Monday, December 24, 2007

Merry Christmas


Merry Christmas to all!
Enjoy your family and friends and
may you find a moment to curl up and knit!
We will be back in the shop Wednesday at 10am...
just in case you get a gift card that is burning a whole in your pocket!

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Take a Cable Break

Saturday morning will most likely be filled with some last minute running around. While you are out, stop by the shop and learn a thing or two!
Allison Snopek Barta, a Kenosha native, from "Irish Cable Knitting" (http://www.irishcableknitting.com/) will be at the shop from 11am until 2pm for a book signing and to demonstrate cable knitting!
A free cable needle will be included with the purchase of her book!

Learn how to cable and race home to work up a scarf for Christmas. There's still time...

Friday, December 14, 2007

NORO for your FEET!

6 colors of the NORO Sock Yarn is here! Stop in soon to get it while it lasts! (Kim already has 5 pairs started!)


Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Save the dates!

The new classes have been posted over on the shop's website. Go take a peak!

This is an example of an Aran Scarf that you can work on in the "Aran Scarf" class. Come in and try it on to get your creative juices flowing!

Thursday night is Ditch N' Stitch. Set aside 2 hours from all the holiday hoopla and join us!

Thursday, December 6, 2007

The Little Boy That Loved Wool

Miss Jane walked into the shop last week with this on. The warm and wonderful vest from Sally Melville's "Knit Stitch". She used Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Bulky in such a beautiful shade of brown. Bravo, Jane!

Then there is Miss Carol who decided that everyone she knows and loves is getting felted clogs for Christmas. Some have already been shipped away and there are still some to be finished up but here's what she brought to the shop yesterday...
Stop in the shop and I will give your her phone number. Maybe you can do some nice things for her over the course of 2008 and get on her list for next year!

And yesterday, the 2 footer had the opportunity that most of us adults would love. To be covered in yarn. And, mind you, this isn't just any yarn....this is Jamieson's Aran Weight. The 2-ply spindrift arrived a month ago and was so wonderful that we ordered that heavier weight as well. 24 colors, knits up to between 4 and 5.5 sts. Jack picked out his colors for a possible quick sweater for Christmas. I told him I would stay up day and night to knit it if he used the toilet. I'm sure it will work...

Have a wonderful evening. Snow is in the forecast again tonight!

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Snowy Evening Ramblings

With the onset of winter around here lately, the shop has been ravaged. Knitters come in in a hurry, fill their cheeks with yarn and scurry home to hide it somewhere for the winter.
I do love the summer but if it is going to get cold...then snow enough to make it worth while. For me, there is nothing better than sitting inside a warm home with a cup of coffee and knitting with not a place to be. This exact scenario is happening tonight.
If you too are stuck inside and are wondering what to knit, read about knitting or check online about knitting...here's some things to keep you busy...

1. http://www.ravelry.com/ If you aren't on already or signed up, sign up NOW! Take all the online searching for patterns, checking http://www.flickr.com/ for other people's finished projects and knitting forums, compile them in one spot and you have Ravelry. It isn't quite public yet but you can get on the waiting list and be wasting time shortly!

2. For goodness sake, read some EZ (Elizabeth Zimmermann) or better yet, check out one of here DVDs. Pick one of her books and you no longer will be a slave to patterns. Sometimes I overhear "But I'm afraid to". Wait a minute....You've had children, you undergone a root canal, don't tell me you are afraid of some yarn and needles. What's the worst that can happen? You have to rip it out? Be afraid of the Whooping Cough, Typhoid Fever or being hit by a bus, not knitting.

3. Knit something new. Haven't tried cables, whip one up. Add some to a scarf and see how it goes. If it works, you have something to wear with your new coat. If it doesn't, rip it out or give it to an annoying co-worker. Haven't tried working with more than one color before, give it a whirl. Try it on a hat. If it comes out too big or too small, give it to someone. There are always people who need one.

4. Start a knitting log of some sort. Jot down ideas for a new project, dates, clips of yarn with the tags, measurements of someone to knit for or a good book to check out. A great way to organize your thoughts.

