Marnie, speak! Good girl.

Exactly 3 years ago today I posted an interview I did with Faina Goberstein and Dawn Leeseman about their book Casual Elegant Knits. Their blog tour was my first chance to get to know Faina, but it hasn't been my last. Since then, she and I have both contributed to the book Knitting in the Sun and Twist Collective.

When Faina first asked me if I'd do an interview for her ongoing Designer's Studio series, I agreed and then promptly got overwhelmed with other things and dropped the ball. Luckily, she gave me a second chance. The interview is now live and you can read it here. Don't forget to check out all the other interviews and if you find any interesting, consider leaving Faina a comment to thank her for all her hard work.

Ooof, there aren't any pictures in this post. Time to remedy that with some non sequitors.

Puppies at play.

Click through to get to embiggen

And check out quilt numero dos.

...that all started with the Big Bang (Theory).

Leo and I haven't had cable television for about the past 5 years. There was so little we actually wanted to watch that we weren't really getting our dollar's worth. We do have Netflix and Hulu set up and, of course, all 3 of the local PBS stations, and that works fine for us, however we are somewhat reliant on other people to let us know if there's anything we should be watching on Netflix, and it was my parent's suggestion that we watch The Big Bang Theory, that ultimately led to my most recent Twist Collective design, Doppler.

Maybe I shouldn't admit that. The show isn't known for it's cutting edge nor stylish fashion and this clip that spawned my design may make you wonder how many glasses into a bottle of wine I was when inspiration hit.

Nonetheless, after seeing this costume, I had this idea of a men's sweater, with an asymmetrical ribbed pattern that radiated out from one shoulder. To be honest, from what I've seen, men's garment patterns don't sell quite the way women's do. It could be that they generally require more yarn or that more knitters are women and only knit for men on occasion. It could be that men frequently prefer garment styles that are a bit boring to knit. Or it could be something else altogether, but regardless, it seemed to make sense to offer this pattern both for men and women.

My original submission sketch and swatch

After talking with Kate, we decided that not everyone would be keen on the turtleneck so a second neckline option was in order too. This meant that the final pattern offered 11 women's sizes, 12 men's sizes and 2 neckline options for each. Now that's a-lotta-pattern to write. The tech editor may never forgive me.

The garment is worked from the bottom-up, totally seamlessly, including the set-in sleeves, and once the set-up row for the ribbing is done, the stitch pattern is established and you can just knit away.

It was a lot of work cranking out two full sized garments in just over a month, but I managed to pull it off with enough time to get a few shots.

Leo looks mighty good in the men's version.

But, I think I give my handsome guy a run for his money.

I hope that people who knit this pattern will find it a great wardrobe staple. The two Blue Moon Fiber Arts yarns were both a joy to work with and next to the skin soft as well. Check out Doppler and all the other great designs in this season's edition of Twist Collective

Yesterday, I roasted a 5.5 pound chicken.

Leo had a drumstick and I had a little piece of the breast. It was too hot to put in the fridge so I tucked it far back on the counter while we ran a quick errand.

In particular, I picked up some tortillas, salsa, avocado and cheese to make some roasted chicken soft tacos for dinner. Sounds nice, huh?

I can only imagine how this all went down. The little guy must have leaped 4 feet off the ground, snapping as far into the counter as he could, until he got ahold of the dish the chicken was on. The dish was on the floor. The garlic cloves that were in the cavity were everywhere. There was a small piece of breast left and the boy had it in his mouth, a couple discarded ribs littered the floor and pretty much nothing else. D-dog looked pregnant and absolutely as happy with life as an overstuffed dog could be. Panda was hiding in another room and Thea was licking the grease off the floor.

To top it all off, the boy piddled all over the living room, later that evening and Leo had to get up 3 times to let him out, during the night.

Dogs are fricken awesome.

He's feeling fine today.

The moral of the story? Darwin may look small but there is no spot in the kitchen that he can't reach if the smells are good enough. Also, it's impossible for me to stay mad at a cute dog.

Alternatively title: Karma's a b**ch.

My guess is he still thinks it was worth it.

