See, other than making the sweetest kid ever she also makes these awesome draw string bags, and mi patterns, and swift bags, and pattern magnets and pithy buttons and pretty much any cool knitting related thing you can think of. Any way she has the famously discontinued Knitmare fabric and sells quite a lot of it in her shop.

So I've been spinning and dyeing and beading yarn to match.

And then spinning more yarn to match.

And a few more.

I can't seem to stop spinning on my new Lendrum folding DT. I've had to limit myself to spinning around my secret magazine knitting deadline which has been sort of like limiting ice tea, chocolate cake, or you know, oxygen.

So it's been really awesome to have Lisa help me bring my patterns to life by sample knitting. Hands off ladies, she's mine.

I wrote the pattern for the Asymmetrical Triangle Shawl as I was working my way through shawl geometry. The shawl is knit by casting on 300 stitches for the long edge and gradually decreases to the center point.

The pattern includes clearly written instructions that have been thoroughly test knit and tech edited.

For more information on shawl geometry please visit my tutorial here: http://www.fickleknitter.com/archives/2009/12/knitted_lace_tr.htm

The shawl is knit using 950 yards of fingering weight yarn. I used four full skeins and the point was made using those precious koigu leftovers from Charlotte’s Web Shawl.

Description A simple triangle shawl that is knit by casting on 300 stitches for the long edge and decreasing to the point.

Needles Size US 3/ 3.25mm Knitting Needles, or size needed to get gauge.

Yarn 300 grams of Koigu Painter’s Palette Premium Merino (KPPPM) 100% Merino Wool, 14 WPI fingering weight yarn. Approximately 175 yards/160 meters. Total Yardage for shawl is 950 yards/872 meters. Seven Colors used: p827l51, p536l27, p154l52, p826l40, 136, 612, and 426.

Gauge 30 stitches and 34 rows over 4 inches in Pattern Stitch.

Finished Measurements 46 inches wide and 23 inches tall.

For more information or to buy the shawl, see: http://www.shop.fickleknitter.com/product/asymmetrical-triangle-shawl-instant-download

And now that I've been self publishing and really making a go of knitting design I answer to a higher power. I call it my Heart of Hearts strategy.

To wit:

A few weeks ago I posted a photo of a scarf made with delicious artyarns supermerino. After some deep soul searching and angst about how quickly the yarn was being absorbed by the scarf I decided it was time to weigh the remaining yarn.

The scarf was 13 inches long and I'd consumed half of the yarn by weight. That means the finished scarf would be a little over 2 feet long going at the current rate. This is where my Heart of Hearts strategy comes into play. I ask my Heart of Hearts, "will the people that love me enough to buy my designs wear a scarf that is only 2 feet long albeit lovingly designed and executed?"

Yes, perhaps my sister or close family friend would out of pity. But in her mind she'd be asking Who in the hell would wear a scarf that's 2 feet long? And by in her mind I mean aloud, to my face.

Rrrrrrrrrrrrriiiipppppppppppppppp.

I reknit trying to capture the original idea and general feel of the beta version but using much less yarn so as to avoid that uncomfortable not silence where I've put the family name to shame.

Then, on the cusp of drowning my knit-ripping sorrows in iced tea I had another run in with my Heart of Hearts this weekend past. I've been laboring over this secret magazine project trying to make it perfect. When I was 99.9% finished I spread it out over my lap to bask in my moment in the sun.

It was then I realized with a sinking feeling that half of the shawl says "I look like a lattice!" and the other half says "I look like columns!" Now my sister loves me a lot but definitely not enough to wear a shawl that reckons it's origins with the Three Faces of Eve with a dash of wow, that's really...[longest pause in the history of ever]... home made!

That little mental dialog resulted in the ripping out of (and it pains me to say it) 10,825 lovingly knit stitches. Each one a special snowflake, living forever more in my heart. But when I actually did the ripping the language was much more coarse. Stupid Special Snowflakes.

So that is my advice to those sorry sods who find themselves in my contemptible position of Rip or Not To Rip, a three and a half point checklist with a secret toy surprise at the end.

