Lara Smoot Designs: Why do designers charge for patterns?

Have you ever wondered what goes into designing a pattern and why you have to pay for the majority of patterns?  Fellow designer Lara Smoot did an awesome job of explaining it all on her most recent blog post! Click here to check it out! Thanks Lara!!!

Lara Smoot Designs: Why do designers charge for patterns?:

Feel Good Yarn Company, My New Design & An Interview!

I recently created a new pattern for the Feel Good Yarn Company using their LanaMundi SilverSpun yarn.
SilverSpun is a sport weight cotton yarn spun with PURE SILVER available in a regular sized skein (173 yds) and a mini-skein (50 yds).

The silver content in SilverSpun makes it therapeutic and conductive. Silver has excellent thermal properties, is nontoxic and is perfect for those suffering from diabetes, arthritis and sensitive skin. Silver is also an excellent conductive agent thus allowing smartphone or tablet touch screen use while wearing gloves knit from the yarn. The silver is permanently adhered to the yarn and will not wash out. It's produced in the USA with North Carolina grown cotton. It's absolutely amazing to work with! 

Greensboro Fingerless Mitts & Cowl Set by Christine Marie Chen

I'm proud to announce that my Greensboro Fingerless Mitts & Cowl Set is now available for purchase in my Ravelry shop! Click on the pattern name above! ^

Constructed from bottom to top, the fingerless mitts carry an intricate lace pattern up the back of the hand, yet they are surprisingly easy to knit. Simple stitches make up the design. Yarn overs, k2togs, and passing slipped stitches over are the basics of this pattern. The lacy texture yields a very stretchy fabric giving the hands full flexibility of motion. These mitts along with the matching cowl make perfect transitional accessories in going from one season to the next because of the thermal properties of the SilverSpun yarn. Keep warm and cozy while adding a touch of lace to any outfit even on the chilliest of days!

After designing this set I had the privilege of doing an interview with Laurie Gonyea, owner and founder of the Feel Good Yarn Company. She recently emailed me to let me know that she has posted the interview on her blog! So, click on over to her blog and check it out!!! Enjoy!

Click here: An Interview with Christine Marie Chen

A Post Card From the Road

Just thought I'd test out the Blogger app I installed on my phone. Therefore, I'm sending a postcard from the road! We left South Lake Tahoe this morning and we're headed home.
Just doing a little knitting now that we're back on the highway again. Just passed through Sacramento. Wow what a difference in temperature! It's about 20 degrees warmer here than it was at Lake Tahoe! Ok... Back to my knitting! ;)

A Family Vacation and Knitting in Tahoe

This post comes to you this evening directly from South Lake Tahoe! Summer is coming to a close and the kids will be going back to school very soon. So we decided to take a little family vacation to South Lake Tahoe before getting back into our regular schedules. This is the first time I've ever been up here and I have to admit that it's even more beautiful than I had imagined. Tahoe has so much more to offer than what I had originally thought. It's definitely not just for skiing! Yesterday we paid a visit to Emerald Bay by way of the Vikingsholm Trail. We hiked down and back up the one-mile trail (with about a 450-foot elevation change) from the parking lot to the bottom of Emerald Bay! It was definitely worth the effort. We had a spectacular view of Fannette Island, which is the only island to be found in all of Lake Tahoe. It is located on the west shore of the lake. It's a sparsely timbered, brush covered upthrust of granite that rises 150 feet above the water.

The view of Fannette Island from Vikingsholm Trail

 There's nothing quite like relaxing in a quaint little house in the middle of a quiet wooded neighborhood. We rented our little home away from home through Homeaway Vacation Rentals. I highly recommend them if you prefer a more private getaway as well as having all the comforts of home. I even found a little time to relax and get some knitting in. I'm working on a new hat design with Skeindalous Yarns! Stay tuned for updates coming soon!

Ah... a cup of coffee and a little knitting in the cabin!

We did quite a bit of walking around town while here. On the first night we walked down to the beach and I had to stop along the way when I saw these Hollyhocks. The color was amazingly beautiful! I think I'm going to have to plant some when I get back home! Just gorgeous!

Hollyhocks

Last but not least, I love the trees around here. They stand strong and tall in all their beauty. I could just gaze up at them in awe for hours. I'm going to miss this little town. I could see myself living here happily someday. This has been a wonderful vacation. One I won't soon forget!

The view from where I stood at our cabin

Join me on Instagram!

In an effort to integrate my social platforms, I would like to invite you to follow me on Instagram! At the same time I want to send out a HUGE welcome to any of my Instagram followers that decide to follow this blog! I plan on updating often and keeping you in the loop on upcoming events and design releases! I might even throw in a contest every now and then! Thank you to all of my faithful Instagram followers! I couldn't do this without you! I love you guys!!!