Pattern Stash Contest / Giveaway

UPDATE: PEOPLE! Please leave me a way to contact you! About 50% of you have given me wonderful patterns but no way to say thanks!

SECOND UPDATE: At the end of the contest I'll be publishing a free pattern of my own - my third one. Keep spreading the love! :)

Before The Crash, I had a truly massive pattern collection. For 9 years I have been snatching up every free pattern that even mildly intrigued me, and paid for a few more (Oh Rogue, I can’t believe I never got to you!). I had hundreds (probably thousands, actually) of them carefully categorized and tagged so I could find just the perfect thing for a given yarn, giftee, or garment need. The irony here is that I almost never follow patterns… but they are oh-so-useful for inspiration to produce my own creations!

Now that comforting safety net is gone. Thanks to Jess & Casey I still have Ravelry’s pattern search (I'm Needlegrrl there, too), but it’s not set up the same way, and … well… it’s not the same.

Here’s where you come in. Help me rebuild my stash! Send me your favorite essential / must make / most unique / “best kept secret” pattern. Please note: I am NOT asking anyone to break copyrights. I’m only looking for free stuff or notes you’ve written, please. Patterns worthy of being purchased for stash can be nominated as well, but remember that I’m a notorious cheapskate. You may email a PDF or Word doc directly to me (laughinglagomorph at gmail), or post a link. I’ll pick one winner on merit (the one that makes me say “woo!” out loud) and one by random number generator.

Hints:

1) I’m not generally into the basic beginner patterns. I like complex lace & cables & weird challenges. That said, sometimes a good simple recipe is awesome. They’re so easy to pervert. :)
2) Crochet edgings are fine, but beyond that, please stick to knitting.
3) Socks, mittens, hats, shawls, sweaters, toys… it’s all good.
4) Garments appropriate to a curvy stumpy girl are helpful. I’m 4’10” and fat. I’m losing weight, but I’ll never gain height, and even at my ideal size I’m very hourglassy. So no long skinny coats, k? And not so much with the super-bulky yarn.
5) Garments appropriate to a tall, athletic Scotsman with excellent legs are also appreciated.

Winners will get something tasty from my stash! The Merit Prize chooses first, then the Random winner. If you hate all of these glorious options I can spin you something or go stash diving again. But what's not to like? Claudia Hand Painted (the purple mash-up), Panda Silk DK in Berry Smoothie, Fortissima Socka in a wonderful olive green, and C*EYE*BER Fiber in Glacier. This last one was Swag from the Alaskan Sea Socks cruise in 2008.

Contest ends Nov 30th!

Vaguely Medieval Dwarf & Archer

Okay, so you know Matt calls me Dwarf. I mean, most people think that's my real name around here. :) I started with a knit helmet with an attached beard. There was a felting disaster (knitting details on Ravelry) so last-minute desperation led us to insert bits of an old pirate hat as quarter panels. I love it - better than the original. :) My knit Mithral vest isn't showing up properly in these pics but it's a dove grey with sparkly bits. It came out really well. Matt made the the tunic. Add some knit gauntlets, my felted colonial bag, and a loot bag on the belt... voila! I'm one feisty battle Dwarf.

Matt turned heads (as usual) in his archer outfit. He sewed a quiver from pleather originally purchased to make wings for Elphaba's flying monkey. I dyed the dowels, and he fletched the arrow ends. Is there nothing this man can't do? Thanks to Loveduck Leather for the hat.
Nae was a superhot Succubus. Yowza! On her shoulder perched a movable puppet.

We went to the Henri David Halloween Ball. You know those scenes in movies and TV when the characters go to huge parties and everyone is wearing fantastically detailed costumes? I was always jealous. I wanted to go to that party! Last night I did - we were surrounded by original, beautifully done outfits. I loved that they played great music at non-earsplitting levels. On the central stage were male go-go dancers, chosen more for their quantity of muscle than their dancing ability. It was just SO much fun!! There are about 50 pics here on Flickr, but I have to share my favorite costume (a Faberge Egg and his Czar) and my favorite picture: Wolverine snapping a photo of a man at a portable urinal.

