May 2021

Newly-published books

Kaffe Fassett's writing is as vibrant as the pictures of his home in Kaffe Fassett In The Studio. For example he cheerfully admits, "I first painted this sunny kitchen Kermit-the-Frog green—it was so bilious we could hardly go in it, let alone cook or sit there...". He soon remedied the situation by repainting the room in soft yellow. He said in a recent YouTube video that he thinks people are afraid of making mistakes with color. I know that's true for me. I worry that the colors in my knitting are too clashing, too similar, or too boring. Kaffe Fassett's book has encouraged me to stop fretting and just keep trying things out until I find something I like. Knitting a new swatch is easier than repainting a kitchen! Sitting down with a cup of tea and this book felt like having an inspirational chat with the man himself. Joyful.

100 Micro Crochet Motifs is more than a book of patterns for tiny decorative shapes. Steffi Glaves also explains how to use jewelry findings (the building blocks of jewelry, like links and clasps) along with the crochet, to make necklaces, earrings and bracelets. This seems like a fun skill to learn and opens up a new way to make pretty things with crochet.

52 Weeks of Shawls contains a beautiful collection of shawls of different shapes, using a wide range of techniques, and made with many different yarns. All of these shawls are blocked after knitting, apart from one. The designers purposely left the Windy Fields shawl unblocked. On paper, this shawl is a good candidate for blocking—it's made with a brushed mohair/silk yarn and knit with a lace pattern, both of which respond well to blocking. So why didn't they block? I made a swatch to show the difference.

Before blocking, the swatch fabric is undulating and squishy. You could wear a shawl of this fabric under your coat and it would fill any gaps around your neck, keeping out cold winds. After blocking, the fabric becomes sheer and flat. It would look elegant laid across your shoulders on a cool evening.

Both are valid choices, but you do have to choose because blocking is a one-way process. The designer and editors at Laine decided that they wanted the squishy version of the shawl. For me, the decision highlights their experience and attention to detail. They didn't just block because "that's what you're supposed to do", they actually thought about it. A book of beautiful patterns, edited by thoughtful designers, is a book I'm happy to own.

New and discontinued yarns

New

Anchor
Organic Cotton – DK – 100% Organic Cotton – Plied – Solid colors

Bernat
Baby Blanket Sparkle – Super Bulky – 99% Polyester, 1% Metallic – Chenille – Solid colors with metallic

Berroco
Vintage Baby – DK – 52% Acrylic, 40% Superwash Wool, 8% Nylon – Plied – Solid colors

Blue Sky Fibers
Skyland – DK – 40% Highland Wool, 30% Baby Alpaca, 30% Silk – Plied – Solid colors

Cygnet
100% Cotton – DK – 100% Cotton – Plied – Solid colors

Erika Knight
British Blue Wool Fingering – Fingering – 100% Blue Faced Leicester Wool – 2 ply – Solid colors

James C. Brett
Dotti – DK – 50% Acrylic, 50% Cotton – S on S plied – Dotted colors

Katia
Concept Pure Degradé – Aran – 100% Cotton – Fleecy chain – Gradient
Ekos – Bulky – 50% Cotton, 47% Polyester, 3% Other (Unknown) Recycled Fibers – Chained – Solid colors
United Socks – Fingering – 75% Superwash Wool, 25% Nylon – Plied – Solid colors

Kelbourne Woolens
Camper – Fingering – 100% Wool – 2 ply – Heathered colors

Knitcrate
Audine Wools Dreamy Sock – Fingering – 60% Blue Faced Leicester Superwash Wool, 20% Alpaca, 20% Nylon – Plied – Solid colors
Vidalana Celestial – Aran – 90% Alpaca, 10% Tencel / Lyocell – Plied with a soft haze – Solid colors

Lana Grossa
About Berlin Vanity – Worsted – 54% Cotton, 21% Viscose, 13% Silk, 12% Nylon – Slubby tweed – Multicolored
Gomitolo Felice – DK – 70% Cotton, 30% Viscose – Chained – Self-striping
Pima Fine Hand Dyed – Sport – 100% Cotton – S on S plied – Multicolored

Leo & Roxy Yarn Co
Basics 75/25 Sock – Fingering – 75% Merino Superwash Wool, 25% Nylon – Plied – Solid colors

Lion Brand
Cotton Blend No 5 – Bulky – 55% Cotton, 45% Acrylic – Single wrapped with thread – Self-striping marls
Cotton Candy Blend – Worsted – 52% Polyester, 48% Cotton – Plied – Marled

