Hello and welcome! I’m Holly Chayes

I help makers, thinkers, builders, operators, creators, etc. implement solid containers for creative chaos, and functional systems for sustainable momentum, all in aid of making a life or business you love. 

Right now I’m working with people and businesses in a couple capacities… 

Business

Business coaching and consulting for small businesses ready to dig into the practicalities of what’s next.

When you’ve graduated from mindset-only to mindset+ 

When you’ve built something that functions but doesn’t flow yet.

When you’ve outgrown and overrun what used to work.

Whatever your stuck, we can get you moving on to what’s next.

Learn more and get in touch here

Individual

Life and clothing magic for individuals who thought they would be more prepared for this moment.

Personal or professional.

Once in a lifetime or every day.

A surprise or something you’ve been working towards for years.

Whatever this moment is, we can get you ready for it.

Discover more here

Projects

 
 
 

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Birds of a Feather Tam

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15 Oct 2010
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The Birds of a Feather Tam is now available for purchase as a download, for $4.00 either on Ravelry, or directly through the blog buy clicking the buy now button.

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A surprisingly simple knit that combines colorwork and lace, to create a wreath of sitting birds, and a star of feathers. Knit in worsted weight yarn on size 6 needles this hat knits up surprisingly quickly, even with the lace and the colorwork.
Originally knit to be smaller, and simply perch on the head, this pattern includes instructions for a slouchier version as well. The band of ribbing around the edge means that this tam will stretch to fit most head sizes, even though it was originally designed for a 22” head.

 

This tam has options for a slouchier version, as well as a more fitted version.
This pattern only includes charts, and not written out stitch patterns.

Yarn: 220 yards (201 m) total of Valley Yarns Colrain or another worsted or aran weight yarn
120 yards (110 m) of the main color
100 yards (91 m) of the contrasting color

Needles: 1 set of US size 6 (4.00mm) DPNs
(optional) 1 US size 6 (4.00mm) 16″ circular
(optional 1 set of US size 8 (5.00mm) DPNs

Notions: a dinner plate or pot lid for blocking over
(optional, but recommended) 8 stitch markers

Gauge: 5.5sts/inch; 7 rows/inch on US size 6s, in the round, in stockinette stitch

Size: 22″ diameter (though will stretch to fit a wide variety of head sizes)

Skills Used:
casting on
reading charts
weaving in ends
knitting and purling
color work (either fair isle or intarsia could be used)
working in the round on DPNs
working in the round on circulars (optional)
yarn over
knit two stitches together
slip, slip knit

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Hey Look! It hasn’t been a month!

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12 Oct 2010
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Only a week. But it’s been a very busy week.
Last week I had 5 projects on the needles. This week I have 6, and lots of progress on lots of fronts.

Liesl has seen the majority of my time this past week. I’ve had lots of “I need to sit and think” moments, and lots of “I need a few minutes to decompress before I…” chunks of time. Those stolen moments, combined with my boycott of yesterday, means that Liesl is currently 9 inches past where you set aside stitches for the sleeves. I’m hoping to have this sweater hit mid-hip-ish, so that means I’m going to work for another 6 inches or so before binding off.
I found out yesterday that I’m going to be at Rhinebeck this coming weekend, for Sunday only. But this means that Liesl has become my Rhinebeck sweater, along with being my first wearable sweater, fingers crossed. (I felted the first sweater I ever knit for myself before getting to wear it. We don’t talk about it very often) So Liesl has been receiving almost all my attention lately.
But only almost, I have worked on other things. (Told you this week was busy).

Bella is past the garter stitch base, and I’m only a row and a half away from being done with the first section of the ruffle. I think I’m going to take this to Rhinebeck as walking around knitting, and hopefully make lots and lots of progress.

