Going West & Stitches

Hi, Knitters,

On my travels to Stitches West I knitted a new pair of socks. I brought along seven different colors of mini skeins in Home Fingering Weight yarn. I am calling this pair Going West Socks. If you haven't knit 100% wool socks I highly suggest you give these a try. The finished socks are so squishy, cozy and warm. They honestly feel so much better than superwash/nylon yarn. I don't want to take them off.

The socks use my Smooth Operator Socks pattern and I've written out the instructions for the stripes and a couple of other tips along the way. The stripes and colors make the socks incredibly addicting, you simply can't put them down. 

The Going West Socks are now a kit over on Barrett Wool Co.!

By the way, the clogs in the photo are from Dansko if interested.

Here's what you'll find in the Going West Socks Minis Kit:

The Kit Includes:

• Enough yarn to make one pair of Going West Socks (about 150 grams) in the following colors of our Home Fingering Weight: Huron, Tattersall, Bluff, Strawflower, Ellie Grey, Big Woods and Folkstone.
• An optional Ravelry download code for the Smooth Operator Socks pattern. This will be included on a paper card inside the kit.
• A printed page with specific Going West Socks instructions to be used along with the Smooth Operator Socks pattern.
• The kit will come packaged in a hand-stamped project bag.

Click here to find out more or to purchase the kit!

And we have Sheep Scissors restocked in the Barrett Wool Co. Mercantile!

Click here to find out more or to purchase.

Here we are before the big Stitches West event in Santa Clara, California began! We are poised and ready for the onslaught of attendees. I had so much fun the entire time and I met so many lovely knitters. It was really a positive experience in all. Our booth was packed full for the majority of the time and we were so busy. Miss Molly on the left and Evan is on the right. 

We shared our booth with Alana Dakos of Never Not Knitting. That's her on the left. It worked out so smoothly. Thanks to Alana for a fantastic weekend!

I hope you are well, everyone. I'll be back soon with more.

xo ~ susan

Stitches West & Loopy Sweet Sheep Kits

Hi, Knitters,

I have a few fun things to share with you. First, I am going to be teaching four workshops at Fibre Space in Alexandria, Virginia, on Feb. 9-10, 2018. Click here to find out more!

And Barrett Wool Co. is hitting the road! We are heading out to Santa Clara, California, to vend at Stitches West on February 22-25, 2018. Not only will this be our first large event for vending but we are thrilled to be combining forces and sharing a booth with the one and only Alana Dakos of Never Not Knitting. We are really looking forward to this upcoming event and we hope to see as many of there as possible. Please stop by our booth, #1336 and 1338, to say hello and to see our Barrett Wool Co. yarns in person.

Hope to see you there!

Click here to find out more about Stitches West! 

I launched a new kit yesterday over on Barrett Wool Co. Here is some information about the kit:

Click here for the Loopy Sweet Sheep Kit!

I've updated an "oldie but goodie" pattern called Sweet Sheep and added an adorable double-loop stitch to the body. I think the Loopy Sweet Sheep looks like it is sitting in a cloud of wooly loops! It's so much fun. The original Sweet Sheep version is just as cute in plain stockinette stitch if that's what you prefer. Using the Wisconsin Woolen Spun Worsted Weight is beyond perfect for this project. The finished Loopy Sweet Sheep is so squishy and adorable. Trust me, it so good you can't stop squeezing it! 

The Kit Includes:

• Enough yarn in our Wisconsin Woolen Spun worsted weight to make one Sweet Sheep. We have three colors for you to choose from: Birch, Quaker Gray and Stone.
• An additional printed page of instructions from Susan to go along with the original pdf pattern on how to add the double-loop stitch to your Sweet Sheep. 
• An optional printed Ravelry download code for the Sweet Sheep pattern, since some might already own the pattern.
• You will also be given access to an exclusive tutorial video by Susan on the Double-Loop Stitch used in the Loopy Sweet Sheep. The exclusive video link will be sent to kit purchasers in a separate email.
• A tin of 20 assorted color stitch markers.
• Black embroidery thread for the face.
• The kit comes packaged in a hand stamped cotton bag.

Loopy Sweet Sheep Kit in Birch

Loopy Sweet Sheep Kit in Quaker Gray

Loopy Sweet Sheep Kit in Stone

Also, there are still some of the Little Hearts Minis Kits available. I made this kit to go along with the free pattern Little Hearts (click here!).

Click here to find out more about the Little Hearts Minis Kits!

