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A fabulous new knitwear designer has recently joined my team, the talented and environmentally conscious Michelle Miller of Fickleknitter Design.  Michelle designs for women and children, combing beauty with practicality making her projects lasting and inspiring. 

Meet Michelle: Michelle
enjoys creating affordable, innovative, mostly seamless knitwear.  She’s a stay-at-home mama, physics grad student, blogger and dabbler of all things fiber.  She’ll have her Master’s Degree as soon as she finished her thesis (which she’ll work on after this row).  Find her at www.fickleknitter.com

Michelle takes design cues from timeless classics, but adds her signature spin, enabling you to update your wardrobe with just a few quality knits. 

For example
her

Stargyle Scarf is a delightful play on the traditional argyle design, giving this preppy favorite a unique flair. 

And her seamless, flattering

Hollywood and Vine top will fast become a staple in your wardrobe for
layering, at work or play, you’ll want to knit this basic over and over in a
variety of colors. 

As we discussed in the February Newsletter a knitter’s fancy turns to lace as spring approaches and Michelle’s two lace designs are beautiful as they are versatile. 

Warm your shoulders with her graceful

Pivot shawl.

And style the

Versacowl in three different ways to update your jacket or coat.

And get a whole new kick out of the classic Mary Jane style shoe.  Michelle has updated this easy slip on design into a pair of soft, warm slippers, knit a pair of Mama Janes for yourself.

And precious the

Baby Janes for a darling little one.

Shine at the next baby shower you attend with Michelle’s Follow The Bouncing Ball
toy.  The first thing baby plays with should be soft, squeezable and fit easily into their hands and this design is perfect.

And finally, Michelle understands our efforts to Go Green and takes Reduce, Reuse and Recycle to a whole new level with these two money saving projects the

Reusable Paper Towel and for doing the marketing the

Reusable Produce Bag.

All Fickleknitter Design patterns are sold as PDF downloads, no shipping fees and the PDFs are emailed to you after purchase.

Elegant, luxurious, stylish - is there a single word to describe Katya Frankel’s fingerless gloves?  Ritzy!  Knit in a round with DK weight yarn using a simple stitch pattern that creates great texture of those perfect looking gathers around the wrists. The pattern is written in two sizes to fit women’s s/m and m/l, shown in a larger size with about 1 inch of negative ease.

 
 SKILL LEVEL: Intermediate – knit, purl, working in the round on double pointed needles, backward loop cast on – basic instructions included, simple decreases and finishing.
 TO FIT SIZE: Women’s S/M (M/L)
 FINISHED MEASUREMENTS: 5 ½ (6 ½) in / 14 (16.5) cm hand circumference. Shown in larger size with about 1 in of negative ease.
 YARN: Approximately 115 (140) yards / 105 (125)meters of any yarn which knits to the specified gauge. Sample done in Merino Blend DK (123 yards / 112m per 50g skein) by King Cole, shade 703.
 GAUGE: 22 sts and 28 rnds = 4” (10 cm) over Stocking stitch knit in the round.
 NEEDLES: Size 4 mm (US5) double pointed needles or size required to obtain correct gauge.
 NOTIONS: Stitch marker, waste yarn or a small stitch holder, tapestry needle.

This pattern is sold as  PDF file that will be emailed to you after purchase, there are no shipping fees for patterns sold as PDF files.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Some of the most beautiful hand knits that knitters and crocheters fashion are gauzy, flowing gossamer creations of lace.  With intricate stitches and chart reading, lace is the perfect new technique to learn for the new year. 

And with nationwide temps hitting below zero HATS still reign as the season’s best accessory, and I have some new patterns for you. 

