I think it’s safe to assume that a good number of you have attended or at least heard about the fantastic annual Knit City events put on by the incredible Amanda and Fiona over at KnitSocial.

Well, we’ve got some great news! Amanda and Fiona are releasing their very first book, Cascadia, and we get to host a leg of their travelling trunk show! The book looks just gorgeous (you can see all the patterns over on Ravelry), and I think that Amanda and Fiona have done a brilliant job in sourcing patterns from some of the best local designers. There are designs from our once-own Alexa and Emily of Tin Can Knits (and Alexa contributed her photographic eye to shoot the book, and Amanda, as well as a grab-bag of other great minds.

Now, we’re letting you know good an early so you can mark the date on your calendars. We’ll be hosting the trunk show on Saturday, February 8th from 11-2. There will be copies of the books for sale, samples of the patterns in the book to admire and try on, and we’ll also get some of the designers out for a meet-and-greet (and maybe even a book signing if you ask them nicely).

Hopefully we’ll see you all there! (and don’t worry, we’ll be sure to send out plenty of reminders closer to the date) In the meantime, what’s your favourite design in the book? I’m quite partial to Judy Marples’ Raven’s Nest Shawl, myself.

If you are like me you often start your new year off with a bang. You are ready to start new projects, learn new skills, and maybe you are determined to knit up some stash yarn. Well it’s the 12th, I’ve already fizzled a bit on my resolutions. But there’s still a lot of year left so let’s talk new projects!

Grincheux

Is this the year you learn socks? If it is, I’ve got a yarn for you! Biscotte and Cie is a Canadian company and they make amazing self striping yarn. Even the simplest socks look amazing in the yarn, and the best part? You don’t have to do any of the color changes or weave in any ends, just whip up your first pair of socks. If socks feel daunting we have Q n A classes, Sock Bootcamps, or private lessons, all the support you need to finish up your first pair.

melon d'eau epice

Tis the season for knitting! It’s December 8th, and that means only 17 days of knitting ’til Christmas. Time to think thick and quick! Urban Yarns has a GREAT selection of bulky yarns and patterns to match that you can knit up in an evening or 2.

Malabrigo Rasta has to be my very favorite bulky yarn. I have used it to make a few False Creek Cowls this year and there is always the lovely Marian Cowl. Marian has been a huge hit around the shop for a few years now, never going out of style and always flying off the needles.

Blue Sky Alpacas Bulky is another great thick and quick yarn. It’s a super soft combination of alpaca and merino, perfect for a hat or scarf, anything next to the skin. The Trellis Scarf is a glamorous long scarf with a trendy fringed edge, while the Frosty Cowl (which takes just 2 hanks!) is a closer fitting cowl.

Frosty Cowl

Enjoy some bulky knits!

So it’s getting a bit chilly and frosty here in Vancouver, and I am finding myself unusually cold for the season. I mean, it’s pretty embarrassing to be a knitter with chattering teeth who cannot for the life of him find a single pair of mittens anywhere in the apartment!

On that note, I’d like to share a selection of some of my favourite warmers!

Mittens (because gloves, while nice, are fiddly, and I need to knit these fast, before I freeze)

Thrummed Mittens
These are the ultimate in warmth and coziness. I’d love to see some done in the wonderfully coloured roving from Great Adirondack Yarn Co.

Gloaming Mittens
Lovely little bit of colourwork from Brooklyn Tweed – try them in the Harrisville Designs New England Shetland.

Pearl Chain Mittens
Oh I just love the cheery brightness of these – maybe in Madelinetosh Sport?

Hats (while it’s not true that you lose most of your body heat through your head, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t keep it warm!)

Rikke Hat
Simple and slouchy! And gosh… any DK weight yarn.

Little Scallops Hat
Just enough to cover your ears, and add a pop of colour – would be great in Lorna’s Laces Sportmate.

Cocoon Hat
This bulky hat will up quickly in Rowan Cocoon for immediate satisfaction.

Scarves/Cowls (while I love the Honey Cowl, let’s take a look at some other options)

Big Herringbone Cowl
Need an excuse to use Blue Sky Alapacas Worsted Hand Dyes? Look no further! mmm, royal alpaca…

Jeweled Cowl
Maybe a little bit light for Northern climes, but if you live somewhere where the mercury doesn’t drop so much, this cowl lets you carry some lacy frosty glitter with you.

