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Shawl Ball

July 17, 2016, 6:26 pm
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There is a new yarn on the way to us from Freia Fibers.
 Ombre Fingering Shawl Ball. This is Dirty Hippie and it's in the box.
This is our first single-ply fingering yarn, and our first yarn in a luscious, lovely 100% merino. It has an against-the-skin softness for neckwear and perfectly complements our single-ply worsted and sport offerings.
Then there’s the feel-good manufacturing: this is a true cruelty-free merino, grown and spun in the United States to our particular specifications.

Though exceptional stitch-definition has long been a hallmark of our single-ply yarns, the loftiness of this Merino Fingering is particularly versatile, lending itself to be stitched up in a variety of gauges without losing definition or drape.

Our unique dye process also results in a very slight felting which creates a wonderfully pill-resistant fabric. Voracious Freia fans will be perhaps most excited by the upgraded yardage. These 100 gram “Shawl Balls” measure 430 yards, perfect for single-skein projects.
393m (430 yards)
100grams
Blue Velvet
Ice Queen
Metropolis
There are 4 brand new colours coming as well.
To anyone else, a "subtle neon" colorway would be an oxymoron. Here at Freia Fine Handpaints, we saw it as a challenge. We love the pop of neon, but also wanted to create something wearable for many seasons. After grappling with a multitude of sunglass-intensity highlighter-hues, we couldn't be happier with the result.

The trick, we found, was to nestle the vibrant color amidst softer shades that begin and end each ball to make for easier joining from one ball to the next.

We are proud to introduce our new neons, comprised of four ombré colorways cleverly named after the elemental gases that produce these distinctive shades.

HELIUM comprises of a buttery yellow that delicately contrasts with an intense segment of "Lemondrop". KRYPTON begins and ends with a subtle pistachio shade and features a splash of "Grasshopper" green. XENON hues range from dusty lilac to bright "Thistle," and NEON moves from peach to orange-stunner "Tobiko" and back again.
Ambah has a great pattern for a self-striping yarn.
Pattern: Sea Urchin (purchased on Ravelry)
The shawl is knit in fingering weight yarn. One ball of Shawl Ball along with a solid fingering weight - tosh merino light would work great.
There are days when I would like to have 8 arms. Imagine how much knitting I could accomplish.
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Outline

July 18, 2016, 6:58 pm
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Outline is growing. I took out one of the multi-colours and added in the blue/purple. The yarn is nice to work with and the pattern is easy to memorize. I have a feeling there could be another shawl cast on when this one is finished. I have until the end of August. The next shipment of 20 colours should be arriving then.

As I'm writing Beth is watching American Ninja Warrior. These people are amazing! She keeps yelling at me to turn around and watch the next challenge.

A puppy has gotten all the attention lately so tonight the big dogs were spoiled. Melo and Roko have new toys. They are very happy with us!
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It's like Christmas

July 19, 2016, 4:15 pm
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Mr. Canada Post brought in a lot of boxes today. The first was from Blue Sky Fibers. The new colours of Worsted Cotton have arrived.
 This is the Caledonia Cowl. Blue Sky is running a KAL in their Ravelry forum.
This KAL runs from June 21 through August 31st, 2016. Knit as many cowls as you wish in our Blue Sky Fibers Organic Cotton Worsted yarns because the more finished projects you post in this thread, the better your chances of winning a fabulous prize!
We are also offering a 50% discount on your Ravelry PDF purchase of the Calendonia Cowl pattern through August 31st, 2016. Just enter “COWL” in the coupon code section at checkout.
Read more about the KAL...

See all the available shades and note the price - we were able to reduce it.

Another box in the pile had Zauberball Starke 6.
The same unique color combinations as Zauberball Crazy in a DK weight to give sweaters, shawls, and scarves a truly creative flair.



• 75% Superwash Wool, 25% Nylon
• 437 yards per 150 gram ball
• 3-4 mm needles
• 5.5 sts per inch

This is the yarn that Beth used for her latest scarf (and she will be taking a few more balls tonight to start another one.)

