Big Important Announcement

Hello dear readers! I am so sorry I have been away the past few weeks. I have been working my butt off on a very special project that I hope you will all be just excited about as I am!

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.

Tags: big important announcement

This Blog is Under Construction

Please pardon our appearance while we spruce things up around here!

The Vegan Cupcake Off!

The adorable little boutique and DIY community space Rock Paper Scissors Collective in Oakland hosted a vegan cupcake off on Saturday! For $5 you got to sample all the cupcakes and act as an official cupcake judge. Fun!

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?

Tags: cupcakes, food, fun, oakland

Linen, Eyelets & Stripes: A Spring Accessory

I’ve been just messing around swatching and getting the hang of using my new-to-me knitting machine since it arrived. Until this week I hadn’t actually started a piece with the intention of completion. I decided to do a quick project to see what I was capable of.

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!

Winter in June – How I Stay Sane During Bay Area “Summers”

Oh, the joys of living in San Francisco. The weather is hardly ever quite right. While my family and friends living in Texas are reporting temperatures well over 100 degrees, it has been cold and raining off and on for the past week. I suppose you learn to love it, and it certainly pays off in the actual winter months.

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?

Tags: 2nd time cotton, acrylic, berroco, bonsai, comment, cotton, food, knit one crochet too, norah gaughan, recycled, recycled yarn, spring, summer, tank, tank top, vegan yarn