Foolishness at the playground...

The Dr., the dogs and I went for a walk today, and I remembered that when these two were puppies, they used to LOVE going down the slide at the playground. Thought I'd see if I could convince Jax to do it again! The first one's a bit forced, but I think he remembered how much fun it is, in the end. ;)

Style Your Knits: Winona

Today on the Twist Collective blog, the question was asked: "How would you style Winona?" Since it's been awhile since I presented a Style Your Knits, I thought I'd take them up on the challenge.

Twist decided to style this cardigan, designed for them by Laura Chau, by offering 4 variations on the same theme, similar to how the piece was styled for the original photoshoot:

sweet and girly options
While I do think that this cardigan looks perfectly nice over a floral dress, my style tends to lean more towards the glamorous-chic than the office-ready, so I opted for something a little different:

glamorous and punk option  

Once you venture into skull, studs, and fringe territory, it's easy to go too far into full-on rock star. To me, though, this look stays firmly on the glamorous side by pairing the bold, funky accessories with crisp seersucker shorts, fresh, clean makeup and a sleek top knot. Finishing it off with Laura's swingy stockinette cardigan gives it a modern, timeless appeal.

Overall, I think this cardigan has a great shape and endless styling options. If I were going to knit one for myself, I'd add rhinestone buttons, or leave off the button placket altogether since I can't remember the last time I buttoned on a cardigan.

Interested in knitting one for yourself? Grab the pattern over at Twist Collective for $7.00. Want to see more runway-ready knitwear? View my entire collection of styled knits, here.

Things you Need: Crochet, Book One by Rebecca Velasquez for Quince & Co.

Do you crochet? Do you find yourself constantly frustrated by the lack of beautiful, modern patterns? Look no further than Rebecca Velasquez's new book for Quince & Co., Crochet, Book One.

5 gorgeous patterns in some of the most fantastic yarn you'll ever lay hands on.

If you haven't ever worked with Quince & Co. yarn, you should definitely give it a try. I used Lark for my Surplus Stripes mitts, and loved every second of it. Bonus, the whole yarn line is completely affordable; Lark retails for just $6.90 per 50 gram skein, and each skein has a generous 134 yards. Okay, on to Rebecca's patterns!

Beautifully photographed, beautifully styled.

One of my favorite things about this collection is the excellent styling and photography. Simple and clean, Rebecca chose to forgo fussy backgrounds in favor of bright, springy green fields and trees. Love it! I am particularly in love with the Marigold Sweater, and would make that for myself in a second.

Rebecca is generously offering one commenter a choice of their favorite pattern from the collection, so leave a comment below letting us know which one you'd choose if selected! In addition, one commenter from the entire blog tour will be selected at random to win the entire collection and two skeins of Sparrow yarn! Visit Rebecca's blog to see links to the other tour stops and for more details on that giveaway. The winner of the single pattern from this blog's commenters will be announced on or around May 7th. The winner will have 3 days to claim their prize or another winner will be selected. So be sure to stop by later to see if you've won!

Patternfish

UPDATE: Maid Marion has now been removed from Patternfish (although oddly, I still haven't heard a word from them). Thank you all for your overwhelming and instant support!

SECOND UPDATE: Apparently Cherry Tree Hill plans to contest their right to sell this pattern, and according to Patternfish, pulled the pattern "in the meantime". I'm not sure what that means, but I'll keep you all updated!

I found out this week that a third party, Cherry Tree Hill, has uploaded one of my patterns to Patternfish and has been selling digital copies for I-don't-know-how-long.

 Cherry Tree Hill does not have digital rights to sell my work online. They've been selling print copies for years, but I decided to let that go a long time ago (mostly because I don't sell print copies myself). Start selling my work online though, and that's a problem.

Naturally, I wrote Patternfish to let them know that a third party had uploaded my pattern to their site and request them to remove it. This is the response I got (click the photo to enlarge):

Patternfish has decided to ignore my subsequent 2 emails, and that's not cool. Since this is their website, and they are profiting from my work (they take a percentage of each pattern sold on the site), it certainly does concern them. In the emails that followed, I pointed out that if Cherry Tree Hill did, in fact, have the right to sell this pattern digitally, it would be a simply matter for them to produce a contract to that effect. I asked Julia to request this information and remove the pattern immediately if the information was not provided in a timely manner (which it won't be, because they don't have a contract like that). The fact that Patternfish has decided to ignore me means I'm rallying the troops (that's you)!

So, what can you do to let Patternfish know you don't approve of their inaction in this matter?

A few things.

First, if you're a designer selling on Patternfish, you can pull your patterns for sale until this illegal listing is removed from the site. Even better, write Patternfish a note explaining why you're pulling your patterns. If you aren't yet selling on Patternfish, write them anyway and let them know you wouldn't consider it until you know they'll support the designer in situations like this. And remember...this could easily happen to you! Apparently Patternfish does not care to enforce the policy that uploading members must have digital rights to sell the patterns in question. Let them know how much that bothers you, and that it means they won't be getting business from you.

Second, if you're a current or potential customer for Patternfish, you can write them a note and let them know that you won't be supporting their website through your purchases until they start enforcing their own policies. I may not be the only designer being hurt by this website, and if Patternfish decides it's completely fine to ignore this situation, they'll ignore future situations, too. That could get out of hand! Your pattern purchases should support designers - not third parties (unless, of course, the designer signed a contract stating that'd be okay).

Third, you can post to Patternfish's Facebook wall about this issue. Something to the effect of, "I see that you are selling Sarah Wilson's pattern, Maid Marion, uploaded by a third party user. I disapprove of your decision to ignore your own policy requiring each uploader to acknowledge that they have the right to sell patterns digitally. I won't be listing/buying patterns until this pattern is removed from your system".

Fourth, you can help spread the word about the issue by sharing a link to this blog post with your friends via Twitter/Facebook/Plurk/your blog/whatever other social media outlets you care to use. Social pressure can be a mighty force with companies like Patternfish, and my hope is that if enough people express outrage over this situation, they will be unable to ignore the matter.

You can write Julia Grunau directly at julia.grunau@patternfish.com. Patternfish's Twitter handle is @Patternfish. Find their Facebook page here.

I'll keep you posted on the situation! 

(And in the meantime, if you want to purchase Maid Marian, you can do so right here - you'll notice, the pattern's only $6.00 when you buy it from me, not $9.00 like the Patternfish version)!

Sexy Knitter KAL!

Many of you already know that each quarter, I host a knitalong in my Ravelry group. Maybe you've participated in the past, or maybe you've just lurked, or maybe this is the first you're hearing about it. Whatever your situation, consider this post your official invitation to come along and join the fun!

This quarter, I'm mixing things up by offering WEEKLY prizes to anyone who joins the group and contributes to the KAL discussion. You also have your choice of any of my patterns this quarter! You can read all the official rules over here, but in the meantime, here's a little glimpse at the prizes I'm handing out this quarter:

Thanks to Malabrigo and Anzula Luxury Fibers for partnering with me to sponsor this KAL!