Willow Rosa Knits

Moving!

2012-01-05T14:06:00.001-05:00

I'm in the process of moving my blog here: http://www.missflitt.com/blog

It's a bit in shambles right now, but over the next week or so, I'm going to hang some pictures and choose some nice colors for the walls so that it will feel like home again.

See you there!

Occupy Christmas

2011-12-20T00:39:00.000-05:00

Yarn: Madeline Tosh Merino Light (doubled); 1 skein denim, 1 skein charcoal
Needle: cuff, US#2; mitten US #3

Night Before Cowl

2011-11-19T20:24:00.000-05:00

The Night Before Cowl

Here's a super easy, quick project that will keep you warm all winter. Click on the pattern image to make it larger, or follow this link to the Ravelry download.

Occupy Your Mittens! Part V

2011-11-06T19:57:00.000-05:00

Pattern Illustrations!

Occupy Your Mittens! Part IV

2011-11-06T00:17:00.000-04:00

I've been following the Occupy Wall Street Movement since it started and admiring its creativity from afar. I enjoyed reading about their Millionaire March and seeing the photos of Pete Seeger lead a crowd through the city to the tune of "We Shall Overcome." I love that when they had their generators removed by the city, they began using bicycles to power their electronics. It's a movement with spunk, for sure. I mean, spunk: anyone who is willing to camp in New York City for months at a time has some grit. Even with the finest, driest sleep and camp gear, it would be more than uncomfortable.

It's cold out right now, and I'll knit a second pair of these for an occupier. I'll wear these to a protest, and to just quietly protest in my own way--while going to the post office or riding the subway. I cannot think of a more peaceful way to protest than putting on a pair of cozy mittens.

While I worked on these, I also thought of all the people who've lost their homes to foreclosure. It makes me terribly sad to imagine someone losing a home. Owning a home stands for something to us. It means we've achieved a societal goal. To own something is to be a bit of a king or queen--no matter how small our house or plot of land. Some of those kings and queens will be homeless this winter--maybe for the first time and having never imagined such a fate would find them.

You can find the free pattern on Ravelry and on this blog. Enjoy your mittens. Stay warm. Occupy.

Occupy Your Mittens! Part III

2011-11-04T13:01:00.002-04:00

Download Pattern Now!

Oops. The Pattern Abbreviations got cut-off. Here they are:

k: knit

p: purl

sts: stitches

ssk: slip, slip, knit

k2tog: knit 2 together

R: Round

MC: Main color

CC: Contrasting color

FTP: Fight the Power!

Occupy Your Mittens! Part II

2011-11-03T13:21:00.000-04:00

Ah! So I found a little errata--not much. CO 40 sts instead of 42; make 6 increases on inc round at hand instead of 4. Thumb: When you come to last row of incs, place your sts on scarp yarn and CO 13 sts. That's it!

Here are some photos. I did a provisional CO at the wrist because I could not really wait to get to the hypno-whirlwind pattern:

Right outside

Right inside

I'll edit the pattern and include thumb directions tonight. Impressed with Oakland, Occupiers.

Occupy Your Mittens!

2011-11-02T14:43:00.004-04:00

Since there's no way I'm going to go down to Zuccotti Park with my sleeping bag--or my duvet and parka--because I don't even actually own a sleeping bag, I've designed these Norwegian-style hypno-whirlwind mittens for the OWSers among you. I have not yet actually made the mittens, but I'll be working on them this week. Click on the pics for larger images. Enjoy, stay warm, and keep occupying. xo

Sample Pages & Spoiler Alert!

2011-10-19T22:35:00.001-04:00

Open Thank You Letter (and an invite, but mostly a thank you)

2011-10-15T00:31:00.000-04:00

Dear Friends: On Sunday, October 23rd at 4:00, I'll be launching the final chapter of The Adventures of Miss Flitt at Stitch Therapy, in Brooklyn, NY. I'd love it if you could join me. The trunk show will be displayed and you'll be able to see a few of the new watercolors. All four books will be available.

As this project comes to a close, I can't help but think of all the friends I've met along the way and how thankful I am for your generosity. You've helped make Miss Flitt a success through print or by word of mouth; by taking time to read the story and suggest edits and changes; by purchasing books, asking me to visit a shop, or come to an event, or by admiring a piece of knitting, testing a pattern, or suggesting a new stitch. Two of you were models, and a few of you contributed your own patterns to the project. You blogged about Miss Flitt, interviewed me, or traded ad space for books. It has been an incredible experience!

While I have no plans at the moment to begin V. II of The Adventures of Miss Flitt, I'm not ruling it out for the future. For now, it will have to remain a mystery.

Many thanks, dear readers.

Love, B

Save the date!

2011-10-10T23:33:00.000-04:00

Come to Stitch Therapy on Sunday, October 23rd, at 4 PM for a reading of chapter IV of The Adventures of Miss Flitt, "Hastings & Flitt Detective Agency"! Books I,II,III, and IV will all be available for purchase. The trunk show and selected watercolors will be on view.

(click poster to view larger)

Photography for "Hastings & Flitt"

2011-10-10T23:13:00.000-04:00

The other day, I had the fortune to meet up with the wonderful and talented Stephanie Reinish, who took these dreamy photos my knits. We met in Owl's Head Park. Because of its varied landscape, the park has become one of my favorite places to take knitting photos. I wanted the photographs to feel like the Miss Flitt books; I didn't so much want to capture the time period of the story, but the mood of watercolors and pieces, and I think Stephanie did a fantastic job.

I have lots of close-ups of the knits, too, but I don't want to show everything before October 23rd!

Emma's City Beret; Gretel

Emma's City Beret; Branches & Leaves Shawl

Nocturne Hat;

Five Points Cloak (cloak from "Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens")

Emma's City Beret; Aeolian Harp Wrap

Talkin' 'bout Miss Flitt

2011-09-05T11:32:00.000-04:00

Hey, So this has been a pretty exciting time for me. First of all, I went on a vacation. Vacations are incredible--such a novel idea--leaving home and doing nothing. I like it! I want more vacations! I think there are so many places I could go and do nothing, or go and look at interesting things and drink excellent coffee and eat mind-numbing quantities of food. Yes! Vacations.

But back to business, back to work, back to Brooklyn and to the final chapter of Emma's adventures.

I've been lucky enough to have the chance to share The Adventures of Miss Flitt with a larger audience. Knit Picks interviewed me this summer, and the podcast is available here, on their website: Podcast Episode 166: Ebook Author Interviews

I'm also presenting at The Big Apple Knitters' Guild on Saturday, September 10th. I have a speaking engagement! I have to dust off my teacher's voice and extemporaneous skills. I'll be dusting all this week in preparation. Exciting! And I'm so absolutely thrilled to be asked. I mean, thank you, Big Apple Knitters. In the first part of the presentation, I'll discuss the process of putting your own knitting book together, and in the second part, we'll do an interactive mini-workshop on character and design. Bring your colored pencils and sketchpad! Afterwards, I'll sign books.

All of this is making me so excited to finish the final book. You are more than welcome to join me for the launch of "Hastings and Flitt Detective Agency" on Sunday, October 23rd, at Stitch Therapy in Park Slope, Brooklyn.

And yes, I'm also excited about going on a vacation next year.

Villager Wool Coat

2011-08-21T10:55:00.001-04:00

yes, oh yes.

Find of the Day

2011-08-17T21:21:00.002-04:00

This actual Edwardian blouse is now traveling by post to Brooklyn for the next Miss Flitt photo shoot. Make haste, pretty blouse!

Cover of the final Miss Flitt book

2011-08-13T23:45:00.001-04:00

Coming October, 2011

Vol. I, Chapter IV, "Hastings & Flitt Detective Agency"

Coming in October, The Adventures of Miss Flitt's final book, "Hastings & Flitt Detective Agency," finds Emma and Amity back at home, but when Emma receives an odd letter, Emma and Amity again find themselves embroiled in mystery. Enjoy over twenty full-color watercolors and a set of knitwear designs by Beth Hahn. Knit the organic Branches & Leaves Shawl or the soft and flowing Aeolian Harp Wrap. Begin your holiday gift knitting with Emma's City Beret, a simple lace hat with a decorative cast-on, or prepare for winter's cold evenings by knitting the sparkling Nocturne Hat. Create an everyday classic with the Gretel Sweater--originally released in winter, 2010--Gretel is a vintage-inspired pullover with a mock honeycomb yoke and slip stitch detailing.

Finished Cover

2011-08-12T23:55:00.000-04:00

Finished cover art by the stroke of midnight!

Cover Art & Changes

2011-08-12T16:53:00.000-04:00

For the last few days, I've been working on the cover of "Hastings & Flitt Detective Agency." Since this is the final book in the series (of Vol. I, at least), I looked through a lot of images of 19th c. magazines and advertisements before starting, and was inspired by this:

I love the idea of a single character pulling back a curtain to reveal a plot element. The cover's nearly finished; I just want to add some depth to the foreground and make certain it's clear that Emma's pulling back a curtain. The text will go in the white cloud at the top, over the curtain, and in the flag shape at the base.

Then I'll scan so you can really see it better, and put it all together in InDesign. I hope to have it completely finished by Tuesday or Wednesday.

In other news, I was sad to have to withdraw from beginning teacher training in yoga in September. I have too much to do to begin a new project right now, but I'm hoping I can find a January training program. If you follow my blog, you know I'd like to do restorative yoga for knitters--mostly knitters, anyway. I've learned some wonderful shoulder stretches lately that have help my stiff knitting shoulder tremendously. If you ever see me, ask me about it!

The cover of Light on Yoga shows someone (I suppose it's a silhouette of BKS Iyengar) doing a pose called "king of the dance." It's my favorite pose--or one of them. When I was a kid, I used to try to do that while spinning on a single figure skate. It's much easier to do standing still, though still not easy. Not easy. Not at all.

Finds

2011-08-10T22:15:00.002-04:00

Admittedly, one of the things that's so fun about designing knitwear is photographing it, and finding the right way to photograph knitting is a daunting task indeed. OK, so no, no, no: that's not the fun part at all; the fun part is finding something on Ebay to pair your knits with and then photographing your knits.

I was outbid on this dress last year. I'm fairly certain it's the same dress, and it might even have been sold to me by the bidder who dashed it away in last summer's hectic bidding war. Imagine how excited I was to find it again. It goes perfectly with my Aeolian Harp wrap.

(Aeolian Harp in progress)

This purchase was inspired by my mother, who recently unearthed a wonderful series of mid-sixties slides of herself in fashionable Villager tops and dresses. I used to be able to find shirts like this for .50 in any thrift shop, but you're lucky if you get it for less than 10.00 now. I wore all of mine to pieces years ago.

I'm pairing it with Emma's City Beret.

I'm not sure what I'll use this one for, but I liked the colors and the pattern. The seller says it's handmade.

Sold.

Ready for Fall

2011-08-10T20:04:00.000-04:00

I couldn't decide between dividing the top of the beret into simple, even parts and decreasing, or dividing the top less predictably. Which do you think I chose?

The second option, of course!

Emma's City Beret will be released as a single pattern on KnitPicks, and as part of the final book in The Adventures of Miss Flitt series. I'm going to begin the book's cover tomorrow and continue working on the final patterns for "Hastings and Flitt Detective Agency." Mostly I just have to execute the pieces, which is reassuring, but I still have quite a bit of drawing and story editing to do.

Oh, and speaking of KnitPicks, I did a podcast interview with Alison a few weeks ago. She was such a pleasure to talk to. I was pretty nervous, so I chattered on and on; I keep reassuring myself that they'll edit me. I'll let you know when it airs.

You can find a little about Miss Flitt in the Books section of Knitting Today! Magazine, too. It's been a happily busy month.

