I adore stripes. Stripes are simple, effective, and quirky. Stripes bring life to an otherwise dull pole or piece of street furniture.
I think that the KnittUps! do stripes really well:

Images courtesy of the KnittUps!
While digging into the stash and coming up with colour combinations on the fly is fun, there are a few tools that I adore on days when I’m feeling stuck.
The Random Stripe Generator. An oldie but a goodie, the random stripe generator lets you pick approximate shades of yarn, and how many rows you would like the stripes to be. It then spits out a pattern for knitting or crochet. This is such a fun tool to play with. It really helps you visualize how your project will turn out.
Here is a stripe that I made this morning:

A few tools that I use as a graphic designer really help me with my knitting. I adore Kuler. Kuler is a social community where folks can create and post their own colour palettes (which then can be directly imported into graphic design software such as Adobe Illustrator). Even if you are not a graphic designer, it can be a fun site to hunt around when you need to feel inspired. Who would have ever thought that they would need a palette inspired by Blade Runner or sushi?
Similarily, Color Lovers is a social community where folks contribute articles on historical colourways, trendy hues, and up and coming prints.
Have you used any of these tools in your work? If so, I’d love to see the results!
Tags: colorlovers, kuler, Random Stripe Generator, stripes

Great tips and tools, thanks. Chair and Bike are FUN!
mm.. I love kuler, but then have to go fetch the amazing colors that aren’t made yet… bugger!
oooooh….that stripe generator rules!!!! thanks!
as do the fine stylins of the KnittUPS. cool
I love stripey stripes too!! – the work of KnittUPS looks fantastic, cheers for sharing this! x
That random strip generator is the best thing ever! Thanks.
Also your blog is fabulous. Definitely stick it in our Stitch and Bitch London newsletter.
Magda Sayeg came along to London and did a bit of guerilla knitting last week. Thought you guys might like to see the results.
http://purlinterrupted.co.uk/2009/02/21/london-guerilla-knitting/
Keep up the fabulous work.
Deadly Knitshade x
Deadly Knitshade – what beautiful photos of tagging! And Magda! We’ve chatted with her on Skype, but haven’t had the chance to meet her in person yet. I’m jealous!
Thanks. It was sooooo much fun. I’m sure you’ll stitch up a storm with Magda at some point. She seems to travel very well with her bag of knitted grafitti goodies.