Challenging ourselves.

The Knitting Olympics are more than halfway over (can you feel the pressure mounting?), but we refuse to be overwhelmed... yet.  Lindsay and I are making merry progress (as you shall soon see) and, well, everyone else are being very nice by not mocking.  Sandy Kay is almost participating in that she's trying to knit up a Skif sweater in record time (don't ask) and has been going a little swatching crazy.

Now, normally, we wouldn't share swatches (who'd care, right?), but these are special little squares of handknit curiosity.  They're each an experiment in the field of yarn chemistry.  If you, like so many of us, have been intrigued by assemblage's beauteous Thursday vest and Paper Crane cardigan patterns, this next bit might just interest you. 

Skif Swatches All together	Punta Yarns Montoya Beach Held single, knit on 4mm/ US 6's
Habu XS-55 Linen & A-177 Merino One strand each, knit on 5mm/ US 8's	Habu XS-55 Linen & N-76 Tsumugi Silk One strand each, knit on 5mm/ US 8's
Habu XS-55 Linen (double) Knit on 5mm/ US 8's	Habu XS-55 Linen (single) Knit on 5mm/ US 8's

If you want to drop by the store and feel them, we'll have them (and many more Habu swatches) on hand for fondling.  Not in Portland?  Well, each photo has a mini review attached.  Just click on it for more information!

Next, on our list of staff doings, we have Eva's cashmere/ silk mitts:

(or, well, mitt)

Yarn?  The delicious and decadent Swiss Mountain Cashmere & Silk by Handmaiden, in the color "Ocean".  Eva is following the Ayanna Mitts pattern but (be warned) had to go down two needle sizes (to US 1's) to get gauge - this yarn has got bounce.  It'll be worth it, though, as the finished mitts are going to be gorgeous. 

Now, onto the Olympian knitting!  While Lindsay and I might be the only staffers crazy enough to attempt the Games, we're at least making progress.  Lindsay's Vintage Baby Cardigan is actually starting to look like a cardigan!

She's certain that she'll be able to finish be the Feb 28th deadline and still manage to make a set of matching booties (Ysolda's Tiny Shoes) as well.  It's gonna be awesome.

I, myself, am not quite so far ahead as Lindsay, but am dutifully trucking along.  My Gansey Vest (self-designed pattern, sorry) is coming along:

Though I am not to the half-way point as I would like.  Soon, though.  This might turn into a slightly different project to make my deadline.  It was going to have a hood, but that's looking less likely right now...

And while I am on the subject of my Knitting Olympics project, I simply must share with you the best cable needle EVAH:

Lantern Moon's rosewood (or ebony) cable needle set.  I, in all honesty, didn't did not like using cable needles and would just go needle-less - until I tried these.  They are just perfect.  Smooth but not slippery.  And, to hold your stitches in place, there are these clever little grooves in the middle that make sure the cable needle doesn't slip out, even if it's smaller than the working needle.  They are just AWESOME and easily win a 10 out of 10 from me.

I had to share that.  Surely there are many knitters out there who have suffered from escapee cable needles (shudder) or from ones that are too sticky and stretch out your knitting (grr) and are either: a) constantly trying new cable needles and being disappointed or, b) trying to go needle-less (which doesn't really work when you get to cabling more than 2 sts).  These Lantern Moon cable needles are the solution and everyone should try them.

In other Knitting Olympics, or would it be Olympic Knitting?, news - have you seen this?  The Peruvian Alpine Skiing uniform:

 

Which features traditional knitting motifs (including Llamas!) in honor of Peru's rich knitting tradition.  Read the article (and see the close-up!) here.

Lastly, we have some Store News to share...

• Wanted: Sample Knitters.  See here for details.
• Finishing 101 is tomorrow night.  Taught by me.  I'll be covering picking up stitches along a straight seem (along both garter stitch and stockinette edges) and a curved seam.  Swatches are required.  See the class description for details.  It's only $15 and you get to learn several new techniques!

 And that is everything.  Check back on Thursday for another fantabulous issue of Fashionknitsta!

Brace yourself.

It's a New Year and the time for new opportunities and to make new resolutions. And, boy, have we got some resolutions this year. I took a little sampling of our staff's goals for 2010 and, I have to say, I'm not too surprised that we're really pushing ourselves:

• Lindsay: to cut wips by down 50%, and learn to knit Continental and to knit two socks at one time.
  
• Marjorie: to learn to knit two socks at one time and how to knit lace.
  
• Mine: to master Fair Isle.
  
• Darcy: to finish her Habu sweater and learn to knit Fair Isle holding both yarns in one hand.
  
