Ever since my trip to TNNA with Julia, I've been thinking about photography, the limits of my point and shoot and the value of good photography to a pattern. If you compare the quality of the photos in Atalanta to those for Willowherb, even adjusting for different lighting, I think the quality difference is clear. The Atalanta shots, done with a DSLR, are sharper, and have more detail in the shadows and highlights than the Willowherb point and shoot images do. I'm generally not unhappy with my own shoots but I'm not unaware of the limits of a point and shoot, for all but the most ideal lighting situations.

So when my parent's gift arrived, I spent a lot of time thinking about whether or not I wanted to put the money towards a DSLR, some lenses and other accessories. You can't just buy a camera body and call it a day. Will better quality photos do enough for my patterns to offset the money I'll spend? Will I be able to develop the skills necessary to even make use of the new camera? Is this the best use of what little disposable income we have? I don't know the answer to any of those questions but I have a new toy tool now.

Hello pretty bird

Ok, admittedly, these awesome bird shots were taken by Leo. He's pretty good at this photography stuff.

Raindrops keep falling on its head

I'm trying to get the dogs acclimated to the sound and look of the new camera. They are so accustomed to the point and shoot, which is held away from the face and is pretty quite. By comparison, the DSLR is a big noisy affair that obscures my face and sometimes flashes unexpectedly.

Thea gives some serious side-eye

Darwin is not impressed

Why is your face weird, human?

But they seem to be coming around.

My sweet Panda Bear

Getting the new camera on a tripod and trying to get good shots of myself, will be an all new challenge, but one I'm looking forward to. If you have any tips and tricks for making the most of the DSLR, I'd love to hear them. Book and tutorial recommendations are definitely welcomed.

Wonky thumb on the right.

The first Willowherb mitten I made had the thumb increases on the outside of the thumb and was almost an inch bigger in circumference than the final thumb. Shifting the increases in to the palm side made for a more pleasing shape and taking out some stitches gave it a better fit.

I knit another mitten, with a proper thumb. They are pretty fast to knit and I had plenty of yarn left, so I knit the third one and was feeling pretty good. The hat was done, I had two perfect mittens and we had plans to go to the coast for a shoot, in a couple days. I took some flat shots and wrote the pattern. An hour before leaving for the shoot, I was putting the final touches on the pattern, so it could go to the tech editor, and I noticed something.

Do you see it? The cuff on the left is k1, p1 ribbing, the one on the right is k2, p2 ribbing. I couldn't believe it. The mittens had been done for days and this is the first time I noticed. The shoot was that day and I wouldn't have another chance to reschedule the trip to the beach before the pattern went live.

Leo asked me if anyone would even be able to tell, and I said that yes, definitely, people would be able to tell but even if they didn't I would not be able to live with them like this, so when we got in the car, I cast on and I knit and knit, despite the fact that knitting in the car makes me motion sick.

And then, to add to my queasiness, I cut the old cuff off the mitten and then carefully grafted the new one on. I could have cut off the cuff and knit down from the mitten but I wasn't actually sure if I'd have time to finish the knitting before I got to the location. And since I worked the original with a tubular cast-on, I would have had to graft, no matter what, so I chose the option that would perfectly match the sister mitten.

So there you go, more than a decade of designing experience, something like 30 years of knitting experience and over 100 patterns and I can still make completely ridiculous mistakes. But I'm happy. The end product is just like I imagined.

You can still get a discount on Willowherb by using the ShaliMarch discount code found here. Discount ends at midnight on Tuesday, February 24, at midnight, pacific.

Willowherb is another design in honor of ShaliMarch. I wanted to get this out before Stitches West, in case any of you will be going and want to stop by the Shalimar Yarns booth to grope and ogle their pretty pretty yarns. Oh and be sure to check out this thread for a discount on my pattern and many others, throughout the event.

The Willowherb mittens come in two hand circumferences with easy instructions for adjusting the mitten length. The hat is in one size but will easily stretch to fit a variety of adult head sizes. Further adjustments can be made by adjusting the gauge at which you knit it.

Since the pieces are knit in a worsted weight yarn, they are pretty fast to knit. I was easily able to knit most of a single mitten, in one night. It's a nice break from all the garments and larger shawls I normally design.

