We all just love Rachel's new Ripple Effect Shawl!!! It was released just last weekend and has caused quite a stir here in the shop and on Ravelry! It comes with any of our Tosh Merino Light or Dandelion Bouquets, but the pattern can also be purchased individually from Ravelry too.  







There are so many options for color combinations that I just can't decide which one I want to make for myself!  I've put together some awesome combinations in Tosh Merino Light, but they are all so pretty!  Which do you think I should pick?



A - Mimosa, Moorland, & Nectar
B - Chicory, Fog, & Kale
C - Envy, Leaf, & Fathom
D - Parchment, Antler, & Alabaster
E - Plaid Blanket, Leaf, & Glazed Pecan
F - Robin's Nest, Ginger, & Robin's Egg
G - Sigrid, Nutmeg, & Cobalt
H - Mala, Begonia Leaf, & Denim
I - Lowland, Courbet's Green, & Thyme
J - Stephen Loves Tosh, Log Cabin, & Curiosity
K - Turtle, Glazed Pecan, & Mineral
L - Rhubarb, Candlewick, & Grasshopper


Let me know what you think! And, if you want to win a copy of the Ripple Effect Shawl Pattern, be sure to head over to Rachel's Instagram feed @RachelUnraveled and follow her to enter!

Happy knitting,
Terry

We've been hard at work in our yarny-style Santa's Workshop creating all kinds of fun holiday gifts to give this year. If you haven't yet checked these out yet, be sure to do so for your favorite knitter, or add some of these items to your wishlist for Santa.

Blue Sky Alpaca Gift Boxes:

Rachel, showing off her shawl, and the Alpaca Silk Colors that inspired it.

These have an exclusive free pattern to go with them, the Asymmetrical Stripped Shawl, designed by our very own Rachel of Unraveled Designs.


Debbie Bliss Snowman:

We just love these little guys! So cute!

The snowman can be knit into the Frosty Slouch Hat (another exclusive free pattern designed by our very own Kristen of Marinade Designs) once the holidays are over.


Cascade 220 Superwash Holiday Wreaths:

Huck makes a great model, eh?

This is Kristen's favorite.

These are truly beautiful works of art that will look just darling on your door or decorating your mantle this holiday season. True to our style, we also have a free pattern to go with these wreaths. Once the holidays are over, you can knit a cute Mod Striped Christmas Tree Skirt with the yarn! This pattern is also free and was also designed by Kristen of Marinade Designs.


Tosh Tea Cakes:

Even Huck likes them!!!

Mojito Mint Green... yum!

These adorable sets come in 6 different colorways of the ever popular Tosh Merino Light and each one comes with a Biscoff cookie and a bag of Stash tea to enjoy while you knit! Need a pattern idea for these? Use them to make colorful versions of the Luxury Holiday Garland!

We hope you'll find that our special holiday gifts are just what you need this holiday season!

Happy holidays from all of us at Jimmy Beans Wool!

Lately I've been seeing inspiration everywhere, especially out in our warehouse full of yarny goodness. But without patterns to inspire us, that yarn would sit untouched indefinitely and we certainly can't have that! Here is what has been inspiring me lately in the way of patterns (all from Ravelry with links provided below), and some yarn suggestions to accompany them:

1) With so many babies being born (all of my friends seem to be at that time of their lives) little fun baby and kid items are on my mind. I love this stack-able Army of Caterpillars from Fancy Tiger Crafts (an adorable LYS in Denver--if you live there, you should check them out!) and could see them knit out of Cascade 220 Superwash for washable durability. So cute!

Army of Caterpillars from Fancy Tiger Crafts

2) Bold stripes are super fun, but scalloped bold stripes are even better! I am a fan of Amy Miller's designs and I could see myself wearing Betsey, a lovely cold-weather wrap, knit in Tosh Merino or Tosh Pashmina Worsted this next winter. It's so bright and fun!

Betsey by Amy Miller

3) Shawls always tend to inspire me, so when I saw this unique take on bias knitting, I had to include it in this list. Freesia, by Annie Lee Designs (also known as Jumper Cables Knitting) is a simple design with a little unique twist for some added interest. This is just the kind of shawl knitting I love--mindless, but not too mindless. This design would be amazing in one of the stunning colors of Wolf Creek Wools Alpaca Sport (one of my favorite yarns!) or Lorna's Laces Sportmate (another favorite.)