1. Ask your Heart of Hearts if anyone you know would wear the 2 foot scarf, a Three Faces of Eve shawl, or the tin hat that's just come off of your needles.

2. If the answer is "No" or "HELL NO" fortify yourself with the beverage of your choice, language that would make a sailor blush, and an excel spread sheet so you can calculate the depth of your knit ripping pain. It's a sliding scale of anguish. 1,000 tinked stitches entitles you to some reckless retail therapy. Reach 10,000 ripped stitches and holy crap! You just bought a new wheel. And by you, I mean me and my new Lendrum DT. I earned it, shut up.

2a. If you are ripping out lace weight with silk (or any sticky yarn) go slowly as to avoid snags, breaks with reality, and knots. Be ware all ye who enter here.

3. Finally, If the answer is "Yes," "HELL YEAH" or "Begrudgingly with a air of haughtiness" Congratulations! You've just won one sticky note from the sticky notepad of Michelle has too much time on her hands.

I decided it was high time to group together a best of from the most popular lace designs I've created over the years. So just in time for the holiday knitting crunch I hope you'll consider my 14 Pattern Lace Knitting Collection. Because the holidays are about Knitters too!

This amazing 45 page collection contains 14 Lace patterns for Lace knitters! There are five lace triangular shawls, three rectangular wraps, four lace scarves, and two cowls to satisfy every knitting appetite.

Each pattern has written instructions and charts where appropriate. All patterns have been tested, edited, and are presented in a clear manner.

The Lace Knitting Collection now has the following Patterns:

* Flyleaf Triangular Shawl -Charts Included
* Went Berrying Triangle Shawlette -Charts Included
* Jade One Skein Shawl -Charts Included
* Pivot Triangular Shawl -Charts Included
* Triangulum
* Tree and Arbor Wrap -Charts Included
* Wen’s Wedding Shawl -Charts Included
* Diamond Stripe Lace Shawl -Charts Included
* Easy Bamboo Lace One Skein Scarf -Charts Included
* Butterfly One Skein Scarflet -Charts Included
* Fragment One Skein Scarf
* Karma Chameleon One Skein Scarf
* Versacowl -Charts Included
* Briny Sea Cowl -Charts Included

The 14 Pattern Lace Knitting Collection is now available for sale in my pattern shop, etsy, and ravelry.

If you're wondering about my qualifications for writing this tutorial, I've just had my 7th pattern published by Knit Picks IDP and had my very first appearance in the Fall Knit Picks Catalog as an Independent Designer.

So let's start with the basics.

*The best place to brush up on the requirements are the Knit Picks Independent Designer Program FAQ.

*For Knit Picks yarn support email yarnsupport@knitpicks.com.

*For Knit Picks submissions email submissions@knitpicks.com

What do I do to get Knit Picks Yarn support?
The first thing you need to do to start your journey into the Independent Designer Program is request yarn support. When I'm requesting yarn I put together a small list of links from my shop of items I've already published to give Knit Picks an idea of my design aesthetic. The links show a few photos of the projects with detailed information on the patterns such as gauge, needle size and a brief description of the item and it's construction.

Some designers submit items that have already been self published, if that is the case you already have a design ready and simply email photos and a description of the finished object to the Knit Picks team. Your submission will be evaluated and you'll receive an email either accepting or rejecting your request for yarn support.

Since I am designing from scratch I must decide on which yarn will work for my request. For those of us living in the Northern Hemisphere designing new knitting patterns for winter happens in summer, and summer in winter. For those living in the Southern Hemisphere the schedule is reversed. It's summer now so that means I want to work with winter yarns and pattern submissions. Also keep in mind that you want to pick a yarn that will work with your intended item. (Alpaca Lace weight is great for lace projects but maybe not a great fit for colorwork mittens knit at 5 stitches per inch). Finally when choosing your yarn, pick something that has consistent dye lots. If you choose something like Felici with limited edition colorways your design will have a shelf life because once the particular sample color is gone the design becomes obsolete.

