My current swatch/design that I’ve planned on submitting is…well. Okay, I have a swatch done. I kept it on the smaller side (8″ wide by about 7-8″ long) so that I would have time to make a full piece, photograph it on a body, and forward it with the swatch. I may either send the swatch alone, or not submit it for the Spring issue.

I’m so in love with the yarn, but I almost feel like, even at Sport weight, it may still be too heavy for this garment. Perhaps it’s because Spring, to a Florida girl’s mind, equals Summer, and both equal hot.

Also, I wanted to use a lovely cotton blend so that it would breathe, but the cotton is already growing in the crochet-ribbed section. I’m thinking that maybe I should knit the ribbing instead, but would that turn some crocheters off? Which group would be the majority? The group of crocheters that don’t mind a couple of inches worth of knitting, or the group of crocheters who are either anti-knitting or don’t know how to knit? And do I take that risk, as a designer, to incorporate it?

I already am using a size E (3.5mm) Boye hook for the Sport weight, but maybe I should reduce it to an even smaller hook? C (2.75mm, I think) or D (3.25mm)? The body of the top is in an H (5mm) Boye hook so the stitch pattern can move around and be lovely with the drape.

I need to think about this more, but I also need to ship the swatch soon if I’m going to do that. The only problem–if I decide to go with a smaller gauge, then I’ve already submitted it with the wrong gauge yarn. How unprepared does that make me look? Eek!

Perhaps I’ll just keep this one and put it out myself?

This post might be long, so here’s a list of what I’m likely to mention: podcast, life, money, life, dyeing, side-businesses, selling an already-crocheted Buckle Cloche hat.

I’ve recorded the next podcast episode at least 5 times now. I just deleted the raw recording of the fifth take. I don’t know if I can do this stupid episode again, but it has a lot of good information! I’m going to have to reshuffle the order in which I discuss things so I don’t sounds mechanical. I’ve memorized so much of what I’ve wanted to say, that it sounds like I’m reading from a script. So much dislike.

Sometimes I wonder if it wouldn’t just be best to put the podcast on hold until I could have a recording buddy. I don’t think my personality transmits when I’m alone.

To keep my head from exploding, I’ve been coming up with a few ideas, or being sucked into a few of Caryn’s. Almost all of them are good, but not anything I/we can do at the moment. Not having the extra money, or money at all, to do what we need to do to push our creative endeavors is harsh. It feels like I’ve been waiting forever for the e-mail telling me when my interview for this job I want will be. The company is notorious, I’m told, for taking their time finding the person they want to hire. When they do decide, however, the speed kicks in and everything’s a go. I’m just waiting for a lousy interview! It doesn’t help that I’m looking at the last $20 of my paypal account, my Netflix account is suspended for nonpayment, and I’m pretty sure it’s going to be down to chicken noodle soup and rice sometime this week. The credit card and grocery store accounts are nearly maxed.

We’re waiting on a check to arrive for some freelance work I did, as well as a check for a book cover Caryn sold (a Joy Fielding novel!). When those come, the pressure will be let up some, but that won’t be for another week, likely two. It’s the not knowing about anything that’s driving me crazy.

I’m desparately trying to reign in the desire to deplete my Paypal account in order to sate this need I have to purchase roving. I’ve been thinking a lot, lately, about dyeing roving to sell as a sort of side to my side-business. I love colors and playing with them and getting messy. Do you know what one of my favorite past times was when I was a kid? Fingerpainting. I kind of look at dyeing roving and yarn as a grown up way to fingerpaint. Maybe I wouldn’t necessarily paint with my fingers, but it would be similar, and, I think, just as fun.

Another aspect that I’m considering is jumping on Caryn’s idea of doing some crochet resin pendants. She’s going to be making more pendants of her photographs (and I think she’s going to do the crochet heart one that I posted a photo of in a previous entry), but this time underneath resin. So we were discussing layers of resin with lace doilies or hearts or whatever. It sounds like a blast, and a perfect little addition to my Etsy store. If I could figure out a way to set-up a store on here, without doing a mass amount of coding, then I would. For now, though, Etsy can do most of the work, and I’ll just link to the listings.

Which reminds me…I had a custom order fall through. Nothing negative, just bad timing for the woman who requested the hat. But, it leaves me with a hat just lying around, and it’s not exactly something I would wear. Not in Florida, and not in the colors the custom order required.

I was approached by a lovely woman who had a buyer wanting a Buckle Cloche. Instead of poaching my style, she sent her customer my way, post-mailed me the yarn and buckle, and I crocheted the customer the hat.

It’s in a black wool, but there’s a silver metallic sort of yarn carried along with it. The buckle is a small silver square. It’s not a buckle I would have chosen, but custom means custom, and it was already purchased.

If any of you would be interested in this hat (photo below is a link), please visit the Etsy shop and purchase it. The hat will fit 20-22″ circumference heads. Your purchase would not only help me out financially, but it would also get the hat off of my mannequin and out of my house.

