Mosaic Colorwork for Loom Knitters Class

 

My April Masterclass for the Cindwood Looms Zoomin' and Loomin' monthly series is all about Mosaic Colorwork for loom knitters. This is a great topic, and I hope you will be able to join me for an hour on Saturday, April 24th. If you are unable to come to the live zoom class, you can still register and get the class recording, materials and my Honeybear Cowl pattern.  

Registration is $10 in my etsy shop. All the details are there. The May and June classes are also open for registration: Using Needle Patterns on your Loom!  In the first part, I present the basics for evaluating a needle knit pattern to see if it will transfer well to a knitting loom, and then explain how to make that transfer. The extensive class written materials (a "booklet" of how-to for later reference) are included with this workshop, along with a class recording and my Teatime Washcloth pattern. (Another pattern may be substituted if you already have this one.)

In the second part, we will workshop our attempts to transfer patterns, and in particular look at the two patterns that come with the classes. The Triple Z is a transfer from a needle pattern, and the Teatime Washcloth uses knits, purls and nupps - a classic pattern to transfer from needles. In addition, if you have a pattern you've been puzzling over, you can send me a few lines ahead of time, and I’ll be happy to evaluate it for you as part of the workshop.

 

New class, new patterns, new loom-a-long!

 

March will be a busy month, and I hope you can join me for the third of the CinDwood Zoomin' and Loomin' master classes. The subject this time is Swatching and Blocking. The $10 registration includes the live zoom class on March 13, 2021, a recording of the class, class written materials (a little how-to book for you to have on hand) and my Simple Lace Wrap pattern. If you already have this pattern, I will substitute a different pattern for you. Register in my etsy shop. Hope to see you there! If you cannot attend the live class, you can still receive the recording and other materials, and send me your questions ahead of time. 

I am delighted to announce my newest pattern collection is available. "More Kitty Mitts" is a three pattern collection based on the original "Kitten's Lost Mittens" collection, my most popular patterns. The mitts have three different designs, a smocked mitt, lace mitt, and striped mosaic. You may choose your thumb, the shorter and longer magical kitty thumbs, as well as customize your finger and wrist cuffs. 

Tigger Mitts

Buddy Bear Mitts

Mr. Milo Mitts

The More Kitty Mitts e-book collection is available in my etsy shop, my payhip shop and on ravelry for $9.00. 

Remember to use caution linking to ravelry due to recent changes that can cause dizziness, seizures, headaches and visual discomfort.

Last, but certainly not least, the March and April loom-a-long project in the Ravelry Loom-a-long group is my Winter Sky Love pattern from the Little Scarves, Too collection. This sweet scarf features a simple 4 row textured lace repeat (with the lace worked in only one of the four rows) and an optional beaded edge. Everyone is having a great time choosing beads and yarn for this one! I hope you are able to join us. 

And speaking of beading, the February class I taught on Beading for Loom Knitters is now available for purchase. You will get the class recording, class materials, and my Moondance pattern. A little extra bonus pattern is included, too. The class is available for purchase in my etsy shop for $10.00. 

The April class will be all about Mosaic colorwork. Hope to see you there!

February Beading Class for Loom Knitters

 

Happy February! I'm delighted to share that I will be continuing to present live Zoom classes for loom knitters with CinDWood Looms Zoomin' and Loomin' for the rest of this year. The next class will be held on February 27, 2021. It will include the one hour class, link to a recording of the class, class materials and my Moondance pattern. The registration fee is $10.00. You can register via my etsy shop using this link. 

The last two classes on Lace and How to read a pattern were a lot of fun, and I hope you will join me to learn all about beading for loom knitters. If you are unable to attend the live class you may still register and receive a link to the recording, as well as the materials and pattern. You can also send me your questions ahead of the class for the Q and A session.

Looking forward to seeing you at the beading class! 

Register for the class via my etsy shop.  $10.00 US

Class: Everything you need to know to read a pattern!

 

I'm happy to share that I'll be teaching another Zoomin' and Loomin' live class for CinDWood Looms on January 16, 2021. The topic this time is "Everything you need to know to read a pattern!". This will be a one hour live zoom presentation and includes a link to the class recording, pdf of class presentation materials, question and answer session, and a coupon for my patterns at CinDWood Looms. 

The registration fee is $5.00 and you can register by emailing: classes@cindwoodlooms.com

Class times are: 9 am PST, 10 am Mountain, 11 am Central and 12 pm EST.

I hope to see many of you there. We started the classes in December on a rather low-key basis to get our feet wet, and they have really been enjoyable. Please let me or CinDWood Looms know if there are more topics you would like to see taught.

Fasten Off Yarn-a-long 2020

 

The Fasten Off Yarn-a-long 2020 begins today, and I am delighted to be a participating designer. This is a new event, and I hope you will join in. 

