Yarn Gallery Blog

Oh, my gosh, have you seen the photo Wanda Strickler posted?  Look below, and you’ll see her holding up her knitting in the most gorgeously tropical-looking garden.  The photo is from her and husband Eric’s trip to Thailand in October, and isn’t it the perfect counterpoint to today’s dreary weather? Thanks, Wanda, as a customer, neighbor and friend, you’re an absolute peach. (You too, Eric!)

I have an insane amount of computer work to do today so I won’t blather on as I usually do.  Isn’t it always the case that the things we like to do - like blathering on about knitting in general - get sacrificed for the things we must do?  Well, I’m sure you’re happy, because we’re getting right to the photos today:

First I want to show some new models we made to inspire your knitting:

This pretty jacket was knit in Rowan’s Big Wool by Karen Wenrich.  The design is by Cocoknits and is great because the reverse stockinette stitch gores make this very chunky wool seem drape-y.  It’s very flattering as well as quick to knit:

The color is a beautiful dark berry shade.

Karen Walter made this lovely piece from Debbie Bliss Pure Silk and Rowan Kidsilk Haze.  It’s absolutely heavenly!  We closed it with a pin, but you add ties or a big bow from hand-dyed ribbon.

And I finished this interesting wrap from a Plymouth pattern in a Noro yarn.  It was one of those patterns without a decent picture and with a schematic that is hard to fathom, so I wasn’t really sure how it would turn out.  I just figured that diagonal lines plus self-striping yarn could be pretty neat.  There are cables that travel up the sleeves and across the back that are hard to see here.  I’m pleased (just look at that weird smile) - it’s a striking and comfortable accent to any plain outfit.

I also finished this little neck warmer which is from the new Winter issue of Knitty.  It’s called Poinsettia and I worked it in Handmaiden’s Cashmere Silk blend - very, very nice to have around your neck, I can assure you!

It will also keep your pottery nice and warm.

Okay, enough about us - look at these projects that our customers have finished:

First, Peggy Schlegel made this completely adorable owl sweater for her grandson.  It took 5 or 6 different yarns - I think she can make a scarf or two with the leftovers.  It’s just perfect!  This is something he’s going to look at when he’s grown up and be full of wonder at this amazing sweater his grandmother made just for him!

Debbie Griffiths has been taking Janet’s Friday morning sock class, and look!  An extremely well-fitting and beautiful first sock!

Made in Fortissima Socka Mexico Country.  Love these colors.

Sylvia Kurpiewski made my Cabled-Waist cardigan beautifully.  However, there was a certain mixup about needle size and - how shall I put it?  A failure to check gauge?  I believe her words were “I hate that gauge swatch stuff” or something to that effect.  Anyway, Sylvia is enviably tall, and the sweater wasn’t, so she ended up very generously giving it to her tiny friend Tracy who is modeling it for us here.  It’s a lovely sweater, and knitted rather densely so that it must be very warm indeed!  It looks charming on Tracy, doesn’t it?  The pattern is a house pattern, free with purchase of the yarn to make it.

Okay that’s it for this week.  I hope your holiday preparations are going well and that soon you’ll have time to sit down and knit a while.  I sent an e-mail about our holiday hours, but in case you haven’t seen it, we’ll be closed Monday through Friday the week of Hanukkah/Christmas, open Sat & Sun the 27 & 28th.  Then we’ll be closed Monday through Thursday the week of New Year, and open Friday through Sunday afterwards.  I’m planning to post next week, but just in case - be sure to have safe and happy holidays!

Trish

Knitting in Chaing Mai, originally uploaded by yarngal628.

