Announcement regarding knitting instruction!

Hi guys!

It's been awhile since my last post.  Actually, it has been awhile since I've knitted.  Aside from beginning a Star Trek-inspired hat I have only worked on gifts, and even then only intermittently.  

I have just begun a new job at Whole Foods.  This is awesome for a lot of reasons, but the unpredictability of my schedule means that I need to take a hiatus from teaching knitting classes.  ** I AM STILL AVAILABLE FOR PRIVATE LESSONS.**

The other fact is that only four people signed up for classes this term.  I do enjoy teaching classes because it gives students the opportunity to learn from each other and it is a better value, but when people don't sign up I can't hold the class.  I have decided to institute a new pricing policy to help make up for the difference in the fact that I do not have any classes scheduled.  To receive this discount payment is due at the time of the first lesson.

Base rate: $25/hour

Three or more hours: $20/hour

Six or more hours: $15/hour

If you are interested in a private lesson, please email classes@theshizknit.com.  If you want to see more knitting, sit tight and I will post photos of my latest swap project as soon as my swappee receives her package!  Maybe I'll just have to start sharing photos of adorable children in the meantime.

Shawlette Queue

Hey knitters (and crocheters, and everyone else!)

Spring is here . . . supposedly.  It's still about 20 degrees below our average temperatures for this time of year.  It seems like just the right time to cast on for a shawlette.

The shawlette class begins April 10 and is three sessions from 6-8 p.m.  You can register at classes@theshizknit.com .  There are several shawlettes that have caught my fancy . . .

Like Damson, by Ysolda Teague


Magrathea by Martina Behm


and Clara by Sarah Sipe


. . . just to name a few.

All of these use fingering weight yarn, but you can always try a pattern that uses a heavier yarn.  (Like Springtime Bandit, which uses Aran weight.)  If you want to go all out, you could select a pattern on lace weight yarn like the Print O'The Wave Stole, and if you're *really* ambitious you could do something larger like this shawl from Petite Purls. The choice is yours!  I'm here to help.

Hello there, old sweater.

You may remember me posting about the miles of seed stitch I was working on . . . 

Okay, so maybe not miles of seed stitch, but I did complete the body of a sweater and one sleeve.  This is something I designed that I love - the collar has a really cool design element.

I dug out the sketch of this sweater and got excited about it all over again.

Here's the thing - it doesn't fit.  It's fine in the waist, but there's no way it would button and fit my hips.  This is a sweater that will look best buttoned.

I still really want to make this sweater, but I am going to have to rip it out, since I'm pretty sure my hips aren't shrinking that much.  It's bottom up so to get the hip shaping right I have to redo the entire thing.  I love knitting, so ripping isn't too sad - it just means I get to spend more time knitting!  Still, it's frustrating to see all of that hard work go to waste.  Lucky for me, I adore seed stitch!

Interview with Annie Watts of Wattsolak Designs

I love Annie Watts - her designs are full of whimsy and wit.  (Example: her new design, Rock, Paper, Scissors . . . SHOOT!, which was just released today!) On top of that, she's a pretty cool mama of two.  I hope one day to find myself in Colorado to pay her a visit.  For now, I decided to interview her for the blog.

First of all, I love all of your patterns! You haven’t been designing all that long. Why did you decide to start designing?

I started making things without patterns almost immediately after learning how to knit about 11 years ago, probably because of equal parts of not finding patterns for what I wanted and not knowing how to properly read patterns.  When I started knitting I didn’t know any other knitters so I was sort of winging it for a few years.  I started actually writing my patterns down after being hounded by many friends to do so. 

Describe your style in one word.

Playful!  I try my best to take a light-hearted approach to designs.  I want to make patterns that others will be excited to knit.  I want to make things that make the knitter feel clever and the wearer smile. 

I know that your Bean Monster came from a collaboration with your husband. 

Where do you find inspiration for your cute stuffed animals?

Most of my toy patterns are based on what my kids like.  I like toys that are fun to make and cute to look at, but are also going to withstand the strenuous abuse from little ones.  I like to make toys that are actually, you know, supposed to be played with and aren’t too fragile to handle. 

What about your less-traditonally-cute-but-equally-adorable First is the Worst and the other two toys in that series?