What is FO2020? It is a designer and crafter event. The designers will all be offering patterns at a 25% discount starting today, November 25, 2020 through December 5, 2020. Use the code FO2020 to get the discount. Over 90 designers and 2000 patterns are part of the event. This is an accessible event, which means all of the patterns are available off of ravelry. All the patterns and e-books in my etsy shop are part of the event. 

Once you have a pattern and project, join in the fun! You can play games, yarn-a-long, and interact with the FO community all through December, 2020. Not able to buy a pattern right now? No problem. You can work from a pattern you already own from a participating designer. 

All the details are found here:

https://linktr.ee/FastenOffYAL

My patterns are listed here: 

http://www.wipinsanity.com/indy-event/script.cgi?TYPE=profile&VALUE=Renee%20Van%20Hoy%20Designs

I'm also running my annual Turkey Time 20 % off sale on ravelry, but the FO2020 is a better discount. 

Did I mention games and prizes? Have fun!

I am very excited to announce that because of help from a wonderful knitting designer, Nicky Jensen, the Accessible Patterns Index is a reality!

http://accessiblepatternsindex.com

We are building it now, but you can already find links to 65 designers who have written patterns to be accessible for the blind and print challenged. What does that mean? 

Large font, a minimum of 22 - 24 point; sans serif font. All black text, no italics, and best of all - all of the directions are fully written out. If there is a chart, the pattern must be able to be made without reference to the chart. In addition, many of the patterns have been specially written for screen readers. They have fewer abbreviations and have been tested for clarity. We have about 600 knitting, crochet and loom knitting patterns that we will be adding individually. We are also indexing books from the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Bookshare, and other sources in press braille, digital braille and digital audio. These books have not been specially formatted in the way the patterns are, but are transcriptions of the original print books.

The index relies on donations to pay for the host site, so if you like the idea please consider making a small donation .

If you are interested in learning to write accessible patterns, all proceeds from sales of my course on Writing Accessible Patterns for the Blind and Print Challenged support the index. The course includes a 45 minute recording of a live class, course materials and checklists, and a free pattern review.

 

Little Scarves, Too: Go Fly A Kite!

 

I am very happy to announce a new pattern collection, Little Scarves, Too: Go Fly a Kite!

This is something of a sequel to my earlier collection Little Scarves: Baktus and Karius for the Loom. In this new collection you will find 8 unique patterns in a pennant or kite shape. Each pattern is entirely flexible. You may choose the loom, the gauge, the yarn that you want to use. The pattern has a little table that tells you how many pegs to cast on and how many repeats to work based on the size loom that you choose. 

A little scarf may be made on a large hat loom. Here are the options (peg counts) for each gauge:

¾ inch: 40, 41 or 42 pegs
5/8 inch: 48, 50, 51 or 54 pegs
½ inch: 60 or 66 pegs
3/8 inch small: 72, 80 or 82 pegs
3/8 inch fine: 90 pegs

Contents
1. How to use these patterns
Choosing a loom
Using the list of row repeats
How much yarn you will need
Sample sizes
Making a cowl sized scarf
Making a shawl
Blocking your scarf
2. Stitch guide
3. Patterns
Flying Above
High Flyer
Not Really Stormy
On a Wing
One Rainbow
Simply Clear Sailing
Ruffled Clear Sailing
Winter Sky Love
4. Acknowledgements

Two full digital volumes are included. The 104 page low vision and screen reader accessible version is written in all black, 24 point Arial font. It has no italics and the directions are fully written out. In addition, special charts and chart keys have been created of the row repeats in an enlarged version for low vision users. The patterns do not rely on the charts and may be made without referring to them. The 54 page small print version is written in 12 point font and has reduced sized charts and schematics.

You can purchase the pattern e-book in my etsy shop: 

Little Scarves, Too $12.00 US

Here are photos to give you some ideas of the possibilities for these patterns. You have size options, for a scarf, smaller cowl sized scarf, or keep on knitting to make a shawl.

One Rainbow, a drop stitch scarf shown here in a variegated yarn of pink, teal, and yellow

Ruffled Clear Sailing, in the smaller cowl size, show here in an orange, mint and cream variegated yarn

Flying Above, shown here in the smaller cowl size in peach and 

soft yellow yarns. This scarf has options for color blocking 

that you can design

High Flyer has rows of Shetland inspired lace, shown here in a soft yellow tonal sock yarn paired with a soft yellow mohair lace.

Winter Sky Love has a wonderful textured lace, show here in a gradient yarn of sea glass blues, yellow and cream

Simply Clear Sailing is a very easy garter stitch scarf, shown here in a fun variegated yarn in purple, blue and peach, with 

yarn tassels on the corners

Not Really Stormy uses a tuck stitch that creates a two sided scarf. The photo here shows it in two colors, navy and cream, but only one color at a time is used making it a very easy knit 

that only looks complicated. 

On a Wing is another scarf with a different pattern on each side. It is made with a simple slip stitch that looks terrific in two colors, as shown here in pink and soft green, or in a solid.

Little Scarves, Too: Go Fly a Kite!

I hope you enjoy this new pattern collection!

Renee