A Few Knitting WINS

One of the “Black Mix” bags I got from the Sheep Shed was black and white swirled together like a soft-serve cone. I separated them as best I could, but there were some strips of roving that were so blended they weren’t worth the effort to separate fiber by fiber. Those went into bag #3. Which I felt strangely drawn to spin immediately. And the whole time I was spinning, I felt intensely compelled to make mittens.

I didn’t think I had enough. I was pondering doing a Fair Isle or striped section with either black or white. In fact, I was so sure I wouldn’t have enough that I nearly didn’t start them. See the ball “left over?” It weighs more than the completed mittens do. I’ve been knitting and spinning since 2001 and I still have no clue how to eyeball how much I will need for a project. sigh

Good news: The mittens came out perfectly the first time, great fit, no 28 revisions necessary. I was considering dyeing them but I believe I like them as is.

Disasters from previous post: The witch socks just got finished off at mid-calf height and I've been wearing them a lot. Very comfy and look great with pants. The cabled socks have been rescued by inserting a few more cables. They're nearly done.

And my latest triumph: A pointy felted hat for my Halloween costume (Elphaba). I just need to firm up the brim a bit.

Sock Summit & Portland

Portland, Portland... how I love thee... let me count the ways...

It was so great to see the kids again. I forgot my camera was working again (thank you Camera Fairy!) until after we parted ways so no new pics of them, but they are gorgeous and scarily grown-up (13 and 16)! :)

We ate at Burgerville. We looked at houses (Craftsman!!). We reveled in ambient temperatures compatible with human life. We saw our friends Stephen and Nicole, and they introduced us to Rock Band.

This is a game I did not want to play. I thought it would be stupid and auditorally painful. Instead, it was an awesome adrenaline rush and really really really fun! It actually made me think about taking up the guitar again, until reality resurfaced and I remembered I was "playing" a guitar-shaped Simon Says, not an actual instrument. The funny thing is that I screwed up on the easy parts but kicked butt on the trickier high-speed bits (well, on the Easy setting). I loved doing vocals on "Spiderwebs," too, but afterwards Stephen handed me the guitar back and told Nae "You should keep singing. It's really hard to find good singers." Hmm. Message received.

I had to check out Yarnia! They have racks of cones - you pick the combination you want, and they wind them together for you into a custom yarn. I made "Money," something Rach and I were thinking about dying but we couldn't find bare sock yarn with glitz in it. I blended sage, forest, and black wool, with just a hint of green glittery nylon. 450 yards for $8! It's pictured here along with some delightfully squishy Madelinetosh yarn. 2008 was all about the autumn shades - 2009 seems to be the Year of Green. I've been trying to upload a video but Blogger is being cranky, so it's here on Flickr instead.


at the Sock Summit, I continued my calling as Bodyworker to the Knitting Stars. Hanging out with Amy, Heather, Charlene, Tess, Jasmin, Gigi, and tons more wonderful people was just the cat's meow. I took a class on vertically stranded colorwork (design ideas are exploding in my skull) and learned more about what Knitty wants. I am submitting at least one pattern: Lips sealed and fingers crossed for now...

Other snapshots of the hectic fun: Brian knitting 7 pairs of socks at one time on one ginormous needle. Rachel and AJ at the Ravelry party (AJ is a skater chick and has a superawesome new tattoo, but I didn't get to spend enough time with her). Rachel and me at the Rav party, after dark, taken by Wondermike. Replica of a 1500 year old Egyptian sock. I'm not going to bore you with tons of pics from the Sock Museum but looking at how things like heel construction changed through time was really cool.

First, a word about our sponsors...

This was the Woodstock of knitting.

It may be hard for non-fiber addicts to understand, but it was massive (see the Tsock Tsarina's blog for a great representation of the nutter hilarity that imbued the long weekend). We took over the Oregon Convention Center and multiple hotels. We had the Grand Dames of knitting - major celebs, each one - teaching us classes. We had a museum of sock history stretching back 2000 years. We had a marketplace filled with hundreds - yes, hundreds - of vendors, many of them independent business owners. Oh, the handpaints! Four days of shared knowledge. Thousands of attendees. Literally tons of yarn. *swoon*

Ok, here's what's cool about the Luminary Panel. These are not women famous for looking hot, or mouthing someone else's lines. These are women who rescued creative, intelligent designs and skilled handwork. For millenia, people had to make their own clothes. Most were too short on time and resources to do much beyond the basics. Generally, only nobility and the very wealthy had decorative garments, but everyone knew how to produce the basics. After the industrial revolution, everything changed. Machines did it all. In the ever-increasingly technological age, people lost the ability to make something with their hands.

