Jilly Petites

Jilly Petites! So bright and sweet.

Jilly is a gorgeous single-ply from Dream in Color, and these little mini-skeins are here to add a nice pop of color to your current project. Shawl, hat, baby sweater...anything you'd like. This yarn in silky soft and machine washable.

Eye Candy

Dream in Color Smooshy. Look at those colors! Such a great sock yarn.

Eye Candy Monday

I've been thinking that we all need a little pop of inspiration on our Monday mornings. Let's take a look at some of the bright colors in the shop this week.

We are trying out a small batch of Dream in Color Jilly with Silk in some amazing colorways. Holy psychedelic variegation.

The Bumlebirch Heartwood is back in force. This locally-dyed fingering weight yarn is a shop favorite.

And last, but not not least, the Noro Rainbow Roll. Almost 300 yards of Noro-tastic wool roving for knitting, felting, spinning, you name it.

What plans do you have for these colorful beauties? I have plenty more to say about all of these, so stay tuned for ideas!

Jilly Sweater

Do you all remember that beautiful Dream in Color Jilly I showed you a few weeks ago. Well...I couldn't resist it. This Black & White colorway was just too beautiful. And we needed a shop sample, obviously.

So I cast on for Gry's Hoodie from All You Knit is Love. I have told you about his book before. I love it. I mean...Balloon Pants. I bought it after my babies had outgrown every single design. Everything is simple, sweet, and practical. There are several projects that are perfectly suited for the new knitter, too. It would be a nice gift for a new mom who wants to knit for her little one.

The Jilly is working up nicely on a US5, but I think a US4 might be better for this garter stitch. I think I'll switch to the smaller size to get more squishiness in the knitted fabric.

I'll keep you posted on my progress. In the meantime, come on in and see all the pretty shades we have in this lovely yarn.

Jilly and Jilly Lace

Did you all enjoy the yarn crawl? We had a great time, but we are exhausted. I hope you all found some fabulous yarn, had a blast and made some friends. We have some new yarns at the shop to show you now that the dust has settled a bit.

Say hey to Jilly (above) and Jilly Lace (below) from Dream in Color.

These yarns remind me quite a bit of Tosh Merino Light and Prairie from Madeline Tosh. These are both single ply yarns with rich, saturated colors.

Jilly is a light fingering with 440 yards per skein, and the Jilly Lace is a lace weight, obviously, with 880 yards per skein. I was kind of surprised that the colors weren't exactly the same on both yarns, since we have the same shades in each yarn. These two are both the Gilt colorway, and they aren't quite the same. Both stunning, though.

All of the colors are really gorgeous. How about a few more shots? So pretty.

 

Stop by and see these new friends at the shop!

Hand-Dyed Goodness

There are some lovely hand-dyed yarns fresh in the shop for you.

When I opened up a box of Chris from Schaefer Yarns on Monday morning, I could still smell the faint odor of the vinegar they use to set the dyes.  That's some fresh yarn.

Chris is a very durable machine washable worsted weight yarn.  This is great for kids sweaters, hats, and mittens because it will wear like iron.  With 215 yards per skein, it's also a great value, especially for hand-dyed goodness.  We have some nice bright colorways like Snoopy's Crayons and Hermione, shown above, and a few more subtle options as well.

Quest from Knitty was designed using Chris, and it's a great hat.  There is a little short row brim and an interesting honeycomb texture.  There is a version without the honeycomb as well, which is equally cool.

We also have a cute little vest, which Mr. Bear is modelling for us here.  It's a free pattern with the purchase of the yarn, and the smallest sizes require only one skein of Chris.  

If the flashing and pooling of the hand-dyed colors bother you, you can knit a few alternating rows from either end of the ball.  It takes the slightest bit of extra thought, but it's the best way to eliminate the pooling of any hand-dyed yarn.

If you prefer a tad more subtlety in your hand-dyes, Dream in Color is your company.  The fresh batch of Classy arrived last week, and I have been playing with color combinations.  This is Cocoa Kiss and Ruby River.

Here's Into the Mystic and Spring Tickle.

This is Happy Forest and Petal Shower.

And my personal favorites, Nightwatch and Strange Harvest.

I love these colors so much, and I have been trying to figure out a good way to combine them into a blanket.  I think the New Super Easy Baby Blanket from The Purl Bee is a great option.

I love the colorblocking, and I love not having to worry about running out.  I can just knit to the end of the ball and then start with a new color.  I'll cast on 200 stitches or so with a US8 and just keep adding colors until it's big enough...that should make a pretty sizable throw blanket.  I used this yarn to make a sweater for my kid, and I can tell you that the Classy is very hardy, too.  She wore it much of last winter, and it still looks great.

If you are thinking about socks on these chilly mornings, we have Starry for your viewing and knitting pleasure. 

