Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
This is a guest blog post from Michelle, manager of the Lion Brand Yarn Studio, our flagship store in NYC. Michelle, Brandyce, and Zontee hosted the Lion Brand booth at Stitches West at the end of February.
This was my first-ever trip to a Stitches show, and it was a fabulous experience! Being the Studio Manager means that I spend a lot of my workday at a computer screen, and I don’t usually get out onto the sales floor as often as I’d like to. So Stitches was a welcome change. I got to talk to so many lovely people and see all kinds of beautiful garments and other handmade items. It was like being in a living, moving art gallery! And with the Stitches Fashion Show and so many interesting knit & crochet pieces roaming around, my to-do list grew about a foot!
I really enjoyed being able to chat with customers and hear your feedback. Lots of folks had had the chance to visit the Lion Brand Yarn Studio, and all of your kind comments were and are greatly appreciated! We do our best to make sure you have a great time when you visit us, so to hear so many nice things on the opposite coast is a real boost. And of course we love to hear your feedback and suggestions. It’s great to hear what you’re excited about…even if we had to tear you away from Amazing Man first! (Sorry ladies, he’s spoken for!)
The best part about going to the show is seeing old friends and making new ones! Can’t wait to see you all next time!!
If you’re attending Stitches Midwest or Stitches East later this year, look for the Lion Brand booths there!
Related links:
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Calling all crocheters! We know you’ve been waiting patiently all season for our next crochet-along to start, and now the wait is over! Right on the heels of our Wisteria Shawl Collar Pullover Knit-Along, we’re starting our NEW crochet-along NEXT THURSDAY!
What’s a crochet-along, you ask? A crochet-along is a virtual event in which hundreds of crocheters all make the same project with the help and support of each other–and our expert crochet-along host. New blog posts go up each week, here on the Lion Brand Notebook, with hints, tips, and advice on working on the next step of your project. Follow along or work at your own pace. No need to sign up–just read the posts and let us know about your progress by leaving comments!
For this crochet-along, our host is none other than the designer herself, Dora Ohrenstein (pictured below left). She’s the author of Creating Crochet Fabrics and the upcoming Custom Crocheted Sweaters. Want to know more about her? Listen to an interview with her on our podcast, YarnCraft, by clicking here [MP3]. (Fast forward directly to the interview by going to 17:20.)
Dora has created this exclusive Half Medallion Bag pattern for us, with bobbles and front post stitches for added interest; click here for the pattern! It features our Martha Stewart CraftsTM/MC Extra Soft Wool Blend.
We’ll be talking about selecting your yarn, getting gauge, and all that good stuff next Thursday, so be sure to come back then! In the meantime, be sure to join our Ravelry group.
Posted in Crochet-Along, Crocheting, Events | 37 Comments » Comments
Photo credit: Jeff Newfeld. If you’re viewing this blog post in your email, please click on the blog post’s title so that you can view the full slideshow on the blog.
One of the things that I love most about working with yarn is that it inspires us with its colors and textures. By working with each of our unique palettes, we create something that’s completely our own.
Taking her cues from the colors of nature, fiber artist Suzanne Tidwell has created her latest installation in Occidental Park, in Seattle, Washington, covering dead tree stumps (considered eyesores by the local community) with beautiful knit sleeves. Selecting from the diverse palettes of Vanna’s Choice and Vanna’s Choice Baby, Suzanne has created some unexpected color combinations that truly pop. The color block style of the sleeves remind me of a Rothko painting–they are so vibrant and inspiring.
If you’re in the Seattle area, I hope you’ll visit “Summer Into Fall: Sammamish Trees,” up from now until December 16, and enjoy this lovely splash of color.
