Noro! The new Noro Knits Accessories book is in and has really nice projects ranging from beginning to advanced. There is plenty of Noro in the store to add with the book too.
If you have never knit with Noro yarns, try it. They are the ones many other yarn companies try to copy. No one else can quite get their colors right. They are a joy to knit with. There also a couple of smaller Noro books available as well.
The newsletter is going out today and I have put most of January and some February classes up. Also please remember that next week is the deadline (Dec 14th) for getting your hats and mittens in for the homeless children. We've gotten some hats and scarves, a few mittens would be good too. And you get an extra gift registration when you bring something in. I will be drawing for these on the 15th. I've decided to spread the wealth with several smaller gifts rather than one big basket. So your chances of winning are better.
This is a free Plymouth pattern - originally intended for DeAire - one of their new yarns. I did it in Baby Alpaca Grande Glow (yes there are sparkles) and it is wonderful. It was quick and took two skeins.
Also in is the new Noro Accessories book. It will not be on sale on Black Friday - it likely will even be out by then anyway. It is REALLY GOOD! It's what I will be knitting from tonight....
since I have blogged...
Here is a picture of two partly done June Secret Scarves (Done in Koigu).....There is still a bit of room in July's Secret Scarf classes - Monday July 11, and Saturday the 16th.
And I have been dyeing lately - silk mostly but some yarn too....The maroon yarn in the top of the pic is made so that it fades from dark to light as you knit. It was an experiment so there are only 4 of them, but it has some possiblities...
The greens and blues are sparkley yarns, chunky/heavy worsted baby llama glow and also Sterling by Kraemer - fingering weight yarn with silver in it.
Then there are these
These shawls and scarves are for sale now.
I have been dyeing silk scarves and also silk to spin - there are a pretty good number of silk caps and hankies that can be spun or even just knitted.
Have I mentioned there is new yarn.......Kauni Effekt is here. It is a Danish yarn, beautiful colors of self striping fingering weight wool. I would say one of them is mine but I also ordered myself a Cristel Seyfarth shawl to knit- Autumn Masai. I have my work cut out for me but it is one of the most beautiful designs (all of hers are) I have ever thought to attempt. Wait til you see it. I can easily order them but don't keep them in stock. They come complete with the beautiful colors of yarn already wound into cakes and you make "magic balls" of the colors and start knitting.
And just to remind - we are closed Monday July 4th so have a great holiday!
Oops one more thing...I just made this crocheted scarve out of Noro Taiyo sock yarn - love love love it. Started it Friday, finished on Sunday and it took only one ball. I have had a couple of inquiries about a class for this or a pattern. This was an adaptation of one I saw in a book - I don't carry the book - it is in Japanese but if you have it or get it I can help you decipher the charts and you don't have to learn to read Japanese.
The It's All Lynne Vogel's Fault Pile. I mean this in the best possible way. I recently read through the Twisted Sisters Sock Book again and immediately went and spun some sock yarn. It is a three ply yarn in superwash merino and I did them on size 4 needles so it is pretty tight and hopefully will last a long time. I have only some cuff to go on one sock and I already love them even if will be too warm to wear them soon. And you would never guess from the look of the fiber it would be like this, but surprises are good in spinning.
Then there are the little entrelac pieces....I saw some of Lynne's tiny entrelac done in hand spun singles and loved that too. So I recently decided to try some. The purple one is on #4s, the green/blue is on #0s. In my memory hers were even smaller.... These will grow up to be little cowls that I can wear in the summer even (always cold...) For some odd reason it didn't occur to me to change the yarn and work from the other end to have more control of the colors - at least not until I was part way through the second piece. But I am okay with letting them be what they are.
In the process of knitting these I have fallen in love with Entrelac (I once said never again). It is way easier when you can knit it both directions. (there'll be a class for entrelac this summer). So I am starting another one this week in commercial yarn - it'll be bigger, with bigger blocks just because everything else I am knitting right now is on tiny needles. I also want to knit more socks so I have another bit of superwash handspun yarn I did at the same time - it is next. But what this means is that the first thing on my dyeing schedule for when the weather gets better is superwash fiber for spinning.
We're Open - we will be closing an hour early - at 4. As for tomorrow I'll just have to post in the morning. I am pretty sure that if we get everything they say we will that at least the hours tomorrow will be shortened. Isn't it all pretty?
Here's some things I've been doing
This is a sweater I started last January and then put away when we did the Olympic Knitting projects. I dug it out in December and now only have the collar to finish. And it fits and I will get it done today to wear tomorrow. This is Lite Lopi, very warm. The pattern is in The Best of Lopi and also I think in book #18.
And this is the second Travelling Woman Shawl I've done since the week before Christmas - I had it done on Christmas but didn't get it blocked til yesterday. I really love this pattern (purchased on Ravelry) and have two of them. The yarn is from my stash and its 100% Alpaca from Italy. I could knit three more - it was easy and took only three days and in worsted weight makes a luscious shawl
I have only half a dragon paw mitten done. I didn't blow up the pattern on the copier until Friday and it was completely horrible to knit before that since I couldn't really see the lines to count stitches.....now it is better but I have to get back to it. It will look completely awesome I know - I am using black Cascade 220 sport and a ball of mini mochi. So far there is only fuschia colored dragon feet and tail....
This weekend I went to the Sewanee Studio Tour thing and Lynne Vogel was doing all this amazing stuff with her tiny spun singles with active twist - weaving and knitting entrelac and it was really beautiful stuff....but I came back and decided that weaving even with commercial yarns in lace weight might be fun and pretty and I was right. Here's what is on the loom right now
It is Alpaca and Tencel hand dyed by Fiesta yarns. It is shiney and soft and light as air. I have enough in one skeing for at least two scarves - so I think the second one will be woven with some mohair and silk lace weight yarn in a solid color - Kid Seta I think will do well. I might get the chance to spin up some singles tomorrow and use them in something interesting too.
And with the recent shipment of Farmhouse Yarns came more of Andy's Merino - a yarn that is totally irresistable for me. It's a slightly felted single ply yarn, and butter soft. Here's s cowl in the works.
I am still trying to decide how big it'll be - if I stop now I can also get a pair of hand warmers out of the leftovers. Cause after yesterday's icey cold temps I have decided it will be months before I ever leave the house without a hat, handwarmers or mittens and several layers of wool on my body.
And at the Studio Tour in one place was a maker of the most amazing hand made books I have ever seen. Each was unique, covers carved from wood and embellished in truly creative and thoughtful ways and superbly bound with cotpic binding. Her name was Nancy Wallace - I wish she had a website but she doesn't. But I had to mention her because they were truly awesome examples of bookmaking. There were some really great artists exhibiting everywhere but these two really stood out to me.