Freesia by JumperCablesKnitting

4) Geology and knitting? What more could a science geek ask for?!?! I am a self proclaimed science nerd and I loved geological sciences in college. Later in life I found myself teaching the basic earth science principals to kids in an outdoor school setting and I rekindled my love for geology. I love how this shawl is inspired by the different layers of strata and has a variety of patterning in each section keeping it interesting to knit the whole way. What a lovely design! I would (admittedly) probably go with my old standby, Tosh Merino Light, to knit this shawl, but I am intrigued by some newer yarns we have in stock, particularly All For Love of Yarn's Opulence and Manos del Uruguay's Fino.

Geology Shawl by verybusymonkey

5) Lewis by Jaime A Besel, is a gorgeous summer piece with a bohemian feel. It's a summer to fall sweater that can be layered over tanks on cool summer evenings or worn all day long as the days grow a little cooler. The bamboo and wool blend yarn (the original pattern calls for Arucania Itata which is now discontinued) gives the garment a nice structured drape. I really love the shirttail hem. If I were to cast on, I would use either Classic Elite Vail, Frog Tree Pediboo, or Cascade Heritage Silk.

Lewis by Jaime A Besel

6) Lastly, I know it's too early to start thinking about winter knits, by I saw this finished sweater on Lori from Yarn Pop at VK Live in Seattle and I've been thinking about it ever since. This cozy sweater by Heidi Kirrmaier is knit in a DK weight tweed--warm enough to wear as an extra layer on a cold day, but not too warm to wear inside all day long. I may have to cast on this fall for some selfish knitting--perhaps in Rowan Felted Tweed or Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool... or if you live in warmer climes, you could easily get away with knitting this sweater in a cotton blend like Classic Elite Canyon or Rowan Creative Linen which would add a little more lightness and drape.

Snowbird by Heidi Kirrmaier

Lastly, I'm sorry this is a day late, I've been having blogger technical difficulties, but we need to announce the Kristin Omdahl The Finer Edge giveaway winner! The winner is:

Commenter #18: Carol said...

"I would most likely start with Pompeii Mobius."

Carol, please e-mail me at kristen (at) jimmybeanswool.com to claim your prize. Thanks to everyone for reading and commenting and thanks to Interweave Press for preview copy of the book!

I hope you all have a fabulous week!
Kristen

PS. Have you ever wanted to work in the needle arts industry or for Jimmy Beans Wool? We have a current job opening for a Project Manager position! It's full time and located on-site here in Reno, NV. To read more and find out how to apply, check out our Ravelry group listing here:

http://www.ravelry.com/discuss/jimmy-beans-wool/2608203/1-25#5

Next is the newest magazine from Interweave--Holiday Gifts 2011!  Interweave has has really gone all out this year.  The “Holiday Gifts” editions are always chalk full of wonderful designs and this year is truly no exception.  When I flipped through this issue, I felt the distinct strong urge to knit, not an unusual feeling for me, but you know, it was stronger than usual. I loved the cowls, hats, and slippers, but I especially loved the holiday decor.  I NEED to make the cute felted Christmas Trees!  I must be crazy for thinking about the holidays so early, but I suppose if you have big knitting plans, it’s never too early! 


Anyway, I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!  I’m off today and I’m heading to a local farm to pick lots and lots of tomatoes and hopefully make some sauces and salsas to can for winter.  I’m also working on a fun test knit for this lovely gal on Ravelry in Tosh Merino Light.  What are you all up to?    


Happy knitting and crocheting!
Kristen

Kristen's (that's me) Larch in Endless Possibilities

So that is it everyone!  I'll look forward to seeing other finished projects on Ravelry!  Hope you all had as much fun as we did here at JBW!  See you all for the next KAL!

Happy knitting,
Kristen

Happy Wednesday everyone!  It's the middle of the week and you know what that means...time for new featured products!!!  This week I'm reviewing Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light, Artyarns Beaded Silk Light, and Elizabeth Zimmermann's "Knitter's Almanac Commemorative Edition."

Enjoy the vlog and let us know if you've knit with any of these items.  We love to hear your project stories!




Hope you all have a fabulous rest of your week!