• Eva: to make her first sweater.
• Jenny: to finish her boyfriend's Christmas present (gloves); which, incidentally, is her first knitting project.
  

Do you have a knitting New Year's resolution? We'd love to hear it!

On top of setting (slightly unreasonable) goals for ourselves, we've also got some great store updates to share:

1. We have collected 47lbs of clothing for Oregon Foster Care children! We'll continue collecting through the 18th, too. So keep on bringing those handknits and hand-me-downs in. Questions about what to donate? See our Handknits for Hard Knock Kids post.
   
2. We DID have Malabrigo Twist in stock... for about 5 minutes. I'm really sorry, blogfans, but it sold before I could get it on the web (or even photographed). And, before you complain, I swear we ordered two bags of every color. People just really like this yarn. But, don't worry!, we have some scheduled to arrive next week and I SWEAR it will go up on the web and be featured in the Newsletter.
3. We're looking for a new Gratis Knits pattern and have decided to increase the gratuity to $100 in store credit. That's right. Get your pattern up and in view of over 11,000 knitters and get a $100 gift card as an additional reward. See our updated Submission Guidelines (or the upcoming Newsletter) for more information!
   

Let's see what else we've got... A couple of weeks ago (while I was sick and not posting), Andrea sent us photos of two cushions she had finished for Christmas gifts:

The pattern is the Cable & Twist Pillow from Interweave's recently released Knitted Gifts. The yarn is (was) ShibuiKnits Merino Kid in Pagoda and Seaweed, held double to get the correct bulky gauge. Andrea also posted these lovelies on her ravelry journal, if you want more information about the project.

I, however, have not been that conscientious. Sorry. In lieu of other staff projects (my coworkers claim that they have none on their persons. I think they LIE.), I present my current traveling sock (and knitpod):

Which is currently traveling a lot back and forth between home and work. The yarn is Handmaiden's luscious Casbah (love, love, love) in the color "Fleur" which was a new release at Sock Summit (I think). We don't carry the color currently, but I think we have it on order. I also just finished a pair of mitts and a WhatsIt (see below for both), since we're so low on projects to share today (hint. hint. hint.*):

And, because it was a rainy day (like we really need an excuse), Lindsay and Eva and I might have gotten a little carried away taking photos for the blog this afternoon...

Sometimes seriousness is way overrated. See our how silly we can be set on flickr if you need a quick giggle.

That seems like everything, but I feel like I'm forgetting something. What could it be?

Oh, wait. It might just be our upcoming KAL, the details of which are still under wraps. Check your inbox this Friday for an awesome Newsletter that will include some breathtakingly beautiful yarn, a limerick contest and a lot more! Until then, stay dry**, blogfans!

*Don't make me pull out the pointy stick, guys.
**If you're not in the PNW, maybe that should be "stay warm"!

busy, busy, busy 'round here

But I thought I might mention Three Things:

1. Some lovely cashmere-y sock yarn arrived this afternoon for our lucky, lucky Sock Club members to enjoy sometime this year (not next month, though! we have something equally special planned for November...)
2. Eyebobs are on the website, including three new styles. Check out the Eyebobs page for more details.
3. Our "Ten Reasons To Love October" Sale is still going strong. If you missed our newsletter last Friday, check it out before all the yarn is go-o-one!
   

And we're back!

I apologize for my/ our absence these past two weeks, we've been taking turns getting sick out here at the LYS, which has thrown everything off-schedule and out-of-whack. But we're all back (and all well, never fear!) and rearing to get back to our old schedule. So, without further adieu, let's start with a customer project that just has to be shared. Prepare yourself for the "Wow" factor...

Susan came in wearing her recently finished Wisteria sweater (pattern by Kate Gilbert), and we had to get a photo:

Do you want to hazard a guess at what yarn she used?

Handmaiden's Sea Silk (in "Straw"), held double, making this the most delectable Wisteria on the planet (unless, maybe someone's made one out of cashmere...). Just... wow! I didn't get to see it in person (see the intro paragraph), but Lindsay and Kristin couldn't stopped sighing over it when they told me about it later.

Alas, I couldn't find Susan's project on ravelry, so we'll just have to love it from afar.

Next, we have a vampire that's cuter than Edward Cullen (sorry, couldn't resist), because Sandy Kay has finished Victor the Vampire!

(he even has a handknit cape!)

And he's on display in our side window. The next time you drop by the store, be sure to check out the creepy/ cute Halloween display we've set up. I'll take a picture of the finished display (we're missing a pumpkin and some handknit bats), and post it in next week's post for all of our lovely out-of-town blogfans.

