Got Blueprint?

Robyn Chachula (aka Crochet by Faye), is one of the most gifted crochet designers out there right now.  Her eye for modern fashion paired with her background as a structural engineer, gives her garments amazing structure, impeccable fit, and absolute wearability.  I can attest to all three of those qualities personally, as I wore (& loved) her Vera sweater (which she designed for my upcoming Pop Goes Crochet) on both, holiday ad spots for the DIY Network and during the Knitty Gritty Knitsters special.

I'm thrilled to announce that her own book, Blueprint Crochet, is out on stands now!  See below for just a few of the amazing projects, featured within its pages including: the Gladiolus vest, made with VHC LOVE!

Gladiolus Vest

Maggie Wrap Sweater

Nicki Purse

Get your copy here, and enjoy a state of crochet bliss!

xo, Vickie

Caterpillar Baby Sack in Yarn Forward Mag!

My friend Kerrie Allman (you may remember her "Dance TV" legwarmers & backback designs from New Knits on the Block), is the publisher of Yarn Forward, a knit & crochet-focused magazine out of the UK. She was kind enough to include me in the 7th issue, which hits stands October 8th (in the U.S., too!)

Grab your copy to get a super-early sneak preview pattern (from our upcoming eco-conscious book, Stitch Hugger) of my caterpillar inspired, baby sleep sack! Keep your little cuddle-bug safely snug in this quick(ish)-to-knit project, made from hemp, soysilk & wool.

Now, let us pause for the insane adorableness of the wee, Euro baby modeling.  *pausing*

Ok, moving on.

Baby Sleep Sack

(Preview Pattern from Stitch Hugger, Lark Books Fall '09)

Yarn: SWTC/VHC Rock in colors: Ani & Billie Joe

Other projects from this issue include: the versatile, cover cardi (I love the apple ribbon detailing!), a funky, free-form crochet bag, and a steeked, Fair Isle sweater.  To glimpse shots of what else to expect from the mag, go here.

xo, Vickie

Free Project: Recycled Towel Bath Mat

I have this fancy, new application that although not technically made for blogger, still allows me to pull comments and repost them. Up until now, I hadn't had a reason to use it, but one of yesterday's posts seems a perfect opportunity!

"I can't wait for this book! I love finding new things to use as "yarn" for projects, especially since I'm on a tight budget right now.
I cut up old towels to crochet into a bathmat once, and it was great because the towels still served their purpose of soaking up water."

Originally posted as a comment by Diyod on Vickie Howell using Disqus.

DIYOD reminded of my own knitted towel mat, I made a few years back. Adrienne and I were originally going to include a version of this project in Stitch Hugger but ditched it (along with a few others) due to time constraints.  I dug into the ol' photo folder archives though and found some (badly lit) example shots.

Knitting with towel strips, is a wee bit messy.  If you don't mind pulling out the vacuum to clean up a ton o' terry bits though, it's a great project for breathing new life into old bath blankets!

What you'll need:

3-5 Towels (I found these 60's beauties at a thift store)

Size US 36 (20mm) Needles (I recommend using circulars, to take the strain off your wrists)

Rotary Cutter OR (if you were blessed with the virtue of patience), Scissors

What you do:

Cut up towels into 1"(ish) strips.

Tie the strips together (just using a plain knot), from end to end.  If the knotted look bugs you though, you can get fancy by sewing the strips instead.  Knock yourself out. ;)

Roll "Terryarn" into a ball.

Cast on 24 sts.  Knit every row (garter stitch), until mat reaches desired height.  Bind off.

Trim knot ends to about 1 1/2", if necessary.

Happy repurposing!

xo, Vickie

It Takes All Kinds...of Yarn

Adrienne and I want to make sure that there are projects in Stitch Hugger (working title, formerly EcoStitch) that fit all budgets and life circumstances.  Environmental & community consciousness after all, should be accessible to all, right?  

