...as featured in Knit Now!

Issue 16 of Knit Now magazine (in shops now) has a pattern for a cushion (what else?!) by yours truly. Called "Renwick", it features a simple cable design in two colours, with a twisted cord edging for extra opulence....

Very strange seeing my own design in a magazine! It uses 2 balls of New Lanark aran in damson and ochre.
Knit Now is a cracking magazine with some lovely designs, and run by lovely friendly people, so my first experience of submitting a design has been completely enjoyable from start to finish.

I become a yarn bomber... nearly!

Website orders are coming through for Christmas, and I've been asked several times to add a gift card. I'm happy to do this; in fact so happy that today I decided to create my own special CalKnits cards for Christmas orders. So it was out into the woods this morning with the dog, to take full advantage of a little smattering of snow and do a photo shoot with some of my Christmas Baubles.

 It was great fun giving them a day out - and they looked absolutely lovely adorning the branches of the trees adjoining a remote mountain biking path. So whilst the dog watched astonished, I took as many photos as I could, before the gentle drizzle became too persistent.

For a little moment I was tempted to leave the baubles in place, as a nice surprise for passing walkers and bikers... but I'm really sorry, I'm just not guerrilla knitter material, I'm far too possessive of things that have taken me hours to create! The final thing that swung it for me was the discovery of a large, inquisitive and very hungry looking sheep wandering through the woods - I was not prepared for my lovely knitting to become a tasty snack for a random sheep!



Maybe yarn bombing is better suited to the urban environment, maybe I'm not suited to yarn bombing, whatever, it seems I'm less guerrilla knitter, more selfish monkey!

Anyway, all Christmas orders now come with a special CalKnits gift card for free - simply add your message in the additional instructions box at the paypal checkout, or send me an email.
Merry Christmas!

Sanquhar Knitting and Christmas inspiration...

Earlier in the summer I was lucky enough to be staying in South West Scotland for a couple of days, with enough time to visit a the Sanquhar Tolbooth museum and see the collection of traditional Sanquhar knitting.

I spent a happy hour wandering around taking notes and photos, with the help of a really friendly guide.
There are some fantastically skilled pieces in there, as well as an impressive cross stitch piece worked by women in the Sanquhar community.

All the gloves are worked on tiny double pointed needles, making the patterns look incredibly intricate. But as the cross stitch samples show below, they are all in fact simple repeating patterns, with no more than 5 stitches of any one colour at a time, making it simple to knit by stranding the spare colour behind.

Most of the samples shown were worked in black and white, although there was a lovely dark brown and cream glove, and a very dashing glove in red and green...

Which of course made me think of Christmas!

The picture left is actually taken from the museum website
http://www.dumfriesmuseum.demon.co.uk/sanqtoll.html
as my own photo showed too much reflection from the glass.




Also taken from the website is this beautiful sampler of many of the known stitches:

Once I'd come out of the museum I found a lovely cafe and gift shop alongside, selling knitted goods with the Sanquhar patterns, knitting kits and some lovely artwork.
http://www.all-the-airts.com/

The window display was impressive, as it boasted a knitted QR code in the Sanquhar tradtion. Unfortunately I haven't got a reader on my phone yet so I couldn't see if it worked!

Having had a quick google on knitted QR codes I might give this a go - the current module of my design course includes patterns and fairisle tradition, so it would be fun to play around with different effects.

Shorter term, however, I was taken with the idea of developing my Sanquhar inspiration into something Christmassy for CalKnits. I'd never knitted a complete sphere before, but decided to have a go at Christmas baubles, given that I could use the traditional method of knitting in the round on DPNs. I also liked the idea of keeping sewing up to a minimum, by starting off with only a few stitches to keep the bottom closed, increasing rapidly, then decreasing again, pausing to add the stuffing before the top opening got too small. 

I've had great fun making these baubles, they're really quick and quite straightforward once you've got the hang of it. These are in traditional colours - New Lanark's lovely soft "Natural Black" and "Ecru", and "Cherry" combined with the dark subtle green yarn "Forest". I will be selling knitting kits in these colours, as well as in Cherry and Ecru, and Forest and Ecru. The packs are available to pre-order now on the website http://www.calknits.co.uk/ , and will be posted out from next week. Each knitting kit, as always, contains everything you need to make 8 Christmas baubles, including DPNs, yarn, stuffing and sewing up needle (only needed to sew the two ends in!) 

Here comes Clementini!

Amidst all the tropical downpours and the thunder and lightening I had a bit of sunshine today, and just enough to get out into the garden and photograph my new design. Forgive the steaming undergrowth, this was literally between rainstorms, but doesn't it look pretty?