Knitting here, knitting there, knitting, knitting everywhere…

Love from Bangkok,

Wanda

I had a lovely day off yesterday, despite it being so very cold.  After morning coffee and paper, the dogs and I took a rather short walk - they don’t mind the cold when they’re out and about, but I certainly do - then I went off to do the normal errands:  bank, post office, groceries, and so on, then spent about an hour at the store, calling in orders, sorting through paperwork, taking out the garbage.  I got home and was greeted like the long-awaited Messiah - something I take for granted but it’s very sweet, really, for the boys to be so happy to see me.  We had lunch and I sat down to knit and catch up on my favorite knitting podcasts.  I was amazed that I hadn’t listened since the end of July, but time really gets away from me, I guess.  Anyway, I caught up with David Reidy, who lives in Australia. He downloads and plays the most beautiful guitar and piano music on his podcasts and talks a little about his life as a teacher and what he’s knitting and so on.  It’s very pleasant to listen to different accents and local idioms, I think, and their seasons are the opposite of ours, so he’s talking about mowing the lawn and the weather getting warm right now.  Anyway, if you want to listen, his podcast is called Sticks and String. It’s really enjoyable.

While I listened, I worked on a new project.  I was in the process of knitting just a pretty little scarf in the Italian Chain Stitch from BW#1 in Lace Merino from Ella Rae:

and enjoying it very much when, I think because of the double yarn-overs in the pattern, my elbow got sore.  This is a good reason to have at least 2 different projects in process, or at least available.  I didn’t have another one I wanted to start, so instead I decided to do a little research for spring styles.  I looked at Nordstrom’s website because I find their choices in knitwear very good and came upon this:

I know, not a great image, but you can see it in more detail here.  Looks simple enough, yes?  Well, this little jacket costs $725 in Nordstrom’s catalog.  I took a good close look at it and decided we could make it for about one-tenth of that price.  I had a bag of Crystal Palace’s Panda Silk DK at home and had been wondering what to make from it, so I found the stitch pattern, also in BW#1 - really, anyone who is serious  or even not particularly serious but just interested in designing should have Barbara Walker 1 and 2  - and began swatching.  The swatch worked out and here is the jacket prototype in progress:

I think it’s going to be very cute and wearable and I believe we’ll have two versions, one with cuffed sleeves and one without sleeves in a couple different yarns.

Anyway, my afternoon was very nice, and even though the house was a little chilly, I was covered in dogs and knitting and listening to some man with a lovely accent talk about knitting - it doesn’t get any better than that in my yarny life.

We had a meeting of our teachers last week and I think we have a very good schedule worked out for the winter.  It will take a couple of weeks to be sure dates work out and to get photos and descriptions and so on, but I expect to have the schedule up on the Class page shortly after Christmas - of course I’ll send an e-mail when it’s all finished.  One of the classes will be for this very cute wrap, which I thoroughly enjoyed making.  It’s in Classic Elite’s Montera - which I love and have declared that love ad infinitum on this blog until you’re sick of hearing about #%&&^%*&( Montera, I know.  The design is from Cheryl Oberle’s new book called Knitted Jackets, a terrific book full of really nice wearable pieces.

It’s shown in the book with sleeves, but I made it without.  Janet K is teaching the class and is hard at work on her own version.  Several other good classes are coming, including a few smaller projects and beginner classes as usual.  It looks like a good schedule.

Here are some wonderful projects we saw this week:

Mary Ann Posey finished this pretty sweater in warm and lusciously soft Miski, 100% baby llama.  The buttons are temporarily tied on so they look askew, but the sweater is gorgeous and fits just right.  It’s difficult to see all the stitchwork from these photos - there is a pretty braided-looking border and twisted-stitch motifs all over the back and front.  Very nice!

Lisa Krocker and her husband came in with Emmaline, their beautiful little girl in this very cute hat that Lisa made:

And Wendy Bisbort came in wrapped in the Lady Eleanor Stole from Scarf Style, another class we’ll be doing this coming season.  A beautiful entrelac piece and the knitted fringe really sets it off.

It’s just lovely in Noro’s Silk Garden.  Karen Walter is teaching the class and is doing her own scaled-down version in Silk Garden Sock!

I have to work out when we’ll be closed for Christmas and New Year.  I’ll let you know as soon as I know. Meanwhile, hope to see you soon…

Trish

Twin Sweaters, originally uploaded by yarngal628.

