I’ve had a few people ask me about repeating chart B while they’re knitting Traveling Woman. The short answer is yes. The long answer is yes, but it depends on what you want.

You can keep repeating chart B as much as you want. The stitch counts, from what I recall, line up in the same manner as chart A. If I’m wrong – someone please tell me! I’ll take a look at it and post some modifications.

If you don’t want to repeat the entirety of chart B, you can repeat the last 2 (or 4) rows to get a much more lacey edging.

I don’t know about you, but when I’m stressed, I head straight for my needles. Knitting, that is. No intravenous drug use here, folks. I somehow managed to develop a healthy fear of needles, despite my numerous tattoos.

But no, I always turn to my knitting when I’m stressed, emotional, upset, confused, or searching for something within myself. I used to be a comfort eater, but that’s mostly because I’m a snacker and I rarely eat meals: I eat every two hours, like clockwork. So I clearly needed a better coping mechanism.

I used to be a big fan of repression, denial, and displacement. Thank you, Psychology degree, for giving the knowledge I needed to name my pathologies, it makes me feel so much better about myself on the whole [read: sarcasm].

But knitting has become this freakish way for me to sit back, concentrate, and zone out of everything else in the world that is bothering me. I love sitting down and swatching new stitch patterns or figuring out why something doesn’t look the way it should. It’s soothing, almost. I hate doing math, but knitting math is like a drug. Gauge, stitch count, size… I love it. Absolutely love it. I love making Excel formulas to calculate things.

This either makes me an addict, a nerd, or someone with a mental instability.

I’ve been living and breathing Traveling Woman and Saroyan lately. With the development of the premium Traveling Woman booklet, I’ve started thinking about whether or not I’d like to release Saroyan in a premium format as well with additional options for shape and size. I’m not sure if I’ll do that or not… but it’s something I’d like to consider.

I’ve always had a flexible policy in terms of people teaching my free patterns in classes. I typically request that the class be affordable and that students not be required to purchase yarn in-shop. As someone who teaches knitting classes, I felt like this was a fair compromise for myself as the designer and as someone who once took knitting classes.

Now that I am releasing Traveling Woman as a paid pattern, I am going to be changing my policy on teaching it in classes. My policy for teaching the free version of Traveling Woman will remain the same: affordable classes, with no requirement to purchase yarn at the shop teaching the class. I do appreciate the requests via email and Ravelry PM that I have received. I am happy to share the Traveling Woman love!

For the premium version of Traveling Woman, I am available to teach classes in-person. I will also be selling the pattern at wholesale rates for LYS to purchase for sale. To teach the premium version of Traveling Woman I have different fee structures set up, all with profitability for LYS and instructors in mind as well as affordability for class takers.

I live locally in the bay area of California and will gladly travel to teach classes nationally or internationally. Occasionally I will travel with a photographer who will be present in the class taking photos as well. If you are interested in having me teach a class at your LYS, please contact me at eabinante@gmail.com for additional details about my schedule.

I am so pleased to announce that I will be working with the delightfully talented Fiberphile for the new version of Traveling Woman! I’ll be using her worsted weight yarn in the upcoming pattern booklet. Georgia is very talented and I’m lucky to have her on board with this design endeavor.

Who is ready for this pattern to be released? I know I am. Geeze. I’ve been swatching like a crazy woman!

I’ve had this larger version of Traveling Woman sitting around since Stitches West. One of my sample knitters worked it up for me using some of my light worsted weight, Lilith Worsted, in the color Echo.

And I’m wearing today, of all days in California’s July heat, because of my tattoo. When you have a freshly inked tattoo occupying about 25% of the surface on your back, it’s kinda hard to wear a sweater when it is covered in goop. It’s such a strange sensation.

So it was a little chilly this morning and I reached for my slightly larger Traveling Woman to keep the chill at bay.

I think this was a good move.

I’ve been bit by the knitting bug again. I’ve been working steadily away on the new Traveling Woman, which involves knitting endless swatches and blocking them. I haven’t finished a knitted object in months, but I finally finished a sock.

It’s a man sock! I’ve never knit a sock for anyone who didn’t wear a perfect size 7.5 women’s shoe. The entire time I was knitting it I felt like I was doing something wrong. Turns out I was. The heel was a little bit too baggy. Oh well! There’s always the second sock.

Living in a college town always presents me with interesting scenery. I spend a lot of time downtown so I always see people wearing funky outfits. I like to sit and knit while drinking tea in the nice weather. And the other day I saw the most interesting car. I love Davis.

I’ve been working hard on a new version of Traveling Woman that has prevented me from updating. Between dyeing stuff up for Femme Fatale Fibers, knitting some commissioned design work, and doing the new Traveling Woman, I’ve been a busy lady.

So. Details!

