I have a new free pattern out from the lovely folks at Classic Elite.  A perfect quick knit for the last days of summer. Ok, I know, summer is going to last for 2-3 more months here in sunny Florida, but for the rest of you normal seasonal people, this is nice and quick. If you live in Florida, take your time.

It’s made out of Classic Silk by Classic Elite which is a very yummy blend of silk and cotton with a bit of nylon. It works up into a nice lightweight summer fabric and even stockinette fabric in this yarn has character.

The camisole has reinforced garter stitch straps (to prevent stretching) and is edged in a lovely Plantation Lace pattern. Hence the name of a camisole – the Mayfaire Plantation is prominent in a series of Anne Rice books I read when I was younger and didn’t have children to tend and knitting design work to do!

The pattern is free and comes in sizes from a 30″ to 50″ bust.  I think it would work best with zero to negative ease – as there is full fashioned shaping on the waist. Go and grab your free Classic Silk Mayfaire Camisole pattern from the Classic Elite Webletter site. Better yet, sign up for the webletter. It’s a new pattern e-mailed to you every single week!

PicnicKnits is going pink! I’ve got less than three months until I have to walk 60 miles for the Komen 3-Day Breast Cancer Walk. And I’ve not even raised 25% of the money I need to be able to walk. So I’m going pink! Yes, it is a lot of pink. But it’s here until I reach my fundraising goal of $2300. Even $5 will help -  here’s my donation page.

I’m also in the process of designing some new pink patterns to help raise funds for me and my team. So watch this space for those.

In other news, you only have until Thursday, August 5th to buy the Daphne Ann Mystery Shawl at the bargain price of $6.00. After that it goes up to $9.50. Even if you would just like the complete pattern after all the mystery knitting is over, now is the time to buy!

Lace is mysterious. You knit along and it looks like a yarny lump. Until you block it, and then something glorious appears. And the time is fast approaching for the first PicnicKnits Mystery Shawl Knit-A-Long.  Here’s what you need to know:

• This shawl is worked from the top down, starting at the neckline. It will be a little more than a half circle, so it will sit nicely on your shoulders. This shawl is NOT side-to-side.
• I’m using one skein Dream In Color Baby in Punky Fuschia and size 6 (4mm) needles. As with most lace, a semi-solid or solid color will show the patterning best. Baby has 700 yards to 113 grams (or 3.99 ounces). It is considered a lace weight, but I would really call it a light fingering.
• Clues will be e-mailed to participants once a week beginning on August 15th. All clues will be provided in charted and written format.
• Discussion and support will take place on Ravelry in the PicnicKnits group. Ravelry accounts are free if you don’t have one already.
• There will be five clues that are approximately the same amount of knitting. When you make your purchase you will receive a supplies list and a charted and written pattern for a gauge swatch.
• Early bird sales are happening now! The early bird price is $6.00 – the later gator (full) price is $9.50. The early bird price will be available until August 5th. That will be the last day to buy the pattern at the early bird price.

The Daphne Ann Mystery Knit Shawl on Ravelry – $6.00 USD

Spent being the operative word. As in spent money. I didn’t really plan to go to any yarn stores on vacation. I have more yarn lined up for projects than I know what to do with. And my brain is about to explode with the ideas. But the man wanted to stop at a brewery he had visited a few weeks prior to pick up some of their “hop bomb” beer. And there was a yarn store right there! Unfortunately I could not buy anything at this store. They were having a knit-in of some sort and couldn’t be bothered to greet me at all. Although I did get some dirty looks. And just to make sure they wouldn’t get any of my money, they had photocopies of knitty patterns for the taking. Which is a big knitty no-no. (Yes, I reported them).

So I thought I was safe. I didn’t need any yarn anyhow. Until I got to the hotel in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois. There was a free magazine in the lobby. Do you know what was on the cover of the free mag? A yarn store! It was fate. And the store was only a few miles from the hotel. So I went there, praying for a better visit. I was not disappointed.

Klose Knit is fabulous. It’s an old converted house, and it’s beautiful and cozy and welcoming. They were having a knit-in and they invited me to sit and knit. The owner walked me around to show me things. They even offered me pastries if I didn’t have time to stay.

So I had to buy just a few things.

And then she mentioned she had Malabrigo Sock in Light of Love, which I can never get my hands on. Apparently I can’t photograph it either, but it’s going to be perfect for my 3-Day Breast Cancer Fundraising Shawlette that I’m designing.

