Clara, Magnolia & Giveaway, Oh, My!

Greetings, readers! We've spent the last week shivering and drinking tea like there's no tomorrow here at our house. Between the dreariness of the snow and the rain turning it brown and yucky, I've found myself reaching for bright fibers and fabrics to bring a little color back into our world. New project bags coming in my Etsy shop later this week, but for now, I have a few (old) patterns to share. Last year (and again this year), I was invited to be 1 of 2 designers involved in the Knitting Boutique's Luxury Fiber Club. 2014 was a year of accessories all knit in different luxury fibers in winter whites. 2015 is all tops, shells, shrugs and shawls knit in new fibers! 2 of the 3 patterns designed for last year are now available to non-club members, and I'm happy to bring the Clara Shawl and the Magnolia Cowl out of hibernation for you all. The Cameron Street Hat & Wristers will be available in April.

The Clara Shawl is a top-down, center back start shawl with an interesting lace panel with wrapped stitches marching down the center. The border is a meshy lace and the pattern is both written and charted out. Coming in just shy of 400 yards means you can easily make this a one hank project.

The Magnolia Cowl is a pattern chock full of techniques! Lace, wrapped stitches, back loop knitting, bobbles and faux cables make this knit-in-the-round cowl an exciting knit! Coming in at only 360 yards, this would be an ideal project for those hanks of sock yarn you have hanging around. This pattern is also written out and charted.

Now for the fun part! Two lucky readers will win BOTH patterns! Simply leave a comment in the comments section about which pattern you like better and why, and you're automatically entered in to win both patterns. Two winners will be chosen at random on Thursday and the contest is open to readers worldwide.

Clara Shawl available for download here, Magnolia Cowl available for download here.

Flash Sale!

TanisKnits patterns only!

2 Newbies!

If you're a member of the knitting or yarn world, this week is TNNA. TNNA is a trade show filled with yarns! New patterns! New notions! New ideas! New friends! Old friends! So many exclamation points! I've designed pattern for Lorna's Laces before, and they're a great hand dyed yarn company with great fibers and colors. Their tagline is "we make pretty string," and yes, indeed they do. I'll make this a quick post, as I have a rabid preschooler home on a snow day playing dangerously close to my knitting... For TNNA, I did 2 new patterns for Lorna's debuting at the trade show, both if which I'm really excited about.

First up... Simon Says Cowl. Inspired by the memory and reflex "Simon Says" game we all had in the 80's, this cowl takes 1 hank of each color and is a trifecta of my favorite techniques: corrugated ribbing, Fair Isle knitting and Latvian braids. Knit in Lorna's Mrs. Crosby line in their Carpet Bag yarn, the DK merino/silk blend gives is a soft sheen and feels wonderful around your neck. I love the complimentary colors and had a blast knitting and designing this cowl.

Next up is the Palone Baby Blanket. One of the first designers to get to knit with Lorna's new Cloudgate yarn, this bulky superwash/nylon blend had the part of my brain that adores superwash yarn screaming for more. Alternating the variegated and solid color ways enhanced this modern feather and fan chevron pattern. Knitting up on 10s, this blanket knit up quickly and had a squish factor that made me happy. I would love a sweater in this yarn!

There are lots more new patterns coming down the pipeline, interviews, giveaways and reviews, so stay tuned. To all the caregivers of young children out there, I wish you a week free of snow days!

Download the Simon Says Cowl here and the Palone Baby Blanket here.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, dear readers! Whether your resolutions are for your personal life, professional life, for your health or you don't make resolutions at all, I wish nothing but joy, cashmere, perfect gauge for all your projects and no lost stitch markers in 2015!

I am incredibly excited to launch my Craftsy workshop this morning, January 1. I've been a Craftsy member for years, but this is my first KAL (knit-a-long) with them. I designed the Tuva Hat specifically for this KAL and will be hosting, answering questions, cheering everyone on and being available every single day for 2 months. With hundreds of students worldwide signed up, I'm thrilled to achieve what I've always wanted to do - teach on a global scale and help lace knitters in real-time. I hope this is a thrilling experience for both teacher and students and it's the perfect way to start a new year.

Join me, won't you? Sign up is active for 2 months and you can start anytime. Questions, tips, support and step-by-step photo tutorials will guide you through your very own Tuva Hat. The Craftsy community is wonderful and I'm pleased to be teaching there. We'll cover icords, earflaps, reading and managing lace charts, garter stitch in the round, pom poms, finishing techniques, all with the support of hundreds of students working on the same project together. The hat pattern is exclusive to the workshop until March 1, then will be available to the public.

The winner of the Mitered Entrelac giveaway was posted on that post this morning, but stay tuned... I LOVE giving things away to my readers and there's a lot in store for you for 2015. Happy 2015 everyone!