Ceres Winners!

Congratulations Diane and Kat!  You've each won a free copy of Ceres!

Since so many people entered my giveaway, and all of them with helpful, well thought-out responses to my question, I decided to give two copies away, instead of one.  Spread the love.  For those of you who are interested, able and didn't win, Ceres is available for you to purchase through my blog and through Ravelry.

Stay tuned for more patterns, and more giveaways!

Ceres Giveaway!

Like Ceres?  Want a copy of the pattern?  Don't wanna pay $5.00 for it?

I rather enjoyed the last giveaway I did.  I think perhaps I'll make it a habit to do a giveaway each time I release a new pattern.  So here's what we'll do, we'll conduct some market research while we're at it, maybe get an interesting discussion going.

To enter:  post a comment answering the following question:  What, if anything, would make you willing to pay for a knitting pattern?  Comments entered before 8pm CST on Sunday, February 7th (that's next Sunday) will be entered into a random drawing.  One winner will be drawn and posted that night.

There's no shortage of free knitting patterns on the internet, and there are a lot of people who stick exclusively to those.  But there are people who purchase patterns for money - either in print magazines or individually online from sources like Ravelry, Twist Collective or individual blogs like mine.  I'd like to get a better idea of what people expect and hope for in a knitting pattern that they're willing to shell out cash for.  What makes a pattern worth paying for?  (For the record, "nothing," is a perfectly legitimate and informative answer).  What about the patterns you've paid for made you go, "Oooooooooooh..." and then buy the pattern?  I ask this not just to boost sales, but to really make sure people get what they're after when they buy a pattern from me.  So what tips you over the "I'll buy that" edge, and what do you expect when you go there?

Ceres

$5.00 - pattern for hat and mitts

Finally, it's done.  :-)

Ceres is a simple top-down beanie with a narrow, rolled brim and matching mitts. Its main features are the colored ridges, which are created using exposed stranded colorwork. The specific stranding technique creates the illusion that the strands are braided together. Knit in the colors shown, this piece brings to mind a plaited grass crown, or grass peeking through a light, early-winter snowfall. Hence its being named for the Roman goddess of agriculture, whose mourning brings on the winter each year. Ceres works well in a variety of colors, however, and looks as good on a man as it does on a woman.

Sizing:  garments will comfortably stretch up to a couple of inches over the measurements given here.
Small (child) - 4" around wrist, 18" around head
Medium (woman) - 6" around wrist, 20" around head
Large (man) - 8" around wrist, 22" around head

Shown in medium

Skills:  knitting in the round, stranded colorwork, simple increases.

Big thanks to my husband, who shall remain nameless, for the photography. Thanks also to acucena, curiouskate, mugginsquilts, schokolilo, lnupermom and truki of Ravelry for testing the draft of my pattern. They were extremely helpful, and I love how their projects turned out!

You can purchase this through Ravelry, or just click the "buy now" button at the top of the page. If you have any questions, email me or check out About the Patterns.

Bluebonnets is copyright Sasha Evans, all rights reserved. By downloading this pattern, you agree not to redistribute it or to use it for commercial purposes, unless you ask me very very nicely and I say yes.

Time For a Giveaway!!!

Win this! The headband pattern, not the girl. Sicko. :-P

One of the strange things about blogging is that you really can't tell who's subscribed to your RSS feed. So, although there are various ways of telling who comes and visits your site, anyone who reads your blog via your feed is essentially invisible to you. This makes it sort of hard to gauge how many regular readers you have. Some services like Google Reader make it possible to see who's following you through that particular service, but I know I usually just subscribe directly to the feed, and I think most people like to do that too.

So here's my idea: If you are subscribed to my blog (or if you're just now subscribing) in any way, through any service, comment to this post and let me know! Everyone who comments will be entered into a drawing for a free copy of Bluebonnets, which is, you know...not usually free. And, just because I think it's fun to actually see my "followers," anyone who follows my blog via Google Reader will be entered twice!

A winner will be chosen on Saturday, July 11 via random number generator, so subscribe and submit your comments or subscribe through Google before then (see the "subscribe" and "follow" links to the left). I'll post the name of the winner that day, then it will be up to that person to email me and let me know at what email address they'd like to receive the PDF pattern.

What's Next

After posting my very first pattern, Hot Water Bottle Cozy, a friend of mine commented that it looked on first glance like a sleeveless turtleneck. I agreed, and thought furthermore that it would be pretty freakin' awesome if said sleeveless turtleneck existed.