For more details, check out the Ravelry page or my shop page.]]> http://www.marniemaclean.com/words/2014/02/willowherb.html http://www.marniemaclean.com/words/2014/02/willowherb.html knitting pattern Wed, 19 Feb 2014 06:10:14 -0800 In a perfect world where I could afford unlimited amounts of yarn and I knit so fast, I could churn out a large shawl in fingering weight yarn in a day or two, I would love to knit every piece I design in different colors and sizes so people could better imagine the items in their wardrobes. It's not easy for everyone to picture how something would look in different colors. I know there are colors that I generally find less appealing than others and it can bias my perception of a pattern, even though I know, rationally, how easy it is to change.

With a piece like Estival, the bright summery colors might catch your eye but they may be hard to see past, if you aren't normally one to wear bright buttery yellow and intense orange.

I thought it might be fun to play around in Photoshop a bit and see if I could come up with some interesting alternative color combinations. A knitter's options are only restricted to the colors yarn can be dyed, but what I can make look remotely convincing with the adjustment tools, is a little more limited. Even so, I think it really changes the whole feel of the shawl to see it in some other colorways.

My favorite thing about designing is seeing how people make a design their own. I'm hoping to see some fun color combinations or subtle solid pieces, in the future. It's always a surprise and a delight to see what knitters choose to do with an idea.

Estival and Acrtium are still on sale until end of day (pacific time zone) Monday, February 17 using the promo code in the ShaliMarch group. Be sure to check out all the other participating designs here.

If you are friends with me on Facebook, you've already met Chippy, the keeper of our hummingbird feeder. Portland winters are generally so mild, that fewer birds migrate south, but it's been a rough one this year, so Chippy's been keeping up his energy with all-day binges at our sugar water dispenser.

The snow and ice are finally melting. We might even get mail and trash pick up today, but the resulting slush and fog have made me all the more pleased to have a splash of bright color.

Here's Estival.

I went to TNNA a few weeks back with my friend, Julia, who is hosting the ShaliMarch celebration on Ravelry. I got to meet Kristi and Paul, the owners of Shalimar Yarns, while I was there, and they gave me some of their beautiful hand-dyed sock yarn to make a shawl. I said I wanted orange or yellow and they gave me both and, well, the end result is, as Julia put it, "a riot of color," and I love it.

The pattern is written with instructions for 4 different sizes, from a 58" wingspan to a 94" wingspan. For each size, I've detailed how much yarn you'll need for each color and for the whole pattern, and I indicate the percentage of yarn used as you work through the pattern charts. If you have a kitchen or postal scale (or a scale for some more illicit purpose, I'm not judging) you can weigh your yarn at the start, and as you go to determine if you have enough to complete the project.

If you are interested in the pattern, you can check out the details on ravelry, and in my own shop, and you should definitely head over to the ShaliMarch thread to see all the new patterns, get discount codes and enter for chances to win prizes.

Atalanta features princess seam lines in front and back, which are formed with ribbing and simple cable crosses. The scooped neck is easily modified to be higher or narrower, if desired.

The garment is almost entirely seamless. You cast on at the hem and work up in one piece to the armholes, then divide for fronts and back. The saddles are cast on then worked to the width of the shoulders. Sleeves are picked up from the armhole and worked down in the round. The saddles are sewn into place then the neck and placket ribbing is knit onto the garment.

Last minute work events brought me to LA right around TNNA time and my friend Julia invited me to go with her. While we were there, we each had a pattern ready to release in the coming days and we took the opportunity to get some shots of each other's patterns. Go see her gorgeous new design here.

If you are interested in buying Atalanta, you can check out all the details on my pattern page or the ravelry shop page. And if you are interested in buying a kit with enough yarn to make one of your own, go to Sundara's page, here. She's offering a 10% off discount code for select colors for just a couple of days.

Will she ever come back?

Yesterday, we took her to the ocean because, of course we did. She's definitely slowing down but she doesn't enjoy it any less.

She's the only one who likes wading into the deep end. Some of that may have to do with the fact that Thea sinks in water and Darwin couldn't care less about fetch. His primary role is to body check his sisters. He's a real stinker.

Thea also enjoys riding her invisible bicycle.

Some seals watched us playing

And we watched some anemones do their anemone thing.

My anemone's anemone is my friend

Then we ended our evening with some fish and chips. The pups may have gotten a little bit of that too. The birthday celebration continues today. The pups are blissfully mellow, leaving the old lady to relax. Tonight, we'll cook up a little fresh salmon and sneak a little into their food, and of course, there are plenty of belly rubs and snuggles to go around.

Here's to my sweet old lady. If you have a pet, pass along a birthday scritch to him or her, on Panda's behalf.

