Test Knitters

Test knitters are wonderful people full of goodness. In the past I've asked for help with test knitting a few times, but not much. Generally I knit my patterns a gazillion times myself to make sure that everything flows as it should. Maybe not the best method because you usually understand your own instructions. (If you don't then there might be a serious issue here... but it does happen. Directions written at 3AM don't always convey the correct meaning... Note to self, try and remember that.)

Last night I decided to put out a call on Ravelry for anyone interested in signing up as a test knitter for Fiddle Knits Designs. The response was great! I feel so lucky to have each and everyone one of those knitters on board that sent me e-mails.

Not everyone that has volunteered will be knitting every pattern. I don't expect that. Hopefully there will be a large enough base of knitters that as patterns go out folks can choose which designs strike their fancy and go with that. The first pattern that will be going out to the Fiddle Knitters is to be a hat knit from DK weight yarn. It's a Shhhh.... secret project until I announce it over in the Ravelry group. A lot of the patterns coming in the near future will be like this. Oh the element of mystery!

Interested in the possibility of volunteering as a test knitter/tech editor for Fiddle Knits Designs? Contact me at: fiddlelee@gmail.com

Design Beginnings

It's chilly out! The perfect knitting weather has arrived on eastern Long Island. I welcome these cool, breezy, sunny days with lots of yarn and pointy sticks. We didn't have very much of a summer, maybe 2 weeks if I feel like being generous, but still the Fall weather is nice. There's something very comforting about waking up in the morning and pulling on some thick socks and a sweatshirt, curling up with a cup of tea, and getting down to some early morning stitching. It's just not the same doing that in the Summer. I always used to say my favorite season was Summer, however, I think I might seriously have to switch my allegiance.

I'm currently working on some super secret knitting projects. Can't post too much about any of the several designs I have going at the moment. I'd say..... it'll be 2 or 3 months before I can share. Drats! ;)

Yarn Forward Issue 18 is out, which means Issue 19 will be around soon.... which means that you'll be seeing another pattern from me in print there. Issue 19 will also be the last that Shannon Okey is working as editor for. Coming Issue 20 Kerrie will be stepping up to take over that roll. Another of my designs will be coming out in a later issue of which Kerrie is in charge. I look forward to working with her more in the future. And Shannon stepping down..... well, Shannon really got me started with designing more. I'm sure she doesn't know this at all, though.
About a year ago I started to think about the possibility of perhaps trying to put together some more patterns to list on Ravelry. I had some free downloads up and they seemed to be going over pretty well. I set about it very casually, moving slow with the knitting and writing process, and really just looking at it as something to do whenever I might have a little free time. I got a few paying patterns out this way over the course of several months. Eventually I started to wonder if maybe I could take it up a notch, but I was a little unsure of myself. Then one day last Fall I sign into Ravelry and there's a message from Shannon asking if I might ever be interested in submitting some designs to Yarn Forward Magazine. Now if ever there was a sign, there it was. As it happened I had two design ideas sitting in my head, socks [June Apple] and gloves [Sourwood Mt.]. I decided to go for designing both of them and submitting the socks to Yarn Forward and the Gloves to Knitty. I heard from Shannon within a day saying she'd love to have the June Apple Pattern. I was thrilled! Jumping for joy! Here it was, I really could do it. (Waiting on word about Sourwood Mt. was a bit rougher. The Knitty decisions come back months after the submissions deadline.) It felt so good, I was hooked. I decided right then and there that I'd give this whole designing thing a go and see what I could do with it. A year later, I absolutely love it!

In the Mail

Sample knit for photos out in the mail today! Happy day!
No, I'm not going to say what it is or where it's headed, but it's a cute little thing that I'm very fond of and I'm very much looking forward to it coming out. I want to make myself one. The sample is knit from an olive green, but I'd probably work one up for myself in a dark charcoal gray or perhaps a rich blue or brown. Most likely gray though. So that's done and making me feel moderately productive for the day, although most of the work was already done. Printing patterns, contracts, forms, packaging, and trudging to the post office is by far the most tedious and boring phase of the design process. It should be exciting, and it really is, but not until after the ho hum part is over with. Now it's exciting. This morning not so much.

I'm going to allow myself a half hour to work on my sister's birthday knit. I feel like I should be working..... however, I do need to get this gift knitting thing in or she's going to be opening a box of yarn half knit into a semi recognizable shape. ;o)

Ravelry Group

~ Fiddle Knits Designs now has it's very own Ravelry group! ~

Go on over and check it out HERE. Connect with other knitters working their way through FKD patterns. Share, chat, enjoy. ;)

I'm also now on Twitter (User ID FiddleKnits), so hop on over there and follow along with my Tweets. I have to say, they are random and not always knitting related, but a fun time regardless. Why can things like that become so addicting?

Those designs I mentioned a few posts back are still coming. Some unexpected possibilities came up, so the designs took a slight detour. Rest assured, though, new patterns are coming.