My Newest Patter the Baby Pi Sack

The Baby Pi Sack

Description

This is a wonderful way to swaddle your baby in style!  It is a quick and easy knit that comes with a matching hat and socks!

$2

buy now

My 2 newest patterns are

 

Today I am releasing 2 new patterns a wrap and a cowl.

Posh Punch Work Wrap

   

This is a great and easy pattern you can find it on the second page here and it is $2 for the pattern.

 

Falling Leaf Cowl

 

This Pattern is also available on the second page and is a wonderful pattern with cables, bobbles and lace.  This pattern is also $2.

Life has been kicking my but!

I know I have been MIA for a while and I am so so sorry about that.  First I got the cold from the underworld and that lasted about 2 weeks.  Then my Mom took a turn for the worse and lost her battle with Breast cancer.  I am back now and I will be posting 2 new patterns later today!

Sick Days

I have gone and done it!  Yes I came down with a cold and it feels like the Mother of all colds.  Today is morning 3, Day one I was flat on my back all day and slept most of the day, day 2, yesterday I was better and I only slept about 4 hours during the 15 hours I was awake.   Today I wake up with a nose that thinks it is a drain and a head that is throbbing, mild body aches and just a all around icky feeling, although I am starting to get hungry.  So you ask how does this have anything to do with knitting?  It does in that right now I am working on a sample of a the wrap I am working for the Italian yarn company that is very detailed lace and hard to do when you are foggy, and a sample for Knit Picks of one of my new cowls which has lace, short rows and cables.  So as you can guess they are both sitting in time out till I am clearer headed but I do have a wrap I am working on that has an easy lace pattern for the center and then the edge is added later so I was able to work on that.  So my Question to you is do you have something you could work on when you are sick or would you start something new?

Valentine's day giveaway winner

And the winner is number 4!!!  Sara who said... Valentine's Day is a day to celebrate the love you have for family and friends...nhsarab at yahoo dot com February 12, 2011 6:20 PM.  Congratulations Sara please email me at knit4udesigns at gmx dot com with you address and put valentines winner in the subject line!

The newest addition to our Family

I would like to introduce you all to the newest member of our family… James Cartisano



James is a 9 month old Shar-pei Wynerimer mix.  He joined our Family this afternoon and has already chased the cat who is now in hiding!!!  James is also scared to go up the stairs but we are thinking by tonight he be fine with going up stairs to go to bed.  James loves to play in the snow and I will try to get some video of him playing in the snow soon!  I will post some more pictures soon as he is more settled.

Valentine's day Sale!

Announcing our 14% off Sale in honor of Valentine's day!

Valentine’s day giveaway!

Hi and Happy Valentine’s Day!  So what does Valentine’s day mean to you????  That is the question for this giveaway.  What will you win you ask????  Well, the Baseball Cap and mouse pad shown above and you get one pattern of your choice from my patterns located on the second page of my blog.  All you need to do is post a comment here on this post saying what Valentine’s day means to you and you could be a winner.  Please make sure you leave me a way to contact you and on February 15th in the morning soon as I get online I will pick a winner with the help of the trusty random number generator!  Due to the cost of shipping this is USA only, sorry about that but I am not making enough on my pattern sales to ship world wide yet!

Update on my Sagrantino Shawl sample knit!

Yes I am still working on this sample knit!  You can see the first post for this here!  It is going kind of slow due to the fact that it is hard to work on this at night because of the black thin yarn.  I am loving the pattern and as you can see I now have 5 hexagons done!  I am hoping to have 7 done by the time it gets dark today.  OK here are the pictures.


This one is while I was working on hexagon #5.


And this is a close up of one of the hexagons. 

I would love to hear about your experiences with this pattern.  So please post your comments below!

A Sample knit's Tail

 http://www.shopatron.com/products/productdetail/1752+Braided+Yoke+Tank/part_number=PAT1752/703.0.1.1.1875.95800.0.0.0?pp=30&



I was lucky enough to be selected by Knit One, Crochet Too to knit up a sample of the above pattern.  Now there was a slight problem in that the package got held up by the blizzard that hit us, so the yarn wasn't delivered until Monday the 7th at about 2 pm.  Soon as it got here I opened the box and got started!  I was doing the size 35 and today, Wednesday the 9th at 6:39 pm I had bound off the last stitch, woven in all the ends and had it all packaged back in its envelope to be mailed tomorrow morning!  The Pattern is so easy and really a joy to knit!  The yarn I used which I am not really able to talk about was amazing, it was soft and very easy to knit with.  The tank will need light blocking but I was told they would do it, so off in the envelope it went to wait for its trip to UPS tomorrow! 

