Jump Into June

Jump into June Jump into June is this month’s theme for classes.  This Saturday, learn beginning crochet.  Next week:  The first sock class, reading crochet patterns, personal bags, felted bag with needle felting, February baby sweater, beginning knitting, and tatting!  Whew!  I’m tired just listing everything!  Check the website www.hankofyarn.com and let us know what you want to learn. THE MICE ARE AWAY Hank, Kathy and Laura will be leaving tomorrow to go to the TNNA market in Columbus, Ohio, returning Tuesday, June 15.  You will need to help us by coming by the shop and keeping Charlotte and Rita behaving while we are gone.  We will come back with lots of new ideas, yarns and doodads. YOUTH FIBER WORKSHOP Have fun this summer! Dye your own yarn, make your own needles and learn to knit! You will knit a small project, and make a twisted cord-all customized with your favorite colors in the yarn you dyed. You will also learn about spinning and weaving, and weave a small project. We have surprises in store for you in each session. Learn new skills this summer and have a great time! Enrollment is limited, so sign up soon.The camp will be held in 3 sessions as follow: (all sessions are from 1-4 P.M.) Session 1: Monday, July 12 for making your own needles and dyeing yarn. Session 2: Monday, July 19 for learning to knit Session 3: Monday, July 26 for spinning and weaving Summer Camp is designed for youth ages 8 to 13. Class Fee: $30.00 per session or $80.00 for all three. Instructors: Hank, Kathy, Laura, Rita

COURTNEY Courtney will be here Thursday night from 6 pm till ? doing waxing, nails, and beauty questions.  It is always a fun time when Courtney comes! KNITALONG WITH CHARLOTTE Charlotte will lead a knitalong starting tomorrow, Wednesday, from 1-3 pm to make the capelet everyone is ahhing over.  It can be a child’s capelet ages 4-12, or a lovely long collar for an adult.  Using the feather and fan pattern, this project is geared toward the advanced knitter.  Uses 400yds of DK yarn, size 5 and 6 needles, 15 stitch markers, two buttons.  REFRESHMENTS will be served!!  ($5.00 fee) KNIT IN PUBLIC DAY Join the Memphis Knitting Guild and attend the Knit in Public (KIP) Day, June 13 at either Davis-Kidd Booksellers at Poplar and Perkins, or the Benjamin Hooks Main Library on Poplar.  Bring extra needles and scrap yarn so you can help newbies get acquainted with knitting.  Bring the attention of the general public to our favorite hobby.  (Crocheters are welcome also.) NEW AT HANK OF YARN New items in the shop:  Annie Adams shawl sticks and pins, cute “knit” necklaces, and a beautiful silver necklace with stitch markers attached. The blocking boards have arrived…come and get yours soon. The new Vogue Knitting magazine is in. 101 KNITTING TIPS, CONT. 19. Getting the gauge right doesn’t guarantee that you will like the way the fabric turns out.  Follow Kathy Connelly’s advice and make ‘a nice, big swatch’ to see how the fabric drapes and to decide whether or not you like working with the yarn. 20.  If your yarn is too fuzzy to count gauge easily, knit the prescribed number of stitches and rows, and measure the whole swatch. 21.  Wash and block your swatch before you begin knitting. 22.  Keep your gauge swatches, label them with yarn name, needle size and any notes or reminders and use as a reference guide.   Collect enough and make a garment from them. KNITTING QUOTE Our favorite quote:  “Knitting for an hour uses 102 calories.” Ann Budd: “There are few things that give me as much pleasure as feeling yarn travel through my fingers in a rhythmic pulse as stitches form one by one….So it’s no wonder that I get double…pleasure out of knitting gifts for friends and family.”

Beautify yourself Thursday night! Courtney will be here Thursday evening to do nails and unwanted hair removal($10 each).  But this week she will be bringing with her a hair stylist who will give free consultations!   BAGS, BAGS, BAGS  From Lantern Moon: the ever popular Molly bags are here in black and turquoise (red is still backordered), with the Iris bags (perfect for small projects), and two colors of the handmade Handuk knitting bag and clutch: red and turquoise.

Books and Magazines We now have in stock both of Wendy Knits books: Socks From the Toe Up and Toe Up Socks for Every Body.  These are very instructional on techniques, with great sock patterns as well, some of which were designed by our very own Laura!New in the shop also is the new Interweave Knits.

