"Who's Caryll", you ask?
I, Caryll Ann McConnell (formerly Bilbao but now single once again), have had a lifetime's love affair with fibers and the spinning, dyeing, fabricating, fashioning, creative challenges of the Textile Arts. My grandmothers taught me to knit and needlepoint as a child. As a teenager I developed a love for hand weaving. I was a Fine Arts major in college (Utah State University) with an emphasis in Textile Design which exposed me to a wide variety of textile art forms and their creative processes. I also studied photography and art history. With this era's new technological advancements I've come to love electronic knitting machines and computers as well as hand knitting, dyeing, felting, and various means of fabrication.
I homesteaded on Sandy Creek in the Lemhi Valley of Idaho in 1980 (whew, time does fly when you're busy). My ex-husband and #1 carpenter, Frank, and I had worked since then building my dream home which I designed. My newly renovated Knitting Cottage is finished! Finally a space dedicated to my equipment and fibers alone, which incidentally, has freed up a lot of personal space in my home. It has taken me years to achieve my dream and now I am living it! Come see before and after images here.
I started Caryll Designs in the early 1980's, selling hand dyed silk scarves and painted t-shirts at crafts fairs across the northwest. I started spinning and knitting my own home grown woolens then using original one-of-a-kind garment designs. I realize I don't have many of my original designs to offer here partly because there is so much available by other designers that I can't resist knitting! I have every intention of offering a few more originals when I find the time. Meanwhile enjoy some of my original patterns on the Gallery page.
I am now offering some of my favorite yarns and fibers for textile enthusiasts. Come share my fiber and knitting addiction. This is a One Woman Show! Enjoy and come back soon as I'm continually evolving...
Recommended by Tarzan, knit swatch tester extraordinaire!
