Breaking the silence here on the blog feels pretty good considering I’m finally revealing the new design I did a countdown to.. and then kinda lost the samples of and didn’t have photos of.. you get the idea. I thought I had everything put together and I didn’t. Note to self: make a list and check it twice. ;)

So here we are! I’m really pleased to introduce you to Travelog, a design I created in 2016 and then let sit in my project bin for far too long. I must admit that after such a long hiatus from designing and releasing patterns, when I went to publish the pattern on Ravelry last night, I found myself nervous! I couldn’t believe it because I used to release patterns fairly regularly, and I didn’t think much about it then.. Maybe because I put so much work into creating a new feel for this pattern, as you’ll see in the formatting when you purchase it and download it!

On that note, I will be curious to see what y’all think of the new sort of style I’m going for with my pattern layouts. Without giving away too terribly much, I will just mention briefly that I wanted to create a sort of journal feel using fun bits of art to enhance the feel of the pattern. You’ll have to download it to see what exactly that means. ;D (here’s a tiny sneak peek from Instagram in case you missed it)

Also, a huge shout out and thank-you to my unofficially-adopted brother Vaughn for taking these photos of my design and making it look so pretty (and keeping me from looking like a total dork, yay)!! These photos are really special because we got these on a grey day in downtown Senoia, GA when he came into town from Idaho, where he lives. I hadn’t seen him in a couple of years, so it was great seeing him and getting to meet his lovely girlfriend for the very first time (and he met my boy for the first time and has given the handshake of approval). Vaughn is a wonderful photographer, and his skills and the fun backdrop really did my design justice, as I’m sure you can agree.

Traveling is one of my favorites—seeing new places, meeting new people, tasting new foods, and capturing it all with my camera. I love the experience of it, the lasting memories that enrich my life and change how I see the world, and even myself.

I had wanted to create a design with a traveling cable for a long time, but I never got the right mixture of yarn, color, textures, and style. But then I got a gorgeous skein of Fiber Seed while at TNNA one year, and it told me what it wanted to be. The stitch definition really pulls out the contrast between the stockinette and reverse stockinette and compliments the cable nicely, which is what I’d been hoping for.

I was really excited when I was able to knit both a hat and a cowl out of a single skein of Fiber Seed’s Sprout Worsted. It is a slightly larger skein than most, so perhaps two skeins might be needed in other brands.

Through December 7th, make sure you use the code FOLLOWTHEMAP for 40% off this pattern and ALL of my other patterns on Ravelry!

Happy Knitting, and I hope to see you again soon!

Annie oxo