This kit is so much fun and perfect for Valentine's Day decorating and/or gifting. 

I've been doing lots of behind the scenes knitting on a couple of projects for publications that will be out in the near future. I can't wait to share more.

I hope to see you at one of my upcoming workshops or at Stitches West! Have a great Sunday, Knitters. I'll be back soon with much more....

xo ~ susan

Comings and Goings

Hi, Knitters,

I hope you are all doing well as we move into the late spring and early summer months ahead. It has been busy in this neck of the woods, as I'm sure it is for you as well. Spring always seems to move at a fast pace at home and in the knitting world.

I am working away on my Sonoma Shawl by Kirsten Kapur. I can't say enough good and complimentary things about this pattern and shawl. I have knit and designed so many shawls but I can honestly say this one ranks at the top of the list for me for lots of reasons. 

Here are some of those reasons:

1. It's so simple but yet interesting. Sonoma holds my attention.

2. It appears to be difficult and complicated but it's not. Sonoma looks like stranded colorwork but you are switching colors every 2 rows and using only one color at a time in every row in the patterned sections.

3. I love the slip stitch pattern to no end. This is the first time I have worked a charted slip stitch pattern (and all in garter stitch) and all I want to do now is explore more of these slip stitch patterns. It is really fun.

4. The squishy gorgeous yarn is perfect for the pattern. Home Fingering Weight is squishy 100% American Wool and it is the perfect match for the design. It is fun to match two contrasting colors.

5. Sometimes a nice solid yarn for a garment or accessory can be understated, elegant and beautiful. Although I love brightly speckled and multi-colored yarn, too, I don't necessarily want to wear it all of the time. Variety is good!

6. I can't wait to wear this shawl in every season. The simple, clean lines and neutral colors make the shawl very versatile.

7. It is big and cozy. 

8. The entire shawl is garter stitch, not one purl stitch to be found! Even the lace is garter stitch. That is fun and fast.

The Sonora shawl takes 3 skeins of Home Fingering Weight, two skeins in a main color and one skein in a contrast color. I picked a lot of color combination options to look at, if you are interested click right here.

If you post any photos of the Sonora shawl be sure to tag the photo with #sonorakal so I can find it. I am picking prize winners from this hashtag over the next month. I have already selected the first winner of a fun prize and I am sending it out to her today. Her name is Mary and she is @mamachachacita (love the name) on Instagram. Here are a couple of photos of her Sonoma shawl knit in Home Fingering Weight in Snowy Pine (a light mint color) and Marmalade (a warm pumpkin orange):

Photo by @mamachachacita

You can see how beautiful and squishy the garter stitch is in this photo. I love it! Even the lace border is in garter stitch and it is stunning. I love how the lace border becomes a more saturated section of the contrast color. It is genius.

photo by @mamachachacita

The Snowy Pine main color paired with the Marmalade contrast color is one of my favorite combinations. Well done, Mary! I hope you enjoy your prize and thanks for posting. 

The next quick thing I want to share with you today is that over on Barrett Wool Co. in the Mercantile we are having a bundle sale. If you purchase any combination of scissors, cards and stitch marker tins for $18 or over you get 20% off by using the code: BUNDLE. Magazines are not included. 

Click here to visit the Mercantile on Barrett Wool Co.!

The discount code is good through Friday, May 19th, 2017.

So I spent the entire last week in Denver, Colorado, filming a new and long Craftsy.com class. It was a ton of work but it is always so much fun as well. The crew and staff at Craftsy are fun, talented and supportive. I enjoyed every minute of it. The new class comes out at the end of June so I'll have more details for you at that time.

While I was filming everything came to a sudden stop as Craftsy was at that very moment purchased by NBC Universal. The NBC executives were all in Denver to close the deal and I even got to meet some of them as they toured through the studio as I was filming my class. That was fun.

Here is a good article in Variety about the acquisition if interested. 

This is a very big deal for the company, huge stuff. The mood was so elevated and happy and excited. I am really happy for them all because I think they work so hard with long hours and with sometimes limited resources. They all strive to put out a great product. 

This will certainly mean even bigger and better things are coming for us through Craftsy.com in the future. It is really exciting times over there. 

I just filmed my fourth class with Craftsy. If interested, links for the first three are here with a 50% off discount (these are affiliate links):

Wee Ones

The Not-So-Itty-Bitty-Giraffe

My First Toe-Up Socks

The photo above is my view from the hotel. Colorado is one beautiful state. 