Introducing our TV/DVD  Hank of Yarn goes high tech.  Join us for Premiere Night Thursday, May 13.  Our feature, which will be a surprise but about knitting, will be shown from 7-8 PM. Bring “movie food” AND your knitting, and HOY will provide the beverages. The TV has already been great during the recent storms to help us keep up with the weather happenings.  We will periodically schedule more Movie Nights in the future.

End of April

Sock Club   The first quarterly HOY Sock Club was a great success!  18 people received a $70 value for $40…unique yarn, two patterns, and other great goodies in a special Hank of Yarn bag!  Sign up now for the next quarter’s Sock Club offering:  Special sock yarn and 2 patterns (one for socks, one for something else made with fingering weight yarn), but everything else different and fun!  We already have some spaces reserved, and remember, only 18 can take part!         Scarf Knit-Along Contest Winner!   Congratulations to Shay Carter for winning the Classic Elite scarf knitalong contest!  Shay won a Lantern Moon basket full of yarns, patterns, a knitting bag, and scarf pin.  Thanks to all who participated in the contest, and watch for another one soon.         REMEMBER to check www.memphisknittingguild.org for information about the Sally Melville workshops in October.  Sign up now…space is limited.             Hanne Falkenberg Kits   If you have been looking at knitting magazines lately, and of course you have, you may have noticed a beautiful red vest designed by Danish designer Hanne Falkenberg.  Her patterns are unique and simple, yet elegant to the nth degree but she only sells her kits, and not her designs.  Not for the faint-hearted, these kits cost more than most, but are worth it. Because of several people asking about the vest, I have ordered three of her Duet vest kits, in reds, blues, and a black/beige.    Ask to see her other designs, and if you’d like, we can order them for you.         May Yarn of the Month   Beginning tomorrow, we will showcase the May Yarns of the Month.  Two bulky cotton yarns, Antuco and Tabali will be on sale for “buy two, get one free” during the month of May.  Several samples are available for inspiration.         101 Top Knitting Tips, continued from KnitSimple   16.  We can’t stress this one enough: Always make a gauge swatch.  This step may take a little extra time, but it is well worth the aggravation you’ll save down the line. 17.  Compare your actual row gauge to the one stated in the instructions.  Most knitters know stitch gauge is essential to achieving the correct width but tend to ignore the row gauge figuring they can compensate by adding or subtracting rows.  But as Laura Bryant points out, “Do this and you run the risk of running out of yarn,” because the more rows it takes to meet the pattern requirements, the more yarn you’ll need to get there.  If the row gauge on your swatch comes up short, purchase an extra skein to cover the difference. 18.  As a rule, garter stitch (knit every row) usually has twice as many rows per inch as it does stitches per inch.

© 2010 Hank of Yarn

Spring has sprung!

Spring has sprung!

Join our exclusive sock club

Be a member of the first annual Hank of Yarn Sock Club:

Limited membership; available quarterly, April 29, July 29, October 28 and January 27
Unique one-of-a-kind packaging
Contents:
Exclusive sock weight yarn not available to other HOY customers
Two original patterns; one for socks, one for another garment
Unusual treats included
Dues: $40 per quarter individually, or $140 for all four installments
(Hint for April–think Spring)
Join now! Space is limited…

Knitting Tips (from 101 Top Knitting Tips, knitsimple, 2009)

12. For projects that will expand at the bottom (e.g. lace), choose a cast-on with a little more stretch, such as a knitted or purled cast-on. Designer Shirley Paden prefers this method: “Purl across the foundation row. You will notice loops that look like interlocking O’s. When you begin working the lace pattern after working the foundation row, those little circles will expand enough to prevent restricting the bottom of most expansive patterns.”
13. Slip the first stitch on every row rather than knitting it. The edge of the work will be neat and even–a bonus for cardigan fronts and vest armholes that have no other special finishing.
14. When swatching, add an extra stitch at each end of the pattern stitch. For example, knit the first stitch at the beginning of the row, and then work the pattern stitch. At the last stitch, pull the yarn to the front of the work (as if to purl), then slip the last stitch. The result will be a nice chained edge at each side of the work.
15. Does your knitting ladder when you’re working in the round on double-pointed needles? Follow Jil Eaton’s advice and pull both the first and second stitches firmly as you begin knitting on each needle.

