Wednesday afternoons

A new group  has grown out of the group that participated in Skacel's knit-along.  I've come to call this group "Wednesday Afternoons" because we've been meeting on Wednesday from 1-3 pm.  The group wants to knit a top down sweater, and has selected Chic Knits Mondo Cable Cardi for its next project, beginning September 7.  We would love to have you join this group.  You don't all need to knit the same project.  There is no charge for this group.

Finished objects!

Summer is here--finally.  Some days it is too hot to think about knitting--not!!!!

I finished Bradley's blanket from my left over sock yarns.  It took me about 2 years to complete, and at one point I calculated 1/2 hour per square.  The construction is mitered squares, and I chose to make them stockinette faced to show off the self-patterning of the sock yarns.  I added edge triangles to the sides and top to square off the blanket, but left the bottom as a zig-zag.  I finished the whole thing off with a 4-stitch attached i-cord.  I took this picture with the blanket on the floor and that is why it looks narrower at the top than the bottom.  And I've started another blanket!!!


This is a project that I designed to promote a beautiful yarn that has been ignored here in the shop!  The garment is a cover-up/poncho/wrap accessory.  I'm thinkin' it will be perfect on a cool summer evening at the beach!  The yarn is Araucania's Chacabuco.  It's bulky, 100% pima cotton.  I knit it on an extra large needle to create a really soft drape.  The colors pool differently from skein to skein:  my first skein made an argyle pattern, the second skein made a checkerboard, and the third skein is quite random, but beautiful nonetheless.  The pattern is available in the shop, free with purchase of the yarn.

This is a triangle scarf that I made with a new yarn, Katia's Temis.  It's a thick-and-thin yarn that I think looks best when knit stockinette.  Using a size 11 needle, I started with three stitches, increased in the first and last stitch on every right side row.  When I came to the end of the first ball, and opened the second, cut and attached the fringe to the fabric I had knit.  And the I kept knitting and attaching fringe until the second ball was almost used up, leaving enough to bind off the top.  A third ball would make a shawl.




There is still lots of room for you in our Knitting Retreat, where we will be knitting Knitting at Knoon's Wrap Me Up Shawl under the direction of its designer, Chris DeLongpre.  Be sure to give us a call or e-mail to register or for more info.  You can also check out our website, www.theyarnmarket.com, for details.

New Spring Yarns

New spring yarns arrived last week.  Here they are:

Ella Rae's Superwash Chunky, a 100% superwash wool in 23 spectacular colors.  121 yds/100gm, 14sts/19rows to 4 inches on a size 10 needle, $8.99 a ball.






Sirdar's Snuggle Kisses, a dk-weight yarn with subtle tonal striping, very pretty.  179 yds/50 gm, 55% nylon, 45 % acrylic.  Knits at 22 sts/ 28 rows to 4 inches on a size 6 needle.  $7.99 a ball.





Sirdar's Summer Stripes; 60 % cotton, 40% acrylic.  It has really funky stripes with splotches of random color.  Machine washable.  A dk-weight yarn, it knits at 22 sts/28 rows per 4 inches on a size 6 needle.








Back by popular demand--Ruca from Araucania.  A 100% sugar cane yarn that is so soft, it's sensual.  263 yds/100 gms.  Knits at 22 sts to 4 inches on a size 4-5 needle.  $14.49.  Free pattern for a lacy summer scarf with purchase.




Temis from Katia.  Some of you will remember Colibri from last summer.  This is the same yarn in a heavier weight.  137 yds/50 gms.  55% cotton, 40% acrylic, 5% nylon.  Knits at 15 sts, 20 rows to 4 inches on a size 8-9 needle.  $7.50 per ball.  A free pattern for a triangle scarf will be available with purchase.




Noro's Taiyo Sock yarn.  A self-striping yarn in the beautiful colorways of Noro.  462 yds/100gm.  50% cotton, 17% wool, 16% silk.  Seems softer and stronger than other Noro sock yarns.  $19.50 per ball.