I love these two colours from New Lanark, they manage to be both zingy and soft at the same time. Inspired by the name (the orange one is called "Clementine") and the fact that the blue looks just like those cardboard trays that fruit is stacked on at markets, I just had to do something a bit fruit-based, which is where Clementini came from.

So it's a more or less straightforward intarsia design, but knitted over a very broad rib to give it some texture. The kit is available to order now online at www.calknits.co.uk , with refill packs available too. I can also supply finished cushions, but there will be a bit of a delay as these will be knitted to order.

Somewhat satisfyingly, when I came inside, I noticed that the colours match my kitchen perfectly....!

Website Woes...

Please be patient. I leave my website looking all pristine and lovely, and come back only to find that all my lovely coloured background boxes have vanished into thin air! My webhosts (is that the right phrase?) are doing everything they can to sort it out, and in the meantime everything is still functioning, but just looks, well, a little sparse. Orders will still come through fine (I hope), but if you don't get a confirmation email within 24 hours please email me separately at calknits@hotmail.co.uk .
I only hope that the problem is resolvable without me having to redo everything...

Supporting St Mungo's Woolly Hat Day

Well as a complete deviation from cushions I've been busy with woolly hats lately...

No, it's not just the unseasonably chilly weather that's done it. St. Mungo's is a homelessness charity which hosts an annual fundraiser called Woolly Hat Day, which this year will be held on October 26th. Their aim is to get 4672 bright orange bobble hats knitted before then, one for each homeless person currently sleeping rough.
I was asked if I could design a pattern for a really basic bobble hat - which I've done, with the idea that so long as you can source 100g of bright orange yarn then you can knit it up - whatever the weight (DK, Aran or Chunky), in the round or flat with a seam, all off the one simple pattern.
It's quick and easy, and the pattern is FREE (so long as you knit an orange hat for St. Mungo's you can do what you want with it afterwards!) so please visit the website, download the pattern and make a woolly hat for St. Mungo's.
http://www.mungos.org/woollyhatday_2012/getinvolved

It was just plain weird knitting a woolly hat on one of the few really hot days we've had this year, but as you can see it makes for a stylish accessory(!) worn conventionally with the brim turned up, or, as one friend commented, Swallows and Amazons stylie.
And once you've made at least one bright orange hat for St. Mungo's, there's nothing to stop you making any more, in whatever colour you like...

Summer Sale starts today!

Tired of waiting for the sunshine?
Why not make the best of it by coming inside, lighting a fire and getting out a little knitting kit. Nothing too big (it might be sunny tomorrow....), just a little project to keep you going until it's fit to go outside again.
Say hello to my mini kits. Usually retailing at £12, they are now on offer for the summer at £10 per kit.

The mini cushion kit makes a cute 6" cushion, with a complementing knitted flower to decorate. You could use the rest of the yarn to knit a matching pair, or use the pattern suggestions to make a headband or journal cover. Kit available in 4 colours and includes 50g DK wool, bamboo knitting needles, stuffing, sewing up needle, contrast yarn and full instructions.

The 3-in-1 kit would suit any keen crafting teen or pre-teen, as well as adults looking for fun little projects or gifts. It contains everything you need to make a phone sock, purse/wristband and pencil case, and comes in 6 different colours including some cool boy-friendly ones.
Available at www.calknits.co.uk - why not treat yourself or buy as an unusual gift for a friend?

Help and Support video

Tom, my friendly techno ace, has triumphed again. He's taken a plain video of me steam blocking a finished cushion piece, added some text, some noodly background music, sped up the boring bits and voila! - my first published CalKnits tutorial!
Imaginatively titled "Blocking your Knitted Cushion", it's available to view on YouTube here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79wyLQWTdA8
I will be adding a link from my website help and support page later today.
Hot on its heels (as soon as we can get together and edit it) will be the sequel: "Sewing up your Textured Stripe  Cushion".
I've done these videos first, as there's lots of really good videos out there already on how to cast on, knit, purl, cast off, intarsia etc, whereas there wasn't much on straightforward steam blocking, and obviously the making up bit is pretty project-specific.
But as ever, if you're stuck on any aspect of a CalKnits project PLEASE get in touch and I'll do my best to help you.

Day trip to New Lanark, looming postal charges and stuff

Went to New Lanark this week to pick up lots of lovely aran wool. Whilst there, I took the children around the visitors' centre. It's a fantastic place, fascinating to explore, as the whole village has been restored to replicate life in a mill town.
We really enjoyed the Annie McLeod experience - a spooky ride into the past where we got to see exactly what life was like in a cotton mill, before exploring the working machines which now spin wool instead.
We also loved the school building. Robert Owen, who "founded" New Lanark, had really progressive ideas about education, so the school was light and airy, with lots of stimulating displays, where the children played and danced, and learned in a fun and enjoyable way. I was really impressed with the class pet - a live baby crocodile!

