Today marks the seventh anniversary of my very first mystery KAL – Mystic Waters. Looking back, I just can’t believe the journey the past 7 years have taken me on.
Mystic Waters was not only the very first lace I ever designed – it was also the third lace shawl I ever knit. The first one was a mystery KAL hosted by Pink Lemon Twist called the Swan Lake Stole. That KAL ran during the summer of 2007, and I had a blast. My final shawl looked like this:
I thoroughly enjoyed the process of knitting a shawl in a mystery KAL. Getting a weekly “clue”, that is a piece of the pattern, was fun, and I really enjoyed keeping up with the KAL. I also enjoyed watching the lace grow off my needles, and speculating as to what might be next. When that KAL ended, I looked around for another mystery KAL to join, but I couldn’t find one. So I thought I’d host my own. The blog post announcing Mystic Waters is perserved here. Basically, I designed my own triangular shawl, and then figured I could email the clues to whoever might want to join. I was hoping I might find 20 knitters to join me on my lace adventure. Imagine my shock when 1400+ knitters signed up for my KAL.
I’m so very grateful to all of you for taking a chance on me. I’ve had a blast these past few years. I’ve met knitters from all over the world, and seen my patterns knit up in countless colours, variations and yarns. I’ve hosted over 30 mystery KALs, and published 3 books, 2 ebooks, and some 100+ patterns. My work has appeared in numerous publications, including a cover page on Piecework Magazine. I’ve had a chance to work with lots and lots of amazing people, and I have met amazing knitters and wonderful students everywhere I’ve gone. Thank you all for making the past seven years wonderful.
As a special thank you, you can use the coupon code SEVEN to get Mystic Waters at 50% off. The coupon code is valid until midnight, Oct 31, 2014 (EST) and can be used here to purchase Mystic Waters.
The journey is still continuing. At the moment, we’re working on the Mystic Vortex KAL, and the third clue will be out today. I’m busily plotting and scheming for more knitting fun this winter. Hope you’ll join me for more knitting fun!
The Mystic Vortex KAL is underway, and some lovely projects are being posted on Ravelry. There are both circular and semi-circular shawls being knit. So far, we have had 2 clues (out of 6), and the 3rd will be out tomorrow.
This Mystic Vortex in cream is knit by Pamela in CA. She’s knitting the full circle, and has (as of this picture) worked her way through the first clue. Lots of people are using various paintbox gradience kits from Fiber Optic Yarn, and others are knitting in solid colours.
Diane in Australia is knitting hers in a paintbox with neon green through hot pink. I bet this one is going to be smashing! While you guys are knitting along on your Mystic Vortices, I’ve had a less fun project of my own.
Last week, our hot water tank flooded the basement. Our guest room was sloshing with water. Which I naturally found out because we had guests arriving that day. So, instead of making the bed for our guests, I ended up mopping up water for hours and hours and hours. But in the end the carpets could not be saved.
So, we’ve pulled out the carpets, and will lose some drywall as well.
It’s an ongoing project for now, and it seems it will take a good, long while until we have our guest room back. In the meantime, I guess we’re lucky that we found it quickly. There could definitely have been a lot more damage. Still, it’s been most…. distracting. And believe me, I’d rather be knitting than mopping water for days. But for now, I’ll be living vicariously through your pictures.
Victoria from Ottawa (actually from my LYS) is knitting her Mystic Vortex in a deep red. It also looks amazing. I’ve always loved red, and this red is right up my alley. Beautiful. Far more beautiful than my own water flood project.
The Mystic Vortex KAL is starting today, and I have just released the first part of the pattern. I’m ridiculously excited to see pictures, but I suppose it’s too much to hope that people manage to work through the first clue in a mere 10-15 minutes, or whatever it’s been since I released it. I’ll give you a little bit more time. 😉
I’m looking forward to seeing all the colours though. Right now, the woods around me are ablaze with all the colours of fall. There is everything from greens, through yellow and brown, to vivid oranges and deep reds. Fall here in Ontario is always amazing, colour-wise. And relatively warm too, even though it’s only a few degrees above freezing at the moment.
I just spent a few days in Denver, Colorado. And I have to say that we can’t compete with the temperatures – it felt like summer there, and the leaves had yet to turn. The view of the mountains was amazing though, and I really enjoyed getting to see the city. There were some really neat buildings – of course the modern art museum and the State Capitol stood out – but I saw some other ones too that were really nifty. Like this one that looked like it was built out of shipping containers.
There was lots of good food in Denver too, as well as interesting microbrews. All in all, I had a wonderful time. It’s always nice to get back home though. Right now we have a long weekend coming up – Canadian Thanksgiving. I look forward to relaxing, (more) good food, and perhaps a trip out to the cottage.
Happy Thanksgiving!
I’m getting ready for a class. It always amazes me how much STUFF there is to bring.
Samples.
Books.
Handouts.
Swatches.
WIPs for demos.
Needles.
Yarn.
Blocking tools.
Measuring tape, sewing needles, scissors.
And then I have to figure out what to wear. Thats next on my to-do list.
Recent Comments