May 2009 Sock Yarn Cinema Member's Choice

The nominees for the May 2009 Sock Yarn Cinema selection are...




Somewhere in Time

Like Water for Chocolate (Como agua para chocolate)

Star Wars Episode I

There really is something for everyone here, and each one would inspire several gorgeous colorways.

Polls close November 15th (since you should all be in a voting mood that week). Happy voting!

SOCKTOBERFEST is finally here!

It is time for Socktoberfest! Leave a comment here for a free entry into our Socktoberfest drawing (be sure to include a way to reach you - etsy username, ravelry username or email). Want to increase your chances? You'll get one additional entry for each item purchased in the shop anytime in the month of October. Sock club purchases count for however many months you buy. So if you get a 12 month Pride and Prejudice membership, you get 12 entries into the drawing! Yay!

And now what you've been waiting for - the prizes!

Grand Prize: A sophisticated black Persnickity Knits Fifi Knitting Clutch stuffed with 3 skeins of Knit it Up sock yarn, a set of Knit it Up knitting gift tags, a tin of Knit it Up hand balm and some awesome HiyaHiya Stainless Steel 9" circular needles (you can now knit socks on circulars without magic loop - I love them!)

Total Value: over $150!

1st Prize: a CocoKnits Knitting Block set. I absolutely adore mine and had to share it with you!

2nd Prize: a skein of Knit it Up sock yarn

3rd Prize: a skein of Knit it Up sock yarn

4th Prize: a set of Knit it Up Knitting Gift Tags (recently featured in Knitty)

5th Prize: a set of Knit it Up Knitting Gift Tags

All together that's over $300 in prizes! We'll keep it open through October 31st, and hold the drawing November 1st. Winners will be announced here.

Etsy Love - Persnickity Knits

I love taking my knitting with me everywhere, and I usually use a fabric project bag for outings, shoving them into my regular purse. However, there were occasions, usually when I was going to be outside, that I wished for something a little heftier. Then I discovered these amazing and totally stylish knitting clutches from Persnickity Knits.

I bought myself this Little Lulu clutch in super sexy black. It is the perfect size for socks and other small projects. I've been carrying mine with me everywhere. I even took it camping! The faux leather stood up to dust and even a little rain, keeping my knitting perfectly protected.

Needless to say, I totally love this product. Even better, when I told the folks at Persnickity Knits about the upcoming Socktoberfest contest, they graciously offerred to donate a FiFi Knitting Clutch as a prize. This one is their medium sized clutch, a bit larger than the Lulu (perfect for stuffing full of other knitting prizes). To the right is a photo of the inside. My favorite features are definitely the wealth of interior pockets for knitting notions, and the lobster clasp like hook, perfect for running your yarn through, but easy to open up and take out your yarn when you want to move your project somewhere else. (I love it when you can be noncommital with your project bags!) The hook helps keep your yarn in the bag while you're knitting too.

So be sure to check out Persnickity Knits, and to keep an eye out for our Soctoberfest contest running October 1-31 for a chance to win a Fifi Knitting Clutch stuffed with Knit it Up goodies.

Knitty Feature (holy crap!)

Yep you read the title right, I just heard from the Knitty folks that they are going to feature my gift tags in the fall issue! Wowza! I am thrilled since I'm a huge fan. Look for them in the "Cool Stuff" feature.

I love to knit gifts, but I always forget to include fiber contents and care instructions with my gifts, resulting in more than one felted catastrophe. Such a waste of my beautiful yarn and precious knitting time! I had seen other knitting themed gift tags on the market, but nothing that included room for this important information. So, like any good DIY maven, I created some of my own (and of course I offered them for sale in my shop too)!

I'm stocking up in case the Knitty feature results in crazy sales, but if you want some of your own you may want to snag them now before the fall issue drops in early September!

I'll be adding some more tag designs soon. I recently joined the Selfish Knitters group on Ravelry to try and inspire myself to do more selfish knitting, and I can't believe the horror stories I've read about people being so unappreciative of handknit gifts. So I've also created Selfish Knitters Gift Tags that will be up in the shop soon. Similar to my other gift tags but with a special note that reads

"This project took hours of my precious time to make. You may now ooh and aah and wear it every single day for the rest of your life."

Some people just need a reminder, you know?

Here's another little something I created for gift knitters like me: The Knitter's Giftdex.

I just got so tired of asking my mother-in-law about people's favorite colors and fibers every November when I was gearing up for my procrastinated gift knitting extravaganza. Now I just fill out a rolodex card for each person, along with their birthday info, likes and dislikes, wish list, etc. I put it into a rolodex along with cards detailing which knitted gifts I've already given them. I keep it in my stash closet surrounded by squishy yummy yarn. Oh glorious organization!