Goodbye! And thank you!

Hey everyone!!

I just want to let everyone know that Andrea and I (Kathryn) have decided to bring our Quirky Bird journey to an end. We started this little venture several years ago while we both worked at Knitters Mercantile. We’ve had so much fun over the years collaborating to design and write patterns. And we have learned a TON about the pattern writing process and how to bring an idea from the ether into reality.

However we both have new adventures in our lives and we are not able to give Quirky Bird our attention in a way we think it deserves. You have probably noticed that we have been quiet for awhile now.

Andrea is co owner of the fantastic 614 Knit Studio! The studio teaches knit, crochet, spinning, and weaving classes of all skill levels! Andrea carries absolutely gorgeous boutique yarns and is a wonderful place for all fibery type peoples to hang out. If you haven’t yet, please check her out!

614knitstudio.com

I am keeping busy chasing my two little girls! They are hilarious, sassy, goofy little humans that bring a smile to my face in unexpected ways everyday. (It’s possible there’s a few sighs of exasperation in there too. But it’s tons of smiles and laughs too.) I’ve also gone back to full time work at a 9-5 too so life is great but hectic.

So, where does that leave us? All of our patterns are now free to download here on Rav. We are planning to leave them up and free. (It’s possible we may publish a new free pattern here from time to time. It’s helpful to us to have a place to put up patterns for teaching.) I will be shutting down the Quirky Bird website, social media, email. You can message us here but it will not be checked very often. If you need to contact us you can get in touch with Andrea at the studio - 614knitstudio@gmail.com

We have LOVED working with all of you and we are so grateful for all the support that you have shown us. It is incredible to see the finished projects you have made with our designs. Thank you thank you!!

 - Kathryn

Arch City Shawl

Hello there! We've just published a new pattern and we'd love for you to see!

Arch City Shawl

The final installment of the inaugural year of the Colors of 614 Club brings us to The Short North. Known for its colorful arts and culture, the Short North area, just north of downtown on High Street, boasts one of the most successful revitalization projects in Central Ohio. All along High Street, you will find large steel arches complete with color changing fiber optic lights. Reminiscent of a century past, these arches have given Columbus back the nickname of “Arch City.”

The striking color inspiration image highlights the arches from the north, on High Street, facing downtown just as a huge storm was rolling into town at sunset. Arch City Shawl was inspired by the view as you head into town from the Ohio State University campus. The Cross Bar stitch pattern and yarn overs below mimic the arches that span High Street. This crescent shaped shawl uses a needleless cable/drop stitch technique that is perfect for an adventurous beginner/ intermediate knitter.

Get your pattern at 614 Knit Studio or grab it here on Ravelry!

Malabrigo March 2015

It’s Mmmmmmmalabrigo March! And guess what? We’re having a sale!

If you don’t know about Malabrigo March, you really should. It’s a celebration of the wonderfulness that is Malabrigo. You can check out the Malabrigo group on Ravelry here for more info.

Here’s our main part of our celebration - get 50% off our Tilled Scarf! It uses Malabrigo Rasta and Silkpaca Lace. No coupon code needed!

Also, to add to the celebration, enjoy our other patterns at 25% off too! Please use coupon code MM2015

Click here to see all of our patterns on Ravelry. 

Sale starts now and runs through March 31, 2015.

And we sure do love it when we see your beautiful projects of our patterns on Ravelry. Please post pictures of your projects!

Gloria Seaming Tutorial

In the Gloria Headband, Cloche, and Handwarmers we seamed the band together in a particular way. This particular way gives Gloria its distinctive shape.

 Did you read the seaming instructions but would also like to see some pictures to make it more clear? Never fear! We've got pictures for you.

I'll leave you to read the exact seaming instructions on the patterns. But I'll give you some pictures and a quick walkthough which should simplify the process.

FYI - Both the handwarmers and the headband are constructed in the same way. The band is worked first then (if you're working the cloche or the handwarmers) stitches are picked up on one side. Obviously the lengths (and therefore the number of rows) of the bands from the handwarmers and headband/cloche are different but the seaming instructions are the same for both.

