It’s always intriguing for me to see what top sellers are and to see sales trends. For instance, I used to sell oodles of Hiya Hiya needles online, but now that more shops carry them, my online sales of them are down.

We’ll have a really popular pattern, which makes us think it got mention somewhere, but even a Ravelry search doesn’t give us a clue. Why has Summer Night Top been such a good seller in 2010? The pattern was released in 2005.

I just got yarn in from three different sources, all special orders for customers and all in the honey/sun gold color. And I sold another bag of gold yarn yesterday. It is a warm color on a cold day, so I’m enjoying looking at it.

EAR LIGHTS continue to go out the door with almost every customer and to be a favorite with online customers. Good for anyone on your gift list.

Another popular item is the Waterfall Kit. I’m sure the lovely colors of the Malabrigo Aquarella help sell this, and the fact that it’s a quick knit, perfect for getting a gift done fast. The summer interns chose that yarn as their favorite.

Pictured:  gold hued yarns, Aquarella Moldonado, Ear Light 

Gift Ideas

Gift ideas on display in shop.

We want your knitting to be fun, productive and satisfying.  Tried and true projects for gifts or yourself!

Just arrived:  more Malabrigo worsted and Aquarella colors.  I'm distracted by Deja Vu (worsted) and Maldonando (Aquarella), both of which look awesome with Vaa.  Oh my.

Also new:  lots of Mountain Meadow Wool colors.
Claudia Handpaint Boucle. 

Gifts2Knit

If you live near the Funkstown Y2Knit Yarn Shop, stop by tomorrow, Nov 6, 10-5 for our display, advice and inspiration on quick2knit gifts. We've put together kits, published new patterns and matched yarn to popular existing patterns to make your holiday and year round gift knitting easier. We're never short of ideas at Y2Knit.

If you don't live near the shop, be sure you are on our newsletter list as we'll be sending out emails with gift ideas and specials all month.

A freebie: I couldn't resist these after seeing a pic from a catalog of wine bottle toppers. Mine are nicer and can be knit up in less than 1/2 hour. Cast on 21 sts, and have fun. I decreased at the top, knit an i-cord and attached some yarn for a pom pom. Great gift for wine lovers or with a gift of a bottle of wine.

Best selling product this week: Ear Light!

This is the coolest product. Gina, from Checker Distributors, turned us onto the fantastic Ear Light when we were in Tuscany. I came back and ordered some and keep having to order more because everyone wants one.

Lightweight, this just clips on the ear. I thought I wouldn't like it, but it's not uncomfortable. Adjust the light and the soft white light shines on your knitting, then when you turn your head to look at the pattern, the light goes with you. So cool!

Great for readers, knitters and I have customers that are using them for walking the dog. I used mine the other night when I couldn't find the key hole at the back door. Abigail loves to chase the light!

What a great gift! Hope my family members aren't reading this or they'll know what's coming their way!

Y2Knit Experience Tuscany Picture Book

Click here to view this photo book larger

Travel is over...for now

I think I have finally settled in after the fall travel, which included over 2 weeks in Tuscany and 9 days in Buffalo, WY.  When I return from these trips, the thing I miss most is the wonderful conviviality of spending time with a group of knitters and getting to know a group fairly well.  Getting up and having my cup of tea in the morning is decidedly less fun that sipping tea, knitting and visiting with others in the lobby of the Occidental Hotel or the breakfast room at Villa Maddalena.

Upon my return, there is always this sense of loss. Other than the obvious, I was unable to identify what this was.  Finally it dawned on me:  when I am on a Y2Knit Experience, no matter how hard I am working, I am not overloaded with all the things that enter my personal and work life when I'm back in Funkstown.  What's missing is a less complicated day!  What's missing is finding time to knit!

We had a great time during the Yarns on Stage Debut event at the shop last Saturday.  Fun to see which yarns knitters are drawn to.  Prism sold the most, Alpaca with a Twist and Great Adirondacks next.  There's still leftovers, like after any good meal. 

Sandy brought some delicious carrot cake so we could celebrate Nancy's birthday. She made Nancy her own little cupcake.  I had three servings.

Do Jackalopes Exist?

For the recent Y2Knit Experience Buffalo, we stayed at the historic Occidental Hotel.  Well worth it!  One of the features is the saloon, which has been lovingly restored, complete with animal heads of all kinds.  I believe every animal found in the West can be found in the saloon.  I polished my identification skills and after a week (and a few beers), i confidently know the difference between deer, elk and caribou, among others. 









One critter than I knew instantly was the jackalope.  He's mounted on the wall just to the left of the doorway into the gift shop and hotel lobby.   Since I felt that all the animals would look better if they had scarves or cowls on, but didn't feel enough commitment to that ideal to actually provide them, I decided to knit a small scarf for the Jackalope. 

I was able to do this with some lovely purple yarn donated by Mountain Meadow Wool.  I knit the scarf in seed stitch, 2 inches wide by 14" long, not including fringe.  It was perfect knitting during Knitting Night with local knitters.

I gave the Jackalope the scarf the next morning, attaching the yarn label.  The next morning the owner of the hotel, Dawn, commented on how lovely the scarf looked on the Jackalope.  I told her that Emily, the resident ghost, had apparently gotten into my needles and yarn and been up to some mischief.  We'll see if that story sticks!  Anyway, he looks quite fetching, whoever gets the knitting credit!

pics courtesy of Maureen Ladley of Ladley & Associates

Story 2: 

I had a magazine deadline, which since I procrastinate, means I was working on it at the last minute.  This involved finishing Bunny Love, a pattern that Creative Knitting accepted for a special interest Babies and Children edition coming out sometime in 2011. 