 Back now, and to the revised pricing on the website. I've raised the price slightly of the finished cushions, but on a positive note the price of refill packs has gone down, as has the Blaze cushion kit. Postage, however, has been a bit of a conundrum. I've decided that to avoid putting the price up by such a hike, instead from the end of the month I will post out second class instead of first. I hope this doesn't inconvenience anyone too much.
And finally, this Sunday (15th April) I will be running a stall at the Rheged Wool Fair, Rheged Visitors' Centre, Penrith. The fair is open from 10 until 4, and is the culmination of several months of exhibitions, demonstrations and all things woolly.
It would be lovely to see you there!

More Blaze photos... and a lesson in customer service!

Spring has sprung! And so, without looking too closely at the state of the garden, outside seems to be the most obvious place to photograph my new colour combinations for the Blaze cushion.
Thomas came round yesterday and took some shots - the rich browns look well and truly fiery in the sunshine. See what you think...

Now that winter looks like it's over I'm getting into bright colours once more, and my work for my next design is using New Lanark's "Clementine" and "Blue Lovage" which are both pretty fresh and zingy. I'm basing my doodlings and swatches on the theme of Fruit market stalls - watch this space for more details.

I'm feeling all bright and zingy myself having just come back from a girl's weekend to Manchester. We had a lovely time, little bit of shopping, cocktails, a show, overnight stop then a little bit more shopping and a train ride home. Manchester was buzzing; as always everyone seems so enthusiastic there, and we were bowled over by how friendly all the shop assistants and waiters were. It was a great lesson in how to make the customer feel good, and particular praise must be reserved for the lovely lady in Zara who let me take far too many silky shirts back to the hotel to try on and return, the lady at the Palace Theatre who made us cocktails, the waitress in Jamie's Italian who knew everything about the menu and the building, and made us feel so at home, and the Mary Portas Sales Assistants in Kendals, who were so friendly and happy to let us try on the pants over our jeans that we ended up buying several pairs each!
However the Po-Faced Misery award goes to the incredibly stuck up shop assistant in a certain very "top end" store, who when faced with the question "Do you sell Mary Portas's pants?" could have just smiled and said, "Sorry, no, have you tried Kendal's?" But no. He took the opportunity to deliver a 20 minute lecture on why Mary Portas isn't bespoke, unique or niche enough to be stocked at a store like his, and that I'd be better off shopping at Boots the Chemist or ("Shudder") a supermarket...
As I skulked out of the shop feeling a little bit like a naughty school girl it suddenly struck me that the telling off I'd just had said a great deal more about his insecurities than mine. And as we sat in St Anne's Square drinking coffee and soaking up the sunshine, I reflected that I'd much rather shop with enthusiatic people who genuinely want me to enjoy the experience, rather than those who want to make the whole thing some exclusive game of one-upmanship.

The Finished Cushion

So here's the final version of Blaze, now available in kit form or as a finished cushion.

It's available in natural undyed greys, natural browns, and two other schemes - a rich mix of russet, autumn brown and ochre, and a mix of a cool green (copper blue), deep green (forest) and cobalt blue.

My one finished prototype is up at New Lanark, so I spent as much time as I could on the stall at Brampton knitting up the next demo cushion in rich browns (kept my fingers warm!), and my friend Jacqui is working on the green / blue version.

Had a lovely time at the market today - it was so nice to meet some of my previous customers and hear how they had got on with the stripy cushion. I'm now selling "refill" packs so people can knit a matching or contrasting pair, without having to buy the pattern or needles over again. Visit the website for details...

I also popped into The Rusty Button whilst I was in Brampton. It's looking fantastic - I loved the vintage jewelry! Dropped heavy hints to him indoors tonight... Julie has sold several of my cushion kits in the last few days, so I dropped off some more stock whilst I was there.

So my task over the next couple of days is to put the new design up on the website, and finish the demo cushions ready for another photo shoot with Thomas. And then it's on to the next idea, and hopefully a bit of course work in between...

New Cushion Design - "Blaze"

My aim is to produce a new cushion design or product every month, and the idea for the "Blaze" cushion has been bubbling along for some time now.
Basically I see the same view every morning on my way back from the school run - it's of the Eastern flank of Blaze Fell, the nearest high ground to Armathwaite. It's one of those views that immediately puts me in a good mood, whatever the weather, and in every season. I think I particularly love it in winter when the colours are much more muted.
I've made several attempts to photograph the view, but as with all things like this, my mental image is miles better than the photo!

