20% Off Madelinetosh Yarns In Stock & Pre Order Sale

If you're a Ravelry member stop by the Madelinetosh group, they're hosting their inaugural Madetosh May event! This fun event includes KALs and prizes and is open to any Rav member who loves creating with Madelinetosh Yarns. I'm one of the prize sponsors and I'm donating a PDF copy of Through The Loops' new Cladonia shawl and two skeins of Tosh Merino Light to knit it in!

And to kick off the event for the entire month of May all Madelinetosh Yarns are 20% Off. This includes In Stock colorways and Pre Orders. Madelinetosh has recently added many new beautiful colorways such as Smokey Orchid and French Gray and this is a great opportunity to plan your late Summer, Fall and even (dare I say it) your Gift Knitting projects!

Cladonia

Tosh Merino Light

And it gets better, Madelinetosh has just released a NEW YARN, Tosh Sport! This luxuriously soft new yarn is crafted of 100% superwash merino wool and is a super soft round 3 ply. Its put up in a generous 270 yards per skein and can be used for a myriad of projects from socks to sweaters.

The Fine Print: This sale will run until May 31st at which time the order will be placed with Madelinetosh. I’ve already spoken to Madetosh and their dye time is running 10-12 weeks or longer, this means Pre Ordered yarn will be ready toward the end of August or beginning of September, this is subject to change. Your Credit Card or paypal account will be charged at the time of the order. No other offers apply such as private Coupon Codes or Free Shipping, thank you.

Pure Silk Lace

Pure Silk Lace

Tosh DK

Pashima

Tosh Sock

If you're already a fan you know Madelinetosh Yarns are as versatile as they are beautiful and there are a whole slew of projects to be enjoyed. Through The Loops and Sivia Harding have just released these two new shawl patterns for your Summer knitting pleasure.

Cladonia

Cladonia a semicircular shawl pattern worked in stockinette with a delicate lace border. Inspired by the rich handpainted colorways by Madelinetosh designer Kirsten Kapur shares with us..."This shawl was born because I am too weak to choose only one color from the outstanding range available in Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light."

"For the first iteration of Cladonia I worked the stockinette body in a two color stripe and finished it with a solid border and a contrasting looped edging. The second time around I dug through my stash for a hank of merino/silk fingering weight yarn that I kettle dyed years ago. I've been waiting for the right project for this decadently soft yarn. Drapey neck-wear seemed just the thing. The only challenge will be prying it off of Sofie's neck."

Cladonia looks fabulous in two colorways, but it looks equally stunning in just one, two skeins are required for either version. The pattern contains both charted and written instructions for the lace border. It is worked in one piece from the top edge, increasing in size to the bottom looped edging.

And Sivia Harding's Belle Nuit is breathtaking!

Belle Nuit

Beaded Belle Nuit, or Beautiful Night, portrays an explosion of falling stars over a night sky and depending if you want the Scarf or Shawl version its knit in 1 or 2 skeins of Tosh Sock. Make your wishes known as you knit this shawl that is worked from the top down featuring one of Sivia's favorite constructions: center panel with additional shoulder shaping. The side lace panels are outlined with a subtle cable or twisted stitch pattern, depending on how you choose to work the stitch, and you may choose to end the shawl with a delightful optional beaded picot bind off.

Belle Nuit is worked from the top down, starting at center back neck. Beads are placed using the crochet hook add-as-you-go method. Lace patterns are written and charted. Instructions are given for two sizes, scarf and shawl.

Please email or call with any questions. I've updated the Madetosh colorways but you'll still see some that have been discontinued, check to see if one or two skeins are still in stock, you'll see this listed as IN STOCK: (dyeloted)

And enjoy Madetosh May!

May 2011 Newsletter

This May Sandrasingh.com is six years old! The traditional six year anniversary gift is candy, iron or wood, wood is perfect, all my Clover Bamboo knitting needles and Crochet Hooks are now 10% Off. And to sweeten the deal, paper is made out of wood, all of my paper patterns - Karabella, Knitspot, Fiddlesticks Knitting, Berroco, Ysolda, Fiber Craft Studio, LANG Fatto A Mano, Yarns On Stage and magazines Vogue, Knitsimple, Knitscene and Interweave Knits are also 10% Off.

In This Issue: Blog Giveaways / Introducing Brooklyn Tweed / The Perfect Project for Warm Weather Knitting /

Blog Giveaways
You may have noticed I've been hosting a series of blog giveaways. I have to credit Laura Nelkin of Nelkin Designs with this idea, when I recently introduced her pattern line she generously donated a Beaded Cuff Kit as a prize and I thought...what a great way to introduce new knitwear designers and reintroduce those I've had the pleasure of working with all these years. For May I have a very special line up.

