Holiday Knits: A Last Minute Guide

The holidays are just around the corner and suddenly I feel the need to knit for people and have so little time left. If you get that feeling too, here are some great last-minute knitting ideas that can be done in a few hours to a few days.

When you think Christmas, you think "toys"! Patricia's Yarns has many great toy patterns for that special little one (or husband) in your life. We have animals, monsters, dinosaurs, and puppets. And yes, we even have the classic teddy bear. These knit up quickly and will put a smile on any kid' s face - no matter the age.

Our own scarf, knit up in Rowan Alpaca Chunky, is a super-quick knit that can be done in just a few hours. Two skeins on size 17 needles makes a beautiful holiday gift in no time - & the button makes it look really cute!

Another quick knit are mittens in Toboggan yarn from Classic Elite. Our customer, Karen, was in the shop on Sunday & finished a mitten in less than 4 hours!

From the runways to the red carpets, infinity scarves and chunky cowls are everywhere! And the best reason to love them? They can be knit up really quickly! Pick a chunky yarn, use some big needles and you're almost there...

Margaux (a.k.a. tentenknits) designed the Luxe Cowl using 2 skeins of big wool on size 13 needles and it knits up in no time. This is a great option for a friend, co-worker, or sister.

Margaux is great for knit inspiration and she does have a few other cowl patterns that are very worth mentioning:

The Felicity Cowl is a gorgeous design that uses Road to China Light from the Fibre Co. (a shop fave) and is a relatively quick knit using just 2 hanks.

And if that isn't enough, the Fifth Avenue Infinity Scarf is a true classic! Knit out of Canopy Worsted yarn (also from the Fibre Co.), this is a wonderful knit. When complete, you might want to keep this for yourself or give to someone very special.



Finally, our book, "Curse of the Boyfriend Sweater", makes a great gift! Read more about it at www.curseoftheboyfriendsweater.com

And, we are, once again, selling sheep in the shop - paper sheep, that is, for Heifer International. Each sheep is $1 and will make a world of difference for a family in need this holiday season.

If you are still unsure, we have plenty of pattern suggestions in the shop. So drop by because all you need is a few hours over a few days to start - & finish - all of your gift knitting! Looking forward to seeing you! Happy Holidays!

Holiday Update

In addition to Twelve (weekend) Days of Christmas (see below) Patricia's Yarns has many other exciting things happening this holiday season.

For starters, we are once again selling sheep. No, not the kind that makes all of our delightfully warm wool, instead the kind made of paper. That's right, paper. Buy a sheep for a dollar, write your name on it, and we will hang it in the shop for all to see. And the best part? All proceeds benefit Heifer International. They will use the money to help families purchase real live sheep to help keep them clothed and warm.

If you are in the neighborhood, stop by to see the Classic Elite Toboggan Trunk Show. It is currently on display at the shop and full of vibrant colors, perfect to keep you smiling on dark, cold winter days. Toboggan is a chunky yarn that is great for quick holiday knits of scarves, hats, and sweaters. Come to Patricia's, get inspired this holiday season.

Finally, if you are looking for gifts, look no further than our new book, Curse of the Boyfriend Sweater! Makes a great holiday gift. Click here to purchase.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays Everyone!

Join Us

...for the Twelve (weekend) Days of Christmas! From now until the day Saint Nick dons his red scarf, Patricia's Yarns will be celebrating! Every Saturday and Sunday will be like receiving a new gift in your hand-knit stocking. One Saturday might bring a sale on your favorite yarn and the next might be that perfect class you've been hoping to take. Some days we might offer sweet treats and others offer a glass of bubbly. So join us for some holiday cheer!

To kick off the fun, we are having our favorite girls, Kate and Courtney, owners of Kelbourne Woolens, distributors of the gorgeous Fibre Co. Yarns, visit us tomorrow. We are always excited to have them visit!

To sign up for our Twelve (weekend) Days of Christmas, simply "like" us on Facebook and/or follow us on twitter. We will make announcements each weekend day. We can't promise you a Partridge in a pear tree, but we can promise you purls.

Happy Holidays!

Love,

Patricia

Alpaca Chunky Softness

Since the fall shipment from Rowan has arrived their new yarn Alpaca Chunky has called out to me to be knit. The book Winter Warmers has a lot of inspiration but I wanted to make something super easy and quick. I thought of the Feroche Brioche that Margaux of tentenknits designed in 2008 and thought what if we did garter stitch, longer & added buttonholes but only 1 button. Viola, the Alpaca Chunky scarf/infinity was born.

Above it is worn tight to the neck with the button holding it together. You can double it over & pull the ends through, or make it a longer infinity scarf thanks to the button & buttonholes. You can make it with a bunch of different chunky yarns like Rowan Big Wool or Toboggan from Classic Elite.

Come by and try it on!

Patricia's Yarns goes to Rhinebeck!

There's so much I want to say about this trip but I will sum it up in one way: Knitters, our community, what we do, who we are, how we create - is flat out AMAZING. I am so lucky to be amongst so many wonderful people. - Margaux (a.k.a. Tentenknits)

Fall Update

This poor blog has been neglected, but only because so much yarn has come in there has been too little time to post.

New from Rowan this fall, Alpaca Chunky

Think Lima meet Big Wool: chunky & soft as can be

New colors for Big Wool:

Rowan Cocoon - a shop favorite in naturals & saturated colors.

