Procrastination is a Serious Affliction

I've got a serious case of "Mathitis" The symptoms are:
• Clenched stomach when contemplating my notes.
• Accumulation of many quick finished projects from patterns written by other designers.
• Occasional inability to even enter my workroom.
• Guilt.
• Despair.

I'm supposed to be writing the pattern for this:

Lace Tee from Claudia's Silk Lace.

Instead, I made this:

Juliet from Zephyr Style ... way too big for me : >( ***

And this:

adaptation of Doris Chan's Cinnabar from Everyday Crochet, also too big for me***

And THIS!!!!!

Babette Blanket from Interweave Crochet

There are too many problems with the Lace Tee. My mind is boggling from the math. The pattern repeat is making it really hard to grade into sizes. The sleeves need to be reworked as set-in or else the larger sizes will have sleeves that begin at the elbow (not attractive)

I decided as long as I am reworking the shoulders, I will knit it circularly instead of flat. That's a good idea, but the calculations are making me nuts. I thought I found someone who would do the math for me, but she is too busy. Aargh!!!

And I'm not even going to show you the number of new designs of my own I have started (some are even completed) while procrastinating on this one....of course, I still need to write the patterns for them.

This one may end up in the file marked "Forget it".

*** I think I may be imagining I am bigger than I actually am, since everything I've made myself lately is too big. Blankets, however, always fit.

Lifetime Project Completed!!!!!

The Koigu Kimono Jacket is finished! I had challenged myself to complete it this summer and I am only 2 days past my deadline.
I am not counting myself out over 2 days, since I have been working on the blessed thing for about 3 1/2 years!!!

There are more than 20 different yarns. All the large (4"x4") squares and about 90% of the 2"x2" squares are made from alternating ridges of 2 different colors. Sometimes I used contrasting colors and other times, variations of the same shades.

The basic color theme was pink and turquoise, with white, purple. a bit of yellow and a bit of green. I just went through all my sock yarns and pulled out everything that was pink or turquoise, then improvised off the other colors that were included in the variegates. Most of the yarns are Koigu, but others joined in when the colors worked.

These are my most favorite colors, although I often say I never met a color I didn't like for something. The very first time I was allowed to pick my own colors for my bedroom, I was in the 6th grade. I chose a rich, warm, pinkish coral for the walls and a deep rich turquoise shag rug. My mother took some old, carved furniture she was replacing and painted it white, then antiqued it with gold, but it was funky, not French looking. She kind of Jackson Pollocked the gold paint onto the white by flicking the paint brush, then wiped it with a rag. Maybe she did it by accident - but it looked all streaky and fabulous. Then she put the gold paint over the carved flowers and wiped it off so all that stayed gold were the deepest crevasses.

If it really looked the way I remember it, I'd probably still like that furniture today.

And my kimono would fit right in!

I am having a little let down after finally being able to try it on.

It's too big..

Not a lot too big, just enough too big that I feel 'wrong' in it, if you know what I mean. I made the smaller size and the measurements sounded good on paper, but my critical eye tells me if it were a couple inches narrower and the sleeves were 2" shorter, and the sleeves weren't quite so wide, I would love the way it looked on me, instead of just loving the way it looks.

Also, it is very heavy! I never thought sock yarn could end up so weighty. I am storing it folded but am pretty sure that after wearing it for a few hours, it will grow. It is warmer than I thought, so I probably won't get to wear it that often.

Now I understand why people make fabulous modular blankets instead of clothes. Blankets are never just a little too big.

Fingering 55

Yes, there is another one. If I could figure out a way to photograph both my hands at once, I would have loved to show you the pair!

This is a Flower Gauntlet made from Claudia Hand Painted Yarn Fingering 55. It is 55% silk, 45% merino. It is wound tightly, and is much springier than other silk/merino blends I have used. A real pleasure for the hands, both while knitting and while wearing. The color is called Marooned.

It actually comes in every one of her 108 color ways. Need some? Contact me for details.

Still Knitting

I finally finished Razzamatazz and got the pattern put into my e-boutique!!!

Click here to order this pattern as a download.

In Claudia Hand Painted fingering weight.

In Koigu KPM.

In Noro Kureyon Sock.

I am so jazzed with the way the Noro gloves look on Annette. It seems like they were just made to go with her tats!

When I named this pattern, I was really thinking about the Quincy Jones/Patti Austen song. I googled the word 'Razzamatazz' and came up with the Urban Dictionary's definition which is much kooler and more in keeping with the 21st century!

I wish it was cold enough in LA to wear gloves! I would so wear these!

