Not Just a Song: Penny Lane, the Sweater

Oh, holy cow.  Has it been four score and eighteen decades since I last blogged???

Feels like it.  I actually swear I have a pair of socks and something else I need to blog about, but the dog days of summer blew past AND dragged on, if that's possible, and I have done NO sewing.  So, in all actuality, DARK days.  Camden has no clothing for the fall, other than a few dresses.  Thankfully, she just wears swimsuits and leotards all summer, so, we've been golden so far ;)

But check out, peeps!!!  What a fun sweater (project page here)!!!  This is one of those great yarn, easy pattern, lovely outcome sort of posts.  The sweater is obviously meant for the coming months (not sure why I chose to do a short-sleeved sweater AFTER this one, LOL), but I'm glad we're ready.

Getting that dance on!

The pattern is Penny Lane, by Julia Stanfield (Facebook page here).  I'm belatedly noticing that she has a sale in her Ravelry store with code "k2tog kal" - if I publish this today, August 13, go check it out!!  It's a pretty simple pattern with cable work down the front, only.  I did find the needle requirements written sort of loosely, so, I wasn't sure which needles to use where, only because I'm weird, I think.  I originally tried the neck on a smaller needle but went up to a size 5 and did the main sweater on size 3 needles.  My only issue with the pattern is that the sleeve count at the split is too high - in my opinion.  I think it's too much positive ease, and I wish I'd thought about that/realized that before I was as far in. In the end, I went with laziness, but I super decreased those sleeves.  In project pictures on Ravelry, you'll probably notice other people knit looser sleeves, but I don't like them baggy on the forearms.  The sweater is definitely meant to be knit as a tunic, when it's knit for girls, but I knit it a bit shorter - in essence of time and hand-pain.

My yarn is Colour Adventures, base Dia Twist DK in colorway Raspberry Chocolate (I also just checked out her store, and she has a lovely green gradient worsted set in stock!), and it was super lovely to knit up.  It's definitely tricky to get the colorway across correctly in the pictures.  I always recommend Elena's yarn, and she does co-ops a couple times a year, where you can pay less for her yarn, which is awesome.

This photography stuff is EASY ;)

Nothing much else to say - other than crazy photos, due to light and a kid who doesn't care to pose these days ;)

And....how summer has been going....

Awww, little guy can only party so long

Friends in town!!!

Grandma and Grandpa came to visit!

LOL at the only slide camden was able to use....

Of course....

A Knitting FOOL - Or, Time's 'a Runnin' OUT

Listening to a little Schubert and Beethoven while Camden bathes - figuring I should whip up a wee blog post about what I HAVE, indeed, been working on.  It's been radio silent on my blog, as I've been knitting furiously these past several weeks.  And doing wee, teeny blog posts on each item would be silly, to say the least, so, I took a few pictures yesterday - nothing fancy, and clearly NO action shots, but it's what we have ;)

Incidentally, I was basically forced to knit so much, as my machines were up in Portland, receiving a yearly service.  While I have a back-up machine at home, I can't do any projects (well, almost none) without my serger.  Lack of awesome weather put a stop to me picking up my machines a couple weeks ago, though I WAS able to crank out ONE project, as it was fully lined - a gift for Camden's friend in Vancouver.  I do not have any action shots of the friend in it at this point, but gosh - I sure wish Camden had a red coat!!!  :O  I've used the DMK Stylish Kid's Coat once before, and it's a super easy pattern, things going together quite well.  I did size up to 4, with a length of 5.  It's not supposed to be snug, by any means, but a size 4 is quite roomy on camden.  I did use a 1/2" seam allowance for the sleeve/side seams; otherwise, the pattern used a 3/8" SA.  As you can see below, I also used decorative stitching for underneath the collar - adding the girl's initials.  A fancier move would have been to whip out the embroidery module, but I was lacking time.

Getting back on topic....I have knit a million (well, CLOSE) pairs of socks, hats, longies and a sweater!

I am awesome in that I used my Socks That Rock by Blue Moon Fiber arts in tie-dye yarn to make four pairs of socks and two hats!  Back when Camden was a baby, I knit her a toddler-sized sock, but my gauge has changed since then, and I wasn't able to replicate the sock, so, I took it out and re-did it, along with making the match - finally ;)  And she LOVES to wear them allll the time!  I did have trouble with pooling on this size at the gauge asked for, so, I added stitches, which made them too wide around her leg/ankle, which is a bummer.  I should have decreased sooner - before heading into the heel flap, but such is life.  I used the Children's Easy Lightweight Sock Pattern.  I have the paper pattern, but it can be found HERE on Ravelry.

