Lately, I have been admiring hand-dyed yarn every chance I get. It is like there has been a shift and my admiration for beautiful but mass-produced yarn has given way to appreciation for something more, dyed with love, care, and expertise. I’m particularly taken by yellows this season. Maybe it’s my inner longing for spring and its daffodils or just a throw back to the favorite color of my youth, but whatever the reason I am writing a pointless post just admiring all the pretty yarns I want but definitely don’t need. Six yarn companies specializing in hand-dyed fibres are listed below with my favorite of their hues, including my own brief description of the colorway and a link to a photo of the yarn wherever I could find it. The best part about hand-dyed? It’s one of a kind. Even within the same dye lot, variations occur so won’t be exactly like anything else in this world. If you are taking the time to hand knit something special, having it be made with hand-dyed yarn seems like the perfect way to do it right.
Monthly Archives: February 2011
Free Knitting Pattern Resources
Free patterns are a knitter’s friend. Whether you are frugal or frivolous with your money, a free pattern offers an opportunity to create something with the expense being only the yarn (and your time). If it fails miserably, you unravel and start something else. It is also nice to feel like you have options as you are learning to knit. There will come a time when you feel you know enough to evaluate patterns better and that may be when buying patterns creeps in, but until then figure out what you like with the free and lovingly created patterns available from designers, magazines, and fellow knitters. Here are some of my favorite online resources for knitting patterns:
Fly Along by Hedgehog Fibres: Abalone (cardigan); Sprouting (socks); Undercover (baby blanket)
ArtYarns by Iris Schreier (also shared on the ArtYarns Facebook page)
Jessica Tromp: Free Norwegian Fair Isle Knitting Charts
Some friendly reminders:
- Respect the pattern designer’s copyright as some only permit use of the pattern for personal or charity use.
- Link back to their website if you post your final knitted item on Ravelry or your blog.
- For knitting patterns (and most other things, including recipes), NEVER copy and repost it on your own site, a forum, or elsewhere without written permission from the source.
- Knitwear designers work hard to create patterns and often freebies are meant to draw people to their site in the hopes of sharing their passion for considerate patterns and perhaps sell another pattern or some yarn as well.
If you are not a web person or do not have access to a printer, you could go to your local library and photocopy a pattern you like from a knitting book. Keep in mind any photocopy made must be for your own personal use and is subject to each individual book’s copyright laws, but usually if you are just using it for yourself to knit one thing for personal use no one will be hunting you down with an arrest warrant and handcuffs.
Crochet – Making the World More Colorful
I really enjoyed this and thought you would too.
<p><a href=”http://vimeo.com/19591751″>NBC News at 5</a> from <a href=”http://vimeo.com/user5329636″>olek</a> on <a href=”http://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a>.</p>
NBC News at 5 from olek on Vimeo.
Putting Together the Perfect Care Package for a Crafty Friend
This month, I’ve been working on a care packages for a few knitter friends. So, what do you give an accomplished knitter who also happens to be an intelligent women and thoughtful friend?
When considering a gift for a knitter, cook, or crafty person, should it fuel her creativity with supplies or pamper her with something made especially for her? I opt for a bit of both. My formula is to give one part handmade, two parts supplies, and one part something else entirely.
Creating a care package is something done from the heart with care and consideration. You choose items to include as if you were in a field of flowers hand selecting daisies for the kitchen table. The items do not all need to coordinate on their own because the fact that they cater to the recipient’s likes makes them go together. Here is the story of one of the care packages and what went into it…
For Suzi, a knitter, crocheter, theoretical physicist, and kid at-heart, it was important to embrace whimsy and color, but also warmth and practicality since she lives someplace with a biting winter chill. This is a combined graduation/new job/moving gift so it had to be big and the knitting group helped make it happen. I even tracked down a cute congratulations card and we all signed it!
• One skein of silk merino lace weight in Spell Light from Hedgehog Fibres, which we passed around one night at the pub and we each hugged the skein so when it got to Suzi, she’d get our hugs too.
• One skein of sock yarn in Jezebel from Hedgehog Fibres
• Red merino cable knit hat and gloves set from Lands’ End
• A Wham Bam Thank You Lamb neckwarmer I knitted for her
• One cake of Noro Kureyon
• One ball of rainbow-colored cotton yarn
• Hand-sewn drawstring project bag I made from yellow and purple flowered ladies handkerchiefs
• Phaidon Wallpaper Guide to Edinburgh, Scotland
• Barry’s Tea for a taste of home
• Assorted candies
• Bath & Body Works Anti-Bacterial Moisturizing Hand Lotion in Midnight Pomegranate
For your knitter friend, you could give a combination of supplies to encourage and inspire. I’ve received three amazing care packages from knitter friends that included yummy yarn, practical tools, and non-knitting treats (such as gourmet chocolate, candy corn, tinned pumpkin puree, book, and wall calendar). Some of my favorites are:
The Knit Kit
GoKnit Pouch – lightweight rip-stop pouch with yarn guider loop and loop to attach to your seatbelt or beltloop so you can knit anywhere, from KnowKnits.com
Interchangeable Case, Zip Pouch, or one of the other amazing handmade knitting & crochet organizers – keeping fibre lovers organized, from Madbird on Etsy.
The Knitter’s Bible Stitch Library by Claire Crompton
A Knitting Magazine or pattern
Woolly treats in amazing colors and decadent textures, a coveted gift for any knitter or crocheter
Punta hand-painted cotton yarn
The choice is ultimately yours. One way to decide what to make your friend or what supplies to give is to evaluate whether she already has a vast stockpile of supplies. Ravelry also makes it easier because you can sneak a peek at a friend’s Queue to see what she wants to make then either make it for her, buy her the perfect wool for the project, or gift her the pattern to make it herself. Of course, peek at her Wish List to see what patterns she desires otherwise you may be gifting patterns she already has. Be weary of this as your only resource though as some Ravelers don’t keep their Queue priorities in order so look for trends in her yarn stash, Queue and Projects. You may just see she has Queued or Favorited a dozen cowls or scarves and that’s a shove in the right direction for something you could make her.
Like this:
They Grow Up So Fast: Blog Stats for the Last 365 Days
Spring Stitches started in February 2010 as an off-shoot from my main blog, 40 Shades of Life. It just made sense to separate my knitting/sewing/crafty posts from the everyday living in Ireland ones to make it easier for crafty folks to find what they’re looking for. It also encouraged me to start posting more, which meant creating more!
In the past year, this blog has grown from a little side place to post about my fibre adventures to a full-fledged destination. Twitter is my main way to promote posts as well as to include the link with related creations in my Flickr photos and Ravelry projects (I’m FreckledPast, in case you’re curious). To gain visitors, I’ve never taken any ads or garnered media exposure, though I did write a few posts for the Pink Auction blog. I’ve just cultivated thoughtful posts with detail, love, and nice photos then let the readers find me if they so desire. This is what happened…
In February 2010, this blog had 137 views.
In March 2010, this blog had 394 views.
In April 2010, this blog had 266 views.
In May 2010, this blog had 433 views (May 12th alone had 102 views).
In June 2010, this blog had 242 views.
In July 2010, this blog had 309 views.
In August 2010, this blog had 357 views.
In September 2010, this blog had 282 views.
In October 2010, this blog had 456 views.
In November 2010, this blog had 417 views.
In December 2010, this blog had 554 views.
During 2010, this blog received an average of 12 visitors per day (over an 11-month period) for a total of 3,847 views from February through December.
In January 2011, this blog had 1,078 views, averaging 35 views per day. That’s more than one-third of the total 2010 visitors in 31 days. Which just proves that readership is growing.
