An Introduction and an invitation!

Hi! I'm so happy to join this KAL, since I tend to only work on original designs and haven't seen another KAL that tempted me!

I've just started to publish my own patterns for sale at my local yarn shops and online, along with creating my podcast, Christa Knits, which is all about emerging designers! Learn more at http://podcast.christagiles.com and let me know if you'd be interested in recording yourself talking about your design process for the podcast :)

The piece I'll be working on as part of this KAL is a sweater (or cardigan) for myself, out of a wonderful yarn, English Tweed by Gedifra, in a deep yummy forest green. I'm hoping to make it a fairly fast knit (once I put down the rest of my design-for-work projects) so I'm thinking about trying steeking, just so I can work in the round to have the right side facing and do mostly knits (I knit continental, and purling is a bit slower), and then potentially graft on the front band, as I've already knit two looong cabled bands (one started out as a swatch, but then I decided that I liked the randomness of the cables, so I copied it for the other side). I'll do the sleeves in the round, too, up to the armpits, then join and do raglan shaping for the sleeves.

Oh, a bit more personal stuff about me: I'm 34, I live in Vancouver, BC, Canada, I work as a knitting instructor, designer, and p/t in a yarn shop located 15 minutes (walking) away from my house. I also teach hoop dance with giant, adult-sized hula hoops, coach waterpolo, and teach lifeguarding and first aid courses. My favourite things to knit are hats or bags for instant gratification and a small-scale canvas for cables and other texture patterns, or stranded colourwork.

Nice to meet all of you!