In This Issue: Knit or Crochet a Lace Shawl / Smart Layering Continued / The Gansey Patterned & Snow Day Hats / Hats Made Easy / Warm A Loved One’s Heart /

Knit or Crochet a Lace Shawl
Lace knitting is addictive, but many knitters have never tried it or have become discouraged because the project they chose was not suitable for a beginner.  Susan Lawrence of I’m Knitting As Fast As I Can wrote her Forest Canopy Shoulder Shawl pattern specifically for beginners.  More experienced lace knitters will find this pattern perfect for quick gifts or choose a finer gauge and knit a larger shawl.  The pattern contains comprehensive information on knitting lace, including tips on choosing yarn and needles, avoiding and fixing mistakes and swatching.

I

t’s never to early to be planning for spring!  Like a breath of fresh air Knitting As Fast As I Can’s Spring Things Shawl is a small shawl knit from the center back of the neck down to the bottom edge.  This lovely shawl is suitable for an adventurous beginner or intermediate knitter.  

And Gardiner Yarn Works introduces their Spring, 2009 collection with two lace projects that are also perfect for an advanced beginner.  The One Night Stand scarf, by Leila Wice, is designed to be knit up in a single evening, using just one skein of yarn.  Or Practice your lace skills with Sharon Spence’s simple pattern, inspired by an Aboriginal hunting tool the Boomerang Lace Scarf. 

The Boomerang is knit with just one skein of Malabrigo’s Lace Baby Merino, which is On Sale for only $8.96 a hank, making this luxurious lace scarf very economical.

Or perhaps you’re ready for a crochet project, Jill Wright’s, also part of Gardiner Yarn Works’ Spring, 2009 Collection, lovely and warm Woven Illusions stole is crocheted in a jiffy. It uses an easily memorized yet interesting stitch pattern and soft alpaca yarn to create the perfect shoulder warmer!

And if you only have time to crochet one shawl this season make it Schaefer’s Anne Lace Shawl!  This stunning shawl can be worn alone or to dress up a jacket or coat, you won’t need another accessory!  It is crocheted with one skein of Schaefer’s  Anne, a super soft fingering weight yarn crafted from 60% merino wool, 25% mohair and 15% nylon .

And Anne is On Sale for 25% Off making this unique crocheted lace shawl a very affordable accessory.

Smart Layering Continued
With winter in full force across the country layering is on your mind, in January I introduced Lisa Ellis Designs’ Super Bulky Vests for Women and Children.  This month Cardiff Bay Handknits’ brings you her India Sweater Vest a timeless garment that looks great with a tee and jeans for weekends, or over a blouse for the office. 

The Gansey Patterned & Snow Day Hats
Searching for a simple, yet stylish hat to take you through the winter?  Knit up Catherine Devine’s Lola Gansey Patterned Hat, the border is knit in the gansey stitch.  Knit with one skein of Schaefer’s easy care, 100% merino wool superwash yarn Lola and Lola is now 25% Off, making this hat not only stylish, but within budget!

Or whip up Gardiner Yarn Works’ new fun and functional Snow Day hat and mitts set in a few evenings. The stretchy rib will accommodate a wide range of kid-to-adult heads and hands - just adjust the length to fit!

Hats Made Easy
Now finding your next hat, scarf or mitten project just got a whole lot easier!  I’ve organized all my knitwear designer’s accessory patterns so your favorite is only a click away.

• Hats

• Mittens & Gloves

• Cowls, Moebius & Wimples

• Scarves

• Children & Teens

• Infants

Warm A Loved One’s Heart
Kate Park of Caffaknitted has added two new adorable plush toys to her line just in time to conquer the cold and celebrate Valentine’s day!  Knit the adorable Mr Abominable for your favorite sweetie and the rocker Jess doll will heat up any deep freeze with her smokin’ hot knitted bod and rockin’ felted guitar!

Thank you for sharing my February news, may this month find you surrounded by loved ones and much loved fiber arts projects.  If you’re on Ravelry please stop by and introduce yourself in my group, Sandrasingh.com.  And remember I’m just a phone call 877/519-1693 or email sandrasingh@sandarsingh.com away to help with any of your fiber arts needs.