Hello Yarn Friends,

We’re jumping into spring with both feet here  — ordering yarn, planning events and keeping plenty of projects on our needles.

Our social schedule is filling up with fun fiber happenings, and we hope you can join in on some or all.

The annual Maine Fiber Frolic is just around the corner.  This 2-day event celebrating the joy of all things fiber will be held Saturday and Sunday, June 6 & 7, rain or shine, at the Windsor Fair Grounds.  Get inspired by all of the fiber vendors, demonstrations and workshops, pick up a bargain at the used equipment sale, and sample the goodies from the food trucks. Bring a friend or the whole family.  

You are invited to join us as we celebrate International Worldwide Knit (and Crochet!) in Public Day from 11-3 on Saturday, June 13.  We’ll be gathering out on the front stoop with our latest works in progress to show off our fiber pride to the passing world.  
Bring your chair, your lunch and your project and join the fun!
If the weather doesn’t cooperate, we’ll just move inside.  

We’ll be hosting Wine & Twine at Bigelow Brewing again on Saturday, June 20 from 4-6 p.m.  Join us outside (weather permitting, and if not, we’ll be inside) for a relaxing evening of sipping, noshing, chatting and maybe a little knitting or crocheting.  

If you’re planning on pizza, the folks at Bigelow recommend you call in your order by 4 p.m. to avoid a wait.   We hope to see you up there!

It will be here before you know it!  The Maine Yarn Cruise begins again this year on July 1, and continues until October 12.  (Their website is still being updated from 2025, so please stay tuned for more details).  Sign up at your local yarn shop (pick me!) and “cruise” around our beautiful state while you sample some or all of the 20-something participating locally-owned yarn shops and fiber farms.  There will be lots of prizes and giveaways again this year too!

You can already preorder your Maine Yarn Cruise canvas bag and passport by calling, emailing or stopping by Happyknits.  We won’t be able to reorder more bags once our supply is gone, so let us know soon if you’d like us to reserve one for you.

We look forward to seeing you soon!

Sarah, MaryLou and Amanda

Hello Yarn Friends,
 
Some folks may think that a yarn shop’s purpose is to sell yarn, needles and accessories.  They are not wrong.  But for us here at Happyknits, we’ve learned that our more meaningful purpose has been to cultivate relationships.  Over the years we’ve made countless friends with you, and many of you have made friends with each other.  What began as a mission to provide quality yarn locally grew into fostering a community meeting place.  We lovingly refer to Happyknits as our “full-service yarn shop”.  We really do love being here.
 
And so, this is why it has been difficult for us to make the decision that it is time to step away.  All three of us have come to points in our lives when we need to change our focus. We wanted you, our loyal friends and customers, to be the first to know that we are putting Happyknits up for sale.  We don’t anticipate this change will happen overnight, and we are ready to stay on until someone(s) comes forward who will create their own vision of providing you with quality yarns in a welcoming and helpful atmosphere.
 
Until then, we don’t plan on changing anything we’re doing now – we’ll continue to keep our shelves fully stocked, we’ll still offer classes and events, we’ll be around for the Maine Yarn Cruise, our shop hours will remain the same, and we will definitely still look forward to seeing each of you when you come in.
 
Do you think you would be interested in becoming the new owner of Happyknits? If so, please contact us by phone or email to arrange a time when we can get together to talk.
 
 
Sincerely,
 
 
Sarah, MaryLou and Amanda

And if you want to do a pattern with a little more details try out one of Kristel Nieves beanie patterns on Ravelry. This one is the Flor de Lis pattern. It can also be made in an hour or two!

Bring a lunch and stay all day, or just pop in for a short time! There is no charge for the event.

We hope to see you on Saturday!

Sarah, MaryLou and Amanda

We are starting to get ready for summer! Next weekend is the Maine Fiber Frolic which is an incredible festival celebrating all things fiber! Lots of Maine artists, yarn vendors, tool vendors, and food included. It is located at the Windsor Fairgrounds.

It has been so much fun teaching Tunisian (afghan) crochet! There is a lot of interest, and so we will be continuing classes! Please contact the store via email/phone/in person to sign up! Each class is $20. Next will be June 7th, and then June 15th after that.

June 8th is 2024’s Worldwide Knit in Public Day! We will be hanging out at the store, and will plan on a potluck appetizers (we will bring a few things!) for those who want to bring something. No obligation though, we just want to see your projects and craft with you!

Then, the Maine Yarn Cruise will run July 1st through October 14th this year. Amanda will be running the crochet-a-long (CAL), and there will be a KAL run by a Maine designer. We hope to see many of you during the cruise!

