Still in the bag

Waiting to be brought to the studio...

Next steps

Since May 8th, a couple more skirts have sold, including an aqua one that was photographed for potential use in an article in a local publication... I'll let you know on Thursday what the word on the street is.

I've also received and cashed my first check from vive la femme. What a Thrill! Thus far (hey, it's really only been a month) I've had a really positive experience and am VERY motivated to forge ahead with this whole thing. Good thing, because it looks like I'll be quite consistently busy for the summer. Stephanie has ordered new skirts to be ready for every Friday thru August!!!!!

First step... let's go shopping!


Stay tuned for a little fabric preview.

Whirlwind!

So... The first round of 14 skirts were all on the floor Thursday May 8. The store was beautiful...


I saw lots of lovely ladies trying my skirts on....

And by the end of the night, half of my skirts had sold... so I'm feeling pretty great about my new venture!

multi directional scarf

multi directional scarf
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

So, in between sewing, I've been working on my first multi-directional scarf. I used Noro Silver Thaw in Color 2 - purple, greens, pink. It's a very easy pattern, great for the bus, and I REALLY dig how the long Noro color runs work with the pattern. I will have used 2 hanks when it's all done, yielding a cozy, long scarf.

The scarves I make for myself - very few, surprisingly, tend to not be the long cuddly kind. Once finished, I'll get to pine away for it until it gets cold in the fall :)

SOLD!

SOLD!
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

So, Tuesday, May 6 vive la femme sold two Redskew skirts. Here's a pic of Mary, the very first person to buy one of my skirts! She was kind enough to let me take her picture with the skirt. YAY!

Skirts, round 2

Turquoise floral fabric
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

This turquoise floral fabric has been sewn into skirts already, but you'll have to wait until after Thursday to see it all done up. I'm onto my third fabric in this skirt style and looks like I'll be quite ready for the party on Thursday.

Skirt on Body

Steph modelling
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

This is the lovely Stephanie Sack, owner of vive la femme, modeling the yellow floral skirt with a magenta Schaart canvas jacket.

Skirts, round 1

Yellow floral fabric
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

This is the fabric I chose for the first round of skirts. This fabric ( cotton with a little lycra for stretch, typical for this design) is a sunny yellow with magenta, tangerine, pink and lime floral.

Revamp

Patterns
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

So, last week I got some very good advise from another designer, which resulted in revamping my approach to meet my deadline. The first skirt has been simplified and I made sturdy chipboard patterns to cut from. Onward ho!

Almost ready to sell....

Almost ready to sell....
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

I'm still working out some kinks in the design, but I should be ready to go by the 8th. A lot of sewing got done last week, and I figured out the hang tags for the first run. I'm waiting on a fabric order. I'm anticipating 2-4 different colors/fabric patterns to be available in the first round of this straight forward A-line skirt. For sale beginning May 8th at vive la femme.

First Fabric

First Fabric
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

Here is the first fabric I'm preparing for my skirt line. It's a two tone red floral print, cotton and lycra.

The patterns

The patterns
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

Here are the muslin patterns, hanging in my studio, from which I make the skirts.

So, here's the story

I realized this morning that I haven't really explained what is going on. Short version - after my mom died in February (from an aneurysm after 6 months of treatment for pancreatic cancer), I was laid off from my architecture position in a small firm. That was the 2nd time in about a year that I had been laid off from jobs I was less than happy in. I took it all as giant billboard on the road of life to take the exit I've been dreaming of and planning for on the back burner. After discussions with my husband and closest advisors, I decided to start my own clothing design business.

Redskew, LLC was offically born (in the state of IL), April 16, 2008. I'm currently in design and development of my first line of plus size (12-24) skirts, which I've been documenting here, and will continue to. They will be for sale at vive la femme, 2048 N. Damen, Chicago, IL beginning May 8, 2008. If things go well, I plan to sell on etsy.com and surely expand my market from there.

Knittingwise, I've been doing more theraputic projects since mom passed - my second clapotis, a short row hat, both in Noro Silver Thaw, and a couple of easy, pretty gifts to have on hand. Check out the pics at flickr

So, that's the story. Stay tuned for regular updates...

vive la femme front desk

vive la femme front desk
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

I was quite busy at vive last week. I worked with Stephanie to get some accents up at the store. I completed 4 floral arrangements for the storefront and the front desk. They're SO pretty and really make the place pop.