The first is Michelle Miller of Fickleknitter Designs and there will be 3 Winners
#1 Pattern Book Collection of 14 Patterns
#2 Sandrasingh.com Exclusive Sookie hat, fingerless mitts & neckwarmer pattern & 3 skeins Sandrasingh.com 1 Ply Merino Worsted
#3 Limestone, Fleurdelise and Honey Pot shawl patterns

And to kick it off I'm offering a Free Fickleknitter pattern, email to get a copy! To enter visit the blog post below this one and make sure to sign up to Follow My Blog, every week in May I'll be featuring a new giveaway.

Introducing Brooklyn Tweed
I'm ecstatic to tell you that Sandrasingh.com now carries the Brooklyn Tweed pattern collection by Jared Flood! Jared is a brilliant designer who has a keen eye for detail and his patterns are modern classics. He recently teamed up with Lorna's Laces for their Color Commentary Series and dreamed up their latest colorway Grand Street Ink, this deep dark color plays a vital role in his most recent shawl design, the Rock Island. Rock Island is knit with just one skein of Lorna's Laces' lace weight, 50/50 wool silk blend yarn Helen’s Lace and the finished fabric is almost veil-like. Both the pattern and Helen's Lace in Grand Street Ink are now available.

Rock Island

Lorna's Laces Helen's Lace Grand Street Ink

If the idea of knitting one of Brooklyn Tweeds' stunning lace patterns has intrigued you take a look at his triangular shawls Terra and Juneberry, and his Celes Stole and the circular shawl Girasole. I've seen Girasole worked in one and a half skeins Schaefer's lace weight yarn Andrea and the result was stunning!

Terra

Juneberry

Celes Stole

Girasole

Jared is also the designer of the popular Umaro blanket that's knit with 13+ balls of Cascade Lana Grande. And if you're in the mood for a smaller project knit his Fenimore hat or reversible scarf Cinder. With their beautiful clean lines and classic styles you're going to enjoy the entire line!

Umaro

Fenimore

Cinder

The Perfect Project for Warm Weather Knitting
The milder temperatures wafting your way stirs your imagination for a warm weather knitting project...can't get enough of this season's little lacey knits, want to update your look with a new handbag or perhaps you're planning an exotic getaway, what ever strikes your fancy I've got the perfect project. Lace continues to be a fashion and knitter's favorite, HeartStrings FiberArts introduces these four new Faroese style shawls, Cascading Hearts, Shetland Lace, Troika and the All-Over Lace Shawl.

Cascading Hearts

Shetland Lace

Troika

All-Over Lace

Add a little flirt to your look with Noni's new alluringly feminine Bettie Boop bag. Just as the original Miss Bettie B. practically purred with the romantic gleam of the jazz age The Bettie Boop will give you the irresistible urge to flaunt your feminine side while still staying perfectly put together.

Betty Boop Bag

And if you're in the mood for a little adventure knit Jane Thornley's new Great Zimbabwe Vest, its one of the three patterns featured in her new eBook, Safari And Savannahs Evocative Guide, along with the Swahili Basket Vest and the Safari Savannah Not-A-Poncho.

Thank you so much for sharing my news this month and stay tuned, I've got a lot of exciting events planned throughout the month of May. Be the first to learn about each, Follow Me on
Twitter - Sandrasinghcom
Facebook Sandra Singh
Ravelry Group - Sandrasingh.com
Blog - Knittingwithsandrasingh.blogspot.com

Fickleknitter Designs' Giveaway

Thank you to everyone who entered!

Our 3 Winners

Jenny aka renewedmind on Rav

Patsy aka missbabie on Rav

Karen aka hunnyb on Rav

Please contact me at Sandrasingh@sandrasingh.com

to claim your prize!

6 years ago May I launched Sandrasingh.com, as I reflect I'm simply amazed by how fast the time has went. "THANK YOU!" for being a customer. I'm so glad you found me along the way and thank you for everything you've taught me and shared with me, I couldn't have done it without you! To celebrate my anniversary each week in May I'll be featuring a different knitwear artist for a Blog Giveaway and prizes will include beautiful patterns and some yarns to knit them in!

First up is the brilliant Michelle Miller, aka the Fickleknitter, and I have a very important and timely announcement:

The Fickleknitter will be at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Fest this weekend May 7-8, if you're lucky enough to be attending stop by and see her, she'll be at the Feeling Ewe Booth located at OUTSIDE LC20.