Linen Stitch Scarf
And finally, a great unisex scarf! Linen stitch really works brilliantly at blending disparate colours to create a unified pattern! Especially fun with Koigu.

Ooh, what a fantastic little treat we’ve got in!

It’s a rare day that Shibui produces something that I’m not over the moon about, but that’s because they put out some fantastic yarn (and great patterns as well). The newest offering from the Portland-based company is Pebble, a light, luxury blend.

Pebble is 48% recycled silk, 36% fine merino, and 16% cashmere, and comes listed as a ‘heavy laceweight’. It is really lovely in the hand, soft, with a fine halo from the cashmere, but also a delightful tweediness from the recycled silk and merino. This yarn may well be my new fall obsession.

Unfortunately, my photos really truly cannot do this yarn justice. Do yourself a favour and check it out in person, it is well worth it..

Oh, oh, it gets better! Along with Pebble, Shibui has launched a few new patterns, my favourite of which is Cliff, hands down (so much so that I am tempted to make a boys version). You can pick it up on Ravelry, or you can buy a copy in-store!

Ooh, brr. The weather has taken a turn towards the distinctly chilly today, and while I’m slightly hesitant to call it Fall… I just can’t admit that winter is here yet, so Fall Classes it is!

Last Call: Vivid Blanket Workshop

Coming up this Sunday is your last opportunity to take a lesson with our visiting knitter Emily Wessel of Tin Can Knits fame. Emily is teaching her fantastic Vivid Blanket Workshop This Sunday, November 3rd in Point Grey from 1-4pm, and if you want a brilliant, portable, colourful, fun project to play around with, you should sign up!

You will make one square, and learn all the techniques required, including the pinhole cast-on, knitting lace from charts, and working in the round using either double-pointed needles, or the magic loop technique, depending on your preference.

More information can be found on our classes page.

Don’t miss out, sign up today!

Beginner Classes

And I would very much like to take this opportunity to flog our bevy of beginner classes! Thinking about knitting gifts for Christmas? Well, it’s not too late, especially not with our incredibly talented instructors guiding you along.

Cast on, cast off, knit purl, learn them all! Great for fresh-faces beginners and also excellent as a refresher if you haven’t knit in a long time. We’ve got classes most days of the week, and you can see the whole schedule online here!
Some sessions will be starting up very soon, so you’d best take a look, and talk your non-knitting friends into giving it a shot!

Who can resist such a graphic and beautiful blanket? Emily is the creator of both the POP and Vivid blankets and will be in town to teach workshops on both! Each blanket is created with squares knit from the center out. Sound crazy? Sign up for Emily’s work shop and she will walk you through it step by step!

The real question to ask is which yarn and which weight? Both blankets can really be knit in any weight of yarn, just choose needles to match. The POP blanket is done in a self striping yarn (Noro Kureyon) to give it a lot of different colors. For Vivid you can choose your palette, cool blues? Fall inspired reds, oranges, and browns? Perhaps something bright and wild? The possibilities are endless!

POP Blanket Workshop

Bright, bubbly and modern, the POP blanket is a unique knitted patchwork quilt.  It is a great project for using up bright leftovers from other projects, and a perfect heirloom knit for the very special baby, or your freshly renovated room.  Knit from the centre out, these addictive squares use several special techniques that you may not have tried!

You will make one square, and learn all the techniques, including the pinhole cast-on, short-row shaping, stretchy bind-off, blocking and the crochet-chain seam.  The class is suitable for advanced beginners.

What to bring:

- POP blanket pattern (available in store or online http://www.tincanknits.com/pattern-TCK-POPblanket.html
– 5.5 mm double pointed needles (or a long circular for the magic loop technique)
– 20 yds each of 2 colours of worsted/aran weight yarn (this is for one square – see the pattern for complete blanket requirements) – sample shown in Noro Kureyon and Cascade Eco
– locking stitch marker, darning needle, crochet hook

When:

Point Grey
Monday, October 21st
6:30 – 9:30
Cost: $35.00

North Vancouver
Tuesday, October 22nd
6:00 – 9:00
Cost: $35.00

Vivid Blanket Worshop

Join designer Emily Wessel (of Tin Can Knits) and learn how to make the exquisite Vivid Blanket.