This set started with the Third is the One With the Hairy Chest.  My friend Jane had her third child last winter.  She’s a knitter too and I wanted to send the baby a toy but couldn’t find just the right pattern.  I woke up one morning with the chant in my head: “First is the worst, second is the best, third is the one with the hairy chest”.  Obviously the third child needed a hairy chested doll and the rest kind of fell into place.  

You have such a unique take on fair isle. (Your Fightin’ Words mitts are on my to-knit list, as are the Kraken Knuckles!) When you design, do you put technique first or do you think of the design first? (Do you say, I’m going to make something fair isle, or I need to make glove with octopus legs as fingers?)

I usually think of the design first.  Kraken Knuckles came to me all at once and fair isle was the easiest way to work the design.  Same for Fightin’ Words.  I generally have at least one or two colorwork patterns going at a time so when I finish one pattern, I think my mind constantly searches the back of my brain for the next one. 

Tell me about your stranded kitten and puppy.

These were so much fun to design.  It’s hard to say where the initial inspiration for these came from but it was originally a challenge to myself for yet another baby gift.  My friend Emmy had her first child last winter and I wanted to make her something really special (Actually, Emmy and Jane had their babies on the same day last January.  Good day for baby knitting mojo!).  Emmy really appreciates the old and traditional but also has a great sense of modern, stylish things.  I was trying to design a knit toy that straddles these two things.  I love that they both have so much detail without having to worry about small hands pulling off detailed embroidery or embellishments.

What has been the most fun experience you’ve had promoting your designs?

I’d have to say being featured in Mollie Makes with Stephanie Dosen last summer!  Really it was a fun excuse to get together and do a silly photo shoot.  It was also neat to have exposure to the larger crafting world rather than just knitters. 

The most important thing you’ve learned?

The most important thing I’ve learned has probably been to just keep momentum going.  If I get stuck or frustrated with something I make myself plow through it.  If I can’t get past something, I bag it.  There are so many things to knit and never enough time, so I try to not spend too much time on things that I feel like I have to force.  I use to get upset about wasting time on patterns that never would come to fruition, but it’s better than putting out patterns that I’m not in love with. 

Do you have a favorite, go-to yarn?

I try to branch out and use different yarns but I very often find myself gravitating back to Knit Picks Palette.  They nail the trifecta of color array, low price, and durability.  I really like this yarn for colorwork.  I like to use nicer yarns sometimes for patterns, but there is a certain appeal to allowing knitters to buy the exact yarn for, say, a pair of colorwork mittens and have it cost them less than eight dollars. 

(Of personal interest) How do you find time to create such amazing patterns with two small children?

It’s a sanity thing, really.  I don’t work outside the home, so it really became a necessity to have something that was my own non-kid related thing to work on throughout the day.  Designing takes up a lot of my brain space so I simply had to let go of some non-essential aspects of my life and prioritize my time.  My house is often a mess and sometimes my kids watch too much TV, but we are all happy and busy and loving it.  It also helps that I drink a lot of coffee and usually only get about 6 hours of sleep.  

What’s in the future for Wattsolak?

I have lots on the horizon!  There will be two really unique ebooks coming out in the next year that I am so excited about.  Also, there is always more colorwork to be done.  Expect lots more mitts and mittens this year!

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Thanks for the interview!  

You can visit Annie at www.wattsolak.com or "like" her on Facebook.  She also has a Ravelry group for fans of her designs.  If you're local, be sure to check out the Howard class, or maybe choose one of her beautiful stranded patterns for the Fair Isle class. The spring class schedule is here.

A Tale of Two Socks

I posted this on Facebook on Friday night, but I thought I'd save it for Monday on the blog to brighten your workday.  Presenting the first ever Shizknit short "commercial."  I hope you enjoy it!

Hearts!

SPRING CLASS SCHEDULE IS HERE!

As you may have guessed from my lack of posting, last summer was busy.  In addition to working sixty- and seventy-hour work weeks for the Kentucky State Fair, I was entering the third trimester of pregnancy, juggling two kids under the age of five, and serving as Maid of Honor for my little sister.

Yesterday, with it's Valentine hearts, reminded me of the cake topper that I made for my sister's wedding.  

She was inspired by some cake toppers from Etsy, and we put our own spin on them.  This is the only photo I have - I literally finished it up right before the wedding.  Thanks to Brittany Madden for taking a picture!  The hearts are yellow Louet Gems Sport - her wedding colors were yellow, pink, and turquoise.  I used Anna Hrachovec's pattern for tiny hearts - the Mochimochi Land style suits my sister's personality pretty perfectly, so even though I could've made any heart, it just seemed like the right thing to do.  Once I knit the hearts, I stuck them on bamboo skewers and tied an embroidered piece of fabric between them.  It's not fancy, but it is certainly cute and my sister seemed happy.

