Reorganizing

Sometimes we lose our knitting mojo and need an easy, don’t have to think too much project. Churchmouse Yarns has reworked their Boyfriend Watch Cap with Blue Sky Organic Cotton Worsted. A great way to get that mojo back. (Yes, I’m speaking from experience. I’ve kind of lost my mojo this week and am going to knit a square for my log cabin afghan to get it back - an easy project.)

Knit this cozy, deeply cuffed cap for him—and then borrow it back! It’s handsome worn turned up for traditional sailor style, but we love it uncuffed and slouchy, too. We’ve made the ribbed cuff nice and deep so you can fold it a long way up without the wrong side of the stockinette stitch showing. Plus, this cap is a quick knit, which is great because you’re bound to be asked for more.

The Boyfriend Watch Cap is plush and wonderfully soft in Blue Sky Fibers Organic Cotton. Cotton is soft by nature and this fiber lets all that natural softness bounce right through its loose 2-ply twist! Organic Cotton Worsted—100% certified organic and environmentally friendly—has a springy-ness that’s reminiscent of wool and a fantastic range of deeply saturated colors. Pick a soothing neutral or a fun pop—and then pick another!

You can purchase the pattern on Churchmouse’s website.

You can also knit the cap with Blue Sky Printed Organic Cotton.

Created using a blend of an ink press and the artisan hand, this unique printing process creates a one of a kind hank. 

Lynn was in the store with me today and worked on displays. She worked on Organic Cotton and the colours are hanging now.

The next yarn to be hung was Loch Lomond from BC Garn. A few people have used this to knit Andrea Mowry’s Winter Beach. I think it would also work for Stephen West’s Dustland Shawl. 

A typical British tweed looking yarn. Loch Lomond is woolen spun. That means it has a nice volume and at the same time a good long yardage. This results in very light garments. The rustique look with the typical tweed nups inspires you for warm cardigans, real men’s sweaters but also for very warm shawls. And last but not least: It is GOTS certfified, that means from sheep to dye stuff, from production to stock keeping and packing, each step is inspected carefully and in line with very strict organic and social standards. 

The raw wool for Loch Lomond comes from mulesing-free farms in South America. It is spun and dyed in Turkey.

More stock will be coming for fall. 

The next yarn is Crazy. This will be finished on Monday. These balls don’t sit on the shelf nicely so we’re going to try them on hooks. 

While Lynn was hanging yarn I was adding to the website. More yarn on clearance. This is Streamers - 100% cotton cakes from Trendsetter. 

You can make an easy shawl with one cake or imagine the funky dishcloths you could make.

Take a look at the Everyday Shawl on Ravelry. If I was knitting this I would change the stitch pattern when the yarn changes colour. You will have thicker stitch pattern stripes at the beginning of the shawl and thinner at the end. It would be a great look. The balls are on for $22 so it would make an inexpensive gift.

I have been adding to the clearance page. 

Another yarn added is Cumulus Rainbow from Juniper Moon. Take a look at Watery Ripples on Ravelry The pattern says 4 balls but people who have knit it suggest 5. Someone else knit Joji’s Hipster with 3 balls on 6.5mm needles. Wow. It is gorgeous.

My hope is that all yarn will be on the shelves or hanging when we reopen - no baskets. HAHA. Who am I kidding? That isn’t going to happen but less baskets would be great.

My other job today was finishing a newsletter that will go out on Monday. This is the newsletter for people who have created an account on our website and have subscribed for marketing. This newsletter is different than the one that went out earlier this week.

Jackson says hi from Chatham. He’s doing well. Beth gets two-three emails a day with updates and videos.

Lines and Lines

Our good friend Kate Atherley has a new shawl pattern. It is called the Lines and Lines shawl and you can purchase the pattern on Ravelry.

Kate knit the shawl in a fingering weight yarn.

A big, comfy and cozy triangle shawl. A clever-but-not-at-all complicated stitch pattern provides a fantastic geometric effect, with two directions of stripes. 

The sides edges are worked in stockinette rather than garter stitch, for a more-elegant-than-the-usual look. It starts with a tab in stockinette stitch rather than garter. 

Suitable for knitters with a little bit of lace knitting experience. 

It can be easily adjusted for different gauges and quantities of yarn, the pattern instructions are specifically written for this. It would look great in laceweight or something much thicker.

The store looks like a tornado went through it. There are boxes everywhere. It’s time to make room so that yarn in the boxes can be moved to the shelves. We are going to be offering more yarn and kits on clearance over the next month. 

This beautiful wrap is knit with two balls of Trensetter Merengue. Kits have been marked down.

A 100% natural fiber with all the fun you expect from a Trendsetter Yarn. Soy and cotton come together and are then dyed with an elongated dye structure that goes from natural to a dark color. Along the way, dye splashes and color streaks create added color detail.  

Here is colour 2 in a ball and a swatch of it knit up.
The yarn is super soft and has amazing drape.

Lynn found a stash of Uneek Worsted so we made up more kits for Nightshift. They are available online.