So I was happy. The good yarn store balance had been restored. I had such a lovely time at Klose Knit. If you’re in the area – or a reasonable drive – you must go! And I was happy in my yarnie world. But then I did a little google search. And there was another yarn store in the area. This one even closer to the hotel. So I left the menfolk in the room and decided to make a quick trip over.

Needleworks has more buttons than I’ve ever seen in one place. I found the perfect buttons for a sooper seekrit project. They have a huge store. With sweater quantities and more of all sorts of gorgeous yarns. The yarn above is made for dyeing, but I thought it would be perfect undyed for a winter shawlette or capelet. Oh and did I mention it’s baby llama? It’s luscious!

Oh and they were having a knit-in too! Everyone said hi and was super friendly. They do a potluck on the day I was there and invited me to stay for lunch! I wish I could have, but I spent an hour picking out perfect buttons, so I had to run!

So now, things are even better. One very bad yarn store, two really wonderful yarn store experiences. I was good. I needed no more. But then the non-knitter we stayed with on the way home recommended a store. She doesn’t even knit and she recommended it? I had to go!

River Wools is also just fantastic. The lady at the counter was lovely and welcoming – showing me around and helping me find stuff. They had tons of gorgeous yarns. Right in downtown Terra Haute, Indiana. I had a lovely visit while the menfolk were off buying square donuts – which were pretty darn tasty by the way!

So there you go. A 75% success rate. Three really wonderful yarnstores where they knew how to treat people and had delicious and beautiful yarns. So if you’re in the midwest, all three of these are worth a road-trip and convenient to some major highways. Three thumbs up!

Vacation was NOT an epic failure. We actually had a really lovely time. I was treated to many birthday dinners  and many birthday margaritas. I might have worn the birthday sombrero more than once. This summer’s vacation was the Grandparent World Tour. The boys got to see all their grandparents, including GGMa, who is their only living great-grandparent. It was a good trip. The driving went well and the boys were welcomed and spoiled at every stop.

While on vacation, naturally I was knitting. On one of those sooper seekrit projects that I can’t show you. But I can show you this:

Do you know what that is? It is an entire skein of Malabrigo Twist yarn which has been through a hot water wash and a full dryer cycle. It kind of looks like wooly blue brains. But wait, it gets better.

I was nearly finished with said object and had two skeins of yarn left that I had brought along. I was hoping to not have to break into them, but they were insurance, you know? My dear, sweet, lovely husband was doing laundry for us at my dad’s house. I was rolling the clothes back up to be placed in suitcases. When I pulled out the monstrosity you see above.

I might have cried a little bit, I might have screamed. I will not admit to threatening my husband’s life. Not yet. I was comfortable in the knowledge that I had a second backup skein. So I finished rolling up my half of the laundry and went back to doing some slicing for dinner.

That’s when he found the second skein – in the same state. And then I very calmly told my sister to take the knife away from me through gritted teeth. There is no photographic evidence that I pointed the knife at him all “Psycho” like. No one recorded the threats on his life and appendages. So as far as I’m concerned it didn’t really happen. And luckily for him I was able to finish the object without the 2 backup skeins. Very, very lucky for him.

I’ve spent a lot of time in the minivan this past week. And that, combined with my advancing age, has led me to think too much.

1. America is too much the same. Every city has the same restaurants, the same stores. It’s kind of sad.

2. I have an amazing family. All of them. Even though some of the crazy connections are strange fodder for afternoon talk shows, they are made of awesome.

3. It’s hotter in Ohio than it is where I live in Florida right now. That is just wrong.

4. I miss hills and mountains. Jacksonville is too cussing flat.

5. My new favorite curseword is “cuss”. I blame Mr. Fox.

6. Marking time by how fast children grow is bittersweet.

7. I think there might be some niece or nephew to call me Aunt Coco forever.

8. I need more summer dresses if it’s gonna be this hot all over.

9. It’s really fun to wake up to umpteen birthday wishes on facebook.

10. It’s reassuring how somethings (and some people) never change.

11. It’s disheartening that the ones who really need to change never do.

12. I have the best sons in the world. You can’t have them.

13. Ditto for the husband.

14. The older I get, the more proficient I am at hiding my gray hair.

15. Today for my birthday I am getting a pedicure come cuss or high water. Fortunately musing #1 insures that there will be a nice little nail salon in every strip mall.