I'm leaving for Orlando, Florida tomorrow after only a few short days at home. I'm teaching at the Good Yarn Retreat along with Ann Budd and Romi Hill. That sounds like some great company. Oh, and of course, Clara Parkes is the featured speaker! I love Clara.

Here are a few more upcoming dates: 

I'm teaching at KnitCircus here in Madison for one day, two workshops, on June 17th, 2017! Click here to find out more!

I'm speaking and vending our Barrett Wool Co. at the Zombie Knitpocalypse on June 23-24th, in Rochester, Minnesota! Click here to find out more.

I'm going to film with Vickie Howell for her new show, The Knit Show at the end of July!

I'm teaching at the first Signature Needle Arts Retreat in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, next Oct. 13-15th, 2017, and there are still openings available! I am teaching with Ann Budd, Romi Hill and Kate Atherley. Good group! Click here to find out more.

I've updated the rest of my upcoming teaching schedule on the sidebar of this blog if you ever want to see my where I'm headed. It's not totally complete and I can't talk about some of the dates yet until the places are ready but most of it is up there.

I'll see you back here on the other side. Have a great week ahead.

xo ~ susan

This Week

Hi, Knitters,

Wow, this week is going fast. First, I randomly selected a winner for the garter stitch tray made by Creative with Clay's Charan Sachar. The winner is.....

frecklesandpurls (rav username)!!

I've contacted the winner and have already mailed off the prize! Congratulations and thank you to everyone who entered. I'll host another giveaway very soon. 

Last week I cleaned out my sock drawers, weeding through the years of sock knitting adventures. I reorganized, folded, and got rid of many of the old, worn and ill-fitting pairs that I really don't wear any longer. I am really pleased with every pair now resting in the drawers. I counted 53 pairs of beautiful handknit socks that spark joy Marie Kondo-style. I now have room to add more to my favorite sock collection and it feels really good to be organized once again. 

This all started because of my sock knitting teaching as of late. I am really proud to announce that on March 28, 2016 my new Craftsy class will be going live. I'll announce it here with a coupon code for a discount and I think I will be able to have a giveaway for a free class (I'll have to double-check on these things but I'm pretty sure it will be okay) so please check back here to find out more.

The class title is.....

My First Toe-Up Socks!

I have seen the class footage already as a preview and it looks really good. I am feeling great about it and I hope you will check it out. I will talk about it in more detail next week but it is a skill builder class where I go into depth about measuring your foot (3 simple measurements), Judy's Magic Cast On, increases and decreases, Kitchener stitch, Russian Bind-Off, and an afterthought heel. It is jam-packed with good information. Also, I have written a pattern for the class with 6 different sizes, 3 sizes each in both fingering weight and worsted weight.

More to come next week!

The photo above is my preparation for my new workshop called, How I Make My Socks, which I taught for the first time in Sarasota, Florida at A Good Yarn. It was fun and I think it went well.

Now for a little about the trip to Florida.

My daughter and husband tagged along for the trip so that made it extra fun. We rented a car and drove about an hour from Tampa to Sarasota. It was such a warm, pretty drive. The bridges were beautiful and seeing the ocean always feels so good and exciting. 

The traffic was tough and it took a long time to get our rental car and to get to the hotel but I got settled in at the hotel for a few minutes before heading off to A Good Yarn for a book signing, meet and greet. It was really fun. 

Susan Rife, a knitter who happens to be a reporter for the Herald-Tribune, was at the shop waiting to interview me for an article for her newspaper. We did a quick interview and the next day there was a fun article about my visit in the paper.  

Click here to read the article about my visit to A Good Yarn!

photo by Susan Rife for the Herald-Tribune

It was fun to see how shop owner, Susan Post, had really planned well and had an enormous table filled with all of my books, stacks and stacks of them. It was great to see the number of books dwindle down over the weekend. She didn't have many left at all and she told me she could have sold more of the books that sold out. I think it helps so much to have the knit samples out next to the books so I was glad I brought quite a large trunk show along. 

Click here to visit A Good Yarn's website!

photo by Susan Rife for the Herald-Tribune

I was really happy to meet Luann Pezet who drove 6 hours from the east coast side of Florida for the meet and greet. She was just adorable and her husband was very kind to accompany her for the journey. Luann is pure joy and I loved hearing about her 10 grandchildren. They are lucky to have her. Thanks for coming all that way to the shop, Luann!

