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Guest: Kathy talks with Kim Cole, creater of the Gleener, a fabric care wand that will help eliminate surface pills and fuzz from your hand knits and almost any other fabric.

After using most other de-pilling products on the market to try and save a favorite sweater, Kim was frustrated by their lack of effectiveness and began the process of developing a product that would work. It took over 7 years to bring the product to market but now the Gleener is available to help you care for all kinds of fabrics from natural fibers to synthetics.

Here Kendra shows you how easy the Gleener is to use on your handknits.

Steve’s Yarn Picks

New Yarns

• Sweet Georgia Silk Mist
• Sincere Sheep Equity Sport

• Berroco Vintage
• Knit One Crochet Too DungarEASE
• S. Charles Ritratto
• Plymouth Baby Alpaca Aire
• Rowan All Seasons Cotton

• Plymouth Marley
• Universal Yarns Dolce Merino

Don’t forget about the Tent Sale on May 18th and 19th!

And the Third Annual I-91 Shop Hop is happening June 27-30th.

 

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Guest: Kathy talks with Donna about her path into the knitting world, she began as a computer tech writer and at the prompting of a friend began to transfer to writing about something she loved – knitting! She now writes books and teaches as well as tech editing for independent designers and translating German knitting books into English. She has a new book in the works on knitting in Lithuania with history, culture and telling that culture’s story through knitting; similar to her book Arctic Lace.

Donna has also worked to develop 2 different apps for iPad and iPhone. First there was the Knit Companion app and her newest is Travel the World of Knitting with embedded stitch video tutorial and a collection of new patterns.

Steve’s Yarn Picks

39th Anniversary Sale Highlights

• Berroco Blackstone Tweed
• Grignasco Merino Silk 25
• Regia Hand-Dye Effect
• Valley Yarns 8/2 Tencel

• Plymouth Yarns Trabajos del Peru
• Classic Elite Pirouette Discontinued Colors
• Classic Elite Seedling Discontinued Colors Solids and Handpaint
• Classic Elite Sprout Discontinued Colors
• Classic Elite Yarns Fresco Discontinued Colors
• Liberty Wool Discontinued Colors Solids and Prints

Upcoming Events: 

Join us at  Stitches South! this week in the Renaissance Waverly Hotel & Cobb Galleria Centre April 11-14th in Atlanta, GA.

Don’t forget about the Tent Sale on May 18th and 19th!

The Third Annual I-91 Shop Hop is happening June 27-30th.

 

Knitting and crochet are fantastic hobbies for all the reasons we already know, but one of the best things about them is that they are super portable! A small project is the perfect thing to have with you to keep occupied while in line, waiting for the doctor, waiting for the kids to get out of practice, on a plane, in a car – anywhere.

How do you keep your project organized while you’re out? I’ve been known to just toss my project in whatever purse I’m using that day, but velcro and zippers can be dangerous to a project. The GoKnit Pouches are fantastic! They keep your project safe and have a handy strap that can be snapped around your wrist or belt loop. They protect your project from the other items in your bag, and keep your project and tools organized in one place, so you can grab and go.

The Chic.a Single Yarn Keeper is a portable way to tote and protect the yarn you’re working with. You don’t have to worry about it getting tangled in anything else in your bag since you just feed your yarn through the eyelet on the top and the yarn inside the pouch stays protected.

We have lots of other options for bags in tons of sizes and styles. There are bags like the Namaste Harlow that not only store your knitting, but everything else you need – wallet, keys, work, and more. We also have many project bags, like the Blue Sky Pretty Cheep Bag that is perfect for storing your project and stuffing it into a larger bag.

When I knit while I’m out and about, I always get asked “What are you making?” So far, no one has really looked at me funny for knitting in public, but maybe I haven’t picked anywhere all that unusual yet!

What’s the most unusual place you’ve ever knit or crocheted?

