Apologies for the lateness of this Newsletter but there have been some website issues which hopefully are now resolved. The Summer yarns are now in-store and there are some lovely ones this year. One that I particularly like is Sirdar’s Summer Stripes Dk. It is their Calico but dyed in slubby random stripes which knit (and crochet) into stunning garments. Panda Cotton Blend has been enhanced with new colours and is still incredibly reasonably priced. It has become so popular because although it has the look and feel of pure cotton the percentage of acrylic in it means it doesn’t drop like pure cotton does. There is also a stunning new crochet pattern book especially produced for this yarn and now available. Lots of new Sirdar pattern books for babies and toddlers have arrived with a nice mix of patterns for boys and girls. Two of the big trends coming on line are Cables and Fairisle and these are bound to dominate the winter patterns next year. I find Fairisle particularly to be slow and tedious to do but some of the Sirdar patterns have a wonderful “cheat”. You knit a “plain” garment in Dk and when you get to the yoke instead of embarking on a slog of Fairisle you knit a computer dyed Fairisle effect yarn such as Crofter! At the moment Sirdar has some toddler patterns using the technique but it could be easily adapted to adult garments. Tape yarns continue to be incredibly popular. They are available from some of the big stores but I’m reliably informed that when this stuff is knitted up it feels like cardboard. Not so the yarn at Woolybutt. In fact about 10 days ago a tape yarn called Park Lane arrived which consists mostly of Kid Silk Mohair. I knitted up a sample scarf in it and my husband commented that it looked like I was “knitting clouds”. It is absolutely gorgeous and would make a stunning Christmas gift for someone special. Another tape yan to arrive is Sole (again by Katia). This is a mixture of cotton and acrylic and perfect for warmer days. Two balls of this knit a scarf and the total cost is around the $16 area. Not bad for such a unique item. Here is a list of tape yarns stocked by Woolybutt: Can Can (by Rico) Triana Triana Lux Sole           (all by Katia) Park Lane Rizo Ondas Sashay (by Panda)

Current projects: I have embarked on a project of knitting a sample scarf in every tape yarn we have in the store (there are 8). I’m on the last scarf now then I start the Christmas knitting. Also I’m knitting one of the new garments in the Summer Stripes Dk which should be in the shop in about 10 days. Happy knitting, Lorraine