Finished the Citron I was knitting from my friend Alison (she was the one that modeled the yarn on her pregnant belly). I gave her the shawlette when I went to visit her in the hospital after her first son, Ethan James Mullenberg was born. She loved the color! Success! Check out my project page here.




Also, this past week I cast on two cutie-pa-tootie Watermelon Hats. Lovely, lovely free pattern by Susan B. Anderson for Spud & Chloe. They were a super fun and easy knit! The yarn was amazing to work with as well. Project pages for these are here and here.




How adorable are the lil' "antennas" at the top?!




Have a fantabulous weekend and can you please send the sun a memo letting it know that we would like to BBQ today!

-Ve

The three winners of the 3-in-1 Felted Baby Booties giveaway are:

Krystal who wrote, "The booties are so adorable! They seem like the perfect thing to knit up and then have ready when a baby gift giving occasion sneaks up on me... And I love the French Press slippers!"

Amy who posted, "They are ADORABLE! A classic! I hope I win!"

And, last but not least, Jodi who commented, "Super cute! Those are going to be great to give as baby shower gifts."

Congratulations to the three winners! You will be receiving a copy of the brand spankin' new pattern and a skein of Paton's Classic Wool in the color of your choice. Please send your mailing address and the color that you would like to receive to yarnonthehouse@gmail.com.

For those of you who did not win the 3-in-1 Felted Baby Booties giveaway, the pattern has been officially released today. Yay! Here is the link to the Ravelry page. Just like everyone has said, these are going to be a hit at the baby shower!

Now, onto this week's giveaway... Guess who's back!




Kate Oates has returned to host another great giveaway this week and answer some of the burning questions that you had for her last time. There were a lot of people that asked Kate questions about her design process, so Kate put together a wonderful blog post on her site that I think everyone needs to check out!! It goes in depth on the process and steps that Kate takes when putting together a pattern. Whew! It looks like it's a lot work to say the least. Kate also picked a handful of questions to answer from last time she was here and this is what she has to say:

Q: "Since you study political science, do you see yourself using your knitting talents for any community good or to change our world for the better?" asked by Napur

A: This question grabbed me because it sort of came up this past weekend while I was attending a political science conference! I don't see myself as anything particularly fancy, but I do believe in the power of human spirit, and the idea of "every little bit" helping. I was at lunch with one of my professors, and we were talking about my "knitting stuff" in general (and my personal struggle in determining where exactly my career path lies). I was really excited to share with her that during the February/March "Help for Haiti" effort, I had managed to raise several hundred dollars by donating a chunk of my pattern sales--that's more than I've ever been able to give during my grad school years! (Mostly because...let's face it, grad students are generally very broke and I am no exception). I've also been excited to donate some knit items to charity auctions, or when other knitter's share with me that they have had success with a donation based on one of my patterns. You know what else I think is special about knitting? I know when I'm working on a project, especially one that my children get to keep, I truly enjoy putting love into every stitch. Even though my boys are too young to consider or acknowledge that, loving a child is one of the most important contributions one can make in any community. So--when I'm writing a new pattern (especially one for children), I also like to think I'm helping someone (whether it be moms/grandmas/good friends or even strangers) love on a little one!

Q: "Beautiful pattern, Kate! Question for you, unrelated to knitting: what's the name of the dog in the photos on the Mary Swanson Vest Ravelry page? My first dog was a weimaraner named Sally!" asked by Liz

A: Ha! This dog is super cute and his name is Oliver. He is also an unbelievably good poser. He is my photographer's dog and on a whim, we brought him to the shoot with us. I have two dogs myself, a little Havanese named Lou-Belle and a big 90lb lab mix named Cooper. Neither are willing to stand/sit still for pictures :)

Q: "You've been challenged to a duel. Choose your weapon: DPNs or Magic Loop?" asked by Marlitharn

A: I had to answer this question because it totally cracked me up! Definitely DPNs. I have only tried Magic Loop once or twice. Also, I really enjoy the looks people give me in public when I am using DPNs. Its like I am a knitting goddess and they can't imagine how things are coming together. I would miss that too much were I to use Magic Loop.

Q: "Glad to hear that someone tries to complete one project at a time. Just curious what makes you sometimes start two or three?" asked by Jaime P

A: Most of the time, I start more than 1 if there are either multiple design projects with similar deadlines, or, if I need an easy project to carry with me. I don't generally do a lot of knitting for a new design unless I have decent concentration. But if I am sitting in the doctor's office, or watching my kids at the playground, I'll try to have something I can grab to work on that doesn't require me to be looking at it!