So let's go with Knit Pick's Shamrock yarn. It's got some fresh new colors, and is a hearty winter yarn.

The first thing you do after deciding on a yarn is to come up with a suitable project. Since I am designing for a winter cycle I'll go with a pair of mittens. And in order to get the yarn I have to submit a sketch. While I can draw well enough with a ruler and a little patience, expressing a general idea can be enough. I used a simple sketch program (Penultimate available for iPad) to sketch out the basic idea of my yarn support submission. I won't be winning any awards for my sketch in this case but it shows the item, the cable detail, and the type of yarn I intend to use for the project.

Once you have a sketch and description ready it is time to send in the request.

I've found that Knit Picks is generous with yarn support. But they may not say yes to every request. One reason is your design may not be accepted it resembles something being made or already published by the Knit Picks Design Team. Another is you may be competing with too many other knit or crocheted items they've already published. There are a lot of hat and cowl patterns out there already so why not dream up some triangle shawls or a special sweater instead?

At any rate the best thing you can do in this situation is not get discouraged if the answer for yarn support at first is no.

So in review for a Knit Picks yarn support request you need to send
1. A brief summary of previous design work. Links to places like ravelry, etsy and pattern shops are okay so long as they show photos and give some detail on the projects.
2. Specific yarn for your request.
3. A sketch that outlines the general idea of the intended project. Make sure everything prints out on one page to make the best presentation for the review board.

If your project is accepted and the yarn sent, congratulations! You are ready to move on to the designing/knitting stage of your submission.

When the yarn arrives it is appropriate to email the Knit Picks team to thank them. It is also necessary to make sure there are no restrictions on posting public photos of the yarn. Before I received my latest batch of Knit Picks yarn I had to agree not to post photos of the new colorways online. I took that request very seriously and was careful to abide by that request.

Once your yarn has arrived you are ready to start your design process. When designing keep in mind that the sample will be photographed. That means you want to show off your knitting to its best advantage. As much as I am loathe to rip out my knitting if there is a visible mistake it's got to go. Try to limit how much you have to rip and reknit the yarn because it does eventually show wear and tear. In some cases it might be smart to practice the more difficult elements of your design in another yarn so that when it's time to knit the Knit Picks sample you are in top form.

One of the requirements for Knit Picks IDP patterns is creating a schematic. You don't have to be Da Vinci to make a schematic. I use Power Point's shape tools. The schematic for Zig Zag Mittens was created by using only straight lines in Power Point. There are a million and one ways to create a schematic, pick one and get it done. Youtube has free video tutorials on just about every digital drawing/editing program on the market today. Lynda.com has a small monthly fee and gives access to the professional products out there such as photoshop, gimp (my personal favorite), and likely even Microsoft paint.

After your sample is knit you need to prepare the written design for submission. At a minimum the design needs to be test knit and tech edited. In all of my designs I try to have both done to reduce as many errors and confusing language as possible. For test knitting I frequent the Testing Pool ravelry group. After my test knitters finish their projects and provide me with photos I give them two existing patterns as a thank you for their work. It's an important aspect of my testing process. The pattern for knitting exchange shows my testers that I appreciate the value of their work and provides motivation for finishing the project and taking photos. Not every tester will complete the project because sometimes life gets in the way. Be respectful and generous with your testers and they will stand by you and help you when you need it.

Tech Knitting is something that is actually quite accessible. I was intimidated by the process for a long time. But I've found that it is very affordable and it is so helpful to have another seasoned pair of eyes go over a pattern. You really want to eliminate every possible error because typos are so discouraging to people who knit your patterns. Be warned though that even with test knitting and tech editing mistakes can sometimes still remain in the pattern. I've had a few copy and paste errors that much like the horror show are like Night of the Living Dead Zombies. But when you find that inevitable error, fix it straight away. Send in the errata to knit picks and if you're selling on other venues like Ravelry you can notify your buyers to update their version. You can also make a special post on your blog or website for people who use Dr. Google to search for Errata. Here is an example of an errata page for one of my published patterns.

