Learn Something New!

One of the things that keeps me fascinated with knitting is that there is always something new to learn. Not only are there centuries of knitting history to look back on but new knitters keep making stuff up!

The other day I learned something new and it gave me a little jolt of joy so I thought I would share it with you. This new tip came from Brooklyn Tweed, a very special yarn company that The Knit Cafe has the good fortune to represent. Not only do they provide us with covetable yarns that are ethically and sustainably produced, but they also produce kick-ass knitting patterns and have wonderful technical support.

Brooklyn Tweed just released a video about Helix or Helical Knitting. What a fancy name!
Helical Knitting is used when knitting in rounds with single row stripes so that you don’t get the uneven colour jogs that happen when you change colours at the beginning of a round. It’s pretty neat!

Here’s a video of me showing it to Iwona

Helical Knitting Demo

If you would like to know more: Watch this video from Brooklyn Tweed. It explains Helix Knitting thoroughly including how to do it with Magic Loop. For even more info you can check out this video from VeryPinkKnits who shows Helical Knitting with three colours on a circular needle.

Helical Knitting is also very useful for Knitting with hand dyed yarns which often vary from skein to skein. If you alternate your skeins in a striping pattern you blend the various colours together so you don’t see a abrupt change in colour when you change to a new skein. Brooklyn Tweed also suggests using Helical Knitting techniques with their Dapple Yarn which is dyed on a gradient.

So I recommend it – learn something new, and when you do tell someone about it so they can learn it too!
Craftily yours
Kristin

Start making your Sweater Plans

Brooklyn Tweed has a new collection!

It’s called Winter 2018 and it’s fantastic!

You could make this ↑.
Kiragami – Knit with Arbor

Or this ↑.
Belfast – knit with Shelter

Or this ↑.
Nolan – knit with Arbor

Or this ↑.
Etna – knit with Vale

Or this ↑.
Colburn – knit with Loft

Or this ↑.
Freja – knit with Quarry

Or this ↑.
Geiger – knit with Arbor

Or this ↑.
Peaks – knit with Shelter

There are also some fantastic accessories in this collection. Check out all the patterns in the Winter 2018 collection HERE, and have a look at The Knit Cafe’s selection of Brooklyn Tweed Yarns HERE. We have sweater quantities of most colours and more coming. Write us or call if  you have questions about our quantities in stock.
The Knit Café has free shipping for orders in Canada over $110, and you can pick up in store yarns you order online too!

Have fun with your sweater dreaming
Craftily yours
Kristin

What to knit with two weeks till Christmas

Make head-toppers! Something for the head generally takes less time to make then something for the neck.

The Knit Café just released this pattern last month! It is called Fay Wray. Quite a glamourous headband made from The Knit Café in house yarn called Small Batch Number One !

Small Batch is  a soft yarn produced entirely in southern Ontario, from farm, to mill to shop. You can only purchase it from us in-shop or from our webshop HERE.

Starry Night Chapeau is one of The Knit Cafe’s most popular hat patterns. It is a classic shape with a pretty twist-stitch pattern, Sizing is available for tiny tots and full grown folks too!
Our version is knit with Riverside Studio’s Single Ply Worsted. This makes the hat super-soft, really pretty, and made in Canada!

Make sure to check out Brooklyn Tweeds new collection of Holiday Knits. It includes this fashionable hat they call Quincy. This hat is knit with chunky Quarry yarn and has a really interesting construction for a really unique hat. You can find the pattern HERE
Quarry is available in The Knit Café on Roncesvalles and also in our Webshop!

Also check out this lovely cabled hat by Brooklyn Tweed called Skiff. This hat can be knit into a tighter fitting beanie or (as shown) a slouchier version. Find the pattern HERE.

This hat is knit with Shelter from Brooklyn Tweed which is available here too!

Making presents is such fun!
Craftily yours
Kristin

Yes! We Have Vale!

Vale has arrived from Brooklyn Tweed.
It is the latest to be added to Brooklyn Tweed’s delicious menu of yarns.

Those of you who are devoted to Brooklyn Tweed have probably known for a while that this day was coming. The folks at Brooklyn Tweed have been dropping hints and slowly previewing patterns and images for this lovely new yarn. The wait is over – Vale is available in all it’s lacy weight glory and so are some terrific Brooklyn Tweed patterns to match.

Check out the Vale Pattern Lookbook HERE

and get yourself some Vale from The Knit Café – in store and in the webshop too HERE

Craftily yours
Kristin

PS: We are open today and tomorrow Sunday May 21, but closed on Monday for Victoria Day!

 

New from Brooklyn Tweed

The Knit Café has added Brooklyn Tweed Arbor to our online shop!

Now you can shop our collection of this beautiful DK weight wool from your sofa. Want some project inspiration for this excellent yarn? Look no further then Brooklyn Tweed itself!

Jared Flood recently added this photo to The Brooklyn Tweed Blog. It depicts all the hats he made for this past holiday season with Arbor yarn and Brooklyn Tweed’s pattern Burnaby. I made one of these hats this season too. It was a mighty fun knit and the pattern includes a version knit with bulky Quarry yarn which we have in store too.
Brooklyn Tweed has been busy making up patterns for this new yarn. You can check out the whole collection HERE

In addition you might want to have a look at Amirisu’s most recent magazine. Amirisu Winter 2017 has some real gems in it including this ↑ lovely sweater made with Brooklyn Tweed Arbor

Also new – a book of patterns from Brooklyn Tweed!