That scarf I mentioned in the last post? The one that only needed a few tweaks before casting on? I also needed to buy needles for it.
So I bought the needles, I tweaked the charts, I cast on.
Then I ripped it out, tweaked it some more, and cast on again.
Lather, rinse, repeat a few times.
I’m finally through the first repeat and a bit, and I’m going to rip it out and cast it on once more. I’ll probably do that before this weekend so that I can take it for car knitting on the way to and from Rhinebeck (I’m not driving).
At the moment I’m calling it Gothic Spires, as it’s got some interesting lacy columns and spire action going on in it, but if you’ve got any suggestions I’d love to hear.

Even Icy Fields got another round and a half added to it. While this doesn’t seem like a lot, please keep in mind that as of right now each round is about 1,000 stitches long and takes forever. On the plus side I’m about 12 rounds from the end. Next is some sort of crochet loopy bind off, and I’ll be done.
After I’m done I’ll probably hid the rest of this yarn for the next few years, or maybe just trade it (or give it) away. There’s nothing wrong with the yarn (Knit Picks Alpaca Cloud), I’ve just had it in my life since 2007, and will have knit 2 completed shawls, (and one ripped out shawl) from it. There is also only so much grey lace that one person needs.
Now that I’ve said all that, right after I bind off Icy Fields I’m going to cast on some more grey lace. Just watch.

Walk in the Woods, and Celtic Forest haven’t seen any progress at all. Celtic Forest is still sitting in the closet as of this writing. I need a good block of time to work out the kinks in this pattern, and I just haven’t had the time yet. Maybe this week. Maybe.
There’s no reason I haven’t worked on Walk in the Woods other than I’ve been distracted by my new and shinier projects. But I’m planning on taking this along to Rhinebeck for car knitting as well.

Once I get a few of my current projects off the needles I have two more projects waiting in the wings to be thought out and swatched. The cowl that I mentioned in the last post, and another pair of fingerless mitts.

I’m hoping to have the pattern for Bird of a Feather released soon (tomorrow???). I just need to tweak a few things to make one of the charts easier to follow, but after that it’ll be ready to go.

This has already gotten longer than planned and I feel Liesl calling, so I’m going to go work on her, and hopefully have a new sweater soon. Fingers crossed.

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Ruffles and Lacy Leaves

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05 Oct 2010
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This is going to be a bit of a whirlwind post where we’ll fly at light speed through what’s on (and off) my needles in an attempt to get everyone caught up on what I’m knitting. How does oldest WIP to youngest WIP sound to you?

First off we’ve got Icy Fields. I’ve showed this on the blog before, and I haven’t really touched it since August, so it doesn’t look any different. Bad designer, no cookie.

Next up we’ve got the four Crisscross Caps. All of them are off the needles and ready to be washed and photographed. I feel a large-ish photo shoot coming up soon (not in August this time around. Yay!)

Celtic Forest is currently hiding out in the closet until I can get a free afternoon and beat the second half of it into submission. This is a sideways knit lace shawl, with a band of cabling along the neck edge.

The braided cabled and ribbed mitts for my sister’s birthday are done and gifted. Now I just need to procure another skein of Cascade 220 superwash, to whip up pair for myself, and maybe tease out the matching hat.

Walk in the Woods is a lacy scarf without clearly distinguishable motifs, but that still invokes an afternoon of walking through a forest in the Northeastern United States. Down the center of the scarf there is a lace leaf, but that blends into the much more organic trees on either side. I seem to have leaves on the brain a lot these days. I’m guessing it’s the cold weather that we’ve been having.

And now the baby of my knitting family. Bella is a skinny little scarf knit side to side, with a small(!) ruffle along it. And at just about 12 hours old, this morning, I’m feeling confident in the direction she’s headed.

I’ve also got another scarf that only needs a few tweaks before casting on, and the yarn for a cowl waiting to be swatched.

The pattern for Birds of a Feather Tam is almost ready to be released. I’m just waiting for one final test knitter to finish, then I can proof the thing, and make it available to you.

Now I’ve got to get ready for my day, so I’ll edit and post this later tonight.

(And right before heading out the door this morning I cast on Liesl by Ysolda Teague. I’m faulting the sudden cold for this bout of startitis.)

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