Sew What?

Knit, crochet, appliqué, quilting, embroidery - it's all fibercraft. When I released the Hawaiian Harps collection last month, it was suggested that the designs might work well for home embroidery machines. And guess what? They do!

As of June 26, 2022, the Hawaiian Harps designs are available for machine embroidery as two-color blocks. Each block measures 5" x 5" (12.7 cm x 12.7 cm) and is provided in 10 formats: DST, EMD, EXP, HUS, JEF, PEC, PES, SEW, VIP, and XXX. Conversion to other formats may be available upon request. Finished blocks may be used as part of a quilt, pillow, wall hanging, or any other project. 

Please note: you must have access to an embroidery machine to create these blocks.

Supplies for all blocks:
Design Thread: 455-630 ft (varies by design)
Bobbin Thread: 155-200 ft (varies by design)
New machine needle
Medium weight non-stretchy fabric
Medium weight stabilizer
Quilt batting
Quilt backing
Quilting thread

Patterns are $8 each through my Payhip store (or directly below with a Payhip shopping cart ) or through the Sylvia Woods Harp Center. As with the appliqué blocks, if you're interested in purchasing four or more, I recommend you take advantage of the quantity discounts of 15-30% at the Sylvia Woods Harp Center. ). Choose your own main color - the choices below are only a few options!

ME001 Celtic: $8 details | add to cart
ME002 Clarsach: $8 details | add to cart
ME003 Concert Simple: $8 details | add to cart
ME004 Concert Fancy: $8 details | add to cart
ME005 Egyptian: $8 details | add to cart
ME006 Gothic: $8 details | add to cart
ME007 Whale Song: $8 details | add to cart
ME008 Harmonic Curve: $8 details | add to cart
ME009 Kinnor / Harp of David: $8 details | add to cart
ME010 Lyre: $8 details | add to cart
ME011 Simple Harp: $8 details | add to cart
ME12 Paraguayan: $8 details | add to cart

Playing with strings

It had to happen eventually, right? Designing for a new form of fibercraft. I've made a foray into appliqué with my first set of quilt patterns, Hawaiian Harps. 

My mom and I learned to do Hawaiian appliqué a long time ago, but I hadn't done much with it since. I leaned more toward knitting and crochet (which she also taught me), where the tools of the trade aren't generally sharp enough to draw blood.

But since I lost my mom last year, my heart hasn't been in the yarn. What to do instead? Quilt blocks. She was great at pieced quilts, and I can still tell a double wedding ring from an Irish chain. But while I appreciate traditional quilts and the work that goes into them, I much prefer to creating appliqué - there's less mathematical precision involved.

The idea for Hawaiian Harps came from the tradition of Hawaiian quilting, where the design fabric is folded in eighths and the pattern is cut out and unfolded, then sewn onto a background. If you've ever made a paper snowflake, you are familiar with the process. Most real Hawaiian quilts have leafy, flowery tropical designs and are quilted in an echo pattern. Mine are a little different. I wanted harps, and there was nothing like these out on the internet. I used the process of making a Hawaiian quilt block, but based each original design on a different harp with a coordinating border. Here's the end result:

The block patterns are available individually for $8 each through my Payhip store (or directly below) and from the Sylvia Woods Harp Center. There are 12 designs total. If you're interested in purchasing four or more, I recommend you take advantage of the quantity discounts of 15-30% at Harpcenter.com. 

The blocks can be used individually in any project you can think of. I plan to join mine to make a bed quilt, but wall hangings, pillows, bags, and throw blankets would all be viable options. Each pattern includes full-size eighth-fold templates for 14" and 18" blocks. Cutting and assembly instructions are included, but finishing instructions are not. For the motifs, I used batik fabrics from Gathering Friends Quilt Shop on Etsy.

Purchase directly from Payhip without ever leaving this site by using the following links. (No quantity discounts apply.)

Q001 Celtic: Add to cart
Q002 Clarsach: Add to cart
Q003 Concert 1: Add to cart
Q004 Concert 2: Add to cart
Q005 Egyptian: Add to cart
Q006 Gothic: Add to cart
Q007 Whale Song: Add to cart
Q008 Harmonic Curve: Add to cart
Q009 Kinnor / Harp of David: Add to cart
Q010 Lyre: Add to cart
Q011 Simple Harp: Add to cart
Q12 Paraguayan: Add to cart

Are there other designs you would like to see turned into appliqué blocks? Let me know in the comments!

 Happy crafting and please stay safe,
~ Caroline

Payhip store now open!

 Hi everybody! I've finally opened my design store on Payhip. You can find it at https://payhip.com/KnitDesignByCaroline 

The selection is a bit skimpy now, but more patterns will be added gradually. If other site interfaces bother you, please try here. As always, you can still purchase my patterns directly from this website.