From the Fibre Co, Acadia... it is just gorgeous.

Road to China Light, also from the Fibre Co.

And finally, an explosion of Chunky Baby Alpaca from Misty Alpaca,

Stop by the shop to see and feel for yourself!

Just in from Classic Elite

Fall is an exciting time at the shop as deliveries come frequently bringing wonderful new yarns. This week we received a 46 lb box from Classic Elite - my heart did flutter a little as the yarns are so soft and the colors so beautiful.

This is Toboggan, a chunky alpaca & merino blend that is super soft - above are half of the colors we received. It has a pattern book which has adorable sweaters & a beautiful cowl pattern in it.

The cowl takes just two skeins and is a great fast knit for yourself or to give away... early holiday knitting anyone?

We also received a sampling of Silky Alpaca Lace in neutral colors which are so soft and beautiful.

The soft colors work really well to make the Lowell Cowl, a free pattern from Classic Elite which is currently on display in our front window on the mannequin. Come by & see it for yourself.

Finally we brought back Kumara from last fall as it is a gorgeous camel & mohair yarn. It is soft and has great stitch definition, perfect for cables.

Come by and feel the softness!

Summer Vacation 2011

This summer we took a trip to a rather remote part of France, Le Vernet.

It was a very relaxing and peaceful place to visit. The village we stayed in was over 300 years old and gorgeous. Our daily drives would give us views like this...

and this...

as we drove on roads like this...

It was nothing less than amazing. Below is the village of Le Vernet at night.

Here is the view from our bedroom...

I didn't get in as much knitting as I had hoped- but that is what happens when you take a 13 month old on vacation.

We went wine tasting and Grace took to helping with the bottle carrier.

Below are just a few more of our favorite photos from the trip.

We are very grateful to our friends Ash, Brittany, and Andy for a wonderful vacation. We are also excited to be home, well rested, and ready for a great 2011 fall season!

A Celebration of 7 Years!

Patricia's Yarns celebrated 7 years in business on Thursday August 4th, 2011. Thank you to all of our wonderful customers who came by to help us celebrate - as well as all of you who have been with us since 2004!

In honor of our seventh anniversary, we had a sale as well as a few raffle prizes. The prizes were donated by Patricia, Spud and Chloe, Blue Sky Alpacas, and the Fibre Company.


Our daughter, Grace, was very excited to choose the winners...

Once again, thank you to all of our loyal and wonderful customers. We look forward to many more great years in Hoboken, NJ!

A special thank you to Jason and Jeff for bringing the champagne on Sunday- as well as Margaux for her long distance celebration.

Also, please note that Fall shipments will be arriving soon and we will have a new class schedule for September. We will be resuming our Yarn of the Month for September as well. Until then, enjoy the rest of your summer, and, of course, happy knitting!

wheee.....

Shop deliveries in the summer are not as frequent as in fall however, they are really good right now.

30 colors of Madelinetosh Merino Light are in...



Ysolda Teagues long awaited book Little Red in the City has arrived...


The book is amazing as it is part pattern book and part reference with tutorials as to how to make the sweater patterns fit you and your body type. It also has so many tips and tricks for improving your knitting everyone can learn something from this wonderful book. It is absolutely worth adding to your knit library. Oh, and in the back there is a scratch off to your unique code to download your e-book. It is amazing. We love Ysolda!

TNNA 2011

This years TNNA was fantastic. The show floor was full of so many beautiful new products it was hard to decide what to say "yes" to!

It is always a great time to reconnect with so many people like Beth & Michael at Lorna's Laces, Rhichard & Taiu at Koigu, Stacy Charles and the Fibre Company ladies, Kate Gagnon Osbourne & Courtney Kelley.

It was also exciting to meet designers. Hannah Fettig of Knitbot was at the Fibre Co booth and she is putting out a new book with Alana Dakos (and it looks amazing). Meylinda Bernardi, of French Press Knits was there with her adorable little girl. I was thirlled to meet Jill Zielinski of Knitterella whose gift tags we stock. It is so nice to meet the people behind the product and then to have great conversation makes supporting their business even better.

The unexpected meeting was Barbara Walker. She was sat in a little booth away from the mayhem promoting her new DVD and was there to talk to whomever came by. Well Margaux and I pulled up chairs and chatted her ear for just a few amazing minutes. She is sweet and everything I expected.

There will be more than a handful of new yarns coming into the shop, Honour from Lorna's Laces, Swans Island and a few surprises - you'll just have to wait and see!

Katydid Retro Redux Shrug

Love this, love this, love this! This is an amazing four season garment, a shrug you can wear in summer, fall, even winter. It is in the beautiful book, Lace Style, and is knit with a lovely new yarn at Patricia's, Katydid. Katydid is a tape yarn made of 100% organic cotton - though you could use many yarns for this project. Matched with a skirt for work, or jeans for the weekend, this a gorgeous pattern with unlimited possibilities!

Stop by the shop to see for yourself.

Happy Knitting!

Knitspiration 2011

Here are a few of the many finished objects from 2011... so far. Hope this adds some knitspiration to your day.

Blue Sky's Poly Pullover
Chris's first sweater. That's right, his first. Well done, Chris!
Jeff's Koigu baby blanket.
With Love from Norway hat, free online.
And, of course, our favorite little monster, knit in Lorna's Laces Unicorn Parade. Thank you to all of our wonderful knitters! Of course, there are many more to come. Happy Knitting!