Kristen TenDyke's Blog

A long road.

2011-10-13T16:57:14Z

A long road.

October 13th, 2011

Last night I was talking to James about my book… I told him that I feel like I've been working on it forever. It's been about four years since I first began swatching designs for this book. Four years is a long time, and a LOT can happen in four years.

The process of this book has shifted and changed so many times, and in many ways since its conception. Many of the designs transormed or changed completely from their original thought-form. Some were removed all-together to make room for designs I felt better about, designs that fit better with the other designs.

This book began as something technical—the designs were based on the techniques used to create them. But over time, it has organically transformed into something all its own—the astehetic appeal of the designs and the techniques used to create them together have created 20 beautiful and really fun-to-knit sweaters. I love each and every one of these designs. From their shapes, the yarns I used, their colors, the way they fit when I wear them, the techniques I learned as I created them… it's all taught me so much about the organic nature of creativity.

I have this quote hanging on the pin-board with my design sketches and swatches—"It's a long road from conception to completion." That couldn't be more true. It's a journey—a fascinating, twisting, winding and hilly road to travel from the moment the project is conceived until it's completed. And when it's completed, often it's nothing like how it was conceived—it's bigger, better and so much more satisfying than ever imagined.

When the book proposal was accepted by Interweave, I had no idea what I was doing… no idea where this was going, or how I was possibly going to get any of it done… totally overwhelmed. But I just started chipping away at what I knew had to be done, and the next step would always be there. And whenever I felt stuck, an e-mail my editor would help guide me back onto the path.

In the beginning of something—anything—it can seem so overwhelming. If you just start anywhere, as the process unfolds the next step will naturally be presented before you, eventually resulting in something that feels finished.

But when is something ever really completed? It's more like the journey never really ends, and more like the road just changes, or transforms into something else… or, there's a 90º turn at a stop sign.

The knitting and pattern writing for the book are done, and that's where I feel like I'm at—at a stop sign, waiting to make the next turn in the road. The final sweaters are waiting patiently in their box for UPS to come pick them up. So, what's next?

What will that next road look like? What kind of twists, hills and valleys will there be? Where will it lead? What kinds of turns will be made off of it? Have I already turned down that road? I don't know, and I love that. I love the uncertainty of where I'm going, what I'm doing, and what's on its way into my life. There are so many possibilities—some that I can see clearly, some that are faint glimpses at what could be, and some that are beyond anything I could possibly imagine.

No matter what it is, or where I'm going next, I know it'll be something great, and I'm grateful and eager to watch it unfold.

A pattern for Earth Day

2011-04-22T13:40:38Z

A pattern for Earth Day

April 22nd, 2011

Berroco and Caterpillar Knits have worked together to bring you a beautiful FREE pattern—Gaia—in celebration of our Earth.

It's knit in Berroco's Remix yarn—a great, inexpensive, earth-friendly yarn made from recycled fabrics. The yarn is not re-dyed, all the color comes from the recycled fabrics. I just love that!

Diamond Lace Tee

2011-03-21T13:54:41Z

Diamond Lace Tee

March 21st, 2011

I was recently at Butterfly Yarns sharing my designs with the store owner, her mom and the knitters and crocheters who came by. The Petrel shawl was a big hit, as was the Fresco Shrug. The store owner, Kim, loved the Diamond Lace Tee and is eager to make one for herself. She has ordered a bunch of patterns to keep in their store. They'll be in stock soon! Stop by to check them out.

I've just enlivened the Diamond Lace Tee pattern—updating the way it looks and reads. The new version is now available for download.

Old Pattern

New Pattern

Come join me, see sweaters, oogle yarn, etc...

2011-03-07T18:00:18Z

Come join me, see sweaters, oogle yarn, etc...

March 7th, 2011

The North Shore Yarn Crawl is this weekend—March 10th - 13th, 2011.

As part of the festivities, on Friday afternoon, March 11th, I'll be hanging out at Butterfly Yarns, in Wakefield, MA, sharing my designs with who ever wants to see.

