Busy Hands

You may not necessarily be an anxious person but there is something about repetitive movement that helps calm your nerves and relax you. Muscle memory can store these movements in order to make the motions low key for your brain. Less thinking and more zoning out equals quite the relaxed state.

You can achieve this state through other means, meditation, yoga, breathing, etc. But my thinking is why not choose a form of relaxation that can also give you a sweater. Right? Who doesn't want to walk away less stressed and have a beautiful/useful scarf to show for it?

If you are interested in a few more details of the benefits of knitting take a look at this site or do a little research of your own and store up these facts for yourself and for the next person who says they're stressed. It helps that you get to play with gorgeous yarn too. So come on in and relax with us.

Knitting Mojo

   So we all know we can get into those grooves where you find knitting everywhere, and I mean everywhere. You walk into your office and there are piles of patterns with notes scribbled all over them and small remnants of yarn attached that are waiting to be entered into your ravelry account. Your bedside table has skeins of yarn that you have been contemplating, the kitchen table may have a project or two being blocked and your couch.....oh your couch, it is covered in every knitting tool you own along with all your current W.I.P. Sound familiar?

I must say that I have been guilty of this a time or two and it just means that my knitting mojo is in full swing but during the summer months it can tend to fade. How do we keep it up and essentially beat the heat? Change to cooler feeling materials, cotton, linen, acrylics or blends of all of the above. Keep inspiration high, browse through project pages or LYS shops or even completed projects. Dig through your stash and fall in love all over again with those beautiful skeins. 

Either way, use a little effort to rekindle your love for knitting, trust me, it doesn't take much to get the fire burning again. :)

Mother's Day 2014

 To all those Mama's out there, we wish you a wonderful Mother's Day full of joy, appreciation, good times and hopefully some lovely yarn. 

We will be closing early for the occasion at 2pm on Sunday, May 11th to celebrate with our families. See you again bright and early Monday. :)

How Do You Like Your Cotton?

It's that time again, cotton season. We have been getting in a few new yarns for the warmer weather and of course cotton is our main star. As there are so many different ways to enjoy cotton, we were wondering what is your favorite way?

In the pile shown above, we have straight up cotton, cotton/linen, cotton/acrylic and mercerized cotton. We have even more combinations available in different weights.

So what tickles your fancy? Are you looking to make a loose tank and you want a linen effect with the ease of cotton? Or maybe a summer baby blanket and 100% cotton is the ticket? Whatever your warm weather choice, cotton is a good one to have in the running. 

Mo's Spring Stash

For those of you who didn't sign up for Mo's Stash Box but are curious as to what was inside, here is a look at all of Mo's Spring goodies.

Mo graces you with his gorgeous face on the outside of a neatly wrapped package and inside he has a whole host of wonderful gifts. Let's go over them shall we?

Soak - this is a high end wool wash that has a lovely scent and gets the job done well. It can also be used on other delicate items other than hand knits, such as, lingerie, swimwear or other crafts that need a good cleaning but a delicate hand.

Lantern Moon Stitch Markers - Lantern Moon always has the cutest stitch markers that make pattern repeats a joy. They're colorful, good quality and a joy to work with. These little guys come in all shapes and for spring Mo picked out a lovely flower array.

Vogue Knitting Quick Reference Book - This book may be compact but it holds all the knitting knowledge you'll need for on the go. Wondering how to add new yarn on a certain complex knit? Or how to properly wrap your yarn when doing colorwork? This book can answer those questions for you and many others while conveniently fitting in your knitting bag.

Julep B. - "All Julep B. kits are packaged in a reusable muslin project bag and include the pattern with enough yarn to knit the design." These are great on-the-go projects that you can just grab as you run out the door or if you go on a trip, this and some needles is all you need.

This gives you a better idea of what to expect out of Mo's Stash Box when you sign up. He will be offering different seasonal goodies all year round so if you'd like to sign up for the next few season please call or drop into the store.

*Deadline for Mo's Summer Stash Box sign up will be May 23rd

Knitting Entertainment

Some people love to throw on a good movie when they're knitting, others love silence, some enjoy the outdoors and others love to listen to a good book.

I have put together some audiobook choices for you today. You've probably heard about most of these, probably even read a couple but maybe you don't have the audio option in order to listen to the story again while you work on your latest project.

Here are the links to four knitting related audiobooks from Audible.com. Each link provides a short synopsis of the novel and an option to download it to your device.

The Knitting Circle by Ann Hood

Knit One, Kill Two by Maggie Sefton

The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs

Last Wool And Testament by Molly MacRae

Who doesn't enjoy a good story involving their favorite hobby? Now you can enjoy that story while doing your favorite hobby. Hope you find one to your liking!

Stitches Alternative

For those of you who aren't going to Stitches, what could you be doing instead? Here are a few suggestion to have a little fiber fest of your own:

Organize Your Yarn

Before you roll your eyes and look over at your overflowing stash let me explain. It may seem like an overwhelming chore but if you can take over a large room for a day to spread out your stuff, you can get all of your fiber and tools organized and it feels fantastic and is surprisingly fun.

You get to see yarn you haven't seen in years and get that sweater set-up that has been scattered about all back together and organized by weight, so when you come to your cabinet or closet or bins when you're starting a new project you can go right to the section you need and look at your options. Trust me it's worth the "hassle." You use from your stash much more often because you actually know what you have and it's easy to get to, so give it a whirl.

Have A Yarn Swap

If you do go through your stash and organize it you're bound to come across some yarn you are no longer in love with and might want to give away or perhaps you could swap it. Get your friends or family members who also have some yarn they've grown out of and have a swap. Bake some cookie or grab some wine and lay out all those skeins and pick and choose from each others misfits and go home with some new loves that didn't cost you a thing.

Yarn Shop Crawl

Go and visit all of your local yarn shops. Take some friends, split the gas and see what all the shops have in stock for you. It's a great way to spend time with your friends, support local shops and get the exciting fiber experience you may feel you missed out on by not going to stitches.

Got Your Goat is open all weekend and would love to hang out with you on the couch and dish about the latest in the yarn industry.

When All Else Fails

Start a new project. You know the excitement of casting on and dreaming about how it's going to come out and how much the recipient is going to love it, whether that's you or someone else. Turn on your favorite movie, print out the pattern, gather all of your yarn and stitch away.

Hope these suggestions help you to have an enjoyable weekend in town.