Thinking ahead even in the midst of holiday madness

fleur hand knit cowl

This time of year, my life (as is yours!) is all about:  knitting, packaging, shipping.  Daily post office drop offs.  Knit, knit, knit.  Make another batch of buttons:  stamp, cut, bake, paint, bake, sand, sand, sand, sand, glaze, glaze, glaze, buff, buff, buff.  :)  Today, I realized this is what it's like to be one of Santa's elves.  Isn't that every child's dream?  Not such a bad thing to be!

soft turquoise and aqua hand knit mitts

But I also have lots of new goodies to share (and more yet to photograph and list).  AND, as anyone who works in a retail-related field knows, even amidst one busy season, you have to already be working on the next season.  So you'll start seeing more Winter and Spring colors, less holiday colors, even this week.

sprig hand knit cowl

I'm really excited about brand new creations you'll see in January and February.  I'm super excited about building out my home decor and art lines.  I can't wait to get back into the dye pots and dye my own yarn for mitts and maybe even to sell.  And ... to finally have time to spin my own yarn (yay!).

tillandsia (air plant) and handcrafted polymer dish

What about you?  What are you looking forward to finally spending time doing after the holidays are over?

Air plants at Phydeaux!

I've been thinking about how to use tillandsias (air plants) since earlier this summer:  felted cozies (didn't like the prototype), knit doilies (ugh), glass vessels covered in crocheted lace (meh).

And then it hit me.

What could I make with polymer clay?  A shallow vessel, similar in style to my filigree buttons?

Yes and yes.

And so I did.

Opening a whole new world of possibilities.

I have both handcrafted polymer dishes and tillandsia with dishes in my Chez Phydeaux shop now!

Get a jump on Black Friday at Phydeaux Designs

{ black lace handcrafted buttons }

It's officially Thanksgiving in the US as I type this - I wish you and yours love, fun, feasting and treasured memories!

But you might also want to start your holiday shopping even a little earlier than the infamous Black Friday (day after Thanksgiving - a huge shopping day in the US)!

So, I'm sharing my Black Friday discount code with you a day early ... and it works on all Phydeaux Designs sites:

"blackfriday"

(I know!  Such a sneaky and clever discount code!)

For an automatic 30% (!!!) discount on the following sites, just enter "blackfriday" during checkout.  Your order, prior to shipping, will be automatically adjusted for a 30% discount:

Phydeaux patterns and buttons - my own site
Phydeaux knits on Etsy
Phydeaux patterns and buttons on Etsy
Phydeaux home decor and art on Etsy

{ hand knit christmas trees filled with lavender and cedar }

I'm not able to combine discount codes (I'm elated that Etsy allows discount codes now - a brand new feature!) and the discount is valid only for purchases from now through Friday night, midnight PST.

But!!!  I will, periodically, on Friday put up a super special or something new and exciting that you might not have seen before (oh, say ... Christmas ornaments???).  If you'd like to stay in the know, just follow me on Twitter or Facebook - you'll be covered either way.

Follow Phydeaux on Twitter
Follow Phydeaux on Facebook

One last little incentive ... I very may well be taking down anything that isn't ready to ship in any of my shops later today (particularly buttons), so if there's something you've been eyeing, now's the time.  Just saying.  :)

p.s., On Friday, there will be three (3!!!) brand new cowl designs in my hand knits shop on Etsy.  Chunky, oversized with LACE (hehe).  And if I'm very productive tomorrow night after the turkey coma, I will have at least one knitting pattern ready from that new bunch.

Happy Thanksgiving, my friends!

Chunky knits that will keep you warm

soft acorns hand knit scarf in brick red

Brr, brr, freezing, freezing.

The immortal words of my youngest brother. As a baby (OK, toddler), he'd mutter those words in his sleep at night if he kicked off his blankets. Now a family slogan, forever burned into our subconciousnesses and family lore.

winter pastels hand knit mitts

It is cold!  Tonight is supposed to hit freezing the Bay Area. Wow! I was wearing shorts just a week ago. Now all I can think of are wearing cozy, chunky warm knits.

I have piles of just that to add to my Etsy shop!  Chunky, soft, cozy, colorful, warm:  'tis the season to wear your knits.  I have many new things as of today, and more will arrive this weekend.

pink and grey hand knit neckwarmer

I also have several brand new, super chunky knitting patterns on the way.

If you want to stay in the know - join my mailing list!  Your email address is safe with me - I never share my list with others.

And Happy Thanksgiving!

Life and a few new things

merino wool silk hand knit scarf

What a week!  I left you with a cliffhanger of a post last week and never got back to you.  I will do so this weekend!