Super Bowl giveaway winner

And the winner is number 12 according to Random.org!

Knittingdancer on Ravelry said... I like the Bud Light Dog Sitter commerical. February 7, 2011 3:02 PM

Congratulations Knittingdancer please email me at knits4udesigns at gmx dot com and let me know which pattern you would like!

Why is it snowing again!!!

 

Yes it is snowing again here in the Naperville (Chicago) area! 

Covergirl free samples!

What's the 50th anniversary?

Celebrating 50 beautiful years

The next generation of COVERGIRL… is you! Visit the MyCOVERGIRL tab to celebrate and let friends and this iconic beauty brand know just what it is that makes you an easy, breezy, beautiful COVERGIRL. As part of the fun, they’ll be offering samples, fun quizzes, sweet rewards, monthly and quarterly prizes and amazing once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. Go ahead, invite your friends to the party and rock your COVERGIRL all year long!

Fun with Super bowl commercials Giveaway!

I thought it would be fun to have a giveaway today involving the Super Bowl Commercials.  So here is what you need to do!  Watch the Commercials and then post a comment here on this post telling me your favorite one, make sure you give me your contact info so I can let you know if you are the winner.  I will pick a winner using the Random Number generator and you will win a free pattern of your choice from any of the patterns I have listed here on my site! 

Here are some to take a look at:

Chevy dealership

Miss Evelyn

Status

Discovery

Socket

Tommy

Misunderstanding

clean energy

Runs deep

Remote

Also you can name any of the other commercials during the game!  I will be picking the winner on Monday the 7th at 8 pm Chicago time.  Good luck everyone!

Announcing the Celtic Shamrock Throw Blanket

 

The Celtic Shamrock Throw Blanket is now available!

This pattern is $5 and available by clicking this link.  This is a wonderful throw blanket with a Celtic knot shamrock in the center. Gauge is not important and you could use any size yarn you like but it will affect the size. Also you could do the shamrock as color work by doing the purl stitches as knit stitches with a different color.  The skill Level I feel this is an advanced beginner’s pattern.

10:30 am February 2, 2011 Blizzard post

 

Well the sun is out and it stopped snowing about an hour ago!   We are still working on digging out, and of course everything is closed.  I wont be posting any more updates unless it starts snowing again. 

I want to thank you all for indulging me and reading these posts it has been fun for me to do this and if we have another blizzard I will do it again.  I will now get back to my knitting and posting about my knitting!  Oh a side note I got no knitting done during this storm because I was so busy watching the news and looking outside LOL.

February 2, 2011 Morning Blizzard update

Good Morning from Ice cold Naperville which is located 30 minutes west of Chicago….I woke up this morning to temperatures in of 16 with a wind chill of –3 and winds of 26-32 miles an hour.  We have about 17-24 inches of snow on the ground with drifts of up to 5 feet.  I got some video at 7 am an hour ago now of the neighbor trying to snow blow his yard and 2 pictures one of the side door in the garage when we opened it!

The view out our back door!


This is our side door in the garage, the black/green thing you see is a garbage can and it is upright. 

This is video of what I found when I woke up at 7 am and the neighbor using his snow blower!

Again today I will try to post every lets say 2 hours so next post will be at 10:30 am my time.  It is still snowing very heavy here and on the news last night they said we may/possible have another blizzard on Monday!

Quick 10pm Feb, 1st Blizzard Update

 

Ok, what is up with the thunder and lightening that started about 30 minutes ago????  I have never seen it with snow in my life and yet here it is.  Now of course I did try to get it on video or a photo but no luck!  Sorry but I do have a few pictures that I was able to get so you can see how much snow we have gotten since the last post. 

 

Right now it is 21 degrees out but it feels like 1 degree and the wind is 37 to 48 miles per hour and I can tell you it sounds like they are faster and harder than that.  I have no idea how much snow we have gotten but I would guess that it is at least 4 inches maybe 6 already!  Ok I am going back to my knitting and unless something major happens like a pig flying by my window (which after the thunder and lightening during the snow would not surprise me) I will post a video and some pictures in the morning!

Oh one more thing, if you are in this storm too, and most of the USA is in it or at least the eastern 1/2 is.  Post how you are doing, or make a blog post and post a link here in the comments so we can all share how we are doing!

5:30 blizzard update!

Well it looks like this will be the last post I do tonight as it is getting very dark out.  I have a video and some more pictures and of course I will do a post first thing in the morning Wednesday!  The wind is blowing pretty hard and it is very cold out, the weather channel site says it is 22 degrees but feels like 4 and winds are up to 31 miles an hour!

