HRYC

This year our Ravelry group has really picked up momentum in the Knit-a-long stakes. I'm not always the most organised person when it comes to running KALs, but they are always a bit of fun and so interesting to see the different paths people take with the same project. 

Spring sees us taking on Dianna Walla's Vasa tee - a simple, elegant and very very wearable tank. Knit in 4ply yarn, it really is amenable to pretty much any colour combination you might fancy. A great stash-buster or excellent excuse to buy new, i've finished my first and am already planning a second. Actually, I say finished, but really I mean that i've done all the knitting, and now the pieces are languishing in a pile waiting to be blocked and seamed. So photos of the properly finished version will come later. 

Vasa tee by Dianna Walla

Another reason to adore this pattern - it's perfect for knitters at the less experienced end of the spectrum. You don't have to worry about sleeves, it's a chance to play with colour, and pretty quickly you have a whole garment. A respectable achievement if you are new to knitting. 

We'd love for you to join us! Share your colour choices and talk about what you're up to here in our Ravelry thread. There's usually a prize or two to celebrate at the end of each KAL, and you have until 30 October to knit your tee. Loads of time!

The fun part of all this new stock arriving is the chance to move things around and make everything sit together nicely. I really enjoy being in the shop when things look a little different, and it usually leads to me happily snapping photos of my favourite little corners. 

I'm in love with our fibre ladder! We had more Ashford Corriedale sliver arrive this week, and i've even been organised enough to get it loaded up online. 

Fibre ladder + new shelving full of Malabrigo (although it's not quite so full after a very busy weekend!)

I couldn't help but take photos as orders were packed up over the last few days. You, my wonderful supportive customers, have truly excellent taste in yarn. If you look carefully in the pic above, you'll see the messy pile of Zealana Rimu toppling over itself on the shelf. I finally gave up on trying to get it to behave and now it's playing much more nicely sitting in a suitcase. 

Zealana are slowly introducing a new style of ball & label (the lower half of the pic) which looks gorgeous but my oh my it is a pain to get to sit on a shelf. Doesn't make it any less amazing to work with, of course!

I hope you had a wonderful, relaxing weekend. It was certainly a great time to be in the shop, sharing the love of gorgeous yarn. xx

Possibly the most exciting time is when an order of Malabrigo lands. This week was no exception - two giant sacks of gorgeous squishiness arrived on Wednesday and it was certainly a squee-worthy event. 

The arrival also dictated the need for new shelving. We have so much stock at the moment that no amount of rearranging was going to make it fit on our existing shelves. A terrible dilemma, isn't it? 'Oh dear we have so much yarn we have to buy more shelving. What a terrible terrible thing to have happen.'

Malabrigo Rios in Niebla, Sunset and Ravelry Red

More Malabrigo Rios in Azules, Bobby Blue and Playa

Now we didn't just get Rios in this order, oh no. There's stacks and stacks of Malabrigo Sock, and even more Silky Merino. Between those three I went waaaaay above my buying budget, and so there wasn't any room left for Lace or Silkpaca Lace. The good news there is we'll be doing ANOTHER order next week - hooray! If there's a colour we didn't get in this time and you're absolutely desperate to have it, just let us know. Malabrigo takes about three months to arrive and every day of that wait is absolutely worth it. 

Want more pictures? Sure! How about some dodgy ones taken at 9pm on Wednesday night?

Mmmmm Malabrigo sock....

And you'll have to make do with this pic of the Silky Merino...it's one of those yarns that takes awhile to puff back up to smooshy size once it's been pulled out of the bag. It's only really photo-worthy once it's had a week or so of breathing on the shelf. 

I'm going to spend my Friday finishing off a couple of projects and hunting out a pattern worthy of knitting up in Malabrigo. And, of course, packing up all the orders that are coming through quick and fast for this amazing yarn. We're getting low on a few colours in all ranges already...

Yesterday Bridget collected her brand new shiny Ashford Knitters Loom and 10dpi reed. Last weekend Lindy picked up her Ashford Lace Flyer and spare bobbins. Julia is over the moon with her Ashford Joy spinning wheel. 

