Monthly Archives: November 2012

The “Win Your Wish List” Contest Returns!

The task of returning gifts is a dreary leftover of the holiday season—but there are lots of artful ways to avoid improper gifting (for example, Pinterest boards abound). However, what if you could drop helpful hints AND enter a delightful contest in one fell swoop?

You can indeed: The “Win Your Wish List” contest is back! Once again, three lucky people will win $50 worth of Knit Picks merchandise, just by creating and sharing their dream list of goodies. Entering is easy-peasy—here’s how:

 

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Sock Summit Classes

 

sock summit sign

Believe it or not, the only time I have ever taken a knitting class was at Sock Summit 2009.  And I only took 2 classes (you can see my write up here, my very first Knit Picks blog post!) So this time around, I decided to fill my schedule – I took a total of 4 classes, one each day, plus I attended Stephanie Pearl-McPhee’s lecture as well.  I was very busy all weekend but it was a lot of fun (of course!)

 

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6 Easy Steps to Becoming a Pinterest Model

A pressing public service announcement:

Step 1.) Spend a lot of time on Pinterest—particularly, “researching” project patterns.

Step 2.) Develop a heretofore unnatural obsession with monster infinity scarves; know solidly that having one would complete you/make you a Winter Fairy. Or Faerie.

Step 3.) Get swept up in Knit Picks’ excellent “Free Hank of Biggo” promotion. Let excitement build.

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Oh my Biggo!

We’re going a little Biggo
crazy here – if you get our emails (you should!), you’ll know that for
this week, every order over $5 gets you a free hank of squishy,
delectable Biggo yarn!

But what can you do with just one hank, you ask? Well, at 110 yards per 100 gram hank, it doesn’t seem like much – but with Biggo,
a little goes a long way. For instance, it’s plenty enough for some
fatty mittens, a fluffy earflap hat, or this double seed stitch scarf
I’m making for my niece!

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In a Reverie

Like many knitters, as soon as I feel a chill in the air and the days start to get shorter, I start to daydream of what I like to call my perfect autumn sweater. For me – that means it’s a sweater that is cozy and super soft, it’s longer in length and has a big, billowing cowl neck. If all of the stars alligned and my aesthetic requirements were met, I would also throw in another request: to be made of a light and lofty fiber that is at the same time very warm.

And after much contemplation, I finally found the sweater of my dreams: Francis Revisted by Beth Silverstein.

Now, I have to admit – usually when I have all of the specifics imagined
and planned out, it is almost always close to impossible for that dream
to become a reality. So you can imagine how delighted I was as soon as
Reverie arrived at the Knit Picks headquarters! It definitely met my
light and lofty requirements in addition to being super soft and warm.

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Flowery Sachets

It’s the time of year when everything has moved indoors and the windows
are staying firmly shut against those grey skies. The more time I spend
puttering around the house, the more I want everything to smell lovely
to help combat those winter blues. I’ve been making my own chai mix on
the stovetop and that tends to do the trick downstairs, but upstairs
it’s a no-man’s land of bunnies and ever damp towels. SO, I decided to
make some lavender and cedar sachets to tuck into drawers and hang on
doorknobs and hangers in my closet.

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Yarn Election 2012: The Results!

First and foremost: A huge thanks to everyone that participated in our stunning, first-ever Yarn Election at Knit Picks. Your clever and passionate appeals were a true delight to read; may you never stop voicing your opinions on the pressing fiber issues of our time!

However, there can only be one victor. Winning the election handily by a large margin, I present to you:

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Book review of Knitting Hats & Mittens from Around the World

As knitters we are so lucky to enjoy a craft that has cultural influences from so many different parts of the world. And because people depended on knit items for their survival in colder climates. Ingenuity and necessity have been the catalysts for knit styles and techniques that we are familiar to us today.

In Knitting Hats and Mittens from Around the World, Donna Druchunas has gathered a fascinating collection of accessories designed by a variety of designers and inspired by our global knitting heritage.

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Crochet Crazy!

Ever since Kim and Jenny K taught me to crochet a few weeks ago, I’ve been on a roll! I’ve hardly put the hook down.

I grabbed some scraps of Brava Bulky
in Black, White and Dove Heather and made a few Granny Squares to make a
pillow! The squares are all done and ready to be attached – I’ll just
have to pester Kim again next week to show me how to put them all
together. I’ll sew a pillow base with some of the beautiful fabric from Connecting Threads…

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Podcast Episode 201: Crafting for the Holidays

This week, Jenny and Stacey chat about what is on every knitter and crocheter’s mind this time of the year – holiday crafting! Both Jenny and Stacey share a list of their favorite knit and crochet designs for the holiday season. Find out what makes or breaks a project when it comes to crafting for the holidays and what go-to books (and eBooks) knitters and crocheters should be sure to check out this holiday season. We really love the holiday crafting season and had so much fun sharing our favorite projects and patterns. So consider yourself warned: in our holiday crafting excitement, there might be excessive uses of the words cute, pretty and adorable in addition to lots of “squeee”! And as very not-so-subtle hints for our family and friends, we also talk about what tops our very own wish lists.

3 easy ways to listen…

Subscribe in iTunes Episode 201: Crafting for the Holidays RSS feed

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