Q: "Kate -- do you drink your margaritas frozen or on the rocks?!?" asked by Lori

A: Frozen with salt! And I like to try many different flavors too.

Kate has also started a new thread in her Tottoppers Group on Ravelry for you to be able to ask her whatever your little heart desires. Hop on over there after you're done reading and entering this giveaway!

Kate has recently released her really cute Topped for a Year booklet. This booklet includes 12 super adorable hat patterns that you can knit up for all the little ones in your life - one for each month!




Kate has contributed TWO Topped for a Year professionally printed booklets for this giveaway. Each winner will also receive a skein of Berroco Comfort, which is enough yarn to make one (possibly even two) little Trail Caps (a fun Spring pattern featured in the booklet).




I would like you to do the following if you would like to be entered into this week's giveaway:

1) Have an address in the US to ship the yarn to. If you have a friend or relative that has a US mailing address who is willing to be your shipping sponsor, that will work as well. I will send it to them and they can then forward it on to you.

2) Post a comment on this blog post by the end of Sunday, 5/2/2010. Leave a nice comment for Kate to read. Tell her what you think of the new booklet.

3) Please post only one comment to give everyone a fair chance.

Again, I'll randomly pick the winners on Sunday and post the results on Monday along with the new giveaway, so be sure to check back. Good luck everyone.

Sincerely,

Ve

Check out the new stash I ordered from One Planet. The pretty light pink yarn on the left is Fleece Artist - Woolie Silk 3Ply in Rose and the amazing burnt yellow-orange yarn is HandMaiden - Casbah in Amber. I don't know which I love more!

Don't forget that One Planet has offered all us YOTH folks a 10% discount through the end of May when you use the coupon code "House10" during checkout.

Winner of the 2 skeins of Lady Godiva and a Cedar Leaf Shawlette pattern is: Stephanie! Yay! Stephanie wrote, "I have never knit with HandMaiden yarns, but I saw a skein of Sea Silk in a rich sapphire like color at an out of town LYS and it was absolutely beautiful..." Congratulations! Please shoot me an email at yarnonthehouse@gmail.com with your info to claim your prize.

The runners up who will each receive a signed copy of the shawlette pattern and the famous cookie recipe are: Armida, mprezzia, Beth, Melissa, and Kristina @ Freedom Lovers' Academy. Please shoot me an email at yarnonthehouse@gmail.com with your info to claim your prize.

I have a treat for you today! Melynda from French Press Knits is back with us, and she has a brand spankin' new pattern to announce! So new that it hasn't even been released yet. Along with the announcement of the fabulous pattern, I sent Melynda a quick fun email questionnaire to answer for us - completely irrelevant to knitting, but really amusing to read. (BTW, I did not come up these questions myself. They're from an email I received a long time ago that was being circulated amongst my friends.)