Well, we're knee-deep in the final knitting/crochet crunch now.  For some reason though (perhaps due to deadline-induced delirium), I find the converse costs of 2 of the balls of yarn (or in one case, "yarn") we're using, entertaining.  Humor me, if you will:

T-arn (aka T-shirt Yarn)

Environmental attribute: Recycling of old t-shirts, thereby reducing waste.

Cost per ball: Approx. $10

Experience: A little clunky but overall, quick and easy to work with.  

Qiviuk (aka, "the cashmere of the North")

Environmental attribute: Production helps to sustain a female-run, Alaskan  co-op.

Cost per ball:  Approx $90

Experience: I haven't started working with it yet but for that price, am expecting it to put out. ;)

Seriously though, it seems delightful.

That is all.

xo, Vickie

Fun with Lino Printing

Issue 5 of my favorite Australian zine, Mix Tape inspired me to finally try something I'd been meaning to for a long time: printing!  Taking a screen printing class has been on my to-do list for years; I've coveted a Gocco printing kit for FOREVER; I'm obsessed with graphics arts and anything block printed (I sometimes think the main reason I keep CNN on constant-play in the house, is because of their poster-print inspired graphics! ;)); so Lino Printing is right up my alley!

It was Diana Jones' "The Lowdown on Lino" article though, that pried me away from my regularly scheduled "work" crafting, to finally dip my proverbial toe into the wonderful world o' printing!

I took a sketch of a simple tree I drew for a project in our eco book, and traced it onto a rubber block (I wanted linoleum tiles but unfortunately, they didn't carry them at the craft store I bought the rest of the supplies from).

Using my fancy schmancy lino cutter (I've heard lore that a box cutter will work too), I carved away my design. 

Now, it was time to print!  I used unbleached cotton as my canvas, but any fabric would've worked. 

 

Below is the aforementioned cutter and also the brayer (the tool that helps the image print evenly).

The application is much the same as foam stamping.  Using a sponge brush, evenly apply printing ink onto raised surface of your block.  Place the block face down, on fabric or card stock.  Using a brayer (or rolling pin), roll over back of black several times.  Carefully remove block.  Experiment with different colors and amounts of ink.  I ended up liking the more faded look best (ie. less ink), but it's totally just a personal preference.

Now it was time to set the ink.  There may be a special heat source tool for this step, but I used a hair dryer; which seemed to work just fine. :)

Of course, I had to also see if this art form was applicable to knitting, so I gave the printing a try on a sweater scrap.  It worked!  I see many mixed media projects in my future. :)

All in all, I had so much fun playing around with this project!  I definitely learned a few things, and will try and get more adventurous with my carvings the next time I try it.

Further feed my obsession by posting links to your own block printing adventures (which I'm sure, will put my first-try examples to shame! :))

xo, Vickie

Tree artwork copyright Vickie Howell, Inc. 2008.  All rights Reserved.

More Ravelry Files!

It's that time again to give another shout out to Ravelers who've made and shared some of my designs.  Here are just a few FOs that I found this morning, while trolling the virtual annals of Ravelry.  Thanks to everyone who continues to support me, by knitting and crocheting from my patterns!  xo, Vic

Boo-tree-licious Ornaments

by Saree & AliceJune

Diff'rent Strikes (from New Knits on the Block)

by The Tiffster, Pirate Purl, Katafi & Panda Girl

Boy in Bubble

by Meghanaf

Lemon Drop

by Turvid & Vaniclion

Mesh Cover Up (From Crochet Today! Summer '08)

by BigPikaChica

Purple Skein

by Wooly-Mittens

Prairie Poncho (From Crochet Today! Fall '08)

by Beautiful Disaster

Tank Girl (From Knitty, Summer '08)

by MysticFarah

New ROCK pattern, by Stefanie Japel!