Thank you to Susan Rife for the article in the paper. I really appreciate it.

Me, Susan Post and Laurie (@luvprettyyarn on Instagram) at dinner Saturday night.

I had a great time teaching at the shop with full classes of enthusiastic learners. Laurie was kind of my right-hand throughout the weekend. I really enjoy her and Susan so much. They were so gracious and helpful the entire weekend. I had many students who came and took every class and there were people from all over the country attending. It is a unique community because some were vacationing and happened to be there right on the same weekend so it worked out well. On a funny side note, I don't think I've ever been around so many Susans at one time. I had multiple Susans in every class, Susan Post is the owner and Susan Rife wrote the newspaper article. 

I ate some delicious meals at local restaurants, my family had a ball playing on the beach while I was teaching, and I met so many wonderful knitters. The entire weekend was a huge hit. I hope to come back to A Good Yarn sometime in the future.

I want to thank Susan Post for contacting me over 18 months ago to set this up. It has been a long time in the making. A Good Yarn is more than just a spot to purchase yarn, it is a social gathering place full of vibrant happy knitters. The large round table in the front of the shop was never empty (not for my classes but with knitters just hanging out together at the shop). The feeling in the shop is happy and welcoming and this is due to Susan Post's genuine love of her shop and her gratitude to her customers. She loves her job and it shows.

Goodbye Siesta Key Beach and A Good Yarn Sarasota! 

It was the best!

The day after my return it felt good to think back about the great time in Sarasota, knit on a new sock, and have a cup of coffee back at my own kitchen table. My daughter made the wax-relief dyed eggs for me over the weekend. The sock yarn is from Biscotte Yarns, the closest colorway is called, For Him. The bag is from Lowland Originals on Etsy. The mug is old but was purchased at Starbucks at least several years ago.

There is so much going on right now and this week. My kids are home for spring break with lots of bustling in and out, high school soccer try-outs are happening this week, all of my kids have so much going on in their personal lives ~ lots of changes and excitement and plans. We have company coming to stay for the weekend and an Easter brunch at our house for family in the plans. Hectic as always, I'm sure you can all relate.

Take care and love to you all!
I'll be back soon with more.
xo ~ susan

Quick Sock & Teaching Update

Hi, Knitters,

I want to quickly let you know about a few teaching and book signing events I have coming very soon. Next week, Feb. 28-March 3, 2016, I am off to film a brand new Craftsy class! This class has been a long time coming and I am super excited to get back to Craftsy again. 

March 1, 2016 ~ Fancy Tiger Crafts 

I'll be heading over to Fancy Tiger Crafts in Denver, Colorado, at 7pm! They are hosting me for a book signing and hangout (thank you!). I can't wait to see this shop as I've heard such great things about it for years. I hope to see you there!

Click here for more Fancy Tiger Crafts information!

March 18-20, 2016 ~ A Good Yarn 

I am so excited to be teaching all weekend at A Good Yarn in Sarasota, Florida! I am debuting a new sock class called, How I Make My Socks, which should be super fun. I am also teaching my Shawl Shapes workshop, a full day of the Build a Toy Workshop, and one of my all-time favorites, the Sock Bunny workshop. It looks to be a fun weekend ahead. 

I have also heard this shop is super fantastic so I can't wait to check it out and visit with all of the wonderful Florida knitters. And how perfect that I get to go to Florida in March when it will still be cold here in Madison. What a treat. I hope to see you in class! 

Click here for all of the A Good Yarn workshop details!

Photo of the shop is from the Fibre Space website.

May 19-21, 2016 ~ Fibre Space

Registration has opened for my weekend of five workshops at one of my favorite shops in the country, Fibre Space. I am so excited to be teaching for the third time at this beautiful Alexandria, Virginia location. Thank you, Danielle, for inviting me back! I hope to see you there.

Click here for more information about the workshops at Fibre Space!

Here are the classes with links:

• 5/19: Build a Toy Workshop
• 5/20: Exploring Shawl Shapes Workshop
• 5/20: Top-Down Seamless Dolls Workshop
• 5/21: Designing Your Own Fair Isle Mitts Workshop
• 5/21: Egg to Owl Workshop

Now for the sock update. I finished the first sock in the Wool Barn Soft Pink Tweed Sock yarn. It is so beautiful. I combined my How I Make My Socks pattern along with the Eyelet Mock Cable Rib stitch pattern used in Paula Emons-Fuessle's Ellison Bay Shawl. 