Printed patterns will be available and you'll get to see many finished projects in person—try them on, man handle them, etc…

I'll be bringing the whole Caterpillar Knits collection—Waipio, Kukui, Mauna Kea, Molokini, Petrel and Anthurium, as well as many garments from my self-published collection—the Fresco Shrug, Gardening Tee, Diamond Lace Tee, the Crochet Motif Cardigan, Beatrice Rib Tie Coat, Stormy Diamond Eyelet Vest, the Petal socks and River of Life socks.

In addition, Butterfly Yarns will be having raffles, sales, give-aways and much more all four days!

Why I've been so quiet:

2011-02-23T13:55:44Z

Why I've been so quiet:

February 23rd, 2011

As you may have noticed, I haven't been around much lately. Or, maybe you haven't noticed… and that's okay too. I just *feel* like I haven't had much of an online presence the last few months.

Back in August I teased you with a photo of lots of swatches, and told you that each one was a new design. These swatches and sketches were assembled into a binder and sent away to Interweave Press to be considered for a book.

Since August, a contract has been signed and the book process has begun! Those new designs are now in the process of becoming patterns and sweaters. I have a few talented knitters working with me. Together we're working hard on bringing them all into the physical world! A handful of sweaters have been completed, and with each one I'm becoming more and more excited about this.

If you'd like more frequent updates about what I'm up to, consider following me on Twitter and/or Facebook. I tend to update there much more often than I blog.

Happy stitching everyone!

Pika-Hat

2011-02-11T14:03:28Z

Pika-Hat

February 10th, 2011

My friend Danielle just turned 21. For this special occasion I designed and knit up a hat so she can dress up and pretend to be one of her favorite anime characters!

Now you can too! To celebrate Danielle's birthday. This Pika-Hat pattern is available for free for a limited time. On March 1, 2011, the pattern will then be available for purchase for $4.00.

Pika-Hat

2011-02-11T14:03:28Z

Pika-Hat

February 10th, 2011

My friend Danielle just turned 21. For this special occasion I designed and knit up a hat so she can dress up and pretend to be one of her favorite anime characters!

Now you can too! To celebrate Danielle's birthday. This Pika-Hat pattern is available for free for a limited time. On March 1, 2011, the pattern will then be available for purchase for $4.00.

How to create a swatch for drawing charts in Illustrator

2011-01-27T02:25:51Z

How to create a swatch for drawing charts in Illustrator

January 25th, 2010

I draw my knitting charts in Adobe Illustrator. Recently I was asked about the symbols that I use in the charts, and how they're made. Rather than simply trying to explain it via e-mail, I figured I'd make a post about it. That way, if there's anyone else out there wondering about this, it can help them too.

This tutorial is for someone who's already familiar with certain aspects of Illustrator, so it's not *super* detailed. If you need something clarified though, feel free to ask.

First, turn on the grid, and the snap to grid option. Then draw a square box around 8 x 8 grid squares. Keep the outline and fill for this square empty.

Next, with the outline in the desired color, use the pen tool to draw the desired symbol inside this 8 x 8 grid. I stay inside the outer 2 grid squares because we'll be shrinking this, and if the symbol is too close to the edge, it's hard to read.

When the symbols is completed. Use the black arrow tool to select the symbol and the invisible box, and group them together.

We want the symbol to fit into a single grid square, so we'll need to shrink it. To do so, you want to be sure the bounding box is visible. On a Mac, you can press Shift-Command-B, and it will turn the bounding box on and off. When it's on, you'll see little white squares at each corner and at the center point of each edge.

Click and hold on one of the corner boxes, then drag the corner toward the center of the box until the symbol fits into one grid square, then unclick.

Open up the Swatches window. Click and hold on your shrunken symbol, then drag it into the swatches window and unclick.

You'll see a new swatch appear that looks like the one you just drew. You can delete the invisible box and swatch drawing you used. To use the swatch, draw a box, or use the pen tool to create a shape, then fill with your new swatch.

Interweave Store Sale

2010-12-21T19:24:46Z

Interweave Store Sale

December 21st, 2010

Interweave is offering a sale on digital patterns—including some of my patterns, shown below. Get 35% off! Sale ends tomorrow, Dec 22, 2010.