There will be 3 Winners for this giveaway!
#1 Fickleknitter Designs' Pattern Book Collection of 14 Patterns
#2 Sandrasingh.com Exclusive Sookie hat, fingerless mitts & neckwarmer PDF pattern & 3 skeins Sandrasingh.com 1 Ply Merino Worsted in Plum Sky
#3 Shawl PDF Patterns - Limestone, Fleurdelise and Honey Pot

Pattern Book Collection of 14 Patterns

Sookie

Sookie

Sandrasingh.com 1 Ply Merino Worsted in Plum Sky

Honey Pot

Fleurdelise

The advent of Ravelry introduced me to a whole new slew of knitwear artists, yes, I began Sandrasingh.com before Ravelry! And Michelle was one of the first I met, I'm wracking my brain trying to remember which of her patterns first got my attention, but I can't recall! But I do remember her Versacowl was a huge hit and we had a KAL for it in 2009, dedicating it to our beloved HBO series, True Blood. Here's an aside, Michelle likes to say it was me who introduced her to this wild vampire miniseries, but I was just doing my part of share my love of fangs. Another aside, I've had the pleasure of meeting Michelle OFF RAV, twice! We first bumped into one another last summer at the TNNA in Cleveland OH, than she visited me in NY that following Fall and we went to the Rhinebeck Sheep and Wool Fest, besides being a gifted designer, in person Michelle is very sweet and funny and she knows a lot about all things tech!

Versacowl

Michelle's design talents include a wide variety of garments and styles. She has lovely accessories such as the Lace Leaf and Slouchee hats and the very special Mama Janes slippers with matching Baby Janes.

Slouchee

Momma Janes

Baby Janes

She has taken the mantra "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" and turned it into a saying to live by or rather to knit by with her Eco Knitting Patterns the Go Green Collection. You'll love knitting and carrying her two market bags the Reusable Produce and Lemon & Strawberry. And she has improved our wasteful paper towel and disposable Swifter Mop habits with her reusable versions, both are available in the Go Green Collection.

Reusable Produce Bag

Lemon & Strawberry Produce Bags

Recently Michelle has turned her attention to designing lace and thank heavens she's invested her time and energies into this new endeavor, her work is splendid. She's done a series of scarves including everyone's favorites the Asymmetrical Triangle Shawl, Bird of Juno and the Easy Bamboo Lace. And she has a real knack for designing very pleasing triangular shaped shawls that show off their textures beautifully in your favorite lace or sock weight yarns whether in a solid, semi solid or variegated colorway.

Asymmetrical Triangle Shawl

Bird of Juno

Easy Bamboo Lace Scarf

Besides generously giving us these patterns for prizes Michelle was gracious enough to take some time out of her busy day and answer these interview questions.

Bio: I knit tin hats and write knitting patterns for knitters. Despite my best efforts, I recently graduated with a Masters degree in Applied Physics. Most of my time is spent keeping my four year old from swinging from the chandelier and my husband distracted from the constant influx of new yarn.

1. Please tell us about yourself and what got you interested in knitting and designing knitwear.
I started my business because I didn't have enough to do each day between the sleepless nights and constant nursing when I was staying at home with my daughter and while dragging my feet on finishing my Master's Degree. Writing patterns lets me stretch all those math and physics muscles I developed in college and graduate school and allowed me to work from home all in the name of procrastination.

Two things I didn't realize about working at my own business at home was that

• I'd spend so much time in my pajamas with unwashed hair.
• I'd let my child and husband turn feral for a time while writing.

Three more things I didn't realize about working at my own business at home was that

• Over time you save a lot of money by wearing pajamas and washing your hair every other day.
• You can spend that money on yarn.
• Eventually your husband will get sick of dirty dishes and laundry and do them himself.

2. What is your design philosophy?
I specialize in one skein projects using luxury yarns and write simple patterns that only look complex. For me writing and knitting a shawl out of one skein of sock yarn is magical. You're completing a garment with a small quantity of yarn which also means the knitting doesn't take as long as a shawl that requires 1,200 yards. It's instant gratification in knitting and yarn.

3. Who or what inspires you the most in your design process?
Elizabeth Zimmermann and Meg Swansen of course. Vibeke Lind's Knitting in the Nordic Tradition is my all time favorite knitting book. Mary Thomas's Book of Knitting Patterns is also chock full of wonderful information. I'm inspired by complex looking knit objects that are made up of simple repetitions.

4. What direction do you see yourself heading in as a designer?
I'm currently writing and knitting for my first book which will be out this some time Winter. I enjoy the art and technical aspects of writing and knitting so as long as I can continue both I'm content. I'm also passionate about meeting other knitters mainly through vending at knitting shows all over the country. Last year I was able to meet wo many very wonderful knitters at the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival, Rhinebeck (where I stayed with Sandy and her wonderful husband), Stitches West, and a scattering of local shows. This year I was a guest artist at an industry party at Unwind in Burbank, vended at Stitches West, and will be vending at Sock Summit as well as exhibiting at TNNA this June. I love meeting new and old knitters and I love to talk about anything knitting related. So if you see me at one of these events please stop by and say hi!