5. Teach someone else to knit. Young, old, boy or girl. I feel forever indebted to my teacher and they will feel the same about you. A close friend who I helped start knitting recently said to me "Thanks. I'm happier, nicer to my kids and husband and feel a sense of accomplishment." How terrific that something so simple can mean so much, huh?

Enjoy your knitting. It has kept many sane, happy, creative and sober. Amazing what a little wool and needles can do...

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Yarn, Books, Swifts...oh my!

All I Want For Christmas Is Wool
Join us this Saturday, November 24th, from 10 until 4 for wish list making!
The shop is decorated... There will be Christmas music and treats...
Make gift giving simple for those who will be filling your stocking!
We will have wishlists available for you to fill out and then we will keep them handy when your Santa comes!

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Need Something to Do in December?

The December classes are up. Pick one (or all) and join us!

Felted Clogs



Fair Isle Fever



Entrelac Scarf



Felted Granny Square Stocking

All of these are in the shop if you would like to stop in and take a closer look!


Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Need A Little Inspiration??

A few things to share with you so I don't feel like a glutton and keep all these pictures to myself...
Lovely Lucy with her felted bag. It was a gift for a tiny flower girl. She wore it with pride!

Maxine with "Burma Rings" from the Best of Interweave Knits. I swear she cast on for this and was done a few hours later!
Booties created by Mary! She knit the sweater and then decided to whip up her own design of booties!

And...if you are looking for a little Elizabeth Zimmermann...how about the "February Sweater" from "Knitter's Almanac"?




Thursday, November 1, 2007

It's Here!


The Winter Issue of Interweave Knits is in the store!

Saturday, October 20, 2007

What Are We Making?

Just a few of the projects that we are cooking up at the shop in November. For the full class list check the shop website www.fiddleheadyarns.com

Cabled Crochet Hat



Mighty Mitts and Flap Caps

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Yarn and Yoga...YEAH!!

A while back the Lovely Lucy stopped in the shop and said to me "I think we should take a trip. We will meet somewhere, do some yoga, lots of knitting and have fun". I think the 2 footer was swinging from the light fixtures, there were 17 boxes of yarn to be unloaded and there wasn't a size 8 needle to be found in the shop. "Ummm, I'm up to my ears right now Lucy. I'll let you know." About 5 months later, this was the sight out the window of Lucy's car....

Through the changing leaves the retreat house can be seen...

10 ladies joined us in Sturgeon Bay Friday evening. The home was built in 1912, sat on 20 acres of gorgeous wooded land. Between knitting and relaxing yoga, some took trips to the local yarn shops, wineries and botiques. The schedule was loose, we did yoga when people were ready, we ate when people were hungry, we went to bed when we were tired (or for some, when the wine ran out)

and knit during the time in between!

We ate great food and enjoyed the company. (This table may have been worth the trip. The top of it was a lazy susan. That's right, take a spoonful and spin it around!)

It was a beautiful weekend to meet new people and practice yoga due to the stresses of knitting! Beautiful weather, great knitting and new friends that made wonderful company!
Yes, Lucy's squirrel is running on it's wheel in her head for the next trip.
She did call it the 1st annual afterall.









Tuesday, October 9, 2007

November Classes

November Classes are up!
Check them out over at the shop's website: http://www.fiddleheadyarns.com/Classes/classes.htm

Thursday, September 27, 2007

More From Knitting Camp

While we were there, the "Armenian Knitting" cover had been sent back from the printer to be proofed. Here is Meg and Joyce Williams, co-authors, taking a peak for the first time.
We received just a taste of this technique. As Meg pointed out, those a little nervous about intarsia can fear no longer. This technique carries the CC along the back the entire garment.



The Elizabeth Room......
Crack open any of EZ or Meg's books and find a sweater pictured. That exact sweater, my friends, is here. *gasp* I know, I know. (...we even were encouraged to try them on...this may have been worth the price of admission alone)


A Joyce Williams creation. Yes, pictures of the KNIT stitch on the front, PURL on the back and a little GARTER stitch thrown under the arms for good measure.




