Something new and fun I've been playing with is spinning up singles. They are harder than they look, and take a lot of getting used to, but very satisfying when you see the bobbin filling up so fast! I finally felt like I had the technique down enough to try some thicker singles and got out my delicious 100% British Southdown. I ordered a bump of this for the shop, knowing that I'd find something great to do with it. Originally I thought I was just going to make similar yarns to my BFL collection, but with a different fibre. Nope. Sometimes things change for the better.
Southdown is a little more robust and perfect for pencil rovings. My tension is still a little tight and I absolutely can't watch anything while I spin this (audiobooks and podcasts only) but there is so much joy in the fat fluffy twists and filling up 4 bobbins in a few hours (and knowing I don't have to ply them!) that makes Pencil Roving a new favourite of mine. Just take a look at this big stack of full skeins that I produced in under a week:Don't you just want to cuddle it?! These are going to look so great dyed, I can already tell. Thinking I'll have to sell these in 100g skeins because they are so thick and juicy. Yum yum yum. Fibre Diet.
The shop is loaded with sets of Mini Skeins now! There are 4 colourways to choose from. Most of these are one-time deals as they are all made with Recycled coned wool, so once they are gone- they are gone!! Buy now!Okay, Okay. I went a little geeky when I was choosing colours... What can I say, I just see beautiful colour combinations in everything. Obviously, if you're a fan of what they are named after, awesome! But if you're not don't stress, they work for generic stuff too. i.e. the Iron Man colourway reminds me of changing leaves or Gryffindor, and the Hulk colourway reminds me of drives through the countryside in the summer. They'll make great stripes or gradient effects. Or just add them to your stash and pick them out for colourwork projects. :] 10g each and 5 colours in a set = 50g. Above is the Rainbow Bright colourway. I love the little pops of pink in the red and the texture of the blue yarn. Buy Rainbow Bright!Above we've got a Vampire inspired gradient. From fluffy black and white through to vibrant red, this would look awesome as a sock! Buy Fangtasia! Above is a spectrum of greens. I seem to have collected A LOT of green recycled yarns so it's really nice to find a use for it! Plus that dark green is SUPER soft. Like, I'm sure it's alpaca or something. Yummy. Buy Hulk! Above is a different angle so you can see how they sit together. I can just imagine this knitted into tiny leaves or accents on a sea of brown. I'm a big fan of that little flecks of red and grey together. Plus, we all know I love a good yellow. Buy Iron Man!
p.s. Wondering what the heck to do with your minis? There are a ton of great boards and projects out there on pinterest and ravelry, but I've put together my own board. Take a look.
OhMyGoodness, How exciting is this? I've been shortlisted (along with 4 other super talented people) for the category of 'Creative Idea'. We all go to London on the 11th for the judging. Wish me luck!! Check out more about the Handmade Awards or view the other catagories and their shortlisters (some really awesome people!). #handmadeawards to tweet or instagram about it! :] It's an honour to be picked!
For those of you that made it to the shop on Yarn Shop Day, thank you! It was mostly locals that had seen the sign and the shop windows and wanted to know a bit more about what we were about. Which is exactly what I was hoping would happen. I opened the doors on May 3rd to say HI to the locals. We had cups of tea and a free project to work on. You can see even my Dad got involved! It was really wonderful to meet people and talk about the kind of fibre arts we love. :] Below is a little 'shop tour' so you all can see what it was like on the day. Enjoy! (Don't Amy's cowls look so great! It's wonderful to have them in the shop!) Probably my favourite little aspect of the shop, is the little cut-out where I can serve customers from. It was great to 'ring people up' from behind the counter. It felt like the big sister of doing markets. I can't wait till Autumn when we'll be open on the weekends. :] Here's a few photos of me outside the shop before we opened in the morning (Please excuse my sleepy, but happy, face). Mum organised some bright and cheerful planters. :] So nice.