When I'm not working, I put in a lot of time staring at Newland.

And getting stared at by this one!

I've posted about finding Newlie, and we got Jules (he's French, you know!) to keep him company. Newlie and Jules get up to some serious great high jinx, and they sometimes steal my yarn when I put my work down, or make off with a spare DPN. My stitch markers are just gone at this point--but oh, you see how ready for the fall I am. Knitting to do plus two cats? Just try to get me out of the house come October.

Emma's City Beret

2011-07-26T21:43:00.001-04:00

Emma gets a beret. It's a simple lace stitch, and shouldn't take the knitter more than a few days to complete. I'm looking forward to finishing the patterns for this book. There will be a shawl, a wrap, perhaps a second shawl, two hats, and I'm considering putting in the Gretel Sweater, too.

Tomorrow I'll work on the final book's cover art. It's odd to think of Miss Flitt coming to a close, but I'm full of ideas for future projects.

Oh, you crazy nupp, you.

2011-06-20T10:47:00.002-04:00

There were all the signs: I saw the nupp (pronounced "noop"), I admired the nupp, I kept an image of the nupp in my heart. On afternoon strolls and just before I fell asleep, my mind would seek out the nupp. I thought: "How different from the clumsy bobble! How elegant you are, my nupp!" and then there I was, designing a lace pattern to celebrate the Estonian nupp (into one st: (k1,yo)2x, k1, continue in pattern. On WS row, p 5 nupp sts together).

In theory, the nupp worked. On paper, the nupp looked good: that fat little infinity symbol promising a life of joy and beauty together--but Oh Nupp! How You Punish Me!

Then I met designer Hannah Wallace, the knitting teacher at La Casita, who taught me how to nupp with a crochet hook, so that, oh bother! I wouldn't have to try to pick up all the nupp purls together. That seemed a near impossible task, and if Estonian knitters do not have crochet hooks, I applaud their nimble fingers and loose nupps.

With the crochet hook method, one nupps and knits on the RS of the work, using the hook temporarily as the right-handed needle. When the five (or seven or nine) nupps have landed solidly on the hook, pull the working yarn through and place st on right-handed needle. Voila! A (hopefully) perfect nupp. It still takes some practice, but it's much better than trying to purl those five stitches together. Trust me.

I also bought a pair of the famed Addi Turbo lace needles, and while they are lovely, I found them too heavy and slippery when switching between the needle and the crochet hook. My stitches kept sliding off, adding to my frustration. I returned to my trusty bamboo needles, which are much lighter and hold the stitches in place when left hanging while working a nupp; I used the crochet hook, practicing my stitch pattern until I got comfortable.

Now the nupp and I are relaxed, watching TV together and meeting friends for coffee. We ride the subway in a comfortable silence, and even when I hit a snag, I know we can work it out. I do love you, nupp. You add a pleasant curve to knitting; you bring texture, and of course, you bring unexpected trials and pleasures.

Branches & Leaves Shawl

2011-06-10T12:02:00.000-04:00

Branches and Leaves Shawl

We had spring rain this year that brought to mind a trip I mean to take this summer to Portland, Oregon. Nearly every morning, I'd wake to see the northeast skies a grayer shade of slate blue. It was cooler than normal, and it rained. It rained almost every day for two weeks straight, but after the rain ended, we could begin to appreciate the lush green of the spring trees.

The tree outside of our kitchen window became fuller than I'd ever seen it. I opened the windows and listened to the hush of the wind shifting through its leaves, and sometimes, I felt hypnotized by the smell, and by the light that danced over the walls and across the table. When you live in Brooklyn, it means everything to have a tree like that outside of your window.

It took me awhile to get the design down. I had false starts. I began with a wool that had beautiful flecks of color throughout, but in the end turned out to be too dark. When I discarded that, I thought, "That makes a nice swatch." Sometimes it's important to tell yourself that you haven't wasted any time with a project; otherwise, designing knitwear would become the most discouraging occupation imaginable, and that would be a shame; there's really so much joy involved.

So I changed to another yarn, but quickly decided against that as well. I went to Purl SoHo and stared at the wall of choices, but nothing seemed quite right. Then I knew: I'd splice two greens together, and chose Alchemy's Juniper in Julep and Sweet Lime. About half-way through the new shawl, I tore my stitches out again, reknit, and then about three-quarters of the way through, I tore out an eighth of my stitches and began playing with changing the stitch patterns. I didn't want the shawl to feel at all predictable, and like the ever-changing patterns the tree outside of my window created, I wanted whoever knit the shawl to be able to keep finding new shapes in the shawl after he or she had finished.

Branches & Leaves will be available this fall, in the final The Adventures of Miss Flitt, "Hastings and Flitt Detective Agency."

Bright Spring

2011-05-17T22:42:00.002-04:00

If you've been reading my blog, you know that the winter was, well, bleak; Here we are in mid-May already, and I wanted to take time to list all the lovely moments this spring has brought.

Mother's Day

I'm always happy to spend time with this lady. I just finished reading her new book, and wow is it incredible. I haven't gotten a chance to tell her yet how much I loved it. She's been away visiting friends and getting awards. She has so many friends and so many awards. Impressive mom. My husband and I went down to Maryland to celebrate Mother's Day and my birthday. Sometimes they fall on the same day, and that's always special for us. Look! I made her breakfast. The weather behaved, as did the dogs next door.

Maryland Sheep and Wool

Mother's Day and The Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival fell on the same Sunday. Mom had never gone but always wanted to, Allen gets a kick out of the sheep, and since knitting is well, my job, we went. I think this was a prize-winning sheep--obviously accompanied by an adorable girl wearing a prize-winning outfit. Aw!

Branches and Leaves Shawl

I'm hard at work on the final book in the Miss Flitt series. This is the Branches and Leaves Shawl. I took a bit of a break between the third and fourth books to try and nurse our dear late cat Babu back to health. I'm working again, though I muddled through for a little while. Well, a little while. Sometimes I simply muddle.

A Visit With a Best Friend

My dear friend Meg came to visit. How happy it made me! We talked until 2:30 or so every night, and sometimes I swear I fell asleep mid-sentence, and then woke again around 9 to continue the conversation.

Cherry Blossoms

Every year, the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens has a cherry blossom festival. Meg and I went, and the whole day featured one beautiful surprise after the next. Not only were the cherry blossoms in full-force gorgeousness, I'd forgotten that there is also a great deal of costuming that goes into celebrating the cherry blossom in New York. I think this woman's particularly stunning with her pink hair and matching kimono.

Newland

We mustn't forget the gift that is Newlie who is getting big and shiny and purrs non-stop. Look at that face! Oh, come on! It's just not fair to the people who can't have cats.

A Green Birthday

My husband and I went to Rhinebeck, New York, for a birthday walk and dinner. If you haven't gone and you're in the general vicinity, The Poet's Walk is a happy ramble.

Yoga

I'm enrolling in yoga school this fall, so I've been taking classes four times a week. I've been going to all the yoga schools in the city and Brooklyn. I'm convinced we must have some of the best yoga in the world to choose from here, and so I've been trying my best to take advantage of it. I start training in September, and will earn my certification through Jaya Yoga. One of my yoga dreams is to teach restorative yoga for knitters. Our work brings a good deal of upper body stress and even injury, and nothing makes us unhappy like not being able to knit.

Branches & Leaves

2011-04-11T15:41:00.002-04:00

I'm designing a shawl for the fourth Adventures, "Hastings & Flitt Detective Agency," and I'm spending the day experimenting with increases, putting them in unusual spots and dividing the shawl up into different sections. I'm also tampering with a traditional leaf pattern, putting in an extra row of sl-k2tog-psso and eliminating a row of yo, ssk, k1, k2tog, yo. It gives the lace design a slightly imperfect, organic look that I think suits the yarn: Madeline Tosh Merino Light.

I'm also designing a gentleman's scarf for the book in two of the MT colors. When I go into a shop to choose new yarn, it has become common that I say to myself, "No more Madeline Tosh!" but I am inevitably drawn to the yarns. They're so intensely lovely with their muted then vibrant tonal shifts. It's impossible not to be impressed and get all touchy-feely with them, and if you design, you want to do them justice by creating something worthy.

That's the hard part. I swatched for two weeks before I felt happy with my pattern.

I blogged a bit about getting back into my yoga habit, and knitters let me tell you: my shoulders are tight. I don't think I've ever had such tight shoulders. It's the way we sit. I'm trying to practice better posture while working, but I always seem to end up in the same slump; brows furrowed, squinting, shoulders hunched, so I'm trying to take a walk break every day and go to yoga at least three times a week. Some knitters over here are not getting any younger. Who? I don't know.

Tonight I'm going to a headstand workshop at a yoga school downtown. I've only every done headstands against the wall, but the very sweet woman with whom I talked this morning promised I'd be able to learn to do it without. I hope she's right. I'm trying to dive into all the asanas that scare me (but not really dive) by taking workshops. A few weeks ago, I took an inversion/backbend workshop out in New Jersey that was incredible. Backbends are not that scary to me, though they definitely should be; it's always the turning upside-down that gets me, but a few weeks ago, I managed my first handstand (with spotting), and tonight, I'll try for my very own headstand.

There's something wonderful about facing one's fears--facing one's fears in a safe, informed way, I mean. Even changing an established lace pattern or a shawl's increase can seem a little frightening. If I think of each attempt at a new skill or bit of knowledge as growth instead of "mistake", it's easier. The first handstand is a budding leaf, and so is a new design. As long as I am able, I want to grow my own branches and leaves, just as the spring trees are doing today.

Newland

2011-04-08T12:49:00.000-04:00

Meet Newland. He's approximately 2 months old and was rescued at the intersection of The Jackie Robinson Expressway and Metropolitan Avenue. He's button-cute, isn't he? We adore him. We call him "Newlie" for short; various nicknames include "Newlie Raccoon," "Newlie Bunny," and "Professor Newland." The last moniker was inspired by Newlie's little mustache and goatee markings, and the marks on the bridge of his nose that resemble indentations from eyeglasses. Cute!

Thanks to everyone who wrote to me here, on Facebook, and emailed about Babu. Thank you for the cards and phone calls. You've helped make the grieving process easier. We will always miss our Bu, and we know that a new cat can never replace an old, and that each feline friend will be unique and different from the last. That's why we chose the name "Newland," for he represents an entirely new and undiscovered land of personality and distinction.

Welcome, Newlie!

Moving Forward

2011-03-28T21:06:00.000-04:00

When I was a child, my father used to drive very quickly down a certain road that led to my grand parents' house. The name of the road was Rolling Road, and my sister and I always asked him to take that route. We loved the feeling of the car zooming along, hitting bump after bump, lifting us into the air and then gravity thumping us squarely back into our seats. We laughed and screamed in delight, and I remember the kind-of urchin grin my father got as he listened. It was fun for him, too. This might not have been the best thing a father could do to delight his children, but it was the 70s, and I don't think everyone was as vigilant about cars and child safety as they are now. And shock absorbers were a totally different game.

When I found out that our friend Bob died, I had the sense for a while that my stomach had risen the way it used to as we sped along Rolling Road, but it refused to drop again, and I wasn't laughing. This wasn't fun. Forty-four year-olds who live two floors down and whom you've come to look forward to running into and chatting with shouldn't simply disappear. But he did. And his beautiful dog Ruben went to his sister in upstate New York. They were both gone. My husband and I were confused about how it had all happened. We wanted our questions answered, and though most of them were, there was still a nagging sense of wrongness about the whole thing.

During our brief friendship with Bob, we partly bonded over animals. Bob always asked after our cat, Babu. When you live in New York, most of your neighbors don't know your name--let alone the name of a beloved cat. I can't list the endless, magical characteristics here that Babu possessed, but if you ever invite me to a knitting group and ask, I will enumerate them without hesitation.

