sublime books

Here is a sampling of new Sublime books. The baby books are always in demand, their styles are ultra modern and hard to resist. Most designs are worked in dk weight yarn.

#626 - The fifth little Sublime hand knit book - book by Sublime | Diamond Yarn

#626 - The fifth little Sublime hand knit book - book by Sublime Diamond Yarn

another rainy weekend

Can it truly be possible, another rainy weekend!! It is getting to the point where we don't comment on the weather anymore and just take it for granted, Saturday + Sunday = rain.

It took only a couple of evenings to whip up this new store sample- Simple Baby Cardie. The inspiration came from a new Fall colourway in Escape DK. The balls of yarn just about jumped off the shelf into my arms, knit me, knit me. Very much like the time I was in a pet store and a black and white kitten meowed so loudly not taking her eyes off me, pleading, pick me, pick me. This cardie is knit entirely in one piece from back to front, a perfect project for a beginner who likes a fun colourway. Escape DK is a machine washable wool blend, available in blues, greens, plums, browns, all very interesting self-striping shades that surprise a knitter and keep the needles clicking to the next colour change.

hot off the needles

Here is a picture of the Trio Button Shawl, just completed in time for crisp, cool days ahead. Notice the lovely Bocote Buttons, made by a local artisan, he experiments with many different types of wood, all with interesting grains. These and other selections of buttons are available to co-ordinate with the yarn colour of your choice.

This style can be worn three different ways just by adjusting the buttonhole. Kits are available in Cream, Black, Honey Beige and Medium Charcoal Grey.

If you can knit a scarf, you can knit a shawl, just think of it as three scarves in width and the same length.

Shawls

The days are getting shorter now and the first few Autumn leaves are scattered around. A knitters' thoughts turn to warm and cosy- shawls, scarves, neckwarmers, and vests. I am thinking of shawls lately, in every different shape, style and texture. Wouldn't it be wonderful to have one for every day of the week.

Last week, I finished a new design, a Black boucle shawl, very quick and easy to knit. Now, I am just waiting for a new shipment of handmade wooden buttons to arrive, then I can finish it up, put it on display and post a picture here.

This lightweight Camelhair shawl design would be a great Fall wardrobe staple. It is knit in two sections and grafted together in the center back to ensure both edges have the same scalloped effect. The kits come in three shades, light, medium and dark camel. This sample is knit in the lightest shade.

When you are finished knitting a shawl for Fall, there are some beautiful shawl pins to adorn your masterpiece in many different wooden shapes and natural tones. These pins have become so popular in the last year and can be worn on knitted vests, cardigans and small neck scarves.

fall textures

Lately, I find myself saying, "Have a nice winter" to customers as they leave. Its a strange feeling since we are barely into mid-August but the reality is that some customers are here for only a few weeks each year at cottages or resorts and have now stocked up with yarns for the winter months and it is time to say goodbye.......but only til next year.

Here is a sampling of new Fall textures in natural colours-

Earth Collection features a wonderful Linen and Alpaca mix, perfect for scarves, shawls, and cabled cardigans. Katia has an oh so soft boucle that has been inspiring knitters for everything from legwarmers to baby cardigans and bunting bags. Mulberry/Merino in smokey purple feels like butter on the needles, it has to be the softest yarn in the whole store. One of our store design kits features this yarn in a floppy cabled beret knit up on circular needles, yay! no seams.

For those who prefer a bit more colour in their Fall wardrobe, here are some of the new mixes-

Noro has a light and lofty boucle that stripes into teal, perriwinkle, plum and brown. Ella Rae has a great colour range of hand painted Lace Merino, one skein will make a shawl, scarf or a pair of socks. Sirdar has come out with a new line of colourful tweeds, and a self-striping wool blend, both in Chunky weights.

The fun part is here- knitting it all up!

It is another rainy day in Muskoka, a great opportunity to sit indoors with some quiet music playing and knit a few rows on a project. The Tea For Two exhibit is in its final week and has drawn in a huge number of viewers from here and afar. I have met teapot collectors, tea cosy enthusiasts and even some small children who have watched the latest Harry Potter movie and tell me that one of the characters puts on a tea cosy and wears it as a hat. Too funny!

The exhibit seems to spark past memories for some, sitting in Granny's kitchen having tea with her lady friends, or a beloved tea cosy that was ragged and worn and finally had to be thrown out. The playfulness in each design sure does bring smiles and chuckles. This weekend someone will win their favorite tea cosy in a draw. Who will it be?

Yesterday, I went to see a new movie with Meryl Streep in the lead role, Julie and Julia is a delightful and accurate story of Julia Child, the famous cookbook author and teacher. In a couple of scenes, Meryl Streep is wearing a handknit cardigan, a beautiful fairisle pattern knit in deep colours, very fitted with puffy sleeves. Wouldn't it be a great idea if the sweaters we saw in current movies had patterns available to order through the designer? Many a knitter has been inspired by seeing her favorite actor/actress wearing a handknit creation in a movie scene.

Fall Katia yarns arrive

Well it was a busy day yesterday as the new Katia Fall yarns started to arrive through the front door. Beautiful vibrant colourways in Nepal, a super chunky wool mix that knits up in no time on 7.00 to 8.00 mm needles.

Futura is back in stock with some added colours this Fall, purples, and reds and last year's favorite, vivid green, which was a top seller featured in our original design Shawl Kit. A quick and easy knit with a lovely ruffled edge, finished off with a natural wood shawl pin handmade by a local artisan. I can't count the number of knitters who whipped it up for Christmas gifts last year and it is sure to be a gift item again this year. Some gorgeous pattern books came in too, Katia baby designs are ultra modern and the new moms love their use of grown up colours and styles.

August has mysteriously appeared on the calendar, which means we are now mid-summer. I am still waiting patiently for the Fall yarns to arrive and then it is full steam ahead, knitting up samples to display.

Making a comeback this Fall is boucle yarn, a super light and lofty texture, great for jackets, vests and scarves. The colour range is fairly neutral, charcoals, taupes, creams and browns.

In the smoother textures, burnt orange and shades of red seem to dominate the colour charts. Shawls are still very popular, especially the smaller triangular styles that can be wrapped closely around the neck and worn casually with jeans. Some are tied loosely and others are adorned with shawl pins. Sock yarn is still selling like hotcakes, since summer is a time for small travel size projects. Bamboo mixtures and sock wool infused with aloe vera are soft and supple to knit with. Aloe vera is especially beneficial for hikers, as it softens callouses.