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Regular readers of the blog know that I am a big sports fan, and I love when I get to combine my love of sports with my love of yarn. It’s the end of Stitch N Pitch season, and as usual, it’s been a season full of great baseball and lots of yarncrafting. Here in New York, I was proud to once again serve on the organizing committee and to be able to attend a game at Citi Field with my fellow yarn lovers. Citi Field is a truly special place, and this year, the committee and I, along with hundreds of knitters and crocheters yarnstormed (or “yarn bombed”) the stadium in Mets colors. Then we sat down for the game and enjoyed our crafting while watching the game. As a special bonus, the committee and I got to go out on the ball field, and I even got to meet Mr. Met.
Check out some of the photos from the event below!
If you’re reading this blog post in your email, please click on the title of the blog post to view the full blog post and slideshow online.
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Play Ball! August is wrapping up, which means we’re heading into the home stretch of this year’s Stitch N Pitch season. If you’re not already familiar with it, Stitch N Pitch is an event organized by the National NeedleArts Association that brings yarn crafters to major league ball games. As someone passionate about both yarn and sports, there is nothing I love more than to see people yarn crafting supporting local sports.
Upcoming games in September:
Sept 10 – Chicago White Sox
Sept 13 – New York Mets
Sept 15 – Cincinnati Reds
Sept 25 – Detroit Tigers
As we get to the end of Stitch N Pitch season, I hope that those of you who have already attended your local Stitch N Pitch games had a great time, and I hope you’ll leave a comment sharing your experiences.
Stitch N Pitch in New York
My fellow New York Stitch N Pitch committee members and I have been working hard to top last year’s event, during which we set the World Record for most people crocheting in one place. This year, we’re planning–with the help of yarn crafters like you–to yarn storm (or “yarn bomb”) Citi Field. If you’re in the NYC-area, click here to learn more about how you can drop off swatches at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio in Manhattan and come to our seaming party to help seam up the swatches into pieces that will decorate Citi Field! I am extremely excited for everyone to see the yarn storming that will place at Citi Field. It will truly be something to see.
So come one, come all as we cheer on the New York Mets as they battle the Washington Nationals. Again, the game is September 13 and it starts at 7:10 pm. To purchase tickets for the game, visit the Lion Brand Yarn Studio.
Related links:
Posted in Community, Crocheting, Events, Knitting, On The Road, Yarniverse | 2 Comments » Comments
World Wide Knit in Public Day is nearly upon us!
World Wide Knit in Public Day (June 11th, with celebrations all week long) is a holiday when knitters, crocheters, and all lovers of yarn are encouraged to take their crafting with them out into public. Here are 3 great ways to celebrate this yarncraft holiday:
1) Wear something to show your crafter pride! There’s still time to make a small accessory or two before the big day. The Crochet Bracelet and the Knit Bracelet (pictured above) both sparkle in Vanna’s Glamour and work up in no time. Plus, you can wear them no matter how warm or cold it is!
2) Make something special in public! Why not try out a new pattern or yarn for the occasion? Treat yourself to some special crafting time in a public place and enjoy showing others your skills! Our Pattern Finder is a great place to start looking for new and interesting projects. Check out our previous post about how to use this feature of our site.
3) Find a group to celebrate with! Groups are forming and events are being planned all over the world. The World Wide Knit in Public Day website has a database of KIP (Knitting In Public) events online at www.wwkipday.com. You can check out local events near you, or plan your own!
How are you celebrating the big day? Leave a comment to tell us what you’re up to, and what makes World Wide Knit in Public Day special to you!
Posted in Community, Crafting, Crocheting, Events, Knitting | 19 Comments » Comments
Earlier this year, we featured a photo of our Amazing man, a sculpture made with various colors of our Amazing yarn that was featured at the CHA trade show. If you want to see him in person, you can visit the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles in San Jose, CA starting this week. Both he and his couch will be part of the exhibit, Primary Structures from May 17 to August 7.
Related links:
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If you’re going to be in Berlin from April 6 to 10, stop by the Pictoplasma Festival–an annual celebration contemporary character culture–to see a whole solar system made in yarn!
Our friend Anna Hrachovec, the amazing knitter behind the popular blog Mochimochi Land and the book Knitting Mochimochi, will have a new installation called “Mochimochi Worlds” held at the Smallspace gallery. Learn more about the project on her blog.