Tutorial time!

Once you have finished the band, pin it together with your removable stitch markers.

Start seaming. Start where the top of the band is overlapped. Insert your tapestry needle underneath the edges stitches.

Work your way from the area where the edges of the band first meet down to the corner of the edge that is on top.

Seam to the opening between the two bottom corners.

Once you've seamed the outside, now turn the band inside out and seam the inside.You will seam the inside of the areas just seamed on the outside. Continue with the yarn you used to seam the outside. Insert your needle underneath a stitch from one side of the band and a stitch from the other side of the band.

Continue seaming until you have reached the corner where you originally started on the outside.

Work one bottom corner at a time, use the tail and tack only the top corner of the edge to the center of the band.

To pick up stitches, start at the corner where you started seaming and insert your needle underneath both legs of the slipped stitch on the edge. Here is a good video on picking up and knitting.

Ta dah! You're done!

We would love to see your finished Glorias. Please send us a pic at quirkybirdknits@gmail.com or, if you don't mind, post them on Ravelry.

See you soon!

Gloria Cloche, Headband, and Handwarmers

New patterns are here!

Gloria Cloche

Gloria Headband

Gloria Handwarmers

Like I mentioned in the teaser post, this design was inspired by 20s fashion. We love a good cloche. We also like options and matching sets. So, you get instructions for the headband and cloche in one pattern and we have another pattern for the matching handwarmers!

The band of the hat and the handwarmers has a reversible seed stitch and rib stitch pattern. Pick whichever side you like best for the outside of your headband, cloche, or handwarmer! You can see the knit side in the cloche and the purl side in the headband.

All of these patterns are available for purchase on Ravelry!

Get your Gloria Cloche and Headband pattern here.

Get your Gloria Handwarmers pattern here.

And if you prefer printed versions, you can always pick up copies at Knitters Mercantile. 

We hope you love these patterns as much as we do!

G-L-O-R-I-A

New design coming verrrrrry soon!

And her name is G. L. O. R. I. A.

This design was inspired by all of the cool Glorias out there. But most especially the Gloria with the most swagger, Gloria Swanson.

We here at Quirky Bird are particularly inspired by vintage fashion and the 20s are a particular favorite. This new design certainly has a 20s flair!

Keep your eyes peeled for this new design that will be released very soon! And meanwhile, here's a teaser.

See you soon!

Fanfare

One of the things that we are incredibly fortunate to be a part of is the Knitters Mercantile Accessory Club. We have designed for both the 2013 and the 2014 clubs and it is a lot of fun! We design pieces for the club that are easy to knit and are straightforward in their design. And we get to hang out with a fabulous group of knitters in the club meetings!

All of the pieces we design for the club are one skein projects. Who doesn't love a one skein project? But we also like to be flexible so in many cases we have also included the option to, with an additional skein, expand the piece into a larger size.

With all of that, I give you Fanfare.

Fanfare was originally designed for the April installment of the Accessory Club. The name comes from the shape of the shawl. It's a trumpet! A looooong trumpet.

We are in love with shawls and we are in love with interesting shawl shapes. One of the things that I particularly love about this is the asymmetry. Short on one end and tall of the other, this shawl can be styled in oh-so-many ways! We love the versatility and beauty of JUL fixtures and we have used a variety of them to give you ideas on how to style Fanfare.

The other delight we have in this shawl is the yarn. We used Lorna's Laces Honor, which is a sumptuous blend of alpaca and silk. Oh. My. Word. It is delicious.

Here on the stats on Fanfare.

Sizes: Small (Large)
Yarn: DK weight in a fiber with drape. We used Lorna's Laces Honor.
Yardage: 275 for the small. 350 for the large.
Needle: US 7 circular, at least 24".
Specific skills: knit, purl, yo, k2tog, wrap and turn short rows.

You can purchase and download Fanfare on Ravelry, on Etsy, or get a printed copy at Knitters Mercantile!