Finally, on the project front, we have Lindsay's in-progress alpaca blanket:

That she's making with Joseph Galler Prime Alpaca. It's soooo soft, you (okay, we) just want to roll in it. Mmm, alpaca.

Anyway, lest I start to drool, we also have some announcements this week...

First and foremost, we still have a couple of spots left in our upcoming Mad Hatters workshop. If you've ever been interested in learning to knit colorwork or design your own colorwork projects, this is the class for you!

Second, did you know that Julie Weisenberger of CoCo Knits is coming to Knit Purl?? It's true, she is! And she's going to be teaching three awesome classes: What Not To Knit, Finishing/ Design Techniques, and CoCo Knits Cornucopia. If you're a CoCo Knits fan be sure to register early (this news is going out in the Newsletter tomorrow!), because we expect these classes to fill up fast.

Last, but not least, be sure to check back tomorrow for another installment of Gratis Knits! Yes, that's right, we're bringing back our popular quarterly free pattern series.

But, until then, keep knitting!

Fashionknitsta Thursday: 10/8/09

Welcome to another Thursday and another edition of Fashionknitsta.

I have to thank a couple friends today for sharing some great pieces with me. In fact, my first inspiration piece comes from within my own home, a wonderful bag my roommate agreed to share with us. She got this a few seasons ago at Urban Outfitters and I have always thought it would be a really fun project.

I found this, the Posh Purse by Robin Chachula, on Ravelry and, though it isn’t exactly what I’m looking for, I think I’m on the right track. I’m not great at manipulating crochet patterns; but, I think done in chunkier yarn like Shibui Highland Wool Alpaca, perhaps, this would be a really close match. If any of you have seen a pattern that matches more closely, please let me know!


The next piece I’m looking at today also comes from a friend. I was sent a link to this cute cashmere/wool blend vest at Nordstrom:


It immediately brought to mind a project I actually bought yarn for just last week. This vest is a design from Helga Isager’s Amimono Spring/Summer 09 collection:



This vest is done with Isager Wool 1 and Alpaca 2 held together, and while this pattern is in the Spring/Summer 09 book, I think its a perfect layering piece for fall. I've seen several of them made up (the second image is actually one from Leslie, one of our wonderful customers) and they are just beautiful in person.

Color choice was a seriously hard decision, because I love the neutral look of these samples, but I decided to step out of my comfort zone and go for blues with color 23 of the Alpaca 2 and color 101 of the Wool 1. I'm really excited to start this project, I just wish I had thought about it in July! This book is full of fantastic patterns, so if you're interested get it while you can as the ever popular Amimono Fall/Winter 08 is now sadly out of print.

(Just a note: that vest from Nordstrom costs $198, while the Amimono version only costs $108 including the book with the pattern.)

My final inspiration to share with you all today is actually a sneak peak of a pattern coming for Knit Purl this holiday season. Last year while blog-cruising I saw this lovely accessory:

I immediately fell in love with it, but could not believe that it cost something like $120. I could hardly wait to share it with my coworkers, and Sandy Kay and Sara began whipping up their own versions. You may remember seeing this previously on the blog, but here is Darcy modeling Sandy Kay's sample:

Sandy knit this little treat out of Handmaiden's Swiss Mountain Cashmere in colorway Moss. With a fiber content of 65% cashmere 35% silk, this is definitely something I'd love to use to keep my ears warm with this winter. Check in next month for the release of this pattern, I know I'm excited!

As always I wish you all a lovely weekend, see you next Thursday for the next edition of Fashionknitsta. Until then, stay chic blogfans!

-Lindsay

Projects!

Have we got a parade of handknits for you today (some are finished, some are still OTN, but they're all looking good!). First off, we have Sue's children's bolero:

Knit with ShibuiKnits Merino Worsted in Spectrum.

Do you remember Sue and her 110 Pullover? I certainly do have to wonder when does she find the time to knit all these sweaters? I mean, really. Last I talked to her, she was planning on making an adult bolero to match.

Then, after Sue dropped by to show off, Nancy came in for some advice on her Skif Heart:

Which I think is just lovely. She's been making it with Handmaiden Sea Silk, Habu Textiles Tsumugi Silk (one of my personal favorites!) and Isager Wool 1. The hand of the three together is just luscious. I can't wait to see this finished (keep going, Nancy! you're sooo close). And, ha!, I found it in Nancy's ravelry journal.

Next, we had a visit from baby Mils, whom you might recognize from our April Staff Pick eCard:

She is so darned cute I want to squeee! whenever I see her photo. I managed to convince Mommy and Grandma to let me get a photo of her in her handknit booties with her (clearly) favorite teddy bear. The booties are from heaven knows where (maybe these?), since I couldn't get any info on them. But the bear pattern is from Debbie Bliss' Simply Baby and is easily the cutest bear pattern any of us have seen.

