Change is good, right? I’m not sure if you can tell, but there’s someone new writing our blog! And let me tell you, it’s a welcome change for everyone involved. Jordana is much more fond of making things pretty (she’s a designer after all) and would rather leave the writing for someone else.

Enter me, the writer. My name is Rebecca and Jordana has asked me to introduce myself. I’m stoked to be writing for her blog, as I am an author at heart, and I adore fashion, art and being crafty in general.

I grew up in Minnesota where I worked in the newspaper industry for a few years. After decades of complaining about winters, I decided it was time to move to California. Santa Cruz was the right choice.

Since then, I’ve been writing for magazines and corporate blogs, but working for Jordana is by far the best. Writing about fashion, knitting, design and crafts? Marketing beautiful (and functional) purses as well as patterns? How can you go wrong? I hit the jackpot.

One good thing about Minnesota cold: You *had* to have lots of jackets and hats.

When I’m not writing here, I blog on my personal site, have my nose buried in books, collage, and make new things out of old clothing (a stained angora sweater turned beach bag is my personal favorite).

Guess what? I don’t know how to knit. I’ve always wanted to learn and Jordana is going to teach me. I am so excited! Occasionally I’ll report on how it’s going here, but you can find me on Ravelry and Twitter for the latest.

We’ve also got some new ideas for the blog, so definitely check back. One of the new features will be coming in the next few weeks, and it’s all about you, Jordana Paige fans. I think you’ll like it. And I definitely like feedback, so leave comments if you’re ever inclined. It’s nice to meet you all!

Last night I invited some friends over to the loft at JP Headquarters to teach them how to knit. There were lots of us so I was grateful to have my sister there to help teach. Even guys showed up. Way to go guys! I got them started on beanies which will be donated to “Beanies of Hope.” It’s a project to provide beanies to young adults who are homeless in Santa Cruz. The winter months are cold and a beanie is such a simple, quick project to make a difference.

Speaking of cold, we were very. As you can tell from the pictures of everyone bundled up, the loft is cold. I have a few space heaters, but blew a fuse early in the evening so we were only able to have one on. Plus, the warehouse is too big to heat the entire space and the walls aren’t insulated. Everyone was a trooper though, despite their cold hands.

If you’d like to donate some beanies to Beanies of Hope, you can mail them to PO Box 1361, Santa Cruz, CA, 95061. They’re being collected until February.

Beanies are a great project for using up random yarn from your stash. Below is a pattern for a basic garter stitch beanie. I wrote it so that you can use whatever yarn you’ve got lying around. This pattern is knit flat because I was keeping it simple for brand new knitters, but it certainly makes more sense to knit it in the round. Just be sure that instead of knitting every round you alternate between knit and purl rounds.

Basic Garter Stitch Beanie

MATERIALS
• Depends on the weight of the yarn, but around 150 yards
• Needles
• Darning needle

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Circumference: 21 inches
Length: 9.5 inches

INSTRUCTIONS

Knit a swatch to determine gauge. Multiply your gauge stitch for one inch by 21. Round up or down to the nearest ten. Cast on this number of stitches.

Knit all sts until piece measures 7 inches.

SHAPE CROWN

To shape the crown you’ll be evenly decreasing 10 sts on every odd numbered row. In the example below there are 90 sts to begin with. Decrease in this manner until 10 sts remain.

Row 1: K2, k2tog, *k7, k2tog, repeat from * to last 5 sts, k5. (80 sts)
Row 2 and all alt rows: Knit all sts.
Row 3: K2, k2tog, *k6, k2tog, repeat from * to last 4 sts, k4. (70 sts)
Row 5: K2, k2tog, *k5, k2tog, repeat from * to last 3 sts, k3. (60 sts)
Row 7: K2, k2tog, *k4, k2tog, repeat from * to last 2 sts, k2. (50 sts)
Row 9: K2, k2tog, *k3, k2tog, repeat from * to last 1 sts, k1. (40 sts)
Row 11: *K2, k2tog, repeat from * to end. (30 sts)
Row 13: *K1, k2tog, repeat from * to end. (20 sts)
Row 15: *K2tog, repeat from * to end. (10 sts)

FINISHING

Cut yarn leaving a tail approx. 20 inches long. Using a darning needle, thread the yarn through the stitches on needle. Slide stitches off needle and pull tight. Fold beanie in half. Sew seam and secure. Weave in loose ends.

There’s a loft space at my warehouse/office that was occupied by another tenant. I’ve been eyeing the space ever since I moved in. It recently became available and I snatched it as fast as I could. Now I could do the responsible thing and use the space for additional product storage or for my tradeshow displays, but I really don’t want to be carrying boxes up and down the stairs.

The answer, a cozy little spot to hang out with friends. Yesterday the family came and we fixed it up. My dad built a railing because it was too dangerous. Wouldn’t want a friend to reach for a ping pong ball and fall off the side.

There’s still some finishing touches needed, but the major stuff is all done. I love before and after pictures, so here ya go.

I felt like I was on a home makeover show yesterday. Us ladies bought all the furniture while our carpenter (Dad) built the railing, then we returned to clean, paint, assemble and decorate…all in 12 hours.

Although I didn’t choose the responsible route for The Loft, I can justify my choice in stating that it has provided me with some motivation. After finishing Catalina, I designed a garment for a book and then put down my needles for over a month (this is a long time for me). I’ve had no inspiration to design something new. Today, I can’t get my office work done fast enough. I just want to sit in The Loft and knit!

Do you absolutely love Jordana Paige bags and patterns, so much that you want to talk about them all day? If you do, we might just have a job for you. We’re currently looking for independent sales reps to sell our patterns and bags to yarn shops, gift shops and womens boutiques.

We’d like to hear from reps who are looking to add products to their line and also those just starting out.

To apply, send an email to infoATjordanapaigeDOTcom with the subject heading “Sales Rep”. Be sure to replace the AT and DOT with @ and . respectively. Include a cover letter in the body of the email and your resume either in the email or as an attachment. Also include what territories you currently cover, or would be interested in. Serious inquiries only please.

Nothing excites me quite like receiving a shipment of new product. So imagine my how absolutely happy I am now that Rio is sitting in my warehouse. The warehouse has never been so full, nor have I ever had so many styles in my product line. Think me odd, but I really like staring at all the boxes. It’s a physical way of seeing my little business grow. I just love experiencing every growth spurt!

I’ll be resting up tomorrow to put in a full day of shipping on Sunday. All pre-orders will go out on Monday so you’ll have your bag by Monday, October 13th at the latest. UPS tracking numbers will be available by logging into your account on Monday.