In other news, I'm branching out into appliqué and quilt patterns. More info coming soon!

Happy crafting!
Caroline

Happy Pi Day To You

Today is Pi Day (3/14 in places that put the month first). You could celebrate by having a piece of pie at 3:14 this afternoon (which I may very well do). Or you could bake conundrum cookies. (They're cookies! But they're also pi!) Or just maybe you could create something science-y with yarn. To facilitate, I'm having a PI Day sale from now until midnight Friday, March 19. There's a 31 percent discount on all my science-inspired patterns shown below. They're all knit except for Cuddly Chem Lab, which is crochet.

These are the patterns that are included, with no minimum or maximum to buy. Enter the code PIDAY314 at checkout.

You can purchase the patterns directly through this site by clicking the links below. Remember, you get 31% off when you enter the code PIDAY314 at checkout.

	Cuddly Chem Lab- $6.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry
	"Diagonally Parked In A Parallel Universe" Socks - $5.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry
	Gorignak Hat - $5.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry
	Lepton Flange Fingerless Gloves - $5.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry
	Miss Sakamoto Sash / Headwrap / Belt - $4.99 Coordinates with "She Blinded Me With Science" Bag buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry | KnitPicks
	Selenite Shawl - $5.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry
	"She Blinded Me With Science" Bag- $6.99 Coordinates with Miss Sakamoto Sash / Headwrap / Belt buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry | KnitPicks
	Temporal Wingnut Hat - $6.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry
	Tesla's Lightning - $5.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry
	Time Tunnel Scarf / Cowl - $6.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry
	The Technobabble Collection - $12.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry

And as always, the Dongle USB sock keychain is my free gift to you. Click here to download PDF.

Happy knitting / crochet!

~ Caroline

Sea shanties and beach car rock

 Hello again everybody! I've fallen down the rabbit hole of sea shanties. They became popular earlier this year, but I've only started really listening to them recently because I'm learning to play the bodhrán (Irish frame drum), and the regular rhythm of a sea shanty makes them perfect for drum practice. The family music collection already has a surprising number, and then of course there's YouTube. A few of my favorites:

Stormy Winds Do Blow (Charlie Zahm)
Sea Shanty Medley (Home Free)
Soon May the Wellerman Come (The Hound + the Fox featuring Adam Chance)

And these aren't really sea shanties, but they're also great for drumming:

Tighinn air a' mhuir tha fear a phòsas mi (Capercaillie)
Alasdair Mhic Cholla Chasda / Rory MacLeod (Capercaillie)

Basically, songs and instrumentals with a steady rhythm work well, especially those with a moderate beat - not too fast or slow. In fact, the word "shanty" comes from the French "chanter," meaning to chant. If you're thinking about learning bodhrán, some YT tutorials that have been exceptionally helpful are those by:

Ruiari Glasheen
Nicolle Fig

If you're interested in the origin of sea shanties, this article at ClickAmericana had tons of interesting facts, including the abovementioned source of the word shanty.
 
To get back to the point, I have a theory. Traditional sea songs and modern beach-rock car songs are related. The more I hear of the shanties, the stronger the evidence. Please consider:

There's the new built "Terra Nova", she's a model with no doubt
There's the "Arctic" and "Aurora", you've heard so much about
There's Jacklin's model mail-boat, the terror of the sea
Couldn't beat the old "Balena" boys, on a passage from Dundee.
- The Balena, Traditional sea shanty

Just a little deuce coupe with a flathead mill
But she'll walk a Thunderbird like she's standin' still
- Little Deuce Coupe, The Beach Boys

---

The wind is on her quarter and her engine working free
And there's not another whaler a-sailing from Dundee
Can beat the old "Balena," you need not try her on
For we challenge all both great and small from Dundee to St.John.
- The Balena, Traditional sea shanty

When I take her to the track she really shines
(giddy up giddy up 409)
She always turns in the fastest times
(giddy up giddy up 409)
Giddy up 409...
Nothing can catch her
Nothing can touch my 409
- 409, The Beach Boys

---

For twenty-five long years she ruled the Northern sea
Riding like a queen on the tide
In the Caribbean one dark and stormy day
She ran into a reef and died
Bluenose, the ocean knows her name
Sailors know how proud a ship was she
Bluenose, leading in the wind
Racing ev'ry wave on the sea
- Bluenose, Traditional sea shanty

She had a classic beauty that everyone could see
I was the last to meet her, but she gave her life to me
She may be rusted iron, but to me she's solid gold
And I just can't hold the tears back
'Cause Betsy's growing old
- Ballad of Old Betsy, The Beach Boys

Not a million miles apart, am I right? Any minute I expect one ship's captain to offer to race the other ship's captain for pinks.

