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Garden Knits

POSTED: April 4, 2012 by Liz

 

The weather here in Colorado has us reaching for our woolies one moment and our summer lace the next.  What to knit during these confusing times? Our thoughts may be turning to the garden, but that doesn't mean we walk away from our knitting basket.  Check out this clever pattern for holding potted plants from Rowan's Wool Week pattern collection.  Pop into the shop; we would be happy to print the pattern for you.

Reaching for your crochet hooks lately? Thumb through Rowan's Purelife Home. We have a number of copies in the shop. This book is filled with clever crochet and knitting patterns for the home and garden, such as this whimsical crochet felted placemat. (Julie made a new crocheted rug for the upstairs. It is perfect for the breezeway.)

These garden-inspired patterns show off Rowan's British Breeds Collection, made from classic British sheep breeds, such as Bluefaced Leiceter, Black Welsh, Jacob, and Shetland. These yarns have a natural, irresistible charm. If you are curious to learn what the yarn's breed looks like, check out the label! We have a nice selection of the DK Undyed line.

What could be a better harbinger of spring than a bunny?  Rowan brings us yet another garden-inspired pattern with this clever stash-busting rabbit, perfect for your Easter basket.  Made from pom poms, this pattern is a great way to use up odd balls of yarn that you aren't sure what to do with. (Who says the Easter Bunny can't be a little psychedelic?)

Our needles can always think spring, even if we know that winter isn't done with us yet!

Not your Grandmother's Lace...

POSTED: February 18, 2012 by Katie

Hello MSK community,

It seems that the big thing around the shop nowadays is lace! We have lots of new and beautiful lace weight yarns, as well as some old favorites, and some great patterns to go with them.

First, I want to tell you about Scrumptious Lace by Fiberspates Luxury Yarn.  It is 45% Silk and 55% Superwash Merino. The silk in it gives it just the right amount of shine, while the merino keeps it soft.  Even more amazing is the yardage you get from just one skein- over 1,000 yards! Recently, knitwear designer Ysolda Teague has released a new pattern book called Saturday Treat. It includes 6 accessory patterns, made to show off Scrumptious. She commented, “The colors practically glow with a rich depth so it was a delightful treat for me to put together an exclusive palette and accompanying designs.” If you love Ysolda, you have to come to the shop and check out this cute little book and the yarn to go with it.

http://www.fyberspates.co.uk/mall/Fyberspates/

http://ysolda.com/patterns/collections/saturday-treat/

MadelineTosh’s Prairie is another of our new favorites. It is hard to dislike anything that Madeline Tosh makes, though. Prairie is a single ply, 100% superwash merino wool yarn that is hand-dyed and machine washable. MadelineTosh’s colors are unlike anyone else’s, so if you are looking for some lace yarn for a special project, you need to check out the beautiful and different colorways that we have in Prairie.

http://madelinetosh.com/store/index.php/yarns/prairie.html

Lastly, an old favorite of ours has enjoyed some recent recognition around the shop. It seems that everyone is making Churchmouse’s Bias 'Before & After' Scarf out of Sweet Georgia’s Merino Silk Lace. It is a 50% fine merino wool/ 50% cultivated silk blend with 765 yards per skein. In combination with Churchmouse’s classic and elegant scarf pattern (with or without beads!), you will get a truly stunning finished product. We also carry Sweet Georgia’s CashSilk Lace, a 45% cashmere/ 55% silk blend that comes in 400 yard skeins. My favorite project to make out of the CashSilk is Purl Soho’s Simple Pleasures Hat. One skein is the perfect amount to make one very luxurious hat. If you love bright colors, you must try Sweet Georgia. We have more new colors on order as well.

 

http://www.churchmouseyarns.com/collections/churchmouse-classics-patterns/products/bias-before-after-scarf

http://www.sweetgeorgiayarns.com/

Happy Knitting,

Katie

Lovely Lace

POSTED: October 17, 2011 by Lizz

Wash My Lace

There is no shortage of lovely lace-weight yarns on the market. Not only do we now carry several types of SweetGeorgia yarns, but we're happy to announce that we also have Anzula's Wash My Lace in a rainbow of gorgeous colors. Wash My Lace is 100% Superwash Merino, and the skeins come in an amazing 990 yards (905 meters). It's super-soft, easy-to-care-for, and knits like a dream. Check out these colors:

"Top from Left: Charcoal, Denim, Periwinkle; Bottom from Left: Paradise, Teal, Lavendar, Lilly"


"Top: Au Natural; 2nd Row from Left: Seaside, Coco; Bottom from Left: Clay, Shiitake, Bark"


"From Left to Right: Key Lime, Poppy, Grape, Candied Apple"

Knitted Lace

If you need help picking out a new lace project to use your pretty new lace yarn on, look no further!

