I’ve been having a lot of fun this summer, it’s been really busy and I spend a lot of time inside away from the heat but seeing the girls grow together has just been phenomenal. Having LG very close to turning one has been tugging on my heart strings, she’s not a baby anymore and as much as I am not one to move backwards or freeze time, I have to admit it gets me a bit teary. It is just so fun to see the girls play together more. Both BG and I are anxiously waiting for LG to want to hold our hand when she walks. Yes, she is walking and lots! All over the place, with her legs all bowed out like a sumo wrestler! It’s quiet funny, and she really loves walking all over the place. She also loves climbing. The two of them just love to be together, even if they can’t exactly play together I know it won’t be long before they can. I’m often playing referee, but they both love each others company. (more…)

To those in the US, Happy 4th! We spent part of the weekend with family, and today we plan to avoid any crazy drivers and stick close to home, I have lots of knitting to do and took some fun photos yesterday I hope to share with you soon! In the mean time of course I have other things to share. First up a fun “behind the scenes” moment captured, BG helping me set the white balance up properly on my camera; (more…)

For those of you who have been following my blog for a long time, you’ve watched my journey to becoming a professional knitwear designer. You may have seen me back when I was even learning to knit in 2004, experimenting with cables lace and other various techniques. I designed my first pattern in 2007 when BG was just 6 months old. I started out by measuring a similar top in the silhouette I was designing, probably something from Old Navy. I looked online at other patterns to make sure my ratio of sleeve/back/front stitches seemed correct for up by the neck. I was flying by the seat of my pants with no guidance at all. I was always intimidated by the idea of submitting to magazines or book publishers. Now 2.5 years later things are a bit different, I’ve had a lot of experiences and I know a lot more then I did then but there is still a lot to learn. (more…)

I was able to run by Joanns craft store today, and they have totally re-done the entire store! It’s been the same for well, years that I can remember. I love how they have all the fabric spread out now. I went to hunt down a random fabric I’ve seen on etsy that apparently is from Joanns, but they didn’t have any. I passed the Silk Dupioni, a fabric I discovered back when I was into quilting (no I did not make a quilt out of silk but I did once try) and I have had in my head a dress I want to make for BG, a classic sleeveless dress, with a gathered layer at the chest. She’s also been wearing blankets as capes and talking about being a super hero. Right next to the silk was some polyesters velour/velvet looking stuff, classic halloween hood material. So I grabbed up some of the silk in a purple/blue tone, with a matching regal blue for the cloak.  I am planning a little sewing get together with a few friends in August, and I think this will be the perfect project! BG will just love running around in a fancy dress, with a fancy cloak to boot! I might be a bit insane to buy her silk, but I suppose if I am going to take the time to sew something nice, it might as well be something to hand down (Heirloom quality right? That’s my excuse!) and I think it could double as as a halloween costume, am I a nerd if I am looking forward to sewing ballet costumes for her? I hope she wants to take ballet, I used to love it! I’ll have to take some photos before I cut the fabric. I also got some muslin which I’ve been wanting to snag to practice on, they had loads of it! Don’t forget those 50% off coupons at Joanns, they come in handy on the more pricey items. (more…)

I would love to hear what everyone is knitting, as I can’t talk much about what I am knitting! Sorry, that’s one thing that is hard when not knitting on my indie stuff, I can’t share. I am anxiously awaiting Bubble Frock to arrive back from the tech editor, so excited to release that pattern out into the world, it is such a fun and easy knit! I like to think I’m all clever with using a small button and not needing a button hole, do you think I’m crazy? It works so well, worsted weight yarn is perfect for slipping small buttons through, and really who would want a big old button the back of poor wee babies head? It would bother them, and hurt their back when they rolled around!

Speaking of babies, here is a photo of my wonderful girl caught mid-bubble-making. She makes the funniest noise and face when she does it, and somehow I captured it! Going to have to frame this one for sure. (more…)