I'm on Craftsy!

I've just listed a couple of my knitting patterns on the Craftsy website! 

Chocolate for Breakfast?

Brandon insisted on putting a golden coin (chocolate) on top of each of his waffles this morning. Was I a bad mom in letting him do so? As for the jacket he's wearing... He says he's cold! It's only 72 degrees in here! ;)

Thursday’s Knitting Tip – Using Unconventional Tools

 Well the original post was posted to Webs Yarn Store Blog on Tuesday, but I'm sharing it today, thus making it MY Thursday Knitting Tip.  ;)  I found their link through Pinterest. It's amazing what you'll find there! Anyways, this one caught my eye because I had actually just used my own "unconventional knitting tool" this week! So I just had to pass this on!
 I have misplaced my cable needles, so... I opted on using one of those tiny straws from my children's Capri Sun packet to knit the cables in a new hat design I'm working on! Worked like a charm on the little C4b I was doing! The plastic tip had a bit of a point and it was just "sticky" enough (no pun intended) to keep the stitches from falling off the needle, I mean straw! ;)
Click on the link below to see how a piece of grass can be used!
Webs Yarn Store Blog » Blog Archive » Tuesday’s Knitting Tip – Using Unconventional Tools

Openwork Ridges

I just self-published one of my original hat designs on Craftsy as well as Ravelry! Posting the link to Craftsy below. I'm still waiting to hear back from a couple of magazines that I have submitted to with other designs, but I wanted to go ahead and test the waters out at Craftsy and Ravelry as well. If I can sell my patterns on my own, why not give it a shot?

Source: Openwork Ridges Hat via Christine Chen on Craftsy

Never Not Knitting

Recently I've really gotten into listening to knitting podcasts. They're especially nice to listen to while doing chores around the house. I would much rather knit than clean house, but tuning into a podcast while accomplishing the task at hand keeps things a little more interesting and less boring! Listening to a podcast also makes for a nice companion while knitting! ;)

One podcast in particular that I would like to mention is Never Not Knitting hosted by Alana Dakos. She keeps me smiling and even laughing with her stories. I had the privilege of meeting Alana at Stitches West this year. Alana and her friend Hannah Fettig came together to produce the book Coastal Knits, a compilation of ten fresh knitwear designs inspired by Alana's California and Hannah's Maine coastlines. Aside from the gorgeous designs and patterns, the photography is also stunning! If you haven't checked out the podcast or the book, they're well worth doing so!

Alana and myself at Stitches West 2012

Summertime Knitting

Food for thought on this Friday... inspired by an article on knitty by Teresa Mowery.

Top 5 Reasons to knit during the Summer:
1. It's a Sanity Saver (it's very portable, so you can take it with you to that company picnic, ball games, family reunions, etc...)
2. Natural light (lots of daylight hours!)
3. Prime KIP (Knitting in Public) time!
4. Rest and Relaxation
5. Get a jump-start on your holiday gift list

Now what's to keep you from knitting in the sun?

Fruits of my husband's labor

He's the gardener... I'm the knitter! Strawberries and Red Cherry Tomato make for summertime yum!

Diving into the World of Designing

Wow! Has it really been a whole month since my last post? I can't believe that much time has passed! But I have a totally valid excuse! I've actually been knitting like crazy, even into the wee hours of the night. And what do I have to show for this? Well... at the moment I can't show you anything... and I'm really itching to share!  :(  But hopefully in the near future I'll be able to! What does this mean? I've been diving into designing some of my very own patterns that I hope to have published somewhere in the not too distant future.
What I can tell you is that I've been loving every minute of it! The yarns are yummy and hopefully some of you out there will think the same of the patterns!  ;)
Stay tuned, because I may give you some hints or sneak peeks along the way. Until then, I will try to post more often just so you know I'm still here!