Home Economist Book Idea?

I've been wanting to try my hand at knitwear design now that I've become comfortable with my own knitting skills. Skimming through Ravelry looking for inspiration, I was struck with an idea: what if I really liked knitwear design, and ended up with a bunch of decent patterns? What if I could make a book of them, and, you know, sell it? Then the gears really started cranking. I'd want something really original and unique. I'm already The Home Economist, so why not run with that? So, here's what I'd do, if I ever got around to doing it:

The Home Economist Knitting Book (title TBD) would have maybe 20 patterns, since that seems to be the norm. Each pattern would have an economics term for a name, like a pair of gloves called The Invisible Hand. Included would also be a little write-up explaining the term in a clever (well, that's subjective) way that would appeal to knitters.

Example:

Picture a form-fitting, kind of sexy sweater called "Demand Curve" (double entendre intentional!) with the following blurb: 

Demand Curve: a line on a graph that proves to your husband that when your LYS (local yarn shop) is having a big sale, the most rational thing for you to do is buy up extra cashmere yarn.

I've made up a whole list of terms that could work for pattern names, but I'll keep those to myself for the time being.

The Home Economist: Free Market Knitter (drawing also my own) coming someday to a yarn shop near you??

I've designed a few small things myself in the past, (like this and this) but it's time to take it to the next level. I'm going to use Shirley Paden's Knitwear Design Workshop to help me get started. Why not? I'm always trying to add to my skill set and accomplishments, and this seems like the natural next step. And if the step after that, and the step after that, and the step after that leads to something like this book idea, then great! If not, I'll still be a few steps ahead of where I am now.

Oh, also, while we are thinking about knitting puns and such, I also had an idea for an eco-friendly organic line of yarn called "Moral Fiber". Ha! I crack myself up. Who knows, somebody probably already thought of this and makes it for all I know, but I've never seen it. If you are a spinner looking for a name for your yarn, feel free to use it. I'm not a spinner, and don't really plan on being one, plus I think that intellectual property (owning ideas) is kind of silly. Go for it.

Guess Who?!

Guess whose picture now graces the main product page for a certain lovely scarf pattern on Ravelry? Mine!

Needle Felting for Peace

I made this little wristlet/ coin purse thingy a couple of months ago and I completely forgot to post it! It was an experimentation in felting, both wet felting and needle felting. For the body of the bag (the white part) I knit with a nice feltable wool and then agitated it in hot and soapy water (scrubbing with my hands). You know how when you accidentally stick a wool sweater in the washer/dryer and it shrinks and becomes a really stiff fabric? That's felting. The fibers get all tight and tangled, never to be loosened again. With needle felting (for the designs on front and back), you make a design with yarn or with loose fluffy wool by stabbing it repeatedly on the surface you want it to be on (the white background) with a sharp, barbed needle. This is another way of tangling the fibers so that they interlock, only in a more specific way. The experiment was a success. I also lined the inside with colorful fabric, and used grosgrain ribbon, a zipper, and a lobster clasp to finish it off.

Peace, Love, Anarchy

Can you tell that this is supposed to represent world peace? 

Cabled Collar Cap-sleeve Tee

Just in time for warm spring weather, I've finished a new knitted tee! This one is a cotton-linen blend yarn. It has short cap sleeves and a ribbed cable design on the collar. The pattern is from Vogue Knitting, Spring/Summer 2011. 

Rainbow Scarf

I've been pretty lazy about getting around to posting this, my latest creation. As you can see, I am even taking the ol' "cell phone photo in the bathroom mirror" route of laziness. I didn't even bother to let my hair down or remove my glasses, for goodness sake! That does not mean, however, that this is not a wonderful finished product! It's quite lovely in person, actually. This scarf is perfect for spring and warmer weather because it is so light and airy, made of the most delicate cobweb yarn. It shifts colors many times, and because of the lightness of it all reminds me of a pale rainbow in the sky. The billowy effect is achieved by using two different sets of needles, one large (size 10) and one small (size 2) as well as using increases and decreases. Here's the pattern.