Elqui from Araucania.  Beautiful color, dimension and texture.  Ten colorways.  230 yds/100 gms.  100% cotton.  Knits 22-24 sts to 4 inches on a size 5 needle.  Some really nice summer fashions in the pattern booklet.  $14.49/ball.




Ondine from Louisa Harding.  In 12 colors, this yarn has an interesting heathered effect. Pretty feminine designs in the pattern booklet.  119 yds/50 gm. 100% cotton.  Knits at 22 st/30 rows to 4 inches on a size 5-6 needle.  $8.49 per ball.






A Fall Knitting Retreat


Put September 23-25 on your calendars for our first knitting retreat.  The project will be Knitting at Knoon's Wrap Me Up Shawl.  You may knit the shawl with worsted weight yarn, or you may knit a scarf with sock weight yarn.  The workshop will be led by Chris DeLongpre, designer and owner of Knitting at Knoon.  The brochure is being tweaked and will be available soon.  Please reserve your spot soon as spaces are limited.  We will hold this event at a local B&B, the Benzie Grand (www.BenzieGrand.com).

Happy Knitting!

Trekking KnitAlong Update


Week 3 provided instructions for a short-row heel.  I ripped out the first one I knit, and reknit it; I wasn't happy with the tension and all of the little holes.

Week 4 finishes the leg.  The designer recommends a stockinette stitch back to the leg, but I'm knitting a K2P2 rib.  I think a stockinette leg yields a somewhat slouchy sock, and ribbing helps the sock to stay up better.  There is a video clip to demonstrate the sewn cast-off as developed by Elizabeth Zimmerman.  I'll have pictures of my completed socks next week.

Next week, we begin the 2d project:  a fingerless glove.  I can't wait!  These knit alongs have been a lot of fun, and I'm learning lots!

Online Store Update


I've purchased the software and have begun to build the online store.  I've been taking photos all week and trying to edit them to achieve the most honest color I can.  I'm learning that my little camera can do lots of magic!  With luck, we should be up and running next week.  And then I'll gradually add to it!  I'll be interested in your feedback


Knitters Book Club


We started a new audiobook last night, Sea Glass, by Anita Shreve.  We had several new knitters in our group.  We'd love to have you join us as well!  Please be sure to let us know that you are coming so that we can plan for you in our menu.  As a reminder, we may cancel this event due to weather; make sure that we have your contact info.

Happy New Year

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday season.  Have you set your New Year's resolutions yet?  I'll be they include something to do with knitting!

A Trekking Knit Along Progress Report

Week 1-- we knitted the toe, using "Judy's Magic Cast-on".  It was the first time I've used that particular cast-on, and I found it to be an improvement over the one I previously used.  The toe knitted so quickly that I started (and finished!) the second one on a separate needle.

Week 2 -- the foot features an axis cable that is simple and interesting to knit, and makes your progress seem to go more quickly.  It is pretty, as well.  There's an eyelet rib at either side of the cable pattern.

I can't wait to see what the heel looks like!



I knit these mittens for Bradley, my grandson, who is 18 months old now!  He and his parents are coming for the weekend to ski.  All reports are that the skiing at Crystal Mountain is fabulous!  The mittens are knit with a double strand of Encore Worsted on size 9 needles, so that they are thick and warm.  I used a pattern I found on ravelry.com.  The "string" isn't permanently fastened yet so that I can adjust the i-cord to the right length once I have the little guy here to measure.

Winter Activities in Beulah

Put the second weekend of February on your calendars for Beulah's annual Winterfest.  Activities include a frozen fish toss, frozen turkey bowling, horseshoes with a toilet seat, horse drawn wagon rides, fishing, a parade and fireworks.  If you haven't seen fireworks in the snow, they are spectacular!  New events this year are a dog pulling contest and an outhouse race!  Also the Darcy Library is hosting their annual fundraiser, Chocolate Champagne and Treasure, on Friday, February 11 at 7 pm.  This event is sweet, delicious, bubbly and warm!

