Stuff On My Cat

This has got to be the most addictive entertaining site I've seen in a long time. Ever since I saw it Saturday I have been discovering that cats don't really mind having stuff stacked on top of them. I was able to stack fifteen folded t-shirts on Chandler and she didn't even seem to care. I didn't have the camera handy so I don't really have any examples to show you, but go to this site and you'll get the idea!!

Stuff On My Cat

Cotton Fleece

I started a project using the cotton fleece that I bought last Friday. Seriously, why is this yarn so nice? In the skein on the shelf of the store I had no idea what it would be like worked up, but when I started making that Cable-eight sweater a while ago I immediately discovered that it is fantastic! I love the feel of the fiber as I'm working with it, and the finished fabric is so soft and the colors are so rich.

Moving!!!

Not me, but my LYS is and they are in the middle of a storewide sale. Everything in the store is 15% off, and books and clearance items are an extra 30% marked price. I finally bought some of the Regal Silk by Art Yarns that I've been fondling every time I go into the store. (Yes, I've even sniffed it a time or two).

*click photos for biggy view*

I also picked up three skeins each of two colors of the Cotton Fleece by Brown Sheep. It's so soft and wonderful to work with. If I could I'd go back and buy a bunch more of it in all the colors!!

Here is a close up of the Regal Silk. Isn't it incredible? Several ladies in line oooohd and aaaaaahd and they even were bold enough to fondle it a little bit!!

Y'all rock, seriously

Thanks!!

I want to thank everyone for the kind congratulatory comments and emails of encouragement! It's been a crazy exciting six months and I couldn't have done half as much without all my cyber-buds! Your comments on my blog have been a driving force for me. Keep 'em comin'!

The fall has some exciting new stuff coming up including three more pattern booklets in the works for September, and of course there is Men Who Knit And The Dogs Who Love Them (email me your anecdote, hint hint). That will be taking most of my energies from now until Thanksgiving. If you would like to help us knit a sweater please contact Annie!

Cheaper Than Therapy

This new book edited by Annie Modesitt includes essays from 28 contributers (including Regina of Monster Crochet, Laurie of Crazy Aunt Purl and yours truly, The Crochet Dude) about how working with fiber has changed their lives. I hope you'll pick up your copy and look for my essay!

Book Description

28 Essayists discuss the positive impact that knitting, crochet, spinning & all fiber in general have had on their lives. Funny, touching, moving and inspirational, this collection reaches into the soul.

Order Here

Cheapter Than Therapy

I feel so empty inside....

I don't but this envelope I found in my mailbox this morning does. It came from mein geheimer Freund in Germany and arrived opened and empty. Isn't that sad? I have no idea who sent it or what it was.



So whoever you are over there in Germany who was kind enough to send me something that I should never bend, I thank you! It truly is the thought that counts!!

New URL for book submissions
For those of you who are planning to submit anecdotes about knitting & dogs or knitting & men or men & dogs here is a new addy to check out:

Men Who Knit and the Dogs Who Love Them!

Seattle Bound Vest progress

I'm still working on this vest with leftover yarn from Nouveau Riche (I know I know, when is the pattern going to be available? Not in August, hopefully September so y'all can make it for a lucky dude on your holiday gift list) and here is my progress so far. I cabled the entire back without a cable needle and now I'm working on the front using a cable needle. I want to see which is easier and/or produces better looking cables. The jury is still out since I just started the front piece this morning (it's that little one on the left in the pic).

Of course the reason I'm working on this vest is two-fold. The end product will be a holiday gift I can cross off my list! (C'mon y'all, it's almost here!) More importantly I'm practicing my knitting skills to get ready to knit one of Annie's designs for the book. I have seen her sketches y'all, and holy. spicy. homemade. guacamole. She's a great designer!! The proposed collection of men's sweater designs are incredible and seriously, I can't wait until this book is available so I can start making them all!!!

Five Ponchos Published!

Five Ponchos To Crochet

Thanks to everyone that cheered me on over the last week or two. I'm very happy with how these ponchos turned out, and I hope that you enjoy them too. Thanks also to those of you that have been waiting so patiently for the Pretty Pleats pattern, y'all rock!

Knit/Woof update

I'm collecting anecdotes that may be used in our book about Men/Knit/Dogs. If you have a story you would like to tell me about knit/dog or knit/man or yarn/man or yarn/dog you can email it to me directly or to the official knit/woof addy.

...on your left is Big Ben...

I spent most of yesterday giving a guided tour of the Houston area. A friend of mine from Heartmade Blessings was in town with her husband and father-in-law and we made arrangements to get together and meet. So I drove them for lunch at Katz's (which never kloses) and had some authentic New York style deli sandwiches. Once I could tell they were not psycho-killers I offered to drive them around the city for a quick tour of the highlights.