And, last but not least, on the handknitting front, we have Sandy B's Easter chicken for her granddaughter:

Who I've named Henrietta, which has stuck (it fits, doesn't it?). Made with Rowan Handknit Cotton in "Slick" and "Nectar". Cute, huh? I decided she needed to be introduced to our Jamie, Gordon and Hugh chickens. Last I checked, they were getting on spendily.

And, truly finally, we have Mona's handspun "dewdrop" yarn:

It was made by beading the yarn as it was spun. Very fun. Mona has just over 9 oz here, which is decidedly enough for a variety of projects (which maybe she'll bring back for Show and Tell...). And, just so's we don't get annoyed questions later, Mona learned to spin the yarn during our Intermediate Handspinning Techniques class. Aren't you jealous? I know I am, it's so pretty!

And that just might be everything (for now) that I have photos of. Check back on Thursday for a knitnotwar update, new patterns, new books and more stashing updates!

A flurry of activity

I'm sorry we haven't updated you and the InterWebs in so very long... I went to Stitches West and planned to blog from there but got sick. It didn't work out in quite a number of ways. Luckily, my intrepid coworkers took photos for your visual enjoyment.

First, we have a shot of the Cool Socks! workshop with Lucy Neatby (she's the one with hot pink hair):

...which I understand was a smash hit. It certainly looks interesting (Lucy always includes video/ projector demonstrations, which you can see on the wall in the background).

Next, we have Sue's absolutely glorious Habu 110 pullover:

So named because she used the pattern from Habu Textiles' Kit 110 and substituted Handmaiden's Sea Silk in "Periwinkle" for the body and Habu Textiles' Gear Linen in "Black" for the hems. The finished effect was just amazing, and the photo hardly does it justice.

And, finally, we have Sarah's IP (in progress) Garter Stitch Aran Pullover, from the Japanese book Men's Knit:

Which is looking mighty impressive, if I do say so. Sarah mentioned that she had worried about the sizing of the pattern (as it is Japanese), but the sweater seems to be coming out perfectly roomy and (honestly) delicious. She's knitting it with Debbie Bliss' Rialto Aran in "Dusty Blue", which is not on the website yet I'm afraid.

Lastly, today, I took a picture of all the lovely cranes we've been sent (or given in person) for the knitnotwar 1,0o0 kal. Amazingly, three arrived from Boston just yesterday! And four from California a week or two ago. These cranes are just flocking in from all over the place...

Of which many are noticeably red. Interesting phenomenon.

Now, it's admittedly still a small flock of cranes (we have 22 at count). But I am told by our many hardcore customers, volunteers, and several staffers that there are many more cranes OTN or unfelted at home. Sandy Kay and I are also talking about hosting another KAL night or two in the next couple of weeks. We'd really love to make our goal.

But we shall see what happens over the next month. Check the sidebar for updates over the next week or so!

BRRRR

It's so cold outside and inside, I almost want to cast on an afghan to keep warm! Snow or not, this cold snap isn't proving to be much fun, is it?

Oh, well. We have intrepid customers who have braved the cold and ice and downtown Christmas shoppers (eek!) to visit us this week. Memorably, Jennie brought in most of the Christmas presents she had knit for family and friends this year:

At last count there were: 6 scarves, 5 hats, 5 Korkisses, 3 wine bottle outfits, 2 pairs of mitts, 2 cowls, 1 dishcloth and 1 bookmark. She admitted to me that three of the FO's had been gifted already so they couldn't be photographed. Do you know what she sacrificed to achieve this (slight) madness?

Jennie started her Christmas knitting in June. Smart planning on her part, to say the least. She also told me, rather gleefully, that she had cast on the Ruth Sørensen Fair Isle hat as a treat for herself. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that someone who starts their Christmas knitting in June enjoys Fair Isle a lot, but I am.

Next on the news to relate, we were visited by the Live @ 7 crew from KGW Channel 8 and poor Lindsay was shoved in front of the camera:

And, finally, in the reportable news: did I mention the Knit Purl PDX ravelrers group?

I have a sneeking suspicion that I hadn't. Well, now you know. We'll be posting daily updates in the Forum - everything from when popular yarns like Kauni arrive to reminders for upcoming events.

Next post? The socks I'm knitting for Gina, our USPS letter-carrier who is long-suffering, and maybe another Ana Bandana. Until then, keep warm!

did you know silliness is contagious?

