We are in the last month of winter and it seems to have gone so fast although I suspect there are still many more cold days before things start to warm up. Scarves have been very popular this winter which is probably due to the very cold winds that have been prevalent lately. Many scarf quantities have been sold and I’m constantly being asked for scarf patterns. There are a number of commercial patterns available but it is easy to work it out for yourself. Most ball bands on yarn tell you that if you knit on the needles recommended for example 8ply uses 4mm needles then there will be 22 stitches on the needle for every 10cm. If you want a scarf approximately 15cm wide then cast on 33 stitches etc. Never knit a scarf in all stocking stitch as the sides will curl in and create a tube to avoid this, knit  the first and last 6 stitches in garter stitch and the rest in stocking stitch. Stocking stitch is pretty boring for a scarf – get hold of a Stitch Dictionary and try a stitch you’ve never used before, combine colours, use different size needles – fool around a bit as it is not a fitted garment so let your imagination run free. Woolybutt now stocks Noro and this yarn is great for scarves with its wild colourways and textures. If you have knitted a lacy scarf that is longish a great way of shortening it is to sew on a button in the middle  of the scarf about 30-40cm from the ends. At Woolybutt we hunt down old interesting buttons (largeish) to sew on the scarves. the scarf then can be looped around and buttoned to create a shorter scarf. 

This coming weekend an interesting event is happening at Woolybutt: an entire class has been booked out for a “Hen’s Party”! Woolybutt is supplying needles, yarn and tea and coffee (and cupcakes) and of course a great Knitting teacher and hopefully a fun time will be had by all. We are all looking forward to it and I’ll let you know how it  goes next month.

Current projects: still working on a jumper for my husband and I have just started a scarf for myself in Heirloom Monaco a wonderfully textured yarn. I am contemplating producing a few pairs of Flower fingerless mittens for the shop as I recently found a small inexpensive book (which is available from Woolybutt) which is full of the most delicious knitted flowers and I’ve been thinking about how to incorporate them into useful objects. This is currently a “work in progress” and may veer off in entirely another direction!

Happy Knitting!

Back to the shop! Some new arrivals this month are prints in Waikiwi the 4ply possum/wool from New Zealand along with a cute pattern book which has an adorable baby Snuggle sack pattern in it! New prints have also arrived in Loyal and Patonyle. The trusted Patons sock wool has been revamped and the colours and prints are lovely and well worth a look.

Current projects: just finished a baby slouchy hat in Baby Crofter – very quick knitting and cute looking! Started knitting a little pinafore dress in 10ply Aran tweed in red from the new Children’s Aran Tweed book from Naturally and am still knitting the jumper in Celtic. Should keep me busy for a few weeks….

Happy knitting

Lorraine

Onto matters closer to home. New patterns have arrived from Sirdar amongst the most notable being Baby Crofter. For those of you who have fallen in love with this self-patterning yarn you must see the baby yarn and the baby patterns that accompany it are very cute. There is also a new Sublime Baby Cashmerino Dk book with a lovely carcoat on the cover as well as new colours in that yarn. A new sock yarn Zig Zag has also arrived from Sirdar and is very reasonably priced but be warned, the colours are “out there”! Another innovation from Sirdar is Dolly wool. Cute little balls of acrylic for $1.20 which are ideal for small projects such as toys and great yarn for children to learn to knit with. This fills the gap left by Disco’s demise. I may have mentioned it in the last Newsletter but it does bear mentioning again – we now stock Zara and new colours with be gradually added throughout the coming months. This yarn is the most famous of the Filatura di Crosa yarns and with justification as it is one of the most beautiful yarns on the market and still sells for just under $10.

Current projects: A vest in Folklore for myself. Still working on a Celtic jumper for my husband and a scarf for granddaughter in Dreamtime who to paraphrase Henry Ford loves any color as long as it’s pink!

Happy Knitting

Lorraine

Some really great news is that Woolybutt now stocks Zara the beautiful 8ply yarn from Filatura de Crosa. This is a superb yarn in terms of texture, knittability and wear and at less than $10 is a very good buy. Initially there are only about 10 colours but if it sells well the colours will build up. While on the subject of 8plys Woolybutt is stocking the new Totem. The difference between the new Totem and the “old” Totem is the wool. The “old” Totem used Merino wool a far more expensive clip than the new Totem now uses hence the large difference in price and the reason for the sudden price drop in both Bluebell and Totem. Some people say they can’t tell the difference but to me the “old” Totem has a softer and silkier feel but then I handle lots of different yarns every day. The new Totem/ Bluebell certainly knits up the same, there is also a lovely new pattern book from Bluebell which is well worth a look. Another yummy 8ply to arrive is Heirloom’s Bliss, the black and white print in this yarn is fantastic and really looks great knitted in scarves and berets.