Alternatively title: Karma's a b**ch.

My guess is he still thinks it was worth it.

Yesterday, I roasted a 5.5 pound chicken.

Leo had a drumstick and I had a little piece of the breast. It was too hot to put in the fridge so I tucked it far back on the counter while we ran a quick errand.

In particular, I picked up some tortillas, salsa, avocado and cheese to make some roasted chicken soft tacos for dinner. Sounds nice, huh?

I can only imagine how this all went down. The little guy must have leaped 4 feet off the ground, snapping as far into the counter as he could, until he got ahold of the dish the chicken was on. The dish was on the floor. The garlic cloves that were in the cavity were everywhere. There was a small piece of breast left and the boy had it in his mouth, a couple discarded ribs littered the floor and pretty much nothing else. D-dog looked pregnant and absolutely as happy with life as an overstuffed dog could be. Panda was hiding in another room and Thea was licking the grease off the floor.

To top it all off, the boy piddled all over the living room, later that evening and Leo had to get up 3 times to let him out, during the night.

Dogs are fricken awesome.

He's feeling fine today.

The moral of the story? Darwin may look small but there is no spot in the kitchen that he can't reach if the smells are good enough. Also, it's impossible for me to stay mad at a cute dog.

...that all started with the Big Bang (Theory).

Leo and I haven't had cable television for about the past 5 years. There was so little we actually wanted to watch that we weren't really getting our dollar's worth. We do have Netflix and Hulu set up and, of course, all 3 of the local PBS stations, and that works fine for us, however we are somewhat reliant on other people to let us know if there's anything we should be watching on Netflix, and it was my parent's suggestion that we watch The Big Bang Theory, that ultimately led to my most recent Twist Collective design, Doppler.

Maybe I shouldn't admit that. The show isn't known for it's cutting edge nor stylish fashion and this clip that spawned my design may make you wonder how many glasses into a bottle of wine I was when inspiration hit.

Nonetheless, after seeing this costume, I had this idea of a men's sweater, with an asymmetrical ribbed pattern that radiated out from one shoulder. To be honest, from what I've seen, men's garment patterns don't sell quite the way women's do. It could be that they generally require more yarn or that more knitters are women and only knit for men on occasion. It could be that men frequently prefer garment styles that are a bit boring to knit. Or it could be something else altogether, but regardless, it seemed to make sense to offer this pattern both for men and women.

My original submission sketch and swatch

After talking with Kate, we decided that not everyone would be keen on the turtleneck so a second neckline option was in order too. This meant that the final pattern offered 11 women's sizes, 12 men's sizes and 2 neckline options for each. Now that's a-lotta-pattern to write. The tech editor may never forgive me.

The garment is worked from the bottom-up, totally seamlessly, including the set-in sleeves, and once the set-up row for the ribbing is done, the stitch pattern is established and you can just knit away.

It was a lot of work cranking out two full sized garments in just over a month, but I managed to pull it off with enough time to get a few shots.

Leo looks mighty good in the men's version.

But, I think I give my handsome guy a run for his money.

I hope that people who knit this pattern will find it a great wardrobe staple. The two Blue Moon Fiber Arts yarns were both a joy to work with and next to the skin soft as well. Check out Doppler and all the other great designs in this season's edition of Twist Collective

Exactly 3 years ago today I posted an interview I did with Faina Goberstein and Dawn Leeseman about their book Casual Elegant Knits. Their blog tour was my first chance to get to know Faina, but it hasn't been my last. Since then, she and I have both contributed to the book Knitting in the Sun and Twist Collective.

When Faina first asked me if I'd do an interview for her ongoing Designer's Studio series, I agreed and then promptly got overwhelmed with other things and dropped the ball. Luckily, she gave me a second chance. The interview is now live and you can read it here. Don't forget to check out all the other interviews and if you find any interesting, consider leaving Faina a comment to thank her for all her hard work.

Ooof, there aren't any pictures in this post. Time to remedy that with some non sequitors.

Puppies at play.

Click through to get to embiggen

And check out quilt numero dos.