Holiday Hours and Cotton Candy

Hopefully you are all finding some time to relax this weekend. If you need to stock up on your knitting supplies, we are open today from 10AM-6PM. (No Open Knit Night tonight though.) We are happy to set you up with a fun and satisfying project for traveling or just hanging out. Maybe a fun hat with this Knitted Wit Cotton Candy? Or these cozy slippers?

Pic borrowed from Rav pattern page.

We will be closed on Thursday, but open again at 10AM on Friday and regular hours all weekend. Pop in and say hi!

Naturalia (Also With Alpaca!)

Do you like big yarn? Especially when it smells at bit like a barn? Then this Naturalia is your stuff. It has a rustic odor, I can't lie. The shelves are fully stocked with the solid, marled, and alpaca blend versions of this awesome stuff. 

I would knit a 1966 Blanket if I were you...

Boliviana Bulky

We have a lovely new bulky yarn in the shop, Boliviana Bulky from Cascade. This pretty stuff has such a smooth finish for a bulky, and it's nicely plied which means less pilling. This would be great for a bulky sweater jacket or blanket. The colors are rich and vibrant, and we have such a nice range in the shop right now.

Boliviana is labeled a super bulky, knitting up at 2 to 2.5 stitches per inch. In the skein, it doesn't seem quite that heavy to me. It's a pure merino, so perhaps it fills in a bit with knitting and blocking. I guess we will need to work up a sample to see!

Eye Candy

Pic borrowed from Ravelry pattern page.

I ran across this awesome bulky hat on Ravelry, and I knew you all would love it. The Reverse Snowball Fight would be amazing in Rasta, Magnum, Macro...any super bulky. I'm casting on today. Enjoy!

Eye Candy

How about a free pattern in the ginormous Cascade Mondo? Happy Monday!

1966 Blanket

It's a frosty morning here in Portland! And it looks like we might see even more snow in the next ten days. Let's knit a giant, warm blanket, shall we?

The 1966 Blanket is about as easy as it gets. You need some super bulky yarn (think two stitches per inch), a US19 24" circular needle, and 66 stitches.

I used five complimentary shades of yarn for an ombre effect. I knit every row, spit splicing the ends together to avoid the bulky weaving bits. My blanket ended up being about 40" wide and 54" long using the Borgo de' Pazzi Naturalia. You could easily made it wider or longer. Or both.

This is the warmest and coziest blanket I've ever experienced. It has such a nice weight to it, perfect for wrapping up on the couch or throwing over the bed covers for an extra woolly weight on these chilly nights.

You could use almost any super bulky for this. Cascade Magnum would be amazing. A friend is using Berroco Macro, and it's turning out just right.

This is some quick gratification. You could easily have this done by the weekend if you cast on tonight. The best part is that it will even keep you warm while you're knitting. Pop in the shop today, and you will be so toasty warm when (if) the snows hit!

1966 Blanket

by Leah Bandstra

Yarn: 5 skeins Naturalia (colors 0, 2, 3, 4, and 8)
Needles: US19 24" circular

Instructions:
CO 66 stitches.  
Knit every row, spit splicing the ends together.
Cast off with about 3 yards of yarn left.

Eye Candy Monday

Super poofy!

Berroco Macro

The new fall yarns are coming into the shop, just in time for us to revel in these lovely days. While we have not reached the level of emergency cold weather knitting, everyone loves a big bulky yarn. So let's talk about Berroco Macro.

This big stuff is a wool/acrylic/alpaca blend, and it knits up on a US19. The pattern book has several fun designs that would be done in a heartbeat. I could see these being well received by kids starting school in some chilly climes.

Cute stuff, right? I also have a ridiculously simple blanket pattern to share with you all next week that would be perfect in Macro. Stay tuned!

All pattern photos borrowed from Berroco's website.