The Yarn Shop and Fiber Place

Barb — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 17:02:41 +0000

Scarf Madness – a Knitter’s Take on March

I think of myself as a dedicated sweater knitter, but as I look around the house and the Shop lately, I see scarves, scarves everywhere. I guess I’ve been enjoying my scarf knitting. A lot. Who knew? Well, scarves are a lot closer to instant gratification than sweaters. And for a relatively small investment you can have fun playing around with various techniques, stitch patterns and colors, even in luxury fibers!

Here’s the scarf I started this week, made from Habu Textiles Wool Pom Pom yarn. The little tufts of wool attached to a core yarn look a lot like caterpillars until knit into an airy texture on big needles. I think this little scarf is going to feel really nice around my neck this spring, and I love the subtle, natural-looking colors.

We had good news from the fashion runways for spring 2012: stripes!

I adore stripes, so it’s always good news when they are “in fashion!” Stripes are such a fun
and easy way to combine and play around with colors. I’ve enjoyed so much playing with Adorable, a new baby alpaca/silk blend yarn, that I couldn’t stop at just one scarf. I made a simple lace stitch, color-blocked infinity scarf, and then launched into a little stripey scarf to really mix up the colors. I can’t decide which is my favorite!

Our “Long & Skinny Scarf” has been a warm-weather favorite for years; I’m redoing it this spring in Baby Bamboo which comes in a plethora of scrumptious colors. I think I’ll go hog wild and do one in the lengthwise stripe version, and one in horizontal stripes. Can’t wait to see these colors worked up together!

Of course, with our springs being so iffy in Montana, keeping a cozy cowl handy is a must.
I’ve been working on my “Honey Cowl” (pattern on Ravelry.com) and here’s another cowl I whipped up recently in Mountain Colors delectable new Merino yarn: Monarch. I hope to have this pattern written up soon. It was super fun and easy!

Another sweet option for spring is this cute ruffled neck warmer that Ausra has just begun in Mountain Colors Twizzle.

And of course I’ve been knitting up the ruffly scarves, the spring phenomenon of 2012!

Oh, and I’ve been weaving scarves too! Here’s my plain weave scarf, made on the Schacht rigid heddle loom, made into a gorgeous plaid (it does it by itself!) in Mountain Colors Weaver’s Wool.

Yep, let’s keep March mad, everyone: go crazy with the scarves!

Barbie Pink

Barb — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 20:28:00 +0000

Finishing finishing, here we go…. (to the tune of “caroling, caroling”)

Wow. The end of February is barreling down on us hard and fast, and how many things have I actually finished?

Well, I have been busy. I’ve been bitten by the New Years Organization Bug and have “finished” going through many, many boxes of stuff, rearranging some and throwing out others. Does that count? I reduced my stuff by several boxes this week and it felt good.

What about projects? Well, I finished one sock. Ha ha, that sounds like the punch line of a joke! I had to put numerous socks on my list (remember my List of Unfinished Projects?) as finishing just one sock seems to be a little weakness of mine. Oh, but I also finished one mitt: one of “Anna’s Mitts,” to be exact. I’ve been working up these simple fingerless mitts in a lovely, local alpaca yarn and hope to have the pattern written up and posted soon.

Ditto for a yummy cowl I made out of my thick & thin Merino hand-spun yarn, from roving dyed by friend Susie. Can’t wait to share that pattern with you as well!

The “Honey Cowl” that I’m working up for a spring adult ed class is not finished yet, but it is growing. I’m enjoying the easy stitch pattern and the glorious, locally hand-dyed “Bliss” yarn.

So here are some words of wisdom that I keep repeating to myself: it ain’t over till it’s
over. There are seven fabulous days left of Finishing February and I’m gonna keep plugging along, working on the List, feeling oh-so-productive! I hope I’ve encouraged you to do the same!

Barbie Pink

BTW, DH just returned from a conference and brought me a pink cowgirl hat! Yee-haw!

Barb — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 22:05:57 +0000

February is for Finishing!

Yay! I love the idea of a whole month to concentrate on organizing and finishing up some projects, as well as the fabulous alliteration (yes, I am a geeky language major). I’ve been puttering about my so-called studio lately and “finding things” which is good and bad. Good for fairly obvious reasons. Bad because of the sheer scary number of them. I decided to make a list (heaven help me) of my unfinished projects. I suppose, theoretically, I should also make a list, a queue I believe it’s called, of planned projects with yarns that are already in my stash, but that doesn’t seem quite so urgent. I think I’ll concentrate on the finishing. I’m kind of excited about The List, in a weird sort of way. Not that I don’t make lists all the time; I do. But I tend to make them and then promptly lose them or forget about them. I hope that doesn’t happen to this list. I want to pin it up to my wall and cross off project after bleeping project for that wonderful “I’m actually accomplishing something” feeling. Hmmm… in writing this I seem to recall that I made a list like this a few years ago. I wonder what happened to that one? No matter! I will not get distracted by petty failings in the past! That was then – this is 2012! Moving forward with hope and optimism! I did manage to finish two things this week:

My Kool-Aide dyed socks:

And my gorgeous Bohus Swing Coat, designed by Nicky Epstein. Please forgive the blatant lack of humility but I’m SO excited about this one! You might just see me wearing it everywhere.

