DE Logo

In This Issue
Yarn of the Month
New Stuff
Fresh Off the Needles
The Tower of Savings
Knittervention!
Open Knitting & Crochet
On Our Website:
News from Double Ewe

February 6, 2012 

Long time, no talk...wait...it was just last week I emailed you.  If you  missed it, that letter was about our current classes, and you can read about them here.  This time around, it's all about the yarn...and the knitting...and the yarn!  Fun stuff!

 

Yarn of the Month:  Soxx Appeal

  

I love handknit socks, and I love sock yarns.  At my last count, we had around 40 different kinds of sock yarns in stock.  Gorgeous hand dyed yarns, self-striping, luxurious blends of silks & merinos, there are lots of choices.  But my personal favorite sock yarn is Soxx Appeal.  The colors are nice and the price is fair, but mainly I love it for the way it feels on my feet.  A blend of 97% merino wool, 2% nylon, and 1% elastic.  It's that touch of elastic that does the magic.  It makes cushy, plush socks that hug my feet nicely; I currently have about 6 pairs of Soxx Appeal socks in my drawer, and they're the first ones I reach for.  Give it a try - there's a coupon at the bottom of the email:  you can make a pair for under $15 - it's worth a shot.

  

 

New Stuff

 

Pacific Chunky from Cascade
There's been a hole in my inventory for a while:  a chunky, machine washable, soft, wool-acrylic blend in lots of colors.  This month, I filled the hole with Pacific Chunky.  We've got it in 16 solid colors as well as 7 variegated.  This is the yarn I used in Davian's Sweater (details below), and I found it very pleasant to work with.  40% merino wool, 60% acrylic.  Lovely stuff.

 

--------------------

220 Sport
from Cascade

Sport weight wool in 21 colors.  Imagine the possibilities.  Actually, you don't even have to imagine that much...just flip through 60 More Quick Knits, and you'll find gobs of inspiration - 60 projects knit with 220 Sport.  If you're not up for the book, they've got lots of free patterns for it here.  Fun!




--------------------

Jewel
from Cascade
This wonderful wooly stuff is 100% soft wool, in a heavy-worsted weight.  The thick-thin texture lends a pleasing character to your fabric, as you can see in the sweater I knit below.   This, and other patterns designed specifically for Jewel, are available here.  Available in nine tonal colors. 



--------------------

Cloud
from Cascade

Do you remember when I introduced you to Eco Cloud?  It was a while back...super soft, smooshy, cabled construction blend of undyed wool & baby alpaca.  It's very luxurious.  Well, they've decided to offer it in dyed colors, and it's even more beautiful!  As usual, Cascade is providing us with plenty of very nice, free patterns for it. 


--------------------

Arroyo
from Malabrigo

Super soft, sport weight, 100% superwash merino wool in the amazing colorways Malabrigo is known for.  If you're familiar with Rios from Malabrigo, Arroyo is a lighter version.  That's why it's called Arroyo.  Rios = River.  Arroyo = stream.  Make sense?  Come touch it.  Really.


--------------------

Kimono
from Zitron

I love this yarn.   Three strands of mulberry silk-wrapped merino are plied together creating an elegant, classy yarn with great texture and drape.  It's a sport weight, so there's a generous 328 yards per 100 gram skein.  The Lace Blocks Scarf below is a free pattern from Skacel - fun to knit & wear, and it takes just one skein.


Lace Blocks Scarf 

--------------------
Hiya Hiya Sharps
I've carried Hiya Hiya stainless knitting needles since I opened - they're a high quality, lower cost option, and I've always been very happy with them.  However, some people prefer a much pointier point for some projects.  Hiya Hiya has recently introduced Sharps - the same, high quality stainless steel needles, but with a sharper point.  Nice when you're working a lot of increases and decreases.  They're currently available in circulars sizes 2 - 8, as well as in an interchangeable set of those sizes.  The larger sizes are in the works, so stay tuned.


--------------------
Willow Creek from Pagewood Farm
This is an all-American yarn - made from US sheep, spun and dyed in the US.  It's considered a lace yarn, but I think of it as a "heavy lace/light fingering" yarn.  Perfect for a shawl or scarf, or even one of the popular feather-weight sweaters. This photo does not do the colors justice.  Purty.

 

 


Fresh Off The Needles

Normally, most of my knitting is for the shop, but for the past six weeks or so, I've been doing a lot of "personal knitting".   Here's what I've been working on: 

 

Socks for Me!  

Every once in a while, I get a hankering to knit a pair or two of socks, so I did.  Nothing fancy here.  When I  knit socks, I prefer to do just plain old, no-need-for-a-pattern,  top down on DPN's, "regular" socks.  I did write down the pattern a while back, so if you'd like a copy, just ask.  Oh, and yes, I have duck feet...don't make fun.   

 

Yarn:  Soxx Appeal 
Yarn:  Ty-Dy Skinny Stripes 

-------------------- 

DavianSweater
Davian's Sweater 

Some of you know this, but many of you don't.   The little girl at the bottom of each newsletter I send is Davian.  She's my granddaughter, and I'm rather fond of her.  (Ok...I'm head over heels about her.  :)  Well, this summer, Davian has a little brother joining their family.  More on him later.  This is about Davian's Sweater. 

There's a lovely children's book, Phoebe's Sweater (by Joanna Johnson) , that tells a very sweet little story about Phoebe mouse waiting for her baby brother/sister to arrive.  In the story, her mom knits a sweater for her while they're waiting.   The cool thing, the pattern for the sweater is included in the book.  Very soon, like within days, I'll have Phoebe's Sweater available in the shop, as well as Freddy's Blanket - another sweet book about a young platypus who learns that his own bed is the perfect place for him to sleep, and the pattern is included in this one as well.  Both are perfect heirloom gifts for a special child.    Enough talking.  Here's Davian's Sweater:





Pattern:  Phoebe's Sweater by Joanna Anderson
Yarn:  Pacific Chunky from Cascade
Size:  2
Comments:  I'm so happy - it fits perfectly!  It really is sort of a sweater jacket, and it's meant to go down around or just below her knees...nice and warm and snuggly.

--------------------
Fresh ON the Needles

Dominic's Welcome To The World Sweater

I've been holding off on knitting anything for our new grandbaby until we found out the gender.  So, last week when we learned that there's no doubt, he's a boy, I was chomping at the bit to start something for him.   I found that it's hard to decide what to knit for a little boy being born in July - not exactly sweater season.  I've decided to just knit up a basic little, lightweight cardigan with some boyish colors and stripes.  I'm using a bamboo/nylon blend in a fingering weight, so hopefully we'll have at least one cool evening when he can wear it.  Maybe we can crank the AC down, or something.  :)  I'm not so much about traditional baby colors; I tend to like "grown up" colors on babies, so here's what I've got so far:

 

 

 

Pattern:  None...I'm winging it again.

Yarn:  On Your Toes Bamboo and Pediboo

Size:  Newborn-ish, I think.
Comments:  I couldn't find the pattern I wanted in the gauge I wanted, so I'm winging it with this one.  Hopefully it comes out baby-shaped. I'm doing "manual stripes", so I'm anticipating a lot of ends to hide...but that's okay...grandma's don't mind.

 

 

The Tower of Savings

 

This is nothing new to the shop, but I've found lately that many people don't realize it exists, so I thought I'd mention it today.

At the back of the shop, in the corner next to the Novelty yarns, I have a shelf that I call "The Tower of Savings".  Sometimes we just call it "The Tower".  Yup, I'm a dork.  This is the shelf where I put oddball skeins of yarn - the last skein of a dyelot, skeins that have fallen apart a bit, notions I'm no longer carrying, things like that.  The best part is the price.  I've never been one to mess around, slowly marking down the price...20% off, then 30% off, etc.  As soon as something hits the Tower, it's 50% off.  Right from the start.  What a deal.  But it doesn't just have the odd skein or two on it; this is where I put yarns that I'm clearing out, so sometimes it's crammed with bigger quantities of nice yarn. It's a good idea to take a peek at the tower often.  If you have trouble locating it, just ask.



 

Knittervention!

This month's Knittervention! will be February 17th.  Knittervention is our once-a-month, Friday-night-potluck-get-together.   We do this the third Friday of every month, from 6:30 - 10:00.   For the whole scoop, please click here

 

Oh, and even though we call it Knittervention, of course crocheters are welcome, too.  "Crochetervention" just sounded funny, and "Friday Night hookers"...well...that doesn't sound right either. ;) 

Open Knitting & Crochet

Join us for a fun social time while working on whatever you want.  No registration required - just show up.  We have three times a week you can join us:

  • Tuesday evenings, 6:30 - 9:00
  • Friday afternoons, 1:30 - 4:30
  • Saturdays, 9:00 - noon

 Please note:  Open Knitting is not a class.  Although I'm always happy to answer questions as time permits, sometimes it gets a bit hectic.  For more dedicated help, consider coming to one of our Knitter's Choice, Knit Along with Ann or The Workshop classes.  Details one these classes can be found here.

 

That's all for now, folks!  Once again, I'd like to thank you all for supporting your local yarn shop. 

 

Kelly

Double Ewe Yarn Shop

9201 Lexington Ave N #10

Circle Pines, MN  55014

 

763-780-2465

www.double-ewe-yarn.com 

Buh Bye!

 
Save 15%
Off Sox Appeal
Save 10% on Sox Appeal yarn from Knit One Crochet Two.  Good while supplies last;  coupon good on in-stock yarn only.  No limit on quantity.
 
Offer Expires: Wednesday, February 29th, 2011