Wednesday, May 31, 2023

Life Jackets

Mr. Canpar brought in boxes today with a huge restock of Lang Linello. 

These two colours are new to the store.

This is from my post in April.

The pattern is called Easy (purchased on Ravelry). Diana started it on Saturday evening and finished on Tuesday. We used one ball of Lang Linello (colour 54-which is on back order from my supplier but more will be coming). If you want the scarf bigger then you will need 2 balls.

Shawlettes in garter stitch are my favorite: They look great in a colorful yarn, they are squishy and warm your neck, and they are so easy to knit that even beginners will enjoy making them.  

This shawlette is named “Easy” because it is just that: So simple to knit, but the biased construction and change of knitting direction will bring out the best of a multicolored yarn. It is long and skinny and can be wrapped around several times, or tied with a knot – and it uses only 459 yards of fingering weight yarn. 

Length: ca. 200 cm (80 inches), Depth ca. 24 cm (10 inches) 

You start in one corner and knit a long triangle until 50% of your yarn is used up. Then you change the direction and modularly add a second triangle (no seaming required) – and you have made a colorful addition to your wardrobe!

Diana and I talked about the needles and decided on 3.25mm. You might want to use 3.5mm - it will depend on how tight you knit. We didn’t want a loose knit for this scarf. It’s a personal preference.

Some people have been concerned because the pattern asks for more yardage than what is on a ball of Linello. We made our scarf a bit smaller than the designer and used the full ball. The pattern asks you to work 1/2 way through your yarn and then the pattern changes. You can make the scarf as big or as small as you want. You can knit the scarf in whatever yarn you want. Just do a swatch to see what needle size you like.

Last night the dogs tried on their life jackets. Jackson had one on as a puppy but not since then. He wasn’t sure what was happening.



Bosch wasn’t too sure. He loves swimming around the boat but it’s been a few years so he might have forgotten why he had to have this thing on.


Just a reminder about my trip to Chicago. This is to see yarn and accessories for fall.
This trip was planned pre cottage. I’m heading to Vegas for a few days. June 10th is Heritage Days and it’s always a slow day in the store. I was coming home on Tuesday but there could be a Stanley Cup final game in Vegas on Tuesday. I changed my flight so I could be there for the game. If I can get a ticket I’ll go to the game. Otherwise I’ll hang out outside the arena which is at my hotel. My hockey jersey is already packed.
I was about to hit Publish but something told me to check my email. Atenti shipped us bags today. These will be here in a week or so. Once they make it through customs I will put them online. 


Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Embrace

Mr. UPS brought in a huge box from Emma’s this morning.

Everything is available online. Tomorrow I will unpack the box. 

While I’m going through the box I will be thinking about a new project. I need cottage knitting.
Photo © Andrea Mowry
This is Andrea Mowry’s Embrace Cowl (pattern purchased on Ravelry).

Embrace combines the brilliant and trusty combo of fading and garter stitch to create the perfect cowl. And with sizes for both kiddos and adults - it’s perfect for gift knitting!


This cowl is a fun and engaging knit that is knit sideways, twisted one half turn and seamed to close.

YARN REQUIREMENTS  

These are just approximations. Total yarn usage will depend on the yarn you use (fiber content, ply, etc.), your personal gauge, and any modifications you may make. 

12 mini-skeins of Fingering weight yarn to create a fade (20 g/88 yds/80 m) 
Total approximate yardage per size: 180 (203, 220) g/792 (897, 968) yds/725 (820, 886) m

This is a free pattern from Cascade. The Fuego Poncho is knit in Cascade 220 Superwash Grande.


Today was spent at the bank getting the money order for the cottage. Then I had to drive across town to another bank to deposit it. I think that is how the rest of my week is going to be. Before and after work there are errands to do and packing to be done.

Monday, May 29, 2023

Lucy at the lake

This was the first picture Beth sent from the marina.

Lucy can sniff out water.
The fishing poles made the trip. Dad and Beth spent some time fishing this afternoon. Lucy didn’t go into the water at the cottage. She couldn’t find the perfect spot for getting into the lake. Dad thinks we might have to move a few rocks - she didn’t like the sandy section. She is one fickle dog.

There is a new colour of Hedgehog Tweedy coming soon. The Hedgehog order could be here next week. This is Moonlight and it is available online for preorder.

This is Electric Sheep - a free pattern from Hedgehog that uses three colours of Tweedy. The grey isn’t available to us but we have great colours in stock.

Striking three colour shawl using Tweedy, our environmentally friendly, recycled tweed yarn. This yarn is non-superwash with a woolier feel. It blooms beautifully after washing and only gets better with age for a truly heirloom piece. 

The instructions may seem wordy, but the shawl is not too difficult to knit once you get started!





Connemara, Noir and Bliss
Lullaby, Noir and Barley

I think Undyed (the original Tweedy colour), Black and Moonlight will be stunning!!