I have a good start on the second sock. There really is something sweet and wonderful about the combination of the stitch pattern, the yarn and the Golden Oak wooden needles I am using. Even the linked hearts stitch marker from Little Skein adds to the beauty. I think I will bring this with me on the plane for my trip to Denver next week. 

Yarn: Wool Barn Tweed Sock in the Soft Pink colorway

Needles: Dyakcraft double-pointed needles, US size 1/2.25mm in Golden Oak, 6-inch length

Wood Sock Blocker from theloopyewe.com 

Lastly, if you think this sock looks wider and longer than my usual socks you are correct. I am knitting a new pair for my baker son. His foot measures 11-inches in length, US men's shoe size 11, and I cast on 72 stitches instead of my usual 64 stitches for me.

I am combining two self-striping sock yarn balls from Lollipop Yarn. I am working the cuff, heel and toes in an Opal dark heather gray colorway. To work the sock striping yarn I am knitting through one full striping repeat in one yarn, cutting the yarn and then working the striping sequence from the second yarn. One of the colorways has 3 stripes and the other has four stripes, each stripe is about 6 rounds.

There were some ends to weave in but it took less than 15 minutes to get the job done. That's not too bad at all and it is totally worth it. I love the look of the finished sock and by combining two self-striping colorways of sock yarn you get a completely different striping pattern with more colors which is really fun. 

Yarn: Lollipop Yarn ~ combining two skeins

Sock blocker from theloopyewe.com

Pattern: How I make My Socks for Men

And I am very proud of that placemat in the photo above. I make a lot of quilted placemats for my family and for gifts. This one is different though because I used an idea from a new book called, Quilt as You Go Made Modern. This technique has you sew down strips of fabric directly to the batting and then you add the backing, quilt those together and then you add the binding. It was so much fun to make the off-kilter log cabin pattern. Free form quilting is so much more fun for me than super-precise quilting. I love this book! 

Click here for the Quilt as You Go Made Modern book!

Wish me luck with my Craftsy filming next week. I have been working so hard to get ready for the new class. I can't say what the topic is yet but the new class will be released I think by the end of March so it will be soon enough. I think you will like it.

I'll be back soon with more. Have a great weekend.

xo ~ susan

Super Sock Friday!

Hi, Knitters,

First things first, I have a couple of quick announcements. 

I was a guest on the Yarn Thing podcast this week. You can have a listen to the episode by clicking right here!

I have just added a book signing/meet and greet to my schedule at Fancy Tiger Crafts in Denver, Colorado! I will be there on March 1st, 2016, from 7 to 8pm! Click here for more information! I hope you can join me.

I have one spot in one class (Egg to Owl) left as of right now for the Yarnover event in Minneapolis in April! Click here to find out more! Meg Swansen is going to be the keynote speaker so I am super excited about that. I love her.

Now for the giveaway. I've randomly selected 12 winners to receive 100 grams, enough for a pair of socks, of the Arne & Carlos Regia sock yarn. Thank you to Regia for the fantastic and huge giveaway opportunity. And thank you to all of the people who entered, it was an amazingly huge and fun response!

Here are the 12 winners by Ravelry username: 

flyingmonkeys

JeansNY

Roadchick

philomenasfriend

Wagner

AnneSATX

LavenderLune

bbean33

JKnits51

fieldwonderful

Elvensknits

PLC1

Congratulations to you all! Have fun with your sock yarn. I have contacted all of the winners via Ravelry pm with instructions on how to receive your prize yarn.

Now on to a few pairs of fun socks in the works. The photo above is a very sweet sock that I started yesterday. I'm really in love with this little sock so far. It is the perfect Valentine sock project to have started.
Here is the information:
Yarn: The Wool Barn's BFL Tweed Sock yarn in the Soft Pink colorway. (I LOVE this dyer!)
Needles: DyakCraft 6-inch double-pointed needles in Golden Oak, 2.25mm size
Pattern: How I Make My Socks with the added Eyelot Mock Rib Cable from the Ellison Bay shawl by Paula Emons-Fuessle.
Stitch Marker from Little Skein.
The sweater I am wearing in the photo is Antrorse by Shannon Cook in Quince & Co. Osprey in the Peacoat colorway.

I've actually finished the pair in the photo above, in the Patons Kroy Socks yarn but I still need to take a photo of them. I'll post the finished pair photo next time, but in the meantime I did take a video of the finished pair that you can see by clicking right here! For almost daily updates of my knitting you can follow me on Instagram if you'd like. Click here for my Instagram.

