handmade by stefanie

Ela models her Funky Frank hat & cowl design. I was recently introduced to an Italian designer, Ela of Modish Knits, through my participation in this year's Indie Design Gift-along. Ela's Ravelry pattern store has lots of wearable garment and accessory designs with interesting-to-knit details such as a lacy yoke, stripes or textured stitches. Besides participating in this year's GAL , her most recent endeavor is Knitting Adventures , an ebook which will feature 4 sweater designs to be released each month now through February 2015. I caught up with Ela via email and I hope you'll also take a moment to get to know her via the interview below. Enjoy! 1. How did you get into designing?  I am obsessed by fibres. Some years ago, I started to spin and dye artyarns. Corespun, tailspun, etc needs basic, simple  patterns to be awesome, so I started to write very easy patterns in order to highlight the yarns.  With time, I am passionate about writing and I wanted...

Purchased at SOAR: CVM blend roving I met Ellen and Wanda, the two women who run Fiber Curios and Sundries , at SOAR this past October. Their booth was filled with interesting natural fibers and hand-dyed yarns. After chatting with Ellen for a while, it became clear that they had an incredible passion for locally-grown, sustainable fibers. The company is relatively new, having started last year (their  website  says that neither Ellen nor Wanda have given up their day jobs yet!). I was able to interview Ellen via email* to learn more about their dedication to sustainable yarns and fibers and find out what's in store for 2014! Etsy shop purchase: 100% CVM roving + fiber samples Your shop is dedicated to locally grown and sustainable fibers. Tell us why sustainability in fiber production is so important to you and why they should also be important to handspinners! When the issue of sustainability is raised, the reason that is at the forefront in my mind is to dec...