So, right now I'm kind of over bunnies, cute as they are.  I thought about sending the prototype knitted Bunny Love to my nephews, perhaps with a ransom note, but then decided to just turn him into an Jackalope.  When Sandy and Phyllis stopped by to pick up their new One Skein Wonders Sock Yarn books, we sat and visited and I just whipped those antlers up.  Bunny Love got to sniff the rosemary while I took his pic.   He's so Wyoming!!

What have I been knitting?

I always forget to log what I have been knitting. I always have a few projects. Here's my recent output:

A lovely beret that is part of the Experience Buffalo knitting. Sorry, the pattern is only available for those attending this spectacular event. If you aren't going this year, we'll soon post dates for next year. Meanwhile, we're shuffling off to Buffalo, WY.

Because I love the yarn from Mountain Meadow Wool of Buffalo, WY, I decided to work something out with an odd hank I had in their dyed yarn. With only 140 yds, I decided to make some fingerless mitts. I think the bobbles in the beret inspired me.


My default knitting has been the OK Easy Cardigan. I needed something that didn't require a lot of thought as I have a lot going on right now. I've finished the sleeves and am working on the back. I love the hem and how the turn creates a line of color. I chose Kiwi from Zealana in the laceweight because this color has been in my mind for a long time. It's my default color. I picked an odd hank of Lorna's Laces sock for the contrast, and if I say so myself, it's quite fabulous. I put the contrast in the sleeve hem, which will be worn turned back and in the surprise back stripe. Because I didn't have enough yarn to do the body of the sweater hem in the variegated contrast, I picked another color of Kiwi and am pleased with the effect.

This will be good saloon knitting because I don't really have to pay attention. It will be fun to show off at Knitter's Night in Buffalo. Apparently the local knitters are really excited as they don't connect with each other. Once again, Y2Knit facilitates a great connection. More on that later!

It's a Wrap Party and Trunk Show

Not only did we have delicious wraps to eat (thanks, Bonnie!) and beautiful wraps to adorn (thanks, Jill!), but we had luscious yarn to fondle, adore and buy.


Darcy from Angel's Kiss Yarn brought a fine assortment of her 60% alpaca/40% merino worsted in an array of colors. This yarn makes you want to get your needles out and cast on for a sensory experience of touch and color. Darcy's graciousness compliments the yarn. She also brought some bulky and a sampling of her lace weight, which they are spinning at her small mill in Wisconsin. The worsted and bulky blends are being created at Kraemer Mills in PA. Darcy uses her own alpaca and alpaca from other sources, including MD farms.

We had a good time trying wraps on different body types and experimenting with different ways to wear them. Pictured here are Darcy and Bonnie wearing Seven-8ths, a pattern Y2Knit published in 2009. Not only is it fun to knit, but it's great for all body types. Turns out this is a good color too as it looks great on both women.

Below, Nancy models the Ogee Shawl, a lacy circle that can be draped and wrapped a number of ways. Another model shows it as a neck piece.

Back from Magical Trip to Tuscany

I've been back a few days and figured I better write while it's all fresh. So much happens on a trip like the Y2Knit Experience Tuscany, and I find it hard to tell the story well enough to convince others of the magic.

Because we travel with our 87-year old mom, Jane, Jill and I forgo the train ride from Rome and instead are met by our friend and hired driver, Massimo, who drives like any good Roman, getting us out of the airport and to the A1 quickly. I mention this trip because I was so struck by Massimo asking us, "Do you still feel the magic when you return to Montisi?" (read that with an Italian accent)

Jill and I both replied that we do still feel the magic. When we returned for our third trip last year, I wondered if I would feel the same excitement and enchantment of this tiny medieval village. I had a lot going on and wasn't sure those emotions would rise in me again. On the drive from Rome, especially once we began to see the Tuscan countryside, I felt as Massimo said he does, "like Alice in Wonderland". This year the countryside was full of sunflower farms, golden heads bowing to the sun. Glorious wonderland.

Montisi, the magical village, is home to about 325 people. This year, being August, more were visiting, so the place was quite lively. The first week it was hot, so the streets were full of people late into the night while we waited for apartments and bedrooms to cool down. Even the small children were up with their parents, having napped throughout the day.

For us, connecting with the people we know is part of the magic. Massimo cooked lunch while we caught up with his partner, Liz Cochrane, a local artist. Liz taught a color class to the knitters each week and also some private painting lessons. Over the first couple days, we run into more familiar faces and are constantly reminded of how good is to be back.

One of the familiar faces was one of the Y2Knit participants, Mary Jane Escobar. MJ came to Montisi two years ago and stayed with us for two weeks. This time, she wanted the experience to be different, so she asked us if she could teach local children to knit. A natural extension of her life in Virginia, where she teaches kids in after school programs and craft shops to knit, this seemed like a wonderful opportunity. Being August, the kids were out of school and it was warm enough to hold classes outside in a convenient location.

Liz helped get the word out and 8-12 kids attended classes each day. Irma, 81, joined the group too, renewing her knitting skills. This was a wonderful experience and reminder of how knitting can bring us together.

Busy Week!

The interns have left, racking up 12 miles of yarn winding. Reports from Chicago indicate they picked up their knitting when they got home and are busy churning out scarves for their bunny collection. I miss them every time I have to wind yarn. That was a luxury to have someone on standby to do it for me.

While the interns (nephews Elvis and Van) were here we visited Zane, just two days shy of his first birthday. We delivered his present, which included the pictured Party Time! Hat. Pretty darling on the world's cutest one year old! Thanks for a great pattern, Audrey. Fun to knit and fun to wear!