I’m working on a new version of Traveling Woman. The pattern is still in version 1.3 and hasn’t been updated since shortly after its release. Since I’ve released Traveling Woman for free, over 3,000 projects have been added to the Ravelry database. I had no idea such a simple idea would become so popular!

The new version will be much more robust and will include over 100 different options for size, shape, and yarn weight, including rectangular scarves and stoles, true triangles, and the original shape. Because they are so many new features to the pattern, I thought it would be best to list them out here for you. Beware, this is not an exhaustive list:

• All sizes and shapes available in multiple yarn weights: lace, fingering, sport/dk, worsted, and aran
• Rectangular sizes: skinny/child, scarf, stole
• True triangle and original sizes: child, shawlette (original), medium, large, extra large
• Suggested modifications for men
• Yardage information for all size and shape options
• Modified edging option and instructions for a better bind off
• Information on bead placement
• Standard and extra lacey versions for all shapes and sizes
• Charts with stitch counts for every row, both stocking stitch and lace, for all sizes and shapes
• Pictures of swatches in each yarn weight with garter and stocking stitch, as well as the lace pattern
• Charted and written instructions for all lace patterns
• (Potentially) a short row version of the shawl with its own set of instructions
• The option to include visible or invisible center increases in the true triangle version
• The option to include visible center increases in the original version
• Individual instructions for each shape option so you don’t get confused by “if, or, and”
• Step-by-step photos for more difficult stitches and skills (such as provisional cast ons)

Phew. I have literally been working on this pattern for a year. It has morphed into something freakishly obsessive. I work on this thing almost every day, constantly adding new features and options for modifications. This isn’t a pattern anymore – it’s an entire ebook. Seriously, it’s ridiculous. I’ll be surprised if this thing ends up under 20 pages.

I’m calling this pattern the “premium” version of Traveling Woman. For obvious reasons (hello, you can make literally 100s of different scarves from one pattern), I will be charging for the premium version of Traveling Woman.

I do want to make it clear that there will always be a free version of Traveling Woman available for download on my website, but it will no longer be updated or maintained. I will still, of course, provide support for the free version of Traveling Woman.

The pattern should be available this fall, most likely in September or October.

I’m getting ready to bring in some new products, so I’ve put almost everything in the shop on sale.

I’m in the process of transition to 500 yard hanks for my Lilith Sock and Venus Fingering blends, which means I need to get rid of the ones I have now. Check out some of the great stuff I have on sale:

The sale will continue until I’m out of stock on Lilith Sock and Venus Fingering. Buffy Sock, Lilith Sport, and Lilith Aran will be on sale until May 31. Grab them while you can! Buffy Sock is being discontinued.

Want to know when I’m having a sale or doing a shop update? Sign up for the mailing list!

Last year I was fortunate enough to design for the Yarn4Socks Sock club, and this year I have the honor of both designing and dyeing for the June installment of the Not-So-Sock Club.

My inspiration for the club design and color was the film Citizen Kane. For a black and white film, I had a lot of color inspiration: yellow journalism, cryptic messages having to do with rosebuds, and the vast expanse of Xanadu.

I wanted a color that could pack a punch in the summer: something bright and full of body. But I also wanted something that was a bit more subtle and could be worn during the cooler seasons as well. Blue. A beautiful, bold, yet subdued, blue. Perfect for the originally black-and-white film because of its multi-tonal shades of blue. I’ve named the color Snow Globe. For fans of the movie, hopefully I’ve done the snow globe featured in the film some justice.

The colorway will be available from Femme Fatale Fibers in the late future, but not until later this fall. So if you want it, your best option is to purchase the kit from Yarn4Socks with their June club. The added bonus being you also get my latest pattern, also inspired by Citizen Kane, with your yarn shipment.

The yarn is my Lilith Sock blend, now available in 500 yard hanks of 100% superwash merino wool. To purchase the June Not-So-Socks Club kit, visit Yarn4Socks here.

The pattern is a simple shawl, with a shape similar to that of Traveling Woman. The pattern will be exclusive to the Yarn4Socks club until August 1, when it will be available for purchase by the public.

What else have I got up my sleeve? A few more commissioned designs for clubs, some independently released designs (mostly free), and some gorgeous new colorways.

I’ll also be producing a new series of design tutorials for Traveling Woman, which will be available for purchase. The new design tutorial will include high quality color photo step-by-step instructions, making it easy for beginners to follow along and complete the shawl. The design tutorial will also feature percentage math and additional sizing information for those who wish to know exactly how much yarn for a specific weight they need for the size they desire.

I submit my Master’s thesis next week, which means I’ll be officially done with my Master’s degree! Now it’s time to apply for jobs like a madwoman and hope for the best. I’m trying to see if I can support myself with my designing and dyeing, but I’m not quite sure if I can just yet. We’ll see!