"New" tech toy for pattern writing

My mom loaned me a new tech toy this week. It's one of those Dragon Naturally Speaking headsets with the software. I'm not sure if it saved me any time yet, because I'm still "training my Dragon." There are a lot of abbreviations in knitting that I have to train it to recognize. Seems to recognize my voice just fine, but some of the terms that I use seem to be a little confusing for it. However, it was a lot easier to speak what I needed to type instead of trying to type it all in and going back and forth between the page and the program.

I have wanted one of these for a very long time. Always thought it would be cool to be able to dictate my stories instead of typing them in. I think once we both get the hang of it will be a lot easier. I'm actually writing this post using it! so just put a little plug-in for the Dragon Naturally Speaking, with a little training and effort it can make things a lot easier.



No, I am not trying to sell Dragon. I just think the coincidence of my business name being Mystical Beast and to be speaking in a "Dragon voice" is really wild. I think it also gains extra points because many pattern is named Dragon Wings. If you would like to try it out yourself, I put the link to it above. I will get a little change from Amazon if you buy it.

I just finished up the test knit for, "Bells and Lyres." Hoping to make final adjustments to it and send it off to my Ravelry pattern group sometime tomorrow. I'm also hoping to finish photographing Kitty I get it uploaded to my Etsy store. Kitty has been ready for a while now, but with all of the alpaca spinning I haven't had a chance for pictures yet. So look for in the next couple of days!

New way to buy patterns

Good afternoon! As per my last post you know I'm shutting down my t-shirt quilting business for a while. However, I'm moving into improving and building up my crochet and knitting patterns. I recently enrolled in a Craftsy class called Lace Shawl Design. I'm learning a lot and watch it when I get a chance. Since I've gone back to work part time my chances aren't as many as I would like, but that's what Craftsy is all about! Whenever, wherever, and however long it takes. Have I mentioned I love Craftsy?

Anyway, I wanted to let my readers know that there is a new way for you to purchase my patterns right through this blog. As I build up my library, I want to offer all of the options I can. So now, by clicking on the link at the top that says, "Crochet and Knitting Patterns" you will be taken to another page in this blog. There, you can purchase directly from Payloadz.com where I upload my patterns for safe-keeping. Downloads are immediate and payment is secure.

If you would still like to purchase from me on Etsy, Craftsy, Zibbet, or Ravelry please feel free to do so! This is just another way for me to offer you an option.

I thank you for your support and hope to bring you much more in the coming months. 

Why Pattern Designers Should Sell on Ravelry or Craftsy

Do you design knitting or crochet patterns? Have you ever tried to sell your patterns? What outlet do you use to sell your patterns through?

If you said Ravelry or Craftsy, you're up there in the top percentage of very smart and thrifty designers! Ravelry has been around since May 2007 when Casey and Jessica Forbes decided to found a social networking site that allowed fiber artists a place "...to keep track of their yarn, tools and pattern information, and look to others for ideas and inspiration." (Wikipedia, "Ravelry." 28 February, 2014.)

In comparison, Craftsy has only been around since 2011 when it was launched by Sympoz (former eBay execs John Levisay and Josh Scott) but had over a half million enrollments in its first year. (Wikipedia, "Craftsy." 24 November 2013.) Craftsy is popular for their video tutorials teaching people various crafts such as sewing, quilting, knitting, crochet, cooking, and painting. But did you know they also have a ton of patterns released by independent designers? Everything from sewing to crochet and knitting? Did you also know that it is free to sign up, free to sell, and you keep your profits? http://www.craftsy.com/pattern/sell

Neither Craftsy or Ravelry charge fees. Ravelry gives you up to $30 in sales a month before they charge anything, and then it is only a very small fee. Craftsy makes the explicit statement that it is your pattern, your design, and they do not take any of your profits. To make a long story short, Craftsy and Ravelry allow me to keep most of my profits (there is always the Paypal factor) but I lose out big on Etsy! If you want a break down, read on.

Now why am I saying all of this? Because I am also a vendor on Etsy. I sell my patterns there. To sell my patterns, I have to pay a $.20 listing fee, then another 3% +.25 if they are buying through direct checkout. If they buy through Paypal, I lose an additional .5% on Etsy then 2.9% + .30 on Paypal. So if I sell a pattern for $2 on Etsy, it costs me $.57 ($.06 is 3% + $.25 + $.20 listing fee) just in fees, making my grand total of profit $1.43. If I sell through Paypal, I lose an additional $.31. This takes my profits down to $1.12 Etsy and Paypal are collecting a tidy little profit off of me at this point. 

Now granted, if I sell through Craftsy and Ravelry I will still lose a portion of my profits through Paypal. I have a business account on Paypal, so my fee drops down to 2.2%. Which is only $.04. I can handle that. I would rather lose $.04 than $.88! Now, I know I'm going to lose out somewhere along the way and I can't make 100% profit, but the alternatives to selling on Craftsy and Ravelry seem better to me than paying Etsy!

