Featured in a Blog!

My store, Yard By Yard Knits, has been featured in a blog! Sherri from Sherri Crochets and Crafts, writes a weekly spotlight on fellow Etsy Knitters. Sherri is one of the team's moderators, so I have to give her big props for that! The group has grown exponentially over the last couple of years, and I can't imagine keeping everyone organized! Be sure to show Sherri some love by checking out her store. She sells patterns for some adorable sock monkeys and amigurumi animals and dolls.

You can read the blog article here: http://www.sherricrochets.com/blog/2010/03/29/meet-etsyknitter-sarah-of-yardbyyardknits/

Here are some pictures of Sherri's cuties!

Sarah's Spotlight - Ana Diaz Arte

Although Katie from Pretty Sneaky was my first official fan on Etsy, Ana was the first person to find my store on their own and mark it a favorite. So I hold a dear place in my heart for Ana! She opened her Etsy shop around the same time I did, and I think I became her first sale when I purchased some gift boxes. Ana now has three Etsy shops, but Ana Diaz Arte is her original. Her other shops, Vellum Creations and AMarte Baby, are equally impressive and showcase the depth of talent Ana has. Her work varies from stamped gift boxes to crocheted baby items to jewelry and accessories.

When Ana's new items pop up on Facebook, I notice a lot of flowers in her work. She credits her grandmother with this interest in nature. Her grandfather used to own a jewelry store, so she was destined to make jewelry from a young age! Ana uses 100% cotton embroidery floss to make her creations. She often adds yarns, beads, or needle felted wool to embellish her items. What really impresses me is when Ana refers to crocheting with embroidery floss. I know how difficult it can be to maintain a consistent guage with fine yarn. Embroidery floss is even thinner! I've had some baby projects that just don't look quite right because the yarn is too thin - maybe it's just my talent level! :)

As with fingerless mitts/gloves, I don't necessarily understand wrist cuffs. But as I shop through Etsy, I realize how popular both items are. Ana offers a nice selection of cuffs in her shop in many colors and styles. These cuffs are one of her most popular items, and she's already sold several. I think my sense of fashion is just too basic! It's only been in the last couple of months that I've been able to wear a pair of heels for the entire day at work - and they're not really even that high!

Ana's always trying to come up with new ideas for her work. I like to follow a pattern from start to finish, so the fact that Ana creates her own designs is pretty impressive to say the least!

Be sure to visit Ana's other pages:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ana-Diaz-Arte/97904437242


Blog: http://anadiazarte.blogspot.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/anadiazarte
Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/anadiazarte/

More Reversible Cables!

Okay, I'll be honest - I have not yet tried out reversible cables. I put my magazine on the bookshelf for safe keeping and proceeded to forget about it! Since I am now in between projects, I might just have to give it a try. This week, I came across patterns for a scarf with reversible cables and a matching hat that has a cabled brim (reversible cables of course!) When I saw these, I realized it was time to test out these cables! These patterns look really nice, so I wanted to share!

Here are pictures of the scarf and hat:

And here are links to the free patterns:

Scarf: http://www.cometosilver.com/patterns/palindrome.htm
Hat: http://www.cometosilver.com/patterns/palindromehat.htm

These are known as the Palindrome Scarf and Hat because a palindrome is something that is the same forward and backward. I wonder if my new yarn will work for this scarf?? I think the pattern uses a heavier yarn than what I have coming in the mail, but it might be worth a try! Now I don't feel so guilty about buying it! :)

My new favorite place to buy yarn!

When I need a specific yarn, I like to support my local yarn store, but they don't always have what I need. The next step is the internet... it's pretty amazing how many yarn stores there are online! But I have to rave about Herrschners. I'm familiar with many other online stores but hadn't come across this one until recently. Herrschners has merchandise for many different crafts. They also have some free patterns and several how-to videos.

I think their yarn selection varies widely. The yarn I originally purchased is no longer available on the website. But they offer incredible prices on their yarns - everything is marked down from their suggested retail. And on top of that, they offer weekly specials and "hot buys" for even better prices!

As much as I love fancy yarn, I tend to buy less expensive yarns. My closet is full of Lion Brand Wool-Ease at the current moment because it's been great for my holiday pillows and dog sweaters. I keep telling myself that once my store picks up and I have more sales, then I can afford the nicer yarns! I love Herrschners because you can pick up some great yarns on a hot buy! I signed up for email updates and think I need to take my name off the list because it's so tempting. I've managed so far to make only one purchase, but it's been hard not to buy more! I'm about to check out yarn measurements for a baby hoodie pattern to see if one of their sale yarns matches what I need. I already think it's too thin, so I might just pull out some more willpower and close the website!

