Fairwell to Frolic, Hello to Spring!

Frolicking is fun, but it is also great when it’s over. Yes- we can close the book on another year at the local, annual, knitter’s fair – the Knitter’s Frolic.  It was a goodie! We fed and watered a lot of hungry shoppers at our Knit-Cafe, and we passed on some special yarn and project plans too. In fact several new Knit Cafe patterns were introduced at this years Frolic. We will have them ready for purchase any day now on Ravelry so keep your ear to the ground and your eyes peeled. Big thanks go out to our outstanding team of helpers that made the whole thing possible for us.
Still the good times will not stop – just check out these lil’darlins↓

There is nothing like a mini skein!  10 metres of joy! Koigu  has sent us a great collection of colours this time.  For things to do with mini skeins check out this post, or register for our June 17th needlepoint class and learn a whole new way to play with these colourful characters.

Everyone likes contests, so I thought I would pass this along.  The West Queen West BIA is giving away a Mother’s Day shopping spree!  Just follow this link for more details. Many shops in our illustrious neighbourhood are participating, including us of course.
Happy May 1rst all
Craftily yours
Kristin

you sure can pick ‘em!

Sometimes folks come into the Knit Cafe with a pattern in hand, looking for the exact-same yarn the pattern sample was knit from.  No substitutions are allowed for these folks.  Including when it comes to colour.
People are often confessing to me that they are afraid of colour.  They have no confidence when it comes to picking them.  Even less so when more then one colour needs to be picked. “What if they don’t go together ?” they ask.  What indeed!

This has come up a few times when it comes to this Chevron Blanket Pattern from the Purl Bee.

As you can see, right now we do have all the colours in stock for an exact replica of this adorable blanket.  However, if you wish to go out on a limb…

How about this combo: lemonade, lemongrass, flamingo, dandelion, bone, pumpkin, rasberry.

Or this one: graphite, hyacinth, thistle, drift, wasabi, jasper, sleet

Or this one even: mediterranean, drift, pumpkin, bone, flamingo, drift, lemongrass.

Or come up with just the right mix for you.  No right, nor wrong (even if it is sticking with the original).
All of the above are colours of Blue Sky Organic Cotton, and there are even more colours to choose from.  Come and see!
Craftily yours
Kristin

For Better or Worsted!

Why do knitters love puns so? An eternal question, if I ever heard one!

For Better or for Worsted is the name given to this beauteous yarn by Anzula.

A blend of superwash merino, CASHMERE, and a little nylon.  This is special yarn!

I’ve had the pleasure of knitting with this yarn.  In fact, it was my choice for the Rosebud Hat that I have worn over 2 cold seasons now.  Looks like new!

As you can see – we have lots of enticing colours in stock now. I was inspired with some of my colour choices by this project from the Purlbee!
For Better or for Worsted is a chunkier worsted with a gauge of  4.5sts/inch on a 5mm needle.  182m (200 yds) is $32.50.

Craftily your
Kristin

book report

Spring is in the air this weekend. As the days get longer and the flowers sprout, folks start to ruminate on renewals. It’s a good time to start something new.
If you are looking for ideas, come and peruse the Knit Cafe’s library.  We just got in some new books.  I prefer a crafting book full of techniques with reference material clearly spelled out and preferably with lots of pictures too; a book that I can look back on for advice, and for council, and for inspiration.
If you are planning to dabble in a bit of crochet this season. Have a look at “101 Stitches to Crochet” and “Crochet Stitch Motifs”

Much like the title suggests, there are 101 different crochetable stitch patterns in this collection.  Use them to create your own blankets, or hats, or infinity scarves.  Each pattern comes printed on it’s own sturdy card so you can tote just the one pattern with you when you are on the go.

Those of us addicted to crocheting afghans (no naming of names here) will want this book.  “Crochet Stitch Motifs” is dedicated to crocheted medallions that can be attached together to make blankets galore!

Each page looks something like this ↑ with an inspiring picture of the finished motif, along with a charted and written recipe.
Useful!!!
More book news another time.  Enjoy your long weekend! We will be closed tomorrow (Sunday), but back to regular hours on Monday.

Craftily yours
Kristin

100% true

If you are wondering what’s in this picture ↑ the answer is felt!
100% wool felt in 8×10″ sheets in a complete rainbow of colours.  Such an animal is hard to find.  With relative ease you will come across synthetic felt sheets, but the real stuff is a rarity. You can find it here! We just got some in. Only $2.70 per sheet.
Felt is a wonderfully versatile fabric.  You can cut into it and the edges won’t fray.  It is great to add on to projects as embellishments (like eyeballs and noses for stuffed toys). Cut and paste creations with felt is a great activity to do with kids.  You creative folks may already be formulating your own list of things to do with felt sheets.  Please share!
Time to get your craft on!

