I've been so busy, what with trying to finish my project for Big Girl Knits 2 and planning for our family's pending move to Italy*, that I almost forgot:  the fall Knitty will contain one of my patterns, for a pullover.  Woohoo!  Of course, I can't say much more than that, but I offer this photo as a hint. *Travel bulletin:  I've been on a dozen flights in the last 3 months, both transatlantic and within Europe, with both metal dpns and circs, and with not a peep from a single security checkpoint.

I doubt that anyone but myself has noticed that I wrote a post chastising the writers of Big Girl Knits for subtitling their book "Projects Shaped for Real Women with Real Curves," and then turned around and happily accepted a commission to design a garment for the sequel, BGK2.  Still, I feel a need to justify this decision--if only to myself.  I wrote my earlier post because I was offended by the implication that I'm not a real woman, simply because I'm not a Big Girl.  I submitted a design for BGK2 because it was a great opportunity for me to get my work published; I mean, what comes first, putting food on the table (figuratively speaking--if my income was feeding my family, we'd be pretty darned hungry right now), or salving my wounded pride ("You won't get a sweater design out of me, Jillian & Amy--so there!")? And then, when my design was accepted, I bought Big Girl Knits, to have a clear idea of their design philosophy and to make sure my finished pattern fit their style.  And I have to say, it's a damn good book.  In fact, you should buy it!  (I'm not just saying that to boost their sales and make sure there is in fact a BGK2--really.)   Okay, if you're not a big girl, perhaps you don't need to add it to your knitting library, although sections about proper fitting and choosing flattering shapes will apply to anyone.  But I was impressed:  it's humorous and no-nonsense, and it contains a variety of attractive and original patterns.  This "Sandy Cardigan," for instance, designed by Emma Crew, is constructed ingeniously to allow you to use your favorite self-striping yarn, while at the same time creating a slimming silhouette. And finally, I have to admit that if I was a Big Girl, I'd be pretty annoyed at the preferential treatment given to thin girls in our society.  (But I'll repeat:  real women come in all shapes and sizes!) 

I was thinking that my visit to Milan would yield photos of tempting and imaginative knit confections, so I was surprised that several afternoons of  window shopping yielded only three (3!) windows containing any knitwear at all (and not much crochet, even though that seems especially big in the U.S. this season).  Pictured is the best of the bunch, if you can believe it.  Knitwear designers, if we want to keep the popularity of original knitwear high, apparently we aren't going to get huge amounts of help from the Italians.  Or maybe come fall those windows will tell a different story--I hope so. Oh, and the post title?  Checked my e-mail and found out that my two pattern submissions to Knitty were rejected.  And in the time it took me shake myself, hard, and tell myself to get on with it, I got another e-mail, this time accepting my pattern submission for Big Girl Knits 2.  HOORAY!