The new Twist Collective launched last night and there's a lot to love. Check it out here. Everything in the edition is probably brand new to you, but I've been looking at these designs for months, and I know it's a strong edition when I'm still really excited about so many of them. I hope you will all like them too. As always, you can expect some great articles as well. I think my personal favorite might be the one on darning, but it's a hard choice. They are each fantastic in their own way.

You'll find my pattern in the Petite Patrie story. Ptolemy is a half circle shawl, featuring true lace (lace worked on right and wrong side rows) and a beaded scalloped border. The pattern is based on Elizabeth Zimermann's Pi Shawl formula in which the number of stitches doubles at a distance twice as far as the last doubling of stitches. The beads, while entirely optional, add just enough weight to the hem to ensure the shawl hangs nicely.

Photo © Linus Ouellet

I love that Twist styled it in a way that makes it look appropriate for daily wear. I use my shawls all the time and I want knitters to feel like they can work their knits into their daily life, too. Well, presuming your daily life doesn't involve a lot of live stock and/or heavy machinery. There are times when a shawl is a chic liability.

When I snapped my own shots, before sending it off to Twist, I went a little more dressy.

Since I started sewing again, I've made a fair number of dresses and their sole purpose for existing has been as styling tools for my knitting. My life is not terribly fancy, but this is how I imagined most people would want to use such a shawl.

I hope you'll take a few minutes to flip through the edition and see if there's anything you like. If nothing else, you have to take a look because there's a pattern named, Pixie Farts. If you like Ptolemy, you can check out the magazine page, the shop page and the ravelry page.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on the edition, so feel free to leave a comment below.

I know, it's literally the day after halloween and I'm about to mention the gift-giving season. But let's be honest, if you are going to knit or crochet something for someone, especially if you are looking at hitting one of the gift-giving days of Hanukkah, there's not much time to wait.

Originally suggested by Larissa Brown, and organized by some amazing knit and crochet designers, the Gift-A-Long is a "multi-designer promotion to help you kick off your holiday gift-making." And if I might add to that, it's also a chance to score some new patterns for yourself at a great discount. All participating patterns are 25% off. The sale is running now through November 15. 

The group has also organized a bunch of prizes for people who post FOs before the end of the year, so if you do buy any patterns and you knit them, join the group, add your FOs and you'll be entered for a chance to win.

I've decided to put my entire library of self-published patterns on sale. Just use the coupon code, "giftalong" to receive the discount. But really, make sure you check out all the patterns that are on sale. Of course, I'd love for people to buy my patterns, but there are thousands of other patterns that are also on sale. See all participating designers and designs here.

All of Darwin's captions would read, "om nom nom nom nom"

Ok, there's a chance this was considered a huge improvement on going to the beach. The jury is still out.

We did manage to get to the coast yesterday, though. It's been since July which is far too long for this pack of hooligans.

Chop, chop, humans. Get with the letting us out!

We headed on over to Ecola State Park which is beautiful, but a little too crowded for us, during the summer months. Now that school is back in session, we can take advantage of our free fridays to get the trails mostly for ourselves. For you history buffs, Clatsop Loop Trail is part of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail. You can find out more about it here.

This trail isn't long but in its 1.5 miles (plus the additional mile or so we went towards Tilamook Head Viewpoint), it rises something like 1000 feet above sea level. On a nice clear and maintained trail, it's a good workout, just ask Darwin, who carried our water in backpack. I can only imagine how much more of a workout it was for those exploring it in its rougher state.

If you keep your eyes peeled, you'll see a lot in these forests. We've come across elk before and you know there will always be a slug or twenty.

But what had to be the weirdest/coolest thing we saw were the hydnellum packii.

Are you looking at that business?

I'm not sure that the birthday boy cared much about the flora and fauna of the pacific northwest sitka forests, but he did sleep the entire trip home. That's a pretty good sign with a three-year old herding dog. He's been a handful of a dog, for the short time we've had him, and I think that's made him all the more endearing. A big happy birthday to my sweet little beast.

Sleepy puppies headed home

Twist has been around for 5 years with 17 editions and I've just published my 19th pattern with them (20th, if you count the fact that Doppler is offered in both a men's and women's version).

In some ways, I feel like I've been working for Twist for a much longer time, yet in other ways, it feels like it's all just flown by. But if there's one thing I'm positive about, it's that I am a better designer today, for my experience working for and with Twist Collective.