I love these squishy socks and I got both socks to match perfectly stripe by stripe so that is kind of a treat. It takes effort to get those stripes to match, a lot of winding off and remembering where you started with the first sock. 

Yarn: Patons Kroy Socks in the Meadow Stripes colorway (I'm not sure where to get ahold of this colorway right now, I've had this for awhile in my stash.)

Needles: US size 1.5 or 2.5mm double-pointed needles, 6-inch length, from Knit Picks. 

Pattern: How I Make My Socks but I cast on 60 stitches due to the heavier fingering weight

Sock blocker from TheLoopyEwe.com 

I pulled out a sock project that I had started quite awhile ago. I love this sock and can't wait to get the second one finished! The yarn is uniquely dyed so there will not be any pooling or flashing of the colors. I like that a lot. the variety of colors and the quick color changes makes it really fun to knit, too.

Yarn: Graffiti and Asphalt in the Wonder Sock by Gale's Art (coolest colorway ever!)

Needles: Signature Needle Arts dpns, 6-inch length, size US 1.5/2.5mm

Pattern: Monkey Socks free pattern

Sock Blocker from TheLoopyEwe.com.

I'm definitely a bit sock-obsessed right now. I am having the best time with my sock knitting. I am gifting some of my recent sock projects to others in the family, and I need to get some more socks on the needles for both of my sons. They both love their handknit socks and need more in their drawers.

Have a great weekend, friends! The days are getting a bit longer now and spring is coming right around the corner. There is so much to look forward to and it will all be here before you know it.
xo ~ susan

New York, New York

 

(In Central Park)

Hi, Knitters,

First things first, I randomly selected a winner for the Gale's Art Sock Blank Club 3-month subscription! The winner is......

knitgineering on Ravelry! I've already contacted Jessica and Gale to let them know. Thank you to everyone else for entering. Gale told me that there are still some openings in the club so hurry on over. She is closing subscription orders tomorrow I believe, Wednesday, January 20th, 2016. Please be sure to contact Gale if you have any questions. Thank you, Gale, for the opportunity.

I'll have another giveaway very soon. Thanks for all of your participation in the blog. I really appreciate all of you for sticking with me here!

Now for today's topic. I'm back from Vogue Knitting Live NYC 2016. It was a whirlwind of knitting, teaching, the market, book signings, students, techniques, dinners, seeing old friends, colleagues, and meeting new friends. I loved every last minute of it. My classes were full and the students were enthusiastic, happy and talented. What a complete treat. Thank you to Vogue Knitting for everything.

This year my lovely husband came along with me and we had so much fun together. He made the trip easier for me in every way whether it was lugging around heavy suitcases to bringing me lunch in between classes to arranging dinners and going on late night walks in the city, but mainly just by being there. It was truly wonderful to have him along, he is the best guy around. I don't talk about my husband too much on the blog but he is the reason I get to pursue my teaching and travels and all of my work through the years. I am thankful to have him by my side for the past 34 years (we are high school sweethearts!). 

We thought the photo above was so funny because he is as big as the gigantic Welcome sign in the lobby of the hotel. He is super tall if you didn't know. 

Our room was on the 36th floor with a spectacular view of Times Square and the always interesting skyline. The first night we were thrilled to have the chance to meet up with my former editor and publicist from my publisher, Artisan Books. We have been friends for about 10 years now and we still keep in touch and really enjoy and take care of each other. We are like family and when we see each other it's like we've never been apart. The food at the Marseilles restaurant was fantastic and we lingered for a long time just catching up, laughing and simply being together. I was sad when we had to leave.

After my workshops on Friday I zipped down to Steven Be's booth on the Market floor for a book signing for my new book, Kids' Knitting Workshop. I was super excited to get to meet my new publicist from Artisan Books for the first time in person. Breanne is doing a great job with the new book. It's funny because we meet in New York but Breanne is from Milwaukee, Wisconsin and graduated from the UW-Madison the same year as my oldest son. Breanne moved to New York City after graduation and started working at Artisan soon after that. Breanne also knits which makes it even better to have the opportunity to work with her. We have a lot in common. She is a complete pleasure to work with and a real go-getter. People were mistaking us for a mother/daughter pair which is cute. It's that Wisconsin water I think (or the brown hair, glasses and similar stature). Thanks, Breanne, for making the effort to come to the signing.

