caffaknitted

The first wife

Let me present...Katherine of Aragon, the first wife of Henry VIII.  I'm knitting all of Henry VIII's wives for the Luvable Hugable show at gallery hanahou in NYC later this year.  The history of the Tudor dynasty has always been one of my favorite subjects.

So a brief history lesson...

Katherine was the youngest child of Ferdinand and Isabella.  She first married Henry's older brother, but he died shortly thereafter, and she then married Henry, the new King of England.  They were married for 24 years.  She became pregnant 6 times, but only one daughter Mary survived to adulthood.  Henry became convinced the marriage was cursed.  He was desparate for a son, and when he became enamoured with one of Katherine's ladies in waiting, Ann Boleyn, he sought an anulment from Katherine. 

 The Pope refused, and Henry created the Anglican church so that he could marry Ann anyway.  Katherine lived out her final years in relative poverty, separated from her daughter Mary.  She is remembered as a devout Catholic and humble queen.

Next in line to be knit is Ann Boleyn, one of my favorite historical figures.  

Weird moment

Yesterday, I was standing in line at the post office behind this little old man.  He was your typical old Boone man with a farmer tan and a John Deere hat. I glanced down and realized he was wearing a pair of shoes I had donated to the downtown thrift store!  They were these super chunky loafers with a 2" heel and silver trim along the top that I bought in NY in the 90's.  What's even more odd is that I have very small feet, but then again he was a very small man.  I tried to carefully slide my foot over close to his to see if they were the same size, and they were.  Even with the 2" heels, the man only came up to my ear lobe.  It was very strange.

Goggle eyes

Despite how it must seem, I have actually been doing a lot of knitting lately.  I recently finished a pretty kick-ass project...so kick-ass that I've decided to submit it for publishing.  Unfortunately this means I can't share it with you.  Luckily for you, if it's accepted, then you'll all have access to an awesome free pattern, and if it's turned down for publication, I'm going to offer it as a free pattern on my site!  So win-win-win, or maybe win-win-lose if you count the fact that I might not get paid.  I'm unclear on the rules of the win-lose game.

Outside of knitting, I am enjoying this summer like no summer before!  Perfect mountain temps, sunshine, gardening, thunderstorms, mornings knitting at the coffee shop, afternoons at the pool with the kids, old friends, cold beer, and good music.  My friend Emily, the underrated swimming genius that she is, is teaching me to properly swim laps.  The first day the lifeguard watched me warily, convinced I'm sure I was going under at any second, and I had my goggles on so tight that I had goggle rings under my eyes for at least 12 hours.  To make matters worse, the pool was filled with what I'm convinced were former olympic athletes, now in their 40's, that were not only amazing swimmers, but were also incredibly buff.  But now I think I'm getting the hang of it.  

My garden is starting to perk up as well.  I ate my first home-grown blueberry last week!  I would have eaten more than one, but the fattest robin I have ever seen swooped in and gobbled up the rest.  I think there's a metaphor in there somewhere, but I'm not quite sure.

Yarn is so darn unpredictable sometimes

Sometimes when I'm designing a new project, things turn out exactly like I envisioned, sometimes they do not, and sometimes they really do not.  My latest project falls into the last category.  Check out the fantastic lumpiness! 

 

I'm not even going to bother to tell you what it's supposed to be.  I've started over from scratch, and I think the new improved version will be finished very soon.  This is going to be (I hope) the first piece for the Luvable Hugable show in NYC.  I'm still all over the place with my ideas. Everyday I change my mind about what I want to make. 

We finally have a nice break from the absurdly hot weather we had last week.  This week it's almost cool outside, but still sunny.  My tomatoes seem much happier now.  It would probably help if I actually knew anything at all about growing vegetables.  I'm really winging it this year. Other than staring at my garden, waiting for things to grow, or maybe die, I'm knitting a lot outdoors, and trying to keep the children entertained.  Poor Drew is always so bored.  I remember being terribly bored all summer when I was his age too.  Next week he'll go to soccer camp thankfully.  

On a fun note, we've moved our stitch n bitch group to Wednesday nights at the coffee shop.  The nice thing about having it there is the industrial strength blender (hola margaritas!)  I'm looking forward to some over-due quality time with my knitters tonight!

Anticipation

As we speak at this very moment, my pattern line is being launched at TNNA, the needlearts trade show in Colombus, Ohio!  Chrissy from Gardiner Yarn Works has been working long hours preparing for the show.  I only wish I could see the booth for myself.  I hope everyone is enjoying my sample toys.  I'm dying to know how the show is going, and I hope Chrissy is having a wonderful time.

In more exciting news...I've been invited to participate in this year's Luvable Hugable show this December at Gallery Hanahou in NYC!!   I adore this gallery, and I'm so excited they want me to participate. I already  have my toy series mapped out, and I'm working on the first piece.  I think it's going to be the cutest set of toy patterns yet!  

I was so excited about the show, that I put down the camisole I've been frantically knitting in order to start the first piece.  i never finish anything wearable.  I don't know how other people do it!  I see designers who create multiple new wearable patterns every season, and it blows my mind.  I find all that knitting in the round mind-numbing.  I'm saving the camisole for my knitting night.  I've discovered that pattern writing while knitting something new, chatting with friends, and having drinks all at the same time are a poor combination. 