There were so many boxes this morning it was like Christmas.

The newest Party of Five kits came from SweetGeorgia.
Botanica
Waterfall
Jelly Bean
Cobblestone
Graphite
One kit will make Soft Twilight (pattern purchased on Ravelry)
Tomorrow will be like the day after Christmas. The mess needs to be cleaned up.
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Planning for Fall

July 20, 2016, 6:27 pm
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I like to plan. That includes my knitting. What am I going to make when I'm finished my current project?


Here are some great designs that will be in Rowan Magazine #60. The magazine should be in the store at the end of August/beginning of September. That gives you enough time to finish your current project and be ready for something new and exciting for fall.

 



I can't wait. It's hard to believe that we are up to #60. I opened the store in August of 1987 and the first yarn I bought was Rowan. That was the first year for the Rowan Magazine. The Needle Emporium has been listed as a stockist in the back of every issue.
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Outline is growing

July 21, 2016, 6:16 pm
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My friend and I made a quick trip outside for pictures. I don't want to complain about the weather because I'm lucky enough to work inside.
It's going to be bright :) The pattern is really fun to knit. I walk through the fingering weight room and put together colour combinations. I think I could knit this shawl over and over again many times.

Some of you were disappointed that you didn't get any Hedgehog Fibres from our first order. Another order has been placed and should be here the end of August. Here is my suggestion. I will be blogging as soon as I know that it has been shipped. All colours from the first order will be coming again plus there are new colours. When it arrives I will be adding it to the website as soon as I can. I will blog that it's here. I will post on Ravelry. I will post on Facebook. Go to the website and order online. This will guarantee that you get the colours you want. There will be shipping charged on the order. If you want to pick it up, note on the order that you'll be coming in and when you pick up the yarn we will give you back the shipping charges. Please make sure you note that you are coming in because I try to ship out the same day that an order is placed.

Worsted Cotton from Blue Sky Fibers came home with me tonight. Beth is going to make the Caledonia Cowl for the store. The main colour is 645 Iceburg. The contrasting colours are 648 Plum Dusk, 647 Bluefin and 639 Wasabi.

Yes, we've been watching Big Brother. It is an interesting season. I really want James to win. With the way things are going right now he won't be on anyone's radar for quite a while. It's almost time to start watching and get back to my knitting.
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Fluorescent

July 22, 2016, 6:27 pm
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We received a fun box from Freia Fibers this morning.
Super Bulky in wild colours.

Did you know that yarns from Friea Fibers are spun and handpainted in the US?
Can you imagine this scarf in one of the new colours?

Pattern: You Look Gradient (purchased on Ravelry)
4 balls of Freia Super Bulky - you are holding two strands together on 25mm needles.

Miss Lucy likes to lay under my mom's feet at dinner time. It is cute now but when she gets bigger it won't be so cute. They are trying to get her to lay beside the table. We'll see how that goes :)

We have a bonus Big Brother tonight. Beth is winding her Worsted Cotton as I'm writing. I can't wait to see how the colours play out.
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A new Auburn Wave

July 23, 2016, 11:44 am
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There was more fun in the box from Freia Fibers. Shawl ball has arrived.
Meet Neon

The yarn is spun and handpainted in the US.

There are 393m/430 yards on a ball.
Xenon
Krypton
Hellium

I brought a few balls home from TNNA and Diana knit us a shawl. We did the old favourite, Auburn Wave, because I love the pattern. The shawl drapes well and you can knit until you run out of yarn. Two 100gram balls make a great size.

Our sample colour didn't come in this shipment but here are the great colours that we do have.

