Alpaca Sox Shawl

Our very own Emily designed a beautiful shawl using one skein of Alpaca Sox a few months back.  Classic Elite loved the pattern and published it one of their webletters!  They also added a large size using two skeins. 
It's now available free on Ravelry here. 

Shown here in the large version using color 1823 Strawberry.

She used a sweet lacy picot bind off.  I love the way it looks.

Shown here in the small size using color 1826 Pansy.

Here is the original shawl Emily made in the color 1872 Dried Herbs.  The simple mix of garter and stockinette looks beautiful with both the variegated and the tonal kettle dyed.

The yarn, Alpaca Sox, is a fingering weight yarn at 8 sts/in and a soft mix of 60% alpaca, 20% merino wool, 20% nylon with 450 yards in a skein.  We have so much fun using sock yarns for shawls and scarves on bigger needles.  It's soft and lightweight, making this wearable almost all year round!

-Annie, Yarn Garden

Upcoming Class - Knitting Your First Sweater

Are you mystified by sweater shaping? Not sure how to make sure your gauge is right? This easy pullover pattern gives you the option of a pretty color stranded pattern, color blocking or a solid color. Learn pattern reading, gauge, shaping, and seaming and feel confident making sweaters. Sign up for Mary's class online at yarngarden.net , over the phone 503-239-7950, or come in and see us! 
The class is $65.00 and all students will receive 20% off class material purchase.


Class Dates and Times:
Wed. • 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm • 1/11/2012
Wed. • 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm • 1/18/2012
Wed. • 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm • 2/1/2012
Wed. • 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm • 2/15/2012
Wed. • 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm • 2/22/2012

Skills needed to take this class - CO, BO, knit, purl. 

This sweater pattern which is available free from Cascade Yarns has instructions written to fit sizes small (medium, large, 1X, 2X, 3X).
The finished measurements for the bust are 35 ½ (37 ½, 40 ½, 43 ½, 46 ½, 49 ½)".

 

Here's a close up of the color work snowflake pattern that is optional.

Cascade Yarns, Soft Spun is what the sweater was made with.  It's a really nice single ply, aran-weight wool with 197yds/100gm skein, $8.95 each.  To make the color block version of the sweater pictured above, it would take about 7 skeins for the smallest size, 35.5" bust (2 hanks for the bottom color, 4 for the top and 1 for the snowflakes and trim) or 6 for a solid version. 

Here are a few other yarn suggestions the teacher has made:

Cascade Yarns, Eco Wool is a great yarn for this sweater too.  There are 478yds/250gm hank and $19.95.  It would take less than 3 to make the smallest/medium size and 6 for the largest.  We think it would be beautiful to make the whole body of the sweater in one solid shade and use a contrasting color for the trim and snowflakes. This yarn is wonderful to work, it's soft and has a great color palette. 

A traditional red sweater with white snowflakes would be really cute!

 Plymouth Earth, Homestead would be a perfect yarn too.  It's an undyed wool with 191yds/100gms and $5.95.  It would take 6 hanks to make the smallest size and 14 to make the largest size in a solid color, that's only $29.75 to make a wool sweater (for the smallest size)! 

Fibranatura, Shepherd's Own is another all natural undyed wool that we love.  I'm using this yarn for a shawl right now and love the feel of it.  It's a soft 2ply, aran-weight yarn with 252yds/100gms and $7.95.  Very economical and it comes in a range of naturals from creams to the dark chocolate pictured above. 
It would only take 4 skeins to make the smallest and 11 to make the largest in a solid color. 


All students will receive 20% off their class material purchase!

-Annie, Yarn Garden 

New Year!

We will be open today until 3pm so come in and pick out your project for 2012!

We are closed New Years Day and open our regular hours Monday, Jan. 2nd.  

Happy New Year from all of us at the Yarn Garden!

Last Minute Shopping

We're open today, Christmas Eve, from 10am-3pm.  Come in for your last minute gift shopping or treat yourself to a new project to work on over the holidays.  We have gift cards too!

New from Knitter's Pride is this wonderful set of Symfonie Dreamz double points made from densified laminated birch that's strong and smooth.  We love that each size is a different color and they are neatly organized in a little portable pouch. 

The set includes sizes US# 0, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3 all 6" in length. 

