Going Green

Remember the yarn giveaway that I held in September?  Check out what the winner, Jennifer, has been up to since then.  I think I need to bookmark that pattern for myself!

Fiber Fun, Yarn Giveaway!

And now for week 3 of giveaways for the What's Up, Cupcake? Blog September blogiversary!

Remember, you still have one more day to enter in the vintage pattern giveaway from last week!  Make sure you head on over to the above link for one last chance to get your entry in.  It's for the vintage Simplicity 4920 dress pattern.  It's a size 12, bust 32.

This week's giveaway covers a third area that I love... fiber crafts!  This week you can win a lovely skein of sock yarn by Little Red Bicycle.  Please note, this yarn is from my own collection, but I do highly recommend Little Red Bicycle's yarns.  Check out their Etsy store: Little Red Bicycle.

This giveaway is for one skein, 430 yards/115g of their Snowflake Sock yarn in OOAK.  This hand-dyed yarn is in a gorgeous green with bits of yellow and blue mixed in.

Here's how you can win:

First, be a follower of this blog.  You can do this by clicking on 'Join This Site' from the Google Friend Connect, or on the What's Up, Cupcake? Blog Facebook page.  Both links are on the right side bar.  If you follow via both methods, you get two entries for this contest.  Just be sure to put two separate comments stating each method that you subscribe by.

The contest is open now through next Saturday, September 24th.  Make sure you submit your entry on this post, and include your email address so I can easily contact you if you're the winner.  I will announce the winner, chosen at random (via a random number generator), shortly afterward.

Stitches West Recap

I go to very few conferences and conventions during the year. Maybe it's due to past jobs where I was required to attend 'x' many a year, but very few catch my eye or my interest.  Stitches is the exception.  I have this bookmarked on my calendar a year in advance.  Ever since I took up knitting last year, I've been hooked on Stitches.

My Stitches stash

Lucky for me, Stitches West takes place in my neck of the woods.  This year my friend Jonelle was flying in from Seattle to join me for the convention.  We set a game plan, picked out suppliers that interested us, and determined our budgets (well, more like the 'would be nice to stay under this amount' budget).  When the Saturday of Stitches arrived, I picked her up from the airport and setout for the Santa Clara Convention Center.

Wonderful shawl pattern and print-outs from Never Not Knitting

Never Not Knitting's booth

Stitches didn't disappoint.  Surprisingly though, the majority of my early purchases were not of actual fibers, but of knitting accessories.  Maybe it's because I'm more experienced and know what sort of items I was looking for... or because my yarn stash is already out of control... but during the beginning of our Stitches trip, I focused on accessories. 

Some awesome felting from Ellen's Wooly Wonders

Some of the fun things I picked up:

From Slipped Stitch Studios: A project pattern protector case in an adorable hedgehog print.  Also, some great pattern magnets to help me keep track of my progress within a pattern.  This booth also had some great project bags and buttons.  It was also PACKED!  I was fighting for a spot within the booth to check out their adorable goods.  The good news is: they have an Etsy shop!  I'm bookmarking this shop for gifts for the knitters in my life.

Wool Candy makes me weak in the knees.  I love their yarns! Even better, a designer I've been drooling over on Ravelry and Etsy, Phydeaux Designs, was working in their booth.  I picked up a copy of the Asterisque Cowl pattern and have bookmarked the Regalia cowl for a later purchase... I think it will be perfect for some knitwear to go with my Spring Palette challenge.

One of the walls in the Wool Candy booth.

I picked up bits and bobs from a few other booths at Stitches, including some Malabrigo and Tosh yarn from ImagiKnit's booth, but my favorite of all of the booths had no yarn relation at all.  Nifty Thrifty Dry Goods was a huge booth filled with vintage buttons, ribbons, trims, lace and more.  I don't remember seeing them at Stitches last year but they couldn't be missed this time.  Their booth was beautiful! Everything was broken into a color story and contained perfect bits of accents to use for all of my crafty projects.  I picked up some buttons that I used on my Sencha blouse, and some cupcake ribbon to include in some of my creations. I thought it would be a nice label substitute until I take the time to actually make some of my own.

Now Stitches wouldn't be complete without the pre-Stitches parties.  Some of my LYS' had them, including Bobbin's Nest which carries my all-time favorite yarn, Three Irish Girls.  I swung by the Thursday before Stitches to enjoy the new releases of TIG and Hazel Knits, and picked up their new cowl pattern from Rocket Boy Knits, the Chirality Cowl.  I've already started knitting it in my new Hazel Knits sock yarn.

Birthday Wishes

Thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes! I had a wonderful weekend celebrating and received some great crafty gifts to add to my space. 

I'm so looking forward to this holiday week so that I can work on the many patterns that are now stacking up.  I may have to take advantage of some of the sales of fabric and yarn going on as well...

Lots of updates coming, including:
- peak at the dance performance from this weekend. Just thought I'd share some pictures and maybe video of the beautiful costumes and work that went into the show
- finishing up a vintage dress. Actually, my first official vintage dress. Putting it together has been a piece of cake and the fit is fantastic! Can't wait to post the details
- Starting on another Colette pattern... working on the Roobios dress. It's my favorite pattern to look at and hopefully to make too
- Some other fun crafts inspired by the many crafting bloggers out there who have posted fantastic tips and tutorials

Round and round and round we go...

I’ve been behind in my blogging. It seems like whenever you take a vacation, you return needing another one as you’ve fallen so far behind.  Regardless, I’m now back on track and should have some fun updates over the next few days.

Autumn is probably my favorite season.  As much as I love the warmth of Summer, I love the cool weather and the colors of nature that Fall brings.  It’s the start of the holiday season where for a few months, it seems that there is always something happening.

With that cool weather, comes the perfect time for fall hats!  Living in sunny Northern California, I don’t have to worry so much about snow, so a lighter hat is perfect for stepping outside.  My favorite (and what I feel is the most flattering for my head) are the slouchy beret shapes.  An easy knitting pattern that has been a go-to for me is the Star Crossed Slouchy Beret.  It’s easy and free on Ravelry.  

I could have this hat in every color! My favorite is red, but I think I’m going to try a cream color next.  I’ve made a few but they’ve always been snatched up for gifts.  And really, it’s suitable for beginners. As long as you have a basic understanding of cabling and knitting in the round, you can do it.  I think it was my second of each of those techniques and I only had a few hiccups… nothing that my LYS couldn’t help with.

Technical details: I used Malabrigo Merino Yarn Worsted in Ravelry Red, size 11 circulars.