It is. Honest. For all that we're a serious business and attempt to appear professional, we at Knit Purl occasionally suffer from outbreaks of silliness. Case in point...

We had such a positive reaction to our felted window display, and received so many requests for a photograph without window glare, that we attempted to stage an impromptu photo-shoot.

Being located above the 45th parallel means our outdoor lighting in the fall and winter is scanty at best, so we had to arrange a curtain to prevent the sunlight from ruining the picture:

Which probably would have worked better if we had set up a frame and rod, but remember I used the word "impromptu". It worked relatively well, but it soon became apparent that our silliness was quite contagious...

As we started to infect perfectly harmless spectators, who left the scene giggling. At least it's not a permanent condition, right?

Well, for some.

Moving on to more serious matters, we have an absolutely gorgeous baby set knit by Fran for her newborn grandson:

The pattern is from the book "Knitting For Baby". Fran made the Cashmere Delux Hat, Cardigan and Baby Blanket. The entire set took 13 skeins of Joseph Galler Pashmina and about 6 months worth of knitting. Simply beautiful. It was such a pleasure to watch Fran cast on and continue to make progress and then come in with the finished cardigan and hat.

Thank you, Fran, for sharing with us!

I also had Natasha's first sweater on this demonic camera, but the photo-quality was so shoddy I didn't want to make Natasha's project look bad! It's amazing, with two other (professional) cameras in the store, I always manage to grab the tiny cybershot that hates everyone but Sandy Kay. Next time, I promise I'll get a real camera for customer photos.

And, before I go off to do real work, we agreed to remind all our lovely and loyal readers to VOTE! We don't care who, how, or why. I hate to quote a shoe company, but JUST DO IT.

Next time I'll let you know who won Sock The Vote.

September Sock released... spoiler alert!

Beware, beware! There art spoilers in this here post, that might catch the unwary most fiendishly...

Okay, they're not huge spoilers (my one photo is pathetically blurry and the other one I'm borrowing doesn't show the pattern in detail, mwahaha), but I don't want to ruin the surprise for those of you who are waiting patiently for your package in the mail. Which, incidentally, we sent out this morning:

Pity our mail carrier, Gina. She took the shock well, it must be said.

In other news, before we get to the spoilers, Tami came in to show off her Deep Blue Sea Sinuate Scarf (say that 3x fast) which she finished just over a week ago. She used Marnie MacLean's pattern and her own handspun yarn. The yarn was spun using two hanks of Fleece Artist Blue-faced Leicester, I think (the same stuff I made my muffin cap with). Seem to remember her buying them a while back. I'm sure we can all agree that the finished scarf is gorgeous:

I hope Tami will forgive us for the blurriness of the photo, we've been having technical difficulties with the camera again.

And, finally, last but not least...

I bring you SPOILERS...

Let's see, let's see. I don't want to ruin too much of the surprise, but also know that some of you are sitting on the fence waiting for the release to decide whether you want to join in the fun or not.

The September kit (both the yarn and the pattern) was designed around the popular Portland neighborhood, "The Pearl". The yarn was specially commissioned from Koigu and the pattern was designed by Portland local Sarah Pope. And I'll admit right now that my picture to the right isn't much of a spoiler, since it's so blurry you can barely see either the sock or the kit... but, hey, it gives all y'all an idea of what we're sending out this month.

Kim, a.k.a. akimbo on ravelry, has lent us the use of her photos, which are much nicer than mine (she used a photobox and everything).

(Bless her.)

I think that's everything important that's happened in the past couple days. If not, it'll pop up in the next post. Also, I'm going to corner our two new employees Leslie and Nancy for a nice photo and introduction.

Not enough Martha to go around.

A Skif shipment arrived yesterday and already we're out of Martha's again. In fact, we still have several on back order! Clearly this is THE sweater to knit for fall. Shame we can't keep the pattern in stock. What we do have left is also quickly walking out the door, so if you've been longing for a pattern or two, now's the time.

The past couple of days have been huge in the deliveries and shipments arenas. First up? Eye Bobs, a collection of fantastically funky reading glasses for knitters who want to be able to see their pattern charts well:

(on display)

Liz thought they would appear to their best advantage while being modeled...

I concurred. My favorite is the "Strict Librarian" look (lower right).

Another big shipment that just landed on us was a huuuuge box from Fleece Artist. Containing... Camelspin. Lots and lots of Camelspin, which is officially back in stock (but probably [also] not for long):

Mmm, camel down. So wickedly sumptuous.

We also got in some Kauni, but that'll be available next week. And that's about it, for now. The next post should feature an introduction to both Kandyce and Leslie. Keep your eyes peeled.