Tuesday, November 29, 2016

"Beacon Hill" in the making

What's better than sunlight knitting with festive nails and hot tea at your side?

I've been hard at work, working on a new pattern with a name inspired by a location in one of my favorite series, Beacon Hill. It's a historic place in Boston, but it just felt "right" for the name for this project. If you can name a pattern after a person, you can name a project after a place.

Side note: I just found out that they re-released this discontinued series on kindle! The first one is free--try it out! It's got 1880's a Boston setting, with an amateur sleuth and a "Ross and Rachel" unrequited romance theme. I highly recommend this read!

This is the original one, made from 100% baby llama. The stitch texture is a little lost in the smooth and hairy yarn, so I decided to start a teal sample that I also used for making a youtube tutorial on the invisible cast-on and stitch pattern used in this pattern.

The cast-on is the invisible cast-on method, as the beginning and end of the scarf will be sewn together like sock toes. 
I tweaked a "Little Tent" stitch pattern from my stitchionary, and also added a thick garter border. This project will become an infinity scarf, with a hat and mitten set made afterward. The mittens and hat will not only have these little tents, but more modifications so it's not a one-trick pony.

Doesn't red, teal, white and black go together incredibly well?
I NEVER paint my nails. Besides the fact that my thumb nails split on the sides and now directly down the middle, I work far too much with my hands as a mother, knitter and pianist to not make the paint chip immediately. However, because I was making a tutorial, I decided "what the heck?" and went for a festive red color in lue of the holiday season. The polish proably won't last long, but I'm having fun knitting, teaching and even typing with more feminine nails. :)

It's the little things in life...
I'm smitten.

Friday, November 25, 2016

Crazy BLACK FRIDAY weekend deal!

Quick, there's a *Crazy* Black Friday (weekend) sale going on! Grab any of my patterns for HALF OFF! PLUS, IF YOU BUY MORE THAN 3 patterns (from 11/25-11/27), I will GIFT your friend a pattern of your choice!* This deal lasts until Sunday night.


Use this coupon at the checkout: KUASblackfriday2016
*After purchasing more 3 or more patterns (11/25-11/27), Ravelry message or email me to let me know the email address (or Ravelry ID) of the friend of whom you'd like to receive the (1) gifted pattern.

Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Christmas Give-away Contest! 5 Prizes!

Good morning,
Happy holidays! I am running a special KUAS give-away for those who knit my original patterns (free OR paid for patterns).  Please share this! There are FIVE prizes! Winners will be selected randomly. Please read the rules before participating to see how to qualify for said prizes. Projects could have been started as early as Oct 1st 2016...and you don't necessarily have to finish your project to win a prize!



WHO: U.S and non-U.S knitters.

RULES:
1.) Participants must knit ANY of my KUAS original patterns to qualify to win! Projects must be started no earlier than October 1st, 2016 and completed by December 20th, 2016 to be entered into the “grand prize” category. Those who DO NOT finish their projects CAN STILL qualify for the 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th prizes listed below. Winners will be drawn December 21st, 2016. After drawing the “grand prize,” I will mix all remaining participant’s names together (even those who didn’t win the grand prize)!

2.) You must post your WIP and/or your completed project photo (started no earlier than 10/1 and posted no later than 12/20 for the drawing) in THIS RAVELRY THREAD. If I can’t see it there, I won’t know to put your name in the drawing bowl. Please use only one post (edit your post to put in the completed photo). Please make sure to include in the post the name of the KUAS project, the date started/completed as well as the photos(s).

3.) The winners will be announced here and on my “Knitting Up a Storm” Facebook group 12/21/16, and winners must contact me via email (knittingupastorm@gmail.com) to give me their name and shipping address.

SO, what’s the prizes??

The Grand Prize winner gets all of this (only for those who complete their project):
 -->One FREE KUAS pattern of your choice
-->Two caked half-skeins of Creatively Dyed Yarns’ Exotic Flower fingering weight yarn (415 yds total; 75% superwash and 25% nylon). The main colors are red, green and blue.
-->A set of 5 peppermint striped stitch markers!

2nd Prize:
 This set of 5 stitch markers AND one FREE KUAS pattern of your choice.

3rd Prize winner gets:
 This set of 5 stitch markers AND one FREE KUAS pattern of your choice.

4th and 5th winners get: a FREE KUAS pattern of your choice.

May the odds be ever in your favor! Happy knitting and Happy Thanksgiving!!