handmade by stefanie

First, I got the news that The Sanguine Gryphon (as we know them) will be no more .  I was really glad I was sitting down for that one, because I didn't see it coming!  It sounds like each person will be engaging in their own yarny pursuits, so it's not like they're lost and gone forever, but it's still pretty crazy news. I really enjoyed working with them when I designed the Heliotrope Stockings , so I'm hoping I'll have the opportunity to work with these fine people in some capacity.  At any rate, I wish them both the best! Apparently, there was an oil spill in New Zealand.  Either I'm just living under a rock, or has the US media been too busy avoiding coverage on Occupy Wall Street and other various important news items?  Why does my phone's news ticker always tell me what Lindsay Lohan is doing or who got kicked off of Dancing with the Stars?  Google, you've got some s'plaining to do! But as I was saying....there was an oil spill and no...

Last night I rolled back into Chicago just in time for rush hour - what a treat!  I had a great time at TNNA - but after being bombarded with so much yarny goodness, I need a few days to decompress and get back to my normal routine.  I'm also woefully behind in showcasing fellow Ravelers' FOs, so without further ado, here is the latest crop: You may remember Purselover from the last episode of SITW - and it's even possible that you recall she was pondering knitting a mondo version of the Kitchy Pleated Bag using Malabrigo Rasta .  Well, she walks to the walk (I had to resist the urge to say something dorky, but you can use your own imagination if you'd prefer a more knitting-appropriate yet eye-roll-inducing expression).  She used 4 skeins of Oxido and size 19 needles to create her 'extra-bulbous' version of this design!  Another creative use of my whale chart has popped up on Ravelry, this time in the form of an adorable hat.  I think this is my fa...

Over the holiday weekend, a fellow Raveler knitting my Heliotrope Stockings kindly pointed out an error in the stitch count for the largest size.  As a designer who is still learning the ropes, I can't stress enough how much I appreciate everyone's feedback - and I REALLY appreciate it when they're super-cool and do so in a polite, respectful manner (so thanks again to ContinentalKim for being both helpful AND rad!) .  It's always disappointing to find out a mistake or two escaped your notice, but unfortunately, these things happen - and the mathematical side of things has never been my favorite aspect when designing and writing patterns...though I do recognize it's arguably one of the most important areas, and it would be nice if someday we could all be friends.  So with that long-winded introduction in mind, I'd like to formally announce that I goofed - and that anyone who is knitting the largest size of the Heliotrope Stockings needs to be aware that the...

Today's post will be filled with FO's I've been meaning to share with my dear readers for quite some time.  Hope you're sitting down for this! I realized there are some projects I made for holiday gifts that were never shared here as FOs, only WIPs.  The first among these would be the crazy rainbow socks I knitted for my husband, Tyler, who made one casual off-hand remark about wanting some crazy-colored socks and then promptly forgot about it.  Of course, I didn't, and immediately ran out to purchase the brightest skein of sock yarn I could find.  Yarn:  Zauberball Crazy Pattern:  Tsunami by Judy Sumner from Knitted Socks East & West I also knit my grandmother a pair of socks every year for Christmas.  She loves them because not only are they unique and knit with love (awww!), but they also don't compress on her ankles the way store-bought socks do, so they are infinitely more comfortable for her to wear.  You may recall seeing thes...

lately, i just can't seem to find the time to knit, much less finish anything.  i have an ever-growing pile of things that are done, except for the ends that need to be woven in.  between all of the trips to the vet in the last week or two, coupled with getting a nasty virus that knocked me out for nearly a week, my productive knitting time has been seriously reduced.  and then there's all the time i spend on the internet - for example, i've used the first hour and half i've been awake this morning to list some more buttons in my etsy shop , do some facebooking, and now i'm here writing this blog entry.  luckily, things are calming down.  we're getting robin's symptoms under control and starting to get his new routine down to a finer science.  robin is quite happily sitting in my lap right now and purring like crazy.  i'm looking forward to sitting around the house and knitting for the rest of the morning, and hopefully all day tomorrow and thursday....

at long last, the wait is over (never mind if i was the only one waiting with baited breath!) - the sanguine gryphon 's fall collection of patterns is out today, and with it, my newest sock pattern.  i present to you the heliotrope mid-calf stockings - fancy socks to be worn for any occasion.  slightly old-fashioned, slightly modern, and fun to knit! innocence and mayhem at once*.... Fanciful mid-calf stockings begin with a ruffled, ribbed cuff and an eyelet row to secure top of stockings with a ribbon.  An ornate cabled pattern at the top of the sock is followed by a twisted-rib panel on the front, with cabled "clocks" on either side and stockinette stitch worked on the back. This top-down sock begins with an intricate cable chart and morphs into an elegant, easy-to-memorize pattern that has enough to keep an advanced knitted interested while not being terribly fussy.   Finished Sizes 7 (8, 9)”/18 (20, 23) cm foot circumference, unstretched ...

extreme close-up? i've been on pins and needles the past couple days, anxiously awaiting the arrival of the sanguine gryphon's fall collection!  my contribution is the first to come out of the (non-self-published designs) i've been working on all year, and i couldn't be more excited. on wednesday, the new fall colors were announced .  some photos of my project from the shoot arrived in my in-box at the beginning of the week, and it appears as though the collection will be debuting somewhere in the neighborhood of the 22nd.  meanwhile, there is much speculation surrounding this teaser photo gryphon posted in the ravelry forum - is the project behind her back, or on the box in the background? it's like a mind puzzle, an awesome mind puzzle!