1. What time is now: 9:29 PM

2. Full Name? Melynda Anne Bernardi

3. What do you fear most: uhh... fear itself?

4. What do you drive? Ford Escape

5. Last movie you saw? Bright Star

6. Where were you born? Southfield, MI

7. Ever been to Alaska? nope

8. Ever been toilet papering? yes

9. Croutons or Bacon bits? Croutons, please

10. Favorite day of the week? Saturday

11. Favorite restaurant? Always changing- but I always love a good Filet Mignon on occasion

12. Favorite Flower? Peonies and Hydrangeas - waiting patiently for both to bloom now

13. Favorite sport to watch? I seem to watch a lot of running and cycling races these days

14. Favorite Drink? Big Train Chai or Dark Chocolate Latte from Caribou

15. Favorite Ice cream? Embarrassed to say it, but I'm a sucker for Superman!

16. Disney or Warner Brothers? I'm impartial

17. Favorite fast food restaurant? McDonalds...how American of me

18. What color is your bedroom carpet? a neutral green, but hope to change it soon

19. How many times you failed your driver's test? 0

20. What do you do most often when you are bored? bored? It's been a while. Knitting or crossword puzzles

21. Bedtime? 10-11

22. Favorite TV show? Project Runway or Biggest Loser

23. Ford, Chevy or Honda? I drive a Ford, but didn't pick it (company car)

24. Favorite Singer(s)? Regina Spektor, the Weepies

25. What are your favorite colors? I seem to like painting things shades of blue

26. How many tattoos do you have? 0

27. Do you have any pets? nope

28. Which came first the chicken or the egg? Chicken

29. What would you like to accomplish before you die? Raise a family

30. What time is it now? 9:34... not bad :)



Thanks Melynda for answering the goofy questions! You were a good sport! If this is your first time seeing Melynda on my blog, I highly recommend checking out her first interview with me in giveaway #5 and taking a look at her beautiful patterns that she currently offers. Melynda is a very talented knitwear designer and everyone loves her ever so popular French Press Felted Slippers. More than 10,000 people on Ravelry heart that pattern!

Now for the giveaway, Melynda's brand spankin' new pattern! Check out the cutest baby booties you have ever seen... the 3-in-1 Felted Booties!




In honor of the new pattern, Melynda is hosting the giveaway for three lucky winners to receive a copy of her newest bootie pattern and one skein of Patons Classic Wool in a color of their choice, which is enough yarn for about 4 pairs of booties. Here's a pic of all the colors to choose from:





I would like you to do the following if you would like to be entered into this week's giveaway:

1) Have an address in the US to ship the yarn to. If you have a friend or relative that has a US mailing address who is willing to be your shipping sponsor, that will work as well. I will send it to them and they can then forward it on to you.

2) Post a comment on this blog post by the end of Sunday, 4/25/2010. Leave a nice comment for Melynda to read. Tell her what you think of the bootie pattern.

3) Please post only one comment to give everyone a fair chance.

Again, I'll randomly pick the winners on Sunday and post the results on Monday along with the new giveaway, so be sure to check back. Good luck everyone.

Sincerely,

Ve

Happy Saturday, everyone! Hope your weekend is treating you well. I feel much better today and my cold is almost gone - thank goodness. My good friend, Pavla, is on her way over to my place for an afternoon of knitting, chatting, and watching movies. What else could a girl ask for?!

And for you, my blog followers, I have fun new pictures of winners with their yarn winnings! Enjoy...

Here's Anne in her new cowl knitted up out of the MadTosh DK in Fig that she won during giveaway #7. She wrote, "Thanks so much for the yarn. It feels lovely against my skin even in 80 degree Florida. It will be even better in winter in Michigan." Your welcome, Anne. Nice work on getting the cowl knitted up so quickly. It's really beautiful!




Sandie from zaftigdelights wrote up a whole post on her blog about the yarn that she won from giveaway #9, and she also sent me this pic of her knitting with it. I love it!




Juliaa posted a great pic of her yarn in the brand new YOTH Group, which you should totally check out.

Can't wait 'til Monday!! I have a super duper giveaway planned! You won't want to miss it...

Sincerely,

Ve

Last giveaway's winners are: mountainweaver, you have won the pattern and the lovely yarn to make the vest, and Crochetbunnii, you have won a copy of the pattern. Congratulations! Please shoot me an email at yarnonthehouse@gmail.com with your info to claim your prize.

Boy-oh-boy, do I have a special treat for you today! I am happy to announce our guest designer, blogger, podcaster of the week: Alana Dakos from Never Not Knitting.




For those of you who don't know Alana, she is the writer and photographer of the popular Never Not Knitting blog as well as the voice behind the Never Not Knitting podcast. Over this past year she has gotten into the world of knitwear design and has self published many popular patterns that you can find here and in yarn shops across the world .

I got the exciting opportunity to speak with Alana recently, and we decided that it would be fun to do a personal interview as an audio recording for my blog, since Alana is a podcaster. Alana's candid interview delves into her personal life a little more, which is a nice addition to the knitting talk we are used to and know from her regular podcasts. You may learn a thing or two about her that you may not have known before...enjoy!

If you are having trouble seeing the player to listen to the interview (should be right above this sentence), please visit the following link: http://yarnonthehouse.com/podcast/yoth_nnk_interview.mp3


Alana offers a wonderful selection of beautiful knitting patterns on her site and for this week's giveaway she is hosting SIX winners the chance to win a signed copy of her best selling pattern, the Cedar Leaf Shawlette.




Along with this fantastic pattern, the SIX winners will also receive a copy of Alana's Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe! If you don't know what I'm talking about, then you probably haven't listened to the recording yet!