Babu has been gone for a little over two weeks now, and his death has left the kind of gaping emptiness that we, as a culture, reserve for people.

I have spent the last few weeks with that suspended in mid-air feeling in my stomach, biting my bottom lip to pieces, worrying that this isn't the end of a bleak hibernal streak, but the beginning of a trend that I don't like. If it were up to me, I'd keep everyone I know safe. They'd be healthy and happy. Their lives would be rewarding. They'd never feel sorrow or pain. Each thing they imagined would be bestowed upon them fully. There would be no nightmares. There would be no loss.

But I know that's impossible. "I better get used to this kind of thing," I tell myself, trying to imitate what I think of as a tough lady--a lady who's well-acquainted with grief--knowing even mid-sentence that getting used to friends and loved ones departing is equally as impossible as keeping them safe.

I've decided to try to teach myself how to mourn, to manage grief, and to move forward. I don't say "move on" because part of me bristles at the idea of "moving on." It feels like someone has said, "Get over it," or "forget about it," to me--or worse--that I've said it to myself. Moving forward sounds, well, gentler, quieter; it sounds possible, even.

I began by trying to escape. I suppose it's an acceptable reaction. After Bob died, I took a couple of sleeping pills and conked out mid-day through the next morning, and after Babu died, my husband and I left for the beach. We visited my parents and a friend from childhood, and then we stared at the ocean for a few days. We fell asleep atop a picnic table in Cape Henlopen while looking into a pure blue sky. We wrote Babu a message in the sand. We bought a mechanical wind-up kitty at a beach shop and kept him on the dashboard of our car.

It was hard to come home again. The house felt empty. It still does.

Of the many reasons I married my husband, one of them is that he makes me laugh, and these last few weeks have been no exception. We talked about Babu and his antics, and we laughed. I put a photo album together of pictures of Bu on Facebook, and every night, I checked to see the messages friends left. Even though most of them had never met Babu, so many of them reached out to comfort me, and it made me feel loved.

I could not get back to my designs. The scarf project I'd been designing reminded me of Bu. The whole time he was sick, I sat beside him, designing a scarf for the fourth Miss Flitt book. If Babu wanted to cuddle, which was often, I set my work aside and lay down with him. Still stalled today, I went out and bought yarn for a shawl design. I've started to do yoga again, and with each breath and deepened pose, I relax a little; I find a bit of happiness. I've tried to brighten my work space. I've spent some time with close friends. Last night, I dyed eggs and photographed them so they looked like planets. They'll all be eaten by Easter, but that's okay. I'm not particularly religious. I've been reading novels. And poetry. There are flowers in my house.

Gradually, I can begin to imagine that the feeling of being suspended mid-air might subside. When I land, I hope I find a bit of the joy that I felt in my father's car, windows rolled down, the spring air fresh in my face--that that moment of unabashed glee and freedom will be mine once again. In childhood, I suppose, it is an easy joy to achieve. It takes a simple granted wish: drive down that road. Take me for ice cream. Hold my hand. Lift me up higher. In adulthood, one must learn to do these things for oneself. They come at a dearer price, and more slowly.

Cape Henlopen, Delaware

We'll Always LOVE You

Intergalactic Easter Eggs

Someone I love

Someone else I love

New Yarn

Tulips

Stand-in Kitty

A Dream

2011-03-23T10:13:00.001-04:00

I dreamt once that I too was a cat, and that we went running through the woods together, the wind in our faces, the flash of trees around us. We were on a path of dry leaves. It was autumn. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see your strong body moving swiftly next to mine. What a joy to be a cat! How quick, how lithe! In dream transformation, I saw everything: the moment the leaf fell away from the tree, the sun turning the edges of the world crimson. We had no words in the dream. Even in dreams, cats can’t talk. But I knew your essence and your spirit, brave and bright, and I knew your love.

I always will.

Rest in peace, brave Babu. September 17th 2001 - March 12th, 2011.

Apologies. I've been out of touch.

2011-03-09T21:21:00.000-05:00

If you've contacted me, I really must apologize. Most likely I haven't replied. You see, my beloved cat Babu has been diagnosed with carcinomatosis, and I really don't know how much time he has left. Babu and I have been tight since October 2001, so I'm spending every minute of every day with him. Bu's no stranger to ailments. He's an FIV cat, and has had a long list of odd illnesses since the fall; each has been treated and kicked, and we just started him on LTCI therapy. Bu's had biopsies and x-rays, so the diagnosis was a shock. My husband and I are totally smitten with this cat. If you know me, you know about Babu. I'll write more about him later, but just now I want to get back to cuddling.

I promise to resurface. xo Beth

Beth loves Babu, 2008

Gretel is now available on Knit Picks, too!

2011-02-18T15:21:00.000-05:00

I want to see Gretel on Knit Picks!

Download the Séance Shawl and support the ASPCA

2011-02-10T14:29:00.007-05:00

Dear Friends,

Eighty percent of each sale of The Séance Shawl will go to The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) in memory of our friend and neighbor, Robert Benjamin Margolis, who was a musician, writer, teacher, and animal lover, and who died suddenly last month of complications from diabetes.

My husband and I enjoyed neighborhood walks with Bob and his dog Ruben; we traded stories about our lives, recommended local restaurants, and talked about music and politics. We found parallels: we’d all recently left a crowded and noisy Park Slope for the more low-key Bay Ridge; Bob had played basketball with a man my husband works with, and Bob and I were both originally from Maryland. I was surprised to find out that he hadn’t lived in our apartment building for as long as my husband and I had. He greeted everyone by name and knew a little something about their lives. Surely Ruben, with his boundless energy and gorgeous glossy brown coat, helped him get to know people, and it was Bob who often asked after our own cat’s fragile health.

What Your Gift Does:

$11 pays for one feline leukemia test (2 shawls)

$25 vaccinates 20 dogs for kennel cough (3 shawls)

$43 provides flea treatment and heartworm protection for a dog (4 shawls)

$100 spay surgery for a cat (25 shawls)

$300 pays for an animal’s care at our adoption center until it is adopted. Includes vaccinations, spay/neuter surgery, food, and care. (75 shawls)

Bob was also curious about The Adventures of Miss Flitt, and we’d talk at the mailboxes or in the elevator about the creation of the knitting-mystery-historical-drama that took up most of my time. Even though he was not a knitter himself, he seemed genuinely intrigued by the project, and so, when wondering what to do for him now that he is gone, I think of how much he loved Ruben, and will donate eighty percent of the proceeds from the sale of The Séance Shawl to the Maryland SPCA in Bob’s memory. The Séance Shawl is from the third Miss Flitt book, The Séance.

To read more about Bob, follow these links:

RIABiz:http://www.riabiz.com/a/5368493

Kingston Citizens: http://kingstoncitizens.org/2011/01/15/rip-bob-margolis/
The Baltimore Sun:http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/baltimoresun/obituary.aspx?n=robert-benjaminmargolis& pid=147656084&fhid=4743

Wherever you go, may peace reside within you, and may love and kindness brighten the world about you.

With gratitude,
Beth Hahn & Allen Rose

The New Dog
by Linda Pastan

Into the gravity of my life,
the serious ceremonies
of polish and paper
and pen, has come

this manic animal
whose innocent disruptions
make nonsense
of my old simplicities—

as if I needed him
to prove again that after
all the careful planning,
anything can happen.

Gretel is on Sale!

2011-01-26T21:57:00.007-05:00

Gretel is for sale on Ravelry! Click the magical "buy now" box:

When the pattern is up on KP, I'll post that link, too.

______________________________________

A Bit of Errata

Under "Yoke Placket"

Repeat buttonhole on RS of work every 1.5(1.5, 1.75, 1.75, 1.75)” 3 more times

After final buttonhole, work in pattern until piece equals length of yoke.

_______________________________________

Here are some of the pattern illustrations. Enjoy, my pretties!

A Window

2011-01-20T22:07:00.004-05:00

I like the way it's now possible to document my days in such a mundane and unobtrusive way--with my phone. I am not taking out an official looking piece of equipment, and I forgive myself if I don't take a beautiful photo each time. Using a digital camera has never saved me from the sense of waste and perfection left over from using film. I remember a photography teacher saying, "You'll get maybe one, two good pictures on each roll of film." He was right.

This is a view of the Brooklyn Bridge from the window of the N train. I have never stood up to take this picture before.

If I don't like the picture, I can just press "delete" and move on to the next image.

I can show you what every trash can in New York looked like a few days ago during a rainstorm,

or that my husband got stuck on the R train and came home tired, but was patient enough to let me take his photo.

This is Babu. He's getting better after being sick for the last five months.

It's that time of year where all the Christmas trees in the world end up on the sidewalk.

This the phone my father kept on his desk for years at NASA. We like to say we can call the moon with it.

This is me trying to decide if I should keep my bangs or let them grow out. I think the picture makes me look like a beatnik--so I saved the photo setting as "beat."

At Last: Gretel

2011-01-01T12:47:00.004-05:00

The Unveiling of Gretel

front

side

back

Coming to Knit Picks

Blizzard Projects

2010-12-27T20:20:00.003-05:00

When stranded inside, it's best to have something interesting to do.

Like finishing a sweater

Or a series of découpages

Officially, New York City has 20" of snow. I haven't been outside today. Even though the snow has stopped falling, the wind has been gusting frightfully all day long. Our street hasn't been plowed, and the grocery store is clean out of bread. I'll go out tomorrow, but it was fun to be inside today. Mr. Flitt had the day off, and so we sat in the living room with the tree lights on, saying, "20 inches of snow!" We had enforced cozy time with coffee and cookies and projects. A lovely blizzard day.

Holiday Gifts: Découpage

2010-12-18T01:07:00.010-05:00

Fun with Découpage

Day 1: Beth & Allen. Found beneath the Christmas tree.

I'm taking a break from knitting to let you know what craftiness I've been up to today: découpage. I was inspired by Tamara Lee's sublime Coney Island pieces. You can see them in New York Magazine. Tamara's the owner of Brooklyn Mercantile, and she has great taste. I always want to take up new hobbies when I'm there: sewing! scrap booking! shopping for ribbon! Okay, shopping for ribbon isn't really a hobby, but it could be.

The above découpage isn't truly a holiday gift. My husband has a birthday that falls directly after Christmas, and so it's convenient for my parents, who use "birthday" and "Christmas" interchangeably when they talk to me about what he'd like as a gift. I try not to fall into this habit; after all, my husband's Jewish. This is the first year he's ever had a Christmas tree. We just call it "the tree" and we have a pretty red bird on top instead of a star or an angel. Also it's a petite tree. I don't want to over-Christmas him. That already happens in shops. With the music and all, and the signs, and the sales, and the Santas. He likes the tree. It's sweet.

Here's our red bird:

But back to decoupage. You will need, randomly:

A laser print
Wood cut to size
Gesso
Sandpaper
Gloss varnish-I use Liquitex
A bone folder, or something to smooth the image after applying it to the board
Paints and paint brushes. I'm finding that water-based paints--especially gauche--are fun to use.

Directions

Sand your piece of wood (or box, cup, plate, shoes, table, lamp, whathaveyou)
Prime the wood with gesso

Paint the sides of the wood (and front and back--if you want)

Sand the wood again

Making sure the wood is dust-free, apply the gloss varnish to the wood and the back of your image
Place the image on the wood
Smooth the surface, pressing the air bubbles and wrinkles out with the bone folder
After the image is in place, apply the first coat of varnish to the top of the image. Apply a second coat in a different direction, and a third in the original direction.
Mess with your découpage by applying paints, more varnish, a little gesso; wet a paper towel and rub spots of varnish and pigment away; add more paint, more varnish; scrape, sand edges, paint edges, sand edges, &c;

You get the idea. Once you've got some varnish on top of your image, it's very much indestructible.

