Monthly Archives: December 2016

One of the things I love most about the Indie GAL (Gift-A-Long) is the chance to discover and/or promote other designers’ work. Over the course of the GAL I’ll be publishing gift-knitting related interviews with designers whose work I admire.

Carol Sunday publishes fabulous garment and accessory patterns. She’s also designed an exquisite line of yarns (visit her shop here).

Check out Carol’s Ravelry page here.

Steph: What’s your favorite part of the GAL?
Carol: I love the sale, of course! Not just that patterns are marked down, but I love going through the bundles of patterns and seeing what other designers have been up to. It’s the one time of year that I make time to check out other designers’ work, and it’s always fun and inspiring. I also like setting up my own pinterest board for my personal favorites. And even though I’m sometimes too late to take advantage of the sale, I usually buy a few things for my library.

Have you participated before this year?
I missed the very first year, so this is my third.

Are you participating as a knitter? if yes, what are you planning on knitting? if no, what would you, had you the time?

I’d like to if time allows.

At the top of my personal queue is Cristina’ Ghirlanda’s Ebony. I love the style of this piece. It’s something I could see myself wearing a lot!
I’d also love to make Vikki Bird’s Showflake cushion for my sofa, Jen Lucas’s Regalo and Kerri Blumer’s Blendon Woods hat for my stepdaughters, and Janice Anderson’s Wee Blackface Sheep 2 for my studio. And whether or not I’ll actually make either of them, I’m definitely buying Heike Campbell’s Dancing Dragon Coat and Lotta Groeger’s Im dunklen Wald patterns, just so that I can gaze at their beauty.

 Which of your patterns do you think make the best gifts?
I gave my Broderie Hollandaise hat and mitts as gifts last year, and they were both a huge hit.

My Bohemica cowl also makes a great gift – it’s a super-scrunchy cowl in an unusual stitch pattern – engaging but not too time consuming.

Thank you so much Carol!

Photos © Carol Sunday

Don’t forget to check out the Indie Design Gift-A-Long group on Ravelry to join in the fun!

One of the things I love most about the Indie GAL (Gift-A-Long) is the chance to discover and/or promote other designers’ work. Over the course of the GAL I’ll be publishing gift-knitting related interviews with designers whose work I admire.

Faye Kennington publishes gorgeous, quirky, and thoughtful patterns. Check out her Ravelry page here.

Post your comment on this post what pattern of Faye’s you’d like to knit for someone this holiday season by midnight PST December 15th 2016 for a chance to win one of Faye’s patterns

Steph: What’s your favorite part of the GAL?
Faye: I love the camaraderie amongst the designers. As an independent designer, I miss out on having a team for most the year. This event is a great opportunity to work with people that I really admire that have similar businesses to my own.

Have you participated before this year?
Yes, I have participated in Indie Design Gift-a-Long since the very beginning.

Fabulous! Are you participating as a knitter? if yes, what are you planning on knitting? if no, what would you, had you the time?
I am definitely going to be knitting this year. On my needles right now I have crossing, that I will be giving to my BFF. I will be making Hermia Hat for my daughter. I also plan on casting on Winding Road and Mountain. I’m not sure if those will be gifted or will stay home with me. I actually need a new hat, too.

Which of your patterns do you think make the best gifts?
I think Folklore and Gold Standard Cowl would be lovely gifts, however, (2 Hour) Artist’s Loop and 2 Hour Smocked Toque have proven to be very popular with gift knitters that are pressed for time.

Thank you so much Faye!

Don’t forget, post your comment on this post on what pattern of Faye’s you’d like to knit for someone this holiday season by midnight PST December 15th 2016 for a chance to win one of Faye’s patterns

Photos © UkeeKnits

Don’t forget to check out the Indie Design Gift-A-Long group on Ravelry to join in the fun!

One of the things I love most about the Indie GAL (Gift-A-Long) is the chance to discover and/or promote other designers’ work. Over the course of the GAL I’ll be publishing gift-knitting related interviews with designers whose work I admire.