Our heroines - Barbara Walker, Elizabeth Zimmermann, etc - they brought back the ancient techniques, improved them, and turned them into therapy, into intellectual challenges, into personal expression. And they did this in a time when women were not supposed to run their own businesses, and they did it with a wicked sense of humor (Yes, Lucy Neatby is carrying a chicken purse).

Thanks, gals. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, brain, and fingers.

Socks for ME!

I just finished the cutest little socks! I started with Brenda Dayne's Pembrokeshire Pathways, but instead of a wool knee-sock I wanted a lightweight summer fling so I used Panda Silk. Did a different heel and toe, just because I'm ornery like that. More pics and info on my Ravelry page.

Due to popular demand: The shoes are White Mountain brand, Mohawk style. I got them at DSW last week. :)

This is so exciting - both of my haikus were selected for the Spin-Off 2010 calendar! I'll be featured in August and November.

Fibery update:
Matt's kilt hose are done and he loves them! I can't show them yet since I think I want to submit them to Knitty. But they are ultra-cool if I do say so myself.

I'm currently trying to finish not one but 2 new pairs of socks to wear for the Sock Summit. Good thing I have small feet!

Knitting words together

I whipped up the following haikus for a Spin-Off contest:

Feel the Summer sun
Slipping soft through my fingers
Becoming Fall warmth

And for the lighter side :) ...

Wild fuzzy mohair
Blends with silk, just a touch of
accidental cat

These follow a spur-of-the-moment response to Franklin's limerick post:

There once was a knitter named Sharon
Used a hat to hold down the hair on
The top of her head
When she got out of bed
She knit them of wool and of Orlon.

Well... except that I wouldn't really use Orlon. But hey, I needed a rhyme and completed the whole thing in about 10 seconds.

What have I been up to?

Well... Working, a LOT. I get home about 7:30 most nights and my newsletters seem to be a huge hit. Which is awesome. And reading. About elephants, and more elephants*, and various British monarchs of yore, and fairy tales, and ...

We've been hitting art museums, and I'm finding myself discovering new favorites and swooning in front of masterpieces I've seen a hundred times in books and on TV. I know it's been said ad nauseum but they are so different in person.

I've been antiquing with Matt, where we found a great bunny print that's an old Purina Rabbit Chow ad. He found an old glass bottle. I discovered a silver artist I like.

The cats and kids are doing well. Mom has had a rough time. She's dealing with missing Dad, getting laid off, and her dog's cancer. Send her some love, please.

Oh! Matt ordered me a WooLee Winder! Here's my rave on Ravelry. So yes, I've been spinning, too. The "misty forest" colorway I did with Rachel last month came out a lovely soft grey.

* Elephants are incredibly smart, social, and playful. There are two sanctuaries for them in the US where they simply get to be elephants. I've talked about this issue before here. Poor depressed & anxious Bamboo is still at the Woodland Park Zoo, despite the Tennessee sanctuary's offer to take her on their dime.

A Weekend of Color

It was an eventful, artistic weekend. I went to NY to visit Rachel, dye goddess extraordinaire. We turned 2 lbs of pure white merino and nearly a pound of silk into a riot of color. It's amazing what you can do with only 10 colors! The purplish silk was an overdye job - the rest was from scratch. The other silk (so hard to photograph!) came out a perfect Monet-inspired watery blend of blues and greens. I'm planning a lace shawl for that. The rest is still a mystery.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Matt added a little panache to his already-perfect left thigh. He gently modified this ancient Lascaux cave painting about a year ago and has been waiting for the right artist. Finally! It's perfect for him, with his history of archeology, history, and art.

Now I'm working on my design... designs... hmmm. A binkying black bunny is a must, probably on the scapula. And I'd like an SPQR, but I'm not sure about where to put that one. Matt says lower back, and I actually like that, but it would clash with the rabbit. I could combine the two concepts with a reworked Roman mosaic, but they are two very different things to me.

Holiday Roundup

For Thanksgiving we went to Maine. Nancy (Matt's sis) & Andre throw legendary celebrations and this one was no exception. I forgot my camera, so here are some terrible phone pics. There's Matt & Nancy, and her three gorgeous kids, Hunter, Juliana, & Ben all wearing holiday cracker crowns.