Storefront

vive la femme storefront
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

Here's a shot of the vive la femme storefront. 2048 N. Damen, Chicago, IL. Starting May 8, you can find Redskew skirts here. Stephanie Sack is the awesome owner of this boutique, specializing in sizes 12-24.

First View

redskew workshop
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

Here's the first shot of my workshop/studio. Redskew, LLC has a home! keep looking here for updates on my clothing design business. I will still be posting some knitting, but a May 8 launch date (skirts by Redskew will be for sale for the first time) will be taking most of my time. A friend suggested I track my progress of developing my business here. So, look out for regular posts!

Brocade Blanket on Display

Brocade Blanket on Display
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

Here's a detail shot of my Brocade Blanket.

Sweaters and Blanket on Display

Sweaters and Blanket on Display
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

A couple of weeks ago, Arcadia Knitting hosted some out of town knit shop owners. As part of the festivities, Kathy and Sharon put some of their customers' work on display. I was lucky to have three of my finished projects up on the back wall. From left to right, Bombshell (From Big Girl Knits, yarn: GGH Bel Air), Pink Skirt (not mine), Maris (from Rowan 41, yarn: Rowan Calmer), Blue Sweater (not mine), Brocade Blanket (From Kaffe Knits Again, yarn: Lion Brand Vanna's Choice Solid), Grey Scarf (not mine).

Korknisse from Andrea

Korknisse from Andrea
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

This adorable little project was a gift from my knitter friend Andrea. The cork (body) is from my birthday celebration this year and the yarn is my favorite Malabrigo! So Cute!

Brocade throw

Brocade throw- front
Originally uploaded by redskewknits

My current project is Kaffe Fassett's Brocade throw from Kaffe Knits Again, published in 2007. It's a real joy to knit. It's a gift for my parents and is about 70% complete. It is as wide as a twin bed and will end up being about 1.25-1.5 times as long.

DIY Trunkshow

Yesterday I hit up the DIY Trunkshow and found quite a few goodies, and in no particular order, I'm going to give some shout outs...

I picked up a snappy glass slide necklace from VooDoo Toaster

Kitty Grrlz had some lovely hand spun yarn

I found some CUTE beaded knitterly gifts from Natalia Uribe Wilson

Forgotten Toybox had really clever journals with working gears on the front cover

Rebecca at Blue Buddha Boutique had some really fantastic chain mail jewelry (metal and plastic) and accessories

Three LOVELY papergood sources: Starshaped Press, Girl Metro and 16Sparrows.

Kiku Handmade had super fun glass pendants, earrings and belt buckles with fun images of yarn with knitting needles , pop-art graphic, birds and much more!

GroveCraft had totally cute mittens made from recycled sweaters!

Rob Christopher offered up this AMAZING box of cards with stories on each card - kind of like a twisted, adult version of choose-your-own adventure.

Last, but certainly not least, Floriole Bakery provided delicious organic, locally produced, French pastries (and a lovely apple cider).

Anyone who missed this great event, many of the vendors will also be at DepartMENT
December Friday, November 30 (7p-11p) thru Sunday, December 2 (11a-5p Sat and Sun) at 2000 W Fulton

A knitting update is on the way...

My first Class

I've been knitting for about 4 years, and I've never taken a class. I'm the tenacious sort who learns from books and figures things out by hook or by crook. I feel pretty accomplished for all the projects I've worked on. Amongst other things, I've learned that I LOVE color. I will be taking my first class with BRANDON MABLY!

There's still room for some more students:

Arcadia Knitting

Saturday October 6 and/or Sunday October 7

10am-4pm

Contact Arcadia for more info - hope to see you!

UGH

Sorry for the bad photos in the last post. The camera is really not cooperating with me lately... Hopefully the next post will be better.

midsummer knits

Crochet grocery bag in Hemp for Knitting's Cashmere Canapa in Cristallo Blue with stash yarn (cotton) accent

The handle needs to be finished

Original Design











Purse panel to be felted - various yarns, including Lamb's Pride Bulky in Kiwi and Knit Pick's Wool of the Andes in hyacinth, spruce, avocado and grass

2nd (back) panel knitting completed on 8/5/07

Original design






Rowan Maris in Rowan Calmer, Calm colourway

So far, the back and 3/4 of the first sleeve are complete; 2 fronts and 2nd sleeve to complete before October.