And thus, "Person Cozy" was born. :-) Person Cozy will have the same basic construction as the bottle cozy - buttoned shoulder flaps instead of seams, an optional ribbed turtleneck that'll basically be a matching, tight-fitting cowl, and also matching removable sleeves. It's very modular, this piece. And, because of the shoulder flaps instead of seams and the torso being knit in the round, it has the added bonus of being completely seamless.

I have the last shoulder flap and the turtleneck to go. I'm so close to being done with the knitting, and yet I'm so far from having this thing ready to publish. I've got to block it (it looks like an ill-fitting piece of ass right now, but I think it'll block to perfection), finish it, and last but by no means least, have it tested in various sizes. I'm writing it in sizes x-small through 3x-large, and I'm just hoping and praying that the size standards I have for the larger sizes actually work the way they're supposed to on a woman's body! It's a rather fitted piece, you see.

Bluebonnets

$2.00

Every spring, the hills of Central Texas turn blue, submitting to a thick blanket of wildflowers. Inspired by this lovely blue bamboo and silk yarn (from Paton's), I wanted to make a simple headband that captured this flower in lace. Open-work ribbing creates the blossoms, and slipped stitches and cabling create the stem and leaves below. This is a pretty quick project (I think my test knitters all finished before they thought they would) and would be a great first lace project.

Big thanks to my boyfriend, who shall remain nameless (unless you look very carefully), and RiverKiva for the wonderful photography. Thanks also to adriennepdx, CraftyCripple, preservationgal and tinker37 of Ravelry for testing the draft of my pattern. They were wonderful to work with, and their headbands came out gorgeous (you can see one of them here, at CraftyCripple's blog)!

You can purchase this through Ravelry, or just click the "buy now" button at the top of the page. If you have any questions, email me or check out About the Patterns.

Size: one (38" long by 4" at its widest point)
Skills: simple lace, cabling, increases and decreases, provisional casting on


Bluebonnets is copyright Sasha Evans, all rights reserved. By downloading this pattern, you agree not to redistribute it or to use it for commercial purposes, unless you ask me very very nicely and I say yes.

The End is Near

Bluebonnets is officially - finally - in the testing stages (you thought I was going to say "done" didn't you? Well the piece is done - done and GORGEOUS - and so is the pattern, it just needs to be tested. I will never charge money for a pattern that has not been tested or professionally tech edited, of that you can be sure)! I expect to have the pattern up for sale next week. Winners of the "Tied Up and Twisted" blog giveaway will get their free pattern as soon as it's up.

Has anyone else noticed that I was posting more often during finals than I am now that it's summer and I'm unemployed? Yeah. Funny how that works.

Anyway. I'd also been working on another much larger-scale project that I'd intended to submit to Knitty. Life, however, in the form of externally-imposed deadlines and sudden shortages of yarn, got in the way, and it's just as well. It was going to be great, but it's going to be better now that I'm not rushing to finish it. I'll post pictures of it soon, but here's a hint: it's a one-of-a-kind original sweater, but you'll recognize it. *smiles coyly*

Tied Up and Twisted

My "Happy Weekend" present to you: a new free pattern cum blog giveaway!

Pattern
Download the PDF here.
"Tied Up and Twisted" is amazingly quick, amazingly easy and surprisingly versatile. The twisty pulse-warmers will keep you (surprisingly) warm while the weather warms up, and the hairband can be worn in lots of different ways. There are yarn overs worked down the length of each piece, which allows you to button them anywhere along their length. Use these pictures as “serving suggestions.” There’s plenty of room for creativity!

I knit these to show off the wonderful handspun yarn I received for Christmas from Woolly Hands. Worked on large needles, this yarn knits up quickly and with lots of character! You could substitute a bulky yarn of more even thickness, but I think you’d lose some of the character of the piece.

Blog Giveaway
Remember "Bluebonnets?" It's coming along great, and I'm almost ready to have it tested. Because this pattern is slightly more complicated than my two free patterns, I'm going to charge a little for it.

Want to get it for free?

Knit up "Tied Up and Twisted" and post it to Ravelry with pictures and a rating by the end of the month, and I'll enter your name into a drawing for a free PDF copy of "Bluebonnets" when it's tested and finished. I'll draw 2 names at random and contact the winners through Ravelry on May 1. You have to be on Ravelry to enter, but this gives you time to get an account if you don't already have one (it's free, and soooooo worth the clicking and typing). And yes, I will enter your name even if you only give me one star. Be honest. :-)





This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License. Click here for an explanation of this term in plain English.

