Sing Sparrow, Sing

Posted by chickenbetty

It’s #MittenMondays around here in September. I’m going to be releasing a new mitten pattern each Monday, all month long! I’ll have some tutorials, and some giveaways. To kick things off I’d like to introduce the Jabbish Brook Mitts – fingerless mitts, totally appropriate for the last summer heatwave that’s rolling through New England right now.

A stream of reverse stockinette stitches run up the wrist to the thumbs, and these are totally reversible. The sample was knit with Valley Yarns Franklin in the soothsayer colorway, but if you have 175 yds of fingering weight sock yarn in your stash you could have a pair done by the weekend, when the chilly autumn weather is supposed to settle back in!

The pattern is in my Ravelry shop now but comment on this post and you’ll be entered to win a kit to make your own pair! Comments must be posted by 11:59 EDT on 9/13/15 and the winner(s) will be announced Monday 9/14.

In the meantime, I’m off to see the Milk Carton Kids with my oldest tonight and then I’ll be getting ready for the next 3 mitten releases. LOTS to share with you this fall, both knit and crochet, so get ready.

And Good Luck!

Oh Good Morning, What a Beautiful Day

Posted by chickenbetty

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American readers! And a Happy Thursday to everyone else.

This year I feel particularly thankful that my life has taken the course that it has. Not only am I STILL lucky enough to work at WEBS but I’ve published my first book and released a Craftsy Class. My girls are growing into happy and really interesting young women and Patrick continues to be my everything. So I thought I’d celebrate the official start of the holiday season here in the States with a give-away.

I’ve been steadily adding new patterns to ChickenBetty’s Pattern Coop on Ravelry, to my Etsy Shop and to my Pattern Page on Craftsy but I’ve also been revamping a lot of my older patterns to clean up the pattern language, provide better images and make sure they match the format of my newer patterns. This means I’ve been making lots of new samples and I’m never going to use or wear all of them but that doesn’t mean YOU can’t! Want to win a pattern and a sample?!

Comment on this post before 11:59 EST on Sunday Nov. 30th and tell me why you’re thankful this year. On Monday Dec. 1st I’ll draw two winners who will not only receive a copy of my Slap Chop! bracelet pattern BUT you’ll also receive one of the bracelets pictured above! International readers are TOTALLY eligible! Make sure you leave me some way to contact you in the comment. (psst – if you post as anonymous I won’t be able to contact you!)

I’ve had a bit of a soft spot for vintage James Taylor recently and his Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon album has been on constant repeat for me this week.

Do you Obey Crochet?

Posted by chickenbetty

I certainly do. A couple years ago I found this quirky lady doing these fantastical drawings on Flickr under the name Obey Crochet. Every couple of days I’d check in and laugh at her sarcastic, and totally on point illustrations and I loved all of them. I loved the style, the simplicity and just how crochet-centric they were. Admit it, the yarn industry leans heavily towards the knitters and and it’s really nice when we feel the crochet love.

After talking myself out of it for a whole week I finally just popped her an e-mail and asked if she’d be interested in designing a logo for me. Shockingly she said YES and now I have my beloved little ChickenBetty in her nest of yarn.

Well now you can own a small piece of Obey Crochet, if you can get your hands on a copy of issue #25 of Simply Crochet magazine. It’s published in the UK but it is available in the states, I’ve seen it at Barnes & Noble. In issue #25 you’ll find an Obey Crochet 2015 Calendar and STICKERS! Freakin stickers!

Go show my friend Stephanie some love at Obey Crochet. She’s straight hookin’, yo!

Crochet Your First Cardigan with me on Craftsy!

Posted by chickenbetty

I’m so excited to finally share my Craftsy class with you!

In seven easy lessons you can follow along and craft your first (of many) crochet cardigan. I had such an amazing time in Denver filming the class with the Craftsy crew. It’s a blur of bright lights and laughter and LOTS of crocheting.

I’d love for you to take the class and share your experience and finished sweaters with me! You can sign up for the class here and you can even buy the full class kit and have all the yarn you’ll need to make your first sweater shipped right to your door.

See you in class!

❤ Sara

Same old, same old

Posted by chickenbetty

Lots doing in ChickenBetty Land lately! The new book comes out in just over a month and I have a plethora of new things in the works for late 2014 and 2015.

Before too many big things pile up on my plate I’m working to clear away a few little things. Storey Publishing is looking for pattern submissions for their latest 101 One Skein Wonders series of books and this time it’s crochet for little ones. I’ve dug out an older pattern that I never published and revamping it in gorgeous madelinetosh sock, as well a playing with another idea. You can see the baby bonnet here, it will be part of that set, and the gradient yarns (Freia Fine Handpaints sport and Louisa Harding Amitola that I can’t decide between) will become something else.

If you have a crochet pattern for babies or kids consider submitting! They are happy to accept previously published patterns.

I also scored a great old, but new to me book, that might help me make sense of long draw spinning. Here’s hoping.

The granny square project continues, I have enough yarn to keep going in until maybe mid-September, we’ll see.

I know exactly who you could be

Posted by chickenbetty

I’ve been on a bit of a weaving jag lately.

Annie, myself, Kirsten and Amy, Team Designing Women!

Some friends and I pulled together and competed in the Fleece to Shawl competitions at the Mass Sheep and Woolcraft Fair. We came in 2nd place but had a wonderful time and the shawl is so beautiful!

We warped my little 22″ loom with Harrisville Highland in some bright stripes and spun a lovely Romney fleece from Barberic Farm during the competition – thanks to Peony the sheep for growing it.

But once I was home from the fair I just couldn’t stop weaving. I made the next 2 scarves on my daughter’s 10″ Schacht Cricket loom.

First with Valley Yarns BFL fingering. I used Sherwood Forest for the warp and most of the weft and a bit of Neptune for stripes at one end. This scarf is SO soft! I love it.

Then I went stash diving and dug out a super old, partial skein of Noro Taiyo Lace and paired it up with some 10/2 bamboo. This freaking thing – I WANT TO MAKE SO MANY MORE! It’s gauzy and soft and beautiful drape and the colors – OH the colors!

AND I might have written a book. 🙂

For those of you who can’t come take classes with me at WEBS you can have a volume full of ME on your bookshelves! I’ll have more details in the summer but it’s up for pre-order now.