One of my favorite knitwear designers (and fellow redhead) Stefanie Japel, designed a colorful tunic out of Vickie Howell Collection ROCK yarn! Buy the yarn at SWTC, then head on over to Glampyre.com, to download the pattern.  Happy Knitting!, xo, Vickie

Cleo, by Stefanie Japel

Back from O-Town

Did anyone else use to watch "Making of the Band" about O-Town? I did...and oh yes, I did have an opinion about whether or not Ashley should get married so young! ;)

I'm back from Oakland and other than forgetting to bring my beloved Black Jack with me (which induced an unhealthy dose of separation anxiety), the trip went along swimmingly. Adrienne and I spent one day with our editor Valerie; talking photographers, photo shoot venues and manuscript layout. The next day and a half was spent glued to her kitchen table; across from each other with dueling laptops. We knocked out a ton of sidebars/eco-related content but alas, didn't come close to finishing. Looks like a marathon iChat session is in our near future!

Alright, I might have just told a little white lie. We didn't spend and entire day and a half writing away. I met up with my dear friend of *cough* 23 years who happened to be visiting Oakland (from Japan, where he owns a school) at the same time.  We visited with his brother and nephew for a few hours, until we met up with Adrienne for lunch. Here's a shot of Steve and I at our 8th grade graduation, circa 1988.


We took a new picture in the same position in Oakland, but it's so horribly unflattering of both of us that I couldn't bring myself to post it. Upward camera angles and early mornings are clearly, not our friends.  I'm quite sure though, that if I had had the same sweet, fingerless gloves I wore in the original shot; that the current picture could have been nothing short of nostalgic perfection.  Alas.

After lunch, A. & I swung by her beautiful, sustainable living shop.



If you're ever in the East Bay area, definitely stop by there.  Her stuff is amazing--I just ordered a pair of 1920's inspired Vivienne Westwood shoes from there, that are made entirely of recycled materials!

Our last stop before heading back to working-town, was a beautiful yarn shop called: Article Pract.  I've seen their booth at market before, but have never been in the actual store.   They had a really great selection of needles, accessories, spinning materials and of course, yarn. Here I am with the owner, Christina Stork.   Studies have shown that 2 out of 2 redheads, enjoy Namaste knitting bags! ;)

Well, it's 3pm and I'm still in my jammies.  So, I bid you adieu--to finally get dressed.

Have a great weekend!

xo, Vickie

Lifetime Video: Skully Applique!

The new Lifetime CRAFTED web videos are up! Type on over to MyLifetime.com for Halloween project tutorials ranging from crochet to decoupage!

Watch my video here, to learn how to crochet a simple, skull applique perfect for putting the boo on your bod or the haunting in your home!

Here's the link to the print version of the pattern.

Special thanks to:

• Naughty Secretary Club for providing me with the Jolly Roger ring I'm wearing
• Southwest Trading Company for providing the Vickie Howell Collection ROCK yarn
• Boye Needle for providing crochet hooks

Happy hooking!,

Vickie

P.S.  If the Kiwi Mag Frankenrumi and the Lifetime Skully appliques don't fill your spooky crochet fix, don't forget last year's Boo-tree-licious ornaments (as seen in video)!

Frankenrumi

The October issue of KIWI Magazine is out on stands.   This edition's "Eco-Craft" project: Frankenrumi, an organic cotton (VHC Craft yarn), amigurumi monster!

Halloween's only 8 weeks away (but who's counting?), so get your hook ready, 'cause it's almost time to start haunting.  Get the pattern now, in the mag or on the KIWI website!

Wishing you the creepiest of crochet experiences-- xo, Vickie

Knight Rider

The other day I was flipping through this really great, knit-related, coffee table book: "Not Tonight Darling, I'm Knitting", by Betsy Hosegood.  In it I found this picture of Vivienne Westwood's knitted chain-mail.

I've decided that it's what my design from New Knits on the Block, wants to be when it grows up. ;)
xo, 

Vickie

Platform Purl

What happens when the yarn and shoe Gods come together in perfect union?  This.



Thank you Givenchy.

That is all.

--Vickie