February 3, 2012 by LBYS Staff
Last Sunday, fiber artist Ruth Marshall came to the LBYS to teach us all about how she creates her incredible knitted animal pelts in her class, Ruth Marshall: Animal Intarsia: How Knitting Can Interpret Nature’s Forms (to read more about her fiber art installation at the LBYS, click here).
Ruth Marshall at the LBYS
(If you’re viewing this blog post in your email or RSS reader, please click on the title to view it in your web browser in order to see the slideshow.)
Ruth showed us how the design of an animal’s pelt is different from anything we’d ever knitted before. She showed us dozens of pictures of animal skins for reference, and pointed out how fur of an animal doesn’t have a standard geometric form. So unlike traditional fair-isle patterns, you have chart each stitch individually, and you can forget all about working repeats of a pattern!
With graph paper and pencils in hand, we studied the photos and began to sketch our stitches. There were so many beautiful creatures to study…tigers, ocelots, jaguars, and leopards (oh my!). Using a combination of stranded colorwork and intarsia, we began to knit what we had drawn. By the end of the day we’d created many fascinating samples, and had a deep appreciation for Ruth’s work and attention to detail.
Thanks for teaching us so much about knitting and nature Ruth!
We’ll never be scared of knitting tigers or jaguars or leopards again.
Posted in Classes, Event Updates, News | Tagged Animal Intarsia, Animal Print, Pelt |
February 1, 2012 by LBYS Staff
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Join Darrin and our growing group of guys at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio! We knit, we crochet, we laugh, we bond. It’s a great way to connect with other men who love yarn.
Men’s Night
Thursday, February 16
5:30 – 8:30 pm
Click here to RSVP.
All Men’s Night attendees can receive 10% off! To get your discount, RSVP using the link above. When you arrive, just check in at the register. A staff member will direct you to the upstairs meeting room.
*Offer good only for purchases made during time of Men’s Night. Good for in-store purchases only. Not valid on the web. Cannot be combined with any other sales or discounts. Cannot be applied to previous purchases.
[Note: Pattern shown is the Knit Varsity Stripe Hat & Scarf. To see the pattern, click here; it may open in a new window. You may be asked to sign in to LionBrand.com.] |
Posted in Events, Highlights, News | Tagged crochet, group, guy, knit, male, man, men |
January 31, 2012 by LBYS Staff
Each month we feature a different yarn and pair it with free crochet and knit patterns. You can receive 15% off that yarn all 
month!*
This month’s featured yarn is Wool-Ease Thick & Quick. Wool-Ease Thick & Quick is the super bulky member of the Wool-Ease family. It has the feel, warmth and softness of wool with the easy care of acrylic. Perfect for extra warm sweaters, jackets, vests, slippers and hats. It’s an ideal beginner yarn.
For the whole month of February, receive 15% off the Lion Brand Yarn Studio’s entire collection of Wool-Ease Thick & Quick. We are pleased to offer the following free patterns. (When the link opens in a new window, you will be asked to sign in to LionBrand.com.) All samples are on display in Lion Brand Yarn Studio for the entire month. Come by and visit to see even more patterns and samples!
*Offer good 2/1/12 – 2/29/12. Good for in-store purchases only. Not valid on the web. Cannot be combined with any other sales or discounts. Cannot be applied to previous purchases.
Posted in Featured, News, Products, Sale | Tagged discount, Sale, savings, yarn |
January 30, 2012 by LBYS Staff
PLEASE NOTE: We’ve changed our featured project for February, the Cable and Lace Cardigan 
will return in a later month.
February’s featured project is the Shawl Collar Pullover.
This month only, receive 10% off Martha Stewart Crafts™ Extra Soft Wool Blend when you buy all the yarn needed to make this project.
