Time Tunnel Approaching!

I like sci-fi. (Some of it anyway.) I like knitting. I put the two together, and out came Time Tunnel. The squares were inspired by the Star Portal in a video game of my youth, Star Voyager: www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzbIZiMgjHU (the portal shows up at 41 seconds). For some reason I have very vivid memories of that portal, though it took me days to come up with the name of the game.

The pattern, released into the wild today, has options for a scarf in fingering or worsted weight and a cowl in worsted or bulky weight. Both are provided in written and charted format. It was super-addictive to knit - I made all four samples back-to-back-to-back. The stitch pattern is nothing complicated - only knit and purl. The blue one reminds me so much of a particular Police Box that I just had to 3D print a couple sonic screwdrivers to go with it. (For those of you who want to make one of your own, you can find the files at Thingiverse: 12's screwdriver here and 10's screwdriver top here. Paint them with nail polish, and you're all set.)


Did you know: Everyone is a time traveler! Einstein notwithstanding, we're all constantly moving forward in time at the rate of one second per second.

Happy knitting and time traveling,
Caroline

Time Tunnel Scarf / Cowl - $6.95
Buy now or view details at Ravelry | Patternfish

Snowstorm sale!

The weather is crazy. I know you'll agree.

Last week's storm was very dramatic, with high winds and rain. We didn't get that much snow here,  though.

By contrast, about a foot of snow fell in my backyard yesterday, but with less dramatic winds. It was beautiful during the storm itself - calm, steady snow. Pretty, yes?

 

Even though the snow has stopped, it's still a good time to knit. So I'm having a snowstorm sale on my patterns. Stay cozy with yarn now, and be ready for the next storm that comes in. Here are the details:

What's on sale: All patterns in my Ravelry store  - All self-published patterns, including ebooks, are included.

Type of project: Mostly knitting, but some crochet

How much: 20% discount
Coupon Code: SNOWY
Until: midnight EST Friday, March 9, 2018

Happy knitting!
~Caroline

PSA: Stay warm

Are you affected by the giant cold front / blizzard that hit the US east coast this week? I am. We didn't get nearly as much snow out of this thing as I would have expected, but man, is it cold! Here's the view from my kitchen the morning of the storm:

So what is this thing? Livescience.com describes "bombogenesis" as "when [a storm's] central low pressure drops at least 24 millibars in 24 hours." The FEMA website also has a great explanation of what a "bomb cyclone" is.  If that's TLDR, it's basically a severe storm that intensifies very, very rapidly.

So, how do we stay warm? If you follow @FEMA on Twitter, they have some very practical suggestions, even infographics. From a knitter's point of view, here's the best advice I can offer you:

• Stay inside if possible. If you can't, be sure to dress warmly.
• Cover your head. Though it's not technically true that we lose more heat through our head than the rest of our body, we do lose heat where we are not covered. If we have a coat, scarf, gloves, etc. but not a hat, that means the heat is escaping through our head. So wear a hat or 2. I like to layer an earband under a warm hat, or a thin hat under a thicker one.
• Layer. Several thin layers are more effective than one thick layer, since warm air gets trapped between them. Don't feel silly if you want to layer multiple hats, pairs of socks, or gloves. Do what it takes.
• Keep your core warm with a tank top or vest.
• Cover pulse points where the veins are extra close to the skin at the wrists and throat. Wristwarmers and cowls are especially good for this.
• Natural fibers, particularly wool, will keep you warmer than synthetics. Unlike many fibers, wool keeps its thermal properties even when wet. This means wearing wool or wool-blend socks rather than cotton.

Stay warm, everyone. Knit something for yourself or a loved one. :)

2018, Cities of Gold, and a sale

Hello readers! I hope 2018 is treating you well so far. I spent yesterday with family, knitting and watching a Mysterious Cities of Gold marathon. It was a very pleasant day. As a child of the 1980s, I grew up with classic Nickelodeon, and we can blame credit The Mysterious Cities of Gold for my lifelong love of South America, the Incas, and Machu Picchu. Sure it's fiction, sure it's a cartoon (anime actually), but there's plenty of history and factual tidbits in it too. There's also a bit of science fiction - something for everyone.

It may be a little intense for younger children, so be aware of that before watching it with very little ones. I understand there's a sequel, but it isn't yet available where I live. Maybe I'll get to see it one of these days. I'm in no hurry, though. The original series is just as good as I remembered it, and there's no way the new one is the same.


On a related entertainment note, I just learned that today, January 2, is Science Fiction Day. To celebrate, get 20% off any pattern in my Science Bundle with the coupon code scifi20 through midnight on Saturday, January 6, 2018.

These are the patterns included in the sale:

	Cuddly Chem Lab- $6.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry | Patternfish
	"Diagonally Parked In A Parallel Universe" Socks - $5.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry | Patternfish
	Dorsal Graviton Cowl - $5.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry | Patternfish
	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 | Patternfish | KnitPicks
	Selenite Shawl - $5.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry | Patternfish
	"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 | Patternfish | KnitPicks
	Temporal Wingnut Hat - $6.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry | Patternfish
	Tesla's Lightning - $5.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry | Patternfish
	The Technobabble Collection - $12.95 buy now | add to cart | show cart View details at Ravelry

Of course, there's also Dongle, a small sock to hold your USB drive. This pattern is free every day.

"Dongle" Mini-Sock Keychain - free! download PDF View details at Ravelry

Make something science-y today!