Now that we’ve collected all of our knitting and crochet tools, it’s time to put them away in a way that’s easy for us to find later. Many of you already have a way that you store your tools that’s working well for you. But if you’re still looking for a solution, here are some ideas how others store their knitting and crochet tools.

• Put your most essential tools into small cases that you can easily fit in a project bag or carry with you. Last Friday, we showed several examples of knitting and crochet tool kits.
• Create a few mini tool kits so you can keep one with each project you’re working on.
• Store small items like darning needles and stitch markers in small containers like an Altoids tin, Lantern Moon Mort Ort Bin, or the Namaste Buddy Case.
• Clear pouches or zipper cases are a favorite way to store tools since you can see what you have, making finding something easier. For an inexpensive version try pencil cases, or if you’re looking for something a little cuter, check out the Chic.a Clear Front Zipper Pouches available in small and large sizes, or the Namaste Oh Snap! Pouches.
• If you like the idea of clear storage, but need something a little bigger with more compartments, the Knit Happy Fold ‘n Go Notions Box may be just right for all your tools and gadgets.

• For the crafter who likes to be uber-organized, try looking at non-conventional storage solutions such as a hanging jewelry organizer with pockets, a fishing tackle bag, or a tool box. They have lots of compartments and ways to sort your tools.
• If you have a drawer available for storage, use modular drawer trays to keep all of your gadgets sorted and easier to find.
• Avoid deep boxes and storage where smaller items can sift to the bottom and get lost.
• Do you find that you’re continually hunting for certain tools. Keep a decorative bowl or open container near where you knit or crochet as easily accessible storage for tools that you use frequently.
• Also if find that you’re not very good at putting away your tools on a regular basis, consider keeping a bowl or open box near where you store your tools as a an intermediate place to collect them until you have time to put them away.

How do you like to store your knitting and crochet tools? I especially love to hear about your unconventional storage solutions.

- Dena

Welcome to the last week of our 31 Days to Get Organized blog series. We’ve all put in a lot of work to get our knitting and crochet yarn, patterns, needles, and hooks organized. We’re in the home stretch now though.

Yesterday we gave you a look inside our knitting and crochet tool kits. Today’s organizing task is a simple one. Collect all of the knitting and crochet tools you can find. Gather all of your stitch markers, cable needles, stitch holders, tape measures, needle and hook gauges, darning needles, craft scissors – all those little tools that we use to help us with our knitting and crochet projects. This might require you to dig through your project bags, sofa cushions, junk drawer, car glove box…all those places these little things start to collect and hide. Of course grab your tool kits too.

Now that you’ve collected all of your tools in one place, spread them out and sort them. You’ll start to notice duplicate items and maybe some things you never use. This is a good time to weed out any of the tools you don’t want or need. Add them to your giveaway pile of yarn and patterns if you haven’t gotten rid of them yet.

Tomorrow we’ll be talking about different ways to organize and store your knitting and crochet tools.

Since we’ll be wrapping up organizing our knitting and crochet this next week, what organizing questions or dilemas do you still have that we haven’t covered already? Leave your question in the comments so we can address as many as we can before wrapping up the series on Friday.

The best part of being organized is having everything you need in one place. When you have a well stocked knitting or crochet tool kit, you’re prepared for any curve ball your pattern may throw at you. Luckily, my co-workers here at WEBS are a lot more organized and prepared than I am! They’ve shared with us their tool kit essentials.

Dena keeps two tool kits. One larger, main tool kit with all the essentials, and a mini kit with the bare necessities when she wants to travel light. On the right, Dena’s mini tool kit includes: Clover Locking Stitch Markers, small ring markers, a tape measure, a crochet hook, two sizes of Clover Bent Tip Tapestry Needles, small scissors, and dental floss. She uses the dental floss as waste yarn and lifelines for lace knitting. So clever!

