What every knitting fashionista needs...

is a good lip gloss (for the perfect pucker as you purl), a spritz of a tantalizing perfume, and... a truly stylish needle case, like these from artist Therese Inverso:



Her work is simply amazing. I have hunted long for the perfect needle case, one that's "organic" in sensibility but doesn't look frumpy (and we all know that "frumpy" is to a fashionista as "stake" is to a vampire: shudder-worthy), a case that is easy enough to slip into any knitting tote, messenger bag, briefcase, holiday duffel and, my friends, this is it. I've seen a lot of needle cases made from recycled sweaters of such shoddy craftsmanship that they look more hobo than boho. But these, also made from recycled sweaters, are unmistakably the work of a meticulous craftswoman.

Have a look:





Her designs (only two of which you see above) are the perfect marriage between whimsy and practicality. Each and every piece is unique and every single one bears the artist's signature, tucked discreetly in the folds. But I would recognize her work anywhere if I saw it. Which you can too, if you're planning on going to Stitches East in the next couple of weeks.

I bought one for myself and then found several that I couldn't resist. Point for me that I only bought one extra -- and as a present for someone else, at that!

And so I leave you with a glimpse of these, my new favourite things. :)

On another note, I will be travelling as of tomorrow until the middle of next week. I'll have little to no internet access, so please be patient. I will get to your emails and orders as soon as I'm back in the studio.

Have a lovely week, all!

Cashmere Prices, and what Axelle has in common with The Little Dutch Boy

They say that no news is good news. And sometimes, like now, that would be true.

Unfortunately, I do have news.

There's really no way to sugar coat it, so here it is: As of September 1, the price of the aran weight cashmere (Pippin) and the sportweight cashmere (Estelle) will go up.

This seems to be an industry-wide phenomenon. Those of you who shop for cashmere yarn may have already noticed a marked increase in the price of knitting cashmere in LYSs across the country. Since this spring I have been eyeball deep in negotiations with suppliers to maintain the current prices, but the truth is that the tide is on the rise and there is no stopping it. The price of cashmere as a raw material has risen exponentially over the past year such that my company was only able to obtain the current supply of cashmere at around three times the price it was last year.

For the sake of all of you I have been holding off on the price increase for as long as possible, like the little Dutch boy's attempt to save his little town by using his finger plugging a hole in a dam that's about to break. But although now I have no choice but to bend with the weight of the market, the least I can do is give you all a little heads up.

Naja Tank

For those of you who are interested in the Naja tank pattern, here it is.

Due to technical difficulties (and frankly, woefully little free time as I'm mostly in the colourworks studio working on meeting fall order quotas as well as juggling WorkWork) I haven't had time to make you a diagram, but perhaps when I get a chance to breathe I'll update to add a schematic.

But in the meantime, enjoy!

Meet Naja

I've been knitting, I swear. It's just not possible to show you all of the pieces, but for the past few weeks the needles have been working furiously, and as of this morning I counted 4 tops, a Huge Garment of Some Secrecy, and two fall sweaters.

One of my favourites, mainly for its modest simplicity and its flattering shape, is this tank which I've christened "Naja", knit in a size medium (bust size 36 - 38) with just under 4 skeins of Nathalie (100% bamboo) in colourway Cair Paravel:



There's a rather Missoni look about it that easily takes it from sunning at a garden party in Poughkeepsie to gazing across the Med at Pompeii (Naja tank seen here in Nathalie, colourway Ursula):



Although the tank pattern is written for a fitted look (see first photo above), wearing it knit in a larger size lends it an elegantly slouchy insouciance:



These Naja tanks have proven such a quick knit, each only took 4 days from start to finish -- just in time for the rest of the summer.

Now, I am a cashmere girl through and through. But the bamboo is cool and smooth as silk against the skin. Imagine: a garment that instantly cools you off -- now, that's a summer wardrobe staple if I ever heard one. If only I had the time, I'd make at least 4 more of these, since they've been much cooler to wear in this heat and humidity than a cotton or linen shirt.

Hmm... if there's enough interest, I might be persuaded to make this a free pattern...