Barely rested from the 8-year olds 10-day visit, I had to ramp up for Speed Dating! Thanks to Bonnie and Nancy for lightening that load. Of course, it was blistering hot, but we sampled silk and other lovely yarns to distract us. 9 yarns, 10 minutes each. Turns out that's all the time you need to decide if 1) you never want to see that yarn again, 2) you'd definitely consider a second date, or 3) you just want to take it home with you now! Everyone seemed to find something in the 3) category.

More pics online.

Speed Dating!

If you haven't signed up for this event at the Y2Knit Yarn Shop, we recommend this one. For just $15, you get a canvas bag with goodies and the opportunity to test some new yarns. As the event name implies, you only have to spend a few minutes with each yarn--no commitment! Some yarn has not been seen in the shop yet.

Because we always give more, we're also providing the opportunity to try some stitch patterns when you play with the yarn and we'll help you if you need it. With these quick tutorials you're bound to come away with some new knowledge.

Hope to see you there--a few spaces remain.

Flying Saucers!

The new Flying Saucer yarn arrived. Each disc has two yarns wound together so that you can knit socks at the same time or create two balls that will be identical for getting matching socks. Perfect for those to whom that feature is important (matching socks). For the rest, a very cool ball of yarn that will sit nicely on the shelf or table!

The colors are yummy and the yarn is soft. This product is distributed by Skacel, made by Schoppel Woolle.

Summer Interns Arrive

Our 8-year old nephews, Elvis and Van, arrived Wed afternoon, chauffeured by their father. A bit road weary, after a 5 minute refresher tour of the house, they were begging to wind yarn. The last time they were here, four years ago, they wound yarn and put price tags on yarn, so they had a memory, apparently pleasant of that activity.

Thursday, they helped with customer sales, wound more yarn, priced yarn, put together a large mailing for our Y2Knit Experience Buffalo participants. It was another hot day, so we didn't go out until the evening, when it cooled down. We rode bikes around Funkstown, which is much hillier than their neighborhood in Chicago. The best part was getting the bikes to the top of the big hill in the Funkstown Park (site of the historic Battle of Funkstown) and coasting to the bottom. Very fun. The boys then tried the tallest slide, which Elvis felt rated 4 out of 5.

Sally, their mom, had sent a long a jigsaw puzzle, knowing how much I love to do those. We've had our nose in that this morning.

The Battle of Funkstown reenactment is of an actual battle that took place in 1860. It's an interesting event, which includes the street enactment in front of the Y2Knit yarn shop. This is a "for show" battle in that there never was a battle in the street, rather on a nearby hill. They have a few battles there over the weekend too. Now that hill is part of our nice Funkstown Park and the reenactors set up camp there for the weekend. Some of us returned to the park in the evening for more 97th Regiment String Band music and fireworks. All in all, a very nice day.

The pics are of the soldiers waiting by the side of the shop. The woman standing behind the artfully arranged bayonets is this yarn shop owner, pictured here with Bryce, Heather Henry's son. Heather took these pics.

We have some really cool new yarns, including SilkIndian, 100% worsted weight spun silk. It's pretty dreamy. Sandy knit up the Gossamer Scarf. The pattern comes with a flat gossamer, as pictured, or with a bell/in-the-round gossamer. Both versions are classic and will jazz up any outfit. Try this on and you'll truly appreciate the luxury of silk.

This project is quick to knit and makes a great gift. Pictured here is a variegated color, but we have solids too. We'll get them on the web soon. I love the way the colors make it look like the neckband has beads on it. There's nothing like silk.

This yarn is one of the featured yarns at Y2Knit's Speed Dating! on August 10.

From lunch to launch: The evolution of the Azalea Shawl pattern

The Azalea Shawl, knit with Bijou Basin's Yak Laceweight, keeps its mid-century origins a secret. (Photo: Y2Knit)

Knitters have often asked me what the process is behind each of my designs. It’s hard for me to describe, because quite frankly, I’m thinking about designs all the time — well, designs and food. I usually have about 10 projects going on at once, most of which are begun in response to something that’s happening in fashion.

I love to take vintage stitch patterns, tease them apart and reinvent them as something modern and accessible. I look at a piece and can sometimes deconstruct it into four or five projects in my head. I mentioned this to Susan, and was taken aback when she said she is too literal to do that. I thought that was what everyone did!

My Azalea Shawl pattern draws its inspiration from First Book of Modern Lace Knitting by Marianne Kinzel, a vintage book I bought around the holidays. I’m not a “doily” kind of gal — in fact, my personal style is modern, clean and crisp — but I love the stitch patterns. I have the republished 1972 version of the original 1953 edition.

I can easily see beyond the “vintage” aspects of a pattern, even when it’s described as a “Luncheon Set” and comprised of a “centre piece, place doily, plate and glass doily.” I really loved the unique hexagon shape created by the increasing azalea petals.

I focused on the placemat, analyzing its stitch pattern. I quickly realized that if I added more pattern repeats and repetitions, and increased the needle size while working outward, I’d end up with a beautiful shawl with the fluted edges of a real azalea flower.

By February, I was ready to start the knitting. I had been swatching using leftover laceweight yak from bijou basin (left over from a Great Wall of Yarn swatch in January), so I emailed Carl Koop at Bijou Basin Ranch, and he was kind enough to give me lots of yarn!

I imagined that I would knit this myself, but reality quickly intervened and I sent the yarn and pattern to a knitter in early April to make up the sample.

So there you go… from vintage placemat to modern shawl in a matter of months.