Oh, and the cat likes it too. That’s very important:

Best of luck to you all on your February Finishing. I’ll keep you posted….

Barbie Pink

Barb — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:36:58 +0000

Yeah, Baby! That’s what I’m talkin’ about!

Snow! We’ve finally had some glorious snow this weekend, and I think they are saying that more is on the way. At last January is looking like it’s supposed to: white, crunchy cold, and gorgeous. January always makes me think of my dad. He had this little saying that he would repeat every January as Montana was plunged into its customary below-zero spell: “When the days begin to lengthen, the cold begins to strengthen.” I think Dad liked January. It has an amazingly stark beauty. And there is something invigorating about the cold too. I remember him putting on his work boots and tromping off to whatever project he had going. The cold didn’t slow him much, except perhaps to offer an excuse for slightly more frequent or prolonged coffee breaks with Mom, a little tradition of theirs. Dad’s birthday was in January. He’ll have been gone 29 years this year. I’m now the age he was when he died, an unfair, early death. I still think of him almost every day, and enjoy pondering the legacy he left me and all his kids, including his favorite little phrase about January, which I now repeat to my sons as a family tradition: “When the days begin to lengthen, the cold begins to strengthen.” I miss you, Dad.

January definitely deserves a mitten pattern, and here it is:

I made it out of a bulky yarn (some of my hand-dyed organic Merino) and knit it on slightly smaller needles (US9s instead of US10s) to make it firm and warm and…voila!

I think it’s suitable to a freezing cold January a la Montana! And it’s easy – fear-not beginning knitters! You can do this!

Download the pattern here:download now">

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/new-years-mittens

Here’s a picture of more of my hand-dyed organic Merino:

Here’s how a large flock of small birds are keeping warm this January in their makeshift birdie condo:

They’ve taken up residence in a pile of branch trimmings that some procrastinators (who could that be?) left out this fall. Once again, we have proof that procrastination can be useful, if not downright virtuous.

Happy January, all! Stay warm!

Barbie Pink

A New Year’s Mitten

Barb — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 17:46:12 +0000

All was going swimmingly and Things were being accomplished: I knit in the New Year
with a sweet mitten in organic Merino that I had dyed myself. I had written out the pattern and was on the verge of posting it on Ravelry and our own website. I had made Great Progress on an unfinished sweater from … shall we just say awhile ago. We had completed inventory at the shop. Yes, all was going very well, when I made the bold and fearless move to clean up my so-called-studio in preparation for the many wondrous fibery projects I’m dreaming of for 2012, when slam, bam, siss-boom-bah, I threw my back out. All dreams of all kinds came to a screeching halt while I could do nothing for several days but lie in bed and let the cats walk all over me (literally). Today, praise be, I feel myself to be back among the living, although the very slow-moving, delicately-walking living for fear of wrenching the thing again. Clearly the lesson to be learned here is: housework can be very dangerous. Probably best not to do it at all.

Now, to slowly and oh-so-carefully return to some of my ongoing projects:

Here’s some of my recent handspun yarn that I’ll be putting in the shop for sale:

Here’s part of my latest dyeing project, also to go to the shop for sale:

And so, friends!
Let’s surge forth into the New Year, ready to overcome whatever crazy
obstacles may come our way! Best wishes to all for a HEALTHY and happy 2012!

~Barb

Barb — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 19:34:03 +0000

Hello friends!

What a glorious fall it’s been, and now with the chill setting in, we can say with certainty that it’s time to knit! We’ve been receiving some exciting new things at the shop, just in time for your upcoming projects, as well as gift-making season. Come by and check them out!

New Yarns

Just in this week, a new box of Mountain Colors River Twist yarn in several beautiful new color combinations. River Twist is the gorgeous, soft Merino wool yarn with the handspun look. I noticed right away that I’m crazy for the new colorway, Crazy Creek. It’s pink! But that’s me. I’ll be you will find your favorite colors in this box, too.

Also just in: a new shipment from Habu Textiles including new colors of their Silk/Stainless Steel yarn and the Fine Merino, and Shosenshi Viscose (linen paper) yarn. And for those who love natural fibers, even in their novelty yarns, Habu has a wool pom pom yarn: adorable little puffs of wool on a carry-along thread. What fun will you dream up for that?

