3 February 2012 · 5 Comments
Have I explained sample cards to you guys? They’re rather nifty, and not something I knew about until I started designing. I just got another one in the mail, so I thought I’d take advantage of this shiny new addition to my drawer of goodies and tell you about them.
So we all know that hanging out at yarn stores is the best way to find great yarns. You can see exactly the color and the structure, you can pet the yarn, you can even sniff it if that’s your thing. But no one yarn store can have every yarn (except maybe Webs…I think they’re working on it, but they’re also far far away from me), and even if a store has yarn from a particular company, they may not have every color and every base.
But sometimes when you’re working on a design, you really need to lay hands on the yarn you’re thinking about using, or to see just how fuzzy the fuzzy yarn is, or to figure out if that pink will really look good with that brown in the real word. This is where sample cards come in. They show a little bit of each yarn and each color that a company makes. It’s not a huge amount of yarn (a few inches each, not enough to knit a swatch with), but it’s absolutely perfect for really getting a feel for the color and texture. It makes it much easier to decide which of the 14 thousand light brown fingering weight yarns out there is the right one for a given project.
This latest batch is from The Rare Yarns Company, a New Zealand manufacturer a friend recently introduced me to. Sample cards are especially useful for yarns with interesting texture like these that can be hard to fully appreciate on a computer screen. I’ve got a few lovely skeins that I’ve got great plans for!
17 January 2012 · 2 Comments
A bit of careful planning (taking into account geography, lunch plans, your recommendations, and other scheduled events) led to the conclusion that there was time to visit two yarn stores. I knew I wanted to revisit Romni. I’d been there back in 2007 when I was a very new knitter, and to be frank I’d found the whole thing more than a little overwhelming. I wanted to go back and see if it felt different now that I had a bit better grounding. I had been to Lettuce Knit before, but hadn’t visited Purple Purl, so I decided I’d try something new and make that the second one.
We started at Romni. Well no, we started at breakfast so as to be properly fortified for our journeys. Then we went to Romni. I splurged on rather a lot of Fleece Artist / Hand Maiden. I justify it by saying it’s Canadian…so it’s fitting to get in Toronto, right? I got three skeins of Fleece Artist Woolie Twist (they’re the ones with the handwritten tags), and one of Hand Maiden Silk Twist. Neither of these were bases I’d seen in stores around here, and both companies have color that is so variable from skein to skein that I try to only buy their yarn when I can actually see what I’m getting. So it seemed like a great chance to pick up a bit of something new.
Over at Purple Purl, I fell prey to the charms of two skeins of Tanis Fiber Arts DK weight (it’s actually a bit greener than it looks there…not sure what’s up with that) and one skein of Malabrigo Arroyo. It totally stunned me, but I actually bought it in a fairly pink sort of color. I normally make funny faces at pink, but this one was singing my name, so I gave in. We’ll see if the appeal lasts, but for now I’m smitten.
Oh, and as further proof of the fibery nature of the town, I grabbed a shot of this wee sculpture as we wondered around. If the internet is to be believed, it’s called Uniform Measure/Stack and was created by Stephen Cruise in 1997. That’s a stack of buttons, topped by a thimble. In case it’s obscured by the snow, on the ground around it is a giant yellow tape measure. There were, alas, no knitting needles, but it still gets high points for textile awareness.
22 September 2011 · 4 Comments
An exciting thing happened yesterday. The nefarious scoundrels lovely employees of the customs office released one of my packages and the saints of fed ex brought it right to my door. In that package was the very last of the projects for Book the Second. That means that I currently have all 20 projects, finished, washed, blocked, and tucked safely in the box.
This is a very good thing, as the planning meeting with the photographer is next week (eek) and the photoshoot shortly after that. To mark the momentous occasion (er, and because I’d been meaning to do it for a while now anyways) I’ve got the final yarn previews for this book
On the left is Three Irish Girls Beckon Stretch Merino in the color Burke. Now don’t be confused by the word stretch in the title. It seems to refer to the way the yarn is spun, not from the fiber content. It’s 100% superwash merino and quite versatile.
