National Sweater Day

From the WWF website...

Since 2010, over a million Canadians have participated in National Sweater Day. Be sure to follow our blog for tips and stories as fellow knit-clad Canadians celebrate across the country.  

National Sweater Day is a fun way to learn about the importance of saving energy, and inspired you to use less heat all winter. Heating accounts for 80% of residential energy use in Canada, and is a significant source of emissions. If all Canadians lowered their thermostats by just 2 degrees Celsius this winter, it would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 4 megatons – equivalent to shutting down a 600 mega watt coal-fired power station.

This morning Beth and I went through the new house.

 The tile in my shower is finished.

The floor is down. They just finished it and were trying to wash it when we came in. Hence the footprints in the next picture.

 Going up the stairs.

What happens when you forget to bring knitting to work?

I cast on another CustomFit cardigan. Bella Lino from Classic Elite held double. This is the same cardigan that I wore at TNNA and I love it.

Mini Skeins

We received a happy box from Dream in Color today. More Classy Mini Skeins to knit the Technicolor Cowl.

With its 100% superwash merino base and just the right amount of twist, Classy is the quintessential worsted-weight yarn. The fiber content, combined with our unique dyeing process, gives Classy its deep and lushly-shaded tones, while the plied texture lends crisp stitch definition to everything from lace to cables.

Lynn and I spent some time making up kits. I know that you aren't supposed to be proud of yourself but I must say that I put together some great colour combinations. Totally different than kits that we made in the past. It was hard to walk out of the store without one of the kits. Maybe my weekend knitting :)

The basket of food for the Food Drive is starting to fill.

Sirdar

The Sirdar booth at TNNA was great. Lots and lots of models.

I love their baby mannequins!

The new yarns for spring arrived yesterday and are out on the shelf.

Beachcomber is a new yarn.
100% cotton
DK weight
140m on a 50 gram ball
Lots of patterns
$6.95 a ball

Beachcomber DK is a beautiful 100% cotton yarn, it has an incredible softness and slub texture. This lovely yarn comes in a range of colours that evoke everything for a perfect summer’s day, there are breath-taking space-dyed colours and bold, saturated shades. The Beachcomber DK design collection has designs for women and girls that will create a casual, carefree summer style, there are 8 leaflets and the ‘One Day in Summer’ book 484. Designs include summer tops which use a variety of stitches and knitting techniques to create beautiful patterns and detailing. Then for when that sea air turns slightly more brisk, there are pretty cardigan designs. As you knit with Beachcomber DK let yourself drift away to a secluded beach, where you can smell the fresh sea air.

A new baby yarn called Bubbly.

100% nylon

DK

120m in a 50gram ball

$6.95 a ball

We are thrilled to be re launching Snuggly Bubbly, a much loved baby pom pom yarn! This gorgeous yarn is being re launched with all of Snuggly’s famous softness and in 8 of the loveliest powdery baby shades, including pinks, blues, lilac, lemon, cream and white. We have also designed an adorable new collection of baby knits, with blankets, a sleep sack, cardies with matching Snuggly DK trims and the tiniest of bootees for the smallest of babies. Snuggly Bubbly literally bubbles off your needles, meaning you can have all of these gorgeous garments in no time!

There is a new book for Cotton DK.

Sirdar Cotton DK is our stunning mercerised double knit cotton, it has a subtle sheen and creates the most incredible stitch definition. We have added 4 fresh new colours to the range, Dusted Lilac, Cool Aqua, Grey Dawn and Cobalt Blue. These modern shades are perfect summer knits and we have 4 new leaflets with crochet designs for women and girls, there are long sleeve cover ups and pretty tops embellished with crochet flowers – perfect for the poolside. 

Snuggly Baby Crofter DK is the original and best Fair Isle colour effect yarn for babies and children, and we have four new Baby Crofter shades to add to the already incredible range. These new shades are pretty, fashionable shades for girls, we have Molly, a trendy teal and yellow mix, Gracie, which has soft blues and heathers, Annabelle, a fruity pumpkin and pink and Brooke, a zingy purple and lime green! We also have an adorable new design collection for babies and girls from birth to 7 years, the designs include a cute bolero, a tie-front ballerina cardie, classic cardie designs, plus blankets and tiny bootees. These new designs show off the gorgeous Fair Isle effect Snuggly Baby Crofter is famous for beautifully and are available as leaflets and in the new ’Crofter Girls’ book.

Yesterday I showed the front of Fiona Ellis' new cardigan. On Twitter last night, people were asking about the back. Fiona tweeted this picture. Isn't it awesome?

Milonga

Fiona Ellis has a new pattern out. What a beauty!! Meet Milonga

With patterning that dances this playful asymmetric crew neck cardigan is fun to knit and to wear. Left front, back & sleeves worked in simple rib patterning that transitions into zig-zag cable & eyelet patterning. Right front working in St st.

Fiona used Mrs. Crosby Steamer Trunk in the colour Spicy Habenero.

You can purchase the pattern on two different websites
Ravelry
Patternfish

When you're thinking of Fiona, don't forget about her Re-Gathering Intentions - also knit in Mrs. Crosby Steamer Trunk.