 I'm not an Etsy hater. In fact, I adore Etsy and credit their venue for providing 90% or more of my sales. I can sell through Craftsy and Etsy at the $2.00 rate and still make $1.96 on each of my patterns because they don't charge fees for selling. But on Etsy, I have to charge $2.50 - $3.00 for those SAME PATTERNS just so I can make close to the same profits. 



I'm not going to go into the details of what is involved with pattern writing and production right now, but unless I sell A LOT of patterns, I won't become rich or supplement my income in doing it. I basically do it because I like to and can make a little change here and there. Ravelry and Craftsy are two of my favorite selling venues. If you're looking to sell your patterns online, try out one or both of these sites and see what I mean.

*Disclosure: I am a paid affiliate for Craftsy.com and will make a small commission from sign ups generated through clicking on these links. However, all opinions expressed and recommendations are based on my personal experiences. I do not sell for vendors that I do not use or have experience with. 

Friday Tutorial: Finishing the 2 at a Time Hats

We're nearing the end of our hats! This week we're going to finish them up and learn how to decrease stitches using double knitting. You may want to use a cable needle or stitch holder of some sort, as you will need to move stitches around to do the decreases. Once I've made a few decreases and they get closer together, I will usually just move all of the stitches from one hat to a new set of needles to "hold" it and finish them separately. This works out pretty well and is a little less stressful. However, it doesn't work so well when you're working the heel of a sock, so i'm going to explain how this is done - just in case you want to do it.

The pattern tells us to knit 6 and decrease (knit together)2. So for our hats, we'll knit the first 12 stitches (6 blue, 6 orange) and then slip 1 blue stitch.

Slip 1 blue stitch

To get your stitches next to each other you need to drop one orange (back) stitch from your needle, work the knit 2 together with the blue, then place the dropped stitch back on the needle to knit two orange together.

move 1 orange stitch to holder

Move blue stitch back to working needle, knit 2 together

Slip orange stitch back to working needle

2 orange together

 I usually just hold my dropped stitch in my left hand, work the k2tog, then place it back on the needle. However, you CAN use a small cable needle here or a juice pouch straw or something to hold that stitch if you're afraid you can't keep it from dropping and running. We want to be careful we don't knit a blue and orange together either. That defeats our whole purpose.

holding dropped stitch 

If you want to separate the hats to make the decreases, you will need a circular needle or another set of dpns to hold the stitches on one hat. It doesn't have to be the same size, as you're just holding them and can move them back once you complete the first hat.

Working in reverse of our cast on, slip 1 blue stitch to the working dpn. Slip 1 orange stitch to the holding needle. Keep slipping stitches until they are all moved. Pull the inside hat up through the top of the outside hat and lay aside to work later.

Finish your hat as directed in the pattern and voila! you have a hat to share and one to keep. Or give both. Or whatever. I hope you had fun with this tutorial series and learned a lot. I also hope you try this technique with other applications like sleeves and scarves. If you would like to donate your extra hat, would you consider donating it to my charity Warm Up the Boro? I collect donated hats and scarves and hand them out in our community during the cold winter months. You can find out more on our Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/warmuptheboro.

As always, please post pics to the Flickr group!

Knooking Up

If you've been in the webiverse lately and follow anything to do with knitting, you've probably heard of knooking. It's not a craft that I would say has taken the world by storm, but it has sparked some interest among knit and crochet enthusiasts. I'm not sure who invented knooking, but it was originally published by
 Leisure Arts. Basically, knooking is a technique by which you use a crochet hook with a point end that has a hole in it. That hole holds a piece of string and helps to carry the stitches that are picked up along the starting chain of the piece. The technique produces a piece that has actual knit and purl stitches, just like in knitting, but with only one hook.

I sat down to try this out last night. I encountered a few problems - mostly due to already knowing how to crochet and having to get over the mindset that I was crocheting because I had a hook. The second problem was that I was making a hat in the round. This means that my holding cord was sometimes sitting on two rows at a time and making the piece bunch. I would need to stop, pull some of it out, and lengthen the knitting back out. Other than that the going is kind of slow because I'm still training my hands. Once I get the hang of it I'm sure it will be faster.

Overall, I think it would be a process that could come in handy; especially for beginners that would like to make knit objects but have problems manipulating both needles. I enjoy picking up new techniques and getting started cost me about $20. Ten for the needles and ten for a hat pattern book I wanted. You can also buy a large set of the hooks for thinner and thicker yarns for $20 from Leisure Arts. I am hoping fervently that more patterns appear for knooking, but I also think that ANY knit pattern can be adapted to the knook technique. Bigger projects require a longer holding yarn. I may even write some myself. :)