What do you think? If I were to put small collections into hard-copy, would you be interested enough to purchase any? Were they to be good quality (and I wouldn’t put them out if they weren’t), would you be willing to, for lack of a better phrase, pimp them to others?

What say you?

Also, what kind of designs would you want to see? What would interest you the most?

I’m open to all ideas.

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Note: Due to my posting this at a very early hour, and being completely delirious, there was errata in the pattern that I didn’t catch. The realization of having done this, however, wouldn’t let me sleep. All is fixed.

Currently, the bag is out with testers, and will be then followed up by the hat.

Some quick facts:

• Tunisian Knit
• Tunisian Purl
• Reverse Single Crochet
• Shaping
• Intermediate level, or for very adventurous beginners

As these two patterns are more for Fall/Winter, my ultimate deadline is to have them tested and available just before the rush. If I’m feeling too antsy, I’ll release them a bit early. (more…)

Updates on WIP’s:
I’ve finished the prototype for the Fanning Flower bag (though the gf has said the fanned sections look like tulips, so perhaps I’ll change the name?) and all ends are woven in. All that’s left to do is line it, but I soon realized that the fabric I had previously picked out does not actually go with the finished bag. I was horrified as I am super in love with the fabric.

Friday night I began the matching hat for the bag. As it’s in tunisian, I’ll have to work it in one wide piece and then seam it up. This also means I need to work bottom-up instead of top-down. This is the first time I’ve done such a process, so I’ve had to work a lot with row and stitch gauge, and it will all be in the final pattern. My testers will help with this, though, so any issue I have initially with writing it out, they should swoop in behind me and save my ass like a giant crocheting superhero!

I’m making a quick update to mention two things.

(01) I’ve changed how pattern purchases are made on the site. They’ll now come through Payloadz, so as soon as you purchase and make payment, they’ll be automatically e-mailed to you. No more waiting for me to check my e-mail. How’s that for good news? Not good enough? Ooookay.

(02) Today I decided to no longer list the Ribbed Cozy as for sale. No more Etsy listings, no more purchase page. It’s completely free! It’s basic, and was initially written for a Public Speaking class I took in order to persuade people that crochet is awesome (who really needs persuading, though, right?). Now it’s all yours, all for free. It will be available in PDF format for a brief amount of time until I can find the energy to rewrite the page it’s on.

And that’s it!

This hat was a custom order. Made just like the red one that I created for the AHA, only, obviously, this one is black and has a different buckle and belt loops. I love how simple and quick this pattern is.

I’m very glad it’s done, as this means I am caught up with fulfilling orders and fixing things, and can concentrate on future designs. Hurrah!

It was a pleasure while it lasted.

Edited to add on 07/22/07:
Old image, thus reflecting old domain name.

Kathryn has given me permission to post her end-result photographs of her Pinwheel Beanie pattern test. I’ll set this, and the second one she sent me, up on the pattern page I’ll create as a mini gallery for viewers, and potential customers, to look through.

Miki, my second tester, is still working on hers. I have all of her comments regarding the pattern itself, so I’m going to pool everything together and fix anything that needs to be fixed. Then it’s up for sale, folks!

Let me just say that I am thoroughly pleased with how much I’ve enjoyed working with my two pattern testers. They’ve been great help and I really appreciate all the work they’ve done.

I’ve had one of my testers complete the pattern, send me her notes, and some preliminary photos. She’ll be sending other photos for me to post on the pattern page where I’ll offer the pattern for sale.

This is very exciting! I know my 2nd tester said she should be done this weekend and will also have photos and notes for me.

Let me just take a moment to admit how relieved I am that my first officially tested pattern, that has some degree of difficulty (if only for the stitch work that makes up the top of the hat and brim), is going well. I was worried that it wouldn’t work up right for someone, or that my pattern writing would be subpar. If everything checks out, with only minimal things to correct, this entire process will have been such a huge success for me.

For anyone interested in buying this pattern when it’s officially set to release… (more…)

You can see the larger versions of these photos by clicking on them. In the meantime, I will be working on the second look of the Buckle Cloche. I’m not sure if the recycles belt buckles I currently have will go with the yarn I’ll be using, but if they don’t that just then gives me an excuse to go thrifting.

Edited to add:

This pattern is now available for sale!! Please visit my Etsy Listing to purchase, or paypal $3.50 (usd) to briannamewborn (AT) hotmail (dot) com with the subject “Buckle Cloche Pattern”.

I wanted to post a detail shot of this hat so you could see the stitches and, specifically, the buckle embellishment. I’m working on writing up the pattern for this hat so that I can start selling it. There are a few people, however, who wanted just the hat, so I’ll be making two to sell, and offering custom orders on Etsy.

In a few moments I’ll be leaving to hunt down some belts that I can recycle buckles from. I like the weathered look of the vintage or thrifted belts, so that’s where I’m headed.

Enjoy the photo. The pattern should be posted for sale within the week(ish).