Fri 12 Mar 2010
Wow, it’s kind of hard to believe that another year has passed and it’s our birthday again. Six years ago, we opened our doors, not knowing just what to expect and we have been overwhelmed by your love and support ever since. Thank you so much for letting us be a part of your lives – without you, we would never have gotten to this milestone (and I would never have been able to use the picture on the left – hey, it was one of my favorite books as a child!), so thank you!
How are we going to celebrate? How do we always celebrate? With a HUGE sale, of course! Yup, this weekend (Saturday 3/13 and Sunday 3/14) the entire store will be 20% off! Yarn, needles, notions, books, bags, magazines – all 20% off! There will even be a few lines that will be marked down even further – we’ve got to make way for all the spring yarn somehow, right? We’ll also be giving away special prizes to two lucky people over the weekend, so be sure to make sure your name is in our database!
As usual, we will be marking Insatiable Knitter Cards for all purchases, but we won’t be redeeming them. The sale prices are good on purchases made in store only, not on special orders or phone orders.
Rachelle and I will be here from 10:30 – 7 on Saturday and Tiara and I will be here from 12 -5 on Sunday; it’s looking like it’s going to be a gloomy, rainy weekend, so why not liven it up with some fun times at the yarn shop? 
Sat 30 Jan 2010
We’re not letting a bit of snow get us down! We’re here and it’s warm and dry inside. We’ve got tons of new books for you to peruse and a lot of new yarn for you to cuddle. (Hey, it’s Dream In Color and Schaefer, I don’t blame anyone for cuddling it… sooooo soft!)
Rachelle and I are here, so come on down – bring your projects while you’re at it. We’re open our normal hours today:
10:30-7. If anything should change we’ll post it here, on our
Twitter feed, and on our
Facebook page. (Wait, you’re not following us on Twitter and Facebook? I’ll wait here for you to go click on those. Heh.) Right now, I can say that as long as it’s safe for everyone outside, I’ll be here.
Sat 2 Jan 2010
Yup, the first week of the year marks the beginning of a new year for us in more ways than one. Like every year, we will be closed this week to do our annual inventory. We will reopen on Saturday, 1/9/10 at 10:30am. We look forward to seeing you then!
Sun 20 Dec 2009
We will not be open today, 12/20. (It’s going to take me all day to dig my car out from all that snow – by the time that gets done, it’ll be time to close. Boo.)
However, we WILL be open tomorrow, 12/21 for all your last minute Christmas needs. (Yes, I know, a Monday!)
Thanks for your understanding. Remember to be safe out there!
Sat 19 Dec 2009
Yes, it’s snowy out, but it’s just not safe to drive in to the shop, so we are closed today. Everyone, please stay home and safe today. It’s a perfect day to make yourself a cup of cocoa or tea, pick up that project that’s been neglected and knit (or crochet).
As for tomorrow, I’m playing it by ear. It looks like the snow should stop for tomorrow, so I’ll look at it in the morning.
Enjoy the snow day!
(Photo courtesy of upi.com)
Sun 13 Dec 2009
Christmas is in a week and a half (everyone have your freakout now…. There, better?) and we have changed up our hours next week to reflect that. (The changes are in red.)
Sunday 12/20, 12 – 5
Monday 12/21, 10:30 – 7
Tuesday 12/22, 10:30 – 7
Wednesday 12/23, 10:30-9
Thursday 12/24, 10:30-5
Friday 12/25, Closed
Saturday 12/26, Closed
Sunday 12/27, 12-5
Tue 24 Nov 2009
I guess it is that time of year again – Thanksgiving. For me, it’s the official start to the holiday season despite what the stores say. (Many of you have heard me rant about this over the years, but for me – personally – the holiday season doesn’t officially start until Santa rides his sleigh into Herald Square at noon on Thanksgiving, but I digress.)
With Thanksgiving in just a few short days, I should tell you about the week’s hours here at the shop, huh?
This week we will be open:
Tuesday, 11/24 – 10:30am-7pm
Wednesday, 11/25 – 10:30am-4pm*
Thursday, 11/26 – Closed for Thanksgiving
Friday, 11/27 – 10:30am-7pm
Saturday, 11/28 – 10:30am-7pm
Sunday, 11/29 – 12pm-5pm
* Wednesday is usually our Late night and we will be closing early to allow Jill, Rachelle, and I to spend as much time with our families over Thanksgiving as possible. We will see you on Friday!
Thu 22 Oct 2009
Posted by knithappensva under Uncategorized
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With the holidays just around the corner (I know, talking about it doesn’t make them any easier to handle), everyone seems to be looking for the quick and easy knits. You know, those knits that take almost no outside thought and can be done within the span of a good movie? This cowl is definitely one of them.