But you get the idea - lots of crisscrossing fields and clumps of woodland stretching into the distance.
I've done lots of sketching, trying to reduce the image to a series of intersecting lines, before translating it into knitting using blocks of different colour and texture.
This was my first attempt

All in natural colours, and with a bit of a 1980s stripy vibe!

However it's a bit too busy to work well as a kit, and also too expensive as it uses 4 different colours. So design 2 is much more pared down, with 3 colours and a simplified structure.

Still a little lumpy as I've not blocked it yet, but you get the idea...

Now all that's left to do is write up the pattern in a user-friendly style. This is a more complex knit than the textured stripe design, but hopefully I can introduce novice knitters to the intarsia technique gently!

Somewhat excitingly New Lanark have put in an order for the new design cushion kits, for delivery this Thursday! I then hope to have the kits available online by the weekend, tying in with my stall at Brampton Market on Saturday.

I'm also contemplating different colour schemes for the cushion. The scheme above is using Pebble, Limestone and Gritstone, so is sticking to the natural greys, but with a fair degree of warmth from the blends (Pebble in particular has quite a brownish tone). I wanted to do a combination of wintry green, ochre and rich brown, to mimic the colours out there at the moment, but I'm struggling to get a good mix, so may well end up with a cushion in rich earth tones (Ochre, Autumn and Russet?) and one sticking with the natural greens. Watch this space, or come and see what I've come up with on Saturday....

New outlet in Brampton!

This evening I met Julie Kemp, owner of The Rusty Button - a vintage/retro/fairtrade/recycled retailer about to open a shop in Brampton.
She has agreed to stock my cushions and kits, along with a small haberdashery section.
The Rusty Button, 3 Shepherds Lane, Brampton will open this Friday, 10th February.
Well worth a visit, for a chat and a glass of wine, and to see Julie's fantastic stock.
I love vintage clothes so no doubt will be there to have a good look around.
Find it just off the Main Street in Brampton, down a lane next to Travel Team travel agents.

Website goes Live! I go to Bed!

Yay! Finished! My lovely website is now out there and available for public scrutiny.
Find me at www.calknits.co.uk.
And as it's now 3 minutes to 1 in the morning, and I've been up since 6am yesterday, I'm going to bed.
Night Night.

The Website Launch

The trouble with portfolio careers....
Just as you really need a clear day to do the final website tinkering, along comes a day's work in the "other" job. So it's off to Newcastle Racecourse rather than at home with the computer. I have to say, a day in the fresh air is extremely appealing!
So the news is; www.calknits.co.uk will go live on Thursday 2nd February, unless my computer horribly mangles itself tomorrow night. It's very exciting, and looking really good (I think) - largely due to the expertise of  14 year old computer whizz and budding photographer Thomas, who has been a huge help. I can't wait to link in with his website, which has some great photography on it. More to follow soon.

PS. My Special Launch offer has been extended, now the first FIVE orders will receive a £10 voucher against their next purchase. Watch this space!

Lovely time at the market

Thanks to all my lovely customers at Brampton Market yesterday. Despite the extreme cold lots of people stopped to chat and admire the cushions, and I made quite a few sales.

As promised I will return next month, as lots of you still had projects to finish before you could buy one of my kits!

Getting started...

Isn't it funny how starting up a business doing something you love actually results in you doing less of it?
Since my baby business started last month I think I can count the number of hours spent knitting on my fingers (oh, ok, and toes too).
And I keep having to pinch myself to believe that I'm finally doing something about my hobby, rather than just daydreaming.
What I have found, so far, however, is that putting yourself out there as a business with something to sell is much less scary than you think it is. Blame it on Dragon's Den, perhaps, but I really thought that I was going to face nothing but scathing comments and ridicule when I said I wanted to sell knitting kits for people to make their own cushions, but instead everyone has been unreservedly supportive and, well, nice!
So just over a month in and where am I?
Well I'm selling kits, at a local Farmer's Market at Brampton, Cumbria (next one this Saturday, 28th Jan), I've got stock in my local shop in Armathwaite, and in New Lanark Mill Visitors Centre (where I get my yarn from). And the website will be up and running by the end of the month.
Theere, I've said it. Now I just have to go and wrestle with my web design pages. This is so out of my comfort zone. At least publicly stating it gives me the incentive to get on and do it.
So, the grand launch of www.calknits.co.uk will begin. And the first customer gets a free £10 voucher to spend on their next purchase. How's that for an incentive?

My woolly cushions, waiting to go to market....