If you aren't a professional photographer Knit Picks will take care of the final photography but it's important to take one or two photos before you mail the submission. I take my photos by setting up my white background near a sunny window. Avoid direct sunlight and if the project is something like a pair of mittens enlist someone else to snap the photo for you. If you don't have any shutterbugs in residence you can set up most cameras on an inexpensive tripod and photograph using the self timing feature. If you'd like your photography to be featured by Knit Picks be sure to submit a hi res, high quality photos for their consideration.

Once your pattern is written, tech edited, test knit, photographed and put into the knit picks layout you are ready to mail your to submissions to knit picks at:

Knit Picks
Attn: Pattern Sample Manager
13118 NE 4th Street
Vancouver, WA 98687

Make sure you print out and sign the Knit Picks Terms and Conditions and include it in the package.

The Knit Picks design team will review your submission and get back to you with an answer. Sometimes the process takes a few weeks. If your submission is rejected it could be due to a few reasons:
1. The Sample doesn't fit the model. The requisite measurements for samples are
* Men's: 38-40.
* Teen/Small Men's: 30-32
* Misses: 32-34
* Women's (plus sized): 48-50
* Kids: any size appropriate to the pattern style
* Babies: 6 month size or larger

2. The sample is knit poorly and won't photograph well.

3. The item resembles an already existing Knit Picks pattern.

If the answer is no do not get discouraged. It is inevitable that people will tell you no but don’t let it stop you. During my last yarn request submission cycle I sent in 5 sketches and fleshed out ideas for potential Knit Picks projects. Three were accepted and from that batch three have been published so far.

If the answer is yes, Congratulations! You are well on your way to becoming a Knit Picks Independent Designer.

If you enjoyed my tutorial helped and it you on your way I'd love to hear back from you. You can use the contact form for comments, follow me on twitter or join my ravelry group for a more interactive experience.

If you would like to enjoy more Fickle Knitter How To articles in the future, please consider purchasing a pattern or two in my pattern or ravelry shop because your business keeps me in business and the wolf from the front door (or me in iced tea and chocolate cake.)

I have loved my Matchless bulky flyer but it is time to sell her. The flyer assembly is only a few months old and is in like new condition. I recently bought a new Lendrum and I have to make some room before my Husband makes me live in the shed with all my yarn, fiber, wheel, and wheel accessories.

I've spun an amazing amount of art yarn and even some sock yarn on the bulky flyer. I'm selling for $200 which includes the bulky flyer, the new front maiden, the jumbo bobbin, and shipping within the 48 States. I prefer paypal and will ship this baby right away. Thanks for looking!

In between moshing around my living room and jam sessions with Maya I'll be working up patterns in Fabulous yarn. It'll be a nice distraction from my secret magazine projects.

In fact I'm so excited about all the yarn Judy sent I've already started the first pattern, Chevron Arrow (V1).

Did I say secret magazine project? I can't tell you what I'm doing but I can show you the yarn, Sweet Georgia Merino Silk Laceweight in Pomegranate.

I have been able to dye plenty of fiber In between all that lusty yarn squeezing and living room moshing.

Now if you'll excuse me I'm off to knit while listening to my favorite punk album.

Handmade Store on a Bike

v is for violet

Maya's Paparazzi (They didn't serve her beer so Daddy drank her share of delicious, sweet, free duff beer.)

The Terminator signed my physics degree.

It would have been cheaper and caused a lot less stress to get his autograph on the street. But then I wouldn't be a Master. Master of what exactly has yet to be determined.

Meanwhile I'm slowly using my energy turning this (40 pounds of wool)

Into this (hand dyed fiber)

And then into this (Arty Hand spun yarn)

40 Pounds of Wool + Hand dyed fiber = Arty Hand Spun Yarn.

If that isn't Applied Physics, I don't know what is.

"Intergalactic Planetary"

"Copper" (A super squishy 3 ply with purple glittery yarn)

New hat design on the needles, this one is knit flat.