Happy knitting and crocheting!
Kristen

PS.  Are you receiving our twice monthly e-newsletter yet?  If not, you totally should!  It's the best way to find out when we get new products and sale items!  Plus, it's awesome! :)  Sign up here.

Hello everyone!  I hope you've all been well these past few weeks!  You may have noticed the absence of FO Fridays and WIP Weekends for the past two weeks, and no, I haven't been shirking my blog responsibilities.  I have a really good reason.  I swear!

Yep, definitely broken.

April 1st was my birthday...Happy Birthday to me!  I made plans with some friends that included my favorite pizza place in Reno followed by roller skating in fabulous 90's attire.  All was going well that evening until I decided to take a spill on the rink.  I blame it on the rental skates. Yeah, that's it, the skates! I broke my wrist.  To the tune of needing surgery (a metal plate and 9 screws) to fix!  Yikes!

Here's me in the ER looking awesome in my shiny Blue Dress!

Although the break was kind of painful, I managed to stay in good humor at the emergency room cracking jokes with the nurses and doctors.  I mean, come on, dressed the way I was, a grown woman with a Roller Skating injury like that?  It WAS pretty comical.  Anyway, at least I can laugh at myself, right?

So I have spent the last few weeks recovering and sleeping a ton! Who knew that building new bones in your body uses a LOT of energy? I had surgery last Monday and since then I have been able to knit in small increments at the recommendation of my orthopedic surgeon.  He said it would help speed up my recovery. Hurray for some good news!

From the Purl Bee

Tosh Merino Light

I started out knitting with some mohair and I don't know what I was thinking!  It was a little too tough to manage when you don't have much of a grip.  I broke my right wrist which is my dominant side.  Luckily I am a continental knitter or I might be having a tougher time of it.  I decided to start off with some simple garter stitch so I began working on this adorable baby blanket which is a free pattern from the lovely folks over at Purl Soho.
It's called the Super Easy Baby Blanket and it's a free pattern on the Purl Bee Blog.  I chose to do mine in Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light so I adjusted the pattern for a smaller gauge.  I cast on 200 sts on a US size 5 needle and I'm really excited about the colors.  Shown here in order from left I have: Espadrilles, Milk, Olivia, Clover, Kelp and Kale.  I am undecided on the 7th color but I figure I don't really need to decide that right now.  I don't actually have anyone to knit this for at the moment, but it's a lovely little project as all that garter stitch makes my hands, wrist, and fingers very happy! (I'm thinking about knitting it for Bethany, because she is so Awesome.)

Top Down Swing Pullover

"Royal Wedding"

Somehow, in all of this bone-breaking craziness, I managed to score eight skeins of Lorna's Lace's Green Line Worsted in the "Royal Wedding" color which was the Limited Edition for this month.  Although I'm not really into all of the hullaballoo surrounding the actual Royal Wedding, I was completely drawn in by the lovely shades of blue in this color.  I knew immediately that it would be perfect for the new Knitting Pure and Simple pattern I recently purchased!  So this morning I cast on from the ball I hand-wound last night while watching an encore of the first episode "A Game of Thrones" on (my hubby is an uber-Fantasy nerd.)  The pattern is Knitting Pure and Simple #115, Top Down Swing Pullover.  It's a cute, 3/4 sleeve, tunic length sweater that has a bit of drape to it.  I really like it and I think it's going to be pretty in this yarn.

So I hope this helps to explain my absence here.  Next week I get to have my post-surgery splint taken off and will have a removable brace that should allow me even more mobility.  I can't wait!  There has been all kinds of knitting going on at the shop, so I'll be back next Friday with a real FO/WIP post. If any of you have experienced something similar to my injury and have any wisdom to impart for the recovery process, please feel free to share!  I welcome any and all suggestions!

Happy knitting!

Kristen

PS.  Are you receiving our twice-monthly newsletters yet?  If not, they are a great way to find out about Limited Edition Lorna's Laces colors, sales, new items, and all kinds of other fun stuff.  Read through past newsletters and sign up to receive future ones here.

        

Happy Friday, everyone! We've made it to the end of another awesome week! I've got several new FO's to share with you from this week, as well as some WIP's here at the shop. But first I'd like to announce the winner of the signed edition of A Knitting Wrapsody from Tuesday's contest!



version with YO's in the middle instead of M1's. I think its really looking great!