no longer down, and definitely not out

You may have noticed some interesting glitches in the website over the past week, but hopefully they have been rectified permanently. The site has been moved over to a new, more reliable, server that promises to be less flaky. So, if you sent us an email over the weekend (that bounced back) or tried to check the site for info on an upcoming class and saw this:

From the knitting community at knit purl

We very sorry if it caused you any inconvenience. But, the good news is that the site should be faster and more accessible than ever.

In other (more knitterly) news, we have just been positively overwhelmed (in a good way) by knitters at recent Sip'n'Stitch and "No Mean Feet!" nights. Last Thursday I took an extremely blurry shot of the group:

I think we ran out chairs, actually (which is always a wonderful phenomenon).

This is a very positive (and encouraging) trend all around, considering the state of the world/ economy.

But, moving on to everyone's favorite part of each post* - our customers' projects. First, we have Evon, who came in on Saturday with her first finished knitting project:

The Rasperry Liqour bag (#125) by Noni, knit with Cascade 220 in "Lavender". Did I mention that Evon is 8? She's also in the Beginning Knitting Class! The bag just looks perfect, she did an amazing job on it. It's awe-inspiring how many young knitters visit us with their FOs these days. Just fabulous.

Then, this afternoon, Haven dropped by to show up her in-progress Swallowtail Shawl:

Being knit with Catherine Lowe Merino 1 in "Smoke". I am told (since I didn't get to see it in person) that the shawl was bloody amazing in the Merino 1. And, ha!, I managed to find Haven's ravelry notebook and the shawl information. Just in case you're interested...

And that is everything pertinent at the moment. We have a super-gianormous Newsletter going out on Friday (look for it, there're going to be some interesting articles!), so that project is looming large in everyone's minds. Until next time, in which we will discuss Cool Socks, enjoy the sun while it's out!

*I think it is, anyway. It's the section we get the most feedback on...

constructive chaos

Let's see, let's see, let's see. A lot has been happening today. We received a shipment of Judy's Colors stocking kits for all the enterprising knitters who want to knit something very special this Christmas. We also received another shipment of Malabrigo. This one included several colors of Gruesa and Chunky that were out of stock.

And, most especially (but not most recently), we received a huge box from Norway this week. Containing the Oleana Fall Line:

Which is, quite simply, awesome. I truly hate to sound like a blond Californian surfer-dude, but it is. And I am clearly not the only person to think so, because our selection has been steadily diminishing since it went on display.

And, while on the topic of displays, I've been cornered* into showing off my handspinning display:

There it is. Done.

... no?

Okay, it's my tiny collection of handspun yarn and handspun-handknit garments (that I could find, anyway), to encourage enrollment for our upcoming Introduction to Handspinning class. Honestly, I don't know what terrifies me more - having too many students or too few. At the moment, the class isn't empty, which gives me some comfort. And, conversely, increasing terror.

At least it's three weeks away, so I have less time to be neurotic about it, which is a small blessing, however fleeting.

That's everything blog-worthy for now - look for a latest Newsletter in your email tomorrow afternoon!

*Proving that I lack the initiative to pimp my own skills out... or something.

Little Bundle of Joy

I have a child.

Well, actually its not a child in the traditional sense of the word. Rather, its an entity with its own unique personality, moods, and thoughts irrespective of my own. It occasionally throws a fit, has problems in the middle of the night, does something rude to a customer, etc,etc.

I didn't actually "give birth" either. I inherited it, or was saddled with it depending upon which day you ask me. So I guess in some regards, I'm the nanny to our little bundle of joy: website.

Website and I are in the middle of "redesigning", a process similar to preparing for entry into a Manhattan prep-school. The process includes rephotographing yarns, transforming them from mug shots to glamor shots:










It also means my new office mate, "3M", is coding fast and furious trying to keep ahead of the random tantrums Website throws. He's like the child psychologist in this whole adventure.

Fyberduck and I are also developing promotional elements for the web as well. This would be the "dump-little-two-year-old-Maddison-into-music-and-dance-classes-so-we-can show-our-development-range" type of activities anxious parents succum to. So far the promotion includes our Sock club and Gratis Knits. However, I'd like to introduce our loyal readers (both of you) to our latest idea: a SKIF knit-a-long (KAL).

