November Knits Blog Tour and Giveaway!

I am very excited to be the last stop on the November Knits blog tour! The number of talented designers on this project is extraordinary, Kate and Courtney have such an amazing sense of style and I am so honoured to be among such accomplished knitwear designers.

This project was the first real top secret knitting I ever did. Over two years ago I received a Ravelry message from Kate Gagnon Osborn inviting me to submit to a book project her and Courtney Kelley were putting together. At the time I had been designing for under 2 years, was entirely self published, and was completely floored that such talented and well known ladies even knew who I was!

The book was to be divided into three catagories; Farm Hands, Ivy League, and Southern Comfort, all of which were equally appealing. In the end I decided to go with a sketch for Southern Comfort. I envisioned a light cardigan knit in a luxurious yarn, something with a bit of a halo. I wanted the garment to look classic and a little vintage, my drawing featured a bib style front by working garter stitch on the yoke to mirror the neckline. Bordering the garter stitch bib is a simple crochet scalloped edge that really polishes the look and adds the feminine touch I was going for.

Knowing so precisely what I wanted made the yarn mission a little more difficult but thankfully Anna and Mike at Button & Needlework Boutique were incredibly helpful and enthusiastic! I know I wouldn't have found the perfect yarn without them. We finally decided on Fresco by Classic Elite Yarns, made up of 60% wool, 30% baby alpaca, and 10% angora, and let me tell you, this was the most luxurious yarn to work with, it's buttery soft and just the right amount of fuzz!

{ a few of my swatches with the original yarn }

I had done a proper photo shoot before sending off the final sample for my own project page but sadly, the external hard drive that housed most of my photos is now deceased - it was a very sad day (I also lost all of my photos of Elsie from 0-2 years). After major file recovery attempts and a technician friend performing open heart surgery on the thing (thank you Jason - you did all you could do), I managed to recover these two random photos...

Once the cardigan was shipped off I learned that the book would be available Fall 2012, having never contributed to a book before I was amazed by the lead time on the design work. It was such a great project to be a part of and I feel so priveledged to have had the opportunity to grace the pages with the likes of some of my all time favorite designers.

Here is my design, the Savannah Cardigan, from the book November Knits...

Would you like to win your very own copy of November Knits? Interweave has kindly sent me an extra copy of the book to give away! Leave a comment below to enter and be sure to leave your contact info (email or Ravelry ID) so that I can contact you if you've won. I'll leave the contest open until Wednesday the 28th.

To read about the other projects in this book I encourage you to visit these past stops from the blog tour:

Courtney + Kate | Hilton Field Cowl, Morris Cove Hat + Mittens,

Spanish Moss Legwarmers + Tallulah Shrug

The Green Mountain Spinnery | Market Jacket & Thayer Street

Veera Välimäki | Cobblestone Trenchcoat

Laura Nelkin | Bluebonnet Scarf

Melissa Wehrle | Thayer Street Cardigan

Tanis Gray | Market Jacket

Gudrun Johnston | Trefoil Cardigan

Mountain Colors | Burdock Cardigan

Melissa Labarre | Thistle Leg Warmers

Lorna’s Laces | Walden Pond Socks

Cirilia Rose | Bozeman Jacket

Carrie Bostick Hoge | Abilene Cardigan

...and to all of my American readers, Happy Thanksgiving!!!


*** Comments for the November Knits Giveaway are now closed, congratulations Jody LeBlanc!