As some of you may know, Sandy and I are really good friends. We tend to see something the other one is doing and go "ooohhh I wanna do that too." Sandy has started a Trail Jacket by Knitbot, and I want to cast mine on too. Okay, so I admit I am the monkey who just has to get into the middle of things.

In the mist all the sewing, knitting and work, I am getting ready to give this fantastic pattern a go! Sandy is using Noro Kochoran from her stash, and I just can't say how lovely it is so far. As a matter of fact, I have six hanks of the very same color in my small yarn store and I think I will monkey on and maybe we can be twins! Ha Ha:) We just got some Kochoran in stock (on sale no less) and I am also considering color 75 for this project.

I really like the simple shape of this jacket and the potential for modifications. Sandy is adding some pockets to hers and is considering a slightly different collar.

Sorry for the short post, but I am off to look at other yarn for this pattern....hmmm...possibly the Taria Tweed, or Lana Grossa's Everybody...decisions, decisions...sigh...what a hard life I have, hee hee!

What would you use?

Ok, and now for the winners of the Jade Sapphire giveaway!  Our 3 winners (thanks to Random.org and only using the entries that made it in before midnight last night) were:

1) Autumn's Mom, who said, "I would wear it out to dinner to celebrate my 22nd wedding anniversary this year."

2) Sarah, who said, "The Ponchette would be a staple in my work wardrobe. My office is freezing year-round, and this would be great for days when an extra layer is needed!"

3)  Flossie Knits, who said, "I would wear it on my annual Montreal trip!  It would be perfect for the cooler weather!

Thanks to everyone who entered, and winners, don't forget to e-mail kristen@jimmybeanswool.com right away to claim your kits!  Be sure to let her know your 1st choice preference between Deep Plum and Hydrangea and she'll do her best to accommodate based on who responds the quickest!

As always, happy knitting, crocheting and sewing!!
Jeanne

PS Have you heard about our fabulous Stitch Red campaign? Heart disease is the #1 killer of women, so Stitch Red was created in an effort to help create more awareness. You will want to check out out Stitch Red blog for all kinds of great information and guest bloggers, healthy tips and even heart healthy recipes!!

YOU could be the mega-super-ultra lucky winner of 20 balls of Lana Grossa's deliciously luxurious merino and silk blend, Alta Moda Seta, in the stunning shade of Light Green! To enter, just follow these three simple steps:
1) Log onto Facebook and "Like" Muench Yarns (if you haven't already).
2) Let them know what your favorite Lana Grossa yarn is by leaving a comment on their wall.
3) Keep your fingers crossed and pray to the yarn gods that you will be the mega-super-ultra lucky winner!

The color of your next sweater?

All individuals who leave a comment will be entered in the contest and the winner will be chosen by a random number generator. Please leave only one comment per person. The deadline for submitting a comment is March 1st at noon Pacific Time. So after you finish reading this blog post, go and proclaim your love for your favorite Lana Grossa yarn!

If you're wondering why you should "Like" the Muench Yarns Facebook Page when you are entering a drawing for Lana Grossa, well, there is a perfectly logical explanation! Muench Yarns is the exclusive distributor of Lana Grossa products in the United States-as well as bringing us GGH and their namesake line, Muench Yarns. Responsible for bringing these fantastic fibers to our doorstep all the way from Germany, Muench is located a state over from us in sunny California! We are very excited that they gave us the opportunity to be a part of their giveaway!

And now for some awesome LG facts! Lana Grossa is the largest distributor of hand knitted yarns in Europe. The demand for their top shelf yarns and unparalleled pattern support is so high that they are building a new facility to process their products, ensuring that everyone can continue to enjoy their fabulous fibers anywhere and everywhere! Known for their extensive collections of high fashion yarns-not to mention over 500 trendy designs in pattern support every year-Lana Grossa's motto is "Always something special". Needless to say, they definitely go above and beyond to bringing quality yarns and innovative designs to the fiber arts community world-wide.

Alta Moda: so soft and cozy!

For those of you who are not familiar with Lana Grossa's Alta Moda line, it is comprised of three sumptuous yarns: Alta Moda Alpaca, Alta Moda Cashmere, and Alta Moda Seta. All of these yarns feature a unique woven texture that reduces weight and bulk while maintaining a thicker gauge that works up quickly. The result is a warm, chunky fabric with great drape that is not too bulky or cumbersome, as is sometimes the case with heavier weight yarns. The braided construction of the Alta Moda line also produces an evenly textured fabric and provides superb stitch definition. I have had the pleasure of knitting up a shawlette with two balls of the Alta Moda Alpaca that resulted in a sweet neck-warmer I've been wearing all winter. Stay tuned as Lana Grossa is expanding their Alta Moda offerings this spring and we are eagerly anticipating more of this exceptional yarn within the next month or so!

