Russet Lodge Custom Knits

Up to this point I've mainly used this blog to talk about items I'm selling or what's going on in my etsy shop , but I think it would be far more interesting if I try to use it to share information about my crafts, whether personal or for sale, as well. I am a member of the Idaho Etsy Team , and it's high time I joined in the fun of their weekly WiP Wednesday feature, where members post about what projects they have in the works. I just started a new knitting project today, it is one of my eighteenth-century Scottish bonnets for a client. The yarn is Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in the color Amber Heather and it's beautiful, it just glows! The bonnet's small now, but I will probably have it done in no more than a couple of days. It's a quick and easy pattern and I'm a speedy knitter. The other project I've got in the works is a group project with listeners of the Knitmore Girls Podcast , they are doing a SPAKAL (spin and knit along), we are ...

Though I reserve this blog mostly for publicizing my patterns and sharing information on some of my products which are available, I thought I would make a quick post to let people know I currently have no waiting list for custom-made knitwear, including kilt hose and bonnets. I am always working on personal projects, and I can't guarantee a time frame, but it's likely to be closer to 6-8 weeks than the year plus wait I've had in the past. I also offer other services including hand-dyed fibers and yarns, handspun yarns, pattern design, tech editing, pattern translation French/English, charting, writing out charted patterns, test knitting, and article writing/editing. Drop me a line at russetlodgeknits at gmail dot com if you're interested. You can also visit my design page on ravelry or my facebook fan page (links on the left) and check out my latest items for sale at http://shekure.etsy.com. My personal blog ramblings are availble at http://unaspenser.livejournal....

This Saturday, June 13, is Worldwide Knit in Public Day. If you have any interest in knitting or other crafts, check out the website at http://wwkipday.com . If you search the events for Boise, Idaho, you will notice that yours truly is hosting a knit-a-thon! If you're in the area and would like to swing by and say hi, please do! I'll have knitting supplies to swap/share/give away and some goodies too, and I'll be glad to teach anybody new who shows up how to knit. If you're interested, check out the facebook event (search Worldwide Knit in Public Day) or drop a comment. :) Happy knitting!

For those who don't know, I named my knitting blog Russet Lodge Knits after a series of comedy sketches by the venerable Catherine Tate displaying a refuge/home for harrassed redheads called russet lodge. When I was doing some vanity googling I came across this article from The Times Online, and it was eerily appropriate. http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life _and_style/women/families/article1873119.e ce Family forced to flee just for being ginger Andrew Norfolk A family of six have fled two homes after enduring a vicious hate campaign, apparently prompted by the colour of their hair. Kevin and Barbara Chapman say that anti-ginger prejudice has led to their property being vandalised and their four youngest children being subjected to a litany of cruel taunts, verbal abuse and bullying. The Chapmans and their children, who are from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, have a blaze of red hair which, they claim, has reduced them to living like fugitives in the city. Their plight carries uncomfort...