Kim and Rowan

Hey friends, sorry to be so absent here in February.  The plague hit my house, and I guess it's taken me a little longer to bounce back than expected.  So, let's get to the knitting, shall we?

We have the newest from Kim Hargreaves, Quirky and Enchanted.  I know several of you just squealed a bit when you saw that photo and are calling the shop right now to have something set aside for you.  Here's the number: 503.288.4568.  If you know Ms. Hargreaves' work, then you know that these are full of classic designs with a bit of a twist.

Here are a few of my favorites (with photos from Kim Hargreaves' website because the "bright grey" lighting in Portland is making photography nearly impossible for me).  These pretties are Longing, Covet, and Ara from Enchanted.

 

There are many, many more, but these were a few of my favorites.

The Quirky collection has some nice ones, too.  I love the May cap, made with Cocoon and Kidsilk Haze.  

The two different versions are really nice, but I think I like the one with the contrasting mohair the best.

I also really love Sadie, Amy, Emmy, and Lottie.  They weren't kidding about quirky with this styling, were they?  Sailor hats to denim short shorts...

The Rowan Big Book, number 53, is on the table, too.  It's a spring/summer issue, so you never know quite what you're going to get.

Samos is pretty.

Marilyn has potential.

Honeycomb has a nice vintage flair.

Vanilla looks super cozy.

And I kind of like the Beehive Wrap, too.

There are, of course, a smattering of crazy intarsia sweaters and over-the-top colorwork, but what else do we expect from Rowan?

Come by the shop and have a flip through the new magazines.  I promise I'll be back here sooner than later.

Hedgy

Once you knit a honey badger, perhaps a hedgehog is not far behind?  (Why do they need to hog the hedge, anyway?  Hee hee.)

Photo from The Purl Bee

Someone please stop me before I get out of control and knit and entire menagerie of woodland creatures.  For the record, I am not yet out of control.

Yarn Crawl on the Horizon!

The 2013 Rose City Yarn Crawl is just a few weeks away!

What is the Yarn Crawl, you ask?  It's a lot of yarn and a lot of fun.  All of the Portland-area yarn shops participate, and there are chances to win lots of prizes and make new friends.  Did you know there are eighteen shops playing along this year?  So much yarn, so little time.

The fun kicks off on Thursday, February 28 and lasts through Sunday, March 3 when we yarn slingers all collapse on the floor from sheer yarn-related exhaustion.  Let me tell you what we have going on this year.  Each shop will be raffling off two Prize Baskets full of goodies from our generous sponsors.  I had a little envy problem last year.  Our basket was full of awesome.

In addition, anyone who visits all eighteen shops is entered to win the Grand Prize basket, which is even bigger and more fabulous.

As you make your way to the shops, you collect Passport Stamps to show how dedicated you really are.  This passport enters you into the raffle for the Grand Prize basket.  (Passports will be available for download from the RCYC website soon.  I'll keep you posted.)

This year we have RCYC tote bags available for pre-order, too.  You can order them from the website and let us know where you'd like to pick yours up on the first day of the crawl.  

We will also have free patterns!  Each shop has designed a Portland-inspired freebie featuring a favorite yarn.  Buy the yarn, and the pattern is yours.  After all is said and done, there will be a 2013 RCYC eBook containing all of the patterns from this year.

If you want even more RCYC fun, join the Knit/Crochet-a-long that is happening on Ravelry for the 2012 patterns.  There are more prizes to be had, so it never hurts to enter.

Okay, that was a lot information.  Basically, it's yarn, free patterns, prizes, fun.

Sparkles!

The sparkles are here!  They refused to be photographed in their full glory, but they are here.

The Baby Llama Glow has always been popular in the shop.  It is part of a line from Plymouth Yarns called DyeForMe which was intended to be hand-dyed, so all the yarns are white as a base for the dyes.  I have yet to see any of it dyed up though, probably because it is so beautiful as it is.  The sparkles are subtle and well-distributed, the yarn itself is soft and lofty, and the finished knits are just perfect.  To top it all off, each skein contains 273 yards.

I used a skein to make a Simple Pleasures Hat, and I know Adrienne (and several others) used it to make Teal from Kim Hargreaves' Winter Blooms Collection.   

My friend Laura made my Bias Scarf using just two skeins.  She added some buttons to change it into more of a wrap.

Whatever you choose to make with it, I would decide soon.  The shelves might be full now, but this pretty stuff flies!

P.S. Bolt is having a little surprise sale on Saturday.  What a great weekend to come to our little corner.  See you soon.

Love, True Love

I think I'm in love.

The Shibui is amazing.  The sock yarns are great.  The Sweater, the alpaca, the Rastitia...all really wonderful.  But this.  This is my yarn.

Harrisville Highland.  I have not managed to take any home yet, mainly because my mind is swamped with possibilities.  Sweaters, hats, wraps, blankets...what to do?  And the colors.  I don't want to make the wrong choice.  I am drowning in inspiration, but I am okay with it.

This lovely stuff comes from the town of Harrisville, New Hampshire, where they have producing yarn and fleece for over 200 years.  The town itself has been declared a historic landmark and has been recognized as "the only 18th century textile village in America that survives in its original form." (From the HD website.)  Pretty cool, huh?

We have started with Highland, an Aran weight yarn (4.5 sts/inch) in some of the most beautiful heathered shades I have ever seen.  The yarn is "dyed in the wool."  This means that the fleeces are dyed prior to spinning the yarn, so the depth of color in each strand is really rich and interesting.  The colors are vibrant and lush, anything but flat.

Sally knit and washed a little swatch to show how much it softens up...quite a bit.  I have so many ideas, as I'm sure you will, too.  Let me get you started.

Maybe a blanket?  We have here the Hudson Bay Blanket, the Super Easy Baby Blanket, and the Moderne Baby Blanket.  I love the big blocks of color and miles of garter stitch on each of these.  Of course, there are many lacey or cabled blankets, too, but these are my favorite kind.

Photo from The Purl Bee

Photo from The Purl Bee

How about some hats?  Peacock from designer Karen Borrel.  Think of all the color combos!

Photo from Karen Borrel's Ravelry page

I like the Kami Hat quite a bit, too.  Simple and stylish.

Photo from Katie Schumm's Ravelry page

The Lazy Jacks Hat looks like fun.

Photo from Savory Knitting Ravelry page

And sweaters.  So many options.  This yarn is similar to the lovely Shelter that came out a few winters back, so it will work really well for all of the incredibly fashionable Shelter designs in the Spring Thaw, Wool People, and Brooklyn Tweed Collections from Jared Flood.  Some of my favorites include Holl, Guston, the Inversion Cardigan, Forester,  Bedford, and Tinder.  Go ahead and check them out.  I'll wait right here.

Photo from Heidi's Ravelry page

I myself am eager to try out Tea with Jam and Bread from Heidi Kirrmaier.  She has always been one of my favorite designers, and this sweater is exactly what I need right now..comfy to wear, easy to knit, striped, and pocketed.  Pretty much perfect in my mind.  The design includes sizes for little kids through full-grown men, so it will get a lot of use in my house.  Plus, I get to choose three colors, eliminating at least a bit of my anxiety over leaving any of them on the shelf.

Ambiente

We have a fresh batch of Ambiente sock yarn from Schoppel-Wolle.  The colors are so much fun, and they do some great self-patterning.

This sock has been through several wash cycles, and it still looks great.  You'll need two balls for a pair of adult socks, one for a pair for kiddo socks, and one for a Sock Bunny.

This one was knit with a different yarn, but I know that several of our knitters used Ambiente with great results.  We had a sample of this little bunny at the shop, but it was stolen!  If you see him out in the world, ask him if he is lost.  

In the meantime, come check out this fun yarn!

Knitscene Spring 2013

I've been waiting for this since I saw the cover sweater.  The Spring 2013 Knitscene is here!

The folks at Knitscene continue to do such a nice job of staying modern and finding designs that are interesting to knit and quite wearable.  Spring issues can often be a little frightening, but this one has several really lovely designs.  Let's take a look!

The first section, Working It Out, features several accessories by designer Catherine Shields.  This cute little Chinook Hat would be great in Jamieson's Spindrift or the Elemental Affects we have right now.  What an unexpected way to play with color.

The Morning Glory Tam and Mitts make an elegant set, don't they?  What a lovely gift.  Perfect in Cascade 220 Sport Superwash or Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino...so soft and easy to care for.

On the Mezzanine features some beautiful flapper-inspired pieces.  The Biarritz Cloche is totally out of my comfort zone (of knitting and wearing), but I am loving it.  Knit with two colors of fingering weight yarn, the herringbone stitch takes on such an interesting dimension.  The knitted fabric will be dense and feel like woven fabric, ideal for this kind of fitted hat.  I would go to the sock yarn wall to find the right thing.  Or maybe the new Shibui Staccato or Isager Alpaca 2.  All the right weights, but the effects would be different with color choices and fiber content, obviously.

These two sweater dress/tunic pieces are quite the commitments.  They are really stunning, though, aren't they?  The Patou Tunic is above and the Grenadine Tunic below.

The bias section is my favorite.  Love these Caution Mitts.  Check out the thumb.  Everything lines up!

The Lightning Shrug starts out as a rectangle, believe it our not.  So elegant and casual.

The Rockfall Sweater (above) and the Salacia Cardigan (below) look so wearable, too.  The lace yoke on the pullover is asymmetrical, and the back of the cardigan comes together at the same angles as the front.

The Arc-en-Ciel Pullover is my favorite.

Knit with Noro Taiyo Sock, the biasing becomes very obvious.  The extra long sleeves, unusual neckline, and boxy shape are all calling to me.

The final story in the magazine is Pretty Tough, and the knits are pretty for sure.

The Sorority Shawl is lovely, and the Humboldt Raglan looks great.  I am working on a similar pullover with the lace panel up the front, and now I think I might need another.  This one was designed with Cascade 220 Sport, which is one of the most economical yarns we carry.  I could make this for about $35!

Finally, the Edelweiss Cardigan is just nothing but sweet.  It's another sock yarn sweater, and I think the Scrumptious 4ply Sport would be amazing.

That is a lot of good stuff for an $8 magazine, and I haven't even shown you everything.  Come take a look!