and knitting

slightly less chunky-chic

I promise this isn't going to turn into an all Twinkle blog, but I do like to keep an eye out for Wenlan Chia's fashion week showing each season. The Twinkle runway video is now available on the fashion week site, and you can see photos if you search on Getty Images.

It's the Spring collections, so the knits are less chunky than you're used to seeing in her collections. They certainly seem more wearable for a wider range of body types. It won't surprise me if the pattern for the purple sleeveless top with cowl neckline turns up in IK or Vogue. She also showed a brown hoodie vest that would likely be popular with a lot of knitters. I really enjoy seeing designs go straight from the runway onto knitting needles.

I see that crafty fashion blogger Natalie Zee is at the shows. Perhaps she'll have some commentary on Twinkle's collection this season.

Various and Sundry Links - September 8 2007

- "Psst, take one, it's what all the models are doing!"

- Voice Knitting Machine - "the voice knitting machine, makes it possible to transfer individual vocal melodies to a piece of clothing so that they become visible in the different varieties of knitted patterns."

- In your satin tights,
Fighting for your rights
And the old Red, White and Blue.
Best reason ever for learning colorwork. [via CRAFT]

- Lisa Whelchel and I go way back. Now I've never met her, but I was a big fan of Blair (and the rest of the girls) on Facts of Life and I'm probably one of very few people who bought her Christian "rock" record. Thanks to one of my aunties, I even have an autographed copy of one of her books. Did you know she got a start on the New Mickey Mouse Club? On her official site she's posted some reminiscences of her days as a mouseketeer. [via distant creations]

- "I am also a big Walt Disney Fan although I will say 'Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo' wasn't as good as the other Herbies" - Edward Gorey

- I love Luna's cover of “Straight Up”, but now I can't get Paula Abdul's version out of my brain. [via filmoculous]

- “There is only one reliable way to make sure your ads aren’t blocked — make sure the users don’t want to block them,” he wrote. “Don’t forget about the users. Use ads in a way that doesn’t degrade their experience.” [via digital edge]

- Today's Inspiration features illustrator Roy Doty. I am in love with these drawings of tiny crowds of Manhattanites.

- Lets you see exactly the loaf you want

- Fun flickr project for vernacular architecture buffs: Current photos of the 1958 Readers Choice Home from Household Magazine

- First the Date -- Then the Ring; Here's How to Attract That Man

- Smoking with aloha

- illegal powerpoint

- Hmm, I'd like to go back to Japan and try out an onsen, and I like ramen, but I'm not so sure mixing these things together is such a good idea. [via mental floss]

a gay twinset

If I were to actually knit all of the cardigans I currently have on my to knit wish list, I'd have to follow the Kaiser's advice and wear them layered, as with his so-called gay twinset.

This cute cropped cardie, in a Project Spectrum-friendly shade of green, is from the summer 2006 issue of knit.1. I love the shape, and the chunky ribbing adds a lot of interest. It also has ribbed side panels that aren't visible in the photo, but the knit.1 blog has photos showing how they work in with the shaping.

I haven't started searching out yarn substitutions. That's ok, because I think it will be quite some time until I get to this one. My new schedule is proving difficult for me to find time to knit. I'm sure that will get better as I get adjusted to it.

Various and Sundry Links - May 21 2006

- Can't sleep, clowns will eat me.

- It looks like Carrie from Knit Whit had a good time at the Saint Paul Saints' Sip, Stitch & Pitch night.

- If the Mary Kay Museum and the National Museum of Funeral History aren't compelling enough, perhaps the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame's Blood Splatter Simulation display will get you to plan a trip to Texas.

- The Secret World of an Edwardian Shopaholic

- The green adicolor podcast might get you in the mood to finish up your Project Spectrum projects for this month [via].

- The new Minneapolis Central Library is open. I admit that it is a cool looking building, but I still miss the old one.

- just because

- The Knitting World Cup starts soon. How much of the official world cup beer would it take you to get drunk enough to dress up like these World Cup frauleins?

- It's rather odd to see the contents of my handbag posted on the Kate Spade site [via].

- I love these slides from the 1962 World's Fair.

- Ow ow ow. You would think Gwen Stefani would get her harajuku girls to sew her samples for her.

bonnie prince charlie

"The Battle of Culloden (April 16, 1746), was the last military clash in mainland Britain, between the forces of the Jacobites (headed up by Bonnie Prince Charlie) and the British Army. It ended the 1745 Jacobite Rising, and was a massive defeat for the Jacobites".
[Wikipedia]

Alexander McQueen drew on the fashions and military uniform details from this pivotal moment in history for his most recent ready to wear collection.

The collection naturally also featured a lot of knitwear, including the cabled stockings shown here.

Since this is supposed to be a knit blog, I'll point you to a few knitwear highlights:

- an ivory-colored cabled bolero

- a wide-collared grey sweater coat and a similar sweater folded and wrapped into a jacket

- a tartan top layered with knit sleeves

I don't doubt that this collection will prove to be useful fodder for the knitting patterns that show up in next winter's magazines.

Various and Sundry Links - March 5 2006

- I've had a terrible cold for the past week, so it was interesting to see a microscopic view of what mucus looks like. Yum!

- Kate finds the best knit bags. I must recreate this one for myself.

- I hate American Airlines. We had a shockingly rude flight attendant on our way back from Nagoya last year. At least we didn't have an experience like this poor fellow.