On the left (her main kit), Dena has her full set Addi crochet hooks, scissors, Clover Soft Stitch Ring Stitch Markers, locking stitch markers, Clover U Cable Stitch Holder, a tape measure, highlighter tape, tapestry needles, Nancy’s Knit Knacks Needle & Hook Gauge and Knit Kards. Highlighter tape is perfect for keeping track of your place in a pattern. You place the tape over the row you’re on so you can easily see your place. Then, you just peel off the tape and move it to your next row!

Greta’s tool kit is in the center. She keeps everything tucked away in her Spud & Chloë case. The case has since been discontinued, but the Namaste Lola Case is a similar size. Her essentials include a crochet hook, stitch markers, a yarn needle for weaving in ends, a needle gauge, a cable needle, and pin cushion for sewing needles.

1: Kristin’s tool kit is an adorable vintage chocolate tin. She keeps a row counter, a tape measure, locking stitch markers, darning needles and a yarn cutter pendant. They snip your yarn neatly and don’t have any pointy tips that can poke you.

2 and 3: Sara is so organized, she has two tool kits. She puts my organizational skills to shame! Her tool kit has a small magnet in the lid that all her needles stick to (out of the way so she don’t get stabbed!) She has a tiny pair of scissors, a tape measure, stitch markers and a few random buttons in the top compartment. In the bottom she keep extra darning needles, her business cards and a larger cable stitch holder.

4 and 8: Tina is another organizational pro. She carries most of the regular essentials in her knitting kit: crochet hooks for picking up dropped stitches, a row counter, sticky notes, scissors, a gauge ruler, a tape measure and she prefers straight wooden cable needles. She likes to keep her kit in a clear bag. Our tools are small! So, when trying to find something like a tapestry needle, she likes to be able to visually locate it before diving into the bag. Another thing she finds important is having at least one stitch marker that is a completely different color than the others. If she’s working on a project in the round, with lots of markers, she needs the one that denotes the beginning of the round to stand out from all of the others. That way she doesn’t confuse the beginning of the round with a decrease, for example. (See, I told you she was an organizational pro!)

5: Mary sticks to the bare necessities. She keeps stitch markers and a yarn needle with her.

6: Stephanie likes to be prepared, and keeps practically all her notions with her at all times! She has locking stitch markers, stitch holders, two kinds of tape measures, a pencil, sewing needles, yarn needles, row counters, scissors, a crochet hook, a needle gauge a sewing needle threader and pins. Stephanie and Tina are the only ones here with a pencil in their kit, and it seems like an essential that’s commonly overlooked!

7: Greta keeps her kit in her Lantern Moon cases. We don’t have these specific ones anymore, but these Lantern Moon cases are a similar size. She keeps yarn needles, a tape measure, a stitch holder, a cable needle, locking stitch markers, soft stitch markers and a crochet hook. My favorite part of her tool kit is the Lantern moon cable needle set. It’s beautiful!

What’s in your tool kit? Do you like to be prepared for anything, or just stick to the basics?

Leave it to Kirsten Hipsky for thinking outside the box when she doesn’t have all of her knitting supplies with her. Thanks for sharing your story for this week’s knitting tip.

I had to separate the sleeves on a top-down sweater, but I forgot my tool kit at home! Solution: a tall piece of grass. It was tough enough to slip stitches onto and lasted until I was able to get my kit and transfer them to a stitch holder.
-Kirsten

Have you ever used an unconventional item as a knitting or crochet tool before?

Here’s a few items the WEBS staff is buzzing about this week.

1. Valley Yarns Spotted Christmas Stocking - It’s a really fast, cute knit that’s a great way to welcome a new family member into your Christmas traditions. The main body is in a simple slip-stitch pattern which is easy to customize for different people. This pattern is available for free on our website. And we have stocking kits set up available in two color combinations. > Kirsten H.

2. Autumn Vines Beret in Madelinetosh Tosh Sport (color well water): This yarn was a joy to work with, which is no surprise. This colorway is so often backordered that I jumped at the chance to work it up. The Never Not Knitting pattern (available as a downloadable PDF) was easy to follow and a gratifying knit. Definitely a great gift knit. > Cara S.