Here are a few pattern suggestion:
Stephen West's Dotted Rays
Stephen West's Briochevron Wrap. This shawl is really calling my name. And some of these bright colours mixed with a black background would be amazing!
Choose a colorful array of fingering weight yarns and knit this large wrap in two-color brioche. The main color is a black and white marled yarn while bright color pops from Hedgehog Fibres decorate the striped background. Increases and decreases form the graphic chevron lines and the fabric length is customizable.
If you don't want to make a shawl, a really cool scarf would be ZickZack. I've knit the scarf and think it would look awesome in two neon colours. Xenon and Krypton. Wow. Somehow I need to find more hours or more arms or something that lets me knit faster.
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Lazy Sunday

July 24, 2016, 4:43 pm
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The City of Hamilton has asked people to water their trees so I was at the store early this morning to water before it was too hot and sunny. I'm home now for a day of TV and knitting. I'm writing on my iPad today because it was on the counter in front of me. I was setting up Bell Fibe on it. Beth and I are thinking about going to Myrtle for a few days during the Olympics. We aren't sure what TV channels we'll get in Myrtle and what events we'll get to see live. This way we can watch Canadian coverage if there is an event we need to see. Especially if we have a chance to win a medal.
Beth started the Caledonia Cowl. It is super, super soft. I was surprised that the cowl is knit flat and then sewn. But when you think about it, it is easier to knit garter stitch flat. If you work the cowl in the round you need to knit a row and then purl a row. I'd rather knit every row and then do a small seam. 
We were putting last night. Hopefully my tips will help her on the course today.
Beth stopped to see Lucy on the way to the course. Mom and dad were taking her for a car ride. The drug store and then Dairy Queen. Dad's comment was that Lucy needs to get used to the car because she'll be in for a long ride soon to Myrtle Beach. Yup, that was just an excuse. My dad wanted ice cream.
It was a lazy day for a lot of people today.
It was very hard to knit today. Between the Jays, the Canadian Open and the Nascar race I was busy flipping channels. I managed a few and I'm going back to it. 
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Planting

July 26, 2016, 4:44 pm
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I try really hard to post every day but last night was spent finishing a newsletter. If you don't receive our email newsletters, you can sign up in the top right hand corner of the blog. Newsletters go out about once a month - we try not to fill your inbox.
Beth's cowl is growing. As long as I wind the skeins for her, she is happy to knit.
Mr. Canpar just brought in a box and we're stocked with Mille Colori Baby again. You need four balls (two of one colour and two of another colour) and 3.5mm needles to make ZickZack (the pattern is free on Ravelry)

Austin is working at our house today. I wanted a garden across the back of the yard and today is the day. The weeds are gone. How come weeds can grow so well with no rain? Then he is putting in grasses and flowers. We're going English Garden.

The plants are here and he'll be planting tomorrow. I can't wait to see it.



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What we've knit Wednesday

July 27, 2016, 5:45 pm
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Cathy has been very busy. Her shawls are awesome!
Pattern: Starry Starry Night (free on Ravelry)
Yarn: One ball of Rowan Kidsilk Haze Stripe and one ball of Classic Elite Silky Alpaca Lace

It was very hot when we went outside to take pictures so we went as fast as possible. As soon as it cools down we'll get pictures of my friend wearing the shawls different ways.

Pattern: Close to You (free on Ravelry)
Yarn: 2 skeins of Mrs. Crosby Satchel
Pattern: Lilli Pilli (purchased on Ravelry)
Yarn: 3 skeins of Mrs. Crosby Train Case

Pattern: 3 Color Cashmere Cowl (purchased on Ravelry)
Yarn: fingering weight ends from shawls that Cathy has knit

Pattern: ZickZack (free on Ravelry)
Yarn: 2 balls of Debbie Bliss Rialto Luxury Sock

When Cathy chose balls that were both predominantly green I was afraid that the pattern wouldn't show. I was wrong. The scarf looks great. 

The first sock is finished. Lynn says that if you want a challenge, this is the pattern for you. No TV. No wine. Every needle has a different pattern. But when it's finished the sock looks amazing. 
Pattern: Mingus by Cookie A. (purchased on Ravelry)
Yarn: One skein of tosh twist light

The plants are in



Mulch on Friday. The neighbours have been peering over the fence to see what's been up.