I'm working on additions and improvements to the website and adding a facebook page.  Still trying to knit some every day.

As always, let us know how we can best serve you.  We thank you for your business in 2010, and look forward to working with you in 2011.  You are the reason we are here!

Happy Holidays, Everyone!

Have you finished all of your gift knitting--not much time left!! I've got all of mine done for the first time in a long time!

We've got something new going on at the Yarn Market. For the first time, we are hosting groups to participate in a knit along. Skacel is sponsoring a knit along to celebrate 20 years of Trekking and we're gonna play, too. There will be a new project each month from January to June, will clues released on the 1st, 8th, 15th and 22d of each month. You may participate in any or all of the projects. Our January group dates will be on Mondays, the 3rd, 10th, 17th and 24th from 1-3 p.m. So don't be bored this winter--come join us for some fun and technical support.

Winter classes have been scheduled and include gloves, entrelac, thrummed mittens, and the Great American afghan. My website has a software glitch that I'm trying to resolve, and as a result, the schedule is not up on the website yet. If you want the dates and times before it's fixed, give me a call or e-mail, and I'll get them to you. As always, let me know if you have a specific request for a class!

At this time of the year, I set new goals for myself to try to keep myself on track! After inventory is done, I will add a shopping cart to the website and a page on Facebook. Once those projects have been completed, I will return to the Master Knitter Program, Level 2 and finish it. In between times, I will complete some of my UFO's and I will try to resist the temptation to start something new! How far do you think I'll get with that?

I'm wishing you all a wonderful holiday season, and a healthy, peaceful New Year.

Earlier this week, a customer came in and told me I needed to update my blog, that I hadn't entered anything since April. She said that she read my blog to see what's new so that she knew what to shop for when she came here. So I get it, the message is: you read my blog.

The reason that I haven't kept up with the blog this summer is that I've been interrupted. In May, my son and daughter-in-law were vacationing in Texas when they were involved in a serious accident. Bethany was killed. I had talked to her that morning, and then she was gone. I've spent the summer helping my son, attending the multiple memorials, and just generally being in a fog. But earlier this month, we kept our 14-month old grandson for a week, while his parents went to NYC for a vacation (my other son). This little guy is athletic, smart, and strong-willed with a great sense of humor. During the week of watching him, I felt my fog lift. I still grieve for Bethany, and tears are still quite close to the surface, but I can shake them off more easily and get back with the business at hand.

So, with that explanation aside, here's what's new in the shop!

NEW YARNS

Elsebeth Lavold's Silky Wool XL. The same fiber content as the original Silky Wool, but in a worsted weight. Gauge is 3.75-4.5 st/inch on a size 7-10 needle. 104 yds. $9. Nice pattern book.

Euro Yarns Quick & Thick Merino. 100% merino. Bulky. One skein knits a hat and a scarf. 176 yds. 2.5-3 sts/in. Size 13-15 needle. $30. Patterns available for a sweater, and coat, as well.

Viking of Norway's Balder. 100% superwash wool. 137 yds. 3 st/in on a 10-11 needle. $11. Check out other knitters' projects on Ravelry. The top picture is a sample of how the fabric looks.

Yesterday, our first supply of local alpaca yarn arrived. Our local vet, Dr. Dave Nelson, and his wife, Chris, own an alpaca ranch. They've won lots of awards for their fiber, and it is really beautiful. They've had it spun in Michigan at the Stonehenge Mill in East Jordan. We're not really sure of yardage or gauge, but I'd estimate it at 150-170 yds of dk or sport weight. It is undyed. The white, fawn and brown colors sell for $19, the black for $20.