For those of you who like competitions Patons has a great one currently going where you knit a baby garment in their yarns, then photograph the recipient in the garment and send it in, $30,000 is the prize money which is not an inconsiderable amount!

Current projects: a cable jumper for my husband in Heirloom Celtic in dark brown. He wears a lot of brown and his current brown jumpers are looking a bit tatty. Finished (finally) the granny square crocheted rug for my daughter. The night I took it over my granddaughter went and got her pillow, wrapped herself up in the rug and proceeded to watch her favourite dvd, so I guess it got the seal of approval! I’m now contemplating an afghan for our lounge room but knitted not crocheted for a change.

Happy knitting!

Yesterday I went to a major bookstore retailer to buy a book for the long weekend and I just happened to wander into their craft section and was aghast to find that their knitting books are between $5 and $10 more expensive than at Woolybutt and the selection (dare I say it) was not as good! If you are looking for a particular book and can’t get to the store give me a phone call. A customer recently tracked me down through a wholesaler as she was looking for a book “Turtle-back Sweaters” and apparently Woolybutt was the only stockist! If I haven’t got a particular title in stock I’m happy to track it down, ditto for yarn although yarn older than 5 years is just about impossible.

A new yarn that has arrived from Panda is proving extremely popular. It’s name is Astraka and it comes as a giant ball. It is acrylic with a boucle texture but it is very pleasant to knit. One ball knits a shawl and the pattern for the shawl is on the inside of the ball band, For $11.95 it is a lovely project and on size8 needles doesn’t take long to knit. It comes in some lovely colours: pink, green, blue, brown and black and white. Needless to say with all the Collingwood fans around I have been unable to keep the black and white version in the shop for long, I’m hoping for more black and white next week but all the other colours are immediately available. I’m knitting a pink one at the moment for the shop as lots of people have asked me how it knits up.

In the current Jet book is a very unusual cape and beret. The cape is best described as a series of “bubbles” or “waves”. It is surprisingly easy to knit once you get the hang of it but it is defintely a garment for someone who wants to make a real fashion statement. If you happen by the shop it is currently in the front window, the other alternative is to have a look at the new Jet book.

Aran Tweed by Naturally is one of the hits so far with customers looking for a ten ply with a difference. It is a slightly “felted” wool with a lovely tweedy fleck through it and would be ideal for the many US patterns that are around that use 10ply rather than our 8ply. While on the subject of US patterns Woolybutt stocks 12.75mm knitting needles. Apparently many US patterns call for this size and they are very hard to get but we do have them. Other “odd” items that we carry are Tricot (Tunisian) needles – a full range and also a full range of  Hairpin crochet needles plus the usual stitch markers, measurers, counters and wool needles for sewing up.

Current projects: the aforementioned Astraka shawl plus two baby garments to finish off for the shop also the crochet afghan is finally nearing completion, then I’ll be “finished” (as long as I ignore those UFO’s (unfinished objects)  in the corner of my study!

Happy knitting.

The other big arriver has been Naturally of  New Zealand. A gorgeous 4ply possum/wool blend yarn called Waikiwi has landed. It is not cheap but for any of you familiar with NZ possum it is worth every cent. The other lovely new yarn from them is Aran Tweed a stunning 10ply wool yarn with a great tweedy fleck through it – perfect for those “long wintry walks followed by a hot cuppa tea” days. Oooh I am so looking forward to winter!

A second Saturday morning crochet class is about to start so if anyone is interested please phone the shop or email me. It will run concurrently with the other class except it will be upstairs. The hours are 10.30am to 12.30pm every Saturday.

Current projects: the beret featured in the new Jet book – this is for the Shop. Still finishing the Luxury Cotton bolero for myself – hopefully this weekend. During the week there arrived from Birch a heart-shaped Pompom maker which I’ve been playing with. Now I’ve decided to knit a childrens scarf and put these very cute pompoms on the ends. This is a great gizmo and is from Clover who come up with the cutest ideas.

Happy knittng (and crocheting)!