Most of all, have fun! You can always get another copy.

I have eight images, and my husband will find them randomly around the house in the days before his birthday and on his birthday. It's a fun gift to create. Each image means something to us, and it's sort of a Chanukah kind-of gift, too. Chanukah has passed now, but since we're sharing traditions, I wanted to give him something special this year.

Day 2: Ireland Trip. Found in the fridge atop a box of See's Chocolates.

Day 3: Our much loved cat, Babu. Found in Babu's favorite nap spot.

Dueling Construction

2010-12-16T12:17:00.005-05:00

Can't you hear the twang of the bango--the dueling banjos? These are the dueling sweaters. You might remember that I'm designing an IDP sweater. I can attest to the fact that Knit Picks's Capra holds up. It wears without tear. It's a lovely, sturdy, soft yarn that can be torn apart and woven and knitted and purled and then ripped out again. I love you, Capra!

Sweater A., on the right, is knit top-down; Sweater B., on the left, is knit bottom-up

So. I've always loved a yoke. A yoke with smocking and off-center buttons is something to get excited about, don't you think? I thought this design would be simple, but knitters know about thinking something is simple: It never is. I did my math. Gauge is important in smocking, you see, because the smocking stitch pattern is always tighter than simple stockinette. I learned. So I gauged and re-gauged and checked my numbers and swatched and blocked. I swatched flat and in the round. I did it all! I thought: I am good! But listen, don't ever think that until you're finished a piece of knitting.

Everything was laid out. I made my charts for the smocking. I measured. I sized my sweater with standard measurements. I began. When I finished the body, I tried it on. I paraded around the house in my half-finished sweater, saying to my husband, "Isn't it pretty?" And at first he was good and he said, "Beautiful!" but then I turned away from him, and when I turned back, he had that look on his face, the look that says: "Should I tell her? Or should I just let her remain delusional and happy?" The back of the sweater, between the smocking, the arm, and the body, held a horrifying, gaping swath of fabric. "It's fine!" I told him. "There's no gape!" I turned and struggled to see my back in the mirror. "It's fine!" but by then my determination for It To Be Fine lacked conviction. It was not fine. I would have to start again.

The next morning, I sent this picture to one of my go-to knitting gurus, Antonio Limuaco:

Weep for the gaping drape of Sweater A.

He wrote back right away and gave me sage advice, saying I might have to put in short rows and that I might have to knit it flat. I thought and thought, and looked and checked my numbers, and I decided that I'd have to scrap the entire sweater and begin again from the bottom up. I'd work in the round, but I'd give the body zero ease and add structure by slipping a stitch up the sides. Then I'd join the body and sleeves and work the yoke in one piece.

Sweater A. in front, getting unraveled to use in Sweater B., in back

I haven't finished. For the sleeves, I did a provisional cast-on and knit a few rounds so I could join them to the body. I couldn't stand the anticipation of knitting two entire sleeves before joining. Ah, the exciting life of the knitwear designer! The hours of bad TV and deciding that maybe the people on NPR are actually real friends; the endless cups of coffee and the whining about numbers--and then, and then . . .

the joy of getting it right.

No gape, no drape, no pain. Structure, solidity, softness, and nearly complete. Stayed tuned for the finished product!

Miss Flitt at Knitty City, 12/4

2010-11-30T21:16:00.004-05:00

Stop by Knitty City on Saturday, December 4th, between 2 and 4 to pick up your autographed copies of the Miss Flitt books. I'll be there with my gift wrap and a few single patterns. Stop in and say hello, and make sure to check out the cool window display Melissa put together. Thanks, Knitty City!

Knitty City is on the Upper West Side at 79th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam. Take the 1 train to 79th Street. If it's a pretty day, take the 2/3 to 72nd.

Nocturne, a Gift Pattern

2010-11-29T21:50:00.008-05:00

Dear Friends, Pick up your gift copy of a new pattern, Nocturne, between now and December 26th. Though the pattern's price is marked $2.00, I'm having a Ravelry holiday sale in my store, and everything is two dollars off. The discount will be given at checkout.

The pattern comes with four new watercolors, and it is sized to fit a small, medium, or large.

The pattern is named for a favorite piece of music.

Holiday Flitt Wrap

2010-11-16T15:20:00.006-05:00

It's here!

You can now get your Flitts wrapped with holiday Flitt wrap at my shop!

Pine Trees, Wreaths, and Mittens

By Beth Hahn

Flitt Wrap

2010-11-07T10:14:00.002-05:00

How much fun?

This is Amity's birthday cake from "The Séance." I'll be offering this and a holiday wrap on my website. I'll wrap and send Flitts for you! As soon as I get my holiday wrap, I'll put up the gift wrap option. In the meantime, if you'd like to send a wrapped book as a birthday present, just email me. More fun with printing.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-25T17:12:00.007-04:00

"The Medium Eva C. with a Materialization on

Her Head and a Luminous Apparition

Between Her Hands," 1912

Albert von Schrenck-Notzing (German, 1862-1929)

Gelatin silver print, 24 x 18 cm

Institut für Grenzgebiete der Psychologie und

Psychohygiene, Freiburg im Breisgau

Of course! That's the medium Eva C. with a materialization on her head and a luminous apparition between her hands! Anyone would know.

You really have to love 19th c. spiritualist photography. There was a wonderful show at the Met a few years ago called "The Perfect Medium: Photography and the Occult." Eva C. was in the show, as well as many a hovering, luminous apparition. I really thought Eva C. had some sort of odd little hat perched atop her head, but now it's all clear: it's not a hat; it's a materialization.

If you pre-ordered a book, you should expect to get in time for halloween. As soon as I got them from the printer, I put them aside and numbered and dated them, but I didn't have time to send them off until this morning.

What to do next? The final book in the Miss Flitt series, of course, but I'm going to take a few months to work on individual patterns. This winter, I'll be selling a sweater pattern through the Knit Picks Independent Designer Program, so I must work on that. It's a pattern I began in the summer but felt that the fiber, though beautiful, was the wrong choice.

That's the sweater. It's done in Joseph Galler's Cupcake. Does that sound familiar? That's because that sweater became The Ether Overskirt.

Cupcake=drape. And after you block it, it's so light and airy. It's like, well, the ether? You must try.

If you missed the launch at Stitch Therapy but would like to get a book, Maxcine has copies, so drop by ST if you're in Brooklyn; if you're in the city, on Wednesday, I'll deliver a bunch to Pearl at Knitty City. I'm selling them on my website, too. I'll have to wait for the server to upload the PDF. I can't seem to make it small enough; in the meantime, I'll email the PDF to you.

I'm going to try try try my best to take this week off, but I doubt I really will. I did take a nap today, which was just about the most amazing thing ever, and I ambitiously imagined that I'd cook a wonderful dinner, though I think the nap stole my cooking time. I'll spend the next few weeks visiting museums (this looks fun) and wandering around SoHo, drinking coffee, and touching high-end knitwear in boutiques (but not at the same time).

The last four weeks have seen me working all day and well into the night, and I do hope it shows (or doesn't) in the new book. "The Séance" is so far my favorite of the Flitts. I think--hope--it will be one of your favorites, too! Wow. I can't believe there's only one more to go. It's been such a fun project. I remember writing the plot down on the back of a pattern while riding the subway. If I still have it, I'll post it in the end. I won't look for it now. I wouldn't want to give away anything!

The Printed & Bound Book

2010-10-20T18:02:00.003-04:00

Look! It's finished!

I worked with the printer to get that orange. I wanted pumpkin. No, I insisted. I must have pumpkin. Neither salmon nor safety orange will do. I want squash. Dead leaves. Bonfires. The book is like a little jack-o-lantern just in time for Halloween. I've always loved Halloween. I applaud the care that goes into costuming and the fearless ringing of doorbells and requesting of candy. We should do it every day, I think, but then, well . . . It's like my mom always said about Christmas and my birthday: it just wouldn't be special if they came every day.

I'm still not sure that I agree with that.

Sample Pages from "The Séance"

2010-10-17T00:34:00.005-04:00

Almost finished! "The Séance" went to the printer today. Books will be available for sale on Friday, October 22nd, at www.missflitt.com

Photo Shoot

2010-10-09T21:16:00.008-04:00

Mr. Flitt & Me

Here are a few photos for the new book. It was fun to have such gorgeous location--check out that lead glass window in the shawl photos. I was nervous and left my flash on during the photos of Tony's hat, so there are none here, but I like how the rest came out. Happily, Tony took many pictures of his hat in the Society's pretty garden, so we'll use those for the book.

I've always loved photography. I used to lug a 35 mm Pentax around with me. But admittedly, I do not know a great deal about SLRs. Photography is a craft and an art--like knitting, I suppose--and the eye must know what it wants. In the case of photographing a model and a knit, you have to ask the model for what you want too: A little to the left, look down, look at me, 3/4 to me, turn right, profile. It's difficult to take a good photo and take a good photo of a knit at the same time, but by the end of the day, I felt a little bit like a pro. Just a little. The light kit worked out well, and Tony brought a reflector. A reflector looks like a trampoline for a cat. You know what I'm talking about, don't you? No? This is a reflector. I'd highly recommend one for photo shoots. I'd never done this kind of indoor work before, and while I wanted to have time to experiment more before the photo shoot, I simply didn't.

I think Wanda's looking very Jane Campion in some of these. It's never a bad thing to look JC. Wanda was fantastic. Did you know Brandi, the model from the first two books, is going into to the Peace Corps? I'm thrilled for her. She'll be in Africa soon! As I said in the costuming post, Wanda was one of my students when I taught and we managed to become friends. I say "managed" because it's not always possible for teachers and students to be friends--even if you want to--but I'm very glad we managed.

Enjoy!

Getting Ready for the Photo Shoot

2010-10-08T22:04:00.005-04:00

Tonight I'm packing up for the new book's photo shoot. It's tomorrow, at the beautiful Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture, where I'll meet Rachel and Tony and Wanda, and Bobby--whom I haven't met. He's modeling Tony's hat, and Wanda's modeling Rachel's belt, Maxcine's beret, and my work. Mr. Flitt, my husband (he's started calling himself that), is acting as my gallant assistant. He's helping me with my light kit, camera stuff, and all my clothes and knits. Are we moving to the Society for Ethical Culture? Let's look at a picture again! Spooky!

So. I have to go to sleep soon. I've been working on getting this together all day--all year? and I worked on lighting today, too, but you know, I wanted to take a second to talk about costumes because it's fun. Some of the clothes are mine, and I bought other pieces on Ebay. It's easy to get obsessed with finding cool items on Ebay. I'll have to tell you more tomorrow, I think. Very sleepy!

A Great Many Cats

2010-10-07T15:26:00.006-04:00

Mrs. Mandeville and her Cats, from "The Séance"

My cat, Babu, is FIV+. He's fared well for nine years, but this year seems to be hitting him hard. He's got one of those famed secondary--or opportunistic--infections right now. Last month, when he got a cold that wouldn't go away, I dutifully took him to the vet. Bu had little bald patches, too, and the vet didn't have a clue. Really, I wouldn't expect many vets to have lots of answers about FIV kitties. Most people don't want a kitten who has it, as Babu did, so those kitties go to shelters; or, if a cat goes outside and contracts it from a bite or wound, the cat will outlive the first sign of any infection, but a cat who's had it since birth? There is just not much research.