As for the baby socks I have knit up - I've simply used the Plymouth Yarn Happy Feet sock pattern for alllll of them - one pair, including one tie-dye hat, is a gift, and my wee baby gets the same set, so, as you can SEE, I'm alllll done with tie-dye yarn.  For realz.  The hat to match the tie-dye socks is the Twist pattern by Melissa Goodale.  I also have the paper version, along with the sister pattern, the Sprout hat.  I love the pattern, but after knitting two of those in fingering weight yarn, I'm sort of worn out, aha!

White/green pair knit using remnants from my stash - green pair is Madelinetosh (!!!)

For the longies, I used the tried-and-true Evie Pants pattern by Marilyn Porter.  It's what I used with Camden back in the day, though I hadn't knitted tiny longies for her .....tiny things definitely go faster ;)  I've done two pairs so far.  The green pair is Mosaic Moon, Salmon (of??) Wisdom and the blue pair is Maclir, also by Mosaic Moon.  The Salmon colorway was left-overs from a sweater Camden has, and the Maclir was a purchase from a mom on Ravelry.  I did make a hat to match the Maclir pair - the Otis pattern (FREE, people!!!).  I do recognize it's larger, aha!  Poor baby may swim in it, unless he/she pops out with gigantor head.  One never knows.  Anyhow, I DO have one more pair to knit up, when I receive yarn purchased from another mom.

The two hats are just the Blue Sky Baby's First Hat pattern - the green with Blue Sky Bulky and the red hat with Mirasol Sulka yarn - allll yarn from my stash, so another score!  Clearly, the red hat is meant for months down the road, so, I hope the timing will be right for the fit, and I DO hope the green hat will fit right away, though it IS quite bulky (so, will it be COZY???).  This pattern is honestly an easy fall-back pattern.  I like the ribbing and garter brim - super simple and EASY to modify from baby through adult.

Lastly, I used the Puerperium Cardigan pattern by Kelly Brooker (also FREE in the newborn size!).  I mostly did it because it was free.  The pattern itself is simple, easy to follow, etc.  I'm not in LOVE with the yarn choice, but I was being GOOD (read: poor!) and using yarn from my stash.  It's Blue Sky Alpaca Melange, which is fuzzy and such.  It'll work, but I do wish I'd had enough DK yardage in another colorway/yarn.  The part I AM excited about is the buttons!!!!!  Aren't they most beautiful???   They're Tessa Ann Designs, the Organic set - which I chose because it was rather gender neutral and fit with the yarn color/design of the sweater.  I die at their cuteness.  This is clearly the baby's first sweater, and the baby will also get to wear Camden's first sweater.

As for knitting in general, I hope to finish a sweater vest for Camden by tomorrow night, which will be her last for quite some time.  As for sewing, I hope to sew a TON from Friday through Wednesday, when Matt is out of town on a ski trip!!!  Those'll all be projects for Camden, so, we'll see what I can get through  :O

Tessa Ann Designs (Buttons, y'all!!) interview time!

Holla, y'all!  Tonight, I'm featuring an interview with Tessa of Tessa Ann Designs.  She and her husband design and sell super fun polymer clay buttons on Etsy, which people use for knitting, sewing, hair accessories and even collecting!  Her Facebook page can be found here, and just drop a convo on Etsy if you are needing any customs - or look through the pages and pages of ideas!

Here are a couple pictures of Camden in projects with her TA buttons!  (And let me tell y'all out there that it is WAY a LOT of WORK to scour for old pictures that show what you want in DETAIL.  Argh.)

Oliver and S Book Report dress

Springtime in Hollis

Wendy Sweater

Without further ado....

What started you in the business of making buttons?  Did it start out as mostly a hobby/side business, or did you have big plans from the beginning?  