The shawl's inspiration was the 1953 Azalea Luncheon Set. (Photo: First Book of Modern Lace Knitting)

Balloon Bird

Skacel sells this interesting pattern for making Balloon Animals. A shaped tube is created, then twisted into the desired shape. I made the easiest in the set of animals, the little bird. I think my two year old grandson could play with this, learning to twist it into the proper shape. Since I get to see him next week, I better make another. This one is the shop sample.

Pattern at Y2Knit
Yarn in your stash or at Y2Knit.

"tis the season

It's abundant garden time again. I took some pics this morning in the garden and of the shop. See the whole album.

AKD Panel at TNNA

From Heather Gooch's blog:

During The National NeedleArts Association’s Summer Market in Columbus, OH, this weekend, I had the pleasure of watching five successful industry professionals share their insights during a panel session hosted by the Association of Knitwear Designers (AKD). The session, “Achieving Mutual Goals In The Yarn Industry,” took place Friday evening right before AKD’s Fashion Show.

Moderated by AKD President Jill Wolcott, who is also the creative director of Y2Knit, the panelists included:

Read more!

TNNA Recap

On the drive home from Columbus last night, Jill and I made a running list of all the things we did at TNNA. Then, I forgot to make a copy, so I'll do the best I can to remember. It really is an overwhelming four days of meetings, networking, fun, connecting with friends and business acquaintances, eating, walking, selling, buying and more.

This year's adventure started on Wed in SF for Jill, taking the red eye to Dulles. I picked her up Thu morning at 7 am and we drove back to Hagerstown to pick up the rental car. Enterprise did us good by finding a hatch back for us. It's so much easier to load and unload. We got our personal items and our entire display in a Toyota Matrix!

We left Y2Knit World Headquarters in Funkstown at 10 am. The drive was uneventful and no rain. We talked about business that we hope to accomplish and some changes we want to make, but we're both tired, so it's not super organized, but some good stuff got talked about. We stopped, as usual, at the rest area in WV that is on top of a mountain and very beautiful. It was perfect to sit there and eat our homemade crackers and cheese, pea pods, asparagus and strawberries. Jill had a piece of chocolate for dessert. The rest of the drive was smooth and we pulled up at the hotel just a few minutes after 4.

After checking in, we buzzed over to the convention center to check in, get our badges, and check out the Great Wall of Yarn. Yarn companies hang hanks of yarn so we can preview new items. Designers knit swatches to go with them. Jill knit an amazing counterpane for Alpaca's Kiss. We then walked over the North Market, a block away to check out what was new there. Polish replaced Mexican food, but the rest seemed the same. We anticipated yummy lunches.

We had dinner at a restaurant new to us, sort of Mediterranean. Being tired, we decided to eat light and chose some small plates. While we waited for those to be served, we chatted with Nadine, Tanis and Christine from Be Sweet who had taken the table next to us. They were as tired as we were.

Friday was a busy day: we gave two presentations in the morning, set up our booth after lugging all our display to the booth, lunch at North Market, meeting for Jill, AKD panel discussion, Fashion Show, meeting for Jill. Capped it off with dinner at Haiku with Maureen and Kennita. Nadine from Be Sweet sat at a nearby table (are you seeing a theme here?)

Saturday Jill had a meeting in the morning, so Maureen and I picked up scones at North Market and put the finishing touches on the booth. We were pleased to be taking orders almost immediately. Maureen surveyed yarn shop owners for data we plan to use to improve Y2Knit products and services. The day sped by. Kristen joined us, so with Maureen and Kristen in the booth, JIll and I could get out and check out products and visit with vendors. It's good to catch up. After the 10-6 in the exhibit hall, we attended the Teacher/Designer Meeting (well, kinda. We arrived late and it finished almost as soon as we settled.) We had a delicious dinner at Lemongrass with Jill, Jenny and Melba from Zealana. Skacel staff was at the next table. We didn't see Nadine from Be Sweet. Jenny and I planned a Y2Knit /Zealana trip to New Zealand. Start saving those pennies!

Sunday, more of the same. We connected with Hal from Universal and were pleased to see Ilhan from Bursa, Turkey! So many wonderful people to talk to and lovely yarn to behold. We placed some orders. Dinner with Mountain Meadow Wool at Barcelona, this amazing restaurant we always go to. Little plates, good business connections and lots of laughter as we get to know Karen and Valerie better and plan some joint ventures, including our trip to Buffalo, WY this September.

Monday, more of the same, we saw Nadine at breakfast. It's a short day so we run around placing orders and making necessary connections. Good chats with Peggy Jo from Brown Sheep, Darcy from Angel's Kiss and Antonio from Malabrigo among others. Lunch at North Market, meeting with Zealana. Then it's 3pm and it's over. I get the car and we take it down, load it up and head home. I took Jill to the airport early this morning. I'm tired now. I hope she gets some sleep because she has to teach when she gets to SF.

More about impressions of yarn, etc. tomorrow or soon.

Heading for Columbus

Tonight Jill flies to Dulles, where I pick her up in the early AM. We'll drive back to Funkstown, pick up the rental car and load up for our drive to Columbus, OH for the annual TNNA trade show. The National NeedleArts is the trade organization for the yarn industry and also includes counted thread, cross stitch and needlepoint. The trade show is huge, with all the yarn companies and other products represented. Y2Knit has a booth to display our latest creations for the LYS owners who are shopping for product to stock their shops for the fall/winter season.

So, after we have loaded the car with display, garments and our personal stuff, we head west. It's an easy drive, the first 108 miles in Maryland as this bitty state stretches it's skinny arm west. While we drive we have our annual June business meeting. Jill knits and takes notes, Susan drives since Jill just took a red eye flight.