Loops & Threads
Baby Rainbow – Aran – 100% Polyester – Plied – Solid colors

Miss Babs
Damask – Fingering – 65% Silk, 35% Linen – Plied – Solid colors, Tonal colors, Multicolored, Speckled colors

Mondial
Palau – DK – 55% Linen, 25% Cotton, 20% Viscose – Slubby tweed – Solid colors

Qing Fibre
Soufflé Pure – Light Fingering – 100% Cashmere – Crepe – Solid colors, Tonal colors

Quince and Co
Wren – Worsted – 60% Wool, 40% Organic Cotton – Tweedy – Semi-solid colors

Rico Design
Creative XXL – Jumbo – 80% Acrylic, 20% Superwash Wool – Plied – Solid colors

Rowan
Cotton Wool – Worsted – 60% Organic Cotton, 40% Wool – Fleecy chain – Solid colors

Schachenmayr Original
Alpaca Classico – Aran – 60% Wool, 40% Alpaca – Plied – Solid colors, Heathers

We Are Knitters
The Twist & Shout Yarn – DK – 36% Baby Alpaca, 36% Merino Wool, 18% Viscose, 10% Linen – Tweedy – Tweed colors

mYak
Kupa Collection Baby Yak Organic Cotton – Light Fingering – 50% Organic Cotton, 50% Yak – Tweedy – Semi-solid colors

Discontinued

BC Garn
Silkbloom Extra Fino – Lace – 55% Merino Wool, 45% Silk – 2 ply – Solid colors, Self-striping (gradient transition)

Borgo de'Pazzi
Bulky – Super Bulky – 100% Wool – Single wrapped with thread – Solid colors, Self-striping (gradient transition), Undyed

Ella Rae
Chunky Merino Splash – Bulky – 100% Merino Superwash Wool – Plied – Multicolored

Fibra Natura
Cottonwood – DK – 100% Organic Cotton – Loosely plied – Solid colors
Lina – Sport – 68% Linen, 32% Cotton – Z-plied – Solid colors

Juniper Moon Farm
Stargazer – Sport – 70% Llama, 30% Silk – Plied with a soft haze – Solid colors

Lana Grossa
Gomitolo Summer Tweed – Fingering – 72% Cotton, 20% Viscose, 8% Nylon – Tweedy – Tweedy gradient marl

Lang Yarns
Angora – DK – 70% Angora, 30% Wool – Plied with a soft haze – Solid colors

Lion Brand
Amazing Lace – Lace – 70% Acrylic, 30% Nylon – Plied with a soft haze – Solid colors
Dream Maker – Super Bulky – 74% Acrylic, 26% Nylon – Tape – Multicolored
Flikka – Worsted – 50% Cotton, 50% Polyester – Plied – Multicolored marls
Fun Fur – Heavy Worsted – 100% Polyester – Eyelash – Multicolored
It's So Fluffy – Super Bulky – 100% Polyester – Fleece style – Solid colors
LB Collection Hand Dyed Silk – Worsted – 100% Silk – Single ply – Multicolored
LB Collection Silk Chiffon Ribbon – Super Bulky – 100% Silk – Rag ribbon – Multicolored
Low Tide – Worsted – 81% Acrylic, 19% Polyester – I-cord – Semi-solid colors
Mani-Pedi – Fingering – 75% Superwash Wool, 25% Nylon – Plied – Self-striping
Re-Line – Aran – 53% Linen, 47% Cotton – Crepe – Solid colors
Re-Play – Aran – 100% Tencel / Lyocell – Tape – Solid colors
Softball – Super Bulky – 100% Polyester – Single wrapped with thread – Solid colors
Summer Kiss – Worsted – 80% Cotton, 20% Polyester – Chained – Color dashes
Touch of Merino – Sport – 90% Acrylic, 10% Merino Wool – S on S plied – Solid colors

Pickles
Pure Thin Alpaca – Sport – 100% Alpaca – Plied

Rozetti Yarns
Merino Mist – DK – 60% Viscose, 20% Acrylic, 20% Merino Superwash Wool – Fiber-filled net – Semi-solid colors

The Yarn Collective
Pembroke Worsted – Worsted – 100% Merino Wool – Plied – Tonal colors

Universal Yarn
Bella Cash Worsted – Aran – 60% Merino Superwash Wool, 30% Nylon, 10% Cashmere – Plied – Solid colors

If you'd like to get in touch, please send a mail to hello@yarnsub.com (you can simply reply to this mail) or find me on Instagram.

See you in June!

Wendy

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