Craftily yours
Kristin

Lovely Linen

Our favourite summertime yarn is here!
It’s 100% linen by Louet Yarns called Euroflax.

pewter

navy

red

charcoal

island moss

cream

steel grey

aqua

crabapple
natural
Euroflax sport weight linen comes in 100gram skeins, 246 metres, 270yds each for $26.  We love this yarn so much that we have created two patterns for it, this one and this one.  In addition we have been working on a brand new one that will be released soon!
Craftily yours
Kristin

neon lights

Neon! The happy trend! Just what we need in grey old February (almost March).

↑ A bundle of “highlighter” coloured yarn from Manos del  Uruguay,  10 skeins ready to become a whole lot of knit-fun.

The last time we saw neon was the 80′s.  This time around, it’s being paired with light shades (white and light grey) which makes it look oh so bright and fresh!

Here are some examples I’ve found that use neon to great effect.  The triangular scarf with the yellow embellishment from the online, handmade, shop DaWanda.
Juicy, neon, orange is striped with grey, in this scarf designed by Antonia Shankland found here.

Paint Pail Mittens from Purl Soho are so plain but so adorable with the addition of neon tops. Neon is great for embellishment too.  Case in point: this simple scarf with orange neon fringe, I found this example here.

Maxima by Manos Del Uruguay comes in all these wonderful neon shades.  On the top Acid, middle right is Speeding Ticket, middle left is Shocking (that’s the name – I’m not so shocked), and on the bottom Highlighter. Soft, merino. single ply, yarn is wonderful to work with too. Bonus!

Craftily yours
Kristin

More Madeline!

Madelinetosh Prairie!  Lace weight yarn, perfect for the spring weather!

Top: Baltic, Bottom left: Antler, Bottom right: Ink

Top: Steam Age, Bottom left: Molly Ringwald, Bottom right: Briar

Top: Manor, Bottom left: Tern, Bottom right: Graphite

Top: Dried Rose, Bottom: Cosmos

Top: Oak, Bottom left: Celadon, Bottom right: Window Pane

Craftily yours
Kristin

One way to beat the February Blues.

Madelinetosh is here!

Pashmina in ↓

nectarbyzantineopalinenutmeglogwoodbalticturquoisegeorgia o’keeffegraphitetart

Merino Light ↓

top: antique lace, middle left: tern, middle right: graphite, bottom left: dried rose, bottom right: rose.

top left: georgia o’keeffe, top right: sequoia, middle left: cove, middle right: moss, bottom left: clematis, bottom middle: ink, bottom right: smokey orchid

top left: vermillion, top right: torchere, bottom left: filigree, bottom middle: candlewick, bottom right: molly ringwald.

top: wash, middle left: ophelia, middle right: norway spruce, bottom left: fathom, bottom right: baltic.

Tosh DK ↓

top: french grey, bottom left: saffron, bottom middle: butter, bottom right: lustre

top: betty draper blue, bottom left: cousteau, bottom middle: oxblood, bottom right: composition book grey.

top: ophelia, middle left: georgia o’keeffe, middle right: fathom, bottom left: cloak, bottom middle: dutchess, bottom right: flashdance.

Vintage ↓

top left: logwood, top middle: fragrant, top right: maple leaf, bottom left: candlewick, bottom middle: bloomsbury,  bottom right: flashdance.

Tosh Chunky! It’s New!! ↓

top: opaline, middle: victorian gothic, bottom left: cove, bottom right: calligraphy

top: torchere, middle: oceana, bottom left: black currant, bottom right: nebula

top: william morris, bottom left: jade. bottom right: mineral

In addition, a whole lotta lace-weight, one ply prairie yarn, it’s here too.  You will have to wait for those pics though.  Good things do come to those who wait.

Craftily yours
Kristin

A horse of a different colour.

No f#@&ing around – this is one of my favourite yarns.

I rarely get to talk about it, cause we rarely get such a heaping shipment. This is what I think of as a workhorse yarn.  Nothing showy, or flashy about it, but Elitespun (as far as I’m concerned) is the salt of the earth.

Fingering weight, with a pretty 2-ply twist, this merino yarn knits into beautifully soft garments.

Solid or heather colours, no hand-dying here, for knits that call out for consistency.

Pretty, pretty colours, including a big range of neutrals.  380 yards is a steal at $14.50.  Machine washable too!

Also, an arrival this week ↑ Cascade 220 Superwash! 23 colours in stock of this 100% wool, washable, worsted weight.  These 4 new colours are new for us, clockwise from top left # 1951, # 1910, # 892, # 1919, $12 each.

Craftily yours
Kristin