Punch Needle News

We are so happy that we have finally managed to restock the Ultra Punch Needle. This fine instrument is what a punch needler needs for creating tiny loops with smaller yarns and embroidery floss.

I made this sign for The Knit Cafe using the Ultra Punch Needle and fingering weight yarn so I could get a precise and legible look in the letters and numbers.
Generally the Ultra Punch needle works best with a fabric that is more tightly woven than Monks Cloth or Primitive Linen, such as a plain weave linen or cotton, but we have used it with the Monks Cloth with some success. The Ultra Punch needle comes with three difference sized tips and you can control the length of the pile with a sliding gauge on the side of the tool. In other words it is very versatile. Have a look HERE

The Ultra Punch Needle is featured along with the Amy Oxford Punch Needles in Punch Needle this beautiful book by Arounna Khounnoraj. This book is a gem; full of lots of wisdom from this talented lady. It is replete with inspiration. Arounna’s gorgeous designs decorate the pages. This is a wonderful book to initiate anyone to the craft of Punch Needling but will also be appreciated by those who already have a practised hand. There are 20 lovely projects to try: cushions, bags, trivets and coasters, wall art, and more! Step by step instructions include templates and finishing techniques. Next time you’re in The Knit Café give it a gander or check it out HERE.

Craftily yours
Kristin

Summer Sale 2019! In the webshop too!

For the first time ever The Knit Café is able to offer our
Summer Sale deals in our webshop
From July 14-19
All purchases of yarn, needles and other supplies will be 20% off
This is a great time to stock up on all your favourites:
Brooklyn Tweed, Lichen and Lace, Quince and Co Linens, Needles from HiyaHiya and Brittany, Amy Oxford Punch Needles etc….
.
At 55 Roncevalles Avenue there will also be a sale.
This sale starts one day earlier
from July 13-19.
Everything in the shop will be 20% off
Come early to check out the sale bins where some special yarns will be heavily discounted.

See you there.
Craftily yours
Kristin

Owl from Quince and Co has arrived at The Knit Cafe

Last Spring we were lucky enough to get a delivery of linen yarns from Quince and Co. Sparrow and Kestrel are the perfect summer-jumper yarn. Now, we are pleased to announce that we are showcasing another great yarn from this yarn institution. These snowy and blustery days deserve a warm and woolly sweater yarn and “Owl” has flown in to fit the bill.
Owl is a blend of Alpaca and American Wool. It is produced with the same socially and environmentally conscious ideals that Quince and Co applies to all it’s products; picking local fibres when possible and having their yarns spun in a historical wool mill.  Owl is a woolen-spun yarn which means it is spun to be light and lofty. It has a spongey and crisp feel. It softens when knit and reveals the drape and the halo of the Alpaca fibre.
The colours are so enticing – from subtle to deep and rich. These colours are derived from blending different colour of natural fibres before over dyeing.
You can check out all the colours available at The Knit Café in our webshop

For inspiration; you can do not better than this book by Pam Allen called “Plain and Simple”. It is full of the kind of sweaters that you would want to wear every day! We have a few copies in the shop-proper. Feel free to drop by and take a look. You can have a look at more patterns designed for the Owl yarns on the Quince and Co website HERE

Also new in-shop are Twig and Horn Interchangable Knitting Needle Cases. When you buy your needle tips and cords separately for your circular needles you will need somewhere to house them. Wouldn’t you feel like a super-pro with a stunner needle case like this?
The Knit Café has a few in the shop you can check out along with newly stocked needle tips and cords from HiyaHiya. You can now buy interchangables by the piece and mix and match to your hearts content.

 

I also have pattern news! The Knit Café has just released a new pattern on ravelry.  It’s our latest knitting pattern designed for our Yarn Club. The pattern is called Way Up North. Sweet and cozy slippers are knit in a seamless construction similar to a toe up socks. They feature geometric, colour-work style and loops at the back of the heels we call  “slipper grippers”. You can use them to help ease the slippers on your tootsies or to hang them up when not in use.

The slippers are knit with Julie Asselin Douillet.  This is a super-sweet, bulky yarn. A sturdy one-ply with excellent fat stitches that really show off Julie Asselin’s beautiful hand dyed work.  Julie is one of our favourite Canadian hand dyers. She always seeks out unique yarns to work with. The Douillet is a sturdy woolly mix of Rambouillet and Columbia sheeps wool. We still have a bit of the Douillet in stock but act fast as we are running low!

Craftily yours
Kristin

Happy 2019 Crafters!

2018 is in the books!