ElleMyra is Born!

For a long time, I have been an admirer of the work of Myra Wood. Our paths have crossed over the last few years at different fiber events and finally, just a few short months ago, we got a chance to sit down and have lunch together.

Since that day, it has been like discovering a long lost friend - more like a long lost sister. Inevitably, we started consulting on each others' designs in progress.

And that led to collaboration.

We discovered that we work very well together! We have equal and complimentary skills and aesthetics! We both love feminine and sexy! We both love drapy and flattering. We both thrill to texture and color. We both insist on impeccable and classy. We both feel that you can't embellish too much!

We decided to design and write patterns together. We are thrilled to present our first collaboration, the ElleMyra Shrug!

Please let me know what you think!

LaToya Must Be Hard Up

She seems to have been auctioning off her old wardrobe from the 80's. Or else she's gotten too fat to ever hope to fit in them again.

I was procrastinating this morning and found this:

It's a weird photo, with the pants legs all squished at the bottom, but she got something like $250 for it! Not as much as she paid, but a lot more than I would have thought someone would pay for something this dated. It was called the Double Padded Shoulder Sequined Jumpsuit and was a very popular look with my stagey clients back in the early 80's.

Mermaid's Net

All the fish were knitted first, with a modular sweater in mind. After sewing some together, I decided I wasn’t happy with the lack of drape in the resulting fabric. Put them away for about a year. When I revisited them, I had a new vision. I took them apart and started crocheting them together with a selection of different textured yarns. Then I added the beads and pearls. This shawl actually used every single fish I had knitted and over all took about 2 1/2 years to finish!

Contemporary Crafts Market is Over

...and I think I have survived.





I have a lot of photos to post of projects I held back until after the show, but I don't have the time today.

I just opened an etsy shop and will be selling yarn from my stash. I need to reclaim my hallway. There are 9 huge tubs of yarn out there that won't fit into my studio. I think my yarn has somehow been multiplying while I sleep.

It would be nice to have a manageable stash once again.

Today I put up some Ozark Handspun. Love the yarn so much but I will never use the huge amount I managed to accumulate. I decided to sell it at a deeply discounted price so if you want it - here it is - come and get it!

Free Style Lace Shruggity Shrug

Myra is working on the sequel to her book, Creative Crochet Lace. The new one is about Creative Knitted Lace or Creative Lace Knitting. She explained the difference to me - one is when there are yo's only on the right side, the other has yo's on both sides, but I can't remember which is which.

Anyway, she inspired me to work up a new Shruggity Shrug, using a diagonal free style lace pattern for the body and a reversible eyelet rib I 'invented' for the sleeves and collar. There are about 20 different yarns in this one.

It is very frothy and feminine and cheerful! I loved making it and zipped it out in 2 days! Click on a photo to see the yarns more clearly.

Flower and Leaf Cropped Sweater

I started this one last summer while sitting by the 3-toed sloths at the La Brea Tar Pits waiting for Eden, who was taking an art class. I almost finished it and in my own typical way, put it aside, already knowing what it would be like, not sure if I liked it, and worried that I didn't have enough yarn to finish it.



But since I am trying to finish things up for the show and this is a very summery top, I decided to turn it into an FO. The yarn is Blue Moon Fiber Arts Silkie Socks that Rock colorway Sherbet
and Lightweight Lemongrass

All the flowers have lime green fire polished crystals in their centers. I just love my linking flower technique.

The leaf border didn't work as dangling fringes, which was why I put it away for nearly a year, but I got the idea to crochet aroung each leaf and link them together and now I am pleased.

Flower Shoulder Sweater

This one was actually finished a long time ago but I never got around to photographing it. Since I am including it at CCM and hoping it will sell, I decided I better get some shots of it before it's too late.

I bought the yarn from Loopy Ewe and made the sweater immediately! The colors just knocked me out. It is from Scarlet Fleece, fingering weight, and the three colors are named Hibiscus, Sunflower and Bird of Paradise. Initially, there was a bird of paradise flower in the center panel, but it didn't look right, so of course, I sewed a lot of crystal and beads on, too. But it still didn't please me so I took it off and decided to leave the center panel plain.

I am happy with the hibiscus on the right shoulder



And the sunflower on the left shoulder.

Weaving in the Ends

I finally finished the display dolls for Claudia and got them shipped off to her. If you are planning on attending TNNA in Columbus, stop by her booth, (I believe it's 115) and give her a hug from me!