On the right is Three Irish Girls Adorn Sock in the color Padraig. It’s a lovely sturdy sock yarn with 20% nylon. And as always, Three Irish Girls’ colorways are totally delicious.
And now that I have all the projects in, I might do a few teaser shots (sort of what I did last time) and finally come clean about the theme and structure of the book. In a few weeks…once I’ve had some time to pet all the pretty wooly things.
19 August 2011 · 2 Comments
I know. Trust me, I know. That’s an awful lot of pink. There are even pink blotches in the background (that would be my rose bush, the most neglected and most prolific rose bush you’ve ever seen…and no it’s not blooming now, I took all of these pictures one evening in June and have just been posting them as I go along ever since). I don’t normally do pink. But for these two, I’ll make an exception.
On the left is Hazel Knits DK Lively in the color Cotton Candy. It’s a 90/10 merino nylon blend and it is magical. It’s wonderfully round and bouncy. I’m more or less convinced it’s the perfect yarn for just about anything. Thick socks, snuggly hats, sturdy mitts, even (if you’re that type of knitter) sweaters and baby goods.
On the right is Hazel Knits Piquant Lite in the color Chocoberry. This is another 90/10 merino nylon blend, and it is absolutely perfect for socks. It’s got nine tiny little plies (similar to Handwerks’ Super Sock Plus 8 or Dream in Color’s Everlasting) which makes for fabulous stitch definition. It’s also nice and skinny for those of you who like fine sock yarn.
I was lucky enough to visit the Hazel Knit booth at Sock Summit. Seeing all that yarn in one place was pleasantly staggering (and yes one came home with me). I also got to meet Wendee, and she is an absolute delight. I’m thrilled to be using her yarn in the book!
9 August 2011 · 1 Comment
You thought I’d forgotten, didn’t you. I didn’t, and there are more than six sets of yarns in the book. I’ve just been a wee bit busy. But I’m sneaking back in to add in the next of the book yarns. There are three more after this one.
On the left is Sanguine Gryphon in Traveller in the color Ireland. It’s a lovely, smooshy, 4-ply merino. It’s marvelously lofty (and so warm), and Sanguine Gryphon’s colors are splendid as always.
On the right is Sanguine Gryphon in Bugga in the color Oleander Nymph. Bugga was one of the first merino, cashmere, nylon blends I ever encountered and my love for it is unending. It can more or less do no wrong.
7 August 2011 · 3 Comments
I always feel a bit of a need to apologize for the yarn that I buy. I feel like I should justify it or explain it or excuse it. But really, that’s silly. This is my business, and it requires yarn. So I bought some. I have a suspicion you might like yarn too, so I thought I’d share it with you. And just so you know, Barry is not generally allowed on the table, but I was feeling guilty about having been gone, so I couldn’t bear to shoo him down.
The picture gets alarmingly big if you click on it, so if you’re trying to squint and see which yarn is which, you could just click instead. Unless noted, all of this came from the market at Sock Summit.
First up, four skeins from Plucky Knitter in her MCN Primo base (two orange ones in Sticky Toffee on the top left and two gray ones in Barely Birch on the top right). Plucky Knitter was a new-to-me dyer and she had fabulous semi solids. This is a nice heavy sock weight yarn, just the sort of thing I love. The gray ones are destined to be guy socks, and the orange going to be all mine. I might just do some little bit of colorwork with the two together if I have enough leftovers.
Next up, two skeins from Solstice in their Midsommar Sock base (one sage green in Sea Mist on the bottom right and one sandy beige in Hay on the bottom middle). I think Solstice is the yarn line done by the Portland yarn store, Dublin Bay. The Midsommar sock is a merino, cashmere, silk blend that I’ve not seen before and am looking forward to trying. I also picked up a skein of my old favorite, Casbah (in the color Peridot between the Solstice skeins), by Handmaiden in their booth.
I also snagged two skeins of Grinning Gargoyle’s Seda DK (both dark gray in Storm on the bottom left). This is a 50/50 merino silk blend in a nice fat base. The Boy picked out the color, and these will be socks for him. I had the pleasure of meeting Lynae at Silk Retreat last year and am just delighted she and her yarn were at the Summit.