The Aran Coat from Knitting Around



I know, I know. Imagine back to the moment when you realized that you could laugh in the face of a dropped stitch? No big deal, right? Steeking is almost the same thing once you have done it a few times. Now, I haven't used it in a real sweater yet, although there is one started now. A new sweater for the 2 footer will be the guinea pig. Knit a swatch and try it. No need to knit up a big sweater. Isn't is magical....

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

*breakfast, knit, lunch, knit, dinner, knit*, repeat from asteriks

I had the opportunity of a lifetime this weekend.





Back in the early part of this year, I began crossing off the days before sign ups for Elizabeth Zimmermann's (now her daughter, Meg's) Knitting Camp. The night before I set my alarm to wake up early enough to sign onto the computer, enter my and my sister's information and hit submit. Before heading to bed that evening, I checked the website only to find the top of the website to say "Now accepting applications". Without a blink, I began filling out the data fields for both of us and hit submit. I called my sister and let her know that we were all signed up.
Complete Lobotomy.
Registering too early immediately put one on the waiting list.

After no sleep all night, I called Schoolhouse Press, told them of my apparent neural surgical procedure and the other end kindly said "Don't worry about it".

Don't worry about it because you're in OR Don't worry about it because are already screwed????

I waited 2 long months to find out that we were the latter.

FWD a few more months and an announcement of a fall workshop. Those on the waiting list were invited.....

So....Thursday morning we packed up our car, left the shop in the able hands of Nan, Ellyn and Kim, gave the 2 footer and his dad a kiss and headed the 4 hours to Marshfield, Wisconsin.

What entailed cannot be detailed in words. Seriously, Meg Swansen is that person who you could listen to speak for hours. She enjoys the simplicity of life, finds comfort in her knitting and can identify the good in most. After showing an almost invisible decrease, she would look up and say "Isn't that magical?" An extremely intelligent woman, I found myself often writing down vocabulary she used to look up later.

We studied sweater construction using EPS along with tips, tricks and techniques that did seem like magic. We steeked, worked intricate color patterns and listened to wonderful stories where Alice Starmore and Kaffe Fassett's first names were tossed around as if we were all just good friends. We even took a trip to Schoolhouse Press and tried on sweaters from the "Elizabeth Room". The weekend ended with Meg reading from "The Opinionated Knitter", a journal entry written by her mother detailing how they obtained the schoolhouse that Meg lives in now. Not a dry eye....

Those that attended, 20 of us from all over the country and Canada, ranging in all ages, had amazing talents. They truly were inspiration! No competitive feelings, only those of encouragement and and kindness.

I have a new perspective on my knitting. A feeling as though I could truly get rid of of all my knitting books, only to keep EZ and Meg's. Millions of ideas racing through my head. A notebook is filled with new things to incorporate into my next project. There were too many times to count that I turned to my sister and said "OMG!! Are you kidding me?" I may never knit another sweater in pieces or BO for the neck and armholes. Do you realize the wonder of a few extra stitches, a crochet steek and a pair of sharp scissors?

My hope is to organize the many things that were discussed this weekend and to bring some of them to you in the form of new classes. I also hope to order directly from Schoolhouse Press in the future. Yes, this includes books, SpunOuts, WoolGatherings and other fun things.
If you see a book by EZ or Meg or Joyce Williams, pick it up. If you get the chance to go to a Knitting Camp or Workshop, don't think twice.
It may be the catalyst to get your knitting moving in the direction you've been hoping for!
More pictures to share soon!


Thursday, September 13, 2007

Sheep and Lots of Wool...


We boarded the bus this weekend for the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival....



...And came back with just the necessities!
The day found many shopping, meeting with friends from other parts, taking classes, knitting, learning that there are such things as Merino Sheep and eating.
The bus ride home provided time for relaxing, show and tell of purchases and more knitting.
Mark it on your calendar for next year. It was winner!




Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Happy 1st Anniversary!