Babu the Cat

When the regular vet couldn't figure out Bu's illness, we took him to Brooklyn Cares. They practice traditional veterinary care, but they also offer more: vitamins, herbs, acupuncture even. I thought if anyone would know what's up with an FIV kitty, it would be them. That's where you'd take your FIV cat when no one else could find the root of the trouble. I was right. They diagnosed Babu with pseudomonas and bartonella.

Still, my husband and I practically spent the night at the emergency clinic the other night. Babu started listing to one side, stumbling, and throwing up. That's a hard thing to see. Watching a cat that you love simply tip over is heart breaking. We thought he was having a toxic reaction to the antibiotics, so we bundled him up, put him in his carrier, and called a car service. An hour later, we found out that he's got a pretty mean ear infection.

Even though I've got loads of work to do right now, I take the time every day to cuddle up with Bu and take a nap with him. He's a wonderful cat, and he likes to curl up in my arms and nestle his head in my hand. When the weather's changing from cool to cooler, is there anything sweeter than drifting off to sleep with a much loved cat?

I've had to cut a few things from my schedule in order to make time to properly nurture Babu. Dinners, movies, readings, and the Flitt Along have all slipped by the way side. One thing I've noticed is that a great many cats are populating the new Miss Flitt book, so if you wonder about the great quantities of cats, please take a second to wish Babu well.

One of Mrs. Mandeville's cats, from "The Séance"

How Do You Do That? Indoor Lighting

2010-09-29T05:04:00.005-04:00

I have no idea, but I'm going to figure it out, and when I do, I'll let you know.

I looked into different lighting options, and it looks like there are two. You can rent equipment or you can buy it. I was going to rent a very nice lighting kit for a week so I'd have time to experiment with it first, but to rent, you must either a. have insurance to cover damage--that's business insurance, or b. have a line of credit to cover the cost of credit. In this case, that would have been thousands of dollars. You get it back, but what if something happened? It made me too nervous. Also, I'm cash and debit friendly. I detest credit cards. If given the choice, I will always prefer buying something with cash instead of charging it, so I decided to just go ahead and buy a lighting kit of my own. It's nothing fancy.

Photography Studio Continuous Lighting Kits

A free carrying case!

When it arrives, I'm going to invite friends over for a portrait party. I'll post the photos and let you know what I think.

Update! 10/8

So tomorrow's the photo shoot, and I needed to experiment. I set up the lights and took some self-portraits. I need a haircut, I know. Still! Pretty cool. See if you can guess which side the cool bulb is on and which side the warm is on.

My work space is messy! But this is one of the light kits. It's very nice. That has a cool light in it. I think it's a little too cool, really, but that led me to go buy some excellent warmer bulbs.

I meet my old student and dear friend Wanda at the Society of Ethical Culture tomorrow for the photos. Check back for the pics!

All Hail J.: Test Knitter Extraordinaire

2010-09-28T11:37:00.006-04:00

Finding test knitters is hard. Let's just say it. I've been lucky in finding some very good ones, but they don't always have time, and sometimes I design something they feel eh about it. Really!

Lately I've been trying work locally to ensure excellent communication, and you'd think this would be easy seeing how there are knitters all over New York, but not everyone dreams of being a test knitter. Why? And sometimes people want to do it as a favor and then they can't. I understand the snags and dilemmas they run into. In a new pattern, or one that has been shuffled through my brain numerous times and then rearranged at say 3:00 AM, there are bound to be problems: missing stitches, weird rows, and let's not even mention the little computer imp that's hiding out somewhere in my Mac and erasing key directions as I sleep. I know you're there!

But let me tell you about J. I got a note from J. saying she'd love to test knit my séance shawl pattern. All right! I said. I get excited when people volunteer test knitting, I admit. J. lives a subway ride away from me. I got a few notes from her while she worked, but then I didn't hear anything, and you know what it's like when you don't hear anything from a test knitter. You don't want to bother her or rush her through something. But then J. came back! She wrote to me and said that she was almost finished, and that she had notes (notes!), and I said we should meet for coffee to discuss.

I had a lovely coffee with J., who has bright eyes and a warm and charming personality. I liked her so much I'm afraid I kept her too long. She showed me her notes, and these, my friends, are not just notes, but they are a guide, a beautiful, colorful key to all that is imperfect in my pattern. Every designer needs a J.! I believe J. is a bit of a math whizz. No, J. is a math genius!

First let's talk a little bit about why I need J. so much. No, I'll show you why:

This is how J. checks a pattern:

This is how I check a pattern:

Oh, I'm sorry. Did you mix us up? I'll show you again.

This is how J. checks a pattern:

This is how I check a pattern:

I have no idea what I was doing there. Sketching a Space Invaders memory, perhaps? If you didn't guess it already, I went to art school. I studied art and English. I am not, nor have I ever been, mathematically gifted. My scores on standardized math tests are abysmal. Oh so low.

I took a rather comical class at Hunter a few years ago when I was playing with the idea of getting a second master's degree and knew that I would be forced to at least complete (sit there staring at the ceiling?) the math section of an exam--again.

My class was a funny group. We were earnest adults who succeeded in mostly hiding our math phobia from the world, but here, in that bright fluorescent classroom among used textbooks and giant posters of the very mathematic symbols that struck fear into our hearts, we waited, with great anxiety, for our teacher to enter the room.

Math teachers! Just saying it scares me. I harbor a clear kind-of PTSD memory of a math teach laughing, in a sort of side-splitting way, at something I said. When he gave a rather long-winded answer to a formula that I did not understand, I was frustrated. I wanted to understand. "But," I said from the back of the room, where I always sat. "But I want to know--"

"Yes?"he said. He seemed delighted that I was speaking.

"I want to know why that's the answer."

After he'd finished laughing, he cleared his throat, and answered: "Beth, there is no why in math."

But why was my quest, my dilemma, my purpose in life. How could there be no why in something? How did it exist? What was it made out of?

My teacher at Hunter was more like J. She told us we were fine, and best of all, she said that we could do math too! We could! To which we all just stared at her with blank expressions, longing for paint brushes and colors and fonts and flowers to arrange or write about or paint. But we did it--little by little--we did the math. I can't tell you that I got an A in the class because it was night school and the class offered no credit, but I think I would have gotten an A. For a while, I did fractions for fun on the subway, and really, that class gave me the confidence to design patterns.

I can do the math it requires to write a knitting pattern (a lot), but alas my friends, I will never be a J. Thank god for J.!

Watercolors and Timetables

2010-09-19T20:53:00.004-04:00

For everyone who pre-ordered copies of "The Séance," I thought you might like to see the time table for the book.

The illustrations are finished--but maybe I'll want just a few more.

The story is being read and suggestions made.
The patterns are with test knitters.
The photo shoot will take place on October 10th.
The book will be proofed by October 14th.
The book will be printed by October 20th.
The book will be sent to you by October 25th.

Finished Designs!

2010-09-10T17:36:00.003-04:00

I'm so happy to present to you the designs for the third book in the Adventures of Miss Flitt series, "The Séance." This is a special accessories issues with three new designs by me and three by guest designers. I'm working on the watercolors now, and everything should be finished in the next two weeks!

Here are my designs.

Click the images to see them larger.

The Ether Overskirt, knit in Joseph Galler Cupcake. Yarn available at Stitch Therapy.

The Séance Shawl, knit in Fibre Company Canopy Fingering. Yarn available at Purl SoHo.

The Spirit Sleeves, knit in Malabrigo lace weight and Alchemy Juniper. Yarn available at Brooklyn General.

MIss Flitt-Along Questions Addressed

2010-09-04T13:32:00.004-04:00

The Annabel Lee Neck Cozy

What's up with the first two rows of the chart?

The first two rows of the neck cozy should be done in seed stitch. *k1, p1* across the front, and *p1, k1* across the back. If you forget which stitch you're on, just remember to knit the stitches that are purled, and purl the stitches that are knitted. The edge stitches should also be done in seed. If you should have questions, please write to me. If you've never made buttonholes or knitted lace, you might run into the regular issues that go along with doing such things for the first time.

How many stitches should I have on my needle?

Rows 1 & 2: 80 sts on the needle
Row 3: You've decreased by 4 sts. You should have 76 sts on the needle.
Row 7: Take away 8 sts. 68 sts on needle
Row 9: Take away 8 sts. 60 sts on needle
Row 11: 60
Row 13: 59
Rows 15 - 29: Work increases, one on each side. Each row increases 2 sts

What's going on with those buttonholes?

This is my favorite buttonhole. It's knit over one row, and you can find it here, on Knitting on the Net.

Sharpers

For those knitting the Sharpers, please post questions when you have them!

At Work

2010-08-28T23:33:00.003-04:00

Thanks to everyone who pre-ordered your copy of "The Séance"! There's still time left. I'll be taking orders through mid-September; in the meantime, I might not get much time to post. I'm pulling long hours on the new book, and I'm very excited about it. I hope many of you will be able to come to the launch!

The Ether Overskirt

2010-08-23T20:05:00.002-04:00

It's so good to finish a new design.

I thought I'd post if any of my new M&J Trim friends stop by. Here it is! This is the Ether Overskirt. The pattern will be available in my new book, "The Séance," this October. It's such a simple pattern, but I think it's very elegant!

How Do You Do That? The Cover

2010-08-11T16:02:00.023-04:00

End / October 20th:
Today I picked the finished and bound book up at the printer. It's fun to look back over this post and see the cover from the very start. I hadn't even finished the book's watercolors when I began this, and a few of the patterns had made it into test knitters' hands, but I'm there was one that wasn't finished yet. And the story was most likely in unedited disarray.

If you haven't been following this post, scroll down to the bottom to read about the cover design's progress.

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Dare I say it? I know it will change a few more times before press, but I'm happy with my new cover!

Designing the Book's Cover

August 15th

I'm almost finished. I decided that the top box should have stage curtains, and the guest designers got little white flags to hold their names; I put the text in just to see if I need anything else. When I scan the image, I'll post the final version. The fonts will be resized and changed a little, and I might go back into a few areas of the illustration, but that is how the cover is done!

August 14th

By no means finished, but at this point, I can put the text down and know what needs to be added. The top box needs to be resolves. I painted a light landscape into it, but that's not enough. I'll take another look at it tomorrow.

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August 13th: Step 4 -- Watercolor, line, and colored pencil

Today I went back to watercolors, but this time, I used a watercolor medium that I like instead of straight water. It extends the color and makes it a bit more opaque and bright. I filled out areas with colored pencil and worked on directing the eye through the piece. Note that the outer corners are dark. This focuses the eye on the central image. I don't want the piece to feel too linear, so I broke up some of the lines with the corners of dresses. The figures are more individualized now. Emma has her back to us, Nadya's to her left, and Amity is in the center. Who do you think that is to the right? Hm. I can't tell, but if you think about the second book, you'll know. The bottom three circles will announce the guest designers' patterns. That's Maxcine's beret on the far left, Rachel's corset in the center, and Tony's balaklava on the right. I'm still trying to decide what to with the top box. It will contain the title, but I also want a few drawings. I think it will depend on the photo shoot location. The smoky, wavy shape in the middle box will contain the names of my three patterns and the sub-title of the book.

I don't know if I'll get a chance to work tomorrow because I have camera class in the city, but if I do have time, I'm going to be working on line and detail.

Stay tuned!

___________________________________

August 12th: Step 3 -- Watercolor

I've decided that the cover's main color should be an autumnal golden brown, so I begin by doing a wash of large areas. After that, I choose colors of a similar hue but that will work prettily with the gold-brown. I think about the color wheel, and that yellow is the opposite of purple, and orange is the opposite of blue, so I use a grayish blue and maroon. I keep to neutral shades here--trying never to go too dark or too rich. Once you've made those decisions, they're impossible to reverse, so it's best to save them for the end. This is the first draft of the watercolor. Tomorrow I'll add more depth by darkening shadows and brightening places I'd like to see stand out.