New in the shop

Denise interchangeable crochet hooks–perfect for Tunisian crochet and afghans!
New Knitscene special edition magazine
Debbie Bliss Rialto yarn…baby merino in lovely colors

CLASSES

Introduction to beaded knitting: beaded sachet Tuesday, April 13 6-8 pm
Fixing mistakes on Friday, April 16 1-3 pm
Beginning crochet Friday, April 16 2-4 pm
Beginning knitting Saturdays, April 10 and 17 10-12 noon
Reading crochet patterns Friday, April 23 4-6 pm

Quote of the Week

“…simple things can be very beautiful.” Kay Gardiner, co-author of Mason-Dixon Knitting.
And who hasn’t looked at this book, or Debbie Bliss patterns, and found this statement to be true?

April Showers

Courtney’s Coming!

This Thursday, April 1, Courtney will be here from 6-8 to remove unwanted hairs and straighten nails…$10 each is a bargain!

Spring yarns

Corn yarns and bamboo yarns in Spring colors…great for that shell or short sleeved sweater just right for Spring/Summer wear.

Don’t forget–we have stocked up in colorful cotton yarns in all weights for Summer knitting.

Quote of the week

“Knitting occupies the hands and frees the mind.” Elsebeth Lavold

Yarn of the Month: Bebe Cotsoy

April’s Yarn of the Month is Queensland’s Bebe Cotsoy…a serendipidous combination of 50% cotton and 50% soy…at 20 sts and 26 rows to 4 inches on size 7. Bright spring colors: get your pick before everyone else! All Bebe Cotsoy is 30% off during the month of April.

EASTER SALE
This Thursday, Friday and Saturday come in for the Easter sale: Choose an Easter egg, open it, DON’T eat the candy until you know which discount you have–then you can eat the candy! 20 – 50% discounts.

New patterns
New Spring patterns, lace, socks, etc. from KnitSpot designed by Anne Hanson. Also shawl patterns for Mountain Colors Winter Lace, Jr.

Classes for April
Socks: April 2 and 9, 1-3 PM
Fair Isle: April10 and 17, 1-3 PM
Beginning Knitting: April 3 and 10, 10-12 AM
Beaded Sachet: April 6, 6-8 PM
Beginning Crochet: April 3, 2-4 PM

Sally Melville

October 9 and 10
World reknown knitting author, designer and teacher Sally Melville will be holding workshops here in Memphis October 9 and 10, 2010! If you want to check out the classes and sign up, go to www.memphisknittingguild.org. The Saturday classes are sponsored by the Memphis Knitting Guild, and the Sunday classes are sponsored by Hank of Yarn. Some of the classes are already half filled, so hurry!

Sally’s books are available here at HOY: The Knit Stitch, The Purl Stitch, Color, Sally Melville Styles and Mother Daughter Knits (with her daughter). Several of us have had classes with Sally either at Stitches or TNNA market, and can tell you that she is an excellent teacher: very natural and approachable.

Reminders
• There are only about 8 days left to take advantage of our March Yarn of the Month, Bamboucle, a bamboo/cotton/linen/nylon blend at buy 2 get 1 free. There are several samples to view, and enough colors and balls to make almost any summer garment.
• GRAB BAGS: There are 9 grab bags left…everyone likes surprises! They may not be heavy, but you know good things come in small packages.
• KNIT ALONG: There is still time to join the knit along scarf project. Sign up, buy the Classic Elite yarn, make the scarf before April 15, and you will be entered in a drawing for a $200 gift basket.
• The monthly Memphis Knitting Guild meets tonight at White Station Library at 6:30 PM. There will be cars leaving Hank of Yarn at 6 PM if you’d like to go with us.

‘Dress Your Feet Sock’ Club

Beginning in May, Hank of Yarn will offer a sock club! We are still working out the ‘kinks’ but I can say that the sock yarn will be unique and not offered in the shop…only in the club, the patterns will also be exclusive, and there will be other surprises included. Watch our emails for more information!