In honor of my completion of the daunting task, I decided to indulge in some mindless fun and chose this adorable little gauntlet by Dora Ohrenstein. The pattern is free on Crochet Insider

And while you're there, don't miss this great interview with my long lost separated before birth sister, Myra Wood.



The blue ones are from Claudia Hand Painted Fingering Weight in Blue Jeans colorway on a Size B hook, as called for in the pattern.
They came out too tight for my small hands, so I just considered them a swatch and made the brownish pair on a C hook. I believe that color is called Desert Dusk. They fit perfectly except for the top edge, which gaps on the palm side.

The next pair will be Just Right! cuz now I know how to tweak it. But I have lost the mood for making them since it was freakishly hot here. I actually stopped knitting last night! Me, the one who never just sits...actually watched a movie with nothing at all in her hands. Well, a cat noticed so there technically was a cat under my hands.

June Contemporary Crafts Market

First off, I want to thank the readers who left me supportive comments regarding my stepping away from the wig-gig. I just can't tell you how free and strong I have felt since making the decision. And how much I have accomplished! I've actually checked off 5 things from my to do list since Monday morning! 5 things that wouldn't have gotten started, let alone completed, if I were working on the big wig!

And one of those things was putting together my postcard for the CCM at the Santa Monica Civic on June 6-8. Here it is:


This time, in addition to my one of a kind wearable art pieces, I will be offering my patterns and kits. If you would like to come as my guest, please go here to print a free pass for 2!

Staying on Target

This weekend I had a big revelation and made a decision! I guess I have been leading up to this for a while, but something happened this weekend that put it all into perspective.

The revelation - that I am preventing myself from reaching my goals by scattering my assets (meaning my time, talent and creativity) Like many creative people, there are so many things that interest me and so many skills I have developed over the years. But there is only so much time in the day and all of the things I love take lots of time.

I wish I could mention the names involved, but that would be indiscreet. But what happened is I went to listen in on a consultation with a Big Star for a wig project. This Big Star is a gorgeous woman for whom I used to make clothes back in my past life. She is still gorgeous, even more of an icon, and getting ready to do another fabulous 'thing' (could I be any more vague?) So here I am, reconnecting with her about 20 years later, and this time, not as a costume designer, but as a sub-contractor wig ventilator.

Meanwhile, I was intending to put aside work in both pattern writing and getting ready for a wearable art show at the beginning of June so I can meet the excruciatingly close deadline for this wig. The prospect of 10 days of intense, extreme boredom lies ahead. About 100 hours of tying double knots in individual hairs lies ahead. Meanwhile, my show will be getting closer and closer. Meanwhile, my stress level will be rising higher and higher.

For what? The $, while impressive, is only $. The 10 days will be gone and I'll never get them back.

So I walked away - not just from this particular job, but from wig-making all together. And I felt that instant sense of relief that comes from being put back into my proper place in life and is a validation of a correct decision.

I made an agreement with myself that I will stay on track from now on. After my first priority (family) I am committed to devoting myself to the 2 businesses that really interest me - wearable art being #1 and pattern publishing as #2.

This is Foot Fetish. It is the 2nd sock design for DRG Publishing Tops and Toes, which will be out next February. The sample and pattern should be finished this afternoon. I am feeling so liberated, so relieved, and looking forward to the future once again!

And very grateful that my reconnecting with Big Star illuminated to me that I want to go forward, not backward!

Giant Doilies

This one is the cover design from Doris Chan's Amazing Crochet Lace. I used 16 balls of ggh Aspen and a size J hook. It took one day to complete.


I enjoyed the fast results from the large hook so much that I decided to make something else along the same lines. Since I only had 10 balls of this Berroco X-Press, I decided to make a Doily Vest of my own design, and needed to upsize to a Size L hook to get a fabric that had a little drape to it.

Man, this one went so fast I could hardly believe it - about 6 hours! I would be making a lot more of these if it wasn't so hard on my hands.

Shruggity Shrug Pattern is Ready!

I forced myself to finish this pattern today! Now I am so happy to say:
Shruggity Shrug Pattern Now Available Here!

Now I am going to tackle Flower Box.

Flower Box Sweater

I absolutely love this sweater! It fits so beautifully and was so fun and easy to make. I just love when everything comes out exactly the way I envisioned it in my mind before I started.


The knitted squares have crocheted borders and then are sewn together.


The lace edging is crocheted.


Random crocheted and embroidered flowers with crystal centers inspired the name. The hand made porcelain buttons couldn't have been more perfect if I had made them myself!

The sweater is for sale on my Yarnartist's site and I am considering writing the pattern, too.