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I now have a lovely new website with an exciting announcement...come and visit me...

www.theshetlandtrader.com

and be sure to look around the new site!

Hansel

After several requests for a written pattern for Hap Shawls I decided to put one together.
Written and charted instructions are provided as is yardage for a DK and fingering weight version.
This pattern shows how to make a Hap Shawl using the borders outward method. This means that extra repeats of the Hap Shell border can be worked to make a larger shawl, and there's no seaming!

A ‘Hansel’ is a gift to mark a special occasion, such as the birth of a baby.

Size:
Approx 45 inches square
Needles:
US #8/5mm 32 inch circular needle
US #8/5mm DPN (only 1 is needed)
Yarn:
2 ply Jumper Weight shawl: 1000 yrds MC, 250 yrds of 4 other contrast colours.
DK Weight shawl: 900 yrds MC, 200 yrds of 4 other contrast colours.
Shown in Green Mtn Spinnery Alpaca Elegance.
Notions:
Stitch Markers
Row Counter
Tapestry Needle
Gauge:
16 sts and 30 rows = 4 inches in Garter st on US#8/5mm needles.

$5.00

Sale!

As a little "heading into Fall" treat I'm offering 20% off all Shetland Trader Patterns from now until Rhinebeck time (Oct 17th). The discount will automatically be applied when you make a purchase!
Enjoy it while it lasts!
Happy almost Fall!

Photoshoot Day

As promised a selection of my photos from the day of the shoot....a couple of fully disclosed designs (because they've been on the internet already) and a couple of blurry teasers!

Huge thanks goes out to the incredible team I had on hand.....

Maryjane Mucklestone on photo styling ......she was so aware of things I would totally have missed, like sticking out dress straps!

My gorgeous friend Julia all the way from Massachusetts braving the midges....

Jared Flood behind the camera.....wait til you see HIS pictures........

Jess as other photo stylist (she also captured some great behind the scenes shots)....

Ysolda who was also kind enough to offer herself for modeling and made a beautiful contrast to Julia.....

...and my dad's cat Polly who crashed the shoot ....(think she was pretty interested in Julia's hair)....

and it's a wrap!

I have a great tech editor and graphic designer who will be working with me to get this collection together and hopefully out to you by late October-early November with pre-orders happening before that!

Saba!

Well my next blog post was supposed to be a wee window into the day of my photoshoot in Shetland....however....something sort of massive interrupted our lives and I pretty much have to share it.......
We are now the owners of a gorgeous 10 week old rescued Ridgeback puppy!

He's called Saba (this being a name we picked years ago for our then hypothetical dog-it's a small Dutch owned island in the Caribbean).

We've been in love with this breed for going on 12 years now and recently decided it was time to make inquires into adopting a rescued Ridgeback. We had a home visit before we left for Scotland and then were told we'd have to be patient for the right dog to come along.
Well on Friday night (a few days after returning home) we get a phone call about this little guy.....we had to make a decision fast...rescued Ridgeback puppies pretty much never show up in Massachusetts.....how could we say no?
As you can imagine we're reading up fast on puppy training and rapidly learning what we can and can't have lying around the house!

Next time will be the photoshoot post....promise!

Friends in Shetland

During our second week in Shetland we were joined by lots of knitterly friends....I think you'll know who they are!

Knitting belt lesson from Auntie Grace....

Internet Cafe at Dad's house....

New England Knits in Jamieson and Smith's store....

The photoshoot models get in some practice.....

Late evening walks.....

Rock collecting....

Bird watching in Unst....

Choosing colours at Jamieson's.....

Putting knitters to work before the photoshoot.....

Next up the day of the photoshoot!

Shetland Highlights Day One

New cousins to get acquainted with.....

Drams on the patio at 10:00pm......

Conversations with grandpa........

Late night fishing.......

and Mackie's Honeycomb ice cream......
Perfect first day!

Mellow Yellow

It is most definitely crunch time for me with 10 days to go before I leave for Scotland!
Obviously I'm very excited to see family but I also have a LOT of knitting to get done before the photoshoot of my booklet/collection.........so just to show I've actually been knitting here is a sneak peak of one of the shawls that will be in it!

The yarn is Madelinetosh Prairie, 100% superwash merino, laceweight. My hand and eye were instantly drawn to it's mellow mood and luscious texture and it's been a calming and soothing project to work on over these recently hot and sticky days.

Plenty more to come I assure you ...........