A Dispatch from the Yellow Table.

Sometimes I overthink this whole blogging thing, especially when it's been a long time since I posted*. I want to share something "perfect"...and I get so caught up in all that...that I just can't seem to get it done. So I decided this morning that I'd take a different approach. Something simple. Y'all let me know what you think.

This is the first in what I hope to make a recurring feature here, sharing a bit of what's going on around our Yellow Table.

First up, we're excited about the latest issues of Knit.Wear and Knitscene, especially these four tops, perfect for the warmer weather:

Folded Lace Tank - Pretty pleats and lace knit in Manos' Serena.

(c) Interweave Knits

Bokeh Tank - Another pretty top with lace accents, knit with Shibui Linen and Silk Cloud held together. The Silk Cloud adds just a touch of soft halo to the Linen's structure. There's a sample swatch in the shop if you want to see and feel for yourself.

(c) Knitscene/Harper Point

Linum Tee - ...and Another! This one is knit with Quince & Co's Sparrow...which should be in the shop any day now. That's right! We're going to be carrying Sparrow! This tee requires only five or six skeins for most sizes; it's a great project to try the yarn.

(c) Knitscene/Harper Point

Morro Tank - Asymmetrical color blocks knit in Shibui Staccato. What's not to love!

(c) Knitscene/Harper Point

We're still talking about - and a few of us are knitting! - Shibui. Sandy's Mix workshops last weekend were a lot of fun. Nothing like a few dozen garments in a trunk show to get everyone excited about a new project...or three! Right, that might me! (you can read about my queue derailment on my personal blog -> here)

Mix swatches - that top one is Pebble & Linen and maybe my new favorite

And last but not least, an upcoming Mystery KAL.

(c) Rowan Yarns, 2014

This one is hosted by Rowan and features an afghan designed by Martin Storey to highlight their new (washable) Pure Wool Worsted. You can read more details on the pattern page in Ravelry (here) or come into the shop. We've got all fifty colors in stock; you can use one of their suggested palettes, or create your own. Here's mine:

I started with the suggested 17-color palette and swapped out a few colors to make my unique palette. I've done a few Mystery KALs, but never one for an afghan. I think the format of this KAL might be just the thing to keep me excited about all that knitting!

So - that's it - of course there's a lot more going on in the shop... yarn, patterns, works-in-progress... if you have an hour or two, we'd love to have you stop by. Take a seat at the Yellow Table. Share what you're working on...and soak up inspiration. It's one of my favorite ways to spend an afternoon!

*Whoa, February 20 seems like ages ago...and it was in a way. It was winter and we were digging out from snow and knitting all the warm things. And now it's spring. The weather forecast is sunshine and low 70's. A new season is always an inspiration, isn't it?!

No Lack of Inspiration.

The latest issue of Knitters Review landed in my in-box this morning: 10 Tips for Kickstarting Your Inspiration. I adore Clara Parkes and I look forward to her newsletters (if you aren't a subscriber you should be...go here!), but inspiration is not a problem for me right now.

Maybe because I'm lucky enough to see this view at least three days a week.

Yes Shibui... taking up even more of that back wall! We've stocked more yarn and new colors and the latest collection of Mix patterns for Spring/Summer 2013.

They've added new colors across all the yarns and filled in a few of the most popular (for example, Silk Cloud is now available in the very popular Caffeine color way). Here are a few of my newest favorites:

Heichi in Grounds (yes, those are flecks of bright green on a dark brown background) and Cascade (photos from the Shibui website)

Silk Cloud in Caffeine and Clay (photos from the Shibui website)

The six new patterns include four sweaters (a tank, two pullovers and a cardigan), a scarf and a shawl. My two favorite patterns are sweaters (of course?!), but the shawl (Mix No. 18) has been popular, too (everyone loves choosing colors for a two-color project).

from the Shibui website

Mix No. 13 is a bottom-up seamless pullover with an all-over lace pattern, knit with Shibui Linen held double. Love the lace. Love the texture with the linen. I've wanted to knit with the linen since it arrived last year and I think this is the project I'll cast on (as soon as I finish Garance!)

from the Shibui website

Mix No. 16 is also knit seamlessly from the bottom up; it's a cardigan with color block detail and textured trim for the hems, neckline and button bands. It calls for Cima (laceweight alpaca merino blend) and Silk Cloud (laceweight silk mohair blend) held together and that mix is stunning, but Nuna would also work if you'd prefer knitting with just one strand of yarn. The pattern also shows the cardigan worn with the buttons in the back - adorable! It's a versatile wardrobe staple knit in neutrals like the pattern shows, but wouldn't it be fun in a bright green or coral, too?

