knit equals joy

Castle Beach Spa Cloth is Here!

Posted on June 13, 2016March 24, 2022 by Carol

The Castle Beach Spa Cloth is the second in the Folk Tales Spa Cloth Collection. Like the Fairy Godmother’s Spa Cloth, it is knit sideways, using pima cotton to create a soft, luxurious and pampering facial cloth.

I designed this pattern for the Summer Spa Swap going on in my Ravelry group. I wrote about the swap here. Making this cloth is not a requirement for participation in the swap!

The design is based around a vintage stitch pattern, Cockleshell Edging, resembling a clam shell. This fit well with our Summer Spa Swap’s beachy theme. Next, I started searching for the right name for this pattern. I wanted something related to summer/ beaches/ clamming that would also go nicely with Fairy Godmother, since the two spa cloths are constructed so similarly.

I rejected names like “Clam Digger” and “Clam Bake.” I wanted the pattern to evoke ideas of the clam shells, not the meat. Next, I looked at clamming beaches in Oregon, and they had names like Netarts – not the least bit romantic and nothing like Fairy Godmother.

I began thinking about fairy tales, many originating in other parts of the world, and so I started looking for clamming beaches in the UK. Eventually my search led me to Castle Beach (Tenby) in Wales. Although it doesn’t appear to be a clamming beach, it does have a castle. It satisfied both of my requirements and made me happy! And check out this website that has cool info for Castle Beach – like tide charts, the weather, and the best times for fishing!!!

You can find the Castle Beach Spa Cloth pattern here. Thank you and I hope you will enjoy this spa cloth pattern!

Castle Beach Spa Cloth

Spa Cloth Detail

Lower Edge Detail

knitting, knitting swaps, Ravelry

Good News, Everyone! It’s a Summer Mini-Swap!

Posted on June 11, 2016June 12, 2016 by Carol

Dear knitting and crocheting friends, sign-ups have started now through June 16th for the Summer Spa Swap II: A Day at the Beach in my Ravelry group! Our mini-swaps (shout-out to awesome swap organizer, group moderator Jen!) are always so much fun! They are low-stress and low-cost mini-swaps, usually featuring something handmade. From Jen’s post:

This mini swap is all about sending your secret swap partner a mini “pampering kit”. This year we will use the beach as our inspiration. Your kit will include a hand knit or crocheted wash cloth (maybe you have some extra special cotton or linen in your stash?) that has a beachy theme or is inspired by the beach, a pretty and preferably a handcrafted bar of soap and one other fun little pampering item that you think your swap partner would like ($5.00 max).

To make things a little more fun, I’ve designed a new spa cloth to go along with the swap, the Castle Beach Spa Cloth. The pattern will be released next Monday, June 13th. It’s a fun little perk for the swap, but you can make any spa cloth or wash cloth you like for your swap partner. More about the spa cloth next Monday on the blog.

If you’ve followed this blog for long or are a member of the Ravelry group, you have probably seen these collages before. But in the spirit of dragging out old photo albums to browse through familiar and well-loved memories, here are some pics of our previous swaps:

Sip and Knit collage — Sip and Knit Swap

If you haven’t done a swap before, I invite you to come join us. It’s a great way to get to know each other, to craft something for someone else, and to anticipate receiving a fun package in the mail. Sign up here right away, no later than June 16th. I look forward to seeing you there!!

knit equals joy

Weekly Photo Challenge: Pure

Image• Posted on June 10, 2016June 11, 2016 by Carol

Willamette Valley Tee by Heather

Image• Posted on June 9, 2016 by Carol

Yarn – Sea Hues

Image• Posted on June 4, 2016 by Carol

Pacific Northwest, Photo Challenge, Weekly Photo Challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Numbers

Posted on June 4, 2016June 4, 2016 by Carol

Numbers are all around us at home and on the street, in airports and supermarkets, on signs and on our clothes. I can’t wait to see your take on this week’s challenge — what will your numbers show? ~Ben Huberman, The Daily Post

The promise of a sumptuous salad replete with local Oregon blue cheese. Of sweet potato fries. Of just the best fast food ever. And it was. Burgerville.

Taken during the 2015 Columbia Gorge Fiber Festival.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Numbers

colorwork, knitting, knitting patterns, Oregon

Willamette Valley Tee – Finished!

Posted on June 1, 2016June 3, 2016 by Carol

I’m doing a happy dance because I recently finished up the Willamette Valley Tee. After many months of design, redesign, knitting, ripping out and knitting again, it was a huge relief to have finished this sweater design! Whew! See postscripts at the bottom of this page for details about sizes, availability, and test-knitting.

We had a great time at the photo shoot. The countryside was breathtaking, and it was a sparklingly beautiful day. You can see the expanse of the Willamette Valley, the inspiration for the colors in this tee, in some of these photos.

It’s great to now have space freed up in my brain for new designs. I’ve just finished designing a little spa cloth for the upcoming mini summer spa swap in my Ravelry group. Come check out the group here. We will be having swap sign-ups soon!

I’ll leave you with some of the photos from the photo shoot. Thanks for taking the time to stop by!

Many thanks to Marianne for modeling the sweater and to her sister and family for allowing us to traipse all over their beautiful property. And for sending me home with homemade sushi! It is a gift to know such generous people!

knit equals joy

P.S. If you are interested in making this sweater, it is currently being tech edited and tested, and I anticipate that the pattern will be released in late summer or early fall. It is available in sizes 35, 38, and 41.

P.P.S. I am always on the lookout for good pattern testers. We’ve just started the test for this sweater, here, in my Ravelry group. If you’re interested, let me know. Thanks!!!

Oregon, photography, Weekly Photo Challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Spare

Posted on May 27, 2016May 27, 2016 by Carol

Spare:

(adjective) Additional to what is required for ordinary use.
(adjective) Elegantly simple.
(verb) To refrain from harming.

For this week’s photo challenge, I’m going with the second definition, elegantly simple. This is an outside sculpture at The Old Mill Center in Bend, Oregon. The scope, the shape, and the scale make this a stunning work.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Spare

Nature, Oregon, photography, Salem Oregon, Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday: Evening Sky

Posted on May 24, 2016May 24, 2016 by Carol

There is one spectacle grander than the sea, that is the sky; there is one spectacle grander than the sky, that is the interior of the soul. ~Victor Hugo, Les Miserables