to urbana again

I just got back to the Chicago area from Minnesota, but now I'm off again. It's time to go back to Urbana for five days. I am starting dance rehearsals for the Aquifer Project with Jennifer Monson. I also get to spend some quality time with Chris and enlist him to help me with Daybreak photography. Speaking of, Terhi (mustaavillaa on ravelry) just finished test knitting a drop dead gorgeous shawl.

Yesterday, on my trip back to Chicago, I had the whole back seat to myself. I filled it with a knitting workshop of course.


That's two little bags full of new yarn (and the new Interweave!) from The Yarnery in St. Paul along with a backpack full of the yarn and projects I brought for the long weekend (I am always more than well equipped). The knitting in my lap is the beginning of a new design that I am very excited about and will hopefully get to share more within the next few months or so.


That, my friends, is some felted tweed waiting to become yet another westknits design.

Tonight, I cast on for Connie Chang Chinchio's new Farmer's Market Cardigan from Interweave Fall '09. I decided to use my Marr Haven Mule Spun Worsted in Medium Gray for a modified version of this cardigan. It's going to be the perfect comfort knitting project. I will work on it as one of my projects while in Urbana.

The last time I was in Urbana, about a month ago, I bought a couple pieces of pottery the serve as homes for lucky balls of yarn.


I got them from Kelli who lives in the area with her husband. Her husband is the one who made them, but she makes awesome stitch markers as well. She is lumlumtree on etsy.



Today, I rode my bike for a few hours, venturing through the forest preserve on my way to Three Bags Full in Northbrook, IL. I love going there 1) because it's an amazing shop with tons of gorgeous yarn and helpful friendly people and 2) because I get my exercise for the day at more than 20 miles for a round trip through the woods.

I went there today to drop off a Botanic Hat I made for the shop along with several patterns for them to sell.


I used Berroco Ultra Alpaca (gray) combined with Noro Yuzen.

After my ride through the woods to Three Bags Full, I hit the streets with my bike for an 8 mile round trip to Montoya Fiber Studio in Evanston to drop off another hat.


This one I did in Berroco Ultra Alpaca as well (brown) paired with Wisdom Yarns Poems. I wasn't a huge fan of knitting with the Wisdom yarn, but it's an inexpensive self-striping yarn option and it resulted in a beautiful finished object, I think.

I much prefer biking to these yarn shop destinations because I knit a lot and that means sitting down for extended periods of time. Why spend more time sitting in a car when you can get good exercise? That is unless you live 30 miles aways from a shop. Also, riding through the forest preserve makes it a lot easier.

If you know of any shops like your local yarn store that would like to carry my patterns, then let me know. I'm excited about the Botanic Hat because it's simple, fun to play with color combinations, for both men and women, and it makes a good gift. I can't believe how many of them I've made (at least 10). Plus, I have 2 more planned, one for Loopy Yarns and another for myself, to serve as my winter hat with a folded brim.

I have a lot of knitting related business on my plate with getting patterns into a few shops, putting the final touches on Daybreak, designing/writing new patterns, and throwing in some personal comfort knitting as well. Not to say that my design work isn't personal and comforting, but I am more particular and timely with my design projects.

I made a strong effort to pack a light yarn supply for the next five days.


Believe me, that's a light load. I had to neglect several skeins that wanted to come too.