We love getting new books in at My Sister Knits. We have some really wonderful ones just in time for Fall knitting projects. The new Knitted Lace book Interweave Press is a great collection of their favorite knitted lace projects. Full of sweaters, stoles, shawls, socks and hats, this book can please everyone from the novice lace knitter to the expert looking for some new patterns. One of our favorites are the Spiral Boot Socks.

They take approximately 486 yards of fingering weight yarn, and the lace pattern is simple and easily memorized. These are cute knee-highs for chilly fall nights, and can take you right into the snowy weather (that still seems so far off) to keep you toasty under your snow boots.

Copies available at the shop now, so stop by and pick one up!

Cascade 220 Superwash Trunk Show Part II

POSTED: October 13, 2011 by Lizz

There are so many cute baby knits as part of the Cascade 220 Superwash Trunk Show that we had to split them into two posts. Julie Conway is a great friend of the shop, and we were really thrilled when she brought in so many cute baby things. Part I showed you some of the unisex and boy items, so Part II will show some of the girl items.



All of these patterns, and then some, are part of the book 60 Quick Baby Knits, available at the shop. Julie will also be teaching her Heels and Gussets class on Tuesday, October 18 ... a great class for sock knitters and sock knitter wannabes! Stop by the shop for more details and to check out these sweet samples.

Cascade 220 Superwash Trunk Show Part I

POSTED: October 5, 2011 by Lizz

Julie Conway has always demonstrated her awesome knitting skills.  Her Learn to Knit I and II classes are staples of our class schedule, and we love seeing her finished objects.  When she brought in finished projects from the sweetest book we've seen in a long time, 60 Quick Baby Knits, we couldn't stop ooh-ing and aah-ing.

60 Quick Baby Knits is a book that has exactly what the title promises: 60 quick and adorable projects for boys and girls, each one knit out of Cascade 220 Superwash.  Julie has knit several items out of this book, and we have them on display at the shop, so be sure to take a look when you're there.

Here are our favorite unisex and boy pieces:

Striped Leg Warmers and Lace Motif Cardigan

 

Hooded Pullover

And how cute is this sheep hat??  We love the backside ....

Stop by the shop to see these samples, and more!  And don't forget, Julie is teaching her Learn to Knit II class on Tuesday, October 11.  This is a great class for increasing, decreasing, slipping stitches, joining yarns and combining stitches to make rib stitch and seed stitch. Stay tuned for Part II of the Trunk Show as well ....

Knit, Swirl!

POSTED: September 20, 2011 by Lizz

Sandra McIver has written a new book that contains patterns that can appeal to all of us: they flatter every shape and size, and are knitted in one piece with only one seam to finish up at the end.  Introducing: Knit, Swirl!

This book contains patterns for swirl jackets, a type of jacket that has a construction easy to understand.  Each pattern contains several full-color photographs ....

Line-by-line pattern instructions, and a detailed schematic that makes it easy to construct.

There is a wide variety of patterns in this book that mean you can knit this style of jacket for any season!  They make wonderful gifts, and there is no limit to the colors and patterns you can incorporate.  Copies of this book are available at the shop, so be sure to pick one up while we still have them!

The One and Only Cat Bordhi

POSTED: September 13, 2011 by Lizz

It's a little hard to describe Cat Bordhi.  If you're familiar with her YouTube videos demonstrating cast-ons, sock toes, sock heels, Moebius cast-ons, Moebius techniques, and so on.  If you're familiar with her writing, you know about her First and Second Treasuries of Magical Knitting, Socks Soar on Circular Needles, and her New Pathways for Sock Knitters followed by the Personal Footprints for Sock Knitters (did I mention her children's book?).  If you're familiar with her as a teacher, you may have met her at Sock Summit or an LYS, trying to absorb as much as you can from this brilliant mind in the few hours that you have.  Suffice to say, Cat has no shortage of accomplishments under her belt.  Which is why we were thrilled to have her in Fort Collins for a few days to teach her new Sweet Tomato Heel, and her Personal Footprints classes.

The classes were packed with more information than a knitter can handle, and even if you had read her books cover-to-cover, there were still a few tricks and trades to take home.  Did you know a great way to reinforce hard-wearing areas in your socks (like the heel, or ball-of-foot) is to carry a strand of Kidsilk Haze or Kidsilk Seta along with it?  Me neither.

Cat's website has links to her books and some extra videos, but a simple YouTube search with her name will bring you more  new skills than you knew you wanted.  (Warning: You can't watch just one.) 

In short, it was a great few days to have her here, and we can't wait to have her back.  If you ever have the chance to take a class from Cat, we highly recommend her!  Feel free to stop by the shop to talk to us about our experience or share yours, or pick up a copy of one of Cat's books.