Capsule by Michele Wang  was launched on January 18.
The book contains 8 new patterns that feature Michele Wang’s signature style garments. They are full of texture and glorious cables. The book contains some wonderful women’s sweaters like the one above called Aspen but there is also a terrific men’s sweater and a cute hat pattern too. Buy the book HERE or the patterns individually HERE.
Coincidentally we received a great big order of Brooklyn Tweed on the very same day this book was launched. We have refills of Shelter and Loft and Quarry and Arbor too. You can see all the stock of Shelter and Loft and now Arbor on The Knit Cafe’s website HERE.

Craftily yours
Kristin

What we’re making

Iwona and I both, have just finished projects.

Because we can’t get enough of the Sashiko Pattern, Iwona knit up another version. The Sashiko Pattern can be knit into a cowl but it can also be knit into a scarf. Here it is in the scarf version in a poppy pink and a graphic black and white mix. So pretty!

With the Sashiko you mix and match your favourite colours of Shibui Silk Cloud (silk and mohair) and Madelinetosh Prairie (merino) to get yourself a decadent masterpiece!

Here are some mix-and-matchables that are in shop right now. ↑

I just finished this ↓

This big guy is called Snoqualmie. It is a Brooklyn Tweed Pattern from the Winter 2016 Collection made from Brooklyn Tweed Quarry. What knitter does not want to make a classic fisherman sweater? I certainly did, and I can’t wait till it gets chilly enough to wear it. Fall come soon!

You can find the Snoqualmie pattern HERE

Brooklyn Tweed has just released it’s latest patterns -Fall 2016! Check it out HERE

Craftily yours
Kristin

Frolic Knit Pattern 2016 is now Published

We had such a great time at this year’s Knitter’s Frolic. Our booth was bustling with Brooklyn Tweed lover’s and Sashiko enthusiasts!.

We also introduced a new pattern at the Frolic. It’s our first pattern designed with Brooklyn Tweed yarn. It was a hit! We sold out of knit kits for our new creation and patterns too. Now there is a PDF version of the pattern you can purchase through our ravelry store HERE.

Our new pattern is called Canada Geese.

This oversized scarf is made with light-as-air Brooklyn Tweed Loft. It feels cosy-comfy around the neck and shoulders without weighing you down. The design is inspired by the chevron formation of migrating Canada Geese.  In this pattern the chevron design is broken into two so that colours can be paired and complimented. We used neutral greys, with a pop of colour – Brooklyn Tweed colours Snowbound, Storm Clouds, and Hayloft.
You can see how the it looks in full in this schematic.

Get more info about our Canada Geese pattern HERE and Brooklyn Tweed Loft HERE

Craftily yours
Kristin

 

New from Brooklyn Tweed and Julie Asselin

Delightful, delicious, delovely yarn from talented indie dyer Julie Asselin has made it to the Knit Café. Just look at these beauties. They look right at home hanging beside the Riverside yarns. Both these yarns are Quebecois, so they speak the same language you see. Both are worsted weights too. The new skeins from Julie Asselin are gorgeous, 100% superwash merino, with a plyed spin.
I will take some close-up glamor shots for you soon, but better yet come and see them for yourself.

     

     

We are now well stocked in Brooklyn Tweed and have added a few colours to our Brooklyn Tweed colour pallet too. In other words – there is more to love! Above are a few of the new hues, but check our webshop for the full array. Some of your favourites are back too!

Craftily yours
Kristin

 

Lovely Lace from Julie Asselin

It is only a matter of hours before The Knit Café Class Sale ends. Get your 15% off on your class registration before the sale expires at the end of the day tomorrow – Sunday January 10, 2016. See all the classes HERE

We are starting off the new year right with a new addition to The Knit Cafe’s menu of yarns. Behold, a selection of yarn from Julie Asselin↓

Julie Asselin is a Quebecois hand dyer and the beauties above are some of her handiwork. Merletto is the name of the yarn. It is a sumptuous blend: 75% merino, 15% cashmere, 10% silk. There is 740m on a skein. It is a lace weight yarn so perfect for fine knit shawls and other silky, dreamy projects.
We expect to get other treasures from Julie Asselin real soon. Stay tuned!

I’m also happy to announce that we have just added the Brooklyn Tweed Loft yarn to our webshop. You can now purchase this fingering weight version of the terrific Brooklyn Tweed wool line online and have us ship it to you. Have a look HERE.

Craftily yours
Kristin

Loft from Brooklyn Tweed is at The Knit Cafe

Have you heard the happy news?  We received our second shipment of Brooklyn Tweed yarns. This time we received more beautiful colours of Shelter- the worsted weight variety. New colours include: Thistle, Homemade Jam, Fossil, Old World, and Cast Iron.

We also got LOFT!

Loft is the fingering weight version of this 100% American wool yarn. You will want to come and check out all the tweedy colours and fondle and dream about what you might make. Check out the Brooklyn Tweed website for pattern inspiration. They have some beauties!
Colours; Long Johns, Cast Iron, Tartan, Snowbound, Old World, Fossil, Button Jar, Hayloft , Storm Cloud,  Artifact and Soot

We also have a small amount of Brooklyn Tweeds latest yarn. It is called Quarry and it is a bulky yarn for 6mm-8mm needles. Four wonderful colours are now in stock. Check out Moonstone, Slate, Lazulite and Hematite.

We are also happy to let you know that we have some brand new sock yarns from Nova Scotia. Thank you Fleece Artist and Handmaiden for sending us some delicious looking hand dyed yarns.

This is a small sample of the pretty skeins of Casbah yarn that are now on the shelves. Casbah is an absolutely decadent blend of merino, cashmere and nylon. We love it!

We also have some really terrific skeins of Trail Sock by Fleece Artist. This yarn is merino and nylon and perfect for sock knitting.

Happy Trails
and Craftily yours
Kristin