3. Knitted Wild Animals by Sarah Keen – After I knitted the monkey from this book, I knew I would do more. I’ve made the zebra, panda, elephant and penguin. I am knitting my way through this great book. The giraffe is the latest. He is Eli and named for my favorite quarterback. All the animals live in Chicago with my family. What shall I make next? > Marion H.

4. Rollie StitchKeepers – Your project never comes off the DPNs with these stitch keepers. Reaching into my knitting bag and pulling out a project is not frightening anymore. > Gail C.

5. Standard Design Timberrr! Animal Prints – I love this new sheep print. Made by a local artist, this cutie would be perfect in a craft room or in the bedroom of a little future fiber-enthusiast! I like the look of the wood grain, and the little sticks as legs is an adorable detail. > Tina M.

Lace is a not-so-secret obsession of mine. There’s just something about the intricate look, the deceptively easy (or difficult!) stitches, the beautifully delicate yarns. I can’t help but see lace in everything and during the sticky summer months it’s hard not to think of light airy knitting. I mean, what’s more perfect than the portable one skein projects that lace knitting provides?

This obsession within obsessions finds me with an obnoxious stash of lace yarn. I just can’t help myself. Like sock yarns it offers a one skein project buy and it comes in such wonderful hand dyed colors and textures. So it’s really time to get cracking.

While I was sifting through patterns and gift ideas I realized that a lot of customers I talk to are intimidated with the prospect of beginning their first lace project. Somewhere between the delicate hand and complicated look of lace most people pass. But if you can increase and decrease you’re mostly there! To demystify this process a bit I thought I’d pass along a couple of tips and recommendations I’ve found along the way.

Image of Bison Shawlette in 101 Luxury Yarn One Skein Wonders, knit in Jade Sapphire Silk Cashmere #18.

Helpful Tips

First, familiarize yourself with following a chart, Charts Made Simple by JC Briar is a great new resource for just this, and many lace resources offer a good primer as well. I was such a neophyte on my first chart I ended up reworking a lot of sections. Why didn’t I just take the time to learn it? Perhaps I was just impatient to cast on! Learn from my mistakes, please.

Another way to simplify chart visibility is to stock up on highlighter tape. This product is priceless for following tiny charts that so often accompany lace knitting. This semi-tacky tape brightens the line you are concentrating on and easily transfers to the next row without marring your pattern. It helps to enlarge the chart as well, for easy reading. (Your local copy shop can help with this).

Next, choose an appropriate needle for your project. Nothing is more difficult than trying to pierce your stitches with a dull needle. Especially for newbies having adequate tools makes learning easier. I recommend Skacel Addi turbo Lace needles, they have a bit more grip than the standard Addi Turbos to keep from slipping stitches and a much sharper point to allow for ease of knitting. I generally work a US size 5 on lighter yarns, but everyone has a different preference.

One underestimated tool for repetitive charts is stitch markers, allowing you to mark repeats with ease. We have handy lace and sock stitch markers that are smaller in size and have a little grip. You could also try the locking stitch markers to easily move your markers when repeats change.

Finally and most importantly for beginners, the lifeline! Buy a small skein of undyed mercerized cotton yarn, such as Nazli Gelin Garden 3, to strand through your stitches after each repeat or section. A mercerized cotton will not stick to or shed on your knitting (yes, I learned the hard way).With this handy and simple step you can save hours of frustration. If you drop stitches or find yourself impossibly stuck you can rip back to your lifeline and start fresh! I usually include lifelines at the start of a new section or after a sizable section… or when I decide I’d cry if I had to rip back!

