Keeping busy over here!

Oh hi!  I have been busybusy, and obviously not with blogging, but hey, let me tell you what’s up!  Well, first though, I want to make sure you know that if you’re in Portland, you can take a class with me on Thursday to learn how to self-publish patterns!  Head to Twisted’s class schedule (click the pdf link on that page) for details – the class is on 4/21 5-8pm and costs $30.  Sign up now if you want to join us!!  (It’s mostly just on digital self-publishing, but my print patterns are much more photogenic.)

I have been working on a bunch of designs, but some are supersecret so I can’t show you yet… I can show you a couple though… this is my first example of a pattern I’m working on for self-publishing through me and through Knit Picks (which is why it’s in KP yarn) – it looks super simple, but it’s a squishy reversible fabric which will look crazy cool when striping between 2 yarns (several more samples will be knit before release)… plus, it’s any gauge and can be worn a ton of different ways:

And then… I have my first little bit to show you from my upcoming ebook that I’ve been working on a little here and there whenever I can squeeze it in.  The ebook will be on how to make different kinds of recycled yarns, and patterns to go with them – below is the first thing I’ve knit up for a book design from recycled spun yarn!  I’m working on a couple other designs, and have many more sketched out… Once I have a bit more to show you, and you can see some actual finished items, I plan to start selling pre-orders for the book, probably with some kind of bonus extra something since the release date will be uncertain and probably not till late this year.  Anyway, I’m so happy to finally show you something at least!

What else has been taking up all my time, you may wonder?  I’ve been busy with some fun freelance product photography gigs!  I shot 13 of these incredible felt scarves by LeBrie of PenFelt:

It’s the best when I get to shoot items that I love; doesn’t even feel like work!  Aren’t these scarves gorgeous?

These are just a small assortment of my favorite shots… head to PenFelt’s etsy shop to find what’s for sale at the moment.

There are also a few more of my choice shots in my product photography set on flickr…

And then, just before that bunch, I shot a huge batch of product photos for Trillium, which meant tons of different products by all kinds of different crafters and artists, all made from mostly recycled materials!  These tops were probably my most favorite items to shoot, made from reclaimed skateboards!  By Board Games:

Again, these are just a few of my favorite shots, out of 64 items total…

Of course I have to include this one!

So, if you want to check out Trillium products, there’s the etsy shop, but the Ebay World of Good shop has even more items and is a little more up to date.

Of course, if you happen to be in Portland, I highly recommend stopping by the brick+mortar shop!  It’s a bit out there if you live close-in, or North/NE/West (it’s actually super close to me) – it’s on SE Foster at 91st, right near the 205 freeway, worth a stop if you’re in the area.  Tons (like, maybe literally tons!) of super cheap recycled fabric pieces!  (Upholstery fabric sample squares and stuff like that, $1 per pound if I’m remembering correctly.)

Fun stuff!

So that’s what I’ve been up to… lots of shooting and knitting – and movie-watching while knitting, of course!  I’m doing well on my 365 movies in 2011 project so far!  (Watched my 121st film last night, on the 107th day of the year.)  Which is great, since we’re planning a trip for later in the year, which will mean probably about 2 weeks with few or no movies watched, so yay for being ahead!