Now it's time for Big Brother and knitting.
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Thunderclap

July 28, 2016, 4:19 pm
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We received an awesome shipment from Prism Yarns today. These yarns are hand dyed in Florida by Laura Bryant. She puts together the most amazing colour combinations.
Designed to dip gracefully in the back, the Eccentric Chevron Wrap sits comfortably on your shoulders. The graphic interest comes from unbalanced, or eccentric chevrons: one leg is much longer than the other, which skews the fabric off-center. By mirroring the stitches at center back, a dip is formed naturally.
The kit comes with all the Merino Mia yarn you'll need to make the wrap (6 - 190-yard skeins in assorted variegated colors), and the Eccentric Chevron Wrap pattern. Prism Merino Mia is absolutely stunning. This machine-washable, hand-dyed yarn is 100% merino superwash, with a gauge of 6 to 6.5 stitches to the inch.

When I was at TNNA, I asked Laura to make a special colourway for me. I'm taking one kit from the box and there are two more in Thunderclap. This could be my Olympic knitting. If I can wait that long to start.

This afternoon was spent on the golf course. It was my first round since Vegas in January. Beth has Club Championship this weekend so she wanted to get in some practice. I hit some good shots and some not so good shots. It was fun to be outside so I'm not worrying about the score.
Dinner is finished and now it's time to put my feet up. I haven't knit a stitch today and my fingers are itching. It could be that I'm too tired to do anything else :)
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Glasgow

July 29, 2016, 3:22 pm
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Ms. UPS just brought in a super fun box from Lorna's Laces. New colours of Shepherd Sock and Solemate.

Lorna's Laces has a new dye technique called SplatterShot. The colours are amazing.


 

The pictures from Lorna's Laces website look good but wait until you see them in person. Here are the skeins of Solemate Glasgow. I was very tempted to put them in my bag. The colour is phenomenal.
Our sock yarn Solemate is 55% superwash merino, 15% nylon and 30% Outlast
Outlast is a viscose (rayon) fiber that interacts with your body’s microclimate to moderate temperature from being too hot or too cold.
Magine (a pattern purchased on Ravelry from Ambah O'Brien) would look really good in Glasgow. One skein makes a small scarf version and two skeins make the large shawl.

I need to hit Publish because every time I re-read my post I want Glasgow more. I'm trying to control myself :)

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Shepherd Sock or Scarf or Shawl

July 30, 2016, 4:39 pm
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Here are all the new colours from Lorna's Laces in Shepherd Sock. Our skeins are 50grams with 196m/215yards. The yarn is 80% superwash wool and 20% nylon and you need two skeins for a pair of socks.

Kate Atherley's February Lady Sock pattern is free on Ravelry.


Imagine picking 3 or more colours and making the Linen Stitch Scarf (we have patterns in the store or you can purchase on Ravelry)

If you aren't familiar with Linen Stitch, here is a great tutorial.

From Churchmouse Yarns
Linen stitch has a way of harmonizing even the most disparate colors. Our friend Mimi Hepler first created this scarf to use up all her precious fingering weight leftovers—18 different colorways! So for our scarf we chose three skeins of fingering weight yarn that combined as many different colors as possible. But it’s equally beautiful in subtle shades. In fact, we haven’t seen a bad combination yet! That’s the magic of linen stitch. Heck, it’s even beautiful on the ‘wrong’ side.
If you aren't interested in socks or a scarf, how about a shawl?
Pattern: Asking for Flowers by Kate Atherley (pattern purchased on Ravelry)
You would need three skeins of Shepherd Sock for a shawl this size.
A sideways shawl with biasing garter stitch makes for a beautiful drape, and a dramatic Shetland lace edging adds interest to the knitting – but not too much! – and to the finished product. Short-row wedges create a nice curved shape.

The colourway, “The Flowers” brings to mind all the joys of a summer garden – wear the shawl in the spring, to hasten the arrival of the season, and in the winter, to remind you of the glories to come.