A delicate, lacy but modern patchwork, Vivid is knit one square at a time, in a rainbow of your own choosing!  It is a great portable knitting project, and makes a very special baby gift, or a house-warming present to yourself!

You will make one square, and learn all the techniques required, including the pinhold cast-on, knitting lace from charts, and working in the round using either double-pointed needles, or the magic loop technique, depending on your preference!

What to bring:

- Vivid blanket pattern (available in store or online) http://tincanknits.com/pattern-HUK-vivid-html
- 70 (100, 130) yds of sock (DK, worsted) weight yarn – your choice! and needles to match yarn weight (we suggest US 5 for sock weight, US 7 for DK weight, US 8 or 9 for worsted weight)
– stitch markers, darning needle, crochet hook

When:

Point Grey
Sunday, October 27th
1 – 4 pm
Cost: $35.00

Sparkly and silky, it’s time for a new shipment of Great Adirondack Yarn Co. yarn and batts!

We’ve got sequins,

We’ve got silk,

And we’ve got merino.

So if you’re looking for something just a bit different to spin, felt, or plain old fondle, you can’t NOT stop in…

Oh happy day!

Would you just look at that lovely, lovely pile of yarn. Zealana really makes some brilliant products, and we’ve got nearly the entire lineup. From lightest to heaviest, Air, Kiwi, Rimu Fingering, Rimu DK, Kauri and Heron.

Air: 40% cashmere, 40% brusthtail possum down, 20% mulberry silk
Beyond decadent. Light, airy, fuzzy but not sheddy, pilly, or scratchy (unlike mohair, alpaca, angora…)

Kiwi: 40% NZ merino, 30% organic cotton, 30% possum
Smooth, clean, drapey. Would make for excellent transitional season wear.

Rimu Fingering: 60% NZ merino, 40% possum
A bit rustic feeling, warmer than you would expect.

Rimu DK: 60% NZ merino, 40% possum
A much softer hand than the Fingering version. Perfect for a layering garment, ideal for Fall!

Kauri: 60% NZ Merino, 30% Possum, 10% silk
Indulgent with the silk, and surprisingly much lighter feeling than it’s worsted weight would suggest.

Heron: 80% NZ Merino, 20% Possum
The beefiest of the bunch. Still knits up with a gorgeously soft hand, and yet wears like iron.

And all in a row. From left to right, Heron, Kauri, Rimu DK, Rimu Fingering, Kiwi, Air.

We have been continually impressed with the quality of Zealanas yarns. The possum fibre is just astonishingly warm due to the nature of the hollow fibres, and it really does wear brilliantly with minimal shedding, and no pilling. Most of their products are machine washable, even if not stated explicitly on the label, you’ve got pretty good odds. I have seen some years-old garments that have been heavily used and abused and machine washed, and they still look like new. Defintiely do yourself a favour and be surprised!

I recently had the opportunity to review Great Little Gifts to Knit by Jean Moss. It strikes me as the perfect time of year for such a book because I was just putting together a little list for the holidays. It may seem early but we all know how quick these things creep up!

While the book contains a whopping 30 patterns I thought I would tell you about my 3 personal faves:

First up, something for baby. As you may have guessed I LOVE knitting baby gifts. They are quick and small and use very little yarn. Perfect! I am adoring the Whoopla Beanbags. While Hunter isn’t quite coordinated enough for juggling, she and Jones do love to throw things at each other. Beanbags are perfect, very little damage done! These beanbags are knit up in a cotton and Blue Sky Skinny Cotton fits the bill, lots of colors to choose from.

Next up is something for her, the Jive Leg Warmers. Simple cabled leg warmers in Rowan Big Wool, they are a snap to knit and stylish too. The perfect stocking stuffer!

Hugs socks. Need I say more? Worsted weight socks (I am a big fan of a heavy weight sock), with fair isle too! A wintery delight for anyone on your list.

There you have it, my faves! There are, of course, 27 more beautiful patterns to choose from so pick up a copy today!

Frou Frou

Galway Beanie

Flavor Placemat