A skein of Kitchen Sink Dyeworks Smooth Merino Fine (the gray one peeking up the middle there in the color Dexter) also followed me home. This is another of those bases with lots of tiny plies (like Wollmeise or Dream in Color Everlasting) and I tend to love those beyond all reason. I have a suspicion this one will be no different.
Also new-to-me was Ancient Arts Fiber Crafts and her 4 Ply Sock Weight (the green one on the far right in the color Enchanted Forest). Caroline is an amazing spinner and spinning instructor (the lovely spinning goodies first lured me into the booth). But she’s also got a tremendous eye for color. I’m not sure if this will turn into socks (the yarn is a bit thinner that what I like for socks) or something else, but I’m pretty sure it will be lovely.
And, in a break from the rather subdued color palette of the other yarns, I picked up a skein of Anzula’s Squishy (the purple — yes purple — one at the top in the color Boysenberry). This is another merino, cashmere, nylon mix (it seemed everyone had at least one) and the color is just lovely.
The final marketplace yarn is Hazel Knit’s Entice (the slightly more subdued orange one at the top middle in the color Hazel Knuts). I knew I loved her yarn going in (it’s going in Book the Second after all) but seeing it all in one place made me a bit weak in the knees. It’s seriously nifty stuff.
I also swung by one or two yarn stores as we wandered around Washington and Oregon after the Summit. I usually managed to resist (I’d just done the Sock Summit market after all, any yarn store would be hard pressed to compete with that), but I found one little treat that needed to come home with me. We stopped into Canvas Works in Olympia Washington. It was an absolutely delightful store. They had great yarn, fabulous fabric, plenty of space and light, and a very welcoming staff. They even assumed The Boy knit too rather than assuming he was there to either fund or carry my shopping. While I was there, I found Manos del Uruguay’s Serena. I got three skeins (two gray ones in the color 7311 and one multi-colored one in the color 6976R, all in the top right corner). This is a 60/40 alpaca cotton mix, a blend I’ve never seen before. The gray ones will become a hat for The Boy, and the multi-colored one will likely be a pair of outrageously cheerful mitts for me.
The final set of goodies didn’t come from a yarn store at all. In Port Townsend, there is a building called Victorian Square. It’s home to a variety of lovely little stores including Diva Yarn & Trim. Last time I was there I picked up a bit of yarn. This time, it was the bead store, Wynwoods Bead Studio, that I couldn’t resist. I grabbed a few strands of beads (I blame Laura…she’s totally a bad influence) and some interesting cord-y…stuff that I plan to play with. I’m not quite sure what it will all turn into, but I have an idea or two I want to experiment with.\
So, what should I cast on first?
7 July 2011 · No Comments
School work is chugging along at a respectable clip. I’m a bit more than half way done with the project, and a bit less than half way done with the available time. As long as this proportion keeps up, I can stave off panic. I’m even managing to get the occasional bit of sleep and maintain socially acceptable levels of personal hygiene. So since I have a minute, and since I’m feeling the need to at least see yarn even if I can’t currently play with yarn, I thought I’d swing by with another bit of book yarn.
On the left is Sweet Georgia Merino Silk Aran in the color Cayenne. This is a 50/50 silk merino blend with a marvelously sproingy 8 ply structure. It strikes just the right balance between lofty and smooth. The silk makes it super soft, perfect for next to the skin wear. One skein (170 meters) is enough to make a hat or a little neck wrap.
On the right is Sweet Georgia Silk Crush Sock in the color Deep Olive. It’s also a 50/50 silk merino blend. It might seem like silk is too delicate for socks, but it actually works beautifully. It’s wonderfully strong and is great at maintaining a comfortable temperature. The wool helps the yarn have a nice memory and ensures your socks aren’t saggy by the end of the day. Together, they make a sock yarn that is both practical and indulgent.
And, as always, Sweet Georgia’s colors are both saturated and subtle. The silk makes them seem almost to glow.
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