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Giveaway: ColorSense

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colorsense giveaway

Chris is the winner!

This week’s giveaway is not a knitting book, but it is a book that might help you become a more adventurous knitter.

Choosing colors for a project can be really daunting — I read somewhere once that something like 40 percent of knitters not only choose the same yarn used in a pattern, but the same color, too — and you don’t want to spend a ton of time knitting, say, a Fair Isle sweater and end up not liking the colors in the end.

ColorSense: Creative Color Combinations for Crafters by Susan Levin aims to make picking colors a less painful process for crafters of all types.

It covers the language of color but then goes through a ton of options, from monochromatic combinations to two-, three- and four-color palettes. What’s really cool is that each color combination is shown on a two-page spread with a bunch of little swatches showing how the colors look together in different combinations and with different backgrounds, which makes it easier to literally see what you like so you can re-create that look in your project.

The book also includes punch-out cards of different colors you can use when planning your projects and take to the yarn store with you so you’re sure to get a good match. There’s also a color wheel with multiple shades of each color for easy reference.

This book is a whole color system that will really help you make better color choices and know that you’re going to love the look you end up with, in a knitting project or anything else you make with multiple colors.

If you’d like to win this book, leave a comment on this post before the end of the day Sunday, Dec. 18. I’d love to know about your comfort level with choosing colors. I have to say even though I’ve written a book on color knitting, I still tend to stick to tried-and-true color combos. But they’re classics for a reason, right?

Thanks for visiting, commenting and sharing, and good luck.

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Comments

  1. Now this is a book I could really use! I hate it when I spend a lot of time on a project that doesn’t delight me the way it did when I imagined the finished object. Nowadays I tend to be quite conservative choosing colours because I can’t afford to buy yarn and then not like the end result 🙁

  4. I tend to stick to the same colors – jewel tones of sapphire blue and ruby red and emerald green. I would love to learn how to combine these with other colors or branch out into pastels.

  7. Thanks for the giveaway. My color sense is probably average. I like to play with paint chips, sometimes trying to match colors of fine arts prints.

  9. I need to learn to like other colors, yellow, brown and pink are never my first choices so I have to learn more about color combos and no-no’s…

  10. I tend to second guess myself a lot when it comes to choosing colors. It sounds like this book would be the perfect resource.

  11. I’m very fortunate. I have crafty friends who have shown me color combinations that I never would have thought of on my own, such as purple and yellow.

  12. I need to be a lot more adventurous with colour combinations; tend to stick with those that “go” rather than those that contrast.

  14. I’m not very adventurous when choosing colour combinations, I stick to a few tried and trusted ones!

  15. I love choosing colors that are outside the box. Love playing with combinations. These turn out to be fun! Although sometimes I get stuck. :0)

  16. I would love any help I can get to learn about color and putting them together. I know what I like when I see colors together but I’m not always sure how to get there on my own.

    Thanks for a chance to win. HappyHolidays!

    usairdoll(at)gmail(dot)com

  18. Thank you for doing this giveaway! I take a long time choosing colors so it would help me to be able to see what works best together to shorten the time it’s taking me. ????

  19. Unfortunately, I am that person who only makes things in the colors shown. This is so limiting, since I can’t picture this “gray” blanket in anything but gray. I have color wheels, things that show me matching colors or complimentary colors, but nothing seems to work. Those gorgeous things that people make where each row is a different color always come out looking like yuck for me.
    -Hangs head.- I’m just not good at this.

  20. I like to choose complementary colors most of the time, but always on the lookout for unique color combinations as well.

  22. As someone who is clearly in the 40 percent that chooses the same colors that are used in the pattern, I would find this book very helpful. Thanks for this opportunity!

  23. Choosing color combos is one of my weakest points. I tend to stick with basics and gray… This would be awesome to win. Thanks for the chance!

  24. When I choose colors, I generally just go with what appeals to me. I try not to get too hung up on color theory. You can also generally just meaner through a store and see the latest trends of colors.