“Well, dear hearts, isn’t this the most perfect sweater to take on your travels to fun places? Mrs Crosby loves to play and so the designs using her yarns reflect this. This mock turtleneck, asymmetric cabled sweater has playful I-cord ties that give the impression that the cables spilling out of the fabric…going on their own little adventure maybe.”“It’s fun to knit as well as wear. The pattern is suitable for a knitter new to cables, as it contains only 3 simple very easily learned cable crosses.”

Steamer Trunk is 100% wool but when knit and blocked, it almost feels like cotton. The yarn is perfect for cables and textured work.

Thank you to Fiona for bringing out these amazing patterns. Thank you to Fiona for giving me a blog post tonight :) 

Mr. Canpar came with three huge boxes this afternoon. Spring Sirdar arrived. I started unpacking and hope to finish tomorrow. Beth also came with some madelinetosh (four huge boxes) from storage. We need to get the storage unit cleaned out because a huge tosh order is coming in a few weeks. The store is going to be popping at the seams soon.

2015 Knitting Camp

Today was spent working on the brochure for Camp.

Date: Thursday September 17-Sunday September 20, 2015

Location: Bayview-Wildwood Resort. Why would we go anywhere else? We love the staff. We love the food. We love the location.

Pricing: That is tomorrow's job

Instructors:

We are very excited that Kate Atherley will be back.

Kate is Knitty’s Lead Technical Editor and a seasoned designer in her own right. Her Cooperative Press book Beyond Knit and Purl has been praised for its “accessible” and “refreshing” approach to helping knitters expand their skills. Her designs have been featured in Interweave’s Sockupied, UK’s Knit magazine, Creative Knitting, and a wide range of books. She’s an experienced and popular teacher, teaching at shops and conferences for 10 years. She brings to her teaching a degree in pure mathematics and an analytical mind, ensuring her students learn not just the how, but also the why.

Kim McBrien from indigodragonfly. Kim is in the US teaching right now so I stole a picture from her blog. I love her cardigan. It is a CustomFit cardigan that she designed.

Kim is a lifelong textile artist, working in contemporary basketry, surface design, knitting, spinning and embroidery, completing a Bachelor of Fine Arts at York University in 1992. She has since held positions with many arts and not-for-profit organizations working for the Laidlaw Foundation, the Arts Network for Children and Youth, the Arts Council of Haliburton Highlands and as the Executive Director for both the Nathaniel Dett Chorale and Visual Art Ontario. From 2010-2013 she taught marketing and portfolio presentation at Haliburton School of the Arts – Fleming College before launching her own business, Indigodragonfly, a textile arts retailer. Now she continues to teach and produces knitwear designs and hand dyed yarn known for rich, multifaceted colours and humourous names.

Beth and I will be teaching a workshop as well. Sort of tag team. It's a cool technique and we are sure that those taking the class will love it.

Workshops: To be determined. I'm waiting for Kate and Kim to return from New York City so that we can discuss the best classes to offer.

Fingers crossed that it will be completed by the end of the week but let's be realistic. I'm really aiming for the beginning of next week.

Freia Super Bulky

Freia Super Bulky meets all Beth's knitting requirements. Big needles. Changes colours. She cast on a cowl last night and finished it before going to bed.

We modified a cowl pattern that I made up in Rasta to make sure that we used every inch of yarn. We had a bit left over but not a lot. The pattern is ready - now we're waiting for the yarn.

Hand Painted Super Bulky Gradient Yarn. Super soft single ply. Our process creates a strong yarn that is lofty but with very little pilling. This yarn is dreamy!

80m/87 yards on a 150gram ball
100% wool
2 stitches=1" on 12mm needles

The yarn should be arriving in the store soon. I've sent an email to Tina begging her to rush our order.

There are a few patterns on Ravelry for the yarn.

Little Imp Hat
One ball is all it takes.

Chloe Vest
You will need 4 balls for the vest. Yes balls. No winding the yarn - take it out of your bag and start knitting.

Dad and I just got back from a visit to the new house.

They have started on the bricks. I hung out the back door and leaned on the scaffolding to get this picture.

This is the tile throughout the main floor of the house. Looks like hardwood but it won't scratch. Sorry, I should have taken out the next tile down - or I should have cleaned this one. It looks scratched but it isn't, it's glue.

The tile is finished on my bathtub. And it's a big bathtub!

Picking the tile for my bathroom was one of the hardest choices for the house. I knew that I wanted grey but there wasn't a lot of grey to choose from. I picked a much more expensive tile and was good with my choice. Then on the day that we finalized everything, the builder had this tile in the show room. It was much cheaper than my original choice. Enough so that I could change my counter top to quartz from laminate.

Now it's time for football and knitting.

Rowan 57

Rowan Magazine #57 should be arriving at the beginning of February.

This season's knits are influenced by natural landscapes and traditional techniques. Trends for the new season embraces the hand crafted idea by offering rustic and textured designs as well as modern and clean garments and shapes. Rowan is promoting two stories to reflect these trends for Spring/Summer 2015, 'Daydream' and 'Relic'. Daydream is a collection of soft feminine knits inspired by a delicate romantic mood, whereas Relic is a carefree collection of casual knits, inspired by the past with colours and textures found within ancient cultures. The 'Essentials' collection takes a new direction this season by concentrating on another major trend, Denim, whilst still promoting the key shapes of the season.

See all the designs in the magazine.