I take environmentalism and sustainability seriously. Very seriously. This isn’t a fad, or some trend I’m cashing in on. It’s the reason I went to school for fashion design, a big reason why I went vegan, why I started my business, and a major part of who I am today. As I began developing new garments this season I looked around at all the yarn I had left from Spring and felt incredible guilt for taking part in such wastefulness.

I am a professionally trained fashion designer. In school you learn how the industry works, and how things are “supposed” to be done, for example you do at minimum two seasons a year with different fabrications, silhouettes, and color palettes each season. When I started Treewool I didn’t question this method, it seemed to be working just fine for everyone else. Well, it’s not working for me. I have pounds of yarn left from the summer that don’t work for my newest designs, so there it sits, and I don’t know what to do with it. I could order less in the future, but I am learning that this business is incredibly unpredictable. I go through slow spells, and then get hit rapid fire with orders. My suppliers just aren’t fast enough if I need yarn in a pinch.

So, I continued on to do a Fall collection, but decided to go smaller and only created accessories to help keep you fine folks cozy through the winter. I will be taking preorders this time so that I can better gauge how much yarn I should order. Meanwhile, I am working on a new structure for my collections. I envision myself releasing one larger line a year, but we’ll talk more about that later.

Anyway, thanks so much for reading. I hope you love the new items in the shop, and who knows! There might be a few surprises throughout the season for you.

Don’t forget to visit the shop! All preorders of $50 or more through next Friday the 23rd at 11:59 p.m. will qualify for 30% off with the code FALLKNITS

So what’s going on for Fall? I have scheduled the photoshoot for this weekend and am knitting like mad to get my final samples ready! Once the shoot is done I just have to get everything up on the website. Be on the lookout over the next week or two, and of course I’ll update the here when everything is ready.

Here are some teaser photos while you wait.

And don’t forget, Treewool will be booth #64 at Capsule on September 18th in the San Francisco. I’ve attended this design + craft festival a number of times over the past few years and always love it. I’m so excited to be a part of it this year! I’ll have the new Fall items, plus anything left from Summer with me. Hope to see you there!

I drove to Sacramento with my boyfriend who also had a table at the festival for FARM, and my awesome ladyfriend Megan who kept me company at the booth and retrieved iced coffees as necessary. It was about 90 degrees in Sacramento, so there was  a lot of iced coffee.

Here I am with the booth (and walrus paintings!)

This is Megan looking adorable in her Chloe Vest keeping an eye on things.

It was fun, and I’m excited to do more events in the future. If there’s a festival, or some sort of craft fair you think Treewool should attend please leave a comment and let me know!

Don’t forget! Tomorrow is the last day to get 20% off using the Chic Vegan discount code!

Another project that’s been eating up my time is Treewool’s gorgeous new website! It’s got an online store, and shopping cart, and everything! Didn’t the web designer do a fantastic job? If you’re a devoted Etsy lover then don’t worry, the shop is staying open.

Chic Vegan wrote up a great post today, and there’s a great reader discount included. Go have a look and maybe use that coupon to help break in the new web store.

And finally, did you know that Treewool is donating $1 from every purchase to Farm Animal Rights Movement for the Summer collection? Take a look at our write up in the Meatout Monday’s Newsletter!

So what is it? Fine! I’ll tell you. No more vague tweets or mysterious blog posts…

Here it is! A peak at my line of handmade vegan knitwear. The spring/summer collection consists of 6 garments and accessories made up of  fine fair trade organic cotton and soft luxurious linen.

For right now everything is up for sale on Etsy, but I will be moving over to a real website with a shopping cart and everything in the upcoming weeks. Even this blog will be getting a bit of a makeover! And there’s more! The entire line will be available at Never Felt Better Vegan Shop in Sacramento so keep a lookout if you’re in the area.

And you know, I am just feeling so excited and generous that I want to offer all my readers who have stuck with me throughout the last few months a special discount for opening week! Please enjoy 20% off all orders now through Sunday by using the coupon code TREEWOOLFRIENDS.

Please take a second to “Like” Treewool Vegan Knitwear on Facebook and follow TreewoolVegan on Twitter to keep up with new collections, discounts, and other happenings.

And the cupcakes! Wow!  Everything was so tasty, I wish we could have bought extra cupcakes after we sampled everything. I would have happily taken home one (0r 12) of everything. Starting from the very bottom and moving clockwise we have: Inlaw Cupcake (double chocolate and coffee), Lime Raspberry-inthemiddle Mini Cupcake, Cardamom Cupcake with Strawberry Jam and Basil Buttercream, Peach Melba Cupcake, Pastel de Tres Leches Cupcake with an adorable little palette cleanser to the side, Rhubarb Apple Cupcake with Burnt Sugar Drizzle, and a Blueberry Surprise Mini Cupcake.
 It was truly difficult to pick just one winner.  Everyone who entered should give themselves a pat on the back for being so talented! But choose I did.

A big thanks to RPCC to putting on such a great event! I’m already looking forward to next year.

Which of these flavors do you think would have been your favorite?

I’m really happy with it! As far as I know, there isn’t really a book of rules regarding proper machine knitting construction (my knitwear design classes at school don’t even use books), so I just kind of winged it and hoped for the best. I learned a lot in the process of making this little cowl, and I really pinpointed what I can do better, or more efficiently next time.

The linen yarn and lace detail make it the perfect accessory for unpredictable West coast climates, or anywhere you might encounter and unexpected breeze or chill in the air during the summer.

Right now I’m trying to work out the logistics of designing more complicated pieces like hats, vests, or tank tops on my machine. When I figure it out I’ll let you know!

I recently treated myself to Julie Hasson’s new book Vegan Diner and have been eager to try some recipes. Even though it feels so wrong to be making soups and stews as the rest of the country eases into the first weeks of summer, I can’t help but crave comfort foods when the weather gets so dreary. So, I decided to try the recipe for veggies and dumplings.

I really enjoyed this recipe, and it was so easy to put together!  I can’t wait to try more from this book; I have my eyes on the  the mac-and-cheese, reuben, and Philly cheesesteak sliders for future meals.

I refuse to completely abandon hope that warm weather will come to San Francisco. If it doesn’t, I’ll never get the chance to wear the Comment (Norah Gaugah Vol. 6) tank I’ve been working on for the past week.

After knitting Watershed I had decided I wanted to work something a little more mindless for awhile. It’s a lot of stockinette.

Luckily, I had just enough Knit One Crochet Too 2nd Time Cotton in my stash for this project. If you’re not into subbing you’re in luck, the pattern calls  Berroco Bonsai (97% bamboo, 3% nylon) which is a vegan yarn!

So that’s about how my life has been since finishing up the semester. A lot of cooking, knitting, and glancing wistfully out the window wishing for warmer weather. What are your summer plans?

I am very happy with my choice of the hand dyed Blue Sky Alpacas Organic Worsted Cotton, it really makes it a wonderful little layering piece for the summer. I can see myself wearing it over tank tops and dresses for the next few months.

The lace and scalloped edging isn’t as hard as it looks, just be prepared to work in the lace pattern on both sides!

Overall, I’m quite happy with how my Watershed came out. I would even consider making another as a gift sometime since it’s a fairly quick and inexpensive project, but still looks impressive. I think it took me about two and a half weeks from cast on to weaving in ends. Not bad!