"Where my patterns at?"

So, another thing that happened over winter break was the VATmess.

VAT, or value added tax, is a very real part of most sales in many countries, and is another form of divvying up taxes and getting money to governments. Nothing new there. The "news" is that the European Union is implementing VAT on all digital purchases, not only from within the EU, but outside the EU as well.

What this means, is that those who sell digital programs, join a virtual game or group, provide an internet service, pdf, or anything that requires paid access online are supposed to collect value added tax appropriate to the country from which the buyer comes, and then, make sure it gets to the proper country's government. The EU is made up of 28 different and individual nations, altogether with over 80 different rates of taxation. It ranges from little Luxembourg, coming in at a 3% tax, to Sweden at 25%. This is a monumental request, and a monumental undertaking.

It has also effected all my friends and colleagues in the pattern industry. First of all, when you are selling to an email, it is hard to know what country the buyer comes from.  Even if I knew, I can not change my pattern shopping cart to properly charge over 80 different taxation rates. As a consequence, most everyone is shutting down their digital sales area, like I have on this website. 

All my patterns are still available at www.Patternfish.com, and on www.Ravelry.com. However, if you are from the EU, you may no longer purchase from Ravelry. Instead, the UK design website www.Love Knitting.com will be carrying all my patterns. I uploaded them all near January 1, but, bless them! They are slammed with many, many patterns to add to their website. Therefore, the finished and approved patterns will slowly filter on. 

I have checked a couple times, and about four patterns of mine were uploaded, but there was some information missing. I corrected it, and it went back in the queue to be approved.

Please show thanks and support for both Ravelry and Love Knitting for finding a legal solution to this… VATmess but going over and checking out the sites. If you are in the States, start out the New Year by purchasing one of my patterns and learning something new. If you are from the EU, please check out Love Knitting, and make a purchase there.

Thanks again for all your support in my business!

Last Week

Last week was fairly productive, despite the kids being home from school for 3.5 days. Winter has finally arrived in northern Indiana, and decided to arrive with all the usual baggage. We had sub-zero (Fahrenheit) temperatures, with wind chill reaching down to -30 at least one day. Snow, sleet and freezing rain -- and that was just yesterday!

I turned in three magazine proposals, finished a pair of mittens, wrote two patterns, and have been working through three more patterns with my tech editor and graphic designer -- both fabulous ladies. Today is a two hour delay for schools, again, but I've already been up, worked out, and gotten ready for the day. On today's schedule: one more magazine proposal to work on and turn in, and two patterns in the writing stage to finish the fiddly stuff on and three patterns in the editing stage to tidy up. Oh, and photography. I need to take splendid photos of at least four projects. Weather, could you please cooperate? I'd like to use natural light.

Sigh. All this technical stuff is NOT why I started writing patterns. But, I sure have learned a lot this past year! Looking forward to learning even more in 2015.

Sunday afternoon, I attended a Twelfth Night Spin in at MoonTree Studios, just opposite Ancilla College in Donaldson, Indiana. The nuns of the Poor Handmaidens of Jesus Christ have several outreaches in the community. One is a fabulous food education program called Earthworks. And, then, a few years ago, they had the MoonTree Studios built as a venue to explore creativity and spirituality. They have the incredible motto: Fearlessly Creating.

Sister Edith and some yarn that another nun spun. We discussed what she should make with it.

Ancilla is way in the country, not on the way to anywhere, but a destination in itself. I can't say I've been by more than twice the past year, and I'm embarrassed to say, I have never been inside MoonTree Studios before. But, that will change. What an amazing place! It is built with sustainability in mind, is surrounded by native gardens, and inside is a lovely workshop area with a weaving studio, art studio, and open areas for creating and visiting. The wooden floors have radiant heat (lovely with sock or bare feet while treading a spinning wheel).

I got to meet and chat with several active and retired nuns who were in charge of the event, or came to participate from the retirement home and nursing home facilities across the street. I took my friend Lori Cress who is an amazing craftswoman: spinner, knitter, potter, weaver. I learn every time I'm with her! And, my crafty pal, Anna, drove over from Warsaw to share in the time as well. Super fun to get my hands spinning again in expectation of a spinning retreat I am attending in two weeks. We spun; we talked; we ate. We commandeered a crock pot and created our own stone(ware) soup. We wassailed and sang to the apple trees. We carried torches and lit things on fire: a very satisfying afternoon.

How to make Stone(ware) soup: grasp the stoneware in your hand...

And, simply insert it amongst the vegetables. Cook and serve!

Anna wassailing

Lovely surprise

What a lovely surprise to get not one, but two knitting related emails last week which had my work in them! The first was Needlework Traditions email, a service of Interweave Press. In it was highlighted the new Jan/Feb 2015 "Historical Knitting" Piecework magazine.

Jan/Feb "Historical Knitting" Piecework magazine, put out by Interweave Press / F + W

I clearly remember traveling somewhere and seeing the cover for the historical knitting edition for the first time. It must have been 6 or so years ago. It had an Alice Starmore baby bonnet with beautiful, blue-based, fairisle patterning. I stopped in my tracks and bought it! I think this cover is just gorgeous as well. My friend, Carol Huebscher Rhoades wrote the pattern for these eye-catching Finnish delft blue wrist warmers and the accompanying article about the sweater tradition in Finland.

What an honor to be included in this edition! My article is the one with the large red-lettered headline: "A 3-Year-Old Crown Prince & His Knitted Sweater (and His Harrowing Escape from the Nazis)." Certainly sounds like a knitting action movie! I'm horribly embarrassed that it is over Nancy Bush's article headline. Nancy Bush is an incredible knitter historian I was privileged to meet when she lectured at the Nordic Knitting conference in 2010. Her work was my inspiration as I set into trying to research and understand a distant culture's knitting tradition. 

In fact, she will be teaching at the Trading Post in Pendleton, Indiana the weekend of March 27, 28 and 29. She will be teaching both spinning and knitting a specialized Estonian item, both of which she and Kate Larson, spinner extraordinaire, excel at. Call Susan at (765)778-3331 or email tradingpostfiber@aol.com for more information.

The second email was from Patternfish, a knitwear pattern sales company in Canada. They started carrying my patterns just over a month ago, and they featured one of my patterns on their email blast. What fun! To find my patterns there, go to the main page, click "browse our…patterns," and type "Laura Ricketts," or "Laura Ricketts Designs" into the search engine.

I'll close with the second photo from the Needlework Traditions email, which had my project photo in it. Toodles, all!

Three projects from the Jan/Feb 2015 Piecework. My sweater is the red one on the right.

A little hat surgery

It has been great to get back to work the last two days. I have completed a baby sweater, fixed a scarf, put in a submission to a magazine and finished a hat!

The hat required surgery. When I initially made it, the ribbing was entirely too floppy. But, I didn't know it until the darn thing was done and on my head. The inner dialogue begins: "Do I pull out the whole thing?" "Nah. It'll be fine." "It's not fine. I'll never wear it this way." "Do I find a big-headed friend?" I ended up doing none of those things. Instead, I did a little happy steeking.

Steeking is the art of cutting one's knit work, for the betterment of the piece. Usually, it is seen in knitting fabric in a tube and cutting it up the front to make a cardigan, or cutting slits to put in armholes. The raw edges are secured by sewing (or crocheting), and then covering them with ribbon or more knit work. In this instance, I picked up the stitches just above the ribbing and cut the old ribbing off. Then, with a smaller needle, I knit down a smaller, tighter ribbing.

It's a wee little slit

half gone

The finished product: Anna!