4:30 blizzard watch post!

Well it is still going and according to the weather channel people we are now in the blizzard.  Schools have been closed for tomorrow and courts, and many people have been told to take Wednesday off.
 

And here are a few pictures I will try to get more but it will be getting dark soon.  Once it is dark I will post on last blog and then once I get up in the morning Wednesday I will post a picture of what the roads and yards look like.

3:30 pm Blizzard Post

Well folks here is some video and pictures taken at 3:14 pm it is still snowing hard and fast here!

and here is a few pictures

The Blizzard of 2011!

It has begun!  It is now 2:12 pm here in Naperville, IL we are located about 30 minutes west of Chicago.  I thought it would be fun to take some pictures or video every few hours so you could see how it is looking here!  So lets start:

These are from inside the house looking out the window to the front yard and street.  I will be trying to take and post pictures every hour or so and the next ones will be about say 3:30 pm my time which should be when we start to really get hit by the blizzard.  I will also see if I can do a video too!

A sample knit is born!

Yesterday I received a package in the mail from Giovanna Imperia Designs Yarn to make the next sample!  I got the Puffy Nero:




This yarn is 100% nylon and comes in 800 yard cones it is about 52 wraps per inch on my WIP tool which would be lace weight or cob weight yarn and it costs only $6.50 a cone! 

Here are my swatches done on size US 4 or 3.5 mm needles:



The top one is 2 strands held together and the bottom is one strand.  I am sorry about the picture but I just couldn’t get it to come out clearer.  

I am making the Sagrantino Shawl by Lorendana Gianferri which is available on Ravelry and if you click the name it will take you there.  It is a free pattern on Ravelry and so so lovely. 
Right now I have 2 hexagons done and it is looking like this…



As for the yarn I am so loving this yarn it is thin as you can see but doubled it is a light fingering yarn and the hairs on it make it feel and look amazing!  Also a funny thing the yarn feels elastic when you are working with it but once it is knit up there is no elasticity in the finished piece. 

The pattern is easy to follow and I am loving it the only problem I had was that I tend to jump right in and I don’t read everything so when I saw PK2tog my mind said Purl 2 together which is wrong it is really a Slip 1, Knit 2 together, Pass slip stitch over which I have always seen abbreviated as SL1, K2tog, Psso so of course I did have to frog the first 2 rounds and restart.  But fear not this is done as separate pieces that are picked up off each other so it feels like it is going fast because each hexagon is only 18 rounds and on each round you are decreasing so it moves at a good pace!. 

I will be posting updates on how my knitting is going every 2 to 3 days so you can follow along and if you would like we can make this a KAL and you can post links in the comments to yours!  I would love to see how you are doing on this pattern too!

Couio yarn winner

And the winner is:

Drum Roll Please!

Kara said...
So neat! I'd love to knit some baby booties either entirely from the couio yarn or just for the soles - I think it would be perfect for non-slip toddler slippers!
As far as the other yarns on Giovanna's website, I love the stainless steel silk yarn! What a cool idea with amazing possibilities! Thanks for introducing me to her yarns.
Mama.hobbit.arts at gmail.com or MrsCollinHobbs on ravelry
January 31, 2011 10:25 AM

Congratulations Kara I will be sending out your package soon as you contact me at Knits4UDesigns at Gmx dot com!  Please put Couio yarn winner in the subject line!

New yarn review and Giveaway!

Today I would like to talk about a Unique Imported yarn I received from Giovanna Imperia Designs.  I have been sample knitting for the company and I can’t even describe the amazing yarns they carry, that are imported from Italy and Asia.
Today I want to tell you about Couio yarn.


It is a manmade fiber, 60% Polyurethane, 40% Nylon, which comes in 70 yard skeins for the very reasonable price of $8 a skein.  this yarn is a little stiff to work with BUT once you wash and block your piece, it will feel just like suede or leather.
The sample I did for them in this yarn is this men’s tie:


But I think a purse or belt out of this yarn would be amazing!  Also if you are a weaver think of the incredible fabric this yarn would make!
Please Visit Giovanna’s site and see for your self! http://giovannaimperia.com/
Now for what you are waiting for!  The Giveaway!  Giovanna Imperia was very kind and sent an extra skein for me to giveaway to you!  So you ask “How do I win?”
Well go to her site and then come back here and leave a comment telling me the yarn you are most interested in on her site.  Leave me your contact info and I will pick a winner by random number generator on Monday, January 31st at 8 pm, central time.  I will post the winners name at that time.  Also due to postage costs this is only open to people in the USA. 
Good luck!!!