About 6 hours later, we arrive in Columbus and continue our planning discussions as we have no commitments tonight, unlike every other night when we have scheduled dinners and reservations already made. As far as eating, we love the Farmer's Market, just a block away from the Convention Center. We get lunches picked up for us there every day, and stock fruit and fresh baked goodies for breakfast in our hotel room. Many good restaurants in the area and we've found our favorites. Jill has already made reservations because she is not going to chance a bad meal. Plus, we are tired and spacey by the time we get to eat about 8 each evening. It's good to have the plan in place.

One of things we have learned about traveling is that Jill brings her French press and coffee, makes it upon rising in the morning and is not cranky. This is good because I am a morning person, bright and perky right out of bed. I take the first shower, Jill caffeinates, and we good to go.

Friday, we're up early to unload the car at the Convention Center. We'll get everything to our booth, unpack what we need for our 10-11am classes, teach the classes, then back to set up the booth. Lunch at the Farmer's Market. Back to finish setting up the booth. We'll also cruise around the Exhibit Hall to greet friends, like Karen and Valerie from Mountain Meadow Wool, the gang at Skacel (cuz we know they'll be doing something fun at the booth), Catherine at Red Barn Yarn, Bijou Basin and Zealana. We'll miss Tina who always cracks us up and is so much fun to be around!

Friday evening Jill is hosting the AKD gathering and panel discussion. Susan makes a quick trip through Sample It! but it's really the worst kind of shopping atmosphere for me (crowded, noisy, too much stimulation) so I mostly shut down and take very little in. I try to take mental notes for Jill, but it's a good thing it's not a top priority for her. Then I'll join her at the AKD function, after which we'll go to the Fashion Show. Y2Knit has three garments in the show, the Azalea Shawl (pictured above), Bobblet and Pendant Pullovers (pictured here). Following the Fashion Show, we'll check out the Ravelry Ice Cream Social, then go to Haiku for dinner with a group. We'll have connected with Maureen, our roommate, helper, and marketing consultant.

Saturday we're up early to put the finishing touches on the booth, block anything that's wrinkled still and to cruise the Exhibit hall . We don't have any early meetings, which is nice. We're on our feet until 6pm, then we can sit down for the Designer/Teacher meeting. After that, it's dinner with the gang from The Yarn Sisters. We'll be back to the hotel room between 10 and 11, debrief, unwind.

Sunday is a replay of Saturday, except it's the Yarn Group meeting and dinner with Mountain Meadow Wool. I should mention that while we are in the booth all day, taking orders for patterns (we have to sell them first), we take breaks independently and go to booths we need to check out for buying product for the shop. Some of this we do early before the Exhibit Hall opens, leaving notes of what we want. Vendors we know understand we are busy and let us do this. We've handled Malabrigo this way for years. It's easier to pick out what we want when they aren't busy.

Our routine is sort of like this: Susan goes to the bathroom. On the way, she stops off at booths x, y and z to see new product, new colors or to check something out. On the way back, she visits a, b and c. Always carrying paper and pencil, she can then debrief Jill back at the booth. Later, Jill goes to the bathroom and follows up at same booths to see what Susan wanted her to see. Maybe she sees something else, back to the booth, debrief, and so on. This is our procedure for buying for the shop. Jill is also scouting yarn for designing. And we're making connections with yarn company people we need to connect with. We try to arrange scheduled appointments to reduce the happenstance encounters.

Monday we only have to go until 3pm, then it's a quick pack up, load the car, pick up eats at the Farmer's Market and head back to Funkstown. Jill usually drives, Susan takes notes as we debrief the last four days. After we unpack, we can hit the sack. By now it's almost midnight. We're up at dawn or earlier to get Jill to the airport for her 6:50 am flight. Then I return to Hagerstown, take the rental car back, unpack our bags and put display stuff in the attack, open the shop at 10. Early to bed Tuesday night!

Lovely Yarn

I've really enjoyed knitting with Laramie, the worsted weight wool from Mountain Meadow Wool. I've been knitting some samples for them, using Y2Knit patterns. So far, the Ribbed Soaker (pattern releasing this week), Flip Top Mitt, and Double Star Tam.

As is evident, fabulous stitch definition and the yarn lends itself to even, easy stitches. Here, I'm just using the naturals: cream and two shades of gray. This is really out of the box for me as I always want to knit with color. I'm really enjoying the calm of the neutral colors. I'm actually considering a natural cream colored sweater.

Turns out we have one room left at the Occidental Hotel for our Y2Knit Experience Buffalo in September. It's one of the Bordello rooms (this could be a once in a lifetime opportunity!) that shares a bath with two other rooms. The suite mates are easy going. The Bordello is right next to the snack room, complete with antique dining set that I won't even describe here. You've got to see it to believe it. If one feels the need to swoon or faint, the red velvet fainting couch awaits you in the foyer of the suite. Of course, there's the back stairway, nicked and gouged by the spurs of the cowboy's boots as they climbed the stairs to visit the Bordello. If you are interested, give me a shout! Discover the old west in new ways!

Y2Knit Summer Book Group

Y2KNIT SUMMER 2010 BOOK GROUP

Read! Knit! Discuss!

A mostly easy knitting project, an interesting book, a classic movie and best of all--beautiful yarn!

Join friends new and old to discuss this book-movie-project-yarn while creating your own classic!

Start knitting July 19
Start reading anytime!

