Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
If you are reading this blog, you probably knit or crochet. Do you remember when you learned? Do you remember who taught you? It’s often a memory so indelible that you can picture details about that day from the way the room looked to what you were wearing. Many of us learned as children, in awe of this person who could teach us to create something from a simple ball of yarn. We may have put down our craft as we became busy with children or work and picked it up again as we awaited the birth of a child, found a new way to relieve stress or discovered a yarn that could not be resisted.
This lovely story tells of a woman whose most cherished gift was given to her by an aunt when she was seven years old. She remembers the day, the snack of tea and cookies that came with the gift and the color of the yarn.
This holiday season, consider giving this precious, lifelong gift to a child. It’s a gift of your knowledge and your presence together with a few inexpensive supplies. It’s a gift that connects you to the person you teach in a way that very few gifts can. It’s a gift for the holidays that reminds us of what is really important.
We invite you to share your stories of the person who taught you to knit by commenting on this blog post.
Posted in Crafting, Crocheting, Knitting | 21 Comments »
The wonderful thing about Facebook is that it allows us to share ideas in a great way where both Lion Brand staff and other Lion Brand fans can benefit. Our fan Kathi posted this unique tip for making your own heavy duty needle threader.
After breaking a couple of the standard wire threaders with yarn, which is too thick, Kathi decided to make her own. She took a plastic lid and cut it into strips narrow enough to fit through a large-eyed blunt needle. Then she used a hole-puncher to punch the hole for the yarn. You could easily do this project with cardstock!
Share your ideas and projects with us on Facebook!
Posted in Crafting, Tips & How To | 2 Comments »
This is a guest post from our friend, Travis Meinolf, public textile artist and teacher. Travis’s current project can be seen at the Museum of Craft and Folk Art, in San Francisco, CA, from now until January 24th, 2010. If you’re in the area, we hope you’ll stop by, add your own piece to the weavings and interact with textiles in a new way.
Open Source Embroidery is a group art show; the running theme of the works in the show, curated by Dr. Ele Carpenter, is how current open source programming and high-tech philosophies intersect with contemporary and historical craft production practices. My installation in the show, a continuation of my Social Fabric/Weaving Place projects, is a space with small, simple-to-use looms I have designed, materials generously provided by Lion Brand Yarn, and chalkboards, for people to write notes about what it is they would like to be producing in the space.
Previously I have asked for people to spend their time producing material to be made into blankets for people on the streets and in shelters, but this time, I thought I would let it be completely open to suggestion from the participants. Only time will tell what the outcome will be, but the process will be one of absolute agency of the producers. Anyone who participates is invited to direct their action and suggest direction for the group, based on the simple strips of cloth that they can make. I will update as the project progresses. Hopefully the system I have put in place allows for freedom but is a space for structured, productive play, resulting in a true “dialectical material”.
Thanks go out to Lion Brand, who made me feel like a kid on Christmas opening boxes of skeins and skeins of beautiful yarns to provide a truly sensual and mesmerizing weaving experience for museum-goers, again…
Travis J. Meinolf
action weaver
Related links:
Posted in Crafting, Yarniverse | 2 Comments »
Crocheting or knitting for long periods of time can cause discomfort. Here are a few tips to avoid crafting pains:
If you experience serious or prolonged wrist pain, consult a physician.
Posted in Crafting, Crocheting, Knitting, Tips & How To | 1 Comment »
I was in mid-town New York City last weekend and saw a striking crochet art exhibit in the window of the Roger Smith Hotel. There will be a performance on several upcoming evenings that integrate dance in this crochet setting. If you are in New York City it looks like something you won’t want to miss. The performances are 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. September 18, 21, 23 and 25.
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Posted in Community, Crafting, Crocheting | Leave a comment »
This pattern from our new catalog was an instant sensation. Many of you who rated this pattern said that yarn-covered hangers bring back great memories of grandmothers or aunts who had these in their homes. This updated version uses beautiful colors of the Cotton-Ease yarn and received rave reviews. One customer emailed us that she is planning to make 100 of them to create 10 gifts of 10 hangers each for her friends and co-workers. It seems like this pattern is just so easy and the results so beautiful and practical that it’s more than nostalgia making these popular. What do you think?
If you have made any of the patterns on our site, please to post a review. Your pattern reviews help others decide which patterns to make.
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Posted in Crafting, Yarns | 3 Comments »