Thanks for sharing in this adventure with me! Please know that the shop is still a work-in-progress but any comments/thoughts are always greatly appreciated. Basicaly I wish you could all come and have a cuppa tea with me!
One thing that I LOVE about our location, is the two great big windows at the front of the house, which flood the shop with light and give everyone driving by a little peek! They've been in a constant state of dress and undress since we moved in (and I've been setting up), but it was fun to get it a little more 'dolled up' for Yarn Shop Day.(The 'SPIN' letters were a sweet gift from a new local friend as a 'shop warming' present. Isn't that the nicest thing?)
-Kim xo
p.s. I think this should be a thing, documenting and sharing how our shop windows change.... what do you think?
"On Saturday 3rd May 2014 yarn shops across the UK will be celebrating Yarn Shop Day, the climax of months of activity from the Love Your Yarn Shop campaign launched by leading publications Let's Knit and Let's Get Crafting"
Alterknit Universe will be open for one day only, as a sneak preview of what's coming in the Autumn. We've had a lot of interest both online and from locals peering through the windows. We are super excited to open our doors and chat to any of you that can make it. We will have tea and lots of chairs to sit and chat, plus yarn and fibre to fondle, and Art Equals Happy products to purchase.
If you're not in the Bristol area but want to participate in Yarn Shop Day, there's a handy little map that Let's Knit have put together. There's some more info on the Let's Knit blog too.
Says Let’s Knit editor Sarah Neal: “As knitters ourselves we know the value of a good yarn store. As well as providing the unequalled pleasure of buying yarn off the shelf, they offer experienced face-to-face advice and are often a communal meeting place for likeminded crafters. The Love Your Yarn Shop campaign is aimed at alerting consumers to the benefits of supporting these stores.”
Getting to us:
Find our postcode and view us on a map here. From Bristol: The X1 or W1 from Bristol Bus Station or City Centre towards Weston-Super-Mare. Ask for 'The Lord Nelson' bus stop in Cleeve. It's about 20min from the center and you'll get lots of lovely views of sheeps in fields. Our shop has a big painted sign, it'll be hard to miss! Hopefully see you there! Kim xo Top Photo by Anna Maltz (or @sweaterspotter). Quotes from the Yarn Shop Day Press Release.
I said to myself that I was taking the season off from markets. I didn't do Renegade or any of my usual things, but I've been missing it a little too much. I managed to swing a last minute spot at the Pom Pom Quarterly Christmas Market. It looks like it's going to be a grand party & I will be hanging out with the indie dyers and yarn makers. I can't wait!
All the details are on the flyer there, but here's the link to their blog post about it, where you can buy tickets and get excited! Maybe see you there, London friends. Kim xo
Yes! Look at all these beautiful yellows and purples just in time for knitting that perfect autumn hat! There's rather a lot of new colours in Chunky and Worsted weight (NEW!) up in the shop right now.There's only one or two skeins of each of these so grab 'em quick! There were shown during my final show, and are some of my favourites.
You might even spot a couple *NEW* test ranges. Like slub...
I'm travelling up to Birmmingham this week for a business trip with Hobzy! So all orders will ship out on Friday as usual, but I might not get to e-mails untill Thursday. Love, Kimxo
So excited to share with you this brand new product! It's something I've been dreaming up all summer. Naturally Hand-Dyed Spinning Fibre! There's three different 'ranges'; the Solids, the Tie-Dye and the Space. Check it out in the shop!Each braid of 100g is £10. If you see the prices vary, it's because a braid isn't quite 100g. Just being fair. :] I seriously can't decide which is my favourite, I love them all.
Click here to go shopping and read more about them in the item descriptions! I've tried to give you lots of information, cause I know how tempting they can be!
Beyond excited to finally be able to release this delishious new product! I'll tell you all about it tomorrow, including the story of what made me want to share ready-to-spin roving. It's been a while dear blog readers. It's good to see you all again. Kimxo