Okay, I failed miserably at that. I did not buy the yarn for the baby sweater but did buy the yarn I saw earlier today that I absolutely love. Here's a picture:

I ordered three balls of this color and three balls of a rich purple to make some scarves. Here's what sucked me in - there were only three balls remaining of the purple. I'd hate to check back tomorrow and see that they're gone... this is the same reason why I eat so many sweets at work. I'm not known for my willpower - ask any of my coworkers. Each ball of yarn was only $2.99. That's not so bad right? I promised no new yarn until I use more of what I have in my closet. But these balls are very little and don't take up much room. And, I don't actually have any yarn in stock right now for scarves, so that makes it okay. I think that's enough excuses for now. Sigh... it's tough to be addicted to yarn!

Sarah's Spotlight - Gourds By Design

There are gourds, and then there are gourds. The vases and bowls found at Gourds By Design definitely fall into the "and then there are gourds" category. I happen to like gourds quite bit and am mostly used to the soft ornamental gourds my mom put out every Halloween with our pumpkins. Then I came across Gourds By Design and found a whole new world of gourds!

The owner of this shop admits that she discovered gourds by accident. She has been a crafter and enjoys making clothes, weaving fabrics, knitting, and quilting. Then she came across a book on gourd art, and we can all see what direction she went in!

I'm definitely impressed reading about the process of gourd art. When I first came across her shop, I thought the owner is a very good painter who happens to paint on gourds. The owner gives a very good description in her profile which helps the shopper really appreciate the art. Here are the steps involved in making each gourd you see in this shop:

1) Cut the gourd to the shape you want and then sand the edges to smooth them out;

2) Remove the tough fibers from inside the gourd. This artists paints the insides of her gourds black to give it a finished look;

3) Draw a design on the outside of the gourd;

4) The pencil lines are wood burned onto the gourd;

5) Paint the gourd with three coats of archival quality ink dyes;

6) Varnish the gourd with three coats of a varnish designed to be used on gourds - this gives the gourd the glossy finish that you see. 

You can see for yourself that the end result is stunning! These gourds are meant for decorative use only. They should not be used for food or water. I love to see the variety of designs that this artist uses. A large number of her designs seem to be inspired by nature, but there are also vases and bowls with geometrical patterns on them. She even currently has one necklace with a gourd pendant! How creative!

If you buy two gourds, the second one ships for free! Be sure to take advantage of this great deal!

Spotlight on Max and Izzy

Sigh... what to do... Dan had another assignment due this week which limited my computer time drastically. Then, I had evening plans out tonight which means I don't have time to write full spotlight. I love browsing through my favorites and new stores to feature one in my spotlight! As you can tell, I don't write many other, regular articles for my blog. So I hate to miss my spotlight this week, but I think my next one will wait until Monday. Instead, I spotlight once again those adorable fuzzy felines in New Orleans, Max and Izzy.

My sister was so excited that her cats are now on the web! They're famous, she says! She sent me some more pictures of them, and they happen to be sleeping on a blanket I knit for her. Kristen really wanted me to make her a blanket, and I told her if she bought the yarn, then sure I would make a blanket. Well, one weekend together in Maine visiting our family, she was ready to go yarn shopping! She settled on a nice wave pattern that uses Lion Brand Homespun - one of my favorite yarns. It can be a pain to knit with since the needles can snag on the loops, but the yarn is very forgiving when you make mistakes! We spent quite a long time at Jo-Ann Fabric matching colors to the pattern.

Her cats immediately took to it and spend many an hour sleeping on their new blanket. It's a little difficult to see the blanket, so I've also posted a picture of a scarf I made with the remaining yarn. It's just a narrower version of the same pattern. Okay, I really am spotlighting the cats and not my knitting, but I need a little ego trip after a long day at work! :)

Thanks Lori!

I have to give a big thanks to Lori from Lori's Place. She was so touched by my recent spotlight that she sent me a few cookies as a thank you. I can't believe how quickly my cookies showed up, but last night, I had four shortbread cookies waiting in my mailbox - all beautifully packaged of course! You can definitely taste the Caribbean kick that she adds to them. These shortbread cookies are delicious - and they look even nicer in person. I still can't believe that Lori hand decorates each cookie! Such great work!