Jennifer Gensemer made these adorable sweaters for her new niece and
nephew. You can read her comments by clicking on Flickr Customer Gallery at right.

This is the Monday after Thanksgiving (hope you had a great one), the day when everyone goes online to hunt for Christmas bargains.  I think the myth is true, because my computer seems slow, and I can’t reach several out-of-town suppliers because “the circuits are busy.”  Are there still circuits in our phone lines? - it seems so old-fashioned.  Anyway, I’m getting an early start with this post because I have so many photos to show you. First, store news:

We had forgotten about our Frequent Buyer gift certificate drawings for a long time, so, this being the holiday season and all, we decided to have three drawings. The winners are Rebecca Botvin, Sylvia Kurpiewski and Carol Sullivan.  We’re delighted to have $50 gift certificates for each of these much-appreciated customers!

We received these handsome “Morgan” bags from Lantern Moon:  Navy blue fabric with silver studs and stitching, pockets inside and out, nicely finished and very roomy. We also received these new Zuma bags from Namaste in several colors, along with their new accessory pouches called Oh Snap!

We’re thinking hard about new classes and here is a taste of what’s to come.  Karen Walter will be teaching a class in a wonderful fair-isle sweater from Interweave’s new book Color Style. The sweater is a very stylish cardigan; here is Karen’s swatch showing the colors she has chosen. What colors will you choose?  (By the way, if you want to take the class, you will need the book.  You can buy direct from Interweave at the link above, or find it at a discount in numerous on-line places.  I am stocking fewer and fewer books as they become cheaper on-line than the price I have to pay for them, but will always order for you if you can’t find them elsewhere.)

Oh, lest I forget!  Carol Swisher’s elephant sweater came from a book called Creature Comforts by Amy Bahrt.  Thanks, Carol, for letting us know.  I don’t have the book, but it’s listed on Amazon.

Okay, on to customer projects.  First, I hope you didn’t miss David Ritz’s top-down snowflake sweater (see below) - it’s completely fabulous!  And here is a very cute project Britta Hyneman made from Blizzard, a superchunky alpaca blend:

Another great hat, knit by Carol Coleman from a Nancy’s Knit Knacks pattern.  She took Karen’s Fair Isle Hat class - did a wonderful job. Don’t you love those dangles?

Wenonah Riegel knit this pretty scarf in Cashsoft DK, from the book One Skein.  The color is very pretty on Wenonah, who is an avid spinner (and hunter - she’s probably out shooting at something today!)

Rochelle Mann made this cute baby set with her usual expertise.  I love the cable detail on the sweater’s back:

Karen Wenrich made this cozy sweater for one her son’s best friends - doesn’t she look pretty in it?

Jettie Hunt whipped up this stunning little number in Noro Taiyo.  It’s coming again this spring in beautiful new colors (and more of this one - a favorite of ours.) (As is Jettie.)

Melissa Korth came in in this beautiful sweater - She said “But it’s old!” when I asked to take her picture.  Doesn’t change the fact that it’s gorgeous and so is she.  Besides, it might be 2 years old - that is very young for a hand-knit classic like this.

And last, but by no means least, Melissa Kerper models her beautifully-made Einstein coat below.  This was a project of love - hate - love - hate - love again.  It took a while, but look at this coat and how pretty (and happy) she looks!  Congratulations, Melissa.

Whew!  Such great projects!  And don’t miss Jennifer Gensemer’s twin sweaters for her new niece and nephew - they are totally adorable.  People are accomplishing a lot, and me not so much.  It seems I’ve been working on a cabled shruggy thing for forever, but I guess it’s only been a couple weeks, with a sock and a couple hats in between.  (I’ve been listening to Outlander, a book by Diane Gabaldon while I’m knitting - wow, what a saga!!  I’m so deep into the whole Scottish highlander theme, I’ve taken to calling the boys “ma wee laddies.”)  Hope your knitting is clicking along!

See you soon…

Trish