Don't forget to let Muench know which is your most beloved Lana Grossa yarn for your chance to win 20 balls of the indescribably soft Alta Moda Seta!

Happy knitting and crocheting :)
Leanne

It's the holidays and while we are always thinking of how lucky we are around here this is the time of year that it's foremost in our minds. We will be moving into another great year here at JBW, but looking back we have so many to thank for the wonderful year it has been...of course you (our fantastic customers) are always at the top of the list, but our vendors/distributors have been incredible to work with over the last year!!

Lorna's Laces you all ROCK!!! For those of you who may not know Laura and Lorna got going side by side and Laura would go to Lorna's house and buy the yarns for the shop out of her garage...now how cool is that? We are now into our fourth year of the wildly popular limited edition yarn (exclusive to us) from Lorna's and don't see an end in sight on that one, as you all continue to be super excited to see what's new every month!! You can join our LLE fan club on Facebook and for those of you who don't use FB you can still be a member via email. December's color is flying out the door, so check out Sandy Claus by our very own Sandy!


If you haven't heard yet we have a fantastic kit from Rowan yarns featured in Real Simple magazine and it uses the super yummy Lima yarn!! The Make No Mistake Scarf is a free pattern on our site and includes a crocheted version, so what's not to love? Thanks Rowan for such great yarns and for being so amazing to work with!!

How about our amazing friends at Muench yarns? We have had so much fun with them over the last year and certainly long before that, but our relationship just gets stronger everyday, as they are just great to work with!! We carry a bunch of Muench's yarns and one of my personal favorites it the Tessin!! It is super nice to work with and I want to do a bath robe out or it, or the Big Baby...gee whiz it is so hard to decide! So you know what I will do of course? BOTH!

Lana Grossa has become one of our best sellers and it is because they make fantastic yarns and are amazing to work with!! Laura got to go to Germany this year to visit with them and she enjoyed the adventure immensely!! We carry so much of Lana Grossa's yarn that I can't pick just one favorite, but if forced to, I would have to choose the Baby Kid! I have been using a lot of mohair lately and am just in love with this yarn sooooooo soft!!

I can't talk about all of our amazing companies without a huge nod to Blue Sky Alpacas!! Their yarns are absolutely amazing and the people that make up the company are some of the best you will ever meet! Blue Sky Alpacas yarns are so amazing that again I CAN'T pick a favorite...please please don't make me! I have every one of their yarns in my stash except the Worsted Hand Dyes and that will be going into my stash shortly! I want to make my honey a throw out of it and just haven't decided on the right color, but am leaning towards Putty!

We also work closely with Addi/Skacel and if you have never used one of their products then I suggest taking a look! I have so many of the Addi needles in my arsenal and am completely in love with their circular lace needles! The people who make up this company are so neat to know and work with and we are so grateful to have them as one of our main product lines. We also carry yarns from Skacel and they distribute the Schulana line of yarns and patterns which have made a HUGE hit here in the shop!!

I love the fair trade companies and what they do to help people work and get paid a fair wage, so I LOVE Lantern Moon! I have a little bit of most of their products and one of my favorite knitting bags, my Molly is by them. We carry a whole bunch of their products and I am in love with every single one! Lantern Moon is a company who you can feel good about patronizing and I can't wait to see what they come up with next! Thanks Lantern Moon for doing such a great job and for being so neat!

Namaste is another of our fabulous companies and I have 2 of their bags and also the needle binder. I have had to restrain myself from getting more of the bags and accessories, but am sure I will fall again soon! The products are phenomenal and the people can't be beat!

We have just started carrying the Madeline Tosh yarns and patterns! WOW is all I can say!! Not only have they been flying out the door, but they are truly AMAZING!!! The company is so accommodating and friendly to deal with that we just can't say enough about them! Sandy just finished the Poet Society Beret out of Terrarium in the Vintage and Sara just cast on the Owlings hand warmers out of Logwood in the DK weight!

We carry lots and lots of Trendsetter yarns and they are so much fun to work with; both the yarns and the company! Their Blossom yarn is another yarn I would love to make a robe with, as it is super yummy!! Of course I have worked with lots of these yarns including the Cha Cha which we now carry in the prints too and have always enjoyed myself. The people at Trendsetter are so nice and you couldn't ask for a nicer group...thanks Trendsetter!