• THE BOOK! Gentlemen's Agreement by Laura Hobson, inspired by Schaefer Yarn's new line, Memorable Writers
  
• THE MOVIE! Gentlemen's Agreement, the 1947 Academy Award winner starring Gregory Peck.
  
• THE YARN! Audrey by Schaefer Yarns, 50/50 merino/silk, hand dyed in memorable color ways, Audrey comes in generous 4 oz/700 yard hanks.
• THE PROJECT! OK Easy Cardigan by Jill Wolcott of Y2Knit. A basic cardigan ideal for a first sweater or a summer knit the design enhances the beautiful yarn and colors. A great venue for learning some great tricks that may enhance future projects. Pattern available in hard copy or as a PDF download after June 15.

Where the deer and the antelope play

Last weekend Jill and I visited Buffalo, Wyoming, where we'll be hosting the Y2Knit Experience Buffalo 2010 September 25-Oct 2. We met up in Denver airport and took the small plane to Sheridan. As we flew over miles of open spaces, it felt like we were on our way to a destination one can only fly into. The quick trip to Sheridan (75 miles/hour on a very straight, empty highway) brought us into Buffalo before any of the wonder wore off. Spotting antelope the entire way made us feel like true wild west women!

We actually saw an antelope romping in a field full of deer and antelope. We looked for buffalo but didn't see any, though we did see some HUGE steers that we thought were buffalo, much to the amusement of the ranchers. OK, so we're a bit vague on identification of large animals, but I am a vegetarian, if that's a valid excuse. Jill's excuse is she lives in San Francisco where there are only large dogs.

We saw yarn being made in the amazing Mountain Meadow Wool mill where not a bit of fiber is wasted. They are working on ways to use the scraps for something, even house insulation. The yarn is fabulous and the one we want to knit with most right now. Karen and Valerie are bold, smart and creating a sustainable and viable mill. We met Peter John, one of the Basque ranchers who sells wool to the mill. His respect for MMW was evident when he came to them to ask how much they wanted to buy before he took it to a larger market. I bought skeins that tell me which ranch the wool come from. . . pretty awesome. We were even offered to visit one of the ranches by a total stranger (if that word exists in Buffalo), but Jill and I hesitated. What does one say to a sheep?

History melds with the present in Buffalo. The Occidental Hotel, where we will stay in September, has historic relics, beautiful antiques and stories that tell themselves as you walk about. Probably everyone's favorite is the back stairway, scarred by spurs on the cowboy's boots as they climbed the stairs to the bordello, three rooms where women entertained these lonesome men. Every room is uniquely decorated to tell an old west story and most have spacious bathrooms.

We stayed in Outlaw. Jill had the room with the antelope head. The antelope colors reminded us of Lilura, a new yarn being produced at MMW. I guess it all comes back to the yarn!

We spent one morning in the rockers in front of the hotel, sunning and knitting, counting the horse trailers that went by (6). We only had to walk a few feet to be at Clear Creek and the 13 mile walking trail takes hikers to the Big Horn Mountains, which were heavy with snow last weekend. A sight to behold.

Thursday night was Bluegrass Jam Night, and as promised, a wonderful event in the Saloon adjacent to the Occidental. Musicians of all ages, professions and style took to the floor with guitars, dobros, banjos, mandolin, dulcimer, harmonica and more to share songs from past and present. It doesn't get much better than this: glass of red wine, knitting, listening to great music, checking out the good looking men. Several women came over to us and talked about knitting. They requested we have a community knitting night when we come back in September. That will be Tuesday in the Saloon, September 28. See ya there!

We visited the wonderful museum book and gift shop and arranged a history tour. We'll learn more area history when we have high tea at the Mansion House Inn, where owners Pam and John offer their amazing hospitality. Their story is as interesting as that of the house. We've scheduled lunch at the TA Ranch, site of much of the Johnson County Cattle Wars, something we still have to learn about. The sheep will be "coming off the mountain" then and we hope to take in some of that migration. The wranglers will be gone so the horses are out to pasture, but one can certainly get a good feel for what the guest ranch is like when in full working glory. And then, there's the beautifully decorated guest houses, which transport you to a place of historical luxury.

Back in Buffalo, we tested food at local eateries: The Virginian, Sagewood, Sol de Vallarta, Main Street Diner (Ed's Sunday blueberry cakes...yum), and the newly opened Udder House. We look forward to the new Busy Bee being open when we return. Chef Norman said something about French toast stuffed with cream cheese topped with berries. . . either he's a tease or we're going to eat very well!

Touch me, feel me

As I prepare for the Boonsboro Greenfest this Saturday, a largely informational event, I want to have different kinds of yarn for people to touch. However, experience makes me dread 1) lugging all the different yarns and 2) having grubby hands all over them. While laying on the acupuncture table this morning I conceived of these cards that I can have out on the table. I've got everything from nettle to wool, cotton to bamboo. Yahoo!

Nature

Things are undergoing some change here at Y2Knit West. More on that in another post, today we're looking at nature!

We are hopeful we have reached the end of the rainy season because we are completely and totally sick of the rain. As a result, we have had lots of vegetative growth, but I also hadn't seen my hummingbirds for over a month. We have bees and butterflies

, but no hummingbirds. I often don't see them but know that they are there because the nectar supply in the feeder goes down down steadily. But more than a month and nothing--no sightings, no fluctuation in nectar. So I was delighted to see them on Wednesday. Also the quail, sparrows and jays have been around.

