Eco-Friendly Symbols

I've created cute little symbols for each of the eco-friendly categories.
What do you think?

vegan
animal friendly
dye free
dye friendly
organic
low carbon footprint
fair trade

I've also started creating the category and yarn pages. I've done a wee bit of sleuthing into a database, and it turns out that the web host I'm using offers phpMyAdmin. I have a book around here someplace on how to use that… I guess I should dig that out and start reading.

I'd much rather be knitting though!

Fall is coming along…

All the yarns for the Fall 2010 line have now been chosen and purchased. I await the delivery of the 2 final yarns for the 2 projects that I have yet to begin making. The 2 projects currently in-the-works are coming along well, and should be finished within the next 2 or 3 weeks.

In order to have the fall line debut in August, I'm planning on having a photoshoot in July. So far, things seem to be working out according to that timeline.

My biggest concern is getting a database set up for the patterns on the website. I'm clueless, and would rather not rely on my basic html and php knowledge to do this, which my happen for the first season. However, I hope to get the database set up before too much time goes by, and the website is filled with too much information to transfer it all easily. If you have any suggestions for how to do something like this easily, I'm all ears!

Sneak Peek

The designs for the Fall 2010 debut line are moving along well. 2.5 of the 6 projects are completed. Here is a sneak peek at one of them!

Why *Knits* is in the name…

I'm working on coming up with 6 or 7 new designs for Fall 2010—trying to keep it equal between knit and crochet. I enjoy them both equally, so it seems only natural to do both. I'm planning a photo shoot for July or August, and crossing my fingers that I'll be able to make all the projects before then…

So, I suppose you'll be wondering why something called *Caterpillar Knits* would be including crochet projects. Well, I'll tell you:

The name Caterpillar Knits *came* to me. It wasn't something I sat down and pondered about for days. This name has been with me for years, and it's been waiting for the right opportunity to present itself.

During a camping trip in the summer of 2007 there was a moment while I was doodling in my sketchbook—I remembered something I read in Ram Dass's book, "Be Here Now". What he wrote was: "You can't rip away caterpillarness". Meaning our lives have a path, and a destined speed at which that path is traveled. It's not possible to force a caterpillar to become a butterfly any faster than it's going to happen… just as it's not possible for us to force anything to happen in our lives any faster than it's meant to—thus, you cannot rip away caterpillarness.

On that day, while doodling in my sketchbook, what Ram Dass said was interpreted in my head as "You can't rip away caterpillar knits". Of course, at that time I thought it was funny, but the Freudian slip has stayed with me and morphed into something meaningful. It goes along with my previous posts about being true to myself and honest about what I do. Caterpillar Knits represents that… therefore, the name cannot change to be politically correct and include crochet. I've thought hard about this… thinking of changing it to Caterpillar Stitches, or Caterpillar Designs… but they just don't hold the same meaning to me, and that's what this venture is all about–being true.

So, I apologize if having the term *knits* in the name offends any crocheters out there. Believe me, that wasn't my intention. I love crochet equally, if not more than I love knitting, and I mean it no injustice by omitting it from the Caterpillar name.