NEW PATTERNS

Several new patterns from ChicKnits. Connie is knitting a sweater from one of these patterns, and tells me that they are really well-written. They are classic designs with figure flattering shaping. Check out her website: www.chicknits.com.

Unpatterns are "recipes" for knitters. With these patterns you can use any yarn, any gauge and make any size. You can easily modify the patterns for fit and for stitch pattern. We have them for pullovers and for socks. We have the unpattern for adult pullovers and socks. Check out their website at www.unpatterns.com

We also have some new children's sweater patterns from LisaKnits.

NEW NEEDLES

We are now carrying Hiya-Hiya needles, in addition to the Addi turbos. Hiya-Hiya needles come in stainless steel and bamboo tips. Their cables are just as flexible and the joins are just as smooth. They are about 1/2 the cost, but they are not guaranteed.

From Hiya-Hiya, we also have puppy snips (little teeny tiny scissors with a puppy face cover) and the interchangeable sets in the smaller sizes. Dumpling kits are back-ordered.

OTHER STUFF

My work on the Master Knitter Level 2 has been put on hold. I hope to get back to it soon. Since I've stopped work on the project, the directions have been revised, so I may have to do some revisions in my swatches.

Our Book Club continues every Thursday evening. Our current selection, the Swan Thieves, by Elisabeth Kostova, is an unusually long book. We listened to Chapter 67 last night. It is a wonderful story, craftfully written, lots of twists and turns. I would encourage you to read or listen to this book. Our next selection hasn't been made yet, but I'll let you know.

I've made a decision to add a shopping cart to our website this fall. It's a complicated process, and I'll be doing most of it myself. I will start with just a few items in the catalog. As in the past, you may still do telephone orders for items from the brick-and-mortar store!

I made another decision to close-out the Debbie Bliss line. It hasn't been a good seller for us, and I'll need to make room for other selections. All Debbie Bliss yarns and patterns are 25% off.

So, I think that's about all of the news for now. I'll try not to wait so long for the next post!

Well, I haven't stopped knitting, just blogging. The slow winter days in the shop helped me to make progress with my New Year's Resolution: finish all my started projects.

I've also been working on Master Knitter Level 2. All of the swatches are done and are available at the shop for your perusal. The projects for Level 2 are a fair isle mitten, an argyle sock and a vest. I've made several fair isle mittens and I've not been happy with any of them, so I've set them aside for know until my frustration level dies down! I've knit one argyle sock, using a duplicate stitch for the lines. I'm now working on a second sock, this time knitting in the diagonal lines. The knitting-in method is definitely much more time efficient, but I'm thinkin' the duplicate stitch looks better. Stay tuned!

Here's some pictures of my finally-finished projects:

The one on the left is the "Fair and Square Wrap" by Inknitiative. Fairly simple, lots of fun, and a contemporary design. It could probably be made using stash yarns that were compatible in weight and texture.

The middle photo is a pair of gloves. I designed the pattern myself after working several other patterns and taking the best qualities from each. I used a fingering weight self-patterning yarn, so the gloves don't exactly match, and each finger looks different.

The project on the right is my double knit scarf. I designed the motif, a heart-in-a-heart. I used two different colorways of Noro's Silk Garden Lite. The background color changes gradually and the pattern color changes gradually, but the colors are different. Double knitting is one of my favorite techniques. Self-striping yarns invite color play. So when you put the two of them together, voila!

Do you remember more than a year ago when we started the Tech Afghan class? The goal was to knit one sqare per month. Well, the class is over and we have two beautifully knit afghans. A year is a long time, and life gets in the way. There are several other afghans in different stages of completion, and we hope to share them with you when we can. These two were completed by Carol Papineau and Shirley Henning.

Check out the website for our new class schedule, http://www.theyarnmarket.com/. Book club continues, we start a new book next week. We'd love to have you join us.

I'm going to market in June in Columbus. Let me know if you have any suggestions for additions to our product lines.