For Christmas we were hoping to see his kids in Oregon, but the crazy airline prices put the kibosh on *that* fantasy. He's going out this month to get some quality time instead. We didn't even make it to NYC, thanks to Mr. Peach's little excursion to the vet. An acute infection sent him into respiratory failure. He needed two days in oxygen. it was insanely expensive but I guess that's why God invented credit cards. It's so good to have him back home and doing fine now. It would have broken my heart to lose him.

Our prezzies were all hand-made this year. I spun and knit up hats, scarves, and mittens. The one project I failed to finish was Matt's kilt hose. I'm still working on them, but when you see the pics you'll understand (think tiny yarn, complicated cables, and giant legs). The red scarf there is 100% mohair spun from locks. It seriously feels like heaven... in fact I heard that it was instantly subjected to egregious sexual advances by a cat immediately after being opened. In Nae's case, a fellow knitter, I stopped at the spinning phase and made her 2 skeins of lace yarn.

Matt outdid himself with the silverwork, turning out a stunning yarn ring for me, and molecule necklaces for all the women in his life. He crafted dopamines & seratonins, the neurotransmitters of happiness, and a one-off melatonin for sister Mary the sleep doctor. Pics of all these are coming... we're going to set up an online shop soon.

Autumn Cowl

I love cowls - all the warmth of a scarf, but hands-free and no chance of catching it in the car door. And no need to take it off before cleaning the litterbox.

This one was a quick knit, just random rows of different stitches.

Wrapping Matt in Moss

For the Boy's birthday, he scored a handmade scarf. The official name is "Pointed Moss" because, well, it's moss stitch and the ends are pointy. But the nickname is "The I Must Love You Scarf" because not only did I give up my luscious Camelspin (silk & camelhair blend, in a subtle chocolate / pewter / ebony colorway), but I worked 6 trillion seed stitches on microscopic needles. Having seen his face afterwards, though, it was totally worth it. Next… the “OMG I Must REALLY Love You Kilt Hose.”

I wrote up the pattern: Email me for the PDF if you want it.

Middle Earth invades the living room

We love our movies, but most of our in-home entertainment comes from watching the critters tear through the house. Adding a vertical dimension to their play quadruples the fun: They rocket straight up, all wild-eyed and bushytailed, then shoot back down and disappear behind the couch. The problem is that, for a major piece of furniture, most cat towers are butt-ugly. Except for those amazing tree sculptures. We've always wanted to get one, but haven't been able to find $600-1000 (!) in the couch cushions to devote to our furkids.

Matt got fired up and hit Home Depot again. He's a superb engineer! Giant concrete forms, plywood, carpeting and a billion brackets later, here we are. The tree is impressively stable: No tremors even with violent feline shenanigans. I Sharpie'd the staples to disguise them as natural bark variations. There are 4 hidey holes and 6 platforms, and an inside passage (that was my idea - the rest was all Matt). The top half of the big tree is hollow and has spiraling steps inside, so the boys can actually pop out onto the canopy as an alternative to leaping from level to level. Only Figgy, with his full complement of claws, can simply walk up the outside.

It's not uncommon for multilevel battles to take place, either for sport or to claim a prime spot. The left-side stump is Peachy's favorite sleeping site, but if he's aching he uses a cave, which traps some heat for a toasty nap. Fatboy hasn't made it to the canopy yet, but he loves the bigger "shelves" for snoozing.

We still need to cover the inside surfaces, but I wanted to get pics now before they're too dark to photograph properly.

Total cost: $150

SeaSocks, summed up

I've just spent the evening going through the 1000 pictures I took over the past two weeks. Don't worry, I won't make you look at all of them. Here are a representative sample: More to come! That's me second from the left in the Zipline Gals shot.

More knitting content - Barack Ollama

This is a graduation prezzie (from internship to residency) for my amazing husband. I made Ima Llama for our 1st Anniversary and he loved her. This one is a half black, half white (get it?) homage to our (hopefully) next president. His necklace reads “B. Ollama.”

It’s unusual for me to make the same thing twice but with all the joking about Ollama around here it seemed inevitable.

Oh, and here's a sweater I made for the cruise, which leaves FRIDAY!!!!