Book I, Chapter I "The Strange Case of the Magician's Cabinet," fall/winter 2009

Book I, Chapter II, "Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens," spring/summer 2010

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August 11th: Steps 1 - 2 -- Gather ideas and do an underdrawing

Step 1: Gather ideas. I usually spend a few hours looking at Victorian magazine covers and ads. Remember when libraries had image files? You don't? When I lived in Philadelphia, I loved to go to the Free Library on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway and check-out image files. This was before Google, of course, and there was something about sitting down at a big wooden table in that airy, high-ceilinged library room that made you feel like you were really doing something. I don't feel like I'm doing as much when I Google, but then of course, I'm not. Still, one turns up such interesting images.

My style is much looser and softer than the illustrations of the time period, so to me, it's important to capture the essence of the tale and give the feeling of the Victorian book. I must think about how to divide the information up in a cohesive way.

Step 2: Do the underdrawing. Here is the underdrawing for the "The Séance":

I know that I won't use the computer very much to change the image, so I like to get it right the first time; hence the underdrawing. I'll keep updating this post as I continue to work on the cover. Stay tuned for watercolors!

The Séance Shawl

2010-08-11T12:52:00.003-04:00

This pattern has just gone out to the test knitters. I posted a note on Ravelry in two Brooklyn knitting group forums asking if anyone local would like to test, and I got four responses. I'm thrilled and can't wait to see their work. One knitter is already working on it!

How Do You Do That? Photo Shoots

2010-08-06T00:29:00.016-04:00

How does an independent knitwear designer with a hybrid, illustrated, 19th c. New York mystery find a beautiful and historic interior to use as a backdrop for the third book in her serialized novella on a limited budget? Got me, but we'll be discussing that and other interesting topics in the coming weeks.

Places of Interest and Inquiry

The Montauk Club, Park Slope, Brooklyn

All right. This place is gorgeous. Anyone who writes illustrated, 19th c. mysteries with character-based knitwear designs would love to take photos here. I would so use it; in fact, it makes me want to rent a flowy costume and run from one end of the ballroom to the other in my bare feet by candlelight, but that would cost $3,000. Does Emma Flitt carry that kind of cash around? No. She's not Martin Scorsese. She's Emma Flitt, of The Adventures of, and it's the end of the summer. We're talking about knitting. It's almost taboo.

The Merchant's House Museum

I love the Merchant's House Museum. If you haven't gone, it's one of those wonderful preservation houses that makes you feel very much a part of the past as soon as you enter. And it's haunted. I can't help wondering if the Tredwells ever held séances here. The museum

seems to have a generous photo rental policy, too. I wrote them an e-mail today asking if I can come in and look around. I imagine they won't get back to me until Monday, so I'll update you then.

I'm still waiting to hear from the Merchant's House; I'll call them tomorrow if I don't hear today (Wednesday). Most likely, someone's on vacation.

Brooklyn Historical Society

The patterned tiled floor, the elegant staircase, the wood-paneled library. Their site coordinator is on vacation until the end of this month, so I've e-mailed her instead. This is a staircase to rush down when frightened by ghosts.

The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture

I've never been inside, but they let their space to weddings, commitment ceremonies, and many other celebrations of life's passages, so I can only imagine that it's a happy place.

According to Wikipedia, the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture was designed by William Tubby and built for William H. Childs, who began the Bon Ami cleaning powder (no chlorine, perfume, or dye) business. I wonder if Childs approved the Bon Ami logo? If you don't remember it, it's the little chick breaking out of her egg. I don't know what the image has to do with cleaning or even being a good friend, but I've always like that quirky chick. I'm excited to report that I have an appointment with the BSEC on Monday.

Update! We have a winner! The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture has pulled ahead to front place. They ask for a donation and a thank you, and they understand that I am just starting out. I love them! So here's my advice on photo shoots: call or email a bunch of places where you'd like to take your photos. It's easier for me to email because, while I love my books, they are a little on the Huh? and Whatisitagain? side of description. "It's a 19th century illustrated mystery with knitting patterns!" is often met with "What?" Also, things tend to go in waves of very excited to extremely nervous with me, so it's always better if I email people lest they find me odd in person. So call or email, and check into friendly places like ethical societies. I didn't hear back from the the BHS or Merchant's House, and while those spots are beautiful, I ultimately felt wonderfully comfortable with the director of the Ethical Society; he seemed, well, ethical. And the Society is beautiful. I mean, Bon Ami? The floors sparkle.

To consider

Public Spaces

Brooklyn Ethical Soceity

Brooklyn Historical Society

New York Public Library

Tea Rooms, Restaurants, and Bars

Lady Mendi's Tea Room

Historic Trust Houses

Alice Austen House

Edgar Allan Poe Cottage

Feel free to write to me at willowrosaknits@gmail.com with suggestions.

How Do You Do That? Sweater Design

2010-08-05T12:08:00.015-04:00

Onteora

My cousin Eric and his wife Sarah got married this summer. They wed close to where my husband and I jumped the broom, so I was familiar with both the place and the area. Boiceville, New York, is home to Onteora Mountain House. It was the mayonnaise king's get-a-way. Mr. Hellman and family escaped the heat of the city in the summers, and after this summer, I do wish I a had a mountain get-a-way of my own, but alas, I linger in Brooklyn, my fingers sticking to expanding wooden needles in the humidity.

For the momentous occasion of my little cousin's wedding (I held him when he was a baby, you see), I wanted to knit something lovely to wear. After the next Adventures is out, I plan to knit Eric and Sarah Christmas presents as well (shh! Not a word). I had a dress from a British Company--ASOS if you're curious. It's a slip dress, so I thought I should design something light-weight to go over it.

First I did a drawing:

Second, I chose the yarn: I chose Aslan Trends's Class. What can I say about this yarn? It's not enough to tell you that it's a cotton/viscose blend. It has shimmer; it has drape. People want to touch it--no--non-knitters want to touch it. Maybe that tells you a little more about the yarn's beauty.

Third, the swatching and needle size: I modified an ostrich plume stitch pattern.

Fourth, the maths and the coffees. This is just one shot of the coffees and maths. There are more. Many more. It's better if we just skim the surface here.

Fifth, putting the half-finished sweater on a dummy, I decided I liked short sleeves but that I wanted the pieces to flare at the hip.

Along the way, there was some ripping out, of course, and swearing, and a disaster with my cat, Babu, who ate about three yards of the yarn in the middle of the night. My husband and I had to gently pull the stuff out of his mouth. I was crying; Allen was telling me it was going to be all right; Babu was mad. He wanted to eat the yarn!

Aside from a hoarse kitty mew for the next few weeks, Babu was fine.

Finally, I finished, washed, and blocked the sweater.

I put buttons on.

And then I wore it to the wedding.

I think the whole thing worked out pretty well, and I imagined the sweater would go into "The Séance"--the third Flitt book--but it won't. It's asking that it be a stand-alone pattern. I'm fine with that. I have the pattern written out, and after the third book is finished, I'll clean it up and send it out to a test-knitter.

I didn't have a name for the sweater until I wrote this blog. The name can come at the start or at the end, or even in the middle of the design process. Onteora is my homage to the spot that my cousin and his wife chose to marry. I wish them a long and happy life together--a life that is filled with the love, harmony, beauty, and joy that they create together. And I hope that their love continues to inspire sweater design because that is a very good thing to do.

Coming on October 23rd!

2010-08-02T22:30:00.004-04:00

The Adventures of Miss Flitt, Vol. I, Part III, "The Séance"

A 19th c. mystery in four parts with knitwear designs and watercolors by Beth Hahn

Emma Flitt & friends happily welcome three guest designers for

this special accessories edition:

Rachel Maurer, Tony Limuaco, and Maxcine DeGouttes

"The Séance" will launch on October 23rd at Stitch Therapy.

Old Paintings

2010-07-30T18:30:00.016-04:00

My mother, luckily, has kept my old paintings in excellent condition. I took these photos at her house on my last visit, and I began to remember the work I put into them.

I painted these abstractions when I was in my twenties and nearly fresh out of art school. Back then, I thought I'd be a painter for the rest of my life. I was buoyed by an invitation to show at a gallery that I admired, by a man whose taste made an indelible impression on me. He had prints by Philip Guston and Frank Stella; he had an incredible collection of contemporary photography, and he showed New York painters as well as all the Philadelphia painters I liked.

When I brought my slides in to show him, my hands were shaking. He was very casual about the whole thing, holding them up to the light and reading my letter of intent with a bemused expression. I was stunned when he said he wanted to do a studio visit, and I went home and worked like a girl possessed. I didn't want him thinking I wouldn't work hard if he liked my paintings. And for the first time, I felt like a real artist.

I did these paintings then, for Paul Cava. I did them for myself as well of course, but mostly I did them because I was in my twenties, and I admired Paul in the way you admire people then: completely. And when they say you're good at something, you want to be even better. I had some idea that I wanted to reproduce a magical, natural landscape. As I painted, I thought of cells clustering, of regeneration, and death. I was, after all, a poetry reading kind of girl.

Paul only had time to put me in one show before he closed his gallery. Though he tried to get other local dealers interested in my art, nothing took. I kept painting, and after a year, I wondered what might be next. All I could envision for the future were my paintings growing in thicker and thicker stacks, propped against the chipped walls of the raw warehouse I lived in with my boyfriend.

Once, Paul brought two women over to look at my work. They wore fur coats and I offered them cookies and tea. One of them kept talking about how honestly I lived. I'd had to tape plastic over the cracked windows and wore a hat to work in. I thought her statements ridiculous. I wouldn't have chosen to live the way I did. I didn't think anyone would. So one day, I stopped painting. I put away my brushes and the canvases I'd lovingly stretched as tightly as drums, and I went about the practical business of teaching myself HTML and Photoshop.

There are times when I wish I hadn't stopped painting, but it seemed to be such a struggle that I'd have to sustain for an endlessly long time if I wished for success, and my temperament and confidence weren't going to cooperate. I didn't want to live in warehouses forever; I liked new sweaters, and I didn't particularly like work boots and lights that didn't work. I knew it was time to move on, and so I did, and now I see some similarities between my knitting and painting. I was always interested in pattern and design, balance and symmetry.

When I design lace patterns, I am drawing. I am thinking of connections and pattern in the same way, and when I knit, I have the sense that I'm in a similar abstract state that I went into when I painted. The circle seems complete to me, and so it's time to get out my paintings again. There were more in this series. Some were sold, some lost, and others are in storage. These are the ones my mother keeps hanging in her house.

Beth at Paul Cava Gallery, Philadelphia, 199--, with two of the paintings in the show

Drawing with lace, the Séance Shawl

New Camera

2010-07-30T17:42:00.006-04:00

After my futile attempts at photographing my Séance Shawl, I decided to get a new camera . . . and a macro lens. What's not to love? I didn't realize a camera could make such a difference, but now I want to go back and re-photograph both books. Sigh.

Séance Shawl

Trinity Shawlette

Sharpers

Emma Cardigan

Onteora

Blocking the Séance Shawl, for the third Miss Flitt book, "The Séance"

Shawl Progress and Summer News

2010-07-22T14:28:00.009-04:00

I love shawls! Let me just say. They're incredibly fun to design if you like lace, and I was thinking as I knit that if one chose to knit this on smaller needles and different yarn, it would have an entirely different feel; likewise with larger needles. Magic? Perhaps, but shawls are a lot of work too--

especially as you move out because each row takes a bit longer. I like the methodical purling aspect, but when I've designed say two more shawls, I will knit one with more than the purl stitch across the wrong side. My next shawl design is going to incorporate the increase into the design instead of having the fishbone separate the triangles. I began in vine leaf (my favorite stitch) and then started to create shapes that I thought organically grew out of the vine. Here's a handy close-up. One day I'll have to buy a really good camera. I know this day is coming, but until then, I'll mess around in Photoshop:

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I want to do another after this--right away!--but I must settle in to work on my lace overdress for the next book, The Séance. Maxcine and I are thinking of launching it the near Halloween. It's a séance, after all, and Maxcine has a round wooden table in her store. Perhaps someone can bring a crystal ball?