And last, but not least, baby Bradley is growing. Crawling, almost walking, he has 5 teeth, and loves to eat. And sometimes, he has ATTITUDE!

My e-mail account has been stolen

My e-mail account was stolen this week, by some aweful person in Wales, UK. He/she stole my password and changed it and locked me out of my account. Then this criminal sent an e-mail to all of my contacts, as if it were from me. The e-mail stated that I was in Wales, had been mugged, and lost all of my money and credit cards. When people replied to this e-mail, they received a second one asking for money to be wired to a certain place.

I am setting up a new account and believe me, it is a process. So for now, if you need to contact me, do it by telephone. The shop@theyarnmarket.com mail is forwarded to my old personal e-mail and therefore, goes directly to the criminal. When everything is reestablished, I will let you know what my new e-mail info is.

In the meantime, please don't send any money or credit card info. It is also possible that the criminal can send you another forged message from a different person in my contact list. Please be very careful, and very suspicious for at least a while.

While I'm tempted to throw my laptop away, and go back to the Stone Age, I realize that this is not an option. I am re-educating myself about internet security and trying to find out if I am responsible for this breach in any way. I'm also trying to determine if I can prevent this from happening again in the future. So far, I haven't learned anything I didn't already know and practice. So other than changing my e-mail account and all of my passwords, there's not much else I can do.

Stay happy, and keep on knittin'!

Good News! I've passed Level 1 of the TGKA's Master Hand Knitter Program, and I'm on to level 2. You can peruse my submissions and the committee's comments in the shop.

The economy has hit Michigan particularly hard--so I've been looking for patterns and ideas that can help you use up your stashes. And what I've discovered is that these patterns are really very interesting to knit, stimulate your creativity, and produce an item that is "art".

One of the patterns was introduced to me by a customer, called the "Multidirectional Diagonal Scarf". It is a free pattern on line at http://douma.net/Karen/knitting/Accessory-Scarves/Multidirectional_Diagonal_Scarf.htm. I knit this scarf with the left overs of three different colorways of Noro's Silk Garden Lite. I knit a little swatch with a solid colored yarn, and it is also quite attractive, although the stitch pattern isn't as striking. The scarf can be knit with any weight or texture of yarn, so a little bit of novelty yarn might add some whimsy!

"Carol's Clever Little Shawl" is a pattern that was e-mailed to me by a rep. It was made available to her at a knitting group, and we have permission to distribute it. I knit the model on Noro's Yuzen, because I needed a model, and because I wanted to play with it! The yarn has its good points and bad. As always, the Noro colorways are fabulous, but the striping may detract from the lace pattern a little bit. Also, as I wore the shawl, the yarn tended to stretch some, leading me to believe that it needs to be knit into a firmer fabric than this pattern creates. The shawl is quite simple to knit, a series of short-row wedges. The ends of the shawl become the ties, which are drawn through a tube that is knitted in. It can be knit with sport weight or worsted weight yarn. I believe it would be great to knit this with your own patterning of stripes, using remnants or small amounts of yarns in your stashes. Again, a little bit of novelty would add some whimsy. The shawl is very comfortable to wear, because of its closures. We may offer this as a class in spring/summer.

Cottage Creations has a (fairly) new pattern: "Kyler's Kardigan". It is a top-down, in-the-round cardigan version of the wallaby. It provides a different treatment to the edge of the optional hood. You can choose a button or a zipper closure. Fun and fast to knit on worsted weight yarn.

As I complete inventory, I decided to place several yarns on sale--so watch for the notices in the near future.

I'm hoping that you all have a wonderful winter, be safe and healthy and have fun! Keep on knittin"!!!! Watch for our new class schedule, which will be published in February.

Wow, it's been awhile--this is a busy time of year for me, workshops, holiday shows, special orders for the holidays, fall yarns coming, etc., etc., etc.

Baby Bradley is growing, now 15#, and rolling over on his own. Here's a picture of him with his mom at his first football game. We spent the week with him (and of course, his parents) during the week following Labor Day and it was great. Our next visit will be in November, unless I can take a quick trip down to them!

New fall yarns:

ZAUEBERBALL CRAZY--a sock yarn from Schoppel-wolle, 75% wool, 25% nylon, 462 yds. Kind of a mouline with a gradual drifting rainbow stripe-thing going on. Really hot right now, I've sold most of the first order, the second is on its way. Price is $19.99 (4 cents/yd).

SUPER AUSSIE--100% superwash merino in a worsted weight, from Queensland. Eighteen gorgeous colors. 109 yds, $6.00 (5 cents/yd).

FILZ-WOLLE (LINIE 231)-100% feltable bulky wool, 55 yds, from ONLine, $6/ball (10 cents/yd). Should have been shipped with a pattern for felted slippers, but the pattern is on its way and should still be here in time for holiday knitted gifts.

EUCOOL--75%wool, 25%eucalyptus from Elsebeth Lavold. A dk weight yarn, 186 yds, for $8 (4 cents/yd). Twelve beautiful colors, and wonderful patterns! The eucalyptus makes this wool naturally moth-repellant.

and last, but not least. . . .

FIAMATO (LINIE245)--a 53%wool, 47% acrylic blend in a bulky weight, multi-colored, perfects for winter hats, scarves, and mittens. 99yds, $7 per ball (7 cents/yd), from ONLine.

Fall Classes have been put on hold. The spring and summer classes were poorly attended. I've been trying to figure out if it's the economy, if people were too busy, or if it's because I've recycled the same old classes for 4 years. So instead, I'm going to put my efforts into developing some new classes. I've started working on one for gloves done via the magic loop method. As always, if you have a need or an interest, let me know and we'll work it out for you. Just this past week, I did a class for mittens on the magic loop.

I got my packet back from the Master Knitter Program. Looks like I have a few redo's but I really haven't read through the comments yet. I will get back to it when things slow down a bit.

Our book club is now listening to "To the Nines" by Janet Evanovich. Very sassy, extremely funny and a little bit naughty. We were laughing soooo hard that we had to pass the Kleenex box around!!!! Join us if you can.

For those of you who might be interested in a knitting cruise: Go to www.craftcruises.com and view the info for the British Isles cruise in August 2010. Featured knitting instructors are Sally Melville and Beth Brown-Reinsel. I'm pretty sure I'm going, but thought it would be fun to have a group.

Well, my UPS delivery man just brought in 4 more small boxes. So I'll get to work unpacking them! See ya soon!

Master Knitter Level 1 is in the mail

Yup, I finished all of the requirements for Master Knitter Level 1 and mailed off my package this morning. Now I wait---for the evaluation and the do-overs! I really learned alot during this exercise, and I recommend it for anyone who wants to try it. It is somewhat intimidating to send your work for evaluation and criticism, but I think that it is an important part of the learning process. Here's a picture of my notebook.

the swatches

the questions

the report

and the project, a hat!

I'll keep you posted on the results!

Gonna take a few days off during the Labor Day Week--my son, his wife, and our new grandson are coming to visit. Connie will have the shop!

As always, if we can do anything to help you with your knitting needs, all you have to do is ask!

Shawls

Last week, I finished two circular shawls that I have wanted to do for a while!

The Shipwreck Shawl is my absolute favorite. I knit it on Tahki's Dream, which is now a discontinued yarn. Why do they always discontinue the stuff that I really like? It took six balls. It looked really weird while I was knitting on it, but, as you can see, it blocked beautifully. It has a bounce and a flounce that compliments the stitch pattern and drape. The outermost section is a simple "yo, k2tog", but beware----if you drop a stitch, you'll have a dickens of a time trying to pick it up. I strongly recommend the use of a lifeline every 3-4 rounds! This shawl is bringing more oo's and ah's than anything else I have in the shop! You can find the pattern for this shawl in the spring '09 edition at http://www.knitty.com/.

The second shawl is the Vortex Shawl. I have a bunch of Noro's Kureyon Sock yarn in stock, and as many of you have expressed, it's really not an ideal yarn for socks. So I've been looking for other projects that could benefit from this yarn. I tried this shawl because I thought the long color repeats could be quite interesting with this swirly stitch pattern. And I chose the gaudiest colorway that I could find, a throwback to my hippie days! This yarn also blocked wonderfully. I used a product sample of "Soak", which may be why the yarn became so soft after blocking. You can find this pattern online at http://www.knitterontherun.vox.com/.

Master Knitter Program Level 1 Progress Report:

I have been knitting, reknitting, and reknitting swatches! I had a particularly difficult time with the horseshoe cable: my knit stitches before the purl stitches were terribly enlarged! I thought I was going crazy when I looked at other cable work I had done, and there were no problems with the stitch tension. I must have done this swatch 6 times, trying different techniques to relieve the problem. Finally, I decided it wasn't my knitting tension,. . . it was my mental tension! So after a particularly potent vodka tonic, I did swatch #7, and voila--it was perfect!

Yesterday I blocked the first 8 swatches to be submitted and wrote out the answers to the questions relating to those swatches. They are still drying, but I'll have pictures of them in the next post! I'm learning a lot, simply by looking up information for the required references.

Baby Bradley is doing well, growing, and getting to know his mom and dad. He and his parents will be spending the week of Labor Day with us, so I'll have a chance to get to know him better. Here he is, at 4 weeks of age.

Talk to you soon!

Last week, I gave a workshop to members of the Congregational Summer Assembly in cut felted flowers. There were some non-knitters in the group, so I knitted and felted all of the fabric used, and the ladies went to town. Each of their flowers took on a different feel, and creativity was all over the place. I had fun, and I think they did, too! Thank you to Judy Norris for this wonderful opportunity!

In my last post, I told you that I had registered for the Level 1 Masters Knitters Program, from the Knitting Guild of America (TKGA). Well, I have received the packet of instructions: sixteen swatches, answers to a bunch of questions that will be referenced, a paper about blocking and a project ( a knitted striped hat). So, I've been busy organizing and collecting my reference sources. I also began to knit my first swatch. Because this is a learning experience, I decided to challenge myself even more and knit the swatch two different ways. I have been an English/American/thrower knitter forever, but since purchasing the shop, have taught my self to knit Continental/German/picking. Here's a picture of the swatches, one done English (the left swatch) and the other done Continental (the right swatch). They were both done on the same size 7 bamboo double-pointed needles, and both were done on yarn from the same skein, the same number of stitches. I was amazed! The continental sample knitted a full inch narrower, and had much more even selvedges. I have always believed in swatching before starting a project, and now I have the proof. I am going to try the same thing with size 7 Addi turbos, because theoretically, wood knits differently than metal, and straight differently than circular.

All of the learning activities for the Master Knitters program are submitted in a binder. As my journey progresses, the binder will be available in the shop to view until it is mailed to the committee.

It's a Boy!!!!

Bradley Robert Heckman was born 07-08-09 at 3:15 am. He weighed in a 8 lbs, 12 oz, and is 23 inches tall. He is our first grandchild, and we think he is absolutely perfect.

On another crazy note----I've decided to enroll in the Knitting Guild of America's Master Knitter Program. Call me crazy, it's okay. But I thought it would be a good learning experience. As I go, I'll let you know how I'm doing and share pictures of my swatches and projects, both good and bad!

I frequently peruse the blogs and websites of other shops across the country. Recently I came across one that determines and posts the cost-per-yard of a yarn. It seems a great idea to me, and I will gradually do the same for all of the yarns in our shop. If you are in the shop and want to know, especially for comparison shopping, I'll figure it out for you, right then and there!

I hope you are all enjoying a wonderful summer!