Jen finished her Aidez, a FREE pattern, in Cascade Eco Wool. It’s gorgeous!
Our Tweets
Meta
Tags
FO Friday: Jen’s Aidez
Posted in FO Friday, Free Pattern Links, Yarn
1 Comment
Show Us Your Shawl: Daughters!
Because we’d moved Show Us Your Shawl to Mother’s Day weekend, we offered an extra discount for mothers with shawls. Melissa took advantage of this by using her beautiful daughters to model the two shawls she brought with her.
Sarah wanted to stand next to our giant ball of yarn when she modeled this Multnomah knit out of Louet Gems. (Multnomah is a free pattern!)
Paige is wearing a Memory Shawl (available as a Ravelry in-store purchase) in Lang Jawoll Magic.
Spring Fling with Kirsten Kapur, Part Deux
Anna has been badgering me to write this for weeks now, and I can’t believe that a month has already passed since Kirsten Kapur’s visit. I’ve known Kirsten for a couple of years now and am always thrilled to see her (I usually only see her in Rhinebeck or at TNNA), but was really so excited that she had agreed to come to Natural Stitches to teach some classes.
Anna has talked about the Saturday class and I guess it’s my turn to talk about the Sunday class, which was color work. Now, any of you who know me know that I have gauge issues* when it comes to color work, so I was all about taking this class.
We learned to hold our yarn in both hands, and how to “twist” our yarns to avoid long floats.
As you can see, we were a very studious group:
And we took a very handsome class photo!
I tried a couple of different swatches and have turned both of them into cat toys, and I regret to say that I didn’t photograph them before doing so. I was surprised that the colors I chose kind of blended into each other and that I couldn’t see my stitches distinctly. While this can be desirable in some techniques or projects, it certainly was a learning experience for me and something I will consider when choosing colors for a project that I want to be high in contrast.
From follow-up chats and texts with Kirsten, I know that she had a wonderful time here and is looking forward to coming back to see us again. To tide us over until we see Kirsten again, we are hosting a TTL 2013 Mystery Shawl knit-along! The pattern is $4 until June 1 and is available as a Ravelry in-store download. The first clue comes out on June 1, so don’t wait! Stop in to sign up, get your pattern details, and choose your yarn (you’ll need 3 colors!), then come back on Saturday, June 1, to knit the first clue along with us in the store!
*Actually, it seems that my gauge issues are overflowing; I recently got 7 stitches per inch on the Bellevue Cardigan, when I should have gotten 5. But that’s another story for another time.
Posted in News
Leave a comment
FO Friday: A Double Dose of Leslie
When Leslie embraces a hobby, she does so wholeheartedly. We are treated on a regular basis to the gorgeous things that Leslie has made, and today, we feature two of them.
This is Semele (available as a Ravelry in-store download), knit in Scarlet Fleece Ewe Silky Thing:
The second shawl is 22 Leaves, also a Ravelry in-store download, knit out of Leslie’s handspun in Frabjous Fibers Silky Cashmerino in Balsam.
Posted in Fiber, FO Friday, Knitting, Ravelry In-Store Patterns, Spinning, Yarn
Leave a comment
Knitted Chemo Caps Suggestions
We had a customer ask us for suggestions for chemo caps, and I thought I’d share ideas here on the blog. Many of us, sadly, have had occasion to knit chemo caps, and these are what’s worked best for us.
We have had a lot of feedback that even the softest of wool is too much for newly bald heads to handle, so we are suggesting yarns like Comfort DK, Cascade Ultra Pima, and Yarn Hollow Gemini. With that in mind, these patterns are for DK weight yarns.
Shedir is designed specifically to support breast cancer awareness and is a free pattern.
The Lace Edged Women’s Hat is a free download on Ravelry.
Grace Lace Beret is a free pattern and can be knit with less slouch for better coverage by going down a needle size on the body.