Spring 2013 Class Schedule

To sign up, email classes@theshizknit.com or call 502-627-0618.  Pre-registration is required.
The Shizknit reserves the right to cancel any class that doesn't meet minimum enrollment requirements.

SIMPLE SOCKS

Learn sock basics in this class.  We'll be making a top-down sock with double pointed needles but will discuss other types of sock construction.  Ankle socks are speedier than their tall counterparts and are perfect for spring.

$60 for three two-hour sessions

Friday, March 1, 8 and 15 from 6-8 p.m.

HOWARD
It's always fun to knit a toy!  Howard is knit in the round in pieces and the appendages are sewn on.  Learn a lot of new techniques while making this sweet pup, including Judy's Magic Cast On!

$60 for three two-hour sessions
Wednesday, March 6, 13 and 20 from 6-8 p.m.

CABLES
Learn to make cables and create beautiful designs by knitting stitches out of order.  You may use any pattern you'd like, but you will receive a free updated copy of Epitome when you enroll in the class.

$40 for two two-hour sessions
Friday, March 22 and 28 from 6-8 p.m.

MITTENS
Mittens are a great small project.  Learn to make some and your hands will be toasty warm!

$40 for two two-hour sessions
Wednesday, March 27 and April 3, 6-8 p.m.



PERSONALIZED CUFF
Have you ever noticed how Elizabeth Zimmermann often personalized her sweaters with the name of the recipient or the sweater?  Learn how to make a fold over cuff and personalize it with fair isle.  You can use any pattern that is knit in the round and I will teach you how to modify it and add a fair-isle message.

$40 for two two-hour sessions
Friday, April 5 and 12, 6-8 p.m.

SHAWLETTE
Learn shawl techniques without the commitment of a huge shawl.  You may choose any pattern, but I like those that balance a combination of garter stitch and lace like Clara.  Shawlettes make the perfect accessories for spring!

$60 for three two-hour sessions
Wednesday, April 10, 17 and 24, 6-8 p.m.

KNIT TO FIT
This class could easily be called "Measurements and Gauge." You will receive a packet of sheets with a list of needed measurements and information about how to use those measurements to modify patterns for a perfect-fitting sweater. We will measure both your body (wear close-fitting clothing) and a sweater that fits you well to get an idea of how much ease you prefer. We will also have a discussion about how to make proper gauge swatches and why gauge matters so much.

You will need to bring a tape measurer, well-fitting sweater, and a pencil. If you have already chosen a sweater design and knit a swatch, you may also want to bring a calculator so we can do the math for your sweater. If you have not knit a swatch, you may bring yarn for swatching for when we discuss how to properly knit, wash, block and measure your swatch.

$25 for one two hour session
Friday, April 19, 6-8 p.m.

SIX WEEK SWEATER
Receive help with any sweater!  Perfect for your very first sweater knitting experienced or a complex pattern that you're hesitant to try on your own.

$120 for six two-hour sessions
Friday, April 26 and May 3, 10, 17, 24 and 31 from 6-8 p.m.

Sign up for Knit to Fit + Six Week Sweater and receive $15 off!

ENTRELAC
This basketweave look is achieved by picking up lots and lots of stitches!  We'll discuss the history of entrelac and learn how to create it.  You may knit a hat or a head warmer.  Some people prefer to use a self-striping yarn while others like to combine multiple colors.

$40 for two two-hour sessions
Wednesday, May 1 and 8 from 6-8 p.m.

FAIR ISLE

Learn to knit with one color in your right hand and another in your left!  We will also discuss reading charts.  You may bring any pattern, but a hat pattern (not pictured - the prototype is in progress) will be provided.

$60 for three two hour sessions.
Wednesday, May 15, 22 and 29 from 6-8 p.m.

PRIVATE LESSONS
Any technique you choose!

$25 per one-hour session
By appointment.

Enroll in any class and receive 15% off private lessons

 six weeks from the first session of the class. 

LEARN TO KNIT

Learn the techniques you need to get started.  

$25 per two-hour session

The second Saturday of every month, 12-2 p.m.