Many, many things going on at Chez Phydeaux, some wonderful, others not very wonderful, but in the end, it's all part of life.

In the former category of "wonderful," the Joyeux Shawlette has been such a positive experience!  I only have a few left - I can't believe it!

merino wool silk hand knit scarf

In the latter category of "not very wonderful," I'm in the unfortunate, while necessary, position of needing to suddenly simplify my life, while dealing with a potential medical issue.  I'm thinking positively - and hope you'll think the same positive thoughts for me!  Hopefully, everything will turn out negative, but there are some definite tests and procedures in my near future.

merino wool hand knit scarf

I'm happy to share a few new pretties in my hand knits shop, all knit up with handspun yarn from the wonderfully talented Naomi (love her sqoosh monsters handspun!).

Joyeux Shawlette Knitting Kit is Ready!

Adrienne and I have been (and continue to) laboring to finalize Joyeux, the shawlette knitting kit that I've been teasing you with sneak  peeks of.

And now it's ready for order!  You can read the details here.  We'll start shipping kits this coming Monday!

(This is a limited edition kit, so if you really want one of your very own, don't hesitate for toooo long.)

Sneak peek: lace wall hangings

I actually designed and knit these mini hand knit lace wall hangings in preparation for Stitches West earlier this year ... then ran out of time to finish the pattern/kit.

I may release these as kits ... I haven't decided yet. For now, they're available in my home decor/art shop (more colors are coming!).

I really had fun knitting these. I was dying to use the lotus lace pattern - I love it's contemporary flavor - and liked the idea of using a garter stitch, very free form, using different sizes of needles.

I'm using a super thin organic cotton ribbon, tied to balsam dowels that I cut/sanded.

No two will be identical!  Perfect colors for Autumn (and gorgeous hand dyed colorway/merino wool from Lisa at Wabi Sabi Yarns!).

New handspun scarves

I am seriously swamped this week with work and Phydeaux deadlines, so am just popping in to share with you a (yay!) shop update in my hand knits shop on Etsy!  I've had scarves piling up for weeks (and in some cases months) - finally blocked and photographed them.

These are all knit from luscious handspun fiber.  Even one that I spun myself (below)!

Even more to come this weekend!

What colors would you love to see in scarves knit with handspun fiber?

Say hello to Regalia

I've promised more details about Regalia, the newest addition to Phydeaux Designs' chunky, oversized accessories and knitting patterns!

This Summer, I worked up the courage to invest in not one, but two, books of Japanese knitting stitch patterns (trust me, it IS a significant financial investment!).  I love the uniqueness of these stitch patterns, which are full of complex details, delicate lace, bold lines ... without one word in English!  Luckily, each stitch pattern is charted, but with chart symbols that often require significant work to decode.  Which took me awhile to get the hang of.

I've incorporated elements from these stitches into other designs, but kept coming back to this gorgeous lace pattern with twisted rib stitch.  So elegant, with a bold modern feel that I wanted to use with something surprising - super bulky yarn - to give it a wonderfully rustic appeal.

Hence, Regalia!  Elegant, rustic, artisanal, modern.

As a plus, I've long desired to create a line of accessories based on medieval/ancient motifs, which I adore.  Ancient religion, history and mythology are lifelong reading passions, so creating art and craft based on that passion makes me very happy.  To me, Regalia is reminiscent of motifs and heraldry from medieval Northern Europe.  You'll be seeing more designs incorporating similar elements!

The finished, hand knit Regalia is available in Phydeaux Designs on Etsy.

The knitting pattern for the Regalia Cowl is available on my own site, in my Etsy pattern shop, and on Ravelry.

Or you can select "buy now" below and purchase (and download) immediately.

Thanks so much - I hope you are having a great week!

Sneak Peek

More about this brand new cowl/capelet design (and knitting pattern) tomorrow!

New hand knits in the shop

Hallelujah, new hand knits in Phydeaux Designs at Etsy!

From top to bottom:

Asterisque Cowl/Shoulder Warmer in a rich, dark mossy green (And I also have a knitting pattern for Asterisque!)

Embraceable Cowl/Scarf in a soft and tweedy cocoa brown (I also have a knitting pattern for Embraceable!)

Phydeaux Twist Cowl in a warm, heathery blue (yes, indeed, the Phydeaux Twist knitting pattern is available!)

I have even more new goodies in the shop and will share more with you here!

Also, I have a brand new knitting pattern about to debut - a new super chunky, oversized cowl. More about that this weekend!

Happy weekend, all!