot, but loot none the less.
So yesterday I hauled my somnolent form out of bed at 4 in the morning and somehow managed to make my way to Columbus for Knitter’s Connection. I took a class on reading Japanese patterns. The class was well done and has cemented my determination to hunt down some Japanese stitch dictionaries (any recommendations?).
Alas there were no such books available at the market, but I did get a consolation prize of sorts – a satchel of loot. The convention bag included 7 different yarns, 2 magazines, a pattern, a book, and a sample of wool wash. I augmented these with just a few purchases from the market, which I will share in a later post, likely tomorrow. Tomorrow will also likely feature the release of Embonpoint.
Till then, remember that today is the last day of the buy one get one free sale. You’ve got till midnight to order, details are in the post below.
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