Click here to see the pattern. When the link opens in a new window, you may be asked to sign in to LionBrand.com.
| Size |
Small, Medium, Large, 1X, 2X |
| Finished bust (inches) |
38 (42, 46, 50, 54) |
| Finished length (inches) |
22 1/2 (23, 23, 23 1/2, 24) in. |
| Balls of Martha Stewart Extra Soft Wool Blend |
7 (8, 9, 10, 11) |
| Lion Brand Knitting Needles- Size 6 [4.00 mm] |
| Lion Brand Knitting Needles – Size 8 [5 mm] |
| Large-Eye Blunt Needles (Set of 6) |
Come visit us at LBYS to see the sample in person, and we’ll help you find everything you need!
*Offer good 2/1/12 – 2/29/12. Good for in-store purchases only. Not valid on the web. Cannot be combined with any other sales or discounts. Cannot be applied to previous purchases.
Posted in Highlights, News, Products, Sale | Tagged discount, project, savings |
January 25, 2012 by LBYS Staff
At the Studio we don’t celebrate the holidays until they are over (and we’ve finished all those other gift projects!). Since our wonderful staff works so hard straight through the holidays, we have our “Post-Holiday Party” in the middle of January.
After a fabulous pot luck dinner and a toast from David Blumenthal, our fearless leader, we dug into our gifts.
Happy Holidays at the LBYS
(If you’re viewing this blog post in your email or RSS reader, please click on the title to view it in your web browser in order to see the slideshow.)
One of our favorite holiday traditions is the secret gift exchange. Back in November we each added 5 knit or crochet projects to our Ravelry queues to let everyone know what gifts we would love to receive. Then we drew one another’s names out of a hat and had 3 months to pick a project from his or her queue and make it for them!
One of the funniest part of a secret gift exchange was watching everyone try to guess who made them the gift (no one was able to guess this year!).
There were some gorgeous gifts, and we all had a great time. Happy (belated) Holidays!
Here are the patterns for each gift we made for each other. Click on the pattern name to see it on Ravelry (you may be asked to sign in on Ravelry when you do).
- Patty made for Michelle: Sourwood Mountain in LB Collection Superwash Merino Wild Berry.
- Jess made for Patty: Treads in LB Collection Superwash Merino in Wild Berry.
- Margaret made for Marni: Ice Queen in LB Collection Silk Mohair in Azure.
- Zontee made for Margaret: Lovisa Armwarmers in LB Collection Baby Alpaca (Silver Grey Heather) and Angora Merino (Nectarine).
- Andrea made for Zontee: Hot Water Bottle Cozy in Alpine Wool (Chili) and Martha Stewart Crafts Roving Wool (in Fence Post and Umbrella).
- Lauren made for Andrea: Mug and French Press Jacket in Martha Stewart Crafts Merino in Milk Glass with a Clay Lily button (also available at the LBYS).
- Grace made for Lauren: All Day Beret in hand-dyed LB Collection Organic Wool.
- Marni made for Vanessa: Bella’s Mittens in Martha Stewart Crafts Alpaca Blend in Grape Hyacinth.
- Darrin made for Claire: Drops Design 126-27 Slippers with 6 strands held together of LB Collection Baby Alpaca in Auburn.
- Edita made for Kendra: Lava Flow Cowl in LB Collection Organic Wool in Dark Teal.
Posted in Fun Things, News | Tagged gift, giving, Party, Ravelry, secret santa |
January 23, 2012 by LBYS Staff
Last Tuesday we were lucky enough to have the sock goddess herself, Cookie A, come to the LBYS and teach two amazing classes.
Cookie A at the LBYS
(If you’re viewing this blog post in your email or RSS reader, please click on the title to view it in your web browser in order to see the slideshow.)
In the morning we explored the fundamentals of creating unique designs in her first class: Design Details. During this session Cookie revealed her obsession with ribbing! We discussed how thinking through the of your project details from cuff to collar before getting started can make your designs special.
Once we got excited about all the details, it was time to move on to her second class: Creating Stitch Patterns. With graph paper in hand and our imaginations in tow, we learned that if we can draw it we can knit it! We drew and swatched inventive ways of mixing increases and decreases, and saw how the fabric changed when even a few stitches were moves in the pattern. With our new “draw it, knit it” mindset in place, we took to our needles and pencils and began to create stitches we had dreamed about but never thought possible. Swatching had never felt so fun!