Amy van de Laar publishes fabulous accessory patterns. Check out her Ravelry page here.

Steph: What’s your favorite part of the GAL?

Amy: I’m really enjoying handing out prizes, I love the excitement of it! I have one day each week on drive-by prize patrol, giving pattern codes to whoever posts the next WIP or FO photo. I also love hanging out in the Hand & Arm Things thread (where I’m one of the host mods), seeing what lovely things people are making. I’ve discovered some fantastic patterns and yarns that weren’t on my radar before.

Have you participated before this year?

I’ve participated for two years previously as a designer (and knitter!), but this is my first year on the Mod Team. Can I give a shout-out to all the mods? They’re all so much fun to work with!

The mods are totally awesome!  They volunteer an amazingly generous amount of time. Have you participated as a knitter before?

As for the knitting part, my first GAL project from 2014, a Park Slope tee, was only finished this September – I’m really slow with garments, even short-sleeved ones. In 2015 I did manage to finish a cowl at the eleventh hour, so my GAL cred is improving. Maybe this year I’ll manage more than one project.

Are you participating as a knitter again this year?
I’m working on a pair of Grellow Love socks designed by Clare Devine, using some leftover Vintage Purls yarn. I’m nearly up to the heel of the first one! It’s parked on my desk next to my laptop, so I can sneak in a few rounds when I’m GAL chatting or waiting for Photoshop to load. I’m not very experienced with socks, so each pair I make is a bit of an adventure. If I have time after this pair, I’ll probably go for more socks, maybe Wheatly Socks or Tip Toe Up (which are both in my queue).

Which of your patterns do you think make the best gifts?

I tend to make hats, cowls, and scarves for gifts, because they’re nice and practical. A few of mine that I think are quite quick and versatile are Tailfeather, a worsted-weight scarf with simple feather-inspired lace, Ascent, a textured unisex beanie, Peacowl, a DK-weight lace cowl, and INSULATE, a free Dalek-patterned hat (for the geeks in the family).

Thank you so much Amy!

Photos © Amy van de Laar

Don’t forget to check out the Indie Design Gift-A-Long group on Ravelry to join in the fun!

One of the things I love most about the Indie GAL (Gift-A-Long) is the chance to discover and/or promote other designers’ work. Over the course of the GAL I’ll be publishing gift-knitting related interviews with designers whose work I admire.

Kirsten Hipsky publishes lovely garment, home, and accessory patterns. Check out her Ravelry page here.

Steph: What’s your favorite part of the GAL? Have you participated before?

Kirsten: This is my first time ever participating in the Indie GAL. It’s the first year where I felt I had enough indie patterns to promote! I love how supportive all of Ravelry is of indie designers to make this promotion happen every year. It’s so cool to see designers supporting each other as well! It makes me want to get more involved and help others the same way.

Are you participating as a knitter? if yes, what are you planning on knitting? if no, what would you, had you the time?

As for what I’m going to knit, well, I have to press ever onwards! Writing patterns and knitting prototypes from scratch is my main creative outlet. But I want to give big props to my designer friends Emma Welford (emmawelford) and Sara Delaney (ChickenBetty) for convincing me to do the Indie GAL this year. They’re both awesome, dedicated, massively creative designers and it gives me strength to see them making great stuff.

They both create fantastic designs! Which of your patterns do you think make the best gifts?

When it comes to gift knitting, I’m all about speed speed speed! Quick knit projects are fun, gratifying, and are easier to give to non-knitting recipients without getting an ulcer if you see it in a laundry basket. My super bulky Veinte Cowl is a super fast one skein project that makes a huge impact on knitters and non-knitters alike. Its simple knit and purl stitch pattern make it accessible to knitters of all skill levels.

Thank you Kirsten!!

Photos © Kirsten Hipsky, Two of Sticks, or Lindsey Topham

Don’t forget to check out the Indie Design Gift-A-Long group on Ravelry to join in the fun!

Congrats to Sheri!  I’ve emailed you the code. Thank you everyone for commenting on Evie’s interview!