One of the most rewarding parts of being in the shop is sharing the excitement of new tools with you. As much as big piles of squishy yarn gets us all excited, there's something extra special about finally deciding that yes, it's time. Time to order in that loom you've been thinking about for months. Time to treat yourself to a new craft, a new way of discovering meditation through making. 

As Bridget walked out the door with her arms wrapped around a big box with Ashford printed all over it, I was thinking about how she'll get to experience the fun that is opening that box. Of unwrapping each component, of learning all the details of the loom through the process of putting it together. I can't wait to see what Bridget makes first. I hope she doesn't mind my using her to paint a picture of what it's like to be a new owner. 

Not so long ago I put together the shop's Ashford Traveller. There's something really special and rewarding about rubbing each piece with wax polish, and figuring out how all the pieces connect and play a part in the process. 

I guess it must be like someone who loves cycling buying a brand new bicycle (a bike shop has just opened across the road, by the way). Or someone who loves sewing buying and using an overlocker for the first time. Taking that step up, and exploring a new way of using yarn or fibre to create different outcomes is so thrilling. 

Now I know purchasing some new hardware can be a bit daunting. It's also not a decision to be made lightly - it is an investment. While we don't have any looms set up at the shop right now, we do have an Ashford Joy spinning wheel, a Traveller wheel and a drum carder for you to try out. It's best to set up an appointment with us so we can have everything ready to go when you arrive - it's a good idea to try out a couple of options before settling on any decision. Everyone has different preferences and it's good to have a bit of time to figure out exactly what it is that will work for you.

And yep, we totally do layby. Hooray!

Is it just me, or does everyone else tend to get to the tricky parts of a project and...stop. Come to a screeching halt, a look over the pattern instructions and think 'oh that looks like far too much like it's asking me to use my brain.'

Amidst the busy life of owning a yarn shop / dyeing yarn / simply existing these days, knitting is a real solace for winding down and (trying to) relax. Plain old stocking stitch is my best friend, I can just knit and knit and knit and end up with something lovely. And smooshy. 

This week saw me with three projects on the needles, and all of them at the very-close-to-being-finished stage. Of course I chose to finish off Vasa: an entirely stocking stitch project that is the focus of our September Knit-Along (if you fancy joining us, there's more information in our Ravelry group).

So I sat with Stasis on my knee, debating with myself as to if I could cope with starting the last section of colourwork:

By way of procrastination, I asked Facebook what to do: suck it up and keep going, or put it down and switch for something easier? 

Of course, being amazing supporters, the response was 'keep going! You can do it!' So I looked back at the pattern, took a deep breath and dove back in. 

Of course, as i've mentioned before, a little challenge is rewarding. Which is another way of saying that it was enjoyable, even though the thought of actually knitting this section filled me with dread. 

Cue random meandering thought paths about how the entire scenario could be a lesson for life. Because knitting is perfect for providing those. All the easy work had been done, most of the jersey was finished. All that remained was a last big effort, a section of knitting involving a technique i'm not 100% confident in my ability to do. With a little encouragement I attacked it anyway, big scary colourwork section and all. 

Done. There are things in our lives that look too difficult, seem like too much hard work, too much effort, ask us to focus and step up to complete a challenge. Without support and some well-placed cheerleaders, it can all seem a bit impossible. Putting down your project and turning to another, easier one, is the simple solution. Good friends will say 'of course you can do it!' So you do. And you succeed, or you fail and learn and move on. 

After all this thinking, I then put my knitting down again as I came to short rows and was all ARGH SHORT ROWS! I HATE SHORT ROWS! Followed by realising how ridiculous this was as an excuse not to keep going, and seeing how close I was to the end, I looked up a short row tutorial and got stuck back in. It isn't done yet, but it will be. And now (hopefully) wearing Stasis will remind me that life might be hard and tricky to navigate, but I can do it. Dealing with the hard stuff is better than turning away and feeling guilty for ignoring it. 

Anyway, I have to get this done because next week a crazy huge amount of Malabrigo is arriving, and i'd like to play with it. So much Malabrigo, in fact, we've bought new shelving just to be able to fit it all in the shop. Hooray!