Bike One, Knit All

POSTED: August 31, 2011 by Lizz

Tour de Fat

This Saturday, September 3rd marks the Tour de Fat: the annual bike parade put on by the New Belgium Brewery.  This bike tour is a town favorite.  Families, college students, kids and grandparents alike dress up and ride their bikes (tricked out and not), beginning at Civic Center Park and traveling up and down Mountain Avenue.  Afterwards is a carnival that you can ride experimental bikes, hear some great music, and of course eat and drink beer to your heart's content. Trust us when we say if you're NOT dressed up in costume, you will feel out of place.  This is a family-fun event that can't be missed!

Join us at MSK from 10:00am - 2:00pm to watch the parade go by and get some tasty coffee treats from Espresso People.  Be sure to bring your knitting!

New In the Library

Elizabeth Zimmermann is a knitting icon.  She has taught endless people how to knit, and her books live on as staples in many people's knitting libraries.  Her patterns range from basic and simple to complicated and brilliant, and her construction techniques border on the mind-bending.  Her daughter, Meg Swansen, has carried on in the knitting tradition and still runs Schoolhouse Press (EZ's original knitting newsletter press) to this day.

EZ fans everywhere were thrilled when they found out that another book of her patterns would be published posthumously (she passed away in 1999).  This was to be a book that Elizabeth had been pushing for since her first book came out -- one solely dedicated to her favorite stitch, Garter.  EZ's grandson, Cully Swansen has reconstructed and gathered a collection of Elizabeth's garter stitch patterns and published them all in this posthumous volume titled Knit One, Knit All.

This is a lovely book, filled with patterns of Elizabeth's creation.  It contains socks, sweaters, hats, mittens, gloves and jackets -- patterns ranging from beginner to advanced, and all based around garter stitch (what she calls the "bread and cheese of knitting").  Supplemented with notes and diagrams drawn in EZ's hand, it also contains a few sketches and watercolors done by Elizabeth.

We also love this Sideways Glove pattern that comes with instructions to make a fingerless version as well.

Knit on!

Join Joanna Johnson This Saturday!

POSTED: April 22, 2010 by mysisterknits

A New Jersey native, Joanna Johnson and her husband moved to Colorado in 1999 for the sunshine and drier climate and haven’t looked back. Together they have started an independent publishing company called Slate Falls Press. This spring marks the first released publication, Phoebe’s Sweater which was written by Joanna Johnson and illustrated by her husband.

“Phoebe’s Sweater was inspired by our daughter and the time I spent knitting her a jacket while I was pregnant with our second child. When I finished the sweater she was playing in the sprinkler and it was in the midst of summer’s heat. I called her over to try it on, and at that moment, something seemed so poignant about everything- her carefree playfulness, my pregnancy, the coming changes in the seasons and in our family... it was a very rich moment and inspired the whole story from there.“ Included in the book are patterns for the sweater, a Phoebe doll and a doll-sized sweater to match. The book is sure to make a great gift for a special child with a knitter in their life.

Joanna comes from a long line of knitters and has her mother and grandmother to thank for her love of knitting today. Like many she relearned as a young adult. Joanna also enjoys sewing and quilting and exploring the wide world of fiber arts, including spinning and weaving with her daughter who also has the “fiber bug.”

Joanna and Eric live in Loveland with their three children. Phoebe travels the world and blogs about her adventures and teaches children about fiber arts, culture and geography.

Come meet Joanna on April 24th from 11am-1pm at the shop for a book singing!

You can connect with Joanna and Phoebe on-line at any of the following:
Joanna’s Website
Phoebe’s Blog
Joanna on Ravelry
Slate Falls Press Group on Ravelry
Joanna on Twitter
Slate Falls Press on Facebook

Present and Future Shop Arrivals!

POSTED: September 29, 2009 by mysisterknits

Good afternoon. MSK has pre ordered the 2nd book from Ysolda. Supply will be limited so let us know if you are a fan and we will save a copy for you.

Those waiting for Misti Alpaca Handpaint Chunky to make Kate’s Puddles Scarf–the colorway Lake Country has arrived, 10 skeins available. Cat Bordhi’s new book in stock , Personal Footprints, 3 available.

Interweave Crochet magazine –22 cool fall designs to crochet, arrived today.

Come see us, knit for warmth to share.

Julie @ MSK

ps Charlie Theobald our neighborhood artist has unveilded new bookmarks, notecards and giftcards for Fall and Holiday Season..I love his ability to capture such expressions in his watercolors—-These you must see.
We will have sets of 4 Holiday Cards available this week.

Happy Knitting