Knit Happens

Our hours for Maryland Sheep & Wool weekend are:

Friday: 10:30-5:30 (Note: we are closing early – there will be no Knit ‘N Nosh this week.)
Saturday: Closed
Sunday: Closed

We will reopen at our normal time on Tuesday morning, ready to see all that you bought at MDSW!

We’ll see you up there!

It’s warm outside, baby! Time for quick, lacy projects!

First up this week we have one for the crocheters – the Hourglass Jacket, yet another fab design from Stitch Diva! This figure flattering jacket works up fast in broomstick lace, using one large knitting needle and a crochet hook. The pattern fits up to a 52″ bust and has options for short or mid-length sleeves.

Never done broomstick lace? Not to worry, the pattern has clear instructions and photos, and there are video tutorials on Stitch Diva’s website! (Yet another reason why we love their patterns!)

Difficulty: Intermediate – broomstick lace, shaping

Recommended Yarns: Alchemy Silk Purse, Alchemy Silken Straw, Debbie Bliss Cathay, Debbie Bliss Prima, Classic Elite Cotton Bamboo, Classic Elite Premiere, Rowan Purelife Organic Cotton, Sublime Soya Cotton

Speaking of lacy, baby… or is that lacy babies?

Our next pattern is the Light & Lacy Baby Blankets from Fiber Trends – two lace patterned blankets using fingering weight yarn on US 6 needles that knit up into lovely delicate gifts for a summer baby. Or use a sportweight or DK yarn for a pretty lace afghan for yourself! The pattern provides charts and written instructions for both lace patterns.

Difficulty: Advanced Beginner – lace

Recommended Yarns: Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino, Filatura di Crosa Zarina, Rowan 4-Ply Soft, RYC Cashcotton 4-Ply, RYC Cashsoft 4-Ply, Schaefer Anne

Come in this week, buy the pattern and materials to make it… and we’ll give you 10% OFF!!! (But hurry, you only have a week to get the discount for these patterns!)

(photo credits: Stitch Diva, Fiber Trends)

Follow me, don’t follow me, I’ve got my yarn, I’ve got my Orange Crush…

…Orangina from Glampyre Knits, that is!

Our first pattern for the week is Stef Japel’s lacy tank perfect for warm weather – this would be super-cute with a skirt or summer pants. The pattern fits up to a 44″ bust.

This would be a great first lace garment project too!

Difficulty: Advanced Beginner – simple lace, minimal shaping

Recommended Yarns: Rowan 4 Ply Cotton, RYC Cashsoft 4 Ply, Filatura di Crosa Zarina, Regia Silk

Hey crocheters, we’ve got a pattern for you this week… actually, THREE patterns!

Every girl needs a cute hat, even in spring and summer,right? With the Essential Crochet Hats pattern from Stitch Diva, you can whip up a Gatsby Cloche, Downtown Cloche, or Pageboy hat to go with every outfit. With different yarn choices and the various finishing options in the pattern, you could make these over and over and have a different look every time!

Difficulty: Intermediate – shaping

Recommended Yarns:

Gatsby Cloche: (sportweight) Rowan Cotton Glace, Fibra Natura Cottonwood, Fibra Natura Flax, Schaefer Susan, Universal Linen Tweed

Downtown Cloche: (bulky weight -try a worsted held doubled!) Classic Elite Flash, Ella Rae Bamboo Silk, Schaefer Laurel

Pageboy Hat: (worsted weight) Rowan Denim, Rowan All Seasons Cotton, Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton, RYC Silk Cotton

Come in this week, buy one of these patterns and materials to make it… and we’ll give you 10% OFF!!! (But hurry, you only have a week to get the discount for these patterns!)

(photo credits: Glampyre Knits, Stitch Diva)

The Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival, paradise of fiber lovers everywhere, is coming soon!

If you’ve never been to MDSW before, it can be an overwhelming experience – a whole fairground full of sheep, sheepdogs, alpacas, Angora rabbits, lamb kabobs, farm equipment, funnel cakes, fried Twinkies, knitters, yarn, crocheters, spinners, fleeces, more yarn, spinning wheels, roving, fiber classes, handmade soap, baskets, pottery, t-shirts, art, weaving looms, yarn, jewelry, yarn, and more!

Did I mention there’s yarn? Dozens and dozens of vendors selling the most beautiful hand-dyed, handspun, every fiber yarn you can possibly imagine! The first year I went, Holly had to talk me out of spending all my rent money in one booth!

To keep YOU from spending all your rent money, Knit Happens and Knit-a-Gogo are pairing up for two (count em, TWO!) MDSW events!

On Friday, April 25, from 7 – 8 PM, we’ll have a workshop to help you get ready for the fiber festival season! (Oh yes, there are more fiber festivals coming!)

We’ll cover how to purchase yarn without a pattern, how to shop for hand dyed and hand spun yarns, the history of fiber and an overview of fiber categories, and the hottest spots at the festival (the places that you want to hit first, before the good stuff is gone!) Call us at 703-836-0039 to register! (The workshop is $10.)

Then on Saturday morning, May 3rd, at 7:30 AM we’ll meet at Knit Happens for breakfast and then car pool to the festival! (If you’re interested in driving or having a spot in someone’s car, please e-mail Knit-a-Gogo.)

Knit Happens will be closed May 3rd and 4th so we can all go to the festival, so why not come along?

You guessed it – we’ve got MORE new yarns and patterns for you to try!