16. Short hair is way easier to take care of than long hair.

17. The hills in Cincinnati are more beautiful than I remember.

18. Skyline chili never changes.

19. Nor does LaRosa’s.

20. That’s two of those good not-changing things.

21. Yes, I am running out of profound thoughts. Why do you ask?

22. I love having a business that keeps running even while I am away.

23. Ditto when I’m asleep.

24. Vacation can make you a slacker when it comes to things like training for the 3-day.

25. But a nice hike in the ever lovely Rowe Woods can be a reasonable substitute, right?

26. My 20th high school reunion is this fall.

27. I wish I could go, but October is just too busy of a month.

28. You are never too old for Scooby Doo.

29. I can listen to Jim Dale read Harry Potter over and over again – even though I know how every story ends.

30. Wireless internet is a thing of beauty.

31. A knitting designer can never have too many stitch dictionaries/inspiration books.

32. To that end I bought two more last night.

33. Some of the pictures of me that hang in these homes I am visiting are very embarrassing.

34. No, I will not share them with you.

35. Trying to give up a 26 year addiction to diet pepsi during vacation is not the best plan.

36. Writing 38 things without my morning diet pepsi is also not very wise.

37. In order to see everyone I would like to see on vacation, this trip would have had to be a month long.

38. Being this close to forty is a bit humbling. But I’m happier than I’ve ever been and I can’t complain.

A couple of years ago, the Yarn Harlot blogged about the fleece stealing squirrel. My then eight year old son nearly peed his pants laughing at it. And then he drew the schematics for a better squirrel trap.

You really should click through and see the larger version of this. So you can see that the squirrel is in ninja “hiya” position on the right. And so you can read the detailed workings of an eight year old mind in his own hand-writing. But this is what he says:

Operator sitting in chair activates machine by unhooking connection #B1. Squirrel thinks: “What’s the point if this happens?”. After at least 5 whimpering, banging, screaming noises, release by pulling under connection #A2.

In other news today, Friday July 2nd is the last day for the half-year, half-price sale. So stock up while you can and look for more PicnicKnits patterns in the future.

It’s interesting to me to watch how life goes. Somedays I get nothing done, and other days I am so productive it’s ridiculous. Sometimes designs fly off the needles, and sometimes the patterns write themselves. But rarely both. Most times, as is the case in Cordelle, it’s one or the other. This shawl practically made itself and for some reason I could never make myself just sit down and write it. But my procrastination is your gain.

Because I waited so long to get it done and edited, it’s now debuting right smack in the middle of the half-price sale. So you get an introductory price as it were.

It’s lovely and soft, worked up in Baby Twist 100% Alpaca. Even though it’s a larger shawl, it goes quickly because it’s made in a DK weight. It’s cozy and lightweight at the same time. And the Baby Twist comes in some really beautiful colors.

It’s reversible, because although both sides are not the same, they are both very similar and very lovely. And it’s designed in the same way as many of my shawls in that you can totally adjust it to make it as large or as small as you’d like. Plus the fabric at the neckline wants to fold over into a lovely sort of shawl collar.

Needles: Size 8 needles (5.0 mm)

Yarn: Alpaca With A Twist Baby Twist Jumbo Hank, 549 yards to 250g in the colorway Lemon

Size: Sample blocked to 76″ wide and 28″ deep

Gauge: 18 stitches and 26 rows = 4 inches in blocked garter

Notes: Worked from side to side. Offered in charted and written format. The shawl is on sale for half-price ($2.75) until midnight on Friday July 2nd.

The Cordelle Shawl on Ravelry – $5.50 USD

This has been my best designing year so far. I’m amazed at the support and wonderful comments and beautiful finished objects that have come from my design work. So to celebrate (and to pad my vacation fund) I’m having a half-year half-price sale. Everything in the PicnicKnits pattern store is half-price. Well except for the free stuff – that’s just still free!

So now’s a great time to buy any PicnicKnits patterns you’ve been eyeing. We got shawls:

We got cowls and bags:

We got socks (and a pair of slippers!):

And we got hats:

I say we, but it’s really just me of course.  I’ve got lots of new stuff coming out from PicnicKnits, but this sale is your best chance to get some tried and true favorites for a great low price. And thanks again for all of the support!