The interchangeable set from Knitter's Pride would make any knitter happy!  Includes sizes US #4-11, 4 cords in different lengths, 1 set of size markers, 8 end caps, 4 cord keys and a case.   

Happy Holidays from all of us at the Yarn Garden!

Gift Ideas - Gift Cards

Only a few days left until Christmas and I'm sure you're all knitting or crocheting as fast as you can to finish...I know I am!
To make your last minute shopping easy, Yarn Garden has gift cards!
Perfect for any fiber lover in your life.
We ship anywhere too, so you can go ahead and add a Yarn Garden gift card to your wish list and use it on that project you've always wanted to make for yourself.
Order one online at yarngarden.net or give us a call at 503-239-7950.

-Annie, Yarn Garden Staff

Woolly Penguins

We are in love with Marie Mayhew's felting patterns. We've had so much fun making these Woolly Penguins and Snowmen! 

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Get creative with accessories, here my mom made little ear muffs and a scarf with pom poms!

The Woolly Snowman pattern includes the corn-cob pipe, nose and instructions to make a top hat. We added a little smoke too!

We made our little penguin chicks using a skein of  Cascade 220 in gray, doubled with a skein of  Fresco in cream for the body and a skein of Cascade 220 in black for the head, tail and feet.  

Both patterns are knit in the round on big needles.  I knit my penguin in one evening and it took about a day to dry after felted.   

These would make great gifts!

Come in and check out some of her other felting patterns.  The gnomes are especially adorable.

Gift Ideas - Cowls

Cowls have been so popular and what a great gift idea too. They keep you warm and looking stylish. There's still plenty of time to knit up some of our favorites and a couple of them in just an evening! Here are a few ideas:



The Cozy Como Cowl is a great last minute gift. Knit in the round on US #17 needles, it can be done in an evening! We used two balls of Debbie Bliss Como, a baby soft blend of 90% merino wool and 10% cashmere.
Free pattern with yarn purchase!


Refashion Cowl is knit with one skein of Refashion, a bulky weight soft and textured yarn made from recycled wool/cashmere/nylon/rayon. We used one skein of Refashion and size US #10.5 needles. A fun and unique cowl!
Free pattern with yarn purchase.



Arwen's Horai Scarf by Hiroku Fukatsu, a free pattern featured on Hiroku's blog and Ravelry.
Knit on a US 10 1/2 knitting needle, she doubled the yarn and used 3 balls of Luna in color Sunbeam #26. Luna by Stacy Charles is a lace weight blend of 71% mohair/20% silk /9% metallic making it fluffy, soft and just the right amount of sparkle.



Treat a loved one or yourself to the Cloud 9 Cowl. Appropriately named because it feels light as a feather and soft as a cloud around your neck. Knit using one ball of Superior, a lace weight blend of 70% cashmere/ 25% silk/ 5% merino on a US #9 needle.
Free pattern with yarn purchase.



Add a little glitz to your outfit with the Constellation Cowl. A squishy garter stitch cowl knit flat, twisted and seamed together. We used two balls of Lanalux, an aran weight blend of merino and nylon on US #11 needles.
Free pattern with yarn purchase.



The Burberry Inspired Cowl is a great gift idea. We had a lot of fun with this pattern last winter using different yarns and decided to revisit it this season because we love the classic pattern. This one is so soft, it's hard to take off! Knit using 1 skein of Cascade Eco Duo, a blend of 70% undyed alpaca/ 30% undyed merino wool and $12.45 a skein. It's a quick gift knit on US# 10 needles and just lovely!



Parapluie is a fabulous cowl designed by our Emilly. Knit in seed stitch with a soft cable running down one edge. It's knit flat and seamed together, making it easy to change the length. She used two ball of Ariosa, one of my favorite yarns and US #11 needles. Ariosa is a bulky weight single ply 90% merino/ 10% cashmere. The colors are all beautiful and this cowl will look fabulous on anyone!
Free pattern with yarn purchase.



Fez Cowl designed by Debbie Bliss from her booklet, Fez is a wonderfully warm and cozy cowl with a fun stitch pattern to follow. Knit with two balls of Fez, a blend of 85% merino/15% camel on US #8 needles. This is one of my favorites.

-Annie, Yarn Garden Staff