Putting this post together, I also visited Shibui's Pinterest boards. If you're on Pinterest, I highly recommend you follow Shibui. Their Mix board is pure eye-candy, but I especially love the Clay board. I just bought a pair of cropped pants in that color and it's my new-favorite for spring...(you should follow us on Pinterest too!)

There are plenty of other things inspiring us at the shop right now, including the Bias 'Before & After' Scarf , which gets very fun when you knit it with Euroflax Sportweight Linen and another contrasting yarn/fiber and a Picardi cowl sample knit by the designer herself, Nell Ziroli (did you see in our latest newsletter that she's joined our teaching staff? very exciting!), that I'm seeing for spring and summer in Cascade Venezia or Maggiknits Maggie's Linen. I'll get photos and more ideas up here shortly.

What's inspiring your knitting right now?

November Knits.

We're taking a break from the parade of holiday knitting to share a bit of inspiration from my favorite book to hit the yellow table since Coastal Knits arrived last fall.

This is November Knits, a collection of 23 designs curated by the very talented Kate Gagnon Osborn and Courtney Kelly (yep, we've crushed on them before). In addition to their own designs, they've also included patterns by Melissa LaBarre, Tanis Gray, Gudrun Johnston, Veera Valimaki and many others. They set out to create a collection of projects "capturing the essence of fall in perfect style". 

They've succeeded.  

And the timing is perfect since fall is finally here - have you seen the pansies planted out front?

Here are three projects that show the variety of the patterns - cardigans, accessories, lace, texture, fiber...all fun!

First, the Market Jacket designed by Tanis Gray. Perfect in Rowan's Kid Classic. I'm not sure what I like best - the yarn, the three quarter sleeves, the top-down seamless construction...

...or the stunning lacy cables running down the back.

Another favorite jacket is the Cobblestone Trenchcoat designed by Veera Valimaki ... in Rowan's Lima. Lima is a blend of baby alpaca, merino wool and nylon that will wrap you up in soft warmth. It even has a hood. This sweater is also knit seamlessly, but from the bottom up.

The book includes seven more sweaters, a skirt (!!), a lace shrug and a variety of accessories ranging from socks (two), to mittens, scarves, cowls and hats (six), and legwarmers (two).

These are the Spanish Moss Legwarmers designed by Courtney Kelley ... in Canopy Fingering. A perfect gift (but if you want to keep them for yourself, we won't tell!)

See what I mean? Which projects are inspiring you for fall?

A Day to Stay Inside.

...at the shop! For the first time in many weeks, the rain kept us inside today. No trips to the pretty stone wall with piles of yarn, and patterns, and other props. Nope.

Instead, I roamed the shop with my camera and looked for pretty.

Fyberspates Scrumptious in lace, sport, DK and aran. 

and bright.

Shibui... we now have all the solid colors of Staccato, and Cima and Baby Alpaca

and colorful.

and variegated colorways of Staccato

and fun.

Just in from Done Roving Yarn - Frolicking Feet and Natural Ewe

and new.

Claudia Handpaints Fingering and Laceweight ready to put out on the floor

and exciting.

Shibui's latest collection, Geometry.

...and finally, I couldn't resist one quick trip outside (with just my camera).

I think the flowers are enjoying the rain!

How did you enjoy the rain today?

New from Julie Hoover.

We hinted about Julie's new collection for Manos Del Uruguay on Pinterest a few weeks back (remember?) ...then we saw all the details on her blog. and finally, today, our favorite three patterns have arrived in the shop.

Beaubourg, Palette and Flore

...and now we can share them with you!

Flore, with Manos' Silk Blend in Nickel, Natural, Coffee and Pewter

First up, Flore (because Julie says it's her personal favorite...and honestly, it's mine too!)  , a relaxed fit seamless raglan pullover knit from the bottom-up in stockinette stitch and then turned inside out. The pattern calls for two colors of Manos' Silk Blend (a DK-weight wool/silk blend). It's shown in Natural and Nickel. We also love the rich brown (appropriately named Coffee) and the blue (Pewter). These four colors would work well striped in any combination.  Depending on your size, you'll need 4-5 skeins of the main color and 3-4 skeins of the contrast. The pattern suggests a size 9 needle to get 4 stitches and 7 rows to the inch.