If you come to the Shop don’t forget to check out our Bargain Room which is currently being replenished with discontinued and end-of-line dyelots. Prices are up to 50% cheaper than the original retail and garment quantities are available, not just one and two ball deals. There are also bargain pattern books, magazines and patchwork material at $2 per metre so it is well worth a visit.

Classes are back so if you are thinking of brushing up your skills by all means come along. Classes run 10.30am to 12.30pm on Tuesday and Saturday mornings. Saturday’s class is full but there are vacancies in Tuesday’s class. Please contact the Shop on 9458 3101 for further details.

Woolybutt does offer mail order. If you see something on the website that you like you may order it directly. For multiple items you are best to phone the Shop as then we can give you a discount on postage. There is also an eBay Shop selling mostly patterns and pattern books that maybe worth a browse.

Current projects: a Valentine Angel for the Shop window, a cotton cardigan in Sirdar’s Luxury cotton, some knitted coathangers for the shop and finishing a Cleckheaton Bamboo wrap that was started before Christmas but other stuff got in the way – the story of my life as a knitter!

Happy Knitting

All the plans for knitting over the break went for nought as a customer desparately wanted a garment knitted and so my vacation has been spent doing that. The garment is nearly finished (just in time for my holidays to end) and so all the little experimants have been shelved until some time presents itself. The coming season is full of the most incredible yarns and exciting news and the colours and variety are gorgeous. Now is a really good time to clear the decks (i.e. demolish the ’stash’) so that you have room for new stuff, I know that was my intention.

Stay cool and happy knitting until next month,

Lorraine

In terms of knitting yarn two summer yarns that have been romping off the shelves are Sirdar’s Juicy and Patons Sorrento.  We just got a new stock of Juicy yesterday in all colours. In the Patons Sorrento we have all colours except the mauve which we ran out of yesterday. If you really need a colour call the shop and ask it to be held for you because replacements of stock simply aren’t happening. Juicy books are now back in stock as well.

The annual Woolybutt Knitting Competition is on again starting December 1. If you are interested in participating e-mail me for an application form. The prize is a $60 Woolybutt Gift Voucher, entries close on the 22nd of December and knitted articles must be submitted for judging by February 9th 2010. The theme for this year’s competition is “Needful Things”.

A heads up on winter next year: jewel colours seem to be the key theme  in most of the winter yarn collections – shades of grey and tomato reds are also featured so if you are thinking of starting winter knitting early they are the colours that will be featured.

There will of course be a January Newsletter. Until then may you and your family enjoy the festive season and happy knitting!

Current projects: a cotton bolero (gift), a pair of Happy bamboo socks (gift), Jean Greenhowe’s tree trimmers but knitted in 4ply on 2.25mm needles to make them small and delicate for the little Woolybutt Christmas tree – that should keep me going until the 25th.

At this time of year things are fairly quiet in terms of new things arriving at the shop, however next seasons Peter Pan colours have arrived early so that if you are thinking of making something for a new baby arriving in the New Year come in and check out the lovely colours – both Dk and 4ply have new refreshing colours. There are also some new books in the shop and more on the way. There is currently great interest in vintage knitting and last week “Vintage Knitting for Babies” arrived and is well worth a look and inclusion on a Christmas wish list. Woolybutt also has “Crochet on a Roll” , a superb book in the same vein as the knitting books of similar name but exclusively for crocheters. While on crocheting Woolybutt now stocks a comprehensive range of the “Soft Touch” crochet hooks. These hooks have padded ends which are a lot kinder to hands than the steel shaft versions and if you are a keen crocheter purchase some and do your hands a favour.

Current projects: finishing off the socks mentioned above, a lovely summer top in Sirdar’s Juicy (which should be in the Shop by the end of next week) and granny squares for an afghan for my daughter.

Hints: Quick knit dishcloth – use 8ply natural cotton (I like Twilley’s dishcloth cotton). Using 4mm needles cast on 58 stitches. Knit 3 rows in garter stitch, 4th row wrap yarn over needle twice in every stitch. 5th row knit garter letting extra yarn “drop” to make a big “hole”. Repeat rows 1 to 5 until length desired (I make mine about 18cm long so I can hang it over the tap). Cast off loosely! When it starts getting grotty throw it in the washing machine. This is much more ‘earth friendly’ than those dreadful sponges and commercial products and will last a lot longer. One ball of Twilleys makes about 4 of these!