The tomato plants I purchased at a Farmer's Market in Los Gatos yielded tasty fruit. Especially with a generous sprinkle of sea salt. I'd show you photos of the orange cherry tomatoes but they seem to have...disappeared. It also appears a pest is munching on my broccoli and swish chard leaves. Bugs like pesticide free organic produce too it seems.

Tonight I'm going to send out my first Fickle Knitter Newsletter. I'm offering a special $5 gift certificate for subscribers which is good in my etsy shop and my pattern shop. So if you've had your eye on something now is a great time to buy! Sign ups for the newsletter are on the left under Subscribe for Pattern Updates.

Happy Tuesday!

“A #6 aluminum needle has been known to furnish an excellent emergency shearpin for an outboard motor.” Elizabeth Zimmermann

Thank you EZ for your ingenuity, clever writing style, and pithy patterns, but most of all for opening up the possibilities of what knitting can be.

I wouldn’t be designing today if it weren’t for reading Knitting Without Tears so early in my knitting journey and knitting fearlessly through all crises including childbirth and graduate school.

Happy 100th Birthday, signed a Minion in EZ’s knitting army. I wouldn't be where I am creatively with my knitting, spinning, and designing without you.

Fickleknitter Shop Link, Ravelry Link

Description A simple triangle lace one skein shawl with a knit on edging.

Needles Size US 5/3.75mm Knitting Needles, or size needed to get gauge.

Yarn 55 grams of Jade Sapphire’s Mongolian Cashmere 2-Ply 100% Cashmere, 400 yards/367 meters. Total Shawl Yardage: 342 yards/314 meters. Color: Winter Sky.

Gauge 16 stitches and 30 rows over 4 inches in Main Body Pattern Stitch.

Pattern Measurements 44.5 inches by 19.5 inches.

Notions Removable Stitch Marker, Darning Needle

Pattern Notes
This shawl is constructed of a main body with a knit-on lace edging. The body is constructed in a traditional triangle method using either the written or charted Pattern Repeat instructions. The knit-on edging begins with Edge Chart, working to the marked center stitch of the body. Short rows are used to shape the edging around the center point of the body. Written instructions are provided for the charts, so you may work from the charts or the written instructions. For more information on knitted lace triangle construction, see http://www.fickleknitter.com/archives/2009/12/knitted_lace_tr.htm

Simple Swish Bulky Hat

Abstract Vine Hat

A few weeks ago things were absolutely fuxored beyond belief a bit hairy when I was writing/knitting/editing/test knitting four patterns in as many days. Three of those patterns were for the new Fall Knit Picks color release, and one was a magazine submission. That little exercise pushed the limits of what I am able to do creativity wise, sanity wise, and knit wise. Every time I'd finish a new pattern I'd announce my accomplishment from my primo seat on the couch and my husband would look at my out of the corner of his eye. Unimpressed Maya kept swinging from the chandelier while simultaneously playing every noise making toy in the house.

I'd like to think the exercise as the Iron Man of knitting. I was either knitting, crying about knitting, writing about crying about knitting, talking about knitting, whacking my knitting, editing knitting, yelling about knitting, or working with (the hands down best in the universe) test knitters and my knitting tech editor. A sonic screwdriver would have been nice.

If I had two I'd have knit with them.

If you'd like to see the results of the most fantastic test knitters in the world, have a look at the ravelry projects for Simple Swish Bulky Hat and Abstract Vine Hat.

Autumn Leaves by Michelle Miller in Issue 11 of Knitcircus Magazine

I'm giving away two copies of the latest fall patterns issue AND a year long subscription to knitcircus in my ravelry group. You don't have to perform stupid human tricks or incredible feats of knitting to win, all members in my ravelry group are automatically in the running for the prizes.

For more fickleknittery goodness please visit my etsy shop, follow me on Twitter or visit my new pattern shop.

Dyeing

Teaching Drop Spindling

Fickleknitter Fiber

Photos from the Spinning-Dyeing-Knitting Workshop where I was asked to Stand Around Looking Important and give my opinions (which is something I really enjoy doing. In fact if there were a job whose sole purpose was to give my opinions, well, we might have to fight over it).