Harmonia Again, for the First Time

A most exciting development!

After many requests (and in some cases, begging and pleading), I have developed a tunic sweater based on the popular Harmonia's Rings cowl. The tunic begins like the cowl (and the yoke has identical structure), but the pattern has now been engineered to fit seven sizes. The yoke creates a perfect cap sleeve shape by virtue of its construction. In addition, the drape of the yoke contrasts beautifully with the close fit of the shaped body. The pattern is knit entirely in the round, every single blessed stitch. Every knitter who has seen this sweater wants to make one!

This is only the current installment in a series of Harmonia patterns. The next will be sleeved versions of the sweater, now in testing.









See details on my website here.

And on Ravelry:

The model is actually the beautiful and brilliant photographer Vivian Aubrey, who consented to be a model one day, in the middle of her class on photographing knits at Twisted Yarn Shop in Portland, OR.

Huge, huge thanks to my tech editor, the incomparable Jeane deCoster of Elemental Affects Yarn, who patiently endured hours of teaching me spreadsheet math, and my many lovely and hardworking test knitters, long may they hold yarn and needles in their blessed hands.

It's About Time

Gee.. so many weeks have flown by! I can't fight tempus fugit, so I won't try. But much wonderfulness has come and gone.. forgive me if I list the ways..

In March, I attended an Island Retreat for Curious Knitters with Cat Bordhi, and it goes without saying that it was indeed a retreat in all of the best senses of the word. I emerged refreshed, renewed, restored, and very well fed!! Cat is expanding the number of island retreats she is offering to six per year (3 in spring, 3 in fall), so take note.

In April, I taught at the first Columbia Gorge Fiber Festival.. what fun!! The event was sponsored by Lavender Sheep, and Yvonne did a marvelous job of putting the marketplace and classes together. I would have loved to hang out for hours with all the yarnies and spinners, but darn, I had to teach!!

Later in April, Midwest Masters Weekend in Neenah, Wisconsin, sponsored by Yarns by Design, was simply delightful!! Casual and intense.. and that's just how I like it! I had fabulous students. I am looking forward to going back to Wisconsin in November to give a talk to the Madison Knitters Guild, and do some more teaching.

So.. time to look forward now! Here are the upcoming events for 2011, because I know you want to know!

Continuing classes and drop-in clinics at Twisted Yarn Shop in Portland, OR
Drop-in clinics are Thursdays from 3-7 pm. Please see Twisted’s website for other classes and details, or call the store at 503-922-1150.

Lace Design Workshop at Twisted Yarn Shop in Portland, OR, May 29, 2011
This is an all-day workshop. Please see Twisted’s website for details, or call the store at 503-922-1150.

Moebius Workshop at Knitting Bee Yarn Shop in Portland, OR, June 4, 2011
This is a three hour class, from 1-4 pm. Please see Knitting Bee’s website for details, or call the store at 503-439-3316.

Heart to Heart Beaded Scarf Workshop at Serial Knitters Yarn Shop in Kirkland, WA, June 18, 2011
This is an all day class. Please see Serial Knitters’ website for details, or call the store at 425-242-0086.

Fibre Week at Olds, Calgary, AB, Canada, June 24 - July 1, 2011
See Olds College website for registration and more information.

Sock Summit!!, Portland, OR, July 28 - 31, 2011
I am teaching classes on Blossom Dearies Beautiful Baby Bootees and Aquitaine Beaded Gloves. See Sock Summit website for registration and more information.

A weekend of workshops at Churchmouse Yarns and Teas in Bainbridge Is, WA, August 13-14, 2011
Please see Churchmouse’s website for details, or call the store at 206-780-2686.

Knitting Cruise with Serial Knitters, September 11-17, 2011
Alaskan cruise departing from Seattle to points in Alaska and Victoria B.C. Please see cruise details here, and contact Serial Knitters for registration and details.

Lace Design Workshop at Maiwa Textile Symposium 2011 in Vancouver, B.C., Canada, September 24-25, 2011
Please see Maiwa’s website for details. Registration opens June 20.

A weekend of workshops at Yorkshire Yarns in Lakewood, WA, October 22-23, 2011
Please see Yorkshire Yarn’s website for details, or call the store at 253-589-YARN.

Lace Design Workshop for the Fort Vancouver Knitters Guild, October 29, 2011
This is an all-day workshop. Please email Molly Stanton for details at mstan30311@aol.com.

Guild talk at Madison Knitters Guild, Madison, WI, November 14, 2011
See Madison Knitters Guild website for details.

A weekend of workshops for the Knitters Guild, Broken Arrow, OK, December 3-4, 2011
Topics TBA. Please email Kat Lefevre for details at lefevrek@cox.net.

Madrona Recap

I haven't yet written a proper recap of my Madrona experiences, largely because I forgot to bring my camera (bad bad me), and also because it's so incredibly hard to capture the fabulousness that is Madrona in so many prosaic words. Madrona, that event that some of us pine for 51 weeks out of the year. Madrona, that some of us love and adore to a ridiculous degree.

Fortunately, I don't have to now because Franklin Habit just posted an end-all description of Madrona in his blog, the Panopticon. Do please give it a read.