Stop in and say "Hi" next Wednesday!
We will be here from 10am to 10pm!

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Wicked!


Up until now I always felt bad that no one else ever gets to see how talented Fiddlehead Yarn Knitters are. They so proudly bring in their beautiful projects. I get to oooh and aaah and then they leave.
Allie came in this afternoon to show me her Wicked done in Louet Gems. I WOWed and I thought I would add it here so you can WOW!!
Fantastic Allie!

Monday, August 20, 2007

Tangled Yoke Cardigan

I usually wait for errors to be posted before I leap into a newly published pattern...until I saw the Tangled Yoke Cardigan by Eunny Jang in the latest Interweave Knits.



I also think life it too short and there is too much great yarn to knit the same yarn twice...but sometimes it's best to not mess with perfection.



Without further I ado, I give you my humble version...






The sweater was actually pretty quick. Done in one piece up to the armpits, the sleeves were added to the body, the beautiful cable added and then decreasing. I love the simplicity, the cable which is started thanks to a 5st increase into 1 st across the yoke. The cable sits on top of the sweater without any purling to offset it. I did change the collar slightly. The pattern says to knit up 8 rows, pick up a line of sts from the inside where the collar meets the body and bind these sts off with the collar. Knitting up 8 rows didn't leave me much for a collar and getting a straight line wasn't working. Instead, I knit the 8 rows and on the next row I K2tog, YO across the row. I added another 1.5" in st st, turned it over and bound off with the body sts. The picot hem isn't too noticeable and it gave me a nice edge to make sure it turned out straight.

Lovely! Not difficult and so gorgeous!

Sunday, August 19, 2007

September Classes

The September class list is up! Check it out at the shop's website. If you did not receive email notification, and would like to, send an email to fiddleheadyarns@wi.rr.com

Monday, July 30, 2007

A cup of coffee and a box from Artyarns

Early Monday mornings sometime find me in the shop with a cup of coffee. A couple of hours to straighten up before the 2 footer awakes. This morning I couldn't wipe the smile off my face. A big box filled with Artyarns arrived and here's what was inside...







From the top...

Handpainted Stripes... 100% Superwash Merino

A pair of socks or a hat and mittens!

Regal Silk... paired with

Beaded Silk will make a beautiful scarf!

Silk Rhapsody with or without GLITTER!

Stop in and see them in person!

Thursday, July 26, 2007

How About a Little Charity?

The following is a request from a friend of Fiddlehead Yarns and has a son-in-law serving in Iraq. Please consider helping!

Hats and Frisbees For The Children of Iraq

My son-in-law, SFC Donald Floro Jr is currently serving his second tour of duty in Iraq. His twice weekly convoy drives about 35 miles across the desert. When he was hom on leave last month, he called and asked if my knitting friends could make warm winter hats for the children who run after convoy begging for treats from the American soldiers. He also requested toys.
Night time temperatures in the winter in Iraq are near the freezing point and frisbees are lightweight, so I can keep the postage costs to a minimum.

Kathy

The shop will gladly collect any hats and/or Frisbees you wish to donate. Dig into your stashes and whip one up if you can!

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Start the Fall Planning...







Mmmmmm...new books!



And for the icing on the cake...
Interweave Knits Fall Preview is up! http://www.interweaveknits.com/preview/2007_fall.asp

Thursday, July 19, 2007

August Classes at Fiddlehead Yarns

The August classes are up! Check them out over at the shop's website. A few short classes while you enjoy the last full month of the summer...


Interested in knitting with beads? Give this scarf a try in class!

Monday, July 9, 2007

All Aboard

Fiddlehead Yarns is taking a bus to the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival!

No driving, arguing about directions or stopping to use the bathroom, just knitting...

We will be departing from the shop at 7am and returning at 5pm. Enough time to take a few classes, check out the barns and shows, eat some lamb and knit. No driving, just knitting...all for $35 (your ticket to the festival is included!). If you are interested, call the shop, stop in or send us an email. More information can be found on the shop website. Hope you can join us!