Odessa is a free Ravelry download and works really well as a chemo cap without the beads.
What patterns have worked well for you?
Posted in Charity, Free Pattern Links, Knitting, Yarn
2 Comments
Show Us Your Shawl: Clockwork and Other Garter Stitch Shawls
Show Us Your Shawl is my favorite Natural Stitches holiday of the year! Every year, I look forward to seeing our talented customers wearing their beautiful handiwork, and I wonder what pattern will be the most popular. This year, it was Clockwork, by Stephen West (we have hard copies of this pattern for sale in the store, if you’d like to jump on the bandwagon.
Janice knit hers out of Malabrigo Sock in Archangel and Madelinetosh Tosh Sock in Cove:
Lisa made hers out of the sadly discontinued Pagewood Farm Alyeska:
Garter stitch in general was a huge trend this year. Emily knit this Wingspan out of Mini Mochi. (Wingspan is a free pattern!)
And Heather knit this Trillian (available as a Ravelry in-store download purchase) out of Wollmeise. (Where did you get it? How did you get it? I asked her. She sent a friend to Germany. Oh.)
In the next few weeks, we’ll be showing ALL the shawls made by our customers. Stay tuned!
FO Friday: Natalie’s Linaria Bipartita Shawl
Natalie brought in her Linaria Bipartita shawl from Hunter Hammersen’s The Knitter’s Curiosity Cabinet, knit out of Madelinetosh Tosh DK in Isadora. It’s beautiful!
Don’t forget, Show Us Your Shawl is this weekend! Bring in your own shawl to show and receive 10% off your regular-priced purchase.
Posted in FO Friday, Knitting, Show Us Your Shawl, Yarn
Leave a comment
Show Us Your Shawl!
Last weekend was Maryland Sheep and Wool, which is prime knitwear spotting time. More than any other garment or accessory, the shawls were out in full force!
Yvonne wore her Norwegian Woods shawl, which is available as a Ravelry in-store purchase.
Sasha, who makes the adorable bags in our store, wore a Summer Flies, knit in Malabrigo Silky Merino.
Customer Lisa wore her All the Shades of Truth wrap, knit in five different shades of Madelinetosh Tosh Sock. All the Shades of Truth is available as a Ravelry in-store purchase.
If you weren’t at Sheep and Wool, you are probably wondering how you too can go shawl-spotting. You are in luck! It’s time for one of our favorite events, Show Us Your Shawl! Show Us Your Shawl will be held this weekend, May 11th and 12th. Since this is also Mother’s Day weekend, any customer who is a mom, brings their mom (or a picture of their mom or someone they want to be their mom), or is a mom to four-legged furry friends will qualify for 15% off (instead of the customary 10% off). So come in wearing your beautiful hand knit or crocheted shawl. We look forward to seeing you!
Posted in Events, Knitting, News, Show Us Your Shawl
Leave a comment
New Yarn: Ross Farm!
We are THRILLED to carry yarn and spinning locks from Ross Farm Heritage and Rare Breed Fibers. You all have been asking for local yarn, and with 84, PA right down the road, it’s hard to get more local than that!
We currently carry thirteen varieties in a number of breeds and yarn weights, along with spinning locks to add interest to your handspun. Also, we have kits for our very own Amy’s Primero Hat in 100% Romney and Leicester Longwool! Look for reviews soon in our newsletter!
Posted in Fiber, NEW to the shop, News, Shop Pictures, Spinning, Yarn
Leave a comment
FO Friday: Lindsay’s Baby!
Lindsay brought in her baby Eamon! Oh yeah, Eamon is wearing two finished objects, the garter stitch kimono and the swirl hat (both are free patterns).
I also note that Lindsay is wearing a very beautiful knitted thing, but apparently we forgot to ask her about it while we were in the thrall of a new baby. Sorry, Lindsay!
Posted in FO Friday, Free Pattern Links, Knitting
1 Comment