I think fall editions are always really exciting. While knitting is great year round, depending on where you live, summer can feel too hot for even the lightest piece and winter can be so bitterly cold that everything is hidden under layers of protective outwear. But autumn is the goldilocks zone for knits. I hope you'll agree that this edition has a great mix of projects, regardless of your skill, climate, or style.

My piece, this season, is Foxcroft, a shawl collar pullover with argyle style cables running up the front and back.

Photo Copyright Jane Heller

Don't you love the model? She's the photographer's mother and I think she's radiant.

There's tons more in the edition, so I hope you'll take a look. Oh and keep an eye on the blog, twitter, facebook, and ravelry group, because we still have more anniversary prizes to give away.

Kate contacted me, a few months before, asking if I'd like to contribute a pattern and I jumped at the chance. When I saw the spread in the magazine, I couldn't be more excited about the end product.

Well, it's 5 years later, and I'm not just a contributor, I'm also a production assistant and count Kate as one of my dearest friends. Here is sit, 3000 miles from home at Twist Collective headquarters, ready to celebrate the start of another 5 years and more.

If you want to get in on the celebration, please be sure to read the Twist Collective blog, like them on Facebook, follow them at Twitter, and join their Ravelry group. We'll be giving away a ton of amazing prizes donated by our generous sponsors.

I'm excited to announce that my first serious self published crochet pattern is available now. Aasha starts with a long chain from which the border is worked and then the main pattern is worked into the same foundation chain, up to the neck, decreasing periodically to form the half circle shape.

The pattern has both charted and written out instructions. The charts are available both as a complete stand alone chart and broken out row by row with the previous rows faded and the rows yet to come, hidden from view, so you can see exactly what needs to be worked without any clutter. I hope people will find this format easy to use and make the pattern more accessible to people who are nervous about taking on a crochet project.

To find out more about the pattern, check out my pattern page, or head on over to Ravelry.

It's worth mentioning that I fell in love with this deep lavander-gray colorway from Madeline Tosh, when I saw it, but it wasn't until I saw the name for it, Composition Book Gray, that it ended up in my shopping basked. How great is that name? This piece would work up well in almost any nearly solid color. Since the motifs are so big, I think they look best when the color contrasts against what's underneath. My fish-belly white skin was happy to oblige, there.

For those of you who are just here for the pooch content, here's a little photo bombing from the beasties. So helpful!

This year marks a decade of designing, for me, and in that time, I've created nearly one hundred patterns, and only three of them are exclusively crochet. They all predate my efforts to standardize and make my patterns professional so I'm not going to give myself much credit for those. 

But here's the thing, I love crocheting, always have. Up until about a decade ago, I never really knit more than swatches. I still have a few of the afghans I made, back when I worked during the summer in my college's computer lab. I could crank out a twin size blanket in a couple weeks, with all my free time. The only limitation was how many balls of Red Heart Super Saver I could afford. This was back when you either used AOL or had some sort of unix based interface to check your email, so the computer labs were primarily for typing and printing reports. I had a lot of free time.

Anyway, this is my long and rambling way to say that I have finally gotten around to designing a crochet pattern and it's with the tech editor now, so I hope to be able to release it in the next few weeks, presuming the pattern isn't a hot mess. This photo is pretty much useless. The lighting is too harsh, and it's too busy to see anything but I kind of dig the butt shadow of the lace border and Thea's adorable monkey face, so I cropped in on that for your sneak peek.

Not sure how many of you crochet, and of those who do, I'm not sure how many of you like shawls, but if you happen to fall into both of those categories, hopefully you'll like this pattern. It was a nice change of pace to work in crochet. It has its own challenges (and boy does it eat yarn) but, then again, I've always loved crafting for the challenges. And if you don't crochet, and/or hate shawls, hopefully you at least enjoy the doggy portion of today's post.

I'll be interested to see how well a crochet shawl does. I've heard it said that there are more crocheters than knitters but that the former are less likely to buy patterns than the latter. If you have some insight, either way, I would love to get your thoughts in the comments. I'll definitely design more if the demand is there.

Pilar Mendez over at About.com's Spanish site, interviewed me by email, last month and the results are online.You would think, being married to a native Spanish speaker, that I'd have been able to converse in Spanish, or at least read the interview, but I'm afraid I know only the words that are found on your average Mexican restaurant menu and a couple of choice swear words I've picked up from Leo. Pilar seems like a lovely person, though, so I trust that she's done a great job translating for me.

If you are a Spanish speaker or don't mind muddling through a computer translation, you can read the interview here.

Oh and there are just a few days left to use the redesign13 coupon code to save 20% off of everything in my ravelry store.