Summer Kid’s Camp

It isn’t too early to be thinking about enrolling your child(ren) in our summer kid’s camp. Arrangements are not final, but we enjoy offering this to those youngsters who are interested in fiber arts. Last year, the kids dyed yarn, wound yarn, made their own knitting needles, learned to knit, learned to weave, and got a spinning demonstration. The minimum age is around 10, according to the child.

March the 17th, Shop the 18th

Saint Patrick’s Day sale

We are celebrating on the day after this year:

* check out the ‘sale trunk’…everything is now 50% off! Last decrease on the trunk yarn prices.
* all green yarn 30% off Thursday, March 18th only.

* plus another Thursday surprise…you have to come in to find out!
Classes

There is still time to sign up for classes in March…April class calendar to be out soon.

* Entrelac, Saturday, March 20 from 1-3 pm. Learn the Boku or Noro color changing scarf and the fascinating method of making squares on two needles!
* Beginning Crochet: March 27, 1-3 PM. If you are a knitter and need to know how to do basic crochet to complement your knitting, this is the class for you.

New to Hank of Yarn

* New colors of Cascade 220
* New colors of Vintage Wool
* The Knitter Spring edition
* Creative Knitting Spring
* Northern Knits by Lucinda Guy: great patterns from Iceland and Scandinavia
Remember the KAL

Jessica and Rita have completed their scarves, and they are gorgeous! There is still time to sign up, pick your yarn, and complete your scarf by the April 15 deadline. The names will be entered in a drawing for a basket of goodies worth $200!

QUOTE from Elizabeth Zimmermann

“Soft wool from the simple silly sheep can be as fine as a cobweb, tough and strong as string, or light and soft as down. There are scientific reasons why wool is the best material for knitting, and into these I will not go…Woolen socks never become cold and clammy, however wet. A woolen sweater is so water-resistant that when dropped overboard it floats long enough to give you ample time to rescue it. The surface on caps and mittens made of wool repels all but the most persistent of downpours….For people allergic to wool, one’s heart can only bleed.”

Most of our customers are aware that Sally Melville is coming to Memphis in October, but some of you may not, and some of you may not even know of her. (Come into the shop and we can introduce her to you through her books.) We have arranged for Sally to come and lead workshops Saturday and Sunday, October 9 and 10, 2010. More information later, but mark your calendar now if you wish to attend, and look Sally up on the web. You’ll be impressed.

HANK OF YARN CLUB?

Would you like to take part in our quick survey? If so, copy the following to an email and send to hank@hankofyarn.com.
Are you interested in a club to periodically receive a kit containing yarn and a pattern? YES___ NO___
If yes, what item would you be interested in receiving? Examples might be socks, scarves, hats, wristers._________________________________________________
If yes, how often would you want to receive a kit?__________________________
What classes would you like to see offered? _______________________________
Comments:___________________________________________________________
Name (optional)______________________________________

Welcome to March

Yarn of the Month
Check out the perfect Spring knitting yarn with Bamboucle’, a cotton/bamboo/linen/nylon blend that infuses the best of each type of yarn into a DK weight yarn. A bargain at buy two get one free, we have many colors to choose from, or mix and match colors for a fun Spring/Summer sweater or scarf. Sale good in March only. You need to see the pretty green scarf that Kathy knitted out of this yarn!
New to Hank of Yarn
Jill Eaton has some precious patterns to get you started with her crayon colors of worsted weight cotton yarn. Laura is making the little girl’s pinafore and will have it ready soon.

Allegoro is a combination of 70% organic cotton and 30% linen in a DK weight in soft Spring colors. *See the Knit-Along below.

Vogue Knitting: The Spring/Summer 2010 issue is here and full of great projects, including lots of lace (not all made with lace weight yarn)! Honestly, this is a great issue.

Comfort Knitting and Crochet Afghans is a big book full of quite unique afghan patterns and all using Comfort yarn (but you can substitute another worsted weight yarn if you wish). Make a beautiful afghan now before it gets hot and you’ll have it to use or give as a gift this fall/winter!

CLASSES!
Crochet Project Bag: Last chance for the crocheted bag…all you need to know is single crochet, and you will create a project bag in the round using two colors in alternating rows. The class will be Wednesday, March 10 and 17, 4-6 pm and yarn is included in the registration.