I made this little ad for Knitcircus Magazine. They're including a book review of the second book, Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens, and the lovely Jaala asked if I'd like to put in an ad. It's my first! I've designed ads for others, but never one for myself.

_________________

I was lucky enough to get to meet up with the talented Hadley, the Miss Flitt tech editor--who keeps the blog Hadley Gets Crafty--when she was visiting New York. We went to M&J Trim and Gotta Knit. I can't wait to see what Hadley does with the elegant trim and beautiful buttons she bought!

_________________

And when you have a minute, please check-out Chelsea Spear's film, "Craft is the Function" that she submitted to Tavi Gevinson's film contest. It's all about knitting, my friends, and Miss Flitt is flattered to make an appearance in it herself. Check out my blog entry on meeting Chelsea here.

The Seance Shawl

2010-07-13T17:53:00.006-04:00

After I figured out the anatomy of a lace triangle shawl, it took me a few more days to chart out my pattern and to find the perfect yarn. Because it is a seance shawl, the natural choice for this piece was a diaphanous black yarn, but I did not think the lace would be visible enough in such a dark color, and so I settled on this gray from the Fibre Company because it has subtle flecks of color throughout. The little moth-like creatures to the left of the needle are my swatches. It's fun to swatch for a lace triangle shawl. If you want to design your own triangle shawl, check out my entry on placing lace in triangles here.

Five Points Walking Tour

2010-07-13T17:17:00.005-04:00

There is something wonderful about being a tourist in your own city. A New Yorker could live here all her life and still feel like a tourist sometimes. There is so much history, and it occurred to me last Sunday when my husband and I took a walking tour through what was once Five Points that the city encapsulates a mini history of the eastern United States. The tour was led by Joyce Gold, and let me tell you, she is incredible. You can ask her any question about the city's history and she has a ready answer that includes a fun or salacious anecdote. She can also give you the lowdown on where the judges dine near 1 PP, what work of historical non-fiction you might enjoy, and the best place in NY for an Asian American male to have his hair cut--Doyers Street, of course--or what was once known as the Bloody Angle:

In all of my books on Five Points, the Bloody Angle is called such because of the radical curve at the end of the street. You can see it in the photo above. It was called 'bloody' because one's enemies could hide and then efficiently ambush their prey at the corner. If I remember correctly, it is the old entrance into Chinatown from Five Points. Joyce could tell me if this is wrong; at any rate, one didn't want to make a Tong angry and then go wandering down Doyers Street.

How Do You Do That? Designing a Seance Shawl, or Placing Lace in Charts

2010-07-08T13:15:00.010-04:00

For the last few days, New York has been suffering the cruelty of August in early July. Temperatures have reached 100+ degrees. What's a knitter to do? Stay inside, of course, and knit. That's fine with me; I'm working on the third installment of The Adventures of Miss Flitt.

I've wanted to design a seance shawl since the very start of this project, but I knew the moment in the story wouldn't come until later. No story about the 19th c. is complete without a seance. But what exactly is a seance shawl? you ask. I'll tell you: It's a lace triangle shawl, and it's diaphanous, other worldly--the ether practically clings to it-- and it wards off the chill that the spirits bring when roused. I've spent two days now laboring over the puzzle of the triangle shawl; maybe it's the heat that kept me from grasping its simplicity, but I argued with tangled yarn, Barbara Walker, and begged the ghosts of knitters past for their help, but alas, my questions were met with silence . . . .

It must be the heat, because I knitted the lovely Trinity Shawlette by Anniken Allis in a record amount of knitting time.

If you're not familiar with that pattern, it's clearly written and nearly free. The designer only asks that you donate money to Doctors without Borders.

We come now, to the moment of clarity that is allowing me to design my Seance Shawl.

Here are a few charts I've made:

To demonstrate, I've placed a very simple lace stitch--Barbara Walker's Cat's Paw from the first Treasury--into two triangles.

Chart 1 shows each side of the triangle shawl with the side sts or increases on either side and two central increases. These are all the stitches for the start of the shawl. You can continue indefinitely.

Chart 2 shows what your shawl will more closely resemble. I turned the two triangles and outer borders at 45 degree angles.

Chart 3 shows the only change I've made to the lace pattern. In the hi-lighted pink square, I've turned the sl1-k2tog-psso into an sl1-k1-psso. Remember that within the triangles, you should only decrease as many times as you increase.

You can insert any lace pattern into the triangle that you like. It' so much easier than my brain was allowing for! I was thinking in squares, but again those numbers, that math: I should of course have been imagining a triangle as two separate triangles, and so and so forth.

Here's the key:

Have fun, and if you notice any errors of have suggestions, please write.

An Uncommon Thread visits Miss Flitt

2010-06-23T13:10:00.006-04:00

Chelsea Spear came to visit and interviewed me about Miss Flitt for a film she's working on called "An Uncommon Thread." Guess what it's about? If you guessed knitting, you're so right! Here we are in the Flitt Room wearing our knits. Mine is a new fall Flitt pattern. I think hers is a Debbie Bliss? I'll ask and edit. By the way, I am wearing heels. I'm not really six feet tall. I also don't usually talk in to cameras, but Chelsea put me at ease and made the afternoon fun.

She also interviewed Wool and the Gang. Great name. I've had "Ladies Night" running through my head this past week. Not only do I need their knits, but I need roller skates and a disco ball, too. I must visit their shop! Their work is unique. You can buy the product or buy the kit to make it. Should I go there on roller skates while knitting? I think so.

I'll keep you posted about the film. Chelsea lives in Boston and works at Windsor Button. I think I'll be visiting in the fall with the Miss Flitt trunk show, so if you like Miss Flitt and you live in beautiful New England, please look for details!

I love Chelsea's film "Jumbo in a Jar." You can see it here: Jumbo in a Jar.

Watercolors for sale!

2010-06-17T22:25:00.004-04:00

Coming soon!

A lot of knitters have asked about my pattern illustrations and other watercolors I've posted on Ravelry, so I want to let you know that I've finally gotten it together and am having some prints made.

They'll be available next week on my website and on Etsy. If you have a specific request for a print from one of the Miss Flitt books, please email me! I'll be happy to send it to the printer for you.

2010-05-22T10:12:00.000-04:00

Launch Photos

2010-05-12T09:10:00.007-04:00

Here are a few photos from the "Dangerous Ladies & Opium Dens" launch at Stitch Therapy. Thanks all for coming out!

Web Shop Update

2010-05-10T19:56:00.001-04:00

The new book, "Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens," is now available online at http://www.missflitt.com/store/

Highly Classified Sample Pages

2010-05-07T13:46:00.010-04:00

Here are the sample pages for "Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens." No spoilers! All plot twists and pattern directions have been blurred. I've always loved the mystery of the classified document.

Nadya Skirt and Final Cover Design

2010-05-06T13:08:00.004-04:00

Matchy-matchy!

I'm picking up the book tomorrow from the printer's. This is the final cover design. I've always admired what a good graphic artist can do with font and text. I hope one day to be half so good, but I'm inspired, and did some bendy-wavy things with my fonts this time.

This is the Nadya Slip, a design for "Dangerous Ladies & Opium Dens." I wanted the skirt to feel like the book, and so I chose to work with this Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy in deep purple that I purchased last year at Stitch Therapy. I doubled the yarn, which makes the skirt a little heavy. If I were to do it again (or if you were), I'd recommend a single strand on a larger needle to get the gauge--especially if you want to wear it in the summer. The double-weight is fine for spring.

I've learned so much, and I'm happy to say that I think this book is better than the last. The story is a bit longer, and there are more illustrations; the patterns are more clearly written and the pieces will fit better. You'll see soon enough! In fact, I'm excited for you to see.

If you can make it on Saturday (5/8), do drop by Stitch Therapy to say Hello and pick up a book, chat about knitting, look at yarn, and meet lots of nice people who love to knit.

Hope you can make it!

Switching Servers

2010-05-06T09:33:00.002-04:00

Just a note to let you know that if you've tried to visit www.missflitt.com, the site is down because I'm changing servers. It should be up again in a little while!

Edgar Awards & Mom Enthusiasm

2010-05-01T12:01:00.010-04:00

This is my mom.

She just won an Edgar Award!

It's getting close to Mothers' Day, and I want to take a little break in knitting chat and pictures to celebrate my mom, Mary Downing Hahn. What celebrates my cool mom more than posting pictures of her winning an Edgar Award? I don't know, maybe simply posting pictures of her. There are tons of other fabulous things about my mom, but she'll enjoy this post, so here we go.

My mom's been writing children's books for oh, what? 30 years? I think it's about 30 years. She's written lots of different kinds of books, but all fiction and all wonderful. Among my favorites are Stepping on the Cracks, Daphne's Book, Anna on the Farm and Anna All Year Round, (about my grandmother's childhood in Baltimore), Wait 'Til Helen Comes, and most recently and the Edgar winner, Closed for the Season.

We got to go the Edgar Awards Banquet.

I was trying to be spooky here and also showcase the program. Lighting is appropriately "Masque of the Red Death"-y.

Poe materializes on the ceiling.

Sleepy Poe

Speech!

We really had a lot of fun. I got to talk to many dressed up people about mysteries and how wonderful my mom is, and then give her big hugs after the win. She's been nominated for an Edgar twice before, so I had a good feeling for her. Before the awards, I wasn't allowed to talk too much about her winning.

Oh, and I got to talk a little knitting too with a few mystery writers. I think mystery writing and knitting go hand in hand, and of course, I wore my Nadya Corset.

My best friends

The Nadya Set, Five Points Outerwear, and the Smoke Ring

2010-04-14T12:50:00.008-04:00

The Nadya Corset and Skirt by Beth Hahn

Five Points Outerwear by Beth Hahn

Five Points Capelet in silk for spring

Five Points Cloak in wool for autumn

The Smoke Ring Mobius by Beth Hahn

"Dangerous Ladies & Opium Dens" Launches!

2010-04-07T23:18:00.004-04:00

Join us!

click image to enlarge

Please join me at Stitch Therapy and Brooklyn Mercantile on Saturday, May 8th, at 4 o'clock for the launch of The Adventures of Miss Flitt, part II, "Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens."

Knit designs in "Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens," include the Nadya Corset--a spring or summer top knit from the top down in a slipped rib, and its matching Nadya Skirt, with side button closures and a flattering a-line shape; The Five Points Cloak can be knit as a winter piece in wool or as spring capelet in silk. Its feminine feather and fan collar and looped button closures make it easy to wear over summer tops on cool nights. For the pick-pocket in you, knit the Sharpers, a fingerless lace glove with looped button closures, thumb gusset, and single finger loop. The Smoke Ring Mobius, a lace knit in bulky soft wool, may be worn as a shrug, wrap, shawl, or scarf.

New Character Cards

2010-04-07T21:05:00.002-04:00

Two new character cards will be released with

"Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens"

Birds Inside and Out

2010-04-07T13:59:00.005-04:00

A Pageantry of Birds

My husband and I decided that we needed some color in the living room. It's a little bland right now, and we don't want to paint until we figure out how everything looks together. I was trying to decide what we needed, and I fell a little bit in love with these bird prints by Theodore Descourtilz.

