We unpacked box after box of stunning Fleece Artist yarn this week. No complaints, we love that part of the job. Our walls are loaded up again with gorgeous sock kits which would make a great Christmas gift, just grab one and you’re done. If you’re an industrious knitter like the Yarn Harlot, you still have time to knit many pairs of socks before Christmas. Read the Harlot’s hilarious posts about her busy Christmas knitting schedule right here. Or you could always gift the kit with a promise to knit the socks in the New Year…

We have the Cherry Swirl sock kit, with 350m of Somoko yarn, 65% merino, 20% kid, 10% nylon and 5% silk:

The Tilting Block Sock kit, with 325m of Nova Sock yarn, 100% machine washable merino wool:

The Bordello Sock kit, with 350m of Sea Wool, 70% merino, 30% seacell:

Or the Casbah Sock kit, with 325m of Casbah sock yarn, 80% superwash merino, 10% cashmere for softness and 10% nylon for strength:

We also have lots of skeins of Merino 2/6 sock yarn, 360m of 100% machine washable merino, in many gorgeous colourways. And we received a bunch of the ultra soft and luxurious Peter Rabbit, 70% angora, 20% nylon and 10% wool. Not exactly a sock yarn but if you like angora you’re going to love this one.

If you want some great Christmas gift ideas for your knitting friends, or better yet, for yourself, check out our December newsletter for a list of suggestions.

And be sure to have a look at Garnstudio’s advent calendar, with a featured pattern for each day from December 1 – 25. You can’t see the upcoming patterns until the day arrives. We have lots of the popular Garnstudios yarn including Alaska, Alpaca, Eskimo, Fabel and Paris.

Happy Holiday Knitting!

It snowed in Vancouver on Sunday. Our city pretty much shuts down when it snows. Schools and stores close early, people don’t drive, everyone hunkers down at home, drinking a hot beverage and talking about THE SNOW. It’s really weird. Anywhere east of the Rockies, it’s business as usual on a snowy day. Not here.

Sure enough, the phone started ringing on Sunday afternoon. “Has Debbie cancelled?”, “I can’t go out in the snow”, “Is the event still on?”, “I don’t have snow tires” etc. , etc.

Of course Debbie Stoller is a trooper, she didn’t cancel. She enchanted the diehards who showed up and signed many books, despite THE SNOW and a nasty earache. Thanks Debbie!

Lorra braved THE SNOW, enjoyed the event and wrote us a lovely email the next day: “I wanted to say “Thank You!” for hosting the book launch with Debbie Stoller last night. I really enjoyed hearing her speak and I just love her style and positive outlook. I’ll be having a great week – despite all the rain – every time I think about her hip message and funky attitude. Thanks again for an inspiring event.” Thanks Lorra, we’re glad you could join us, the pleasure was all ours!

We took a few photos. These are some very cool mitts from Debbie’s new book:

And an edgy toque:

Love the scarf:

Want the shirt:

We have a few autographed copies of Son of Stitch and Bitch available for purchase – they won’t last long.

And now for the Tuesday specials. This week’s featured yarns are Plassard Bibop and Grignasco Karma, at 30% off. These are fun, bobbly yarns that are great for scarves, edging and well, almost anything you’d like to knit. Julia knit a very cute vest out of Karma awhile ago. Julia, please send a photo!

Have a look at the specials page on our website for all of our current and upcoming specials.

Be sure to check out the great new Harmony Guides series of books. They’re updates of the classic handcrafters’ reference books that were first published over 30 years ago. There are 3 books in the series, each featuring 250 stitch patterns and authored by Erika Knight:

Knit & Purl starts with the most basic stitches, then quickly moves far beyond into a variety of stitch patterns that are sure to inspire. There’s a great mix of classic and contemporary patterns from the basic seed stitch to bobbles, ladders and diamonds. Or try the Space Invaders stitch?!There are also lots of design tips to help you create your own unique look.

Cables and Arans is a great guide to creating textures, dimension and scale in your knitted fabric. This is another great mix of classic and contemporary designs – a wonderful and easy to reference library of ribs, twists, cables, woven and aran stitch patterns.

Lace and Eyelets showcases some delightful lace designs that will add a touch of sophistication to your knitting projects. Try knitting some little flowers, falling leaves or butterfly lace. From simple eyelets to gossamer-like cobwebs, lace stitches offer endless possibilities for experimentation.

These are great reference books for knitters of any level who’d like to expand their repertoire. Watch for two more Harmony Guides, Basic Crochet Stitches and Crochet Stitch Motifs, coming in Spring, 2008.

We have some other fabulous new books from Interweave. This one is The Best of Interweave Knits, Our Favorite Designs from the First 10 Years, by Ann Budd:

You can’t go wrong with this one. There are 25 designs from more than 20 notable designers, including scarves, stoles, cardigans, pullovers, vests, jackets, tops and totes. Also included are 12 of the best articles from the popular Beyond the Basics column, a great reference tool. These articles provide detailed info on essential techniques including casting on, increasing, decreasing, binding off, seaming, grafting, blocking, reading charts and working short-rows.

We also have Getting Started Knitting Socks, by Ann Budd:

Knitty.com says this is… “The best beginning sock book that has been published so far. That is all. Go buy it.” Nuff said.

You should also have a look at the latest books in Interweave’s popular “Style” series. Bag Style, with 22 designs for inspirational handbags, totes and carry-alls to knit and crochet:

Or Folk Style, by Mags Kandis, with loads of innovative designs to knit including sweaters, hats, scarves, gloves and more.

And we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the classic Vogue Knitting Quick Reference book:

Nothing new about this one but it’s a must-have technique and reference book. It’s a handy, portable and less expensive version of Vogue’s The Ultimate Knitting Book. We think that “Quick Reference” contains the best elements of the hardcover “Ultimate”, with 128 pages of excellent illustrations and explanations of essential knitting information.

Any of these books would be a very welcome Christmas present for a knitting friend, or even better, for yourself! Better check ‘em out….