5. How have the advances in technology and the internet helped you (or hindered) you as a knitwear designer?
I can tell you with certainty that I wouldn't have my business if it weren't for Ravelry. Ravelry made designing seem accessible and allowed me to develop my style in my time line. I embrace technology every day including social media. I'll be releasing my first book in print as well as eBook, stay tuned to my blog for details (http://www.fickleknitter.com)

Thanks Sandy for interviewing me!
xo
Michelle

Thank you Michelle for taking the time to talk to us and we look forward to seeing even more beautiful work from you.

Please take a moment to enjoy all of the Fickleknitter's designs. All of her patterns are sold as PDF downloads, and there are no shipping fees.

Lace Shawls & Scarves

Limestone

Cowls, Hats & Slippers

Lace Leaf Hat (sized for adults and children)

Go Green

Go Green Collection

Children

Wee Baby Socks

There will be 3 winners for this giveaway, no purchase necessary to enter, and the winners will be announced May 7, 2011.

Enter this Giveaway:
The more ways you enter, the more chances you have to win and make sure to leave a comment telling exactly what you did to enter. And please make sure to include your contact information.

1. Leave a comment about your favorite Fickleknitter pattern, under this blogpost.
2. Blog about this Giveaway on your blog and link it, leave a comment under this blogpost with the link back to your blogpost.
3. Join my Ravelry group Sandrasingh.com and introduce yourself in the "Welcome Tell us About Yourself..." thread.
4. Announce this Giveaway in your Ravelry group or in another Ravelry group that allows you to announce Blog Giveaways.
5. Friend me on Facebook: Sandra Singh and say you "Like" my post about this Giveaway.
6. Announce this Giveaway (with the link) on Facebook
7. Follow me on Twitter: Sandrasingh
8. Announce this Giveaway (with the link) on Twitter.
9. Sign up for my Newsletter on my Home Page.
10. Sign up to "Follow my Blog."

New Faroese Shawl Designs from HeartString FiberArts

I just added 5 new designs from HeartStrings FiberArts! Talk about perfect timing, check out these new Faroese Shawl and Comforter designs and than make sure to enter the Giveaway in the blog post below for the HeartStrings' Rainy Day Sock Kit.

And do you think you have time to whip one of these shawls up for a Mother's Day Gift?

Cascading Hearts

Cascading Hearts Faroese Shawl pattern features stockinette stitch knitted lace of interlocking heart motifs. The distinctive "butterfly" shaping of the Faroese shawl makes an exceptionally wearable garment because of the shaped shoulders and elongated ends for optionally tying around the waist.

As in all other Faroese shawls in the HeartStrings collection, Cascading Hearts Faroese Shawl is worked from the neckband down. You start with just a few stitches so that you can become familiar with your yarn and the stitch patterns. Different increase techniques are used in each pattern to achieve the traditional center back panel, side panels, front bands, and shaped shoulders.

Troika

Troika Wrap-Around Faroese Shawl is a wonderfully simple and fun shawl that is shaped like a giant butterfly. Knit in a 3-ball garter stitch technique from the top-down, this is a great pattern for using a mix of novelty and stash yarns. Shaping is done with simple yarn overs, and creates the traditional Faroese-style shawl with center back panel, side front panels, and shaped shoulders. The elongated front panels allow you to wear this shawl in lots of ways, including tied around the back.

Shetland Lace

Shetland Lace Patterned Faroese Shawl in garter stitch lace knitting incorporates traditional Shetland lace patterns of beads, diamonds and Madeira fans.

Top-down shaping of the center and side panels, front bands, and fitted shoulders achieves the illusion of bottom-to-top construction through the use of increases that look like decreases.

All Over Lace

Another of the popular HeartStrings Faroese shaped shawls, this time in an allover stockinette stitch lace version, thus aptly named All-Over Lace Faroese Shawl. The pattern begins with the center back neckband, then proceeds from the neck down in charming lace silhouetted heart motifs. Yarn over increases and the lace patterns themselves are used to shape the traditional center back panel, side panels, front bands, and fitted shoulders. This design adds a band of garter stitch at each side of the center back panel, giving further definition to the graceful lines of this shawl and the pattern is charted.

Warm Hearts Comfortghan

Warm Hearts Comfortghan is a lap blanket or afghan perfect for snuggling and its easy to knit and makes a great gift for loved ones. Here is a design for a handsome small blanket in a "warm hearts" theme appropriate for anyone. A bonus is that the stitch pattern is different yet pleasing on both sides — it's like getting two blankets for the effort of making one!