SCRIBBLE LACE: A fun way to mix bulky yarn with lace yarn and make lace. Laura will teach this inspiring technique for creating lace without yarnovers or decreases! Wednesday, March 17 from 6-8 pm.

Beginning Knitting: There are still openings in this class Wednesday, March 10 and 17, 6-8 pm.

Tunisian Crochet: Saturday, March 13, 2-4 pm you can learn to crochet with these cords with hooks on each end and make a reversible scarf.

Socks, Socks, Socks: Friday, March 12 and 19 at 1-3 pm. Another chance to learn this challenging and fun knitting project.

The Knit-Along you’ve been waiting for!
This project is the Fringed Scarf from CEY’s Spring 2010 Picnic collection. We’ll use the newly arrived Classic Elite Allegoro, a 70% organic cotton/30% linen blend just right for Spring. We will begin Thursday, March 11 and end the Knit-Along on Thursday, April 15. We’ll take pictures to post on Ravelry and to send to Classic Elite.
PRIZES! If you complete the project by the end date, your name will be entered to win a gift basket from Classic Elite worth at least $200!
Stop in to sign up, get the pattern and pick out your yarn!

January 23, 2010

NEW–NEW–NEW

Ironstone Yarns have been added to our list of companies with three exciting new yarns and pattern support:

SUN: Three yarns together, a ribbon, a sparkly and a thin nubby cotton. Make a beautiful Spring shrug with two skeins, or it will be lovely as a scarf or shawl for Spring! See the sample garment!

SKY: (see a pattern here?) Two thin yarns 70% cotton/30% rayon…check out the sweater sample.

SOLO: Sport or DK weight 100% cotton in vibrant Spring/Summer shades. We have a lovely short sleeved cardigan sample to whet your summer sweater appetite!

There are also four pattern booklets with great items to make from these yarns.

WORK IN PROGRESS WORKBOOK…wait, there’s nothing in it…well, in the back there are empty graphs…

But if you think about it…these workbooks are great for sketches and chart patterns that you want to make in the future, or notes about items you have recently made, or cut out pictures of things you would like to make. You will think of loads of things you do with this workbook.

We have restocked several of our ‘old standby’ books…so if we didn’t have it when you were in…perhaps we have it now.

Spinning in Southaven

Hank of Yarn will be open March 19, 6-9pm for spinners. Bring your wheel or drop spindles and spin with us. If you have always been interested in spinning but haven’t acted on your interest, come watch and/or try it out! We will provide light refreshments.

Knitting

How smooth the feel
of wooden knitting needles
Moving in my fingers
flicking the woolen yarn
Down and over
in the primal rhythms of a motion
As easy as singing.
Quiet, I grow comfortable
So to be joined
by threads to my forebears, women
Knitting in the sun
at windows of cottages and shacks,
Nearly idle.
Thoughts briefly rising and falling
Graze the pattern
emerging as I stitch
and may change it.
Though I keep to the overall shapes
that hands have known
Of themselves for centuries so well
I seldom look down.
My mind, become peaceable, can listen
to the silence of the ages
Till I find in the blunted click of the wooden needles

The music of the poetry I live by.
Phyllis Hoge Thompson

CLASSES _______________________________

Baby Surprise
Learn to knit the “Surprise Jacket”–aptly named because it looks like nothing on earth when you have finished knitting it…but it does turn into a cute jacket! Your instructor is Christy, and she will cover a brief biography of Elizabeth Zimmermann, the amazing designer and who, according to the New York Times, ‘revolutionized the art of knitting.” The final class will also cover options and minor pattern changes such as lengthening the sleeves, adding a hood, or a collar, etc. The pattern covers the jacket from infant to adult.

Scribble Lace
A fun way to mix bulky yarn with lace yarn! Laura will teach the inspiring technique of scribble lace, a way of creating lace without yarnovers or decreases.

Fair Isle
Our popular Fair Isle class is scheduled again for Saturday, March 6 from 1-3. These hats are turning out just beautifully using the Jojoland yarns. Sign up soon before the class fills.

Felted Slippers
Quick easy instructions to make slippers for any member of the family or all of them!

Mittens
Start knitting for fingers by doing mittens (one finger per mitten) and then you will be prepared to do a glove!

Check out our website for more details! www.hankofyarn.com