        

What a year it’s been!
We brought a few new crafts to the Knit Café, including embroidery classes taught by our new collaborator Sam Lamb, and punch needles classes. The first one was hosted by the super-star Arounna Khounnaraj. The Knit Café also hosted our very first Trunk Show featuring Westlake Knits, followed by another Trunk Show with Yarn Indulgences.
We also added new supplies to our stock including Linen yarns from Quince and Co and sweet embroidery floss and darning wools from Sajou, and we got a brand new yarn line from Brooklyn Tweed – a merino wool called Peerie.
New Knitting patterns were created like our very first toe-up sock pattern called Tulip the Tip-Toer and a fluffy, oversized scarf called Plume, a handmade mushroom ornament pattern, and cables mittens made with Yarn Indulgences’ yarn called Branching Out, and now for 2019…..

…something new!

 A mitten pattern called “Knock Out Mittens”

These mittens are made with this really neato yarn from local alpaca farm Old Mill Alpacas. Complete and total creation of this yarn is produced just a short drive from The Knit Café. We love that this yarn has such a small footprint, but that is not it’s only appeal. Made with Alpaca fibre, it is so soft and thanks to the unusual spinning technique called “core-spun” it has a really unique look. So bubbly and bobbly and fat too, this is a bulky weight yarn on it’s way to being super-bulky. This core-spun yarn is very different then other yarns we have worked with so we embarked on making a pattern that would suit the rarities in the yarn. The “Knock Out Mittens” are the result. You can get this pattern free with purchase of the yarn in the shop and in the webshop too HERE.

Also new is the shop…

Eco Cashmere from Blue Sky Fibres made with 50% recycled cashmere, and 50% virgin cashmere. Wow!
 
100% SuperWash Merino DK from Mineville Wool Project, and Rambouillet/Columbia Wool, in bulky-weight from Julie Asselin called Douillet. Both are hand dyed in Canada.

We are cooking up some new treats for you all in 2019, and hope to tell you all about them soon. Thanks so much for all your support. Craft on!!!

Craftily yours
Kristin

Holiday Hours and Boxing Day Sale!

Happy Holidays Everyone
The Knit Café’s Holiday Hours:
December 24: open 10am-3:30pm
December 25: closed
December 26: closed
December 27-30: open regular hours
December 31: open 10am -3:30pm
January 1:  closed

Our Boxing Day Sale begins December 27 at 10am
and ends December 31 at 3:30pm
Everything in the shop will be 15% off!
Special bargains on especially selected yarns
See you there!

A New Yarn from Brooklyn Tweed – Peerie is Here!

We are unpacking our first shipment of a brand new yarn from Brooklyn Tweed. It’s called Peerie. Hailed as being the softest of all the Brooklyn Tweed fibres Peerie is made of 100% merino wool. It is a fingering weight yarn – just the perfect thing for colour work patterns but with a bouncy twist that will make crisp cables and textures too.
Like all Brooklyn Tweed yarns Peerie is made entirely in the USA. The sheep are breed in Utah and Nevada and the wool is spun to perfection into a smooth 4-ply construction in Maine.
We have 9 colours of Peerie now nestled into the Knit Café shelves, 9 more will be coming any day and even more colours in the next few weeks. We wil keep you informed.
To coincide with the launch of Peerie, Broooklyn Tweed has created a new hat pattern called Lucerne. They have also released several of their other patterns with new specs suited to Peerie – Afton, Ashland, and Boardwalk.

Craftily yours
Kristin

 

Reclaimed Cotton Yarns

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Reinvent, Reinvigorate, Rejoice!
The Knit Café has two new products that hit all these notes.

Billie Jean Yarn by Wool and the Gang
It’s made from all the bits and pieces left over when making your favourite pair of jeans. All these off-cuts would otherwise end up in landfill but they have been repurposed and spun into this gorgeous cotton yarn. All the colours are variations of blue as no dyes or chemicals are added to the fibres.
This is a lovely cotton that will make comfy garments perfect for Spring and Summer wear.

     

Jersey Be Good by Wool and the Gang
Is also made from remnants left over from textile manufacturing. In this case it is surplus t-shirt material that is remade into yarn. Cotton with a wee bit of elastane has amazing crafting potential for imaginative souls. Knit it or crochet it into household goodies like pillow covers or puffs. Make it into hand bags and bins and hampers of all kinds. Macramé your heart out and make wall hangings and plant holders and jewelry. Add it to your tapestry weaving for a chunky textural treat. Iwona has already taken some home to remake her Chevron Rug Project of years past. You can find that pattern HERE.

Both Jersey Be Good and Billie Jean Yarn are in The Knit Cafe’s webshop!

Craftily yours
Kristin