addthis_pub = 'laurazander'; addthis_brand = 'Jimmy Beans Wool'; addthis_logo = 'http://www.jimmybeanswool.com/images/headerlogoSmall.gif'; addthis_options = 'favorites, digg, delicious, email, google, myspace, facebook, reddit, newsvine, live, more'; By now you most likely are aware that Jimmy Beans is branching out into other aspects of fiber arts. Last weekend our first fabric newsletter went out which we are SO excited about! We're having so much fun being creative and learning all kinds of things about fabric and sewing! In fact, you can read more about our adventures in fabric by reading Jeanne's posts on Wednesday. She is chronicling all of the fun sewing projects we are embarking on in the shop. Now, for what many of you have been asking and waiting for... Spinning and...

addthis_pub = 'laurazander'; addthis_brand = 'Jimmy Beans Wool'; addthis_logo = 'http://www.jimmybeanswool.com/images/headerlogoSmall.gif'; addthis_options = 'favorites, digg, delicious, email, google, myspace, facebook, reddit, newsvine, live, more'; We have been busy little beans around here and had the best Thanksgiving week ever! Some of us went out of town, some of us stayed here, but ALL of us had a great time! We hope that all of you had a wonderful holiday and are looking forward to some fun projects in the near future, as I know we are! Huck landed in some super soft yarn!! Huck went yarn diving in our hot tub here in the shop!! Stay tuned for more on the hot tub front, as we have something really fun going on and as you can see it involves yarn in the hot tub!! A small...

The lips of the fish are the brim addthis_pub = 'laurazander'; addthis_brand = 'Jimmy Beans Wool'; addthis_logo = 'http://www.jimmybeanswool.com/images/headerlogoSmall.gif'; addthis_options = 'favorites, digg, delicious, email, google, myspace, facebook, reddit, newsvine, live, more'; We are all running around the shop like little beans with our heads cut off, as tomorrow is almost here! Wow I can't believe that another Thanksgiving day is coming up and I don't have my holiday gift creations done yet...what have I been doing since last season?? Shevawn is a great model, I can't wait to get the fins, tail and eyes on Well let me tell you, I have been knitting, sewing, gardening and working on various other projects too, but do you think that any of those knitting, or sewing projects...

Well, some of you may have learned by now that the project we've been lovingly calling Operation Turkey Trot for over two months now is actually the code name for our Hand-dyed Holiday Collection called "Fit for a Feast!" Back in August, our fearless leader Laura, had the brilliant idea to ask some of our favorite hand-dyers and vendors if they would be interested in creating a special holiday color for us. Luckily, we were able to get an AMAZING group together! "The Feast" This year's first-ever holiday collection features colors from Malabrigo, Lorna's Laces, Jade Sapphire, Madelinetosh, Koigu, Fyberspates, Dream in Color, and Sweet Georgia inspired by their favorite holiday dishes. The collection also includes a special interchangeable set of Dreamz needles from Knitter's Pride in...

addthis_pub = 'laurazander'; addthis_brand = 'Jimmy Beans Wool'; addthis_logo = 'http://www.jimmybeanswool.com/images/headerlogoSmall.gif'; addthis_options = 'favorites, digg, delicious, email, google, myspace, facebook, reddit, newsvine, live, more';   !-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"Times New Roman"; panose-1:0 2 2 6 3 5 4 5 2 3; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:50331648 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-parent:""; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 ...

Hi Everyone! Over the last few weeks, we've been watching the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy and have been trying to help promote any of the relief efforts that we see come our way. There are so many folks that have gotten involved in so many different ways that it's been tough to keep track of them all! We thought maybe you all felt the same way, so with that in mind I've done a little research and created a list of various efforts being made within the knitting community to make your efforts to help a little easier! Also, I am sure that I've missed some folks, so please, if you are doing a promotion for Hurricane Sandy Relief (ie. selling one of your patterns and donating the profits or collecting hand knit items to donate) please let us know by leaving a comment on this post with the link...

addthis_pub = 'laurazander'; addthis_brand = 'Jimmy Beans Wool'; addthis_logo = 'http://www.jimmybeanswool.com/images/headerlogoSmall.gif'; addthis_options = 'favorites, digg, delicious, email, google, myspace, facebook, reddit, newsvine, live, more'; One of the most frequent questions I'm asked in the store is how many projects do I have going at any one time. I usually just rattle off whatever I'm currently working on but a couple of days ago I looked around and realized I just have way too many projects going. No wonder I'm not finishing any! LOL! I thought I would share some of them with you. First there is my A-line Hoodie from our recent Knit Red Knit-A-Long.  The pattern is by Diane Soucy and can be found in Knit Red by Laura Zander.  I'm using...

Bar-Maids is a small family fun business. Though quite a few of us are together all the time, location aside, being with this fun-loving group of individuals during the holidays is what matters most. Our group of individuals happens to average about twenty. As you can imagine, when twenty or more people get together under one roof for at least a week, you need to have some rules. If you ever venture into something like this we offer up our list of rules, referred to as the 12- step program. 1. Travel Light: 1 suitcase per person. Diva’s – you can do this!   2. Minimal Mess: Shoes off at the door (Except for Santa. His footprints are a highlight as they make a path from the fireplace, to the cookies, to the tree. Boot bottoms dipped in flour (easy to vacuum). 3. Comfort: Beds...

Not long ago there was a discussion in my Ravelry group (Crochet Insider) about swatching or not swatching before a project.  These days, just about every dedicated crocheter knows they are supposed to do a swatch first, especially when making garments, but often they still don't.  I have to admit that I  ranted in rhyme about it on a thread, as follows: Crocheters, can you please get on the right page You can’t make it work without getting gauge. Don’t be lazy, it’s a good thing to do, Practice the stitch before you make a boo boo. You have the nerve to complain about fit But you can’t be bothered to first swatch it? It’s an insult to people who work hard and long When you post here on rav and say it’s all wrong. OK, maybe I went overboard here, but my...

Kirsten Muench is one of our long time friends here at Jimmy Beans Wool. She owns Muench yarns, which produces the delicious Touch Me yarns (she actually created the yarn herself), as well as Muench Family and Big Baby, two of our go-to kid friendly yarns. Muench is also one of the main distributors of Knitter's Pride Needles in the US. In this lovely post, Kristin tells us the story of what inspired her's and Knitter's Pride's contribution to Operation Turkey Trot: This story starts in a small village near the Baltic Sea, before WWII, where my people come from. It was a Part of Germany called East Prussia, what is now Northern Poland and Russia. My mother’s whole family was from this area… They lived there for hundreds of years; they were doctors, professors, and farmers. The Russians invaded...

addthis_pub = 'laurazander'; addthis_brand = 'Jimmy Beans Wool'; addthis_logo = 'http://www.jimmybeanswool.com/images/headerlogoSmall.gif'; addthis_options = 'favorites, digg, delicious, email, google, myspace, facebook, reddit, newsvine, live, more'; Jimmy Beans and Stitch Red are joining together with Random House and the Red Scarf Project to hold a Knit For Charity Night on Thursday, November 15, 2012 6-8 pm. Come join us to knit, crochet or sew a project for charity! Random House has put together a nationwide knit night event presenting Nicky Epstein's new book, “Knitting in Circles”, knitting for charity and support for Stitch Red. They are offering a free red scarf pattern from Nicky's book and exclusive knitting tips from Nicky herself for attendees, plus an exciting...