Olga was browsing on
Ravelry (our favorite site to find fab patterns, natch) for a great cowl pattern that wouldn’t take too much time or yarn and came across the
Marian cowl by
Jane Richmond. Originally written for one skein of Twinkle Soft Chunky, we’ve substituted two skeins of Teva Durham Tundra (one skein of Rowan Big Wool could be used as well), cast on 51 sts instead of the recommended number, and have gone down to US17s instead of the US19s recommended. Olga cast on immediately, an hour later, she had washed it and laid it out to dry. The Tundra, an already extremely soft wool, got even softer after a wash and dry – which is why I can wear it around my neck!
Where to find the pattern, you might ask? The pattern can be downloaded via
Ravelry and stored in your library (if you have an account).
Wed 21 Oct 2009
Posted by knithappensva under holiday, ideas, projects
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Olga and I were looking at the calendar yesterday and realized that we’ve only got just over 2 months to Christmas! Eek! When did that happen? So, we started brainstorming quick gift ideas to stockpile for those last-minute gifts – or that last minute decision to make this a handknit holiday season.
Olga worked up a
Wurm hat (
rav link) in just a couple of days, using just 2 balls of the Classic Elite Wool Bamboo. Soft, drapey and delicious (according to the babies), it’s knit up on US4s and US6s and is reversible! Olga’s been wearing it daily since she finished it – it’s the perfect hat for weather like we’ve been having: warm for the chill in the morning and light enough for the warmth of mid-day. Slouchy and stylish, it’s the perfect addition to the Fall wardrobe. (Hey, if there’s a fashionista in your life, she’ll totally love it!)
I quickly worked up a
Koolhaas hat (
rav link) for a friend of mine in just 1 ball of the Classic Elite Kumara (an 85% Merino, 15% Camel blend) and a couple pairs of 24″ US8s (hey, it’s what I had available) over this past week
end. A quick and fun knit, it’s the perfect guy hat. (My friend is a cyclist and this will be perfect to keep his head and ears warm while biking!) An added bonus was that I got to try this on tons while making it – and I discovered that even with my sensitive skin, I can wear this directly on my forehead! (Why, yes, there will be a sweater for me knit out of this magical yarn…)
If the Kumara isn’t for you, or you want crisper cabling definition, any worsted/aran weight yarn will work nicely with this. Of course I tried it on before I sent it off… and now want to make one of my very own. Oops. (Okay, not the best picture, but you can see how defined the cables become once on the head – so nice for such a soft yarn!)
Have you made either of these or have any great gift ideas to share? Leave a comment here or on our
Facebook page (post a photo there, even!) – we love seeing what the yarn we sell you grows up to be!
Tue 20 Oct 2009
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Yup, it’s that time of year again – it’s officially Fall, which means the handknits come out of the closet. Honestly, before I was a knitter, I wasn’t a huge fan of Fall, Summer was always my favorite season (hey, I like the heat, what can I say?). Once I learned how to knit and started to knit wearable things, I fell in love with Fall. (Winter and I are on speaking terms, at least, but only because it allows me to wear my handknits.)
Each Fall, as I pull out t
he handknits to wear, I take stock of what I’ve knit. Amazingly, I don’t have all that many sweaters to wear – I always seem to start them and then abandon them partway through the knitting for various reasons: life, boredom, patterns written in Ancient Sumerian Ferret, etc. However, I do have a ton of hats, shawls, and mitts… So this Fall, I am taking stock of all those unfinished sweaters and am determined to finish a few of them to free up the needles they live on and to increase the wardrobe! (Of course that doesn’t mean I won’t start new sweaters… I’m not crazy or anything. Heh.)
I finally finished my Baby Cables and Big Ones Too (
Rav link) by
Suvi Simola. Many of you might remember that Olga taught a class on this sweater last Winter, which would be when I started mine. (Granted, I started it towards the end of Winter and Spring warmed up quickly, so I put it down. That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it.) Last week when I was looking at my pile of handknits, I realized that I should finish a couple of the ones on the needles and this one was the closest to being done. I picked it up on Monday and by Friday had finished both sleeves, woven in ends and was able to wear it in the shop on Saturday! (That was even with a short stop on Sleeve Island – those sleeves never seemed to end… Oops, sorry about the horrid cell phone picture, it was better than all of the other ones I took with a real camera!) This sweater = LOVE. Knit in the Sublime Cashmere Merino Silk DK, it is soft and lovely with awesome stitch definition! Olga even wore hers in on Saturday so we could be twins. It was the unofficial Knit Happens uniform that day.
Tomorrow: a couple of quick hats to knit with 1-2 skeins of yarn!