Come in this week, buy the pattern and materials to make it… and we’ll give you 10% OFF!!! (But hurry, you only have a week to get the discount for these patterns!)

The first pattern this week is a perfect project to make before Maryland Sheep & Wool – you’re going to need something to carry all your purchases in! The felted Adventure Bag from Noni is just the ticket – you can knit it in 3 different sizes (you might be able to fit a whole sheep in the large size!) and felt it in your washing machine. We have a sample made up in the shop – come check it out.

Difficulty: Advanced Beginner- picking up stitches, I-cord

Recommended Yarns: Ella Rae Classic, Malabrigo Merino Worsted, Universal Deluxe Chunky

And of course you’ll want something fab to wear to MDSW to show off your fiber skills, right?

Stitch Diva’s got a brand new design, Labyrinth, that would be a perfect quick knit! This shapely sweater is worked from the top down (so you can try it on as you go). The best part -it’ s seamless so you can finish fast!

There are options for two sleeve lengths and two necklines – go for the sexy ultra-low square neck or the more modest version to suit your personal style. The pattern fits up to a 52″ bust.

Difficulty: Intermediate – knitting in the round, shaping

Recommended Yarns: Debbie Bliss Prima (an amazing new bamboo and merino blend!), Classic Elite Cotton Bamboo, Sublime Organic Cotton, Sublime Soya Cotton, Rowan Wool Cotton, RYC Silk Wool DK, Alchemy Silk Purse.

(photo credits: Noni, Stitch Diva)

Oh right, that was me!

In addition to gorgeous new yarns and single patterns, something else came in from Alchemy Yarns this week that you should see…

The long-awaited book Destination Alchemy!

20 original designs using Alchemy’s own fabulous Silken Straw, Haiku, and Silk Purse are presented in a book that’s as beautifully designed as the patterns inside.

From luxurious lace garments that you can enjoy knitting for weeks, to scarves and wraps that only take a skein or two, this book has it all – as well as gorgeous photos of the garments, the yarns, and the people (and donkeys!) of the Alchemy Yarns family.

(photo credit: Alchemy Yarns)

You guys got lucky, you had TWO weeks to grab those great Lorna’s Laces and Stitch Diva patterns!

We’re back this week with two new patterns for you to try out with more new spring yarns. Come in this week, buy the pattern and materials to make it… and we’ll give you 10% OFF!!! (But hurry, you only have a week to get the discount for these patterns!)

We’ve gotten in three great new yarns from Teva Durham’s Loop-d-Loop line – River, Birch, and Moss – so of course we wanted to give you a pattern to try some of them out!

We have Classic Elite’s gorgeous spring yarns as well – Summer Set, Sundance, Cotton Bamboo, Premiere… AND a brand new yarn from Noro, the lovely Matsuri!

Oat Couture’s Bistro Shirt is from their Easy Knits line of patterns, written specifically for novice knitters. The instructions are easy to follow and only basic stitches are used. More experienced knitters will love this pattern too though, it’s perfect for warm weather! This pattern fits up to a 49″ bust.

Difficulty: Advanced Beginner – slip stitch, ribbing, increasing, picking up stitches

Recommended Yarns: Loop-d-Loop River, Loop-d-Loop Birch, Classic Elite Sundance, Classic Elite Summer Set, Noro Matsuri, Kollage Cornucopia, Schaefer Laurel

We can’t tell you enough about the beautiful new yarns and patterns we’re seeing from Alchemy Yarns! The Mesh Skully Cap is a great way to try out one of their luscious hand-painted fibers – and it only takes one skein!

Difficulty: Advanced Beginner – knitting in the round, simple lace

Recommended Yarn: Alchemy Yarns Wabi-Sabi

(photo credits: Oat Couture, Alchemy Yarns)

Spring is officially here (according to the calendar, at least) and for many, that means a Spring Cleaning. Some even give their stash a Spring Cleaning! (I don’t, but that’s just because the thought of my stash scares me at times.) Which leads to the question: “What in the heck do I do with all this leftover yarn and yarn I just don’t want anymore?”.

Donate them!

A local group of knitters, the Senior Center at Franconia, is always looking for extra bits of yarn to knit into hats for babies and cancer patients. The hats then get donated to Inova Fairfax Hospital. They accept all kinds of yarn, any length at all. Smaller lengths get combined with other yarns to create fun, stripe-y hats. If you have yarn that you’d like to donate, give me a call at the shop and I’ll put them in touch with you.

Have a ton of yarn that you know you’ll never knit up? Why not donate it to a few charities? When we closed the online store last August, we still had yarn that we just didn’t have the room to bring over to the retail store. We donated the yarn to two charities: Warm Woolies and Southern New Hampshire Services. Both of these places supply yarn for people to knit warm items for those who can’t afford them. A plus? They will send you a receipt for any yarn you donate for tax purposes.

So, if you start feeling a little overwhelmed with your stash and/or odds and ends, consider one of these charities… You’ll be sending your yarn out into the world to do some good.

That’s right, the cards that we’ve been waiting for since last December are finally in! Find all of your receipts that you’ve been holding on to and bring them in for us to start your new cards. Remember, receipts from the super-big sale aren’t counted towards the Insatiable Knitter Card and you only get one stamp per day.

I have lots of new merchandise to blog about, I just need to take pictures and upload them… Let’s just say we’ve got some Alchemy, Classic Elite, Debbie Bliss and Sublime to talk about.