I've been a fan of the design line from SKIF since I first saw "The Matrix". As I watched the movie, I imagined a fashionable world filled with ankle-length black coats, form-fitting pleather, and heeled boots. Of course that really doesn't make the best post-apocolyptic "lounge about the ship" wear, so simple yet stylish knits are a must as well. Something with visual interest yet simple construction. Not too simple mind you. Something that evokes an image of a world traveler: designs that seem familiar but not like anything you've seen before. Designs like those from SKIF. Check out some of the pretty from SKIF's website:














Now, I tend to be a Burgerville kind of knitter. Good quality, relatively inexpensive fast-food (but in this case knitting). Socks, baby wear, hats, and scarves are the bulk of my knitting projects. I've knit my share of sweaters too, but the stash-beast is mostly made up of sock-weight yarns and knitting a sweater on a size one needle is more like a six-course meal knitting job.

The lovely thing about the SKIF patterns are they use multiple fine-guage yarns held together in construction. The effect creates a customized tweed fabric. Very yummy.

I am giddy with the thought of using the remnants of skeins left to languish in the stash-beast. The yarns are probably less than 30 yards each, but the yardage was just enough to keep me believing I would use them in a color-work project. Now they have a definate home.










I love the idea of unisex designs too. My Secret Gay Husband is trying to decide which design to knit.


















The official date for the KAL to begin is Tuesday, July 1st. Progress postings will commence thoughout the month in Blogland and we'll end Thursday, July 31st... maybe with a cat-walk at Sip and Stitch? (Sick, but that's the kind of disease we spread here.)

Bitter Knitter

My high hopes (unreasonable expectations) each holiday season leave me worn and tattered striving to ensure everything I do is "enough". My roommate and I hung our Holiday greenery pictured here:

It fit in well with our living room decorating aesthetic. We are going for "Female Elks Lodge" and the bustier, like the trophy heads of innocent woodland creatures, hangs in our living room above our "fireplace", which some may mistake for "wall heater". I'm particularly fond of the recycled Mardi Gras decorations hanging scandalously from the décolletage.

I survived some Chariots of Fire-esque marathon knitting this year, but quite a few gifts were sporting needles on Christmas morning. With a few noted exceptions, like the scarf for the brother who blocks out the sun, I knit hats. Then I re-knit hats. Then I had a sleep deprived flashback to prior holiday experiences of knitting hats that were still too small for my large-headed kin and I re-knit them a third time. Take for example, my version of the Sideways Ribbed Cap:



This photo, taken right before its final frogging shows a crown too shallow to fit my sister's head. I highly recommend the pattern. It's simple, charming with a refreshing construction and unlike my inspired version no frogs involved. I will knit the original pattern again as soon as my copy materializes...
Last night's Sip and Stitch was refreshing as well. There were many comrades in the same predicament: modifications to gifts as well as finishing touches. A few fresh yet frustrating new projects as well:



Don't you just feel her pain?
I know I felt it. My little perdition knit was the scarf for my beloved brother the freak (I only feel love and adoration for him I assure you) who requested a black fingering weight scarf. I instead chose to knit a worsted weight camel and cashmere keyhole scarf. Knit lengthwise, I was...uh... er am, in the process of connecting one side to itself leaving a handy loop at one end that allows the other end to tuck through. Clever and manly which is important for the man about town.
It was a very bitter knitter who discovered that she pulled the ultimate rookie move. She didn't check the scarf before she started sewing it, nor as she sewed it. No dear reader, she only realized the scarf was twisted when she ran short of cashmere yarn. About five yards short.

Bitter Bitter Bitter Now for my happy place.

While I get in touch with my inner knitter, I encourage the faint and nauseous to explore a fiber happy place.

Stay tuned dear reader, reporting from the remote yarn farms of Aichi prefecture, Japan our own earnest junior reporter, Fyberduck with an in-depth review on the current Noro sock situation.

5 days late and, uh, a barrel short?

[Bad blogger, no cookie, I know. ]

BUT, our Sip'n'Stitchers will be thrilled (I hope so, anyway) to know that we rounded up over 100 lbs worth of food for the Oregon Food Bank on Dec 20th! I even managed to take a picture that doesn't really show our achievement:

[I know, it's a special talent.]

But, I put in the OFB label with an arrow so you'd know that the barrel o' foodstuffs really was there and got filled close to the brim. It has since been taken away and hopefully the food been distributed to those who need it.

Go knitters! I have to admit to being impressed. Several knitters dropped by just to donate to the OFB. They had other commitments, but made the time to cross town and help out. The Harlot's right, knitters tend to be a generous breed.

I am so proud of you guys!