What can I say?  It's hand-dyed, it's a sock yarn, and it's sparkly.  These yarns are all machine washable and absolutely beautiful.  Come and get yours while they are still fresh.

Dream in Color

We decided to restock our supply of Dream in Color loveliness, and I'm so happy we did.  Their company website is under construction, so I'll give you some Ravelry links.

Classy is a worsted weight machine washable merino, and the colors are amazing.  The Dream in Color dye process produces gorgeous tonal and subtle variations in the yarn.  Their newest round is even darker and richer than previous batches due to a new over-dyeing process.

There is some good yardage in these.  With 250 yards in each skein, you can easily make a baby or kid sweater with one or two of these.  One is more than enough for a hat, and two would get you a nice coordinating hat and scarf set.  There are more than 14,000 projects on Ravelry using Classy, so you know it's good.

I recently used an older colorway to make Rubble for my daughter.  She is very particular about itchy sweaters and clingy things around her neck, but she loves this.  I left the ribbing unseamed at the hem for a little more give.

We are sad to hear that Dream in Color's Starry sock yarn is going out of production because of some trouble with the sparkly substrate yarn they use for their gorgeous hand dyes.  We have a little left on the shelf, but we are loving the new Smooshy with Cashmere.  

Who wouldn't?

Everlasting DK is new to us, too.  This was very popular during the Rose City Yarn Crawl, and I'm hoping we will get more in stock.  Great yardage again with 275 yards per 100 gram skein.  The colors play so nicely together, I think I striped shawl would be amazing.  One Raveler made Pipp's Openwork Eyelet Scarf using just one skein.

You could make the tiniest size of Cascade from Petite Purls with just one skein of Everlasting DK.  Perfect for those first weeks when a new little person just needs to be kept warm and everything seems to big.

Photo from Petite Purls

Dream in Color always does good work.  We'd love to hear what you think of their new colors and yarns!

Watchamakin, Sally?

Want to see what Sally is making right now?

The Sockhead Hat, a free pattern from bohoknits. Sally is using Dream in Color Starry, but any sock yarn will do. This is a nice little project to stuff in your bag for a summer car ride, a moment of lunchbreak knitting, a trip to the park, or just a long line at the bank.

Also a nice little hat, Norie from The Shetland Trader. Sally's using The Fibre Company Savannah. This yarn is beautiful...a little cotton, a little soy, a little linen, a little wool. Such a nice texture and a sunny yellow, too.


And the cowls. Sally is working up her own version of the Burberry Inspired Cowl. The Cascade Eco Duo she's using is so nice to work with that she can't stop. It will be a nice long wrap-around length when Sally's finished knitting. I'll tell you about her modifications when she's done.

Finally, Snood, a huge randomly cabled cowl from Debbie Bliss's Glen pattern book. Glen is such an interesting yarn. The shades change very subtly over the entire ball of yarn, so you are left with these gradual fades from light to dark. The only trick is making sure you start a new ball in the right place to avoid a stark change.

That's what Sally is making these days. Anything fabulous in your knitting bag that you'd like to share?

New for March

Lots of new stuff coming in. Check it out.

This just in: Dream in Color Starry.

It's sparkly sock yarn. Seriously.

We've restocked some of our favorites from The Fibre Company, including Road to China Light, Organik, and Terra.

We now have Savannah, an interesting blend of wool, cotton, linen, and soya. It's a little bit crunchy with a really nice texture. As usual, The Fibre Company colors are sophisticated and rich.

More Angora from Plymouth Yarns. Melissa used one wee ball to make these sweet little booties for her little girl on the way. We have the pattern available for free at the shop.

Coffee Beenz, also from Plymouth Yarns.
Machine washable, worsted weight tweed. Perfect for the itch-sensitive recipients in your life who cannot handwash to save their lives. Plus, it's $7.25 for more than 200 yards.

More Brown Sheep Burly Spun is on the shelves, too. If you are one of the four people in Portland who has not made the Close Knit Seed Stitch Cowl, come and get it.

Also, don't forget to turn your clocks one hour forward this weekend! Even though the rain seems to be teasing us again for the time being, spring must be just around the corner.

Dreamy Color

We have a new batch of Classy from Dream in Color in some luscious new handpainted shades.

I love this for pretty much everything. The colors are saturated and semi-solid, but not crazy variegated. You get the interest and depth of the changing tones without any overwhelming pooling or flashing you might get from other handpainted yarns.

I've used it for kids sweaters, blankets, hats, and adult sweaters. Each skein contains 250 yards of pure merino, and it is machine washable. I also love that the yarn resists pilling quite nicely, so you won't end up with little fuzzballs all over your piece.

We only received ten skeins of each color, and some have already found a new home. Come and get it.