It was a complete zoo in Steven's booth in a good way! It was so jam-packed with knitters I could not believe the frenzy. I had a great time, signed some books and the booth ended up selling a lot of copies of Kids' Knitting Workshop throughout the weekend. There is something so sincere and good-hearted about Steven if you haven't met him. He gets that by supporting the community around him in a positive way that all of his goodness and generosity multiplies a million times more. That is why he is incredibly successful and so loved. And he is fun!

Don't forget that Steven Be's shop has online shopping available for complete kits for Kids' Knitting Workshop. Included in the kit is yarn and a faux-furry pom-pom in the best and brightest colors to make one of the hats in the book, the needles to knit the hat, and a cute zebra print bag to keep it all in, and a copy of the book, of course!

Click here for the Kids' Knitting Workshop Kits!

Thanks to Steven Be's for hosting me.

Breanne and I hung out with Jen Geigley who was also having a book signing in the booth for Weekend (click here!). 

Remember the Gaptastic Cowl? That's Jen! She is wonderful and I really enjoyed her.

Click here to see Jen and to find out more about her new book, Weekend! She's definitely my new BFF. 

Click here to see her new book with big chunky fashionable knits, Weekend!

 Missy and me!

Above is my girl Missy Ridley who is one of the masterminds at Steven Be's. She's the reason behind me getting to come and teach at the shop several times and my book signings and custom kits at the shop in Minneapolis. She is my friend to the end and I appreciate Missy's support so much. I wish we lived closer because we would be best buds and hanging out no doubt (if we both stopped working so hard for a minute). Our kids are around the same age and going through the same things so we have a lot in common. Thank you for everything, Missy!

On Saturday night after my last class I dashed off to the Knitty City booth where the lovely Pearl hosted me once again. I have been going to Knitty City in NYC for book signing events since Itty-Bitty Hats was released in 2006! Pearl is a constant supporter of the knitting community. Honestly, I have never seen a busier more bustling knit shop anywhere. It is a true neighborhood hang out for knitters. I love how Knitty City supports authors and knitting books. If you have been to the shop you will remember the HUGE wall of knitting books at the entrance of the shop. A lot of shops don't sell many knitting books any longer.

I had so much fun at the signing that I just hung out for awhile even after it had officially ended.  I love the people who work at Knitty City. They are fun, engaging and interesting. Pearl's daughter and son were there. One of the staff members is a touring opera singer and she is performing in Madison with the symphony orchestra in 2017. I'll have to try to go when she comes to town.

Also, we made plans for the coming spring to coordinate a huge window display with my designs and projects at Knitty City! I am super excited about this because they have the best front window ever. I'll let you know when the window display is up. It's going to be like a big trunk show at the shop.

Thank you, Knitty City and Pearl for hosting me. I signed a lot of my different books, some signed books are at the shop now if you want to pick one up. 

The view from the hotel window was very exciting for this Wisconsin native.

I loved meeting Sharon from the tvknittingpodcast on YouTube in my class on Friday.  I have been a subscriber and listener and now watcher of her podcast for a few years. Sharon is an excellent knitter and teacher. You should check out her podcast on YouTube if you get a chance. 

Click here for the TV Knitting Podcast on YouTube! Click here for the website with links! 

I came home on Sunday to my cozy house and my cozy kids (they're all adults now except TC!) who held down the fort with style and ease while we were gone. They waited up for us to get home late on Sunday night. It was so good to be together again. 

On Monday it was about all I could do to knit a sweet red wool mitten (pattern here), bake some cookies and read my new review copy of Clara Parkes' Knitlandia. 

Why are simple red wool mittens the best? 

It was a good, good weekend.

I'll be back soon with more.

xo ~ susan 

p.s. I'll try to film a new video podcast in the next week or two! I'm way overdue. 

April Travel Review & Kit Winners Announced

Hi, Knitters,
Well, today is the day. Anne Vally of Little Skein upped the ante due to the ENORMOUS response to the giveaway. She decided to offer 2 of the Big Woods Luxe Kits as prizes. I have randomly selected 2 winners from the 1,077 entries, each will win a Big Woods Luxe Kit from Little Skein.

The winners are.... lindarumsey and sewmanygirls (both rav usernames)! 


Congratulations to the winners. I have given your names to Anne Vally of Little Skein and she will be contacting you via Ravelry pm to gather your preferences and mailing addresses to send your kits. Thank you for the overwhelming response.