Beaubourg, with Lorna's Laces, Madelinetosh Vintage, Chadwick and Cascade Eco Cloud

Then there's Beaubourg  , an oversized dolman pullover worked in reverse stockinette (purl stitches on the right side) with exposed seams. The silhouette reminds us of Chaleur (Julie lists differences between the two designs on her Ravelry project page here), but with easier stitches and construction (meaning this would be a great first or second sweater for a newer knitter, or a "social" project for those with more sweater experience). The pattern suggests Manos' Maxima, a worsted weight single ply merino yarn that's similar to Juniper Moon's Chadwick. We also think Lorna's Laces Shepherd Worsted, Madelinetosh Vintage and Cascade Eco or Eco Cloud would all be great substitutes. Look for a wool (or mostly wool blend) that suggests 4-1/2 stitches to the inch.

Palette, with Sulka and Voyage

And finally, Palette , a chunky double-wide cowl with yummy textures of garter and rib stitches. It's fully reversible and can be worn doubled or hanging straight down. The pattern suggests Manos' Wool Clasica, an aran weight single ply merino. We love all the yarns suggested above (for Beaubourg) and also Mirasol's Sulka, a lovely merino/alpaca/silk blend and Berroco's Voyage, an alpaca/polyester (93%/7%) blend with a chainette construction similar to Cascade's Cloud. The alpaca would make a toasty warm hug for someone special! The cowl takes about 400 yards of yarn, seven to eight skeins of the Sulka or two of the Voyage.

photoshoot outtake. those flowers always make me smile!

You Had Us at Petite.

As in Royal Petite, from Blue Sky Alpacas. A new petite ball - 100 yards of their 100% Royal Alpaca - paired with patterns designed to use just a ball or two. Sounds good, right?

our "petite" display, located just behind the front table of habu

...but wait. It gets better.

how cute?!

Just look at the packaging for the patterns.

each little folio opens up - there's a picture of the alpaca (it's even signed on the back!) on one side and the pattern on the other

this is what the pattern looks like, unfolded

If I haven't convinced you, check out what Wendy Bernard, of Knit and Tonic fame, said in two of her recent blog posts. (and for the record, I think Elmo is a Muppet, how about you?)

Eggs.

Yep, see what the UPS man delivered today.

...and we were all very relieved when we opened the box to find...yarn! (whew! we do strive to be a full-service shop, but with Kroger right next door, we aren't likely to be carrying groceries anytime soon!)

Which is a good thing. Because we really don't have the room, especially with all the new yarn that's arrived in the past week.

Remember that empty space on the back wall? No more!

click photo to enlarge

It's now filled with Madelinetosh Vintage, Shibui (including all the colors of Silk Cloud - just in case you might be coveting Gradient, their newest free pattern, which calls for four colors of Silk Cloud), Juniper Moon, Araucania (still 25% off), and Madelinetosh Merino DK and Chunky. We have the new Madelinetosh spring 2012 colors, too. (and yes, they are prettier in person!)

We've also restocked Lorna's Laces Shepherd Worsted and Shepherd Sock (including the fabulous new Kedzie colorway).

And Claudia Handpaints Fingering Merino and Linen.

just a sample - the fingering display is twice this tall...and the linen is on another wall!

And Madelinetosh Sock and Merino Light. As pretty as ever!

one wall of the Sock Yarn Tower filled with Madelinetosh fingering weight

Aren't you glad we're not making room for eggs?

Julie Hoover Crush.

Have you heard of Julie Hoover?  Her designs are clean and modern and use fibers like silk, cashmere, merino and stainless steel. And even though she lives in Alaska (where I'm betting they won't see 80 degrees for months...right now, the headline photo on her website shows tree trunks buried in snow!) she has a few patterns that are perfect for warm - ok, maybe even hot - weather.

Yesterday, the Habu yarn* suggested for two of them arrived in the shop.

Specifically, the Tsumugi Silk for Insouciant.

click photo to enlarge

And the Silk Stainless Steel and Merino for Decalage.

click photo to enlarge

we've put together suggested color pairings - note that you could  use a single color of merino and a single color of silk/stainless and you'd need only three cones of merino and one cone of silk/stainless

...and Theresa tells me that the silk for Tisse should be in the next Fed Ex delivery (hopefully today!)

*in addition to these three yarns, we also have more cotton gima and more kits.