And yes, I am so enjoying my 15 minutes of fame, thank you for asking.

Fluency

I just had to release the pattern for the Fluency Gloves before the weather starts to warm. The flowing, sinuous ribs create a delicious hug for your hands that is also very stretchy.



Watch the ribs part to show the hidden beads glimmering when you stretch them over your hands, and don’t miss the special twisted stitch pattern that adorns the thumb.



Pattern fits a wide range of hand sizes. Gloves are fingered or fingerless. Beads are prestrung before knitting, but it’s so worth it!



Bead requirement: 96 size 6/0 beads for the pair.

The yarns I chose for this project are very special, and I am very picky indeed about what fibers contact my hands because they are so sensitive.

Abstract Fiber's Soprano is prime in the softness and strength department, with its mix of silk and wool. I chose the Turquoise colorway for my first pair of the gloves, and the Abstract Fiber folks dyed it just for me!! What a thrill!

Plucky Knitter's Merino Alpaca Silk Worsted is as cozy as cozy gets, and feels wonderful! The fingerless gloves you see here are in the Satin Slippers colorway, so subtle and shimmery.

I do hope you enjoy this special winter treat. The pattern is now available on Ravelry and soon, on my website and all around, thanks to my lovely pattern distributors, Up North Fiber Art Supply.



Photos by the wonderful Vivian Aubrey. Please do go take at look at her masterful work on her blog.

Next: getting ready for Madrona! If you are going, see you there!

Finally, Charts Made Simple!

I have in my hands a treasure: an advance copy of JC Briar's new book, "Charts Made Simple: understanding knitting charts visually."

I didn't know it, but I have been waiting for this book for a very long time.

Every time I have ever taught lace, which is a frequent occurrence, I have wished for some sort of reference to offer my students who are unfamiliar with charts. Since I ask my students to become very intimate with their lace work.. even beyond "reading".. it is essential that they wean themselves off of the long strings of word descriptions and onto pictorial charts to follow.

This is a tortuous process for many knitters, and there are various learning styles to consider as well.. some of us are aural learners, some of us visual, and some spatial.

But enough about me and my teaching style. I want to talk about JC's book, which appeals wonderfully to almost every style of learner and feels so good in the hand. A small, beautifully organized compendium of common sense and wise knitterly advice, it also ventures into previously uncharted territory as it exhorts us to go beyond the obvious, not even taking a chart at face value. Each chapter ends with a summary and a set of test questions, making it an ideal self guided learning experience.

As most designers who have had the great fortune to have worked with JC in her previous career as a tech editor par excellence, JC knows just about everything there is to know about knitting, and there has never been a tech editor with a sharper eye or a friendlier tone. "Charts Made Simple" is a wonderful opportunity to glean chart pointers from a master.

Order online from Amazon. You'll be glad you did.

My Day, and an Update

It's my birthday! So, since I am probably unlikely to be wined and dined in a manner befitting a woman of my vintage, I am celebrating by wishing each and every one of you a wonderfully peaceful and happy day.. May all of you glow with the joy of creating something beautiful today.

AND, here is an update of all the teaching I will be doing between now and September, and it's quite a list! I hope you can join me in one of these classes on knitting, beads and other creative explorations (I throw a little of everything into my classes!)

Keep in mind that schedules do change sometimes.. please inquire of the venue in question if you are interested in coming to a class.

A reminder for those of you who live in or around Portland, OR: I offer frequent classes and workshops at Twisted Yarn shop, and I host drop in clinics on most Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in the shop.

The list of workshops:

Knitting Bee Workshop, January 29, on Lace Design (Portland, OR)

Madrona Fiber Arts Retreat, February 16 - 21. Still space in my class on Harmonia's Rings and the mini workshop on hooking beads. (Tacoma, WA)

Fort Vancouver, WA Workshop, February 26 on Heart to Heart Scarf (Vancouver, WA)

Knitting Bee double header (2 workshops on beads), March 12 (Portland, OR)

Knot Just Yarn Retreat and Workshop on Heart to Heart Scarf, March 18-20. Still 3 spaces left! (Burlington, WA)

Serial Knitters, 2 workshops on beads, April 2 (Seattle, WA)

Millstream Knitters Guild, workshop topic TBA, April 9 (Salem, OR)

Columbia Gorge Fiber Festival, workshop on Aquitaine beaded gloves, April 16 (Mt Hood, OR) Still space available!

Midwest Masters Weekend, a weekend of workshops! April 29-May 1 (Neenah, WI)

Olds Fibre Week, a week of workshops! June 24-29 (Calgary, AB, Canada)

Sock Summit, a week of workshops! July 28-31, August 1 (Portland, OR)

Knitting Cruise to Inside Passage and Alaska, with myself, Samantha Roshak and Annelie Wallbom, Sept 11-17 (Seattle to Alaska and back)

Maiwa Fiber Symposium, workshop on Lace Design, Sept 24-25 (Vancouver, Canada)

Hope to see some of your shining faces in my classes!!

Spoken! and Gifts!

I SO appreciate all of your help in this new venture.

