One week.

Well, the release for Knit to Flatteris one week away, now. Which means I have a whole slew of stuff to share with you.

First, if you’re local and want to join us at the release party in the Boston area, it would be great to see you! I have three sweaters’ worth of yarn to give away at the event, plus some other fun stuff too.

Second, if you’re online only, I have some exciting giveaways over the next week! I’ll put up details this weekend, and choose winners on release day, next Tuesday. Advance warning: I’ll be requesting a “sweater story” for entry in the giveaways. In the weeks following release, there will be a blog tour and lots of other fun stuff, so keep checking in!

Third, with only a week to go, it’s time to say farewell to the tutorials that started the whole shebang.

This is a bittersweet moment for me–I have learned so much and my life has been so much richer for having done the tutorials. I never would have begun any of this if not for the blog posts. I’ve met so many wonderful women because of them, and my life is so much more wonderful than it ever would have been without them. There are so many more women who accept their shapes and love their bodies than before. Saying goodbye to the catalyst for all of that is hard.

On the other hand, I have learned so much since starting those tutorials, and it’s a relief to see some things that really needed revision finally slipping off the radar. The content is so much more well-rounded, now. The book is a much better textbook-reference than 120 meandering pages of blog content. There are designs that act as exercises, clean slates, wonderful first-steps to try out these techniques.

I think I’ve improved my message since then, and made it more clear that I’m not some tyrannical “what not to wear” maven. I’m not interested in changing your style, your fashion sense, the way you are. I’m not interested in making you buy into some arbitrary “ideal body shape”. Your body, your style, your self, is perfect just the way it is.

I’m just trying to help you get sweaters that help you feel as gorgeous as you truly are. However that comes about, and whatever that means to you.

So I hope you’ll join me in bidding the tutorials a fond farewell–and continuing the discussion here and elsewhere in the months (years?) to come.

For those who are wondering “but what now?!”, there are still plenty of ways to get on the “everyone deserves sweaters as lovely and unique as they are” bandwagon:

• First is the book, of course. I really do think it’s like a textbook… …but more fun. (smile) I’m really pleased with the way it turned out, and I hope you will be too.
• Those who are a bit more visual might also like the Craftsy class. I think it does well stand-alone or as a great companion to the book. I can answer questions, we can interact, and you can replay and revisit as often as you like. Craftsy hits a total sweet spot on the “see it live” / “refer back later” spectrum.
• Those of you who would like one-on-one, live interaction might be happiest with my in-person classes. There really isn’t anything quite as exciting as trying on a sweater that truly makes you feel phenomenal, and hearing that little gasp of appreciation from your fellow students. There’s definitely something to be said for being right there, live.
• Finally, and of course, there is the wonderful, wonderful ravelry group. We’re nearly 4500 members strong now, and looking through the “Sweater Successes” threads and the shared projects always makes me do a little dance. So many lovely women, in so many sweaters they clearly love!

So wherever, however we connect, I can’t wait to see where the journey takes us next.

Thanks so much for coming along with me!