Chevron Market Bag

Tweed Beret

Corona Camisole

Wool Bam Boo Cardigan

Black Friday Sale

2010-11-26T02:13:11Z

Black Friday Sale

November 25th, 2010

ALL patterns for sale on my website, and Caterpillar Knits are for sale at 25% off—now through Friday night at midnight! This sale works here, and on Ravelry.

Use the code 975A5N8I at checkout.

Some Knit Patterns, shown with the sale prices:
(see more knit patterns)


$3.75	$3.00	$2.25

$2.25	$3.00	$3.00

$3.75	$3.75	$3.75

$4.50	$4.50	$3.00

Crochet Patterns
(see more crochet patterns)


$3.00	$3.00	$3.00

$5.25	$4.50	$4.50

Autumn Oak

2010-11-12T19:27:29Z

Autumn Oak

November 12th, 2010

Fall is here, in full force. The leaves have been falling off the trees and a brisk chill is often in the air. It's time for tea, warm socks and sweaters, and accessories to keep every little part of us comfortable.

Yesterday, my Wabi-Sabi mitts were MIA, and my hands were super chilly. So chilly that my typing speed had slowed down dramatically. I decided it was worth the time to knit up another pair of mitts. I don't think it's possible to have too many pairs of fingerless mitts.

I pulled open an old notebook where lives a handwritten pattern for a great pair of quick-to-knit mitts. It's old-trusty. I've made countless pairs of these mitts. They're super fast and work up beautifully in a huge variety of yarns. One Christmas, while stuck in traffic, I knit a whole pair… while stopped, of course. This time, I timed myself—1 hour per mitt.

I used some multi-colored Miss Priss yarn that I received from the generous Laura Nelkin from Schaefer Yarns. One hank made the mitts, and there was a ton of yarn leftover, so I decided to knit a hat to match. There is probably even enough yarn left to make a small scarf or a cowl.

Today I took some photos and published the pattern. You can download them as a set, or get the hat and mitts separately if you like one, but not the other.

The Dude is Done!

2010-10-26T20:09:36Z

The Dude is Done!

October 26th, 2010

Well, it's been done for a little over a week now…

James was spending some time in Maine the past 2 weeks, so I took a short trip up to see him a few weekends ago. It was great to see him, and felt really nice to be able to supply him with a toasty warm sweater to keep him warm.

Unlike the last sweater I made for him (see January 9th post), this one he really enjoys wearing. There hasn't been a day that has passed, since he returned, that I haven't seen him wearing it. It was a lot of fun to make, and I'm really happy that he's enjoying it. Motivates me to make more stuff he'll like…

Here are some cows that were hanging out near where James was staying in Maine.

The Puffin Pullover is very close to being finished. I decided to put a hood on it. I only have about 8 more inches of hood to knit. SOON, it will be done…

Really, really.

First Knitting Lesson

2010-10-20T23:28:42Z

First Knitting Lesson

October 20th, 2010

While visiting with my sister and her precious little 15 month old daughter I brought out one of my knitting projects and within minutes my niece had crawled onto my lap curious about what I was doing. I showed her a few stitches, then she took ahold of the needles and began tapping the tips together. She's a natural. I'm sure she'll be buzzing along on her own scarf in no time!

The Dude Abides

2010-10-14T14:14:58Z

The Dude Abides

October 13th, 2010

Almost done! I've been working on this at the same time as the Puffin Pullover, which is why it seems like they're both taking me forever to finish… But they're both very close. I want to get the Dude sweater finished for James first, because it's getting cold, and I want him to have this to wear this fall.

I'm almost finished with the second facing. I bought a 22" metal, heavy duty jacket zipper to sew in, once the facings are complete. And a shawl collar needs to be added. Then it's done! SO close!

Puffin Progress

2010-10-07T16:35:51Z

Puffin Progress

October 7th, 2010

The other day I spent almost the whole day knitting, and got really far along on the Puffin pullover. It's just about to the sleeve cast-ons.

The pocket was a lot of fun to make. I love working the cable. It adds a lot more interest to the knitting, and makes me want to continue zooming along on it.

Both of my dad's kitties like it too.

I'm thinking that there may be a bit of left-over yarn, so I'm debating adding a hood to the sweater, or making some matching socks… We'll see how much is left when I'm done the sweater.

