Coming Soon

I knit a very similar scarf recently and couldn't bring myself to part with it, and I knew that since I loved it so much, perhaps my wonderful customers would love it too so I made another!

Isn't it perfect?  The colors go perfectly together, and the yarns are all so soft!

I used a few different fibers, wools, merinos, *cashmeres*, all very soft, all very luxurious and all very warm.

What's not to love?  This scarf will be in my shop just as soon as I get model shots with it, which will hopefully happen today...so keep your eyes peeled!



**And to the individual who left a comment on my Happy Thanksgiving post asking about the Mohawk Beanie I made last year, if you could email me, that'd be great! :D **

Coming to the Shop

I've got some new items coming to the shop this week!

Today, this deep sapphire lacy slouch will be added:

It's made out of a washable wool blend and is so soft and light without jeopardizing your warmth and comfort :)  And, as always, I can make this slouch out of any color you'd like, just send me a convo!

Later this week I'll be adding this super scrumptious scarf to the mix:

Merino, wool, and *cashmere* make up the fibers in this luxurious, long, skinny scarf.  Long enough to wrapped around you neck over and over with just the right amount of lengthy fringe at the end, what's not to love?

My Huge Thrift Store Score!

So if you follow me on Twitter, you may have noticed that a week or so ago, I made a humongous score at the thrift store!  I got a literal MOUNTAIN of yarn for quite a deal :D  Aren't you proud?

You can see there where I kind of nested myself in the middle while looking at each and every ball.

I found all kinds of goodies that by themselves would've cost more than than I spent on the whole lot!  So many vintage wools, Tahki Donegal Tweeds, handspun silk, handspun Camel (that's right. Camel) along with rovings of wool, silk, camel and others that I can't definitely place.  I got so many wonderful yarns!

Now, of course, I can't keep them all for myself, my studio would explode.  Speaking of which, I have to move my studio, right when I was finally getting it all set up too! Isn't that sad?  But its ok, I'll get it all set up again and show you all the final results :)  Ok, back to the score at hand, I can't possibly keep it all for myself so I will be periodically destashing some of the goodies in my shop, like this little collection:

Now don't you want to go scoop that up for yourself and make something wonderful with it?  I definitely want to see what comes of the destash, so if you wouldn't mind, let me know what you create with it!

New Things

I just wanted to show you all some new things that have made it into the shop, and things that will be making it into the shop soon ;)

This thick grey cabled slouch made its shop debut last week, I love the bright turquoise brim!

The lavender version of the lacy slouch appeared this week, along with the pattern

This yellow cabled bag made from vintage yarn and vintage fabric lining will be available next week :)

Just listed...oh wait...just sold

I listed this green hat yesterday and was going through my routine of showing it to my Facebook Fans and Friends, Twitter, etc and by the time I blinked (well, almost that quick) it was sold! And the pictures don't even do it justice!

Luckily I have enough yarn to make another so if you missed your chance at this great slouchy beanie, there's another one coming! And I can always make them in colors of your choice too ;)

Super Slouchy Chunky Beanie

New in the shop today!

I have so many things to list but need to get photos first :/ Life hasn't been very conducive to product photos lately, hopefully I'll get them all listed soon! I have cowls, scarves, hats, fingerless mitts, all sorts of goodies :)

Recently Listed

These fabulous armwarmers (above) were listed in the shop today just as I sold these adorable booties (below)!

The photos of the armwarmers were taken during the shoot I told you about in this post, what do you think?

Tri-Color Mohawk Beanie

I recently sent off this awesome hat in the mail and have to show you all about its awesomeness.

Its got earflaps with little circles of each color crocheted on (which actually makes it crazy warm!) and the mohawk has sections of each color tied in too. I knit it out of wool, two strands held together which will make sure the wearer never ever gets cold!

I hope to show you some pictures of her wearing it if she sends me any ;)

Second Package!

My spoiler is on top of things! I received my second package yesterday and it was chock-full of all kinds of amazing goodies!

I got an amazing dark chocolate bar that is simply divine and a more quirky candy necklace making kit (the only reason the candy even made it to the photo was because I forced myself to wait until I got home to open the package when I had my camera in my hands to keep them from snarfing down the goodies)

I also got a darling little sheep figurine I have named Beverly who now resides by my window with my plants and internet life-source.

The most amazing part of the package were too HUGE skeins of wool from a farm near my spoiler. She says that "they raise some beautiful sheep and have the wool spun into a rustic yarn (all locally)". I am not quite sure what I will make with these yet, they are a wee bit too scratchy for next-to-skin wear, but perhaps an outer wear style jacket? Or maybe a felted bag? Or a lap blanket? Oh so many options!

Thank you so so SO incredibly much spoiler, the package came on a hectic day after a stressful week (they're all getting to be hectic and stressful now aren't they?) and I absolutely love everything about it!

The Epic Dr. Who Scarf

Ok ok, I know I've been talking about this for a while now, but its finally finished! Its done! Completed! Finito!

More than 61,200 stitches went in to this scarf. Its more than ten feet long (which is why I have Matt modeling it, it was dragging on the ground when I put it on!) without the fringe, and the fringe adds at least 6 inches to each side. Its also over a foot wide and when wrapped around my neck as much as it could, easily served as a neck-brace.

It was knit with seven skeins of different colors, all 100% merino wool. This scarf will definitely keep its wearer warm for YEARS to come.

It wasn't the most complicated knitting but it was a lot of knitting regardless and I am actually very proud of the way it turned out :D What do you think?

Tuesday Learn Something New Day - Wool

I’ve decided that I’d like to make Tuesdays into Learn Something New Days! As a college student I learn new things all the time. I learn something new every day. And I probably say that at least once a day when I learn something new!

I often learn about math or chemistry being at a Tech school but I don’t want these days to be like that. What I post on Tuesdays will be about some sort of art or crafting, perhaps nutrition, or a new technique.

What would you like to learn on Tuesdays? Please tell me in the comments below! I will do my best to talk about anything and everything that you want to learn :)

And now, on to the first installment of Tuesday Learn Something New Day!

Today I will talk about wool specifically and other animal fibers sometime in the future, this post would be way to long if I tried to squeeze it all into one. Wool for yarn and knitting purposes to be exact. Where does wool yarn come from? What are the differences between yarns? What garments would be best to be made of which fiber??

All fibers from animals are protein fibers. Protein fibers all have one basic thing in common, scales. Even human hair has scales (you can feel them by running your finger along a strand of hair toward the scalp). These scales hold yarn together while also allowing each strand of hair to be separate. They are also the reason wool felts. The fewer number of scales per inch of a fiber, generally yields a rougher feel, the more scales per inch, the softer the yarn. Granted, these are very general statements and do not always hold true.

Moving on. Wool. Wool comes from sheep. There are more sheep varieties than I care to count and therefore as many different types of wool. After the sheep are shorn and the fleece is processed (vegetable matter, dirt, etc removed) the wool may be washed and treated to also remove the lanolin. Lanolin is an oil secreted by the sheep to keep it dry and ward off infections. Some breeds are fairly lanolin free and no washing is needed, as with some Shetlands and Icelandic wools.

The staple length of a fiber is very important in determining what should and should not be made from a particular yarn. Longer fibers spun up together make for a more durable yarn which will create a garment that can be used or worn a great deal longer than those with shorter stable lengths. The longer fibers may not feel as soft as the shorter ones though.

Another contributing factor to the final yarn product is the fineness of the original fiber. Fineness is generally determined by the diameter of the fiber. The finer the yarn (the smaller the diameter) the softer the yarn feels.

Wool is a great all-around fiber for many reasons. One, it can absorb a considerable amount of water (up to 30% its weight) while you still feel dry and warm underneath. Great for snowboarding beanies, scarves, gloves, and the like. Two, naturally flame retardant, wool will pretty much put itself out instead of progressing the flame’s progress. Three, wool bounces back quicker than a post-baby body. You can stretch it dry or wet and it will often return to the shape and size of the original project (unless it has been felted, but that’s another topic).

Fiberful Weekend

So this was a very fibrous weekend for me!

I got some knitting done, handpainted some wonderful alpaca yarn that will be going up in SillyLittleYarns later and finished spinning up that purple roving I've had for ages that will make its appearance sometime this week :)

Also, we made salsa yesterday for the first time, and didn't even have a recipe to follow, we just threw stuff together! We will have the recipe and photos on our website if you'd like to see how you can make salsa without plastic too.

Awesome Possum Gloves

So remember this hat and this hat that I made for my friend Miriam? Well we have collaborated again and come up with these neato torpedo elbow length gloves! Luckily her arms and my arms are the same size and our fingers are the same length, this made making the gloves fit a bit easier.
They are completely wool, mostly merino, and they have these super cute vintage buttons on each cuff! I almost didn't want to give them to her...again....hehe.

also, here is how my cousin is using her new DS case!

The Rasta Beret Pattern

So my friend Miriam pretty much brings out some of my best hats. She tells me what she wants, or at least an idea of it, and lets me be creative with the rest.

Our latest brain child was this totally awesome, super soft, very warm slouchy-rasta-beanie-beret. It is knit with two strands, one merino and one soft fuzzy acrylic held together throughout in 3 different colors of each. It is loose and warm and a relatively easy project.

Those beginning knitters out there who have mastered scarves and basic beanies would enjoy this pattern because it is still easy with minimal shaping, but is beyond the basics. Advanced knitters would also enjoy this project because it is not complicated and would provide a needed break from the more time-intensive pieces they have done.

The pattern can be found here. Once purchased I will send it as an attachment to your desired email address.