Suitable for knitters with a little lace experience, but you don’t need to be an expert!
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Gradient Kits

July 31, 2016, 5:35 pm
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The shipment that arrived this week from Prism Yarns included Merino Mia Gradient kits. The yarn is 100% merino. There are 8 skeins in each kit with a total yardage of 1390m/1520 yards. The yarn is a heavy fingering weight - perfect for shawls and scarves.

From Laura Bryant at Prism
Just what you have been waiting for from us: a work horse yarn that is beautifully twisted, soft, easy to knit, has a lovely sheen and takes our vibrant, clear colors extremly well. I am going crazy working architectural knits: modules, miters and more.
The skeins are labelled one through eight so you don't have to worry about getting them in the correct order. Laura thought of everything.
Grays
Taupes

Outline is growing.
Outline in one of the gradient kits would be phenomenal. There are so many different ways that you could work the colours.
  • start at one and work to eight
  • work one, eight, two, seven...  - the shawl will go from dramatic stripes at one end to subtle stripes at the other
  • divide the balls in half - work from one to eight and then eight to one (or eight to one and one to eight)
  • randomly use the colours
I need to stop because as I keep thinking of ways to make Outline with a new kit I'm moving closer to rolling skeins into balls :)

There were a few more kits in the box - these are for the Eccentric Chevron Wrap.
Tumbleweed
Iceberg

Big Brother is taping and I need to get back to my knitting. I'm trying to get Outline finished in the next few days. Then I need a small, small project. I'm flying to Myrtle Beach on Wednesday for a few days. I'll be taking my Olympic knitting but can't start until Friday afternoon so I need an in between project.
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Linen

August 1, 2016, 2:22 pm
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We've been asked a lot lately about Linen. We don't have 100% Linen in the store right now but a Linen blend that I really like is Dandelion from madelinetosh.
Dandelion is a single-ply custom blend of 90% superwash merino wool, 10% fine linen. With a generous 297m/325 yards per skein, this fingering weight yarn is more than enough yardage to complete a pair of socks and two skeins can completed a full-sized lace project. This uniquely soft, fine linen blend is hand-dyed in small dye lots.
You can use Dandelion for any fingering shawl that you see on Ravelry but watch the yardage. It is shorter than other fingering weight yarns - you might need an extra skein.

Guess what pattern I used?
That's right. Auburn Wave. 3 skeins of Dandelion knit on 4mm needles.

See the shades that we have in the store... 

I'm trying to get everything ready to go. I don't need clothes. I don't need toiletries. Really the only thing I need is knitting. My balls are wound for the Eccentric Chevron Wrap.
Here are the inside of the yarn labels. I like this. Thanks Prism Yarns. It made me smile while I was rolling the skeins.
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Which Way

August 2, 2016, 12:48 pm
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Lynda finished this shawl a few weeks ago but I couldn't show it because the kits hadn't arrived yet. They just came in the door.
Pattern: Which Way (purchased on Ravelry)
Yarn: Kit from Frabjous Fibers
You’ll get somewhere quick with this engaging chevron stripe shawl made with one main color and five mini skeins. Attractive, slim stripes allow you to carry your colors along, so you’ll only weave in ends where you’ve moved on to the next mini skein. You’ll be able to get someWEAR in no time at all!
 This is the kit that Lynda used for our sample.





I first saw Which Way knit up at TNNA. It is from the Sleeping Gryphon with Coal and Scuttles kit.


So Fond of Rainbows are back in stock.

It's the rainbowload of Mini Skeins, oh yes. Four of our popular Mini Skein Packs are combined into one enormous, beautiful rainbow for a full-spectrum knitting experience! Twenty 1-oz Mini Skeins: combine them all for a large project, or spread them out over several smaller projects. The possibilities are truly endless! 
Cheshire Cat fingering: 128 yards per 1 oz. skein, 2560 yards total
March Hare worsted: 46 yards per 1 oz. skein, 920 yards total
The Colorburst Blanket is knit with one March Hare kit. The pattern isn't available yet but should be on Ravelry by the end of the week. I'll share the link once it's available.