And, as promised, I have chosen names from the list of commenters, using a random number generator. Five lucky folks will be receiving gifts from moi in thanks for your time and energy in sending me your thoughts about my clubs.

As this is a Blogger blog, however, I don't have access to email addresses nor do I have a way to look at many of your Blogger profiles. So, here's a plea: Will pencraftco, asimpleknitter, Lisa, Robin, and Hinkie please email me at siviaharding at clear dot net to claim your prizes?

So now more about the clubs. They will be pattern only, and I am working on a secret plan with a few chosen outlets to provide kit options for the lace club, since many people enjoy receiving a club package that includes pattern, yarn and lovely beads too.

Designs are in progress and I am getting more excited every single day. One is out being tested by trusted test knitters right now!

OK.. now I must get ready for a big workshop this weekend at Serial Knitters in Seattle, where I am teaching Lace Design to a nice group on Saturday. If it happens that you are in the area and that you may be interested, please consult the Serial Knitters website for registration details, or call the store at 425-242-0086.

Speak!

If you have ever wanted to weigh in with a designer (me!) on forthcoming designs, here's your chance!

For several years now, I have contributed to many clubs, online magazines, and publications and books authored by others. I have been thinking more and more and more about establishing my own club.. or clubs.. in order to gather a community of my particular fans. My ravelry group does a fabulous job of this, of course. But this will be different.. and offer opportunities to give special offers, discounts, and other goodies to the groupies.

I have some firm ideas for these potential clubs, along with some designs in varying stages of completion, but it would help me greatly to have some input.

Right now, I can see two separate clubs on two separate themes happening, each with 5-6 exclusive designs and running concurrently. One will be mainly beaded lace work, but also will include other accessories such as gloves and cowls (beaded of course). The other theme will be Moebius, which I am developing in some very interesting ways at present. Similar to Harmonia’s Rings, which is my most popular pattern, some garment shapes will begin as Moebius and develop into other structures, and some will remain Moebius, but all will start with the Moebius cast on no matter where else they end up. This club will potentially include cowls, wraps, and scarves, but may go as far afield as shrugs or even sweaters. The sky is the limit really.

These two themes mirror my two passions: Beaded lace, and unusual, innovative garment shapes.

So.. want to cast a vote?? Let’s try a poll:

1. Which club would you be interested in joining, or both?
2. Would you like an option to purchase individual installments at a slightly higher price per pattern?
3. What price range do you consider a good one for this type of club?
4. Do you have any special requests for either club? Anything you are dying to see and knit from yours truly?
5. Any things that you DON’T want to see.. sick of triangle shawls, or ?

I would like to offer a gift for your trouble. Using a random number generator, I will be offering gift certificates from my ravelry pattern store to a few lucky responders.

Rolling into the New Year

Lots to report here! I am planning some fun things over the coming year, and I would be so pleased to see each and every one of you at one of these events.

Here's the current list.

Guild talk at Fort Vancouver Knitting Guild, Fort Vancouver, WA, January 12, 2011. Contact Molly at mstan30311@aol.com for information.

Workshop at Serial Knitters, Seattle, WA, January 22, 2011
Workshop on designing top-down triangle lace shawls. Please see Serial Knitters website for registration and details.

Workshop at Knitting Bee, Portland, OR, January 29, 2011. Workshop on designing top-down triangle lace shawls. Please contact Knitting Bee for registration and details.

Madrona Fiber Arts Festival, Tacoma, WA, February 17-21, 2011
Workshops: Saturday, Bead Your Socks!; Sunday, Harmonia’s Rings. Please see Madrona Fiber Arts Festival website for registration and details.

Fort Vancouver Knitting Guild, Fort Vancouver, WA, February 26, 2011
Workshop on Heart to Heart Beaded Scarf. Contact Molly at mstan30311@aol.com for information.

Columbia Gorge Fiber Festival, Hood River, Oregon, April 15 - 17, 2011
Class on Aquitaine Beaded Cuffs on April 16. See Columbia Gorge Fiber Festival website for registration and more information.

Midwest Masters Weekend, Hood River, WI, April 29 - May 1, 2011
Classes to be determined. See Yarns by Design website for registration and more information.

Fibre Week at Olds, Calgary, AB, Canada, June 24 - July 1, 2011
See Olds College website for registration and more information.

Sock Summit!!, Portland, OR, July 28 - 31, 2011
Classes to be determined. See Sock Summit website for registration and more information.

Knitting Cruise with Serial Knitters, September 11-17, 2011
Inside Passage Alaskan cruise departing from Seattle to points in Alaska and Victoria B.C. Please see cruise details here, and contact Serial Knitters for registration and details.

Guild talk at Madison Knitters Guild, Madison, WI, November 14, 2011
See Madison Knitters Guild website for details.

And don't forget my ongoing classes at Twisted in Portland! And now I am hosting personal drop-in help clinics three days a week at the shop: Monday, 1:30 - 5:30 pm; Wednesday, 12:30 - 4:30 pm; Friday, 10 am - 2 pm. Please check the Twisted website for my current class schedule.

The next post will be a rundown of the upcoming clubs, patterns, and other design delights for 2011.. soon!