As always, we love to help if you are having trouble with a project so feel free to bring it in!

We’re holding our annual Plaid Friday gift certificate special on November 24th!  On that day, you (or Santa) can purchase a $125 gift certificate for only $100.  If you want, you can spread the wealth by breaking it up into several smaller amounts (5 @ $25, for example). This is a one-day event, so mark your calendars and tell your sweeties!

Locally-owned businesses in Skowhegan (including us!) will be celebrating Shop Small Week from Saturday, November 25 through Saturday, December 2.  Pick up your passport at any participating business, make a purchase during the week, and be entered to win one of two $100 gift certificates good at the participating business of your choice.  (Ahem!)And that’s not all!  Happyknits will be holding a drawing for a selection of fine and luxury yarns.  Any purchase made during the week gets you entered.

Plus, we’ll be holding a store sample sale.  Select handknit garments will be offered at very affordable prices from Friday, November 24 through Christmas. Come take a look!

We will be closed for Thanksgiving Day.

See you all soon!

MaryLou, Sarah, and Amanda

Materials:

• 30-35g of fingering weight yarn
• Size 3 dpns
• Stitch holder or scrap yarn
• Scissors and yarn needle
• Gauge: About 20 rows = 2″ and 14 stitches = 2″

Instructions:

• CO 50
• Rnds 1-20: K1, p1 rib
• Rnds 21-24: K across
• Rnd 25: Place marker, M1R, k1, M1L, place marker, k across
• Rnd 26&27: K across
• Rnd 28: Slip marker, M1R, k to marker, M1L, slip marker, k across
• Repeat rounds 26-28 seven more times to reach a total of 17 sts between markers for thumb gusset
• Move sts between markers to spare yarn or stitch holder
• Next rnd: Cast on 1 stitch, then k across
• K about 20 rows or desired length
• K1, p1 for 5 rows
• Bind off in rib

Thumb:

• Place sts on dpns and pick up one stitch at mitt
• K 4 rows
• K1, p1 for 4 rows
• Bind off in rib

Weave in ends and done!

Abbreviations:

• M1R – make one right
• M1L – make one left
• K – knit
• P – purl
• Sts – stitches
• Dpns – double pointed needles
• CO – cast on
• Rnd – round

The Maine Yarn Cruise starts July 1st and runs through October 9th, 2023. We hope to see you all and meet some new faces! Passports and bags are available in our shop and others around the state for $13.95. There are some great goodies in there! Each store will have raffles monthly for prizes and a grand prize at the end of the cruise. If you visit all the stores, then you are entered for a grand prize for the whole event!

Also starting July 1st is the Berroco Tee Party. This is a make-a-long with both crochet and knit options. Let us know if you want to participate and we can get you the code for a free pattern!

July 8th we are having our first Wine and Twine of the summer!!! Please join us from 4 to 6pm at Bigelow Brewing Company in Skowhegan. Bring your work in progress.  (If you’re planning on ordering food, it doesn’t hurt to call Bigelow and order ahead). 

See you all soon!

One great advantage of having a local yarn shop is getting to know so many folks with such varied interests and talents.  Once in a while, we even get to play “match maker” by introducing you to each other.  We’ve got several events coming up that will help gather our friends together.  Please join us!

I know we just emailed you recently about Worldwide Knit in Public Day coming up on Saturday, June 10th, but we’ve upped our game and are inviting you to join us that day here, outside, for a potluck picnic. Bring your favorite finger food to share, your chair, a beverage, and, of course, your work-in-progress.  We’ll be hosting the event all day, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.

Have you wished you knew how to crochet?  Are your crocheting skills a bit rusty?  We can help with that.  Amanda will be teaching a beginner level crochet class using the Just Feel Festive shawl pattern. The 3-session class will meet on June 23, June 30 and July 7 from 3:30 – 5:30.  Cost will be $45 for all three, and includes the price of the pattern.

Amanda created the shawl pictured using Cascade 220 Fingering, held double, to achieve the ombre effect.  You could do the same, or make it striped, or solid, or you could use a DK weight yarn.  You will need 1600-1900 yards of fingering weight, or 800-900 yards of DK weight to make the shawl, plus an “H” hook.  If you’d like Amanda to help you choose your yarn, stop in on a Friday.  Sign up for the class by email, phone, Facebook or simply stop by.  She’s got space for 6 students, so sign up soon!

We hope to see you soon!  Maybe on Saturday, June 3 at the Fiber Frolic!

Sarah, MaryLou and Amanda