We're having a long anticipated rain storm at the moment, and I see it's letting up.  I think I'll take advantage of the cool air, and go for a walk.

Dirty Knees

Apologies for the inexcusably long absence.  The warm weather has been keeping me outside.  UiJin and I have begun a major landscaping overhaul.  Although, I'm not sure you can call it an overhaul if there's nothing there to begin with.  My parents came for a visit two weeks ago, and helped us get started.  My dad is a landscaping master.  

We're fighting a healthy and robust patch of Mexican bamboo, and boy is it stubborn!  The roots are long and about two inches thick.  You could use them to swing from trees, build a hammock, or to tie someone to a chair.  We're just taking them to the landfill.  Spending all day in the sun has been leaving me pleasantly dirty, worn-out, and sunburnt, even though I know I'm entirely too old to think it's ok to get that much sun exposure.  UiJin kindly gave me a big straw hat to wear.  Now I look like a farmer's wife.  Sometimes I just like to put in on, and stand in the front yard with my pitchfork.

Today was the last day of school!  I'm experiencing a mix of emotions, from glee all the way to disdain.  Drew is at the age where he is perpetually bored.  It will be difficult to keep him entertained.  Sophia, on the other hand, is much easier.  She loves playing outside.  All I need is a big pail of water for her to play in, and I can sit and knit on the patio all afternoon.  

On the knitting front, there is not much new to report.  I've sent everything off to the trade show.  So now, I'm taking a forced break from pattern-writing. I'm doing something very unusual for me...I'm knitting something wearable!  I've chosen the frock pattern from the spring issue of Interweave Knits.   I'm knitting it in a lovely eggplant colored wool cotton blend.  It's going to be cute, and it's so nice not to have to constantly stop and type things into my computer.  But don't worry, there are plenty of new things in the toy genre coming soon...including a new free pattern!

Craft

Yesterday, much to my surprise, my pattern sales had quite a boost, especially the guitar pattern.  I didn't think much about it at first, and before I knew it, my guitar pattern had sold out.  So as usual I re-listed.  But then throughout the day I continued to get messages from people saying the pattern was sold out, and did I have plans to sell it again?  I was baffled. Finally someone informed me that my guitar had been featured on the Craft Magazine blog!!  That's when I realized, the link they posted on Craftzine to my etsy shop had expired.  Every time you re-list a pattern it gets a new item listing.  So...mystery solved!  If you're looking for the pattern, or any of my patterns, I promise...they're never sold out.  Just let me know if you don't see it on my etsy page.  And if you're still trying to find the guitar pattern, you can find it here, where it will remain, until the happy day it is united with your needles.

Guitar...take 2

I'm still frantically trying to get things ready for the big trade show coming up in Ohio.  Currently, I'm putting together samples to send to Chrissy at Gardiner Yarn Works.  This is my newest guitar.  I'm pretty happy with it.  So happy, that I really don't want to mail it to Portland at all!  In addition to the new sample, I've made a few improvements to the pattern.  The pattern can be purchased on my etsy.

The great thing about this guitar is the size.  It's very similar to a ukelele, or a violin.  In fact, I may adapt the pattern to create a violin in the future.  I love making musical instruments, the more complicated, the more fun.  I'm thinking of attempting an accordion.

Happy Mother's Day to all the knitting moms out there!  My darling husband is going to grill a feast for myself and all my mom-friends.  Now, I must go and call my own mother....

Cute Asses for Obama!

Finished! Finally. First let me congratulate the winner of my "contest"...Maria!  I will be sending you your pattern shortly. 

This project is a fundraiser for the Obama campaign.  I'm selling the knitting pattern.  All sales will go directly to the Obama campaign.  You can purchase the pattern here.

I would love to see lots of little donkeys out there.  Do you know any expectant democratic moms?  My daughter is already very attached to the toy, but she pronounces it Mabamba, instead of Obama.  Hey, I can't help it if my kids are influenced by my politics.  They're smart kids.  I'm fairly relieved to have this project finished.  I have lots of other projects sitting on the sidelines, waiting for my attention.

Certificate of excellence

I received a prestigous award yesterday! There are so many people I want to thank! My parents, for my impeccabe genes, and my husband, for being so delusional. I can honestly say I never expected to garner such an acheivement on an ordinary Thursday!

Moving on, one of my favorite things about selling my toy patterns is seeing the finished pieces from the people who purchase them. I especially love seeing other knitters put their own spin on the toy. Recently I was very excited to see this version of my tulip doll by Reckless Glue!

Isn't she cute! I love her color choices, and what a beautiful dress! She claims this is her first toy, but I find that amazing. Here is the first toy I ever knit, Kate by Jess Hutchison. That was less than 2 years ago. I think I've come a long way since then. Plus, as you can see, my Kate has had a lot of love.

My calculator has been featured on a lot of blogs, most recently is this great site, Geek Crafts. Having a soft spot in my own heart for all things geeky, I really like this site, which features all kinds of geeky goodness, like needlefelted Pac Man figures, or an Optimus Prime built from cans.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. I am going to pause from blogging for the next couple of days to finish my next toy. New pattern coming on Monday! (or Tuesday at the latest;)