Thank you so much Cookie, we’ll never look at a stitch pattern quite the same way again!
Don’t forget, these master classes are available now (click here to learn more and register):
Ruth Marshall: Animal Intarsia: How Knitting Can Interpret Nature’s Forms January 29, from 2:00 – 5:00
Dora Ohrenstein: Great Fabric with Any Yarn-Drape of Fabric (parts 1 and 2 of the 2 part course) February 12, Part 1: 10:00 – 1:00 Part 2: 2:00 – 5:00
Posted in Event Updates, News | Tagged design, master class, Socks |
January 22, 2012 by Andrea
My favorite thing about crochet is this: no matter where they go, no matter how many times, the stitches in crochet remain the same! This makes it really fun and interesting to learn new techniques, such as crocheted lace. Even though you may be skipping stitches or spaces, putting your hook in a completely unfamiliar looking space, or cramming more stitches into the same hole than you ever thought would fit, the single crochet remains the single crochet, and the double crochet remains the double crochet.
What crochet lace truly is made up of is a rearrangement of the basic stitches into an unusual construction or sequence. Since there are no truly new stitches to learn, a lot of emphasis can be put on unique construction techniques, such as a pattern we work through in which the rows are worked sideways and then linked as you go!
Similarly to knitted lace, crocheted lace does incorporate both increasing and decreasing within the same row – the increasing is generally executed as groupings of stitches; common increases you may have seen are the shell stitch and cluster stitches. The decreasing is almost always done by skipping things – be it stitches or spaces in the work. This is how the “holes” in the lace are formed.
Come give lace a try and learn more about the construction of your crochet than you ever thought you’d know!
To book this class online, click here.
Crochet Lace and Filet Crochet
Tuition: $65/ 2 week session (2 – 2 hour classes)
Materials/Homework: Listed in confirmation e-mail.
Prerequisite: Must know chain, single, half double, double & treble crochet, simple increasing and decreasing, and be able to work these techniques in a pattern without supervision.
This workshop explores the exciting world of lace and Filet Crochet. You will learn how to create lace-which is a more open version of fancy crochet stitches, and Filet Crochet, which relies on simple mesh, in which stitches can be filled in or left open to create a pattern.
Friday January 27 & February 3 – 12:00 – 2:00 pm
To book this class online, click here. |
Posted in Classes, News | Tagged Andrea, How-To, Lace |
January 20, 2012 by LBYS Staff
Hey crocheters, if you love to make garments with gorgeous stitch patterns that flatter your figure, have we got a book for you!
Popular crochet designer Dora Ohrenstein’s new book, Custom Crocheted Sweaters, it devoted to the design, construction, and shaping of beautiful and flattering CROCHET sweaters. Come join us as Dora discusses her new book, and her processes in creating enviable crochet garments for every shape and size! Join us for this special designer talk and Q&A at the LBYS.
Books are available for purchase at the LBYS, and Dora will be signing books following the talk.
Thursday, February 9th
6:00 pm, doors open at 5:30 pm
Click here to RSVP.*
PLUS, don’t forget to book a spot in one (or both) of Dora’s master classes: Great Crochet Fabric With Any Yarn – Drape of Fabric (February 12, 10:00 – 1:00 pm) and Great Crochet Fabric With Any Yarn – Quality of Fabric ( Febrary 12 2:00 – 5:00 pm) are on sale now. Click here to learn about times and pricing. Click here to book online.
*Due to the constraints of our online booking service, we can only provide 1 RSVP per e-mail. We are sorry for any inconvenience. If you have friends who are not on our mailing list, please feel free to send them a link to the form so they can RSVP for themselves.
Posted in Events, Featured, News | Tagged book signing, Crochet Garment, designer |
January 19, 2012 by LBYS Staff