And, that's not all! ONE lucky, lucky, lucky winner will also receive 2 skeins of HandMaiden Lady Godiva yarn in the Cedar colorway! This yarn giveaway is sponsored by the absolutely wonderful, fantastic, super online shop ONE PLANET YARN & FIBER.

If you have not had a chance to visit the One Planet Yarn and Fiber shop, you need to take a look. They carry a beautiful selection of quality yarns and fibers. One Planet is also offerring all the YarnOnTheHouse followers 10% off through the end of May when you use the coupon code: House10.




I would like you to do the following if you would like to be entered into this week's giveaway:


1) Have an address in the US to ship the yarn to. If you have a friend or relative that has a US mailing address who is willing to be your shipping sponsor, that will work as well. I will send it to them and they can then forward it on to you.

2) Post a comment on this blog post by the end of Sunday, 4/18/2010, telling us if you have used any HandMaiden yarns before and if so, what you think of them. If you haven't had the opportunity to try HandMaiden yarns, you can just leave a general comment for the blog, Alana, or One Planet. Have fun!

3) Please post only one comment to give everyone a fair chance.

Again, I'll randomly pick the winners on Sunday and post the results on Monday along with the new giveaway, so be sure to check back. Good luck everyone.

Sincerely,

Ve

I've designated today as knitting day, because I'm sick and it sucks! My mama rescued me and took Jasmine out for a day of shopping (Target), lunching in a fine restaurant (local Thai food), and playing in the park so I may rest. I have a bunch of work to do and I'm stuck in bed with only half my brain functioning (the other half is trapped in the congestion). However, I did manage to roll myself out of bed and get some nice pictures of my finished Oat Couture Victorian T-Shirt.

This little sweater is for my sister's first baby who lives in Prague, CZ. My parents are headed over there next month to go visit her sweet lil' new addition to the family. I hope she likes it!

Here's the sweater:



Here's the adorable, vintage-looking buttons I bought for the sweater when I was in Victoria:



And, this is how it's all packaged up in a hand-sewn bag with a handmade tag and a lavendar satchet (which is also handmade but not by me).



Hope you are all having a lovely weekend and are not sick like me!

-Ve

Jess who won the Cascade Eco Alpaca yarn from the 3rd giveaway sent me these adorable pics to post on the blog! Yummmy!




And, darling Stephanie who won the MadTosh Sock in Tart sent over this cute pic!




I hope everyone's week is treating them well! I decided to start a Ravelry group for YarnOnTheHouse. If you're on Ravelry, you should totally join! I also have a super cool blog/giveaway scheduled for this upcoming Monday! You cannot miss it! So, be sure to check back on Monday.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Ve

Last giveaway's winners are: ZaftigDelights ~ KnitzyBlonde and JuliaA . Congratulations, ladies! Please shoot me an email at yarnonthehouse@gmail.com with your info to claim your prize.

Whew! I can't believe another week has come and gone. We are now on the 10th giveaway! I am extremely grateful for all the support I have received and I have some really great stuff coming up for you over the next couple of months. You are going to love the yarns and designers I have lined up!

With that being said, this week I am proud to announce that I have the wonderful and talented Kate Oates from Tottoppers here with us. Have you seen Kate's children's hats?! OMG, they are so freakin' adorable! She has also started a line of knitwear called When I Grow Up that features beautiful and classic styles for us grown-ups. Kate was kind enough to answer one of the fun little interviews I do and some of the questions I used in this interview were from the many suggestions I received a couple of weeks ago. Enjoy!




1. Kate, please tell the followers a little bit about yourself and what you do.

I'm a mom of many pursuits! In knitwear design I focus on sweet and whimsical knits for children & babies, and BOYS especially. I've recently started a new line for adults called "When I Grow Up" and its been really fun thinking about things I want to wear that still reflect my general style, which I would classify as fairly preppy! In my "other life" I'm finishing up a PhD in political science, and I have two children, boys ages 1 & 2. I stay pretty busy with all that!

2. How did you learn to knit?

My aunt taught me to knit when I was in middle school. She actually taught my younger sister first, and I was jealous and eventually got her to teach me as well. She is now a big part of my publishing process-as she does layout work for all my patterns! I absolutely don't know where I would be without her.