The adorable planet bodies include a snowman and a big yarn-ball sun, in addition to the bear planet above, and are all made with Hometown USA and Wool-Ease Thick & Quick.
We wish Anna a great show, and we hope that if you’re in the Berlin area, you’ll check it out!
Posted in Events, Fiber Arts, Knitting, Yarniverse | 2 Comments » Comments
A few weeks ago, Lindsey, Kendra, and I attended Stitches West, one of the four fantastic Stitches yarn conventions that happen around the country*. It was my second time at the Santa Clara, CA show, and we had a blast!
Of course the great gang from XRX/Knitter’s Magazine was there, as well as the awesome crew from Ravelry, along with many of our great designer friends. Over at the booth, I interviewed designers Lily Chin, Edie Eckman, and Candice Eisner Strick–a sort of “live and in person” version of what I do twice a month on our podcast, YarnCraft–in addition to meeting hundreds of Lion Brand fans who came to check out the latest in yarns and designs. A couple of Lion Brand even lovers brought their projects to show off! Here are photos of one woman’s cowl made in Amazing:
For a similar cowl pattern on LionBrand.com, click here.
In the big fashion show, we had several garments made in our LB Collection yarns–these are luxe yarns available only on LionBrand.com, through our catalog, and in our NYC store–including the Sunset Raglan Tee, Lace Crochet Bolero, and the Chevron Tank Tunic. You can see photos of the bolero in the show from XRX/Knitter’s Magazine here and here.
Another highlight of the show was hanging out with Heatherly (that’s designer YarnYenta, for you sock lovers)and her daughters. (Often, in the yarn community, you only run into your yarn-crafting friends a few times a year at these sorts of shows!). Here is teenage Tirzah in the cropped cardigan she knit in Vanna’s Choice!
As always, we love seeing you live and in person, and of course, we love seeing your projects! Keep an eye on the blog for announcements of other shows we’re going to be attending this year!
*If someone asks you what a yarn convention is like, just tell them it’s like “Comic Con” (the hugely popular comic/gaming/sci-fi convention) but for people who love yarn. Both have a lot of people who dress up specially for the occasion, geek out on “celebrities” that are only really famous in that circle, and tons of cool booths to check out. I find this explanation works particularly well on guys.
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Here on the East Coast, it’s been quite wintry and blustery, but luckily for Lion Brand staffers, we’ve had some reasons to go out to sunny California for yarn and crafting events.
Last month, I was out in Long Beach for the TNNA Trade Show (that’s the National Needle Arts Association), where I met many industry insiders and interviewed them on what’s upcoming for 2011 in the world of yarn. You can listen to these interviews on YarnCraft, our podcast about all things knitting, crochet, and crafting with yarn (I like to call it “Car Talk” but for knitters & crocheters). Click the following to check out the episodes that include part 1 and part 2 of this mini-series of interviews; part 3 will come out tomorrow on 2/15.
Later in January, some of the Lion Brand team went out to Anaheim for the Craft & Hobby Association’s Winter Trade Show. Open to industry insiders, it’s a show where we–and many other companies–highlight new products and ideas for the upcoming year. We always host a big fashion show, emceed by Vanna White herself, featuring inspirational projects made with yarn. Our booth also features unique and unexpected ideas about creating with yarn. Check out our yarn man, sitting on a patchwork yarn sampler ottoman (with more yarn creations in the background):
And this weekend, we’ll be at Stitches West, a knit & crochet consumer show that’s open to the public, so be sure to stop by February 18 to 20. It’ll be at the Santa Clara Convention Center, in Santa Clara, CA. We’ll have a booth with samples of new yarns for you to touch and feel, raffles throughout the day, and discounts on orders placed at the booth. Come join us for this fun-filled weekend! Learn more by clicking here.
Related links:
Posted in Events, Lion Staff, On The Road, Yarniverse | 4 Comments » Comments
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