TNNA, projects, and events

TNNA Columbus was wonderful! I helped with the fashion show check-in, much easier this time now that I understand the process. JoAnne Turcotte from Plymouth Yarn coordinates the whole thing. There were more than 100 items to be bagged, tagged, hung, and signed for, and the scripts for each item had to be okayed. As usual, the variety of the projects was incredible, as was the skill with which they were designed and created. I like being able to get a close look at the garments before they hit the runway.

The party after the show was fun. I had a chance to catch up with some other designers – it’s nice to be part of such a lively group. Saturday and Sunday were filled with amazing yarn. Inspiring! Yarn company reps in the booths were very helpful. I’ll be spending the next few weeks deciding which designs and which yarns fit best together. More to come!

My book-signing of Tunisian Crochet at the Unicorn booth went great. All 100 books were snapped up! It was gratifying to see how much interest there is in Tunisian crochet. People are definitely looking for wearable, non-bulky garments. I’ll be doing a local signing on July 15, 2009 at the Barnes & Noble next to Concord Mall in Wilmington, DE. It’s at 1:30 to accommodate the knitting group that meets there at that time. I plan to do a mini-workshop on Tunisian crochet as part of the event. If you’re in the area, please stop by!

Keyhole Tunic in Blue Heron Silk Merino

I’ve been working on this keyhole tunic for a while, experimenting with various yarn types and weights. This is Silk Merino, colourway Ocean, from Blue Heron Yarns, the hands-down best yarn for this project. It is amazingly lightweight and has the perfect amount of stretch – enough to get this fitted garment on without busting a seam, but not so much that it stretches out of shape.

It was fun to use a partial circle as the basis for this garment. Something about the geometry and/or the yarn is magical, because there were few increases required from the waist down. (My first time through, I couldn’t accept that so I increased what I thought was a reasonable amount and the hips came out huge! Not the look I was going for.)

As soon as I work up the pattern for other sizes I will post it on my website.