Thank you to all of you, our customers and to our wonderful vendors!! You all mean more to us than you know and I hope you will take a second to breathe during this always busy holiday season! As for me I will be knitting which is my form of meditation...so, as always happy knitting and crocheting!

Jeanne

We have a Wool Watcher ALERT for you all!! Tomorrow (Thursday) we will be featuring some of the new Trendsetter Vigna and you will want to take a peek for sure!!

Then we have 'Funky Fiber Friday' coming up (if you have a better name please let us know) which will be featuring our new Muench grab bags which include yarns from GGH, Lana Grossa and Muench!! These great designer yarns are a 'Grab Bag' but I can tell you that they are lovely and deserve full yarn honors!! They range from small to large which means anywhere from 500-1000 yards of beautiful yarns to perk up your stash. I was lucky enough to take the pictures and so have touched what we currently have on the site and can tell you they are yummy!!!

I think these great yarns would make the most amazing diagonal scarf, shawl, or well what ever you want to make! They are so cool!

As always happy knitting and crocheting! Jeanne

Amber come home!! I have mentioned here and there that Amber has been at Muench Yarns helping out and having fun! Now I know it's not a traveling sweater, but a traveling Amber is a good substitute don't you think?

She will be blogging about all of it, but I thought I might put in my 2 cents worth. She has been merciless in her teasing the last week and has been telling me how soft something is, or amazing colors, or I am bringing you a Llama, sheesh what a stinker! I know she won't bring me a Llama, but I was so excited that my dog would have a new playmate :)

So one of the new yarns she is gaga about is the Seta Nova which has Mulberry silk in it and I have touched Mulberry silk and yum, yum, yum!! I can't wait to see this and cast on, oh yeah didn't I just blog about too many WIP's in my life, but you can see how it happens cant' you?

Ok so back on track here and to the right is a swatch of color No. 9 and I want to know that stitch pattern, anyone?? At any rate she should be back in the shop on Monday and will hopefully have a detailed blog for you soon!

As always happy knitting and crocheting! Jeanne

I am in love yet again with another product imagine?? We have the Lana Grossa needles in the shop and of course I had to buy them, dang Laura what are you doing to me? I picked up 3 sets of double points and 1 circular I am so in love I just had to share with you.

The double points are sooooooo smooth and they have amazing points. They are a joy to work with and I will be casting on with the circulars to do the magic loop soon, so will let you know what I think of those.

I can say that the joins and the cable feel smooth and flexible, so I think they will be perfect.




They are so beautiful with all the colors and we have the circulars in chrome too, so I guess I will have to give those a try too...sigh...

As always happy knitting and crocheting!

Jeanne

I have been working on being in the moment as I go through my day and the same goes for my knitting. While I love to get those needles clicking fast I have also been taking the time to watch as I create each stitch that is critical to the next stitch. Each stitch is only able to stand up as long as it has it partner stitch and so on. Okay now I know this sounds very philosophical, but for me knitting is exactly that. It is my sanity, or insanity as the case may be. I started knitting because I couldn't paint (yes that's right I am also a watercolor painter) due to the illnesses of my father and my mother. Well in stepped knitting to keep my fingers and my mind calm, as I knit each stitch the soothing feel of the yarn gently working through my fingers gave me a sense of well being during some difficult times.

Well I still haven't picked my paint brushes up and it has been quite sometime now, but the needles keep on clicking. I think I have found my real passion and while at times it can be frustrating to learn a new technique, or figure out a pattern, if I wasn't knitting a bit everyday I would go INSANE!

So now that I have gone off the deep end and got onto my slllloooowwww down (I go way too fast on a daily basis) soap box, because that's really what I am trying to say I will move along to more relevant topics.

I wanted to show you the bread clips technique which I did a quick blog about the other day and thanks Julie for sharing you little trick with me. How cool is this to use those pesky bread clips for holding the tails on your work, or even as bobbins for smallish yarns. I just gave the word at my house to SAVE the bread clips in this cup please!


I have also been working on a quick scarf that uses larger needles and beautiful yarn (well of course, gee whiz!!). When we got the new Lana Grossa Soja sock yarn in I was completely in love and had to knit something up immediately! Sandy and I debated about how I could get my fix and not start a long term sock project, hence the scarf! To add a little heft to the project I am using Rowan's Kidsilk Haze yarn to bulk up the project and still allow the color of the sock yarn to shine. The soft fluffy feel of these two yarns is so nice and comforting. Isn't that exactly what we look for (comfort) in our knitting?



I hope you are getting a little knitting comfort in today....as always Happy Knitting!

Jeanne