i was there

My friends Alex and Travis got hitched last weekend! It was such a good party, and they even let me fly across the country to make a darn fool of myself all over their dance floor. I had more fun than anybody, almost guaranteed! Michigan is one of those places I never really expected to go, but I'm so glad I did. And no, I did not finish my sweater in time, but I didn't need it after all. And now I have yet another mostly-completed sweater sitting around in a project bag! Hooray! On to the pictures. I did not take very many of them, Alex was rightfully indignant every time I left my camera at home. Fortunately she knows of my lameness and hired a professional to document the occasion, if you want to see those lovely photos, go here.

But I did manage to snap some off while we were setting up, before all the pomp and circumstance. These are some of the lovely centerpieces that my talented friend put together. I loves her!



And a few of themselves, being the dozens of ways they are adorable in their hometown of Chelsea.











Thank you guys! I miss you and I still haven't forgiven you for moving so far away, but such a glorious vacation goes a long way towards mollifying me. You are the lovely, the awesome, and the happy. Have such wonderful lives!

best picture of me ever

taken by my son, at my brother's bike shop. happy face.

these happy few

Some of my favorite moments from the last few weeks:


Star, modeling our shop's new knitalong, Abi


the beautiful new shawl sticks that we just got into the shop...and are already gone (there are other types by the same crafter, if you care to look, made by Squire Country Crafts -- my boss's parents).


a very quiet moment in a photoshoot with Lo for an upcoming design (in test-knitting, more later).


gratuitous yarn beauty.


and a face that only a mother could love (Karat, that is, with my lovely boss Emily in a recent hush-hush shoot for the shop)

I wish I could share more, but really, things are pretty dull around Casa del Shanks lately, as I prepare myself for a certain wedding by trying to speed knit an enormous sweater in laceweight yarn, thereby requiring that I redo all the math in the pattern.

In the pink!

Finally, well into the third decade of my life, I've decided to like pretty things. I like lace and filigree and cherry blossoms and delicate skirts. And now I even, in some contexts, like pink. This hat makes me very happy when I wear it (which I am not here, but is looks so lovely on Sorren, too, does it not?).



I think part of what I enjoy so much about this hat is the immense relief of knitting something that someone else designed. And all I had to do was follow directions. Ahhhhhhhh. The pattern is Orchids and Fairy Lights by the marvelous and whimsical Stephanie Dosen of Tiny Owl Knits. The pattern was a delight, and so quick and easy that before I knew it I was dressing up in all my girliest clothing (a quick survey of the wardrobe says this area could use some expansion) and floating around town like a little girl in her first pair of butterfly wings. I have not, I swear it, had a cranky moment since, and that's a lot of power in one pink hat! Malabrigo worsted (in Dusty), what can I say. It's just hard to go wrong.





If anyone else out there is feeling the need for some Lovely + Delicate, give pink a try. It could rock your world, too.

{green & grey}

First of all, thank you to the Tigard Knitting Guild for being such accommodating hosts! I had a blast and this post is for you, and especially for those asking about grey items on a green background...yes, I enjoy it, too!







This cowl and arm warmer set is from the 2011 Twisted Single Skein Club for April. I'm assuming anyone in the club has long since received their packages, so there is no risk of spoiling the surprise. It's a fun textural pattern by our own Star Athena out of a yarn by Berroco made from 100% recycled materials from the garment industry, which gets me right in my little conservationist's heart. This was a fun and super quick little photoshoot in front of some mossy trees down the street from the shop.

once upon a time

I used to knit and then wear things. Then I got peer pressured into designing and the intoxicating experience kept me coming back for more, ever more, until I no longer really knit. Now I make sketches and scribble out notes and calculations and format and all these other things...and I kind of have a lot less to show for it, when all the shouting is over. Oh, I never shout. And these days I take a bajillion photographs for people, a similarly heady and rewarding experience, but they've got me promising not to reveal things before their time...so I kind of have a lot less to show for it.

Fortunately for all of us, there's always the beach.






(columnar basalt elephant skin)



I will have more fiber to share sometime soon, too, I promise. Sooooo many pictures to edit in the meantime!

eyes only no longer!

Whew, a little bit of those Top Secret, Eyes Only photos are available for release! Some weeks ago I had the great good fortune to take some pictures for my neighbor Jen Hurley of Rainy Day Knits. She has created a lovely and whimsical set of Stained Glass Bubble accessories based around an ingenious stitch pattern, the latest being these mitts:






(many thanks to Lo, as always, for being such a smashing model)

Jen has crunched all the numbers for you, so these mitts come in a full array of sizes, from wee to manly, and every shade of grey in between. They were so much fun to take pictures of, all those little brightly colored bubbles of wool!



If you want to check these out, and her other great patterns, head on over to Ravelry and show her some love! In the meantime, I have massive amounts of editing to do, and some more exciting shoots, and someday, my lovelies, I'll get to share it all with you.