Knit Dudes

If you are a dude that knits, know a dude that knits, love a dude that knits, have a dog that knits, know a dog that knits, or love a dog that knits please click on the button in my sidebar under "Open Call". We want to hear your story!!

Crochet Dude

Today I'm going to hunker down and get this poncho booklet finished (I've pretty much said that to myself every day, but thought if I say it publicly it would help keep me on track LOL). The response has been great with Do Your Vest! and I hope that the ponchos generate as much enthusiasm.

knit/woof

I can finally share with you the bignews!! I have been asked to co-author a book with Annie Modesitt.... let that sink in, the knitting goddess Annie Modesitt... you know, the one who has the design on the cover of the current Vogue Knitting... etc, etc, etc...

Anywho, I have been asked to co-author a book with her for Lark Publishing called Men Who Knit and the Dogs That Love Them (working title). This is such an exciting development and I can't wait to get started (actually we already have!!).

More details later as things get further along!

Vote/meow


Please visit this site and vote for Clancy. Clancy is just about the cutest cat and I hope he wins this contest. Voting ends on August 17 so hurry on over please!!

Voting has ended. Any statisticians out there want to tell me the odds of the "results" of this poll actually happening? 8 contestants, 2993 votes, and two photos tie for first place with 1408 exactly? I'm going to have to call b*llp*cky on this one. Seriously, I just don't see that this could happen statistically.

Seattle Bound

Not me, this new knitted project that I'm working on. Well, not even the vest is Seattle Bound, but that is what it's called. I have some, okay, a ton, of the yellow yarn that I used on Nouveau Riche so I thought I'd do some smaller projects (hello...Christmas is coming). This is a vest pattern that includes some cabling which is good practice for a novice knitter. *click for biggy view*

Ponchopalooza Update

I have five out of six of the poncho patterns edited. The only one left to do is Pretty Pleats With Mango On Top! Woo hoo! I'm excited to get this pattern booklet out there. The response to the Pink Purl Poncho and to Pretty Pleats has been wonderful. I hope to have the pattern booklet out this week!!

TAG

I've been tagged by Misfitwith an interesting one:

id•i•o•syn•cra•sy - a structural or behavioral characteristic peculiar to an individual or group. Write down 5 of your own idiosyncrasies, then if you wish, tag 5 people.

1. I always open doors for ladies whether it's at a store or a car.

2. I fall asleep at 10pm and have done so since I was a kid.

3. I don't have a poker face; you can definitely tell what I'm thinking just by looking at me.

4. Cockroaches freak me out. Seriously. They're evil.

5. If I cut myself I a) throw up, then b) pass out.

Now the fun part, taggin' my peeps. Let's see... howz about Sherri, Nancy, Trish, Oslofia & Regina.

London - The Sunday Times

London Mentions The Dude - again!

I was just perusing the London Sunday Times and came across another article that mentions my book Ten Crochet Dude Dishcloths (if you haven't bought your copy, you're really missing out. It's my hottest seller!).

Click here to read the article:

Publish and be damned self-reliant by Kira Cochrane
The Sunday Times, August 14, 2005

Love ya London! Come visit anytime!!

Mail Call

File this under "now why didn't I think of that!?"

Today in my mail I received these fantastic markers that are labled with hook sizes! So now if I'm working on a project and need to put it down for a while I can attach the appropriate size marker, and when I come back I'll know the hook I was using.

Check out Jennifer's website to see a bunch of great ideas! Thanks for sending these Jennifer, you rock!

Do Your Vest!

The good news for me: both the pink and the blue vests were accepted for the 2007 Calendar! woo hooo!

The great news for you: since I retain the rights to the pattern I thought I would make them available to you now! *click on cover*



Thanks for all the wonderful feedback on these designs. I loved all your name suggestions and had a hard time deciding. In the end I came up with the booklet being titled "Do Your Vest!", the blue one being called "Do Your Wooly Vest!" and the pink one being called "Do Your Cottony Vest!". If you make these, please send me pics!!!

Variations on a Vest

I worked up a new vest using a wonderful cotton provided by Yarns 2 Ewe here in Houston. If you have the chance, check them out and let them know The Crochet Dude sent ya. Anywho, this is crocheted with "Manos Cotton Stria" by Manos del Uruguay and is kettle-dyed pure Peruvian cotton. Manos del Uruguay is a non-profit organization comprised of more than 400 artisans in cooperatives scattered throughout the countryside of Uruguay. The organization's mission is to bring economic and social opportunities to rural woman.