Next time [read: week]: Our upcoming large-scale fundraiser for Heifer International! Get ready to do something amazing come the New Year. And, oooh, a look at sock yarn...

Pimps versus Pushers

*sigh*

The scene:
My desk.

State of mind:
Calmly recuperating from the monthly trauma knows as "The Newsletter", cuppa tea in hand. The blepharospasm on my right and palsy in my left arm were slowly dissipating.

Enter stage right:
Secret Gay Husband* and my office mate Ninja.

The accusation:
Blogging Yarn Pimp.

The reaction (inside my head):
"Why I never!" and "Who do they think they are?" and "Do they know who they are talking to?" and also "People who have time to criticize obviously have too much time on their hands and are desperately in need of some menial manual labor. Perhaps something that involves tinking 5000 yards of lace weight mohair would be in order."

The reaction (in real life):
"Really You didn't like the blog post because you thought (cue sound in echo effect) the all knowing list was a shameless plot to hock yarn?"

Their point:
When I refer to (cue sound in echo effect) the all knowing list like I'm yodeling from a precipice on the Grand Canyon, it seems a tad shameless.

The explanation:
I was trying to look out for my peeps because I know what it feels like to be a much loved recipient of, uh... creative holiday presents. (Seriously, do not buy one of those for your fifth grader. She'll just think you're tetched)
It was my intention to offer an aid for the lost souls of the land frantically buying willy-nilly for their yarn lovers. A map of delicious goodness that they could give that was sure to please.
Honestly, there are folks out there who are suffering with indecision and I think it high time the madness stops.

The concept:
I prefer the concept of myself as "Yarn Pusher" versus "Yarn Pimp". Pimps don't have heart. They are only looking out for themselves and their investments. I don't mind if people think of me as the fiber equivalent of that sweaty guy down the hall in college who had the cloud that leaked from underneath his door and who proffered chugs from his beer-bong while he played Pink Floyd as the soundtrack to The Wizard of Oz in an eternal loop.

That guy was a yahoo-hippie, but he was always friendly, generous, and always made sure everyone was having a good time.

Limitations:
Now, those who know me and or have met my pet Stash, know I have what some term as "a weakness" for the sock yarn. I don't think of it so much as a weakness but as a deep yearning. A hunger so powerful, I swoon a bit as I pass by the sock wall in the store.
But I recognize there are boundaries. Namely, a life expectancy that (most-likely) won't extend beyond ninety-five, a formidable appetite for sock yarn, a muscular and healthy limb of sock yarn on Stash, and a landlord who demands I pay Stash's money for rent every month.

I can't do it alone. Try as I might, I cannot own all the yarn myself.
The magical solution:
So, I figure sharing is the best way to spread the love (and the yarn) around. If I can't own it and call it my own, then my neighbor should. If I have an extra can of soup and someone is hungry, logic dictates I share what I can to help those around me.

Here's what you can do:
Just as my neighbor should take the poor scared little yarn home to love and cherish, we should all open up our pantries and take a can (or two or three) and pass it on to someone who could use it. If you just scored a righteous bargain on whosits or whatsits while shopping, take the cash you saved and go load up at the grocery store. Go ahead, you save more when you buy in bulk anyway.
Participate in the food drive tonight at Stitch and Sip where you can also give homeless yarn a new fleece on life as a knitted charity donation.
You can't make it tonight? No worries, join in the fun and knit socks (or other stuff, we won't judge) on Monday nights with the sock addicts group, uh... er sock knitter's group. If you need motivation just read this testimonial from Fyberduck:

... we interrupt your normal blogging for an important YarNews Flash:

Noro Kureyon sock yarn!

Knit/ Purl now has Noro Kureyon sock yarn in stock!

Yes, you read correctly, Noro Kureyon sock yarn. Much like our familiar friend Kureyon, this new sock yarn is single-ply, thick-and-thin, and features loooong, vibrant color repeats. Unlike the traditional Kureyon, this is 30% nylon for durability and knits up at 7.5 sts/ inch on 3mm DPNs. For more information, check out our 7 new colorways or drop by the store :)

Posted by Fyberduck at 11:31 AM

The Sally Struthers:
...Didn't that just open up the cockles of your heart and make you feel gooey inside? Does it feel like you need to give some Kureon a good home? What about the food? You were planning on starting that diet at the beginning of the new year so and drop off some nutritious food tonight or throughout the year for the Oregon Food Bank.


* My Secrect Gay Husband has a new requirement in his contract: any reference of his title must include a link to his picture.