Back to Knitting

2010-10-05T16:42:20Z

Back to knitting

October 5th, 2010

I've spent a little time away from knitting & crocheting for the past few weeks. It's part of the cycle I go through. I am thankful, however that the weather has turned toward the chilly side to help nudge me back toward a few projects that I'd like to finish.

The Dude sweater I'm working on for James only needs one sleeve and the finishing until it's complete. I'm hoping to get that done this week, before James leaves for Maine for 2 weeks.

I'm also pretty eager to finish up the Puffin Pullover. I finished the back yesterday and decided that the front needs to have something vertical to draw attention away from the horizontal garter stitch. So, I've decided to put a braided cable panel down the center front, over a pocket… You'll see.

It's knitting up super fast, when I have the time to sit and work on it, so I'm anticipating it's completeion on the horizon.

A semi-organized space

2010-09-17T21:03:56Z

A semi-organized space

September 17th, 2010

I decided it's about time I actually organize the space I've been working in, to turn it more into some place I enjoy being. My dad helped me bring up a book shelf, and then everything seemed to come together. There is still much to do, but it's a nice start. Here are some photos of one corner of the room.

You may see some things you recognize, like the Puffin Pullover sitting on the chair, and the diagonally striped blanket on the back of the chair.

And the Caterpillar Knits garments on the bookshelf. And of course… the fruit.

Puffin! It's Here!

2010-09-02T14:17:19Z

Puffin! It's here!

September 1st, 2010

I can start knitting this now!

The Dude

2010-08-26T20:29:19Z

The Dude

August 26th, 2010

I'm knitting a sweater—a sweater from a pattern that is not my own. Not a big deal, right? Well, this is rare for me… so rare that I'm wondering if I've done it since I learned to write my own patterns.

I value my knitting time, and in the past I had so little of it that I could only justify knitting something if I was going to be publishing the pattern. It made the time spent seem more justified—other than just for the enjoyment of it.

But there are SO MANY fabulous patterns available for us knitters to enjoy. Sometimes there is a beautiful gem that is just what I want, and I just HAVE to knit. This sweater is one of them.

It's the sweater that The Dude wears in the movie The Big Lebowski. This is a movie that James and I have enjoyed watching together over and over—one that has become quotable in our daily lives.

The pattern is available for free from Andrea Rangel on Ravelry.

I've been trying to figure out a sweater to knit for James for a really long time. It's hard to know exactly what he'll like. The first sweater I designed and knit for him was a huge learning experience about checking the gauge with ribbing… you've got to stretch it. That sweater turned out 4 sizes too big for him after I washed it because… well… it stretched. duh. That was about 5 years ago. I think I'm brave enough to give it another go. Hopefully this one turns out better.

I must confess though… this sweater is knit in 1 x 1 ribbing, and the pattern says not to stretch the fabric when checking the gauge… heh. I did wash my swatch, however, and it stayed pretty ribby, so I'm not too concerned about it being too big for him. I think the fair isle parts will help it stay together too.

Fair isle with 1 x 1 ribbing is something I've never done before, and I'm really enjoying it. I think this is going to be a great sweater. I'm fantisizing about designing something for myself using the remaining yarn. I'm using Cascade's Eco Wool, which comes in 250 gram hanks. I'm pretty sure there will be a significant amount leftover—at least in the 2 darker colors. I have a bunch of red in my stash that I'd love to combine with it also. I see stripes… but first I must finish this sweater! hehe.

Looking at the sweater from the movie, James and I decided that the fair isle and stripes needed to be shifted down away from the shoulders a bit. In order to do that I've decided to knit the sweater from the top down, rather than the bottom up. I also changed the neck shaping to more of a V-neck, which I think is more like the movie sweater.

I'm knitting the back and the fronts at the same time… just for fun. I think the sleeves will also be knit from the top down, picking up stitches around the armhole edge, working short rows to shape the cap, etc… We'll see how it goes.

What are you knitting?

Caterpillar Knits

2010-08-25T14:44:14Z

Caterpillar Knits

August 25th, 2010

Caterpillar Knits—it's what I've been working on the last 6 months or-so: