A Tale of Two Yarns

A Tale of Two Yarns – 2KCBWDAY1

Part of any fibre enthusiast’s hobby is an appreciation of yarn. 

Choose two yarns that you have either used, are in your stash or which you yearn after 

and capture what it is you love or loathe about them.

Only two?! Well then, this should be easy! I say this because I really only have one absolute favorite yarn "brand" in which I completely adore and appreciate. Everything else follows behind. I find that I have a mixed stash - samplings, really, of yarns. One skein of Barking Dogs Yarn, a few from Three Irish Girls, a couple of specialty cotton/silk blends, a small yet growing collection of Sunflower Yarns and so on. When it comes to choosing yarns, I am huge supporter of indie dyers. I grew up attending art camps each summer and taking classes throughout my schooling which has given me a deep appreciation for art. This may be why I love the process of someone taking natural fibers and using them as canvases. 


• Sunshine Yarns
     http://www.sunshineyarns.com

For those of you who already know me, you definitely know my passion for Sunshine Yarns. Yep. What is it that I love about this particular brand? Well, so many things, that I could literally write a thesis! Really though, my love for Sunshine Yarns stems from the artist behind the brand, Dani, with her ability to create gorgeous hand-painted luxurious fibers. She is able to translate color onto fibers by becoming inspired by photographs or characters from books, telling stories, mimicking seasons, and dreaming in color. 

Hunting Wildflowers
Sunshine Yarns
Classic Sock 100% Superwash Merino
(photo from sunshineyarns flickr)

Harry Potter
Sunshine Yarns
L to R: 100% Superwash BFL wool • Classic Sock 100% Superwash Merino • 100% Superwash Merino Worsted
 (photo from sunshineyarns flickr)

Along with creating gorgeous skeins and rovings, what I also love about Sunshine Yarns is the outstanding costumer service! Dani and her husband Scott are such lovely beings that are awesome at so many things, and always so busy yet Dani makes time to reply to each personal message she receives and makes certain to remember her costumers.

Central Coast Crafters at Stitches West 2011 visiting Dani in her Sunshine Yarns booth
From left to right: Fran, Anne, Angie, Heather, Em, Dani and me

Notice the stringing of socks? These little knitted cuties were all made with Sunshine Yarns and donated for booth display by some of their costumers from the Sunshine Yarnies group via ravelry.com. Amazing!! If you are a member of ravelry, I strongly urge you to check out the group. Everyone there is so welcoming & lovely! There are always K/CALs going on, mini swaps, inspiration, help and great chatter!




So as you can tell, Sunshine Yarns definitely takes up a lot of my fiber passion. It also, of course, takes up a lot of my fiber stash and storage.

Four full bins of Sunshine Yarns

It may seem like a lot, and maybe it really is, but for some reason I feel like it's just a start! Especially since I've been acquiring Sunshine Yarns since 2009. Fast forward to 2011 and I've only actually made two items using only three skeins!! Knitting/crocheting more with Sunshine is definitely one of my key crafting goals this year. I hope to showcase a lot of the projects here via my blog.


• Novelty yarns

As you've been reading, you've probably come to the conclusion that I may be what some would label as a "yarn snob." To the contrary, I am far from such label. I will admit that I do prefer quality, like knitting with merino or merino/cash blends and running my fingers through a fluffy Malabrigo worsted. But I also do not mind using inexpensive cottons or yarns with synthetic blends like nylon/acrylic. I have a complete bin full of Lily's Sugar'n Cream solids and stripes. Perfect go-to dishcloth or amigurumi yarns.

So just because I do not mind non-natural fibers doesn't mean that I love any/all yarns. In fact, I cannot stand to work with novelty yarns. Anything from boucle to eyelash yarns and even tape yarns (ribbon yarn).

Examples of novelty yarns from the woollylambyarnshop.com

If someone is asking for a scarf or a stole made by me using any of these types of yarn, I'll politely decline and recommend another knitter for the task. Off the top of my head, I can name over a dozen knitting friends that would happily except the project too! I'm always so amazed by how many people I see knit or crochet with novelty yarns. I've seen some unique items crafted out it. After trying some of them out when I first started in this craft, I've come to learn that they are simply not my cup of tea. This is great news for you if you like them. More for you! ☺

If you're participating in KCBW, I'd love to hear about your blog & read along! Be sure to leave a comment with your info.

What type of yarns do you love or loathe? Maybe it isn't yarn, but perhaps a particular craft? I'd love to hear about it!



with peace, love, unity, and respect,
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Knit and Crochet Blog Week 2011

I’m stoked to be participating in the 2^nd Annual Knit and Crochet Blog Week! Created from conversation in the Blog Hub group on ravelry.com, Eskimimi knits had the general idea and it has since taken off. For more information, you can visit her blog here.

Essentially KCBW is “a week of blogging for knitters and crocheters, where individual bloggers could all simultaneously post about the same topics over the course of seven days, so that for one week readers might be able to read from blog to blog and enjoy a community of bloggers all talking about elements of their craft in their own unique way.” –Eskimimi Knits

Thanks goes to my dear friend Kristin over at A Change is Necessary for Growth. She introduced me to this last year but I didn’t partake since I didn’t have a blog. Well, now that I do, I can’t wait to get started!

So stay tuned…I plan to post later today on the topic of A Tale of Two Yarns…

with peace, love, unity, and respect,
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Swap Fanatic

Over the last year I have become quite the swap fanatic, especially through ravelry.com! As mentioned in my last post, I had joined Amy's (Mrs. Darsie's Menagerie) swap group and became hooked. Around that same time, my friend Julie and I joined a dishcloth swap group. To our dismay, the organizer was going to delete the group but instead stepped down. We then took over the group, renamed & reorganized it. Between our group and Amy's The Swap Stop group, I've been having so much fun swapping!

What is a swap & how do they work? Swaps are an exchanging of items, usually consisting of themed or like-minded items. Commonly, two people are partnered by the swap organizer or moderator. They then exchange information such as likes/wants/dislikes and start to put together a package for one another, sometimes based on a swap's particular package requirements, adding extra goodies for fun.

Yesterday, I signed up for The Swap Stop's Favorite Colors swap. Like many of the swap groups on ravelry, Q&A's are given so that swappers can fill them out and post them in the thread or via their blogs.

I've decided to share my Q&A here.

Group: The Swap Stop
Theme: Favorite Colors
Site: http://www.ravelry.com/groups/the-swap-stop


Do you knit or crochet? How long have you been at your craft?I primarily crochet and can do basic knitting.  Crocheting since 2008 – knitting off and on since late 2009, but I have recently started to knit more!

Do you spin? What type of spinning do you do? I do not spin but just acquired a drop spindle last month from a lovely swap partner in NC.

Are there any other crafts that you participate in?
Sewing, card-making, beading and dyeing yarn are also my passions.

What are your favorite yarns/fibers? ♥ Soft squishy yarns - super-wash merino wools, Cottons, wool blends and the like.

Are there any yarns/fibers that you don’t like? Loathe scratchy yarns, 100% synthetics, and anything with mohair. I do not care for novelty yarns (beaded, glittered, etc).

What is your favorite color? Currently crazy over various grays and purples. But I always ♥ blues and greens too.

Are there any colors you don’t like? Not a fan of pastels or super bright colors.

Do you have a yarn winder and/or a swift?Yep, thanks to DB.

Do you have a blog? Yes.

Do you collect anything? Not really. I used to collect fancy pens and letter pressed paper/stationery. Now I’m just a yarn addict. Also, I guess unique earrings have been a small growing collection of mine.

Do you like sweets? What are your favorites? Yep, very much so!  Love salty-sweets like trail mixes with dried fruit, milk chocolate covered pretzels. Mmmm, homemade marshmallows, blowpops, Jelly Bellies, Reese’s Pieces, skittles, fancy milk chocolates with nuts, caramels, honey sticks…drooooooooooooooool.

What is your living situation like? Any pets? Children? Wonderful. Nope. Nope.

Are you allergic to anything? Cats, most trees and certain milk proteins. Also, I have a sensitivity to smoke of any kind and strong scents.

Is there anything else that you want your pal to know?Check out my profile – I’ve got a list of things about me to help you! Let’s see…I’m a swap-crazed lover of life, down to earth, crafty/geeky chic!

/Q&A
I cannot wait until more people are signed up and partners become announced!

 ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

with peace, love, unity & respect,