In an effort to create a new idea for a scrapbooking embellishment for a project of mine, my husband and I discovered polymer clay in our local craft store aisle. We knew we wanted to make handmade buttons with it, but had no idea how we would even begin. We scoured the aisles of Michael's, pulling things that were good shapes and textures in order to possibly make buttons. I was working at my local scrapbooking store part-time during this time and my employer really loved the buttons I was creating and let me put a row of buttons up on the shelves for sale. Within the day, they were mostly sold out. This excited me. I went home, and Steve and I baked trays and trays of buttons to take and restock the shelves. Again, they sold out. A customer suggested we open a little shop on Etsy. I had never heard of Etsy, so I had to check it out. I was so impressed at the level of creativity on Etsy. I read success stories about how people were supporting themselves through their hobby. I had to try. This had always been a dream of mine. To support my family doing something I was actually passionate about and loved doing, not just clocking in at a meaningless 9-5 job, where I was just present and getting through the work day. In April of 2008, I opened my Etsy shop, selling my buttons on handmade decorative pillows. After many e-mails and messages from potential customer,s inquiring about where they could find the buttons on the pillows, I only then was confident enough to list a few sets. Again, they sold out. This little bit of success excited us and we began trying out many styles of buttons and really mastering our craft.

For your particular business, did it take a lot of capital to start up, or was that not a huge factor?

It took us literally, under $10 to start our business initially. Product cost was super low and Etsy’s  fees were reasonable.

I understand this is a husband/wife effort; was it that way from the beginning?  How did it come about?  

Steve and I have worked on buttons together from the very beginning - always a team, but at that time, he worked full-time, managing a bank, and would come home to help me fill orders. Two years later, we realized we could do well with both of us at home filling orders and creating new designs. It was January of 2010 when we decided to see if we could make it work... if we could earn a living all on our own, making our handmade buttons. It was scary and we were unsure, but we did it, anyway. We believed in our buttons, and by that time, they had become a huge hit and we were shipping them all over the world.

Buttons soon to find a home

It's all in the details!

Is the business now something bigger than you thought it would ever be, and what are your hopes for expansion, in terms of new products that you offer?  I see, for example, that you recently came out with stitch markers for knitters - had people been asking for them?  What else do you offer now, besides buttons?

I am always dreaming of expanding and taking our business to the next level. I dream of teaming with a manufacturer and creating an entire line of product based on our button designs. I can envision an end-cap at the end of Joann Fabrics, with a collection of fabric, buttons, yarn and trims that all coordinate. We really try and pay attention to what our customers are asking for, and stitch markers were something that was continually brought up. “Oh, your buttons would make the most adorable stitch markers” is what we heard over and over. We decided to buy some supplies, make a few up and see how the response was. Just like our buttons, the response was awesome and we now have a rather large list of custom orders that we are excited to create.

What makes this the best job for you and your family?  How does it help and how does it hinder you when you need to make plans/go out of town?  Do you and your husband work together or separately during the course of a week?

Working from home has its benefits and struggles. The benefit is we can raise our daughter together as a team, and we can come and go as we please. We can work as much or as little as we want. We can show up for work in our PJs!! Nothing is tying us down. We also love that we can literally run our business anywhere in the world. We have even dreamed of living abroad for a year or two. Travel plans have to be really planned out ahead of time, as we never close our business, and we always have pages of orders to fill each week. So, going out of town means working double time to get caught up. This means we really don’t go out of town but only 1-2 times a year. It’s a sacrifice we have to make now, but we feel it is worth it, as our business is just growing and growing. We feel we live in the most beautiful town on Earth, so just taking a drive to the river or heading downtown Bend to have some cocoa is enough of a vacation for us!  Before our baby girl was born, we worked side-by-side 10-12 hours a day 7 days a week creating and filling orders. We can’t really do that now with an almost 2 year-old. We have a good system in place. In the morning, I answer emails while he gets her breakfast. When she goes for her morning nap, I head up and help him fill orders. In the afternoons, we trade off working, based on who has the most buttons to make and who can get them done most quickly. Admittedly, Steve is much quicker at reproducing buttons than I am. I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist and a bit too meticulous ;)  

Lastly, when creating custom products for customers, what helps you in the design process?  What do you like a customer to help out with?  Photos, etc.?

When customers contacts us for a custom order, they usually have an idea of what they want, and I just help them decide what colors they would like if they are matching to a yarn or fabric. There are times, though, when a customer has no idea what they want and that’s always fun too! I usually reply with an outline of what I need to get the creative process going such as: What size of buttons does your project call for? How many buttons do you need for your project? Most of our customers are knitters, so a colorway name is usually given or a photo is attached by the customer of their work in progress. And, lastly the theme. Do they want simple buttons or something with a design? Once they reply with these questions answered, I am able to brainstorm and come up with ideas for them to choose.  I always love taking photos of the finished custom order and proudly (okay, sometimes nervously) presenting the order to the customer, hoping he or she will love what we have designed for them. Each button is made with a lot of heart and soul :)

All those buttons!

Thanks so much to Tessa for this great interview!!!  Her is a photo of her super cute family!