  26. Thanks for the nudge about choosing interesting color combos. I’ve tried carrying paint chips to the yarn store but then have to change my ideas when I get there and they don’t have the colors/weight/fiber content I’m thinking of. Would love to put together my own mini skeins to try out some projects.

  27. This book sounds amazing! I believe that ANY crafter would love to own this book! The color palettes can apply to any type of coloring medium and I would love to check it out! Fingers crossed that the color crazy Crafting Goddesses grant me this wish! Thanks for the chance to dream in color!

  32. I don’t seem to have a lot of color sense. I just know what I love when I see it! Obviously I could use some help in this department.

    from winter-white VT,
    the Vermonster

  34. Wow, I would like to win this book. I just finished knitting 15 scarves to donate to the local Women’s Crisis Center and looking at them I realized they are pretty plain and hopefully this book can help me. Thank you for the opportunity to win it.

  36. Having a better color sense will help in all of the projects I work on, from knitting to quilting to embroidery. Every little bit of new knowledge helps.

  37. My sister has to go clothing shopping with me because I seriously do not know what colors go together….and I am over the age of 50!!!!! It’s even worse when I try to find yarns that will go together. If it’s a skill, I didn’t learn it. If it’s ingrained in our nature, my neurons are screwed up. This book might even be able to someone like me!!!!!

  38. This book is a great prize! It will surely be invaluable to those of us with tons of odd skeins waiting to be pulled together into beautiful combinations, and also for those of us who love dying our own yarn colorways. I’ve failed at both, believe me. Thanks for the giveaway.

  39. What a good idea. I find that choosing colors is the hardest part of any project which leads me to stall many a time. Please count me in as well. Thank you.

  40. I’m a gardener and a flower lover, so I try to use plants and flowers to find color groups. I would love to learn new ways to find and combine color choices.

  41. I love to try new and daring color combinations, but I’m not too color coordinated!! This book would really help me out!!

  43. So I used to be quite bold and adventurous with color in regards to my wardrobe but very conservative and hesitant in regards to my knitting. Recently, however, it’s switching around and this book would be invaluable to help me take that leap into daring color combos in crafting. ;p

  44. I need help being more creative with my color choices. I am never sure how far to go beyond “normal” choices.

  45. I am awful at choosing colors and this book sounds like something I could use, not just for knitting but for all areas in my life!

  48. I’m comfortable with choosing colors. If I like the color scheme then that’s the only important thing!

Have you read?

Knit and Felt Some Tabi Style Slippers

The felted slipper craze that began last year doesn’t seem like it’s fading away. The Sailor Slippers, often striped knit and felted slippers made with super bulky yarn, because the project of the moment late last year (check out more knit slipper options in this post all about sailor slippers) and they’re still consistently popular with knitters.

Which makes sense because they are fun and fast to knit, and seeing them go from this giant thing to something that actually fits a foot feels a little magical. 

I have always loved felting (in fact my first book was about felting knitting) and it’s always fun for me to see people rediscover this technique. 

If you’ve knit enough plain slippers to fit all the feet you know, maybe it’s time to stitch up some tabi style slippers instead. 

Maymade Knits has designed these cute tabi ballerina slippers, made with bulky yarn and felted. They’re worked flat at first and then in rounds, and are available in 10 EU sizes (the Internet tells me add 31 to your American shoe size to get your EU size). The designer says the slippers are meant to have a close fit and you should choose a size a little smaller than your foot for the ideal fit. 

The pattern includes a video tutorial along with the written pattern. 

You can grab this pattern on Ravelry. The same designer has her own version of the striped felted slipper as well, called Sarah’s Striped Slippers. These are worked in super bulky yarn and have a contrasting foot and a striped body. These are knit flat and seamed and there are 7 size options available. Check that pattern out here if you’re looking for a more traditional slipper shape. They also look roomier so you can wear them with socks if you like. 

[Photo: Maymade Knits]