I will be doing some website updates and lots of knitting while I'm away.
It's going to be way too hot to go outside.
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Hello Myrtle Beach

August 3, 2016, 4:40 pm
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The drive to the airport this morning was quick and painless. Fast through the border and early at the airport.
This is from the driver's seat of my car. Yes, I'm parked that close to the terminal. That's why we fly out of Niagara Falls airport.
The skies were clear in NY but just before we left the pilot told us that there were thunderstorms all around Myrtle. He wasn't sure if we would be able to land but we were set to go to Atlanta if necessary. NO!! I had knitting with me. My iPad. No clothes. No toiletries. Luckily the weather was okay and we landed no problem.
I needed a small project to work on until I can start my Olympic knitting on Friday afternoon. I'm using 3 balls of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock to make Joji's Three Colored Cowl. Perfect, mindless knitting for the plane.
I talked about Linen the other day and today Lynn received a box from England that included Studio Linen from Erika Knight. I'm writing on my iPad so cutting and pasting isn't easy. 
So I cheated. I took screen shots from Erika's website.
 
It's time to relax. I got off the plane, took a taxi to the house, dropped off my bags and grabbed the truck. I put a few miles on it running errands and getting dinner. Now it's knitting/TV time.
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Thursday in Myrtle Beach

August 4, 2016, 3:51 pm
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Help!! Someone emailed me yesterday with pictures of their Ambah shawl. I was at the airport and didn't open the email. Now it's gone. I don't remember who sent it but I know that it was there. Please email me again.
My cowl is growing. I didn't tell you what colours I'm using - the turquoise is Cozumel, the lime is Prague and the purple is Minneapolis. We have these colours in Shepherd Sock (the yarn I'm using) and in Solemate.
There was another yarn from Erika Knight in the box that Lynn unpacked yesterday. Gossypium Cotton.
One of my jobs while I was here was to have the dryer fixed. It would overheat and stop. I called the company at 11:45. The repair man has been here, fixed the problem and is gone. All before 1:30. The dryer used to live on the right and he switched them (and made the door go the right way) as well as blowing out and fixing the vent hose. He even swept up behind the washer and dryer. Sit down for what I paid. $65. I asked if I could bring him home to fix things there :)
Someone is growing. Beth has been working on her training and tired her out. She couldn't even make it the grass. They were working on down yesterday and now she'll do it. She did it for my mom this afternoon too. Maybe she'll be easier to train than we thought. She can be very stubborn.
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It's Cast On Day

August 5, 2016, 4:35 pm
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Let the Games begin...
 
I get to cast on for my Eccentric Chevron Wrap this evening. Over 500 stitches (the shawl is worked lengthwise). That will take longer than the opening ceremonies. I think I bit off a bit more than I can chew with this shawl. I might have a hard time finishing. To give myself more knitting time, I have invited/pushed Lynn to join the fun. This way we can both watch and knit in the store.
Lynn is going to make Ishbel with one skein of tosh sock. She hasn't knit with it yet and wants to try. The colour is Mica. 
The colours in my cowl are coming out great. I'm very happy. And very sad at the same time. The Bell Fibe TV app on my iPad doesn't work in the US. I don't get to see the opening ceremonies on Canadian TV. I don't get to see them talking about our athletes. It's already started at home and not for another 5 minutes here. Yup, there's a bit of pouting. I'm going to get over it and start my shawl. 
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Colorburst Blanket

August 6, 2016, 4:09 pm
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The pattern for the Colorburst Blanket is free on Ravelry this weekend. I'm writing on my iPad and adding links isn't easy. I'm driving myself crazy so I'm going to give you an easy way to get the pattern. Under PATTERNS on Raverly type in Colorburst Blanket. Then you can download it.
 
I knit and knit last night but didn't get very far. The shawl is 534 stitches. It took a long time to cast on and the first row is always slow. It's starting to go faster now. It would be better if I didn't have to stop knitting to watch what is happening. I've been watching the men's cycling. Over 200km in 6 hours. Wow. Then there was swimming and volleyball and beach volleyball and rowing..... I ran out to get dinner and now I'm in for the night. It's knitting time. 
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