are you curious?

i know you are. i get questions every day about what i'm up to and what my plan is for the shop.

1. are you closing? 
2. are you moving? 
3. when are you going to get more yarn? 
4. your inventory is low - are you not going to carry [insert yarn name/weight]? 
5. are you going to stop carrying needlepoint canvases?

the simple answers are

1. no
2. not this year
3. soon
4. yes, maybe, no (depending on the yarn)
5. no

but as we all know, answers are usually not that simple. over the past few years, the YARN mart has been going through some major and some minor changes. ownership has changed. technology has advanced (and continues to advance). and the yarn world is vastly different.

you are demanding more from your local yarn shop and from the yarn industry as a whole. you are smarter and savvier knitters, crocheters, and needlepointers. and after 50 years in business, we have a standard to maintain as well as a future to forge. i have a tons of ideas - more than i can accomplish in my lifetime but i'm excited about what is coming next. and i'm ready to meet whatever challenges you, our loyal customers, demand!

so...

1. no we are not closing.
2. not this year but in the near future to a location with much better parking.
3. after reducing down our inventory to a realistic number, it's time to build it back up. it will take a while (probably a year and a half). please bear with me.
4. we will continue to carry many of the high quality yarns that you have grown to expect from the YARN mart including blue sky alpacas, berroco, swans island, and lorna's laces. three irish girls had great YM unwinding and juniper moon farm's zooey is already sold out and reordered. sweet georgia tough sock love and cashmere lace arrived yesterday. i've got a plan and can't wait to unveil each and every new yarn.

stick with me cause I think you are going to LOVE the new and improved shop!

knittin' for baby

knittin' for baby is the perfect summer time knittin'!

check out these great new patterns from spud & chloe! fine and stripey fine are wonderful fingering weight yarns in yummy baby colors.

Pint-Size Pullover

roundabout romper and socks

boo boo bottoms

happy 4th of july!!!!

happy 4th of july for all of us at the YARN mart! i hope you all have a happy and safe holiday weekend. we will be closed on friday, july 3 and saturday, july 4.

i'll be at the shop till 8 pm on thursday, july 2 with special holiday punch (with and without a little something something). and i think i'll pull out the prize tub and have special gifts for everyone who arrives or stays after 5pm to keep me company.

so in honor of our nation's birthday and the signing of the declaration of independence, check out these patterns.

fireworks hat

fireworks

fireworks beret

 

the knit a long is back!

about three years ago, we started a knit a long on thursday nights. it was a huge success. so much that we added a wednesday daytime knit a log about two years later. but about a year ago it slowed down and we decided to give everyone a break.

well it's back!!!!!

starting the week of july 6, we will host a wednesday knit a long from 11:30 to 1:30 and a thursday night knit a long from 6 to 8. and the great thing is that we will feature two different projects so you can participate in both if you want to.

there are no fees to attend the knit a long. i just ask that you purchase your supplies for either KAL from us at the YARN mart.

on wednesdays we will be knitting this amazing felted bag from noni. using cascade 220, you can knit the small, medium or large size. (heather will be knitting the medium size). plus you will be able to order exquisite leather and metal purse handles to make your purse complete. learn all about felting and finishing with this cool hobo style bag.

on thursday nights we will be knitting rockefeller by stephen west. learn about color work and directional knitting with this spectacular shawl from one of knitting's top designers. using two colors of light fingering yarn, you will create a dramatic shawl and get rave reviews from all your friends. i'm using one solid color and one variegated for extra drama.

space is limited so call soon to reserve your spot. you must purchase your supplies to guarantee you have seat at the table. 

come and join me for both of these simple, yet elegant, projects.

and the winner is...

Suzette Keyser!!!! Great work Suzette! She wins a $50 gift certificate for being the first participant to finish the sweater. Thanks to everyone who participated. We'll do it again soon!

add a little needlepoint to your life! new trunk show has arrived.

and a great place to start is a needlepoint christmas ornament. they are small, reasonably priced and stitch up in no time at all.

now through june 20, the yarn mart is hosting a associated talents needlepoint trunk show with dozens of their small canvases. the pieces are mainly christmas in theme but we also have halloween, fall, and beach christmas. we have stocking cuffs (you don't have to stitch a whole stocking), ornaments, 3-d houses and signs.

plus many of the canvases come with complimentary stitch guides so you can break out of the basketweave rut and really flex your needlepoint muscle.

do you love the beach? do you spend christmas vacation on the sand? then this trunk show is for you. we have dozens of beach themed christmas canvases.

all trunk show canvases are 20% off. and if you drop by between 9am and 10am on Thursday morning, you will get an additional 5% off your whole purchase. plus we will have mimosa and pastries!

let's talk yarn stash!

the dowager is right. asking about a lady's yarn stash is like asking a lady her age. it is just not done - especially in the south.

well i'm here to tell you i am 40 years old and i have 181 items stashed in ravelry. that's not balls or skeins or hanks. that's items. now the last time i updated my stash in ravelry was july 4 of last year. great way to spend a holiday - organizing and cataloging my stash. but who knows how much i've bought since then. maybe i'll get around to adding my newest acquisitions over memorial day weekend!

we all have stuff in our stashes that we look at and scream (quietly or out loud so it scares the rest of the household) - what was i thinking????? you question yourself. you question your sense of taste. you question your sanity at the moment you made the purchase. is the color unfortunate? is the texture not doing it for you? is it one skein of 100 yard and you have no idea want to do with it?

well then it is time to destash!!!! your one-time treasure can be someone else's now treasure.

