Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
Last week was the third annual Stitch N’ Pitch event, which was held at the New York Mets’ new Citi Field. For those of you who haven’t yet visited the field, it is very impressive. It was a beautiful night for baseball, yarn, and a good time. There were over 500 knitters and crocheters who came out for a night of fun and excitement. We were represented on the field before the game, on the jumbo-tron, and even spoken about on the Mets broadcast. It was nice to see how many people, especially men, in the stands knitting and crocheting. Even though the Mets didn’t win, a great time was had by all. I am very proud to be a part of this committee that unites yarn lovers from all over the tri-state area. On behalf of the entire Stitch N’ Pitch committee, I would like to thank everyone who came out and supported us!
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Recently, I was at the Knit & Crochet Show up in Buffalo, and I got to chat with popular blogger the Crochet Dude, Drew Emborsky, who came all the way from Austin, TX and was gracious enough to tell us about his design inspiration in this week’s YarnCraft episode. Want to listen to our interview for yourself? Click here to launch the episode [MP3].
Drew has a new line of small pattern books out with Leisure Arts, some of the patterns of which I got to see at the show. I especially love the handbag book, featuring projects in vibrant and easy-care Vanna’s Choice (I saw a great green tote on the runway of the Knit & Crochet show fashion show that I adore), as well as a collection of quick crochet dishcloths (great gift items) in fashionable colors of Cotton-Ease. These dishcloths are almost too pretty to be used!
Interested in seeing some more of Drew’s handbags? Click here to see the slideshow from the Knit & Crochet Show.
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Click to start the slideshow; keep your cursor on the box to read captions.
Last week, we were at the Knit & Crochet Show in Buffalo, checking out the workshops, classes, fashion shows, and more. On Tuesday, India and I attended the CGOA’s Professional Development Day (PDD), where we gave the luncheon speech on the behind-the-scenes activities of Lion Brand. We also attended workshops with designers, writers, and editors including Lily Chin, Edie Eckman, Kj Hay, Myra Woods, and Drew Emborsky. Lion Brand also provided the yarn for the charity project, and it was amazing to see how quickly people whipped out hats for children and women in need.
From Wednesday to Sunday, Michelle and I manned the booth at the Knit & Crochet Show’s marketplace. We were lucky enough to be located next to Annie Adams Adornments, where Annie Adams herself showed off her beautiful accessories and shawl pins (we carry Annie’s shawl pins at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio, so stop by and see them if you’re in NYC).
At the booth, we met tons of Lion Brand fans and YarnCraft podcast listeners. We also had time to hang out with our designer friends including Mary Beth Temple (of the Getting Loopy podcast), Rita Weiss & Jean Leinhauser, Margaret Hubert, and so many more people. LBY fans showed off their amazing projects and lots of them entered our raffle — we had over 50 winners!
It’s always fun to meet you, the users of our products in person, and we hope to see you at a future show!
For even more of the Knit & Crochet Show, listen to the next episode of YarnCraft on Aug. 25th for interviews.
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When we’re not working at Lion Brand, many of us are lucky enough to take beautiful vacations. This summer I went on a unique trip around Vancouver, Canada and various cities in Alaska. The weather there was actually much warmer and sunnier than New York City at the time! I did visit one very cold spot, though — the Mendenhall Glacier, near Juneau, Alaska!
Before leaving New York, I knit up a pair of Fetching gloves in LB Collection Superwash Merino (click here for my project page on Ravelry). While it was around 80 degrees each day in Juneau, it was only about 30 degrees on the 12-mile-long glacier. After taking a group helicopter ride to the glacier, our tour guide gave us a brief history of the ice, including how old the glacier is, how underground (or under-ice) rivers are formed, and how quickly the ice is moving downstream. We were even able to drink from one of the glacier’s many streams.
It was a fantastic vacation, full of beautiful scenery, plenty of whales, and lots of delicious food.
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I always have fun meeting other yarncrafters (talking about our latest projects, seeing what good tips and tricks there are out there, and…maybe doing a little shopping for cool new tools). Luckily for me, next week, Michelle, India, and I will get the opportunity to meet some of you at an event just for all of those things!
Want to join in? Visit us at the Knit & Crochet Show in Buffalo, NY! It’s going to be a fun weekend of fiber, friends, and learning! Come by the Lion Brand booth, where we’ll be giving out free patterns and goodies, showing you the latest in Lion Brand yarns, and raffling off amazing prizes!
And if you’re interested in learning more about getting into the industry professionally, join us for the Crochet Guild of America’s Professional Development Day, and get an inside look at how to become a professional knitter or crocheter.
For more information, go to KnitandCrochetShow.com
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While I was traveling through the Midwest last week, I was able to catch some of the MLB All-Star baseball game. Before the game began they played a video called “All-Stars Among Us” that was introduced by President Barack Obama, featured the last five living Presidents of the United States, and honored everyday people who make a difference in others’ lives. To my surprise one of the “all stars” mentioned was crocheting. I was so excited to see our industry represented in this undertaking before such a large national audience. The amazing woman featured in the video was Christine Shively who founded a charitable organization called “Knots of Love”. This charity is dedicated to making hats for those who have lost their hair due to their battle with cancer. Since she started the organization in 2007 she has donated over 21,000 caps.
We at Lion Brand commend Christine and all other who dedicate their lives to giving back for their efforts to help bring happiness and warmth to so many deserving people. This video truly touched my heart as I hope it will do the same for all of you.
(To see Christine’s 20 second clip fast forward to 3 min and 30 second portion of the video.)
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Here at Lion Brand, we’re big on birthdays. Since our president and CEO, David, was celebrating a big one at the beginning of this month, we decided to come up with some fun gifts. Here in the Marketing department, I thought it would be fun to make a big version of Leo the Lion (simply by using Wool-Ease Thick & Quick, in place of Wool-Ease, without changing the pattern!). Amigurumi work up quickly, but with his birthday fast approaching, we decided to make it a team effort.
Jess made the head and hind legs, while I made the body and front paws. PT practiced his newfound crochet skills by working on the front legs and tail. Lindsey helped with all the embroidery, the claws, and face. Jess, Lindsey, and I all worked on the mane out of Fun Fur in Lava. And Ilana added the final touch — a pair of glasses that had cut-outs of David’s eyes to make “David the Lion” look distinctly recognizable.
We gave the lion to David today, and he loved it. His first remark? “It has my eyes!”
David & David
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Over the weekend I had the pleasure of visiting the Danbury Crochet Club in Danbury Connecticut. What intrigued me about this wonderful group of women was their latest project called the “Butterfly Project”. The main goal of this project is to create 1.5 million butterflies in remembrance of each child that perish in the Holocaust; each of these butterflies will be displayed in the Holocaust Museum in Houston, TX. I think this it is such a beautiful way of honoring those children who lost their lives in such a horribly tragic way. Over 400,000 butterflies have already been completed by this group.
Even though this group was small in size their passion for Lion Brand Yarn was larger than life. It is always exciting to see such adoring Lion Brand Yarn fans, one woman was wearing one of Lion Brand Style American Gothic Art tee shirts from yesteryear and another brought her ultimate Lion Brand tote bag. Their enthusiasm brought forth tons of insightful questions and fantastic suggestions. I wish them the best of luck on their current project and hope to meet with them again in the future!
Have a group of 50 or more in the tri-state area? E-mail jack@lionbrand.com to arrange for Jack to come speak to your guild or yarncrafting group!
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Last weekend was part 1 of World Wide Knit In Public Day. If you participated, tell us where you knitted and what the scene was like. This weekend is the final weekend of the event. If it’s still raining where you are, remember there’s always your local Barnes & Noble, Starbucks, or mall. Share the time and place here and maybe you’ll find some people to join you!
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Last week, I had the pleasure of speaking at the Long Island Knitting Guild. We had an excellent turn out of almost one hundred people, which is one of the largest turn outs I have ever seen at a guild. It was such a delight to speak to these wonderful women, who are so passionate and knowledgeable about their craft. I couldn’t wait to tell them all about our new Lion Brand Yarn Studio and all the exciting things it has to offer. They loved getting a back stage pass into our company and were so intrigued by its family history.
What I love most about speaking at guilds are the thought-provoking questions and customer feedback. I think also it’s great when people give us fresh ideas for new colors and textures. Talking first-hand with the people who use our yarns is one of the most rewarding parts of going to these guilds.
Thanks again to everyone at the Long Island Knitting Guild for being so gracious and welcoming me into your circle!
Have a group of 50 or more in the tri-state area? E-mail jack@lionbrand.com to arrange for Jack to come speak to your guild or yarncrafting group!
For more on your local guild, visit the Knitting Guild Association’s website or the Crochet Guild of America’s website.
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