I have talked about signing up for our weekly/biweekly email newsletter about specials in the store. There could be more in the email than what I talk about on the blog. I just tried to figure out a quick way for you to get on the list. I’m stumped. The easiest way is for you create an account on the website and then send me an email and I can subscribe you to the newsletter. I want to figure this out but 8:30pm isn’t the time to be messing around.

This newsletter just went out so if you didn’t receive it then you aren’t subscribed. 

Now I need to sit and knit for a bit. The Masked Singer is on and that will numb my brain enough for me to go to sleep. 😘

Merengue

This wrap takes two balls of Merengue from Trendsetter and is knit on 4.5mm needles. The yarn is 50% Cotton and 50% Soy. It is supersoft - perfect for a wrap. The pattern is free with the purchase of two balls.

A 100% natural fiber with all the fun you expect from a Trendsetter Yarn. Soy and cotton come together and are then dyed with an elongated dye structure that goes from natural to a dark color. Along the way, dye splashes and color streaks create added color detail. 

Here is how the purple ball knits up.

There was time spent knitting today. I would love to keep going but I need to be in the store early tomorrow. There are orders to be put together for curbside pickup. I said 10am - noon. Now I wish I had said 11-1. Live and learn.

Weaving

I have a beautiful new shawl. It was woven for me by Deborah Jarchow. I know almost nothing about weaving except to know that it is a lot of work. One day I will get a loom.

The yarn is Streamers from Trendsetter Yarns. The cake of yarn is 100% cotton with 800m (880 yards). It weighs 200grams. Deborah used 2 Streamers for my shawl.

The knit shawl patterns should be available next week.

Stephen West has a new pattern. I need to start taking a day off every week so I can get the knitting done that I want/need.

Photos ©Stephen West

Surround yourself in cozy cabled goodness with this boxy Westknits sweater. Begin with the collar and proceed to the antler cables on the shoulders. The front and back yoke are knit flat and then the entire sweater is joined in the round for the body. You can knit the body and sleeves as long as you want. Twisted ribbing frames the edges for a sublimely textured fabric. Use two strands of yarn held together like one strand of suri alpaca or mohair yarn held together with one strand of wool. Choose between four sizes and enjoy this comfy oversized sweater.

You can purchase the pattern for Extra Texture on Ravelry.

LYS Day

Saturday April 21 is LYS Day.

Local Yarn Store Day is a brick-and-mortar yarn shop appreciation day created by TNNA Yarn Group. The inaugural LYS Day will take place on April 21 and is designed to show support for small businesses while bringing together a unique community of knitters, crocheters, weavers and spinners to drive awareness and celebrate the craft.

We are coming up with some ideas for April 21. Mark your calendar and plan a road trip.

We have a great kit from Trendsetter. We have agreed that we will not sell the kit before April 21. You can reserve one or two and pick them up that day.

I saw the shawl in person at TNNA and really liked it. The yarn is a cotton acrylic blend in fun colours.

There are 2 different colour options.

There are 4 different colours in a kit.

The shawl takes 2 kits. The vest takes 2 or 3 kits depending on the size.

I would love to start selling the kit now (in the store and online) but LYS Day is an initiative to get customers out to their local yarn shop. After April 21 we can ship the kit out. If there are any left we will be taking them to the Frolic.

My flight doesn't arrive in Myrtle Beach until 9pm so I'm blogging early (it's actually Tuesday as I am writing this). I can't wait to see dad but I'm even more excited to see Lucy. I've missed her.

I've started a To Do list for Beth on the new chalk board wall. She goes in and out that door every day. How much do you want to bet that she forgets to do this?

That is very unkind (but very true) - Beth

I just talked with Steffi from Uschitita. We are hoping to see our next order in April. Maybe in time for LYS Day and if not then for the Frolic. I've asked her to include these colours. I'll remind her at the beginning of April - they are amazing!

I will blog as much as I can. I know that there are some shipments arriving while I'm gone.

The Regia Kinda Magic Sock Yarn arrived this morning.

I've gone through my check list.
-money
-passport
-credit card
-ipad
-knitting
-make up
-clean underwear

I'm good to go.

Handpainted Linen

We have a new yarn from Trendsetter - Recycled Linen Handpaint. The colours make me think of spring.

84% Recycled Linen
16% Linen

135m/150 yarns on a 50 gram hank
24 stitches = 4" on 3.25mm needles.

I am flying down to Myrtle Beach to see my dad on Wednesday so I might take a few skeins with me. Right now I'm thinking an easy, lacy scarf. Nurmilintu might be the answer. It is a free pattern on Ravelry...

The yarn is handpainted by Lorna Miser who was the original owner of Lorna's Laces.

We received an order of Addi FlexiFlips with a small quantity of each size.

2mm
2.25mm
2.75mm
3.25mm
3.5mm
3.75mm
4mm
5mm

I have a lot more on order and as they are available my supplier will be shipping to me.

New colours of tosh dk arrived on Friday so I played with combinations for the Comfort Fade Cardi (pattern purchased on Ravelry).

Beneath the Waves
Moonstone
Heuchera
Fate

I'm torn. I love the purple but the denim is calling me as well.

Aura
Mockingjay
Rainwater
Antique Moonstone

Now I need to play with the Linen. Lynn rolled a ball for me before we closed the store.