Sneak Peek

New pattern, coming soon! This right here is only 1/3 of what you'll get. *smiles coyly*

Errata

Oh, this so figures. I knew my first pattern would have at least one error in it. I didn't catch it. My proofreader didn't catch it. It was far too obvious for us to have caught. So I am very indebted to Leah, from Ravelry, for very nicely pointing it out to me.

Hot Water Bottle Cozy:
Line 4, in "Front" section, before "Begin Cable Pattern:"
Original: 2/14/09 - Continue in P2K2 rib
Updated: 3/1/09 - Continue in P2K4 rib

Gauge
Original: 2/14/09 - 16st/26 rows = 4" in cable pattern
Updated: 3/26/09 - 22st/26 rows = 4" in cable pattern

I will track errata for future patterns in this entry as well and will link in Ravelry and elsewhere where appropriate.

Copyright Notice

For Sale Patterns:
Any pattern for sale here is copyright Sasha Evans, all rights reserved. What this means is:

1. Please do not share or distribute copies of my pattern, but feel free to pass along a link to my blog.
2. Make as many changes to my pattern as you want while you're knitting - be creative - but please do not publish an altered version of my pattern.
3. Please do not use my pattern for commercial purposes. This means you may not sell copies of my pattern, altered versions of my pattern, classes based on my pattern or finished objects made from my pattern.
4. If you would like to sell something based on one of my patterns, please drop me an email! I will take it as a compliment, and it's entirely possible - nay, likely - that we can work something out. I'm prepared to make exceptions to these stipulations, but please ask me first.

Free Patterns:

All of my free patterns are copyright Sasha Evans and are protected under the Creative Commons attribution non-commercial license. A straightforward explanation of this license, which includes a link to the full legal, code, may be found here.

In plain English, though, what it means is this:

1. Feel free to share the pattern with your friends, but be sure the copied pattern includes my name and the URL of my blog (found at the bottom of each page of my patterns).
2. Feel free to make changes to my pattern, or new patterns based on my pattern, but please give me credit. Mention the pattern of mine that inspired you and include my name and a link to my blog. This protects you as much as it does me - not only do I get credit for the work I've done that inspired you, but your innovations will not be confused for my work.
3. Please do not use my pattern for commercial purposes.
   
4. As always, if you'd like me to make an exception for you, please drop me an email!

If any of this doesn't make sense, please let me know. I'd be happy to discuss any points that may be unclear through email.

Pattern: Hot Water Bottle Cozy

Download the PDF here.
Errata available here.

You guys...this is my first pattern! :-D I hope you like it, and I hope it's clear. Please feel free to email me if anything isn't. Also, if you do knit one of these cozies, feel free to share pictures with me! I'd love to see what people wind up doing with this pattern.

I do request two things, however, of those who make use of this pattern. First, please don't use this for commercial purposes. Make it for yourself, make it for your friends, but don't put it up on your Etsy shop, right? Second, I'm offering this pattern for free, so you're welcome to share it with your friends, but please don't alter the document in any way. By all means make alterations to the pattern as you knit, and tell your friends (and me!) about them if they work, but leave the PDF itself intact. That way my pattern stays my pattern and your innovations stay your innovations. :-)

This pattern is knit in three pieces, and I like to think there's a little something for everyone here. The front and back are knit flat, and the cap is knit in the round. If you really hate seaming, you can easily adapt this to be knit entirely in the round. If you're not comfortable knitting in the round, you can skip the cap. It's pretty much a cosmetic feature - the opening of a hot water bottle doesn't get particularly hot, I find.

The bottle is held securely in the cozy by the flaps that button over the "shoulder" of the hot water bottle. I find that it's easier to slip a bottle full of scalding water into the cozy given this nice, large opening than given the tighter, neck-sized ribbed opening common to a lot of other patterns. There's some subtle shaping around the shoulders that keeps the cozy snug around the bottle, instead of sticking out under the flaps at the corners.

And now, further remarks on seaming: Ok, I hate seaming too. I suck at it. The beauty of this pattern is that the edges are reverse stockinette, so even if your seams are ugly as sin, they'll be lost between the big, pretty cables and no one has to know! Also, the cables make for handy guides to keep the front even with the back while you seam. What could be better? For a very clear and thorough seaming tutuorial, see this article from Knit Simple.

Anyway, I hope you like it, and I do hope you'll be in touch with me if you have any comments, questions or ideas. Again, this is my first pattern, and any feedback I can get from the knitting community out there will only make my subsequent patterns better!


This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License. Click here for an explanation of this term in plain English.