And what does this have to do with knitting, you ask? Nothing at all. Except that maybe the sailors wore sweaters.

Anyway, happy knitting (and drumming and shantying), and please stay safe.
~ Caroline

Twin Harps!

Guess who was lying on the sofa today watching YouTube videos when she had a pleasant yarn-related surprise? That's right, this girl!

I was watching Camille and Kennerly, the Harp Twins, give a tour of their Harp Room. In case you haven't yet seen these ladies, they are identical twins and incredibly talented harpists who perform together on matching harps. I am extremely fond of their performance of the Theme from Doctor Who: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R061gfebd7Q

In their Harp Room, the Harp Twins keep their matching sets of electro-acoustic concert harps, acoustic-only concert harps, electric lever harps (one set each in black and silver), and small (blue) and large (white) acoustic lever harps. You can watch their Harp Room tour here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRCTcNNz3y4

After showing the harps, Camille and Kennerly highlight some of the room's decor, including a beautiful screen Rosemaling designs carved by their grandpa and an art wall featuring artwork spanning their careers so far, with paintings and drawings both professional and fan-made. So here's the surprise - at 9:45, a pair of crochet harps appear on screen. What do you know, it's "Perpetual Gliss" - doubled! Kennerly mentions that they are hand-made by Gloria at Cuddle Tree Crochet. Gloria did a great job - the harps are good and sturdy, and I like the accent edging. I would never have thought one of my designs would show up in the Harp Twins' Harp Room! Squeee!! Here's a screenshot from the video:

I had to find out more, and a Google search led me to their Facebook unboxing video from December 2020 in which the harps feature heavily. The ladies mention that the harps stand on their own and have some sort of structure inside. They do - the pattern explains how to make the infrastructure (I used plastic - repurposing is even better than recycling!) and weight the harp for stability. Watch the unboxing video here: https://www.facebook.com/CamilleandKennerly/videos/unboxing-amazing-crochet-goodies/691307851542672/. Two screenshots from the video:

The adorable dolls were also made by Gloria; I don't know from what pattern she used. But they look adorable with their harps. So whether you want to learn more, purchase a crochet harp, or make one of your own, we've got you covered with these links:

Harp Twins: www.harptwins.com

Gloria at Cuddle Tree Crochet, Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cuddle.tree.crochet/?hl=en
Gloria at Cuddle Tree Crochet, Twitter: https://twitter.com/treecuddle

Perpetual Gliss crochet soft-sculpture harp pattern from KnitDesign by Caroline:

$5.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry | Sylvia Woods Harp Center

BTW, in case you were wondering, I absolutely do allow both giving and selling of items made from my patterns (as long as the pattern itself is not resold without permission). Those who want finished items and those who want to make them are generally two distinct groups, and there's room for everybody. See my FAQ for more details.

Happy knitting, crocheting, and harping, everyone. Please stay safe, and keep each other safe too. 💖

~ Caroline

Victorian Cuffs on TV! 38% off through midnight Sunday

A couple months ago, I was very excited to learn that one of my patterns would be on TV! My Victorian Lace Cuffs pattern had been used to make part of a costume for Shailene Garnett, who plays Inspector Brackenreid's daughter Nomi Johnston on Murdoch Mysteries.

The episode is S14E9, entitled "The .38 Murdoch Special." To celebrate the cuffs' debut, the pattern is 38% off through midnight Sunday, May 23, 2021. Enter code NOMI at checkout.

When I found out, I was mostly excited but also a little disappointed - we used to get the channel the show was on, but we currently do not, so I didn't know when I'd ever get to see the episode. However, I was recently able to get some screenshots (yay!), which I've compiled below:

It's interesting to note the way styling affects the item. In most of the photos, a strip of lace is visible peeking out below the hem of Nomi's sleeve, but in screenshots from late in the episode, Nomi has her undersleeves pulled down so only the narrow zigzag at the edge shows, giving a multicolor cuff effect.

Assuming the show were not fictional, might a woman have really worn cuffs like this? It's entirely possible! Hand knitting was something many women did, and the cuffs are based around an authentic Victorian stitch pattern called "Tunisian Lace." Having separate cuffs would be a good way to add variety (and in this case, extra warmth) to a wardrobe.

The cuffs worn by Nomi were made by @emilyknitsto in a very pretty silver grey yarn. You can see her project page with close up photos on Ravelry. For pattern details, please see the pattern page on Ravelry.

Victorian Lace Cuffs - $5.95 $3.69 through midnight Sunday, May 23, 2021 Enter code NOMI at checkout buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry

Happy knitting!
Caroline