Sparklers and Happy 5th Anniversary to Pom Pom Quarterly!

Four years ago this summer, I purchased my first copy of Pom Pom Quarterly. At this time I was designing and selling my finished knits through boutiques and craft fairs but wasn’t seriously thinking about publishing my designs as patterns. However, I’m so happy that this has all changed and has now become my primary focus. I’m creating new designs every month now and have Pom Pom Quarterly to thank, along with the kind and supportive knitters who have shown interest in my work. Pom Pom published my first pattern, Take Heart, in 2013. After that I felt confident to continue to pursue inspiration for new designs.

It’s been a learning curve but still an incredibly fun journey these past four years. I’m thrilled to have taken many steps of that journey alongside Pom Pom Quarterly. After a move to London, an internship, many cups of tea, my first book and a move home, I am very honoured to have worked with the Pom Pom team and to also be able to call them my friends. 

I jumped at the opportunity to be a part of their anniversary issue and am thrilled to be featured alongside many creative women whom I admire. "Summery" items aren’t my forte so I was thankful when I heard this issue wasn’t particularly seasonal and that they were looking for quintessential Pom Pom designs. I personally love designing and knitting hats and I thought it would be fitting since my first design with Pom Pom was a hat.

I’ve been working with some simple and repeating knit and purl textures and wanted to bring that into this piece. I was paired up with Kettle Yarn Co and super excited to work with Linda Lencovic's gorgeous blends again. I previously had used her Islington DK for my Ketch Harbour shawl, in my Take Heart book. This time, I used her Beyul blend, a gorgeous combination of merino, silk and baby yak… yeah, that’s right, baby yak. It’s available in different weights, DK, 4 ply and lace. I decided on the 4 ply to create a lightweight beanie.

Photography by Nicole Mlakar.

Photography by Nicole Mlakar.

So here’s Sparklers, I hope you will enjoy it! This project is knit with Kettle Yarn Co’s Beyul 4 ply, one skein of each Electric Amaranth and Yurt. Reverse the colourway and you’ll have enough for a matching hat, one for you and one for your BFF! Linda is now offering kits and has other fantastic colour ways listed in her shop. I highly recommend trying this blend. It’s so lovely to knit with and the pompoms it creates are just precious!

Photography by Nicole Mlakar.

Photography by Nicole Mlakar.

Photography by Nicole Mlakar.

Photography by Nicole Mlakar.

This issue is packed with fifteen other designs and the usual articles, illustrations and recipe. I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy, especially with that rose gold logo! Congratulations to the Pom Pom team and everyone else involved in this issue. I can’t wait to see what's next for this group of creatives.

Photography by Nicole Mlakar.

Take Heart Anniversary

This autumn was overwhelmingly busy with the various knitting festivals I got to attend. After a quick break, I moved into knitting and making a few plans for this winter.  Many new projects have been on and off the needles which hopefully I can share in the new year. I still plan to recap my trips to Vancouver's Knit City and Rhinebeck's Wool and Sheep Festival with a few photos soon. One of my goals lately has been to stay active and social on Instagram. Two weeks ago I had a lot of fun doing an Instagram Take Over for Pom Pom Quarterly to kick off some special celebrations. I can't believe a full year has gone by since releasing Take Heart: A Transatlantic Knitting Journey. We're celebrating the first anniversary by hosting a Take Heart KAL which is happening now on Ravelry. Head over there to see the details on how to join. It's running till January 2nd, 2017 so there's still plenty of time to participate! 

I thought I'd share my photos from the Take Over on here as well. You can always find Pom Pom on Instagram at @pompommag and my personal account at @fiona_alice_. I am so pleased I could share a little bit of my home, Nova Scotia, with Pom Pom's followers. Thanks for lovely comments! 

Hello Pomcats! I'm Fiona Alice and welcome to Nova Scotia! I'll be taking over the Pom Pom Instagram feed this weekend as Pom Pom and I are getting ready to celebrate the first anniversary of my book Take Heart: A Transatlantic Knitting Journey, which was inspired by both the Canadian and British landscapes. Nova Scotia is known for its varying coastlines so here's one of my favourite places, Duncan's Cove. Make sure you join in with our Take Heart knit along and tag your posts #takeheartkal and stay tuned for more pics from me @fiona_alice_. 

Hi it's @fiona_alice_  again with my #takehearttakeover of the Pom Pom account this weekend. Be prepared to see a lot of grey over Pom Pom's Instagram feed this weekend; it's my favourite colour whether natural or dyed. Luckily there's a never ending supply of beautiful greys along this rugged coastline, and Nova Scotia's overcast and rainy grey days make the perfect excuse for staying indoors to knit.

If you have a copy of #PPQ18you might recognise this design. Here's Kaali from this year's autumn issue. I couldn't resist using more of Elisabeth Beverley's Plant Dyed Cashmere, grey of course. Plus a few golden threads by Temaricious to match Nova Scotia's late autumn palette. The temperature is starting to drop here so the cozy cashmere is inviting to slip on cold hands. Stay tuned this weekend for posts from me @fiona_alice_ as I share more of my photos.

This is Fergus, my cat, knitting companion and biggest distraction. He constantly competes to be the softest grey item in my hands. To give him a run for his money I dug out some of @toft_uk Aran Alpaca which has been sitting in my stash for the past three years. Fergus loves alpaca and approves this yarn choice so I'll be casting on, just in time for the #takeheartkal. I feel like there is only one project this yarn is destined to become. 

Putting my @toft_uk Aran Alpaca to use and slowly working on #takehearthat. This pattern was originally launched 3 years ago in Issue 7, Pom Pom's Winter 2013 Issue. It's still one of my favourite patterns, and I love to see it knit up by others. I'm selfishly knitting this one for myself.

You can often find me knitting or with my laptop, here at Seven Bays Cafe in Halifax's North End. Thanks for letting me share a little piece of my knitting world with you this weekend. It's wild to think one whole year has gone by since releasing Take Heart: A Transatlantic Knitting Journey. I would not have been able to do this without your support. I can't wait to see where my next knitting journey will take me! Please keep sharing your projects with me, #takeheartkal - I love to see them. Signing off with much love, Fiona Alice.

Since Christmas is around the corner, Pom Pom put some very exciting knitting kits together. The Border Mill has graciously released a special yardage of their Alpaca Tweed for this. There's enough to make the Chester Basin hat and mitten set. Head over to the Pom Pom Shop to see the gorgeous colour combinations! I definitely wish I had more of this yarn in my stash. 

Photography: Pom Pom Quarterly 

I was also lucky to be invited back as a guest on the Pomcast last week. You can listen to Sophie and I catch up and discuss what has happened since releasing Take Heart. It has been an amazing year that just flew by but I'm getting excited about new plans to come in 2017. Here's my newly finished Take Heart hat, the project that started this all and just in time for the snow! I love seeing the project photos that knitters choose to share, please continue! I'll have a little treat for my followers here on the blog this week, a little thank-you for your love and support.