3. As a designer, what inspires you?

My children, the seasons, outdoors...really I can't point to one thing in particular because each design comes from a different place. A lot of the time something will pop into my head as I'm trying to fall asleep. On one hand this is really nice, on the other...well, sometimes I'm lacking in sleep for this reason!

4. Can you give us a hint at any future designs that you have in the works?

Well, I am really excited about my next design for When I Grow Up (adult line). Its a garment that I've never designed before. The sample has been knit & photographed, now I'm just working on writing up the pattern & grading. I also have a few ideas for next fall that I would consider spin-offs of some of my more popular patterns from this year. Keep an eye out for my designs in a few books and magazines coming out in the next year or so!

5. What knitting techniques are you scared of or hate doing?

There isn't anything that I absolutely won't do, but I will admit that I don't have a terrible fondness for lace. If I'm doing lacework, it has to be something I can memorize fairly quickly. I can't stand to have to be referencing a pattern for every line of work. Also, I have never knit a scarf. I learned to knit hats, so I never did the 'learning to knit' type scarves and don't wear them normally so, still haven't knit one! I used to be scared of charts but have found a new love for them :)

6. Where is your favorite place to knit?

Usually I knit in my rocker/glider in my living room. It was a gift to me before I had my first baby. Honestly, I think this thing is the most comfy chair ever! I don't think people should have to have babies to own a rocker/glider. Everyone needs one (and now both my mother in law and my own mom have bought their own gliders for their houses because they love mine so much!) However, now that the weather is getting nicer, I'm spending a lot of time knitting in the backyard. Its nice because the kids can play and I can knit at the same time (this doesn't happen so much when we are inside)

7. How many projects are on your needles?

Just one. I'm not really a multi-projecter. I'm more of a finisher. I have occasionally had 2-3 projects going at once but it really bothers me. Once I start something I want it to be finished as fast as possible so I hone in on it. I just recently knit the Puff-Sleeved Feminine Cardigan from Fitted Knits (Stefanie Japel) over a weekend for this reason.

8. What yarn do you have in your stash that you're saving for a special project?

Actually, nothing! Seriously. I do have a good size stash, but once I buy yarn for a big project, I am fairly obsessive about getting it on the needles (see above question!) My stash is a bunch of single skeins. Since I do a lot of hats, this is great. It also gives me a lot of options when I'm swatching for new projects. As for favorite brands, like everyone else...I love Malabrigo. Spud & Chloe is a new brand as well, so perfect for children's garments.

9. If you could live and knit anywhere in the world, where would you knit and live?

I'm really happy living in the US. It's not something I take for granted. Now, there are loads of places I would love to visit & knit, but I want my children to grow up here, close to their grandparents/family!

10. And last but not least, if you were to be drinking a cocktail while reading my blog, what would it be?

A Margarita! Without a doubt. (runs off to go fix one...)

Thank you, Kate for doing the interview! In honor of Kate being here with us on the blog, she is giving away TWO of her Mary Swanson Cardi-Vest patterns and one of the lucky winners will also receive 2 skeins of Cascade Yarns Eco + in this fun raspberry dark pink (colorway 8448) to make the vest!



The Cascade Eco+ has been donated by my favorite LYS, Little Knits! I am so lucky to have such a wonderful store in my area to go to. Fulay with Little Knits has the best prices and a super selection of yummy yarns. If you have not visited her site yet, take a look because I know that you will not be disappointed. Thank you Fulay and Little Knits for sponsoring this giveaway!

A funny little story with all of this is that Sarah who was announced last week as the winner of the Cedar Tosh Lace does not only live in the greater Seattle area like me, but she also works at Little Knits! So, when I went to Little Knits this past weekend to do a little shopping and pick up the giveaway yarn, I got to actually meet Sarah in person! What a small world!

I would like you to do the following if you would like to be entered into this week's giveaway:


1) Have an address in the US to ship the yarn to. If you have a friend or relative that has a US mailing address who is willing to be your shipping sponsor, that will work as well. I will send it to them and they can then forward it on to you.

2) Post a comment on this blog post by the end of Sunday, 4/11/2010, with either a question or comment for Kate Oates. Kate will be back with us at the end of this month to feature another great giveaway and answer some more of our questions.

3) Please post only one comment to give everyone a fair chance.

Again, I'll randomly pick the winners on Sunday and post the results on Monday along with the new giveaway, so be sure to check back. Good luck everyone.

Sincerely,

Ve