In my post yesterday I totally forgot to thank everyone who donated to Ancaster Community Services. I have an envelope to deliver with $430. Penny’s name was drawn for the Rowan knitting kit. I’ll call her tomorrow with the great news. We were way too tired on Saturday afternoon.

Sunday, May 28, 2023

What a great day!

Thank you to everyone who visited yesterday. We had a great day. The parking lot was full of shoppers! The weather was beautiful - we couldn’t have planned it any better.

Thank you for your patience with the technical problems we were having. The line took a bit longer than it should have but everyone got their yarn.

The last thank you is to Lynn, Beth and dad for helping set up and then schlepping the leftover yarns back into the store. I have a lot of work to do on Tuesday. We threw bags and boxes everywhere. 

I’m home with Jackson and Bosco tomorrow. Dad, Beth and Lucy are heading up north because the boat is being delivered. They are going out to the cottage to take a look while they are there. Dad informed me that the fishing rods are in his truck.

We are very excited about Emma’s Yarn Smalliday sets coming this fall. There are lots of advent sets online but none of our suppliers make them. I can’t wait. There are so many patterns on Ravelry for advents sets.

“Smalliday Sets” are Emma’s version of advent sets. She calls them “Smallidays” because the idea is you open one “Small” a day for the first 25 days of December! Each of her 2023 Smalliday Sets includes:

  • 25 unique, individually packaged, and numbered “Smalls” – available in “Practically Perfect Smalls” (sock weight) and “Simply Spectacular Smalls” (DK weight). All 25 colorways were developed specifically for the 2023 set.

  • Love + Leche “Sweet Sheep” Lotion Bar in a custom, wintery scent

  • “Emma’s Yarn” logo sticker (NEW addition this year)!

  • “Emma’s Yarn” pin indicating Sock or DK set (NEW addition this year)!

  • Insert with fiber content and suggested patterns for both knit and crochet (Laura Nelkin is designing a new pattern especially for these sets)

    … all wrapped up inside an “Emma’s Yarn” logo cotton project bag (ethically sourced from Work + Shelter)

I am going to sit down and get the sets online this week for preorder. 

All we can tell you is…. this year’s set is all semi solids with speckles in bold, beautiful brights that you’ve come to expect from Emma.

I needed easy knitting this week so I have been working on my Temperature Blanket. I pulled it out a month ago and then got behind again. I need to pick up the pace. It’s time for the pretty colours.

Friday, May 26, 2023

See you at 9am

New colours of Practically Perfect Sock are on the way. These should be here by the beginning of June.


We will have more colours of Suri Silk, more Theme Packs and the June Crazy Beautiful Colour.
Emma’s shared this picture on Instagram. The pattern is called Tropical Dilemma and you can purchase it on Ravelry. The shawl is knit with one Theme Pack.

We (okay Lynn) went through the Cascade 220 yesterday and took all discontinued colours off the shelf. There will be lots outside tomorrow at $10 a skein. There aren’t many colours with sweater quantities but there are lots of colours with 3-5 skeins. Think Andrea Mowry’s Douglas Cardi.

I think we’re ready for tomorrow. We’ll see you at 9am. If you can’t make it right away, don’t worry. We have lots of yarn. You won’t miss out.

Wednesday, May 24, 2023

Sun Spot

Laura Aylor has a new shawl pattern. You can purchase the pattern for Sun Spot on Ravelry.
This garter stitch shawl with a lace edging is the perfect showcase for a beautiful set of coordinated yarns. You can also knit in a single color or raid your leftover bin. Construction begins at the center back and radiates outward and downward in 5 sections.


I have knit a few of Laura’s patterns and highly recommend her designs. The patterns are well written and easy to follow.

We found many more balls of Classic Elite Silky Alpaca Lace. These will be $5 a ball at the outdoor sale. The money collected from the sale of these balls will be given to Ancaster Community Services.

The balls are individually packaged in plastic bags because they will fall apart when handled too much. We’ve lived that nightmare in previous sales - strands from balls are knotted together and it’s like a Survivor challenge to get everything untangled. 

Lynn counted and we have over 50 balls. What a great add to your stash.

One ball will make Churchmouse Yarn’s Bias Before and After Scarf.



The yarn is lace weight. Did you know that if you double strand lace weight you will have fingering weight? You could use two strands of Silky Alpaca Lace with one strand of fingering for the Stephen West shawl that I showed yesterday. Or you could use four strands of Silky Alpaca Lace. Imagine the marling you could get.
This is Stephen West’s Melting Mark Scarf.
Photos © Stephen West
Stephen West’s Melting Marl Shawl.
This was a quick picture as we were leaving. The box from Floops arrived today. Preorders will be shipped out tomorrow.

The Della Q restock. We have work to do tomorrow.