Patterns

If you are looking to start a beginning lace project find a simple repetitive lace stitch, like Valley Yarns pattern 120, Falling Leaves. It utilizes a heavier yarn and allows you to build confidence before working with finer yarns and more complex patterns. Another simple approach is Valley Yarns Basic Triangle Shawl (B6), a simple clearly written shawl with a lace border knit with Valley Yarns Semi-solid Handdyed sock yarn.

Sources

There is such a wealth of lace books it’s hard to choose, but here are some of my favorites:

Knitted Lace of Estonia by Nancy Bush
The Haapsalu Shawl by Siiri Reimann and Aime Edasi
Wrapped in Lace by Margaret Stove

Check out individual patterns by Fiber Trends and Fiber Dreams for some truly inspiring lace creations. And yes, Ravelry too!

Yarns

Most lace patterns use fingering or lighter weight yarns. Generally speaking the more complicated the shawl the less nuanced the color. Let your stitches do the talking and the hand dyes take a back seat, simpler shawls can accommodate lots more color variation. As with other projects there’s a yarn for every color and fiber preference.

Don’t miss our very own Kangaroo Dyer’s 2/14 Alpaca Silk in gorgeous and hefty skeins! Or our new Valley Yarns Charlemont in solid and kettle dyed colors. I personally cannot keep my hands off of Jade Sapphire’s Cashmere Silk blend. The colorways are brilliant and the feel is unmatchable. One of my go-to lace yarns is Classic Elite Silky Alpaca Lace. It comes in beautiful solid and handpaint colors with a polished finish, buoyant drape, and silky hand. The new Juniper Farms Findley is an extremely comparable yarn with bright colors and a merino/silk blend. The new Rowan Fine Lace looks like a lovely alternative as well with an alpaca and merino composition. Most importantly, find one that inspires you.

Happy Knitting!

Cara

Yarns listed above:

Top left to right: Jade Sapphire Silk Cashmere in 140, 82 and 69

Middle left to right: Valley Yarns Charlemont in whipple blue, 2/14 Handdyed Alpaca Silk in pansies and atlantis

Bottom left to right: Rowan Fine Lace #926, Juniper Farm Findley 04 and Classic Elite Silky Alpaca Lace 2454

This week the staff is buzzing about…

1. Knitting Workshop by Elizabeth Zimmermann – A powerful book packed with tips and tools for independent knitters. It’s got everything from winding a skein of yarn to designing seamless sweaters. If a knitter were to have just one book, it should probably be this one. > Kirsten H.

2. Westknits Mystery Shawl KAL 2011 – I’ve never done a mystery knitalong before. But I’ve been itching to knit a shawl lately, particularly a westknits pattern. So I’m super excited to join this KAL on August 1st. Now the hard decision…what yarn? Suggested yarns like Fibre Company Road to China Light, Fibre Company Canopy Fingering, Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine, Madelinetosh Pashmina, or Tosh Merino Light would all be wonderful to work with. But I do have plenty of Charlemont from the crochet scarf leftover that would make a shawl with great drape. Hmm, decisions, decisions. > Dena C.

3. Valley Cowl crochet pattern by Doris Chan – I love this cowl designed by Doris Chan. The sample is done in Valley Yarns Deerfield, but there are directions for any gauge yarn, so you can use your favorite Valley Yarns yarn. I’m thinking of making one for myself in Charlemont. It’s also our next crochet-a-long on Ready, Set, Knit, so you can crochet along with Kirsten. > Mary K.-H.

4. Blue Sky Alpacas Five Inch Double Points – I love the feel of these in my hands. They have such a smooth finish that it makes the needles glide easily through the stitches. The tin they come in makes for great storage for these little lovelies! > Karen M.

5. Both of my girls spent a week at our Fiber Camp this year and my youngest daughter fell in love with weaving. While I’m not quite ready to buy her a Baby Wolf, I do want to encourage her weaving. So, as an early present for her birthday she got a Schacht Cricket Loom this past Tuesday. She’s already woven 26 inches and has been flipping pages in my copy of the Weaver’s Idea Book to find her next project! > Sara D.