I run on Tuesdays and Fridays. I missed the last two Tuesdays because of rain. Last Friday as I was on my last mile, running by a park, I saw these tw

o green parrots streak by. There are wild parrots in SF, but I'd personally never seen them. Kind of fun, and definitely a nice distraction as I ran uphill. Today's nature was a squirrel. I know

, not very exciting, but he got in front of me on a path, and he couldn't figure out how to escape--I was continuing to come along, he was running as fast as he could--looking back occasionally, as I got within about 5 feet of him he dove under the fence between the path and the planting beds. Otherwise, my nature is mostly dogs. SF is overpopulated (I say that as a non-dog owner, I know others feel differently!) with dogs, which must be walked. But everywhere right now is green and lush and blooming and pollen-y!

I have this crazy passion flower vine that covers much of our back slope. It produces varying quantities of bright peachy flowers all year round, getting particularly lush in the spring. Because of the rain, my back garden didn't get cleaned up for a couple of months and the passion vine got a little closer to the lower garden than usual. I was surprised to see that it has this cool-looking center which I had not ever seen from the distance I usually view it from. I had always been slightly jealous of Susan's which has this type of center. I was rather precariously perched trying to get this picture, so it does no justice to the awesomeness of the flower.

Knitter, heal thyself

Some physical symptoms over the last couple weeks resulted in a visit to Boonsboro Wellness Center yesterday for an evaluation and some acupuncture. I knew from following it myself that my blood pressure was up. There's no justice, clearly, as I take good care of myself. When I ran through the list of things to do to help lower blood pressure naturally, I was on mark for everything. Well, almost.

My self-reflection revealed I don't relax very much. I used to have some quiet time in the morning, meditative and/or knitting. Lately I haven't been doing that. It's the cobblers-children-have-no-shoes syndrome. I am very much aware of the benefits of quiet time knitting and tout them often. Apparently I need to pay more attention to myself. But not take myself to seriously. Relax. Enjoy! Knit!!

Boonsboro Greenfest

I'm looking forward to participating in this fine event on May 8. I checked out the website today and was very impressed by the recycling opportunities. I can donate the sewing machine that doesn't work.

Y2Knit will have a booth to educate about the joys of knitting and the wonderful eco-friendly products we knit with. Peni Renner, who crochets bags out of "plarn" (grocery bags made into yarn) will be with me. She's now spinning the plastic--don't ask me, just come out to see for yourself. I might try knitting some of it.

From the list of vendors, I expect some good food treats, educational and networking opportunities, and a chance to meet some great people. I asked to be near a couple of plant people I know, so herbs and starter plants are on the list of things to bring home. Last hear I got this awesome purple cauliflower from Deb (Harmony) that I hope she has again this year. It was so beautiful and tasted great.

If you live in the area, this is a great place to learn about sustainability projects and products in Washington County and to support your local businesses.

Yesterday was just a rush of activity that seemed not to stop until I went to bed. Susan and I had a call with our marketing consultant, followed by my AKD board meeting which was moved forward a day to accommodate Stitches South. I grabbed a quick lunch, packed up my things for teaching and Pilates, did some research on design companies (I have to understand each of the 15 companies--two students are doing the same one--so that I can guide them through creating their portfolio) for my afternoon class, then headed downtown. I got off the train and went to pick up a top I had ordered that had come in and picked up pants that had been relined from the tailor for Mitch. Spent 15 minutes giving tips to the tailor on how to make his website a brand statement and information source, then went to school. My class went by pretty much in a whir because I have to meet one-on-one with each of the 16 students. I brought a kitchen timer, gave it to a self-described ADD student who manned it for me (giving each student 5 minutes) while students worked in small teams. Some discussion on homework, showing previous portfolios, answering questions, following up with a few students and 2.5 hours is gone! Then a student asked me some questions while I packed up, my department coordinator passed on some information to me when I returned the portfolios, I put my things away and went to Pilates.

Hundreds with sinus pressure was agony. But after that I seemed to be fine, if a bit tired! My instructor Keegan always makes the hour go quickly, dishing out little bits of torture in amusing and realistic bites. I got a seat on the train (unusual), but I almost feel like it makes the trip up the hill more difficult as I start to relax. Mitch was out at a business dinner, so I made myself dinner and worked on some design knitting until he came home. We watched The Daily Show and I went upstairs to read.

Even though I did a lot, I didn't feel like I got any work done.

Earth Day

I wanted to do something in the shop around Earth Day, but never got it together. Still, I want to share how Y2Knit makes choices about yarn that we hope are friendly to the planet.

We consider how yarn is made and where it comes from. We favor small companies because we can trace the yarn more easily. We feel fortunate to work in an industry where many companies are making eco-friendly choices.

Here's some of the stories we love:

Brown Sheep Company, a USA company that sources most of their yarn from the US, built a water reclamation system so they can recycle most of the water used in processing the wool. I asked Peggy Jo what motivated them to do this and she responded, "because it's the right thing to do." I love doing business with a company whose owner talks like that!

Frog Tree Yarns is a non-profit works with native communities to provide livelihood through fiber processing. They know that employing women means kids eat and get educated. Frog Tree is part of Community Links, an environmental and international educational program focusing on the environment, community based education, fair trade and social justice.

Be Sweet is a certified fair trade company providing jobs in areas of high unemployment in South Africa, where 65% of the mohair in the world is raised. Again, women are earning money through fiber processing and adding substance to their communities.

Everyone loves Malabrigo for their lovely fiber. We also love them because the work with cooperatives to have the yarn dyed, providing jobs in Uruguayan communities.
Frabjous Fibers imports recycled silk and mixed fiber yarns. All of their products are fair trade, meaning that the spinners of the waste fibers from the weaving mills are paid a fair wage. We thank those who make our beloved felt balls!