- The Fashion Piracy Paradox

- A Sweet and Tender Terrorist

- Yeah, I'm a dork. That's why I think this origami Nazgul is really cool. [via]

- Stitchcraft airs today on Oxygen. It should be interesting -- even for you Lily Chin haters out there. Here are some details from The Hook and I:

The show is billed as a rare behind-the-scenes look at how knitting is used in the fashion industry. “You’ll see how Oscar de la Renta designs his knitwear line.” She says. And she says we’ll watch Adina Klein of Vogue put together a photo shoot. “The show is not about me. I’ll introduce the segments and talk a bit between stories.” Lily says the first show will also include a profile of one of my favorite designers, James Coviello.

Twinkle - Fall 2006

If you have a chance, take a look at the video from the Twinkle show that took place during New York Fashion Week. This favorite of Vogue Knitting is one to watch if you need inspiration for future knitting projects.

As usual, Twinkle designer Wenlan Chia's knits were on the chunky side. My favorite was a short sleeved, scoop necked sweater with a ribbed empire waist. It seems a bit more wearable than the giant, bobble-y turtleneck.

She used a lot of interesting prints and often featured them with a cardie or a big loopy scarf. Many of these were also paired with those cute and ubiquitous mini leggings. I really loved the jewelry too.

I wonder if any of the knit designs will make it to the pattern pages of Vogue Knitting. I actually liked the striped tunic from last year that ended up on the cover of VK, but I know it was not exactly a favored pattern in the knit blog world.

The images here came from the Olympus Fashion Week site, and there are a lot more at Getty Images (backstage shots too).

In more personal knitting news, I swatched for my Knitting Olympics project last night. That went well, but Aimee reminded me that I'm still not signed up with any team. Which team is going to have the best opening ceremony outfits?

Various and Sundry Links - February 7 2006

- I don't really want to understand why someone would want a tattoo of Maddox Jolie.

- The Stitch 'n Bitch trademark fight has now hit the mainstream media in a pretty lazy article that leaves out a few of the important details. You do get to read how SFSE owner Elissa Meyrich "feels hurt by the heat she is taking from the knitting community". Oh that poor, poor dear.

- Project Runway's Diana Eng showed off her mathematical knits as part of the Seamless show at MIT. Her blog (If you are reading this Diana, please add an RSS feed) gives a bit more detail about her pieces. There's more about the show at Coquette.

- Woo hoo, a diet potato.

- Per Alberto Gonzalez, "President Washington, President Lincoln, President Wilson, President Roosevelt have all authorized electronic surveillance on a far broader scale".

- A crafty tour of NYC

- The cupholderification of the United States now extends to churches [via].

- The State of the Union Address (spliced and diced)

- What Your Drink Says About You - Make mine a gimlet, though I'm not sure how classy or cerebral I am after a couple of these.

knitting olympics

catwalk knits

Catwalk Queen (one of my new favorite blogs) just posted their picks of the best knitwear to wear this season. They also have a bonus post on shrugs and capelets.

It's interesting to me that so many of the styles and silhouettes have already been popular in the world of hand knitting for at least a year or two. It makes me wonder if knitting a shrug or mini sweater this year is something I'd come to regret. Perhaps they've become so popular that it would look horribly dated next year...

The post also mentions that they think grey is a great color to wear right now. I agree, and that's why I'm seeking out your help.

I am on a desperate hunt for a grey wool coat to wear this winter. I have been looking everywhere! The only thing I've found is a Burberry coat on BlueFly. At $700, well, I just can't make that sort of investment.

Has anyone out there seen a cute, grey wool coat anywhere?

book report

The big, evil bookstore I visited yesterday didn't have Knitscene. Now I couldn't be thwarted in my search for a knitting fix, so I picked up the Big Book of Knitting Stitch Patterns from their sale table.

The Big Book of Knitting Stitch Patterns is nicely designed, with color photographs of each stitch pattern. I appreciate that the instructions for each stitch pattern are written out and also provided in chart form. This should appease any knitter, no matter which direction they swing. Admittedly, some of the directions are confusing. However, most of those are on stitch patterns that have a 19 row (or more!) repeat, so I won't be bothering with them in this lifetime!

I adore looking at stitch patterns. Who knows why? I probably spend more time looking at books than actually knitting. I'm currently on the hunt for a stitch pattern to use in a new variation on the orangina theme for my own use (be assured that I won't be sharing a pattern or infringing any copyright).

There was one stitch pattern I found very appealing, and it might also be useful for any celeb obsessed knitters out there who are planning on making something for the impending TomKitten/Cruiselet.

The pattern is called clams. Isn't it pretty?

I was thinking it might be just the thing for an e-meter cozy for their nursery.

on deck

You don't know how hard it was for me to refrain my titling this post something like "Totally Tubular!!!".

I'm quite excited about Stefanie Japel's new pattern, Tubular Camisole. I bought it yesterday and think I have just the yarn for it, but if I didn't I would have considered buying one of the cool kits they have for sale on DiscountYarnSale.com.

However, I'm NOT going to start on this until I finish Orangina. I am so close to being able to do the ribbing section. Here's hoping I get some good knitting time this week...

TenDANCeS

Woo hoo - I just saw on strikker that the new Tendances Automne-Hiver is out. A lot of it is the same old thing, but I think there are a few gems. The one I've shown in the upper right is a silhouette I wear a lot. Knowing me, I probably won't knit any of these, but dreaming of it is half the fun.

domo arigato mister roboto

Hey - check out these cute knitted robots.

Thanks for the link, Newlin!

F@#%!!!

That felt good.

Now that I got that off my chest, a link to the best rant ever.

"When did it become ok for you to talk to women this way? I wish I were invisible when I walk down the street. I don’t appreciate your comments. I’m not dressed like this for you, alright? I wear skirts when I leave the house because I’m going to work. In an office. (Unlike you guys, who apparently spend all day sitting on stoops. What the hell are you doing out there? You never move! How do you pay your rent?) Would you want someone to talk to your mom or your sister like that, every day? "

-anonymous post on Craiglist