Click here for the Little Skein Etsy Shop!

Anne asked me to pass on some further kit information to you. There are still some of the Plucky Knitter Primo Fingering Big Woods Kits available in the red- Mr. Edwards and green- Big Woods colorways! The golden Half Pint colorway is sold out. Also, be sure to note that Anne provides many different kit combinations so there is something for almost any price range, you can pick and choose.

collage photo provided by Little Skein

I wanted to thank Anne for sending me my shawl sample back to keep and wear and for including some of the lovely kit items as gifts in the package. One of the available kit items she sent, which is my favorite by far, is the photo collection by Joy Prouty. I follow and love Joy Prouty on Instagram along with tens of thousands of others. I am framing these Little House photos, signed by Joy, and will be hanging them in my home studio. They are joyful, peaceful and perfect. The photos are from Joy's personal collection and include original photographs of her visit with her family to the Ingalls' Homesteads in Walnut Grove, Minnesota and DeSmet, South Dakota. 

Read all about this beautiful Little House photo collection right here! You can purchase only one photo or all of them.

Click here for the Little Skein pop-up shop!

Thanks to Anne for the giveaway and for the fun opportunity.

Now that May is here and I am home for awhile (or at least until SSK in Nashville this July), I wanted to share some photos of my April travels to Maryland, California, and Minnesota.

And with that off we go!
Than

Fun and successful Pasadena students are making their adorable 3 Wee Sheep. Some of the students got really far along during class which is always fun to see. Note (top left) the Yowza Weigh It Shawl in Miss Babs Yowza in the Funny Papers colorway, and the lovely Esther in her Quaker Ridge Shawlette (top right). Esther won the Arne & Carlos Regia yarn from my blog giveaway.

I loved the artsy stenciled walkways of Pasadena. What a pretty area.

Minnesota is where I got to meet lots of my Itty-Bitty Knits group members! And Twinset Ellen (center top row) of the Twinset Designs Podcast! And I was excited to hear Amy Herzog speak (top left photo) at the opening dinner for Yarnover. She was a wonderful and vibrant and informative speaker. Very impressive. I met a couple more Itty-Bitty Knits group members Carla and Robin (bottom left) at Yarnover.

My buddy Rae Lynne (bottom right) was at StevenBe's on Sunday. I have known her for a few years now through our Ravelry group. She gave me a couple of very sweet gifts from her Etsy Shop Chase Art. Thank you Rae Lynne!

I taught at both Yarnover and at StevenBe's in Minneapolis on the same weekend.

In Minnesota I also got to spend time with my son. Let's just say we ate A LOT! Many restaurants were visited in a couple of short days. It was fun because he stayed with me at the hotel on Saturday night. I loved that time we had together. He is the second of my four children so as you can imagine we have never had a lot of one-on-one time together. It was wonderful.

I purchased the Irish yarn called Hedgehog Fibres in the Teacup colorway at StevenBe's. It is so pretty that I immediately wound it and cast on a shawl... more to come on that. I finished a pair of Arne & Carlos socks and started a very casual Instagram knitalong for any Arne & Carlos Regia socks with the hashtag #acregiakal if you are interested in joining in.

In summary, in April I taught on both U.S. coasts and in the middle. I taught Fair Isle Mitts and Fair Isle Hat workshops, 3 Wee Sheep classes, Mary, Millie & Morgan and Ben & Buddy Quince & Co. Doll Workshops, Build a Toy Workshops, Opal Sock Yarn Bunny and Mini-Sock Yarn Bunny classes, Little Dragon classes, Fox in a Vest classes, lectured at Vogue Knitting Live and spoke on a panel discussion.....  And I survived and had fun to boot!

Oh! And.....

I am quietly finishing up my next book with my publisher, Artisan Books. There is lots of editing and deadlines going on there as well. I am super excited about this new book and I hope you will be, too.

Psssst..... my new book is already up for pre-order on Amazon if you are interested in taking a peek!

And lastly, in Maryland Greg of the Knitting Daddy blog shared his new pattern samples with me. 

The hat pattern is called, Scrappy Sock Yarn Preemie Hats. The hats are adorable! 

All of the proceeds from this pattern go directly to the Family Support Network of Central Carolina.  You can read all about it on the project page right here! Plus, there is a discount code for the month of May for $1 off: BLUEBERRY

What a great way to use up sock yarn leftovers. 

I'll be back soon with more. Until then, be well and knit on.

xo ~  susan