Sale!

For Knitters...(my fiber tribe!):
There's a great knit-along/crochet-along, once a year, to celebrate knitwear designers in Canada.  I'm thrilled to be a small part of it.  I've donated a few patterns as prizes--to be given away to lucky winners!  Also...
In celebration of the CANADA KAL/CAL 2017, It's 20% off on all my Ravelry patterns from now until June 1st.  (Ending at midnight, CT, US & Canada)  Please use the coupon code:
Cankal2017
to get 20% off.
This event offered me the chance to see what I've done, designing-wise, in the past year on Ravelry.
Here are some photos and links to what's new this time around:

 Undertow came out a year ago, and I wore it a lot this winter.  Soft, stretchy, and definitely warm...mine just got a wash so I could tuck it away.  Here's hoping I won't need it til October!

Gigadistal is a super bulky, fast knit, great for combining a couple (or three) strands of yarn.  It is a fun accessory for cooler spring/summer/fall days.  I've worn my sample quite a bit.

 Nanodistal, knit from laceweight linen, is Gigadistal's cousin.  Same rough shape and construction--very different effect!  I wore this even on the hottest day.  It really dresses up loose summer clothing, and I love the drape of linen.

 Plum Ribbed Cardigan is a new release of an older favorite--formerly a Knit Picks exclusive.  This cardigan took me a while to reknit, but once done?  It was so cozy I even wore it to sleep!

Last but not least, the Thump Thump Mittens--textured, stranded knitting with a little red, released in time for Valentine's Day, 2017.

I hope you find something special to enjoy and get 20% off during this sale.  

Thanks, as always, for checking out my designs!

A quick sale!

I'm having a quick little sale over on Ravelry for all my patterns. 

 It's an "end of October" kinda thing..a celebration of color and orange in particular at this dark time of year... 

 So, you can save 20% off on anything you download until the end of the day--the deadline is October 31st at midnight, Central Time (US & Canada.) 

 Use the coupon code:

Oct2016

Also, did you know that you can buy my patterns online at Loveknitting.com?

 I've got patterns for sale online there as well, and they include alternate yarn suggestions in case you want to buy yarn and the pattern all at once.  Note: The Ravelry sale is not applicable at Loveknitting, but you can still get my Plum Ribbed Cardigan on sale there at a discount.

If you buy the same plummy cardigan on Ravelry, you can get the intro price of $5US, plus a 20% discount.  That's a deal, huh?  (I know, just sayin')

It's a rainy and cool day here in Manitoba, and it seems like a good time to pick up knitting... so I thought I'd do this little sales announcement. :)

You may wonder why I do this promotional stuff now and again?  I don't put any outside ads on my blog or website.  I don't send out tons of newsletter notes, although maybe I should.  Instead, I hope that every now and again, somebody downloads a pattern (about the price of a cup of coffee).  This is what enables me to afford to continue designing, on a part time basis.  I'm also continuing to write for a few publications, I occasionally do editing contracts, and occasionally teach workshops and classes.  (That...and juggle twins, too.)

Hope you're well and enjoying the change of seasons, wherever you experience it!  :)
All the best,
Joanne

Slow Fashion October and related ideas

I started "slow fashion October" early --based on my last post--but I was inspired by the Fringe Association blog to mention it.  I'm always exploring how to re-use, or read labels, or buy less and make do...our lives are so full of waste.  Here are a few randomly connected things that relate to this theme:

1) I had a blast teaching at the Manitoba Fibre Festival.  I'm really worn out though.  The spinning class was inspired, in part, by a really out of control stash...since having kids, I just don't spin as much.  I loved sharing 10 small packets of non-wool fibers and information with my students, and maybe sending them home with these .5 oz-1.5 oz packets of flax, ramie, silk, cotton, llama, alpaca...etc. will enable them to try something new.  It also helped me to share something I'd somehow managed to amass too much of and redistribute it to good homes.

2) I also have re-issued an old favorite.  I re-visioned the Plum Ribbed Cardigan in Berroco Remix, a yarn that uses all recycled fibers.  I originally designed it for Knit Picks in 2006.  Eventually, copyright returned to me and I always intended to reknit it for myself but never got to it.  This week, I released it on Ravelry in a new format.  It includes new photos, metric measurements, and yarn suggestions.  It's also available for only $5US as an introductory (retro) price.  Please check it out!

(I loved being able to feature our family friend as a model.  This image was taken by one of my twins...there were dogs, twins and more racing around our yard as we tried to shoot this sweater in style.  I think this sweater suits her, but...I loved it too much to give away, so I am still wearing it, too!)

3) Here's my most recent piece on the CBC.  It's about international moving costs and the recent Canadian Liberal government aides who moved from Toronto to Ottawa.  They racked up enormous moving costs...roughly $126-189 per kilometer, paid by taxpayers.  Our stipend from the university? $3.95 a kilometer.  We were happy to move so that the professor could do research and teach in Canada, but why is it that some people get gold-plated moves instead?!

This seems tangential to slow fashion, but it's not.  Making economical and careful use of one's resources is important.  When I work with other people's yarn or expect to bill someone else for my services, I try to be reasonable because I don't want to promote waste or excess of any kind.  We need supplies and income, but not enough to insulate our houses!  This too (unnecessary stash, or out of control waste of yarn or charging too much)  is a form of unnecessary waste.  It's a lot of money!  Taxpayers could use it on groceries or ....sweaters... instead.

Note: "Plum Ribbed" is FULL of ribbing, (the knitting pattern) and that is why it is named this.  Please feel free to knit it in any color you like!