so join us for the 2nd annual yarn swap @ the YARN mart.  all the details on the website but know that you have to drop off your stuff between june 3 and june 6 and the actual swap is between june 13 (knit in public day) and june 20! a whole week to look through other folks stuff and find something you can't live without!

just shrug it off!

i love a shrug. i used to wear them all the time because i was always cold. they are the perfect amount of fabric around your arms and in my former life, the inside climate was set for the artifacts, not for the personnel. so try this great shrug project. and shrug it off!

it's a girl...

and she is wearing a knitted bonnet!

unless you have been living under a rock, you know that prince william and kate middleton (princess catherine) had a baby girl.

they emerged from the lingo wing of st. mary's hospital, london, with charlotte elizabeth diana, princess of cambridge, wrapped in a beautiful knit baby blanket and wearing an amazing knit baby bonnet.

want these accessories for your own bundle of joy? well there is already a hat pattern on ravelry.

take a chance on lace...

it is not as hard as it looks.

lace is beautiful and delicate and intimidating to most knitters. but it really isn't that hard.

do you know how to knit and purl? can you make a yarn over? can you knit 2 together or ssk?

then you can knit most lace patterns. really!!!

i think most knitters are scared of lace weight yarn but you don't have to knit lace with lace weight. lace patterns come in all shapes, sizes and yarn weights. super bulky any one? how about a worsted weight cowl or shawl with yarn overs? or fingering weight for a delicate and elegant look?

if you want to try lace, look at these easy lace patterns.

the pattern must be wrong...

one thing we hear a lot is "this pattern is wrong." i even say that to myself from time to time. but i'm here to tell you - the pattern is rarely wrong. last week i was working on a pattern that i picked for the reywa bloom silk/yak blend yarn. it is a lace weight yarn and although we are featuring a pattern that used the yarn double, i wanted to try something single. so i searched ravelry and found a beautiful shawl pattern. it was not difficult lace. just a lot of yarn overs. it was a free pattern so if it didn't work out, nothing lost/nothing gained. it was charted. i love a chart.

i started knitting and it was going well until the second pattern repeat (about 14 rows in). the pattern told me to repeat the highlighted section of the chart in each repeat. i did this. and i had a extra stitch. i backed it out and tried again. still one extra stitch.

ok let's look at the other folks that have knitted this on ravelry. surely someone else has had this problem. nope, everyone loved the pattern. no problems. no complains. or if they did have an issue they are not posting it for the world to see.

so i rip my knitting out. start over. same thing. an extra stitch. ok maybe i'm supposed to knit that one other stitch. the one in between the 2 highlighted pattern sections. well that worked but now i don't have enough stitches. ugh! rip out. start over. again - extra stitch.

after about 7 attempts, i gave up. moving on to another pattern later. knitting is supposed to be relaxing and enjoyable. if you aren't having fun with a pattern... if you are not enjoying knitting a pattern... if you are not enjoying knitting with a particular yarn...

then move on. let it go. shake it off. it's ok. you have not failed. it just may not be your time for that pattern or that yarn. 

when to knit a sweater?

it might seem counter intuitive but the best time to start a sweater is now - spring! 

most people aren't going to knit a sweater in a month. most people are going to work on other project while they are working on the sweater. by starting now, you give yourself time to make sure your gauge is right and that you have time to really get the pattern right. 

so don't wait until october or november when we are all too busy to knitting anything.

here are some ideas for sweaters using the new yarn, mrs. crosby steamer trunk.

wow that was a sale!

i needed your help reducing inventory and boy, y'all came through! thank you so much!

now i get to order exciting new yarns like mrs. crosby, three irish girls, and opal sock yarn.

but my accountant says i still have a little more to reduce down.

so some yarns will remain at 40% to 75% off. needlepoint canvases (except christmas) are 30% off and buttons are 40% to 90% off. select books are 40% off. once i reach my goal, they will go back to regular price.

thanks again for helping with inventory reduction and please come sit and knit or needlepoint or crochet with us.

snowflakes keep falling ...

ok it's really sleet but it's march! when have we seen this much snow/sleet/wintry mix in march. so enjoy these snow inspired patterns.

me, myself & i

i have a degree in english but that doesn't mean that i don't make grammar mistakes from time to time. after all my degree is in literature not grammar/linguistics.

today in the shop newsletter, i misused the identifier I. i stated "join will and i..." when it should have been join will and me..."

well if you are reading this blog post it is you lucky day. mention this post and get 10% off your next purchase (expires next wednesday 02/25/2015).

and here are some patterns that use me, myself or i.

voodoo you love me?

I Give Myself To Thee

How I Make My Socks

BIG, HUGE, INCREDIBLE news!!!!

i'm excited to announce that as of this week, i'm the sole owner of the YARN mart. this is something that i've wanted for a long time and it is exciting to see my dream realized. so many people have helped make this dream a reality but i don't want to sound like an acceptation speech on some hollywood stage. those folks know who they are and they know how much i appreciated them.

so as we celebrate 50 years of knitting and needlepoint, i'm looking forward to new yarns, new needlepoint, more class and more events.

join me on thursday from 4 to 6:30 for a toast of champagne!

heather

no more mondays!

after over 7 years, monday night's perpetual beginner knitter class has come to an end. we have had a wonderful time with great stories, lots of laughter, and great friendships.

we hope that our monday night knitters will move to thursday and join us for stitching, socializing and wine. the shop is open until 8pm every thursday night and a staff member is always on hand to help with small stitching problems and fixes.

so this is not goodbye but see you thursday!