My Clapotis in Malabrigo Red Pearl

Have just passed the halfway point

Knitting Delinquent

I've been busy - some knitting, but mostly everything else in life has been upside down for nearly the last 6 months. I've got the blogging bug again, and lots of projects in the pipeline to talk about!

I've got another blog Redskew Knits where I'll post the classes I'm teaching and current professional pursuits. I'll maintain this here blog for my personal knitting. I'll cross post any big news.

Also, the camera is on the fritz, so bear with me on the lacking images - I'm working on it!

Ok, on to the knitting.

From Rowan 41 - 'Maris' in Calmer, Calm colorway. The back is complete and I'm nearly halfway done with the right front! I'm working to an October deadline...















My friend Jess over at Awl Cowgirl Western Gear and I have some projects in the pipeline that I'm very excited about.

I'm working on an adorable stuffed brontosaurs from Family Circle Easy Baby Knits

Still plugging away on Annie Modesitt's Backyard Leaves Scarf

PROGRESS!

I've been pretty busy the past couple of weeks and have finished a number of lingering projects.

First - Felting
Jeff's Slippers -













Bag 1













Bag 2


It may be kind of tough to see in the bag photos, but I discovered that the Knit Picks Wool of the Andes (stripes on the bags and all 3 colors on the slipper) felts GREAT! The terra cotta color (bottom and top of the bags) is Anny Blatt Rustique, which is apparently washable! I want to go ahead and shape and line the bags before I send them to Awl Cowgirl.

And then we have an Original Fair Isle Hat for myself (Tulip, Stream, Avocado and Chocolate Knit Picks Wool of the Andes from the stash)

Another hour or so tonight will wrap it up so I can wear it! (Update as of Monday afternoon - yeah, it doesn't really cover my ears, so I've added the first of the earflaps!)






Last, but not least, I've managed to finish my first sock - Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock Multi in River...


That's it for now...

Another link... progress

Another inspirational add - they boys from Project RunGay have launched Project Gay

Sweater : none

Spiral scarf : Still plugging away on ball 2 of 3

Bag number 2 : no progress

I have, however, begun another scarf and am into the 2nd of 3 balls - going rather quickly on 10.5s.

I've also got to get something going for the Dulaan Knit In on Saturday.

New Links

I've added some new links in my sidebar

Seth Godin's blog is great as well as his book - keeping me motivated

Vive la Femme is keeping my wardrobe in tip top shape

Dulaan is helping children and shrinking my stash

Eco Tecture is keeping me informed of green architecture.

Have a great week!

Sweater Drama

Unfortunately, Jeff has the camera tonight, otherwise I'd have more pictures to post.

I made enough progress on my sweater to try it on again. The short row bust shaping is on target. The ribbing is nice and close fitting. The back, above the ribbing, is too big - if my shoulder blades were fat and jutted out of my back, it would great! But, they don't. I can do one of two things 1 - take the sweater in by sewing darts (with the sewing maching, to line up with the knit darts) 2 - calculate how far I need to rip it back (current estimation - back to the end of the 1st ball or beginning of 2nd (I'm up to the 5th ball)) and RIP RIP RIP (how appropriate for Halloween ;) ) Option 1 is relatively easy, but option 2 is more appealing (though much more work).

I embarked on this sweater to learn how to make clothes for my body, particularly in the clever way that can only be achieved with knit (and crochet) - by creating and sculpting the fabric as you go, fitting the sweater to the body.

Anywho, I still need rebound a little from the setback. I can work full time on my friend's purse, so that's exciting.

Brief Update

Last week I finished knitting Jeff's Fiber Trends Felted Clog Slippers.

I am one ball (of 3) into the spiral scarf in Scarf Style,

Using Rowan Tapestry Rainbow colorway (it's GORGEOUS!)


I have re-knit the part of my sweater I ripped out (really not that much) and am onto the ribbing. My goal is to complete it by the end of October. I am also moving forward on the 2nd of the felted bags (client has approved color scheme :) )

Plans for November : 2 baby blankets, something for Dulaan, and maybe 2 more scarves as gifts.

Morning Views

 

My Sweater

I've begun Bombshell from Big Girl Knits in GGH Bel Air, Teal I got into the 5 of 7 balls, but then realized I had done too much short row bust shaping, so rip rip rip I need to do. Of course, I realized this at about 9:30 pm on Sunday, so it sits until I can devote a little more time to it.