I got them on Ebay, and they arrived today. The seller put in black and white prints along with the title page. Now I just have to decide how to frame them. I really like anything small-bird related: prints, drawings. I like a small bird pillow, even. A cookie shaped like a bird works. I've been chased my geese and one horrifying, angry turkey, so big birds are not my thing. At all. Turkeys can really run fast. They don't need to fly. If you've been chased by large fowl, you will agree: birds can be scary.

The flower shop down the street has ducklings in its window. Apparently, every season, they have a new animal in the window. Whenever I do errands, I must walk by to check on the ducklings. I want to take them all home and put them in my bathtub.

These duck are still safely sized.

voila

2010-04-05T18:16:00.003-04:00

And so.

All of the patterns are finished.

This is the Five Points Capelet. It's, of course, just like the Five Points Cloak, but I found some errors in the pattern. If you got the free copy, check here for errata. I decided to change the increase method when I reknit/designed the pattern because I thought the kfb's looked a little sloppy. I've been interested in new finishing techniques and little tricks to make my knitting neater. Sometimes while I'm working, I stop and wonder if my design can be closely examined by another knitter--say a really amazing knitter who's been knitting for years and knows everything about finishing and blocking. Those knitters exist! And they know lots of things about knitting that I don't. But with each pattern I write or each piece I design, I continue to learn.

To see the other designs in "Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens," visit my website: www.missflitt.com/designs

Work, work, work

2010-04-01T15:59:00.001-04:00

I am almost finished the new watercolors!

I have fifteen so far, and I want to do six or seven more. I'm on my last knit, and just started to lay the book out. As for the story, there are a few scene edits to work on. I've managed to digress in what I thought was a very interesting direction, only to realize it might make the reader yawn. I'm so thrilled to be this far along--not so thrilled to be indoors on such a pretty, early spring day--but I can see the end of Dangerous Ladies, and so it is worth it.

MIss Flitt Visits Philadelphia

2010-03-19T20:05:00.004-04:00

I'll be at Rosie's Yarn Cellar in Philadelphia on Sunday, April 11th, at 1:00 for an Adventures of Miss Flitt reading, trunk show, and art exhibit. Join us, bring your knits, and get your book signed!

Coming Soon!

2010-03-12T11:50:00.002-05:00

When Emma Flitt and Amity Hastings enter the notorious Five Points neighborhood in search of Lucy Flitt, the mystery of the girl’s disappearance deepens. In “Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens,” the second part in The Adventures of Miss Flitt series, Emma and Amity meet Nadya Claudere and her son Rollie who become guides to navigating the dark side of 19th century New York. Nadya’s back-story reveals villainous new plot twists and brings fresh and seasonal knitwear designs.

“Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens” will launch at Stitch Therapy Brooklyn on May 8th. Join us at 4 o'clock for a reading and art and trunk show at Stitch Therapy’s new location: 335 5th Avenue, between 3rd & 4th Street in Park Slope. “Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens” includes five new knitting patterns and over twenty full-color illustrations. For the knitter who also sews, there is an Emma doll pattern.

Moving

2010-03-01T11:37:00.005-05:00

My husband and I moved from Park Slope to Bay Ridge this week. You wouldn't think that moving 67 blocks would be so disruptive to one's work schedule (or I wouldn't have), but this has proven to be terrifically untrue. I am officially disrupted and discombobulated--elated to have moved because we love our new digs--but still, alas. "Dangerous Ladies and Opium Dens" will not debut until the end of April. In the meantime, please be assured that everyone is safe and well-occupied: Emma is knitting, Amity is reading a novel, Bradbury is furrowing his brow, the magician is practicing a card trick, Pecan is napping in the sun, mother and father are fretting, and Lucy, of course, is still lost. In the next chapter, we'll meet two new characters, a back story will be revealed, and there will be three summer patterns, two winter patterns, and one surprise.

This is my studio in progress. I'm anxiously awaiting the delivery of my new work table because then I can draw, block, write, think. Everyone needs a room (and a work table) of her own.

But wait. Let's talk about Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. This week, I bought pickles at a Lebanese grocery store, cookies at a Greek grocery store, ate famously delicious Palestinian food at Tanoreen. Two nights later, we dined on perfect pizza at Peppino's. There are tons of little fruit and vegetable stands, and the Brooklynese is awesome: cupacawfee awesome. Our neighborhood is ethnically diverse. There are new immigrants and families who've lived here for years who originally came from Italy and Ireland. This is the quietest neighborhood I've lived in in New York--though Friday nights seem fun-filled and frivolous. We're right around the corner from The Salty Dog though we moved in a about a week after the big brawl. Toughs!

This is the first neighborhood I've lived in that feels like how I imagined NY might feel. In Manhattan, I lived on the Lower East Side and on the Upper West Side, and in Brooklyn, Park Slope. In short, I couldn't be happier, though I do admit: much to my dismay, my work schedule has been completely thrown off. But for yous waitin to find out what's going on with Lucy, rest assured, the new Miss Flitt will be out at the end of April. Did I mention that Tony Manero lived in Bay Ridge? That's right. I can't wait to dance at 2001 Odyssey this weekend! We should all be dancing, yeah.

I'm joining a Bay Ridge knitting group this Wednesday eve. I found them on Ravelry, of course. I'm looking forward to meeting my knitting neighbors. I walked around in the snow the other day taking photos. Here are a few of the neighborhood:

a poem for my valentine: "A Bouquet" by Bei Dao

2010-02-12T15:40:00.006-05:00

In anticipation of Valentine's Day, a favorite love poem by Bei Dao of the Misty School. Who doesn't want to be from the Misty School? Click the image to read with ease. The text is a little blurry--or misty.

Buttons!

2010-02-03T22:23:00.003-05:00

There is nothing like a good NYC button run when getting close to finishing a project. Nice finishing elements always make me anticipate the fortuitous closure of a new design.

And I'm so close! Four of the five knitting patterns for the new book are nearly complete . . . and there will be a new element to the upcoming Adventures of Miss Flitt. I can't say what it is. Oh it's so exciting. I want to say. No I can't say. All I can say is that you will make this new aspect yourself, and there will be a pattern, but it won't be a knitting pattern. Do you know what it is? I can't say, but I have been visiting various New York museums for inspiration.

It's not a game, though wouldn't a game be fun? Go back two places if you drop a stitch. Jump forward three if you haven't forgotten a yarn over. Congratulations! You've learned to knit in the round. Collect a set of golden circular needles.

Five Points Cloak Errata

2010-01-19T18:42:00.007-05:00

For size small

Row 4: k22, k2tog, k23 (46 sts on needle)

Rows 10 and 11: Repeat rows 2 and 3

Row 12: k22, kfb, k24 (48 sts on needle)

Row 17: * p1, k2, yo, ssk, k1, p1 *, sm, kfb, kfb, sm, rpt * to *, sm, kfb ~~(k1tbl)~~ kfb, sm, rpt * to *, sm, kfb, k8tbl, kfb, sm, rpt * to *, sm, kfb ~~(k1tbl)~~, kfb, sm, rpt * to *, sm, kfb, kfb, sm, rpt * to *

Row 23: * p1, k2, yo, ssk, k1, p1 *, sm, k8tbl, sm, rpt * to *, sm, k6tbl, sm, rpt * to *, sm, kfb, k14tbl, kfb, sm, rpt * to *, sm, k6tbl, sm, rpt * to *, sm, k8tbl, sm, rpt * to *

Sizes s,m,l: Rows 30 - 33 should read 28 - 31

Rows 30 - 33 should read Rows 28 - 31.

Row 31: * p1, k2, yo, ssk, yo, k1, p1 *

Miss Flitt's Haunts

2010-01-06T21:21:00.007-05:00

Today I stopped by the printer's--Best Type--to see my books getting assembled. If you ordered a book today or yesterday, I'll be sending them out tomorrow morning when I pick up these sparkly fresh copies. See your books there! How exciting. I did an edition of 50 today. I must get around to yarn shops in NY to see if they'd like to sell them. Right now, Stitch Therapy and Knitty City are carrying them.

Oh, that inimitable red fire escape at Pearl Paint! I needed watercolor paper, and before you knew it, I needed watercolors, a drawing board, new erasures. I tromped from one floor to the next in search of my supplies.

It would be boring to find everything one needs on the same floor, right? There's some fun in the rickety staircase that creaks.

Then I stopped by the new Stitch Therapy to drop off some thing for Maxcine and Brandi was there. She's the model for "The Strange Case of the Magician's Cabinet." I asked her to hold up the Vogue that has the write-up on my book.

It was a fun day!

Vogue Knitting

2009-12-31T19:19:00.004-05:00

Check out the winter 09/10 Vogue Knitting's news section for a write-up on The Adventures of Miss Flitt. Really, could the end of 2009 get any more exciting? I kinda don't think so. I didn't know that VK was doing a Miss Flitt piece, so it was extra exciting when I got a call from Maxcine at Stitch Therapy this evening. When she said, "You're in Vogue Knitting," I yelled, "What?" My husband Allen could barely contain himself. When we left to pick up copies at Stitch Therapy, he went running down the street ahead of me.

Though we might have ventured out tonight, we're staying in. We think we have a bottle of champagne in the freezer left over from our engagement, though neither of us checked to make sure. If not, Allen got a seltzer maker for his birthday. We can toast with seltzer. I think one just needs the celebratory fizz.

I read that we're having a blue moon tonight, so must stay up 'til midnight this year.

Happy new year and many thanks to Vogue Knitting!

Yarn Market News

2009-12-29T18:32:00.003-05:00

When I was in Maryland, I stopped into All About Yarn in Columbia to show the proprietors a copy of The Adventures of Miss Flitt. I was so excited when they said they'd heard of my book. I didn't know the review was out yet, but there's a piece about my project in the January 2010 issue of Yarn Market News. I must get my hands on a copy!

Merry Christmas Scarf

2009-12-25T13:28:00.008-05:00

Merry Christmas!

Mom's Merry Christmas Scarf

Yarn: Rowan Lima (2 balls or 218 yards)
Gauge: 21 sts = 4” in lace pattern
Needles US #10.5

I'll have to check the name of the pattern when I get back to New York, but the lace pattern is taken from Barbara Walker's A Treasury of Knitting Patterns

Lace pattern:
Row 1: k2, yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, k2, yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, k1
Rows 2 and 4: purl
Row 3: k1, yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, k2, yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, k2

Directions

Cast on 32 sts

Row 1 (RS): slip first st purl-wise * k1, p1 * to last st, k1

Row 2: slip first st knit-wise * p1, k1 * to last st, p1

Row 3: slip first st purl-wise, (k1,p1) 2x, k1, knit 10 sts and kfb, knit to last 6 sts and (p1,k1) 3x (33 sts on needle)

Row 4 and all even-numbered rows: slip first st knit-wise, (p1,k1)2x, purl to last 6 sts, (k1,p1)3x

Row 5: slip first st purl-wise, (k1,p1)2x, k1, k2, yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, k2, yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, k1(p1,k1)3x

Row 7: slip first st purl-wise, (k1,p1)2x, k1, k1, yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, k2, yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, k2, (p1,k1)3x

Repeat rows 4-7 until scarf is desired length

Final three rows: Work rows 1 and 2, but on row 1, k2tog at center and con't in seed pattern. (32 sts on needle)
Bind off on third row in seed st

Weave in ends and block.

Pattern Abbreviations

k knit

p purl

kfb knit in front and in back of stitch

yo yarn over

k2tog knit two stitches together

ssk slip slip knit

st stitch

Smithsonian Dollhouse

2009-12-21T10:20:00.003-05:00

If you've never seen the Faith Bradford Dollhouse at the Smithsonian, it's time for a visit to Washington, D.C. Here are a few images of the many rooms that I've Photoshopped for fun: