Our Fall 2015 Catalog might be my favorite this year. We’ve featured Malabrigo Mecha on the cover in the gorgeous Springbanks Blanket from Malabrigo Book 8.

Inside you’ll find lots of new Fall yarns from Rowan, Shibui and the Fibre Company. New patterns from Debbie Bliss,  Jo Sharp and Stacy Charles Fine Yarns, and all the needles and hooks you’ll need to get going on your holiday knitting. So check your mailbox (sign up to receive the catalog here), or browse online, and see what’s hiding in those 64 pages that will inspire you this Fall!

Greetings from the Weaving Room! I hope you have seen our new weaving catalog – the Weaving Sourcebook 2015! I’m especially excited because we have so many new drafts to inspire you. Barbara and I went through all of our drafts last fall and talked about which needed to retire or hibernate for a while and – most importantly and most fun – we had a creative brainstorm and came up with lists of new projects to try. We looked at new yarns, different weave structures that we haven’t featured before, changing up the colorways from the blue spectrum that both us love to work with, and new tools for weavers.  The result is a collection that we are really proud of.

We also have some talented local weavers who created designs especially for WEBS and after keeping these pieces under wraps for a few months, I’m happy to share them with you. Elisabeth (Lisa) Hill has spent years delving into and developing designs in deflected double weave. She came up with the Labyrinth Lap Robe – a beautiful blanket woven with Jaggerspun Heather with strong geometric lines and a wonderful intermingling of colors in this intriguing weave structure. The yarn weaves up into a thick and cozy wrap that is snuggly soft and the heathered colors infuse it with richness and depth.

Dishtowels are a staple item for many weavers – it’s easy to churn out a stack on a long warp and have plenty for gifts and for home. Chris Hammel worked with our new 8/2 Cottolin from Brassard and designed the Cabana Towel – a towel that is refreshingly different, with great texture and pops of color. Easy to weave on 8 shafts, the towel features Canvas and Basket weaves. The Cottolin comes in 37 colors, which means lots of fun colorways to play with. And the cotton portion of the yarn is organically grown, always a plus for me.

One of more recent tools to hit the scene is the Variable Dent Reed from Schacht for use with their rigid heddle looms. It allows you to easily combine yarns of different sizes in the warp and Paula Veleta came up with a stunning scarf that showcases this. The Ginger Chocolate Scarf combines hand painted sock yarn with several novelty yarns to produce a scarf that is stylish and hip. Rigid Heddle weavers have so many possibilities to work with in the explosion of colors and textures these days; let this draft be a jumping off point for your creative appetites.

These drafts are just the tip of the iceberg. The Weaving Sourcebook features 5 more new drafts, 3 updates with new colorways of old drafts and Barbara and I are still weaving many more things from our creative confab last fall. What’s next on your list?

Our Holiday 2014 Catalog is online now. You can shop for gorgeous luxury fibers from Jade Sapphire, brand new Marblz needles from Knitter’s Pride, and new patterns from Valley Yarns, Classic Elite and more. And have fun decorating for the season with our Snow Family and Evergreens pattern featured on our cover.  Stock up on everything you need to make the perfect gifts this year. If you’d like to get a physical copy of the catalog you can sign up here. If you’re already on our mailing list the catalog should arrive in your mailbox in about 2 weeks.

Snow Family and Evergreens, Marblz Interchangeable Needles set, Cobblestone Socks in Valley Yarns Leyden and Jade Sapphire Silk Cashmere in the Seeing Red colorway.

Our new Spring 2014 catalog went up online last week and the paper version is heading to your mailbox and should arrive sometime next week. We’re pretty excited about all of the great new yarns and projects. We’re also thrilled with the editorial content that we’ve included in this catalog.

Spring 2014 is the first catalog we’re celebrating our 40th anniversary with and inside you’ll find a great article by Kathy and Barbara about the beginnings of WEBS. There are also some great photos from the archive that are fun to check out.

You’ll also find our first Valley Yarns ebook. Soft Landing features five projects that will be right at home in your house. All of these patterns are available individually for $3.99, but the ebook is just $11.99. I’m loving the Hen Plaid Wrap and Viola Plaid Pillow, because I’m a big fan of plaid.

For crocheters, you’ll find patterns as well as a fantastic piece by Sara Delaney about spicing up a simple design with different yarn choices.

If you want to flip though the catalog before it hits your mailbox, you can check it out online here.

What’s your favorite new product in the catalog?

When we start working on a catalog, it is sometimes hard to imagine it all coming together. The first hurdle is getting used to the timing. The majority of our Spring catalog was put together before and right around the holidays, and Kathy and Steve do the buying for Spring in the Fall. So, it can be difficult to get into the “feeling” of the season when you’re already going through one that is completely different.

That doesn’t mean it isn’t fun! It is an exciting process and it is great to be able to get a preview of all the wonderful yarns and patterns that are headed to the store.

This year’s Spring catalog is now online and on its way to your mailbox. We think you’ll enjoy this one. Not only will you find a selection of incredible new yarns and fantastic projects, we’ve also included some amazing editorial content. Sara Delaney has a piece on crocheted socks, Kirsten Hipsky writes about substituting yarns, and we continue our WEBS Loves series with a feature on the talented Norah Gaughan.

We hope you enjoy perusing the pages of our latest catalog whether you look through the online or the paper version.

What yarn and/or project are you most excited about this Spring?

With our new catalog now available online (and in mailboxes in the next few weeks), we have a whole new group of Valley Yarns Show and Tells to share with you. We tried to find a range of folks to try on the newest collection.

Crocheted in Valley Yarns Southwick, 479 Nakota Cardigan is a cool and fun piece for the warmer months. The bright colors bring a bit of a retro look to the sweater and the chevron pattern is just fun!

We are wearing the 34” size.

We all had pretty similar feelings on the sweater. For many of us, we would have preferred if it was a more neutral color palette. It would look very interesting in a smaller range of colors, perhaps on the grayscale. Several of us would also prefer a closer fit on the sleeves.

You can check out the new catalog here and you can find the pattern here.

This week the staff is buzzing about…

1. Little Red in the City: An Ysolda Knitwear Collection – This is a great collection of patterns for women of all shapes and sizes. But it’s the other details found in the book that make it extra special. Wonderful illustrations and photography, each pattern offered in a huge range of sizes, and a hefty resource section to help you achieve success with each sweater you knit. > Dena C.

2. Rollie StitchKeepers – Great to keep your stitches from sliding off your double point needles, and to hold the heel flap when turning the heel. > Gail C.

3. Sara’s daughter has finished crocheting the Monkey with a Fez from Creepy Cute Crochet. Way too cute!

4. Apparently humans aren’t the only ones excited when a new WEBS catalog arrives in the mail. Milo the cat loves our catalog too!

5. Tulip ETIMO Crochet Hook Set – Fantastic! Ergonomic grip handles are comfortable for long use and the set has scissors, yarn needle & ruler in with a transparent zippered pouch all wrapped up in an elegant looking snapped clutch!! I could be stranded for days with just this set , my Addi Lace Interchangeable needles and just one bin from my stash. > Lisa G.

Hi Everyone

Yesterday was our photoshoot for the upcoming Valley Yarns catalog.  We have not had a very good spring and yesterday was no exception.  It was chilly and drizzling but given the “forecast” for the remainder of the week wasn’t predicted to be much better, we made the decision to go ahead with the shoot.  We won’t mention that there hasn’t been a drop of rain today and that at the moment, the sun is shining.  Really.  I am not bitter.

We always like to do this shoot outside, we have so many beautiful locations nearby, its fun to get out of the studio.  Even in the rain, Look Park in Florence, MA was breathtaking.  Here are a few shots from yesterday:

Penny & I discussing the next shot.

Look how beautiful it looked despite the nasty weather!

Even models have hair troubles when its rainy! Oh and not only is Erin beautiful she’s also a hockey player!

Kirsten sharing her vision with the team for the next shot.

Despite being wet and cold we had a great day and captured some gorgeous shots.  Kirsten has done a great job with this collection.

You can also see a fun video from the shoot over on our YouTube channel.

Enjoy!

Kathy

Hi Everyone

I am so tickled that the penguins & polar bears on our holiday cover have had such a great response!

It’s always scary to release a design that we *love*, not knowing if you will all love it too.

Even though we were feeling a wee bit of trepidation, our own enthusiasm pushed our worries away.  In fact, I was so downright excited I went immediately back to Kirsten, our ValleyYarns Designer and Penguin Creator Extraordinaire for this:

Can you stand it?  He’s so adorable.  He’s been sitting on my desk since he was completed and every time he catches my eye I can help but smile.  You can get the pattern here.

Our only problem is that our turkey doesn’t have a name.  I think he’s a “he” and not a “she”.  Not sure why but that’s where I’m at.  Tom is the obvious choice but seems so, expected and the one thing about this turkey and his holiday buddies is that they are not your average cute critters.

Leave your suggestions in the comments and if there’s a name that strikes us as the right one for Mr. Turkey then that person will win a lovely prize from us.

Enjoy!

Kathy

P.S.  I’ll be posting the winner of the della Q contest tomorrow!

Hi Everyone

Yes, it’s that time of year again.  Time to starting thinking about the holidays.  I know, for many of you it’s still too early.  Now that the temperature has cooled here and the leaves are changing color, I’ve succumbed.  A third reason to stop fighting and just accept the inevitable is that our holiday catalog is on it’s way to you as we speak.  We’ve already go it up on line for you to preview.

One of my favorite things about our holiday catalog is the cover.  It’s the one cover each year that doesn’t feature a garment.  Instead, it tends to have a more whimsical flare.  Our first holiday catalog featured Wooly:

I love Wooly right down to his Susan Bates Crystallite Needle Nose.  All holiday covers are measured against Wooly.  We’ve done okay since then:

The sweater in the gift box is my least favorite.  Not the sweater itself, that I love.  The cover is just not exciting or full of fun.

Last year as we were finishing the catalog, I had a “vision” for this year’s cover.  I told the team what I wanted, they all smiled nicely thinking (a) this is a year away, stop bugging us already and/or (b) you have lost your mind.

Needless to say I was stuck on the concept and refused to let it go.  Finally in late summer, while on vacation, I received a snapshot from Mary.  I guess they decided I wasn’t going to give up and that they better come up with something.  The design was PERFECT!  Kirsten, our in-house designer readily admits this project nearly pushed her to the brink.  This from the woman who can knit lace, walk around the office and chew gum/carry on a conversation without missing a beat.  Trying to design something whimsical or even worse, cute was almost too much.  But she did it and I love the results:

I love the penguins, which was my request – the polar bear is just an added bonus!  I *heart* this cover.  I cannot wait to have it framed and hanging in my office.  Of course, the catalog is filled with lots of great gift ideas too!

What do you think of this year’s cover?  How is your holiday knitting coming along?

Enjoy!

Kathy