Bag Project - Part One

While on vacation this summer, I was inspired by a felted purse in the one yarn shop I was in. An idea developed - I would knit the bag bodies and felt them, I would then send them to Jess, and she would work her magic with leather handles and beautiful leather and metal adornments. Here you see the first bag, pre-felting. I've begun the second bag body, in a similar palette. 

Finished Shawl/Scarf

Bamboo yarn - so soft and easy to knit. A simple chevron lace pattern. About 20" x 40" blocked. It's for my mom's birthday. 

Current Books

I've got a couple of things on my plate. To scratch my academic itch, I've begun reading Modern Architecture Since 1900. I don't have much to say about it yet, since I've only read the introduction (which I only do with about 25% of books).

I've also begun Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert, and I'm enjoying it very much (thanks for the loan, Kel). Since I've developed the skill of reading while knitting, I've been able to work through much more of both than I have in the past. It also helps that I've been trying to keep the idiot box off, with the exception of specific programs (Project Runway, The Daily Show, and The Colbert Report, plus a little real news in the am.)

Enough media advertisement for now. One more knitting project below.

New Scarf

Aqua Mohair lace scarf, approximately 4" by 72" very light. I still need to block it properly.

Preview

I did manage to photograph a number of my completed and in-progress knitting projects this weekend. I will be doing an image dump most likely tomorrow, so be on the look out for that.

I finished reading John Irving's A Prayer for Owen Meany this weekend - I highly recommend it! I also learned to play Nerts, which is pretty decent as far as card games are concerned.

Hearing the truth is as important as speaking it

My parents taught me to tell the truth, and I still do. I feel icky inside when I don't (that's my gut talking, something else my folks brought my attention to). I don't find it difficult to tell the truth, but in my experience, others are not interested in the truth. It is sometimes hard for me to hear the truth about myself, but I am better for the listening. When it is something negative, I work to improve. Which lead me to the title of today's blog - Hearing the truth is as important as speaking it. A quick internet search yielded this useful biblical reference.

Communication is in two parts - speaking (not only the words themselves, but also body language, intonation, eye contact) and listening (not only hearing the words, but not simply waiting your turn to speak, reading other cues from the speaker (see above) ). To speak the truth to a party not listening does not mean the truth should not be spoken. Conversely, the speaker may not speak the truth, but their other means of communication will reveal themselves to the successfull listener.

Is YOUR mug on an album cover?

I just found out (purely by accident, of course) that my face (along with other family members') face is featured on a children's album my aunt made. See if you can find me.

Rainy Monday

Here in Chicago, the weather was dreary, but I was rather motivated. Friday was quite beautiful, so after work (and skipping yoga : ( ) Jeff and I grabbed some appetizers (crispy stuffed olives are divine) and drinks (16oz vodka tonics for $6.35!) outside at the new restaurant BB's. Satuday we caught up with a friend back from vacation for brunch at Tweet. Excellent service and meal, as well as many more menu choices than I expected. Then I had the boys drop me off at Arcadia Knitting, where I armed myself with materials for my new project, from Big Girl Knits. I'll post more info/stats on the project as I get further into it. I am onto ball 3 of 7. This will be the first garment for myself.

I also realize I've got a bunch of completed (or nearly so) projects that need photographing and posting, so I'll see what I can do this week.

I should get my butt back to work, but do check out Cleo's blog, as she's been updating her blog more regularly, so gotta show her some love.

Off to work I go

My office went back to normal hours this week (8:30-5:30, m-f) from our summer hours (8-6, m-h, 8-12 f), plus we had Labor Day off. I have to admit that I was looking forward to the schedule change. Last summer I definately made the most of the half-day fridays, feeling like I had a long weekend every week. This summer was different. After the Avon walk, I was waiting for my vacation. After the vacation, I was waiting for Jeff to get going on, and get comfortable with his new job. I just want to get back in the swing of things - get back to my regular Friday night yoga class.

Having basically taken the summer off of yoga, I really feel the difference in myself. I'm more irritable and worry about things I have no control over. While I was studying yoga regularly (December to April or May) I had gotten better control over my mind and body. I was less suceptible to depression and found life more satisfying. Since I know yoga works for me, I need to get it back in my life.

A thing of beauty and function : Boffi Cut