Manos Cotton Stria yarn is a super soft Peruvian cotton that is hand-dyed in large kettles to create a marbleized, subtlely striated effect. It works up beautifully!!

I wanted to see how easy it would be to size the vest. The blue one was worked with a finished bust size of 36 and the pink one with a finished bust size of 40. I also used a different stitch combination that enhances the softness of the yarn.



I edged the vest in this fun novelty yarn by Berroco called "Monet". The colors are rich and randomly there are fat knots of the yarn to add texture.

London Calling

The article in the Sunday Telegraph out of the U.K. came out today (thanks to the folks that gave me the heads up!), remember, the one that I was interviewed for? If you want to read it click here:

Sunday Telegraph article by Roya Nikkah

And as a very cool development they actually talked about me on the BBC Radio Four program "Broadcasting House". If you want to take a listen click here:

The Crochet Dude in London

Look for the button in the top right hand corner that says "Listen" and they mention me right around minute 48. What an honor!

2007 Calendar Submission

I finished the sweater that I'm going to submit to Annie for the 2007 Crochet Pattern-a-Day Calendar soon. Do you think it will be accepted?

*click photo for biggy view*

I have to edit the pattern (how many times have I said that over the last two weeks) and get a better photo taken, hopefully with a real person inside. As you can see I was inspired by the pink & black poncho that I was working on a few weeks ago. It's fun watching everything evolve!

The yarn is by Louet and was wonderful to work with. It's merino wool in "french blue". The softness, the sheen, the drape, are all because of that wonderful yarn. I highly recommend it! They carry the entire line at my LYS.

I'm stumped on what to name this though. Any ideas?

Who invented a/c?

Whoever it was, I'd like to give them a peace prize. Seriously. I went outside to mow yesterday at 8 a.m. to beat the heat, because it was only in the 80's with 98% humididity.

Anywho, what a relief to come back inside to the crisp 78 degrees of my house...and find a message on my machine from a reporter in London wanting to interview me. We played phone tag for a couple of hours then chatted for about 40 minutes. If the article runs it will be in the Sunday Telegraph in London. She promised me a copy of the paper so I can share it with you (apparently they don't have an online paper). London baby!!!




I spent the rest of the day working on one of the patterns that I plan to submit to the 2007 Crochet Pattern-a-day calendar. It's an interesting garment that I will reveal once I figure out if it really works or not. LOL I'm working it up in Louet Gems Topaz Merino Wool in the color French Blue. Wonderful yarn to work with. The color is so rich and drape so wonderful. (I'm edging it with the yarn in the pic to the right that I found whilst on yarn safari.)

Speaking of that, you should really submit a pattern to Annie Modesitt for the calendar. You retain the rights to the pattern and will get tons of exposure for your website or blog. Click the link in this paragraph to see the guidelines. Let's see your name in print!! (and if you have a pattern in the calendar, think how easy gift giving will be next year.)

"Hi, happy **insert gift giving opportunity here**, here's a calendar that my pattern is published in. I've even autographed it for you." I recommend using the Thurston Howell, III voice. One should never miss that opportunity!

New Free Pattern - Coffee Cup Cozy

I created this cozy because my local coffee house doesn’t provide the sleeves to protect against the heat. Plus, the coffee always splashes out as I’m driving so I have designed this cozy to button closed and soak up any splashes. Button it open when you are ready to drink. And since it’s cotton just throw it in the wash when needed. Check out the pattern on my free patterns page (button in sidebar).

*click photo for biggy view*

New Webring for Crochet Dudes!

I searched and searched for a webring for crochet dudes and couldn't find a single one. So, I took matters into my own hands and created one myself! It is open to all crochet dudes and their friends (read: everyone is welcome). So if you are a dude that crochets, know a dude that crochets, or love a dude that crochets (and have a blog or website) please click "join" below!

Join Previous Next Powered by RingSurf

Final Poncho Finished

Lemonade Curls

I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend! I was able to get the new version of Pretty Pleats With Mango On Top finished. Here is a quick photo of it and as some may notice I had to make some changes to the design, but this one actually comes closer to my original vision of the poncho. It's a bit more "pleated" than the first version. Look for the pattern in the next couple of weeks!

The yarn used is Caron Simply Soft Brites in "mango", "papaya" and "lemonade". The white is also Caron Simply Soft. Special thanks to my yarn angel for supplying the yarn. ;)


Mystery Flower-o-the day

And of course I must post the flower I discovered just outside my home office window this morning. It wasn't there yesterday! Well, the green part was, but the flower wasn't. It's obviously some sort of lily, right? Any ideas what it's called?