And the coolest thing just in may be the official Bobcat hats, mittens, scarf, and Christmas stocking kits! They’re amazing, and developed and made here in Montana. You may have seen the recent article in the Chronicle. We have them and what fun projects they can be for presents. Get in the spirit and Go Bobcats!

New Books

200 Fair Isle Motifs by Mary Jane Mucklestone. From simple and understated to wildly colorful, these motifs will inspire your Fair Isle creations for years to come. A must-have for the color-knitting-lover’s library.

Jane Austen Knits, 2011, from Interweave Press. What a concept! Beautiful creations inspired by all things Jane. Come and see it!

Vogue Holiday 2011: Vogue Knitting does it again; this issue is bursting with amazing knits. I’m making my list and checking it twice…

Have a wonderful, crafty weekend, and we’ll hope to see you soon…

Barb and all your friends at The Yarn Shop

What’s New?

Ausra — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 03:14:35 +0000

This is such an exciting time of year, with new yarns beginning to arrive almost daily! This week we received several delicious-looking yarns: locally hand-dyed, machine washable Merino wool (for dressing up the kids, or yourself);

a baby alpaca/silk blend for knitting and wearing next to the skin;

and giant skeins (660 yards!) of pure alpaca in heathery colors perfect for fall.

Come see, but please be forewarned: you might think you’ve landed in the candy shop.

Total Immersion Fiber Day

gary — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 06:17:22 +0000

Total Immersion Fiber Day is coming!

When: June 18, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Where: Thirteen Mile Farm, 13000 Springhill Rd., Bozeman

Why: to have fun, learn new skills, and support Montana wool growers!

Wonderful teachers from near and far will be sharing their varied talents to inspire you. Come enjoy a day in the country, tour the Thirteen Mile spinning mill, bring a picnic lunch, hang out at a spin-in, and, in general, celebrate the joys of playing with fiber and yarn! Hope to see you there!

Workshops:

Fiber Preparation. 9 – 10 a.m. with Gretchen Fellerhoff-White and Tina Gilchrist Have you wondered about the best practices for washing wool? How about combing, carding and readying wool for spinning? This hands-on workshop will answer your questions and prepare you to tackle a fleece of your own! – $10 includes materials.

Learning to Spin on a Drop Spindle. 10 – 11:30 a.m. with Barbara French.Learn to spin your own yarn with a simple and ancient tool: the hand-held drop spindle. This small, portable and efficient tool has allowed women (and men) throughout history to spin fiber into yarn, any place, any time. $15 (includes fiber) Spindles will be available for purchase.

Natural Dyeing. 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. with Tina Gilchrist. In this hands-on class you will learn the basics of dyeing wool with plants. You will dye 1 skein of wool and mordant a second skein for dyeing on your own. Additional skeins can be purchased. $25 includes materials.

Painting with Wool. 9 – 12 a.m. with Laurel Orthmeyer. Participants will create a picture in wool of their own design: mountains, flowers, sheep, whatever sparks your imagination! Techniques include needle felting to hold the wool in place, then wet felting to make the design permanent. Beginners welcome! $40 includes materials.

Felted Bag with 3-D Rose Embellishment. 1 – 4 p.m., with Laurel Orthmeyer. We will use a resist form to create the bag shape. We’ll use wool, soap and water to felt the bag and handle, then twist the extra resist piece into a beautiful rose embellishment on the bag front. Wet felting experience is helpful but not necessary. $40 includes materials.

Crochet a Rug with Roving. 1 – 4 p.m. with Becky Weed . Becky will share her technique for creating a beautiful and durable rug with her organic wool roving which she has hand-dyed in color gradations to create a lovely, shaded effect. $55 includes workshop and roving kit.

Spinning Art Yarns. 10 – 11:30 a.m. with Julie Cleary. Learn to spin those exuberant and funky yarns yourself that are commanding the big bucks out there – and have loads of fun while doing so! This intermediate class is for those who can spin a continuous yarn and are comfortable with their wheels. $25 includes fiber kit.

Intro to Needlefelting. 2 – 4 p.m.with LaVonne Stucky. You’ll enjoy learning this fun fiber technique that requires no previous experience! Create an adorable owl by manipulating wool with a felting needle. $20 includes fiber kit.

Lovin’ my Wheel. 1 – 4 p.m. Join us for this free, informal “spin-in.” All are welcome! We want to encourage those in need of guidance, trouble-shooting, or encouragement in their spinning to come hang out with more experienced spinners who are willing to share their knowledge. Bring a lawn chair and come!

Sign up for any of these classes online through our website, or by dropping in to the The Yarn Shop, or calling us at 585-8335.