Zitron, distributed by Skacel is another favorite. Not only does Zitron make great Trekking sock yarn and other delightful yarns in fabulous colors, but they are certified 100% organic. We appreciate their commitment to the environment.

This list is not limited to these companies, they are just some that come to mind now.

Tuesdays are always a little crazy for me. I start my day by running, which is nice, but it means I get a little bit of a late start. Today I didn't run. I've got what I thought might be flu, but now think is just sinus issues and it was pouring rain. I missed Pilates last night because I did think it was flu (my mother is under quarantine with noro virus) and I didn't want to infect the studio. So I should be feeling more on top of things because I have extra time, but I have more-than-usual to do, so instead I'm already feeling a bit frantic. The other thing that makes Tuesdays a little nuts is that I have to shift gears from Y2Knit to FIDM so I can go teach. Although I tend to teach the same classes from quarter to quarter, there is always stuff that needs updating, new ideas to be put into practice, and then the bane of any teacher's existence, grading homework! This quarter I'm teaching a class which was newly introduced last quarter, so although I've taught it once, we tweaked it a bit over the break and my class is twice as large as it was last quarter. I brought in a guest speaker, Josh Zerkel, last week for my Tuesday class, so now we've got to cram two classes into one! This is funny since Josh was talking to us about being organized and how to keep track of our busy lives!

So I post this to show my commitment to posting, but I've got too much to do to add photos!

Interchangeable Needles

A bit confused about interchangeable needle sets? Y2Knit carries the addi and Hiya Hiya. Here's the summary of what each offers:

The addi Turbo® Click system provides 10 different sizes of addi Turbo® tips (3.5mm, 3.75mm, 4.0mm, 4.5mm, 5.0mm, 5.5mm, 6.0mm, 8.0mm, 9.0mm, and 10.0mm), three different lengths of the new, extremely pliable blue cord (24”, 32” and 40”), and one connector piece which helps to either store stitches or combine your cords.

The Click tips require no tools to change; simply insert the cord deep into the tip, twist and release. The tips will remain secure until you change them, thanks to the Click’s revolutionary locking mechanism!

Click tips and cords can be ordered separately. The replacement/additional cords come in packs of 3 of the same size or a combo pack of the three sizes.

Taking orders now for the addi Lace Click system, which provides 8 different sizes of addi Lace tips (3.5mm, 3.75mm, 4.0mm, 4.5mm, 5.0mm, 5.5mm, 6.0mm, 8.0mm), five different lengths of the new, extremely pliable blue cord (16", 20", 24”, 32” and 40”), and one connector piece which helps to either store stitches or combine cords. Separate cords and tips are not available yet, but will be in the future.

While the 24”, 32”, and 40” cords from both addi Click sets are fully compatible with any style of tip, the new 16” and 20” cords are not compatible with the Turbo® tips. The length of the Turbo® tips combined with these smaller cords, will not allow for proper knitting.

Very popular are the Hiya Hiya Interchangeable kits. These kits come in four options:
4" small (sizes 2-8)
5" small (sizes 2-8)
4" large (sizes 9-15) (available soon)
5" large (sizes 9-15) (available soon)

Each kits comes with the designated tips and four cord lengths. A long screw ensures these won't come undone easily.

Additional tips and cords can be ordered, ala carte: tips in the sizes available in the kit and cord sizes 16, 24, 32, 40 and 60". The 60" cord is not in the kits. The cords for the small and large kits are NOT interchangeable, but work on both 4" and 5" tips for the small or large needles.

Body Progress

These pictures will make sense as you read this. I'm tired of trying to get them where I want them!

I have cast on, knitted the trim, decreased to the body, and worked my first decrease for the waist on my Sea Shell. The mistakes I made getting going on both my sleeves didn't plague me this time, so I have apparently internalized the pattern.

I have made my sleeves slightly shorter than the pattern, and will have to assess the body once I get a bit further. I am very short waisted, so I always want to avoid having too much that calls attention to that in a negative way. Because I have long legs I tend to emphasize that by keeping tops shorter and favoring sleeves that are shorter if they are above the elbow. By keeping the sleeve length more proportionate to my body I can keep myself from looking too body-length challenged.

We got up early again this morning so I got to knit for 15 minutes. It was kind of a cheat because I had already used some of that 15 minutes to tidy up my jewelry, but no one was here to know that. I got the idea to redo my jewelry shelf the other day using one of those stair-step shelves you buy for kitchen shelves. When I went to the Container Store (one of my favorite stops) they had a stainless steel one. I had measured my shelf and knew I would only need half of the pair so bought it with the thought that I could use the other half in the cabinet next to the stove where the spice overflow, salt and pepper, olive oil, etc. live. I arranged that Friday morning because I had to get it off the counter before the cleaning guy came. It is lovely and makes a rather limited space very attractive and useful.

So today to the jewelry. I have a beautiful box which Mitch bought for me at my request, but it was wasted in the closet because I never closed it so you couldn't see the lovely top. It didn't take long to take out my current arrangement and replace it with my nifty shelf. Hopefully this will forestall the panic I often feel when I can't immediately find the pin I'm looking for. I wear a pin almost every day and when I walk into my closet to get one I almost always know what I want (occasionally my first choice doesn't work, but I've been doing this a while!), but since I have no system, I often have to dig around looking for one. Sometimes I forget to take them off my clothes and I have to go look in the laundry.

But now they all sit proudly on their shelves! This suits the dimensionality of some of them, and the flatness of others. I feel badly when I forget about one of them and don't wear it for a while. That cool almost-circle one at the top was given to me by my sister Sally many, many years ago and is still a great pin; with necklines currently being fairly low it is a challenge to wear.