Cute Time!

It's no secret that I love cute things. Early on Sunday morning, I was cruising through Target on a mission for snacks, when I passed the Pocky's and couldn't resist their beautiful, shiny red box. I think they taste great but have never bought them for home use, so I jumped at the opportunity. The Pocky illustrations on the front and side are exactly life-size, and I especially like the two small foil pouches inside the box to preserve freshness for as long as possible! Also, they look great with my Mickey mug. It turned out to be a whole weekend of cute, because I also received a late miniature Christmas present, one of my most prized mini arrangements so far. Can you believe it? I need a curio cabinet!

Trying New Things

Then

Anytime I go to the thrift store and see a 1960's or 1970's needle-craft book or knitwear catalog, I can't help but buy it. I love looking at them, most of the spreads have the kind of unity, humour, and simplicity that I admire. These two pages are not from the thrift store though, they are from a very close source of mine who actually lived through this time, purchased this afghan pattern booklet, and attempted to make a modified version of the blanket in the first image. The remnants from this attempt have recently been gifted to me, along with this original catalog. I don't know if I will ever finish it (I don't know how to crochet!), but I am happy to hang on to the sweetness of it all for now.

Annie's Picks

Today on Urban Outfitters!
I was recently asked to do an interview for the UO feature segment, About A Girl, and it has been published online today. Are you seeing this zany layout? Wait until you get in there, it's a wild ride! In addition to a lengthy interview and photo montage, you can view a little something called Annie's Picks, where I have selected 15 of my favorite new items on the UO site. Enjoy!

Link at Night

I received an email this morning saying that my web hosting will be expiring soon, which is a reminder that it has still been less than a year since I opened the ALL Shop and fully entered the Internet, if you will. Figuring out how things should work is a daily task and I find myself reconfiguring all the time. This winter I have paid more attention to the way I organize my workload, the motions I make throughout the course of a day. I have found that I like to knit in the day and link in the evening. The task of knitting is a noisy one and feels most appropriate in the very middle of the day. Usually, I will prepare two or three items by knitting all of the individual pieces and setting them aside until the evening when I can sit quietly and link them all together. I admit, this system is influenced a lot by a separate routine of watching episodes while working, which feels wrong to do at any time of the day except at night. If I link during TV sessions I will still be able to hear the episode and even look up at the screen from time to time. In my 27th year and the beginning of 2011, I am understanding how important it is in my life for everything to have its place.

Homies

A few months ago I invited a crew from the Mpls/St. Paul Magazine into my studio to conduct an interview and photo shoot for their January issue. This is one of the more in-depth stories I've been involved with and this publication is one of the few in Minneapolis to cover my work. Click on the second image to read the story!

Computer Sweater

Cactus Ridiculous!

I spent the weekend finishing up on some orders and working on specials. On Saturday morning I drew out a few new patterns and my mind is already spinning with new possibilities. I am continually amazed by how much you can do with so little when it comes to knitting and pattern design. 2011 is making me feel fresh again, and these cacti are cracking me up. I wish they were wearing sunglasses.

Hell Yeah

I have been on the hunt for a good pair of everyday socks. Historically, I have made this type of purchase at Target but have been more and more disappointed with the quality lately. So, I decided to try these cotton crew socks from Lands' End and you can see me here as I am opening the package only seconds after the UPS woman left. (We were in the middle of shooting something else which is why this moment was captured, most days aren't like this). This was yesterday, and today I am wearing them for the first time. They are available in many different colors, but I chose black to start with. I love them so much that I have already gone back to the site to order them in heather gray and burgundy. They are just the right thickness, super soft, and will look great cuffed or scrunched. I am so stoked.


P.S. Curious about that chair in the background? Check it out here.

Alps Edition

I just finished these "His & Hers" hats for some wonderful family friends in Bludenz, Austria. I have been lucky enough to visit their farm located in the Austrian Alps on two different occasions, and I hope to do so again some day. Their landscape is other-wordly, it will be tough competition for these hats! In other news, I am happy to report that ALL Knitwear is now ALL Knitwear LLC, officially. I have a crappy print-out from the state of Minnesota to prove it. I guess I was hoping for a certificate with some gold-leafing or embossing, something a bit more glittery. I turned down the company endorsement stamp at the bank yesterday, but now I'm thinking I should have taken it after all.

In the A.M.

We have south facing store front windows and the light in the morning is fantastic. I was preparing packages to be sent out on Monday and thought these poms went especially well together. Yum! I made breakfast today for the first time in ages, it was wonderful. These hats look like pancakes!

More Osborn

Well, I've got shoes on my mind again. I just purchased my first pair of Dansko clogs and received them in the mail earlier this week. I am in love. They are very comfortable and add a nice bit of height to me! It's wonderful feeling just a little bit taller...I am seeing things I've never seen before. So now that I have a good, sturdy, sensible shoe that will last forever, I am revisiting the old Osborn situation. What am I going to do?

24/7

The studio in the new year has been as busy as ever. In between filling orders, I have been working on restocking Dagmar Rousset with new goods every two weeks, managing a few web updates, playing with my new camera, and planning for the next round of new pieces. Believe it or not, in the midst of all of that, I have been keeping up with the busy life of Jack Bauer, a federal agent in the hit television show, 24. I started watching it during late nights of working before Christmas and am completely hooked. It's the ideal show for me because I don't even really need to watch it to know what's going on, so it makes great company while I'm working. I LOVE TV!

D & dD

Look! My friend Stephanie at Dores sent me a surprise Christmas present this year, two pairs of earrings that I absolutely love. I have been wearing them every day since she sent them to me. Sometimes I wear one of each, or both at the same time. Regardless, all of the combinations look great with gray sweaters and blue jeans. They also look great with the necklace I just bought from a new online shop called dullDiamond, featuring the jewelry designs of Jennifer Murphy and Emily Saunders. All of the styles in the shop are very appealing and reasonably priced. I haven't worn bracelets in a few years, but when I decide to get back into it, these will be the ones!
And the best thing? These will all look wonderful in summer, if we ever make it there.