Fall Classes for EVERYBODY!

To those of you not near the shop, not interested in the shop, not aware of the shop etc, you are welcome to ignore this post. I post it because I am about to send out a newsletter with all of the latest classes happening at Mary's Yarns and I am unable to post pictures of all of these (my computer skills are lacking incredibly). One thing I CAN do though, is put pictures up here.

SO, I have posted a link on the newsletter to the blog so that people can see pictures of what classes they are signing up for.

Do I make my life complicated, or what? For more information on all of these classes, feel free to check out the class descriptions on the website.

You might even experience a wee bit of deja-vu while scrolling through some of these photos.
In the meantime, here we go!

Baktus Scarf
Saturday, October 31st.
2:00-4:00

Irish Hiking Scarf
Saturday, September 19th.
2:00-4:00


Oh-So-Cozy Neckwarmer
Saturday, November 14th.
2:00-4:00


Felted Wine Cozy
Wednesday, October 14th and 21st.
11:00 am- 1:00 pm


Granny Square
Friday, October 9th.
10:00 am- 12:00 pm


Clasica Coat Knit-A-Long
Beginning Tuesday, September 15th.
7:00-9:00 pm.



Vogue Knitting Tam
Tuesday, November 3rd and 10th.
10:00 am-12:00 pm


So, there you have it!

As I mentioned above, there are plenty more classes, just not any more with photos. Sorry. I'll get it together someday. (I hope).

Give us a ring at the shop if you're interested in participating. We'd love to have you there!

Bitsy Beaded Baby Booties

More Sock Summit news! Sheesh... where does time go??? I've been home for over a week now! Time flies... but I tell you, time flew faster in Portland.

Let me share with you something that I made, that I'm not embarrassed of. In fact... I'm rather charmed by it (or should I say them?).

I took a class with Vancouver based designer, knitting-with-beads extraordinaire... Sivia Harding. I enjoyed it far too much. Not only did I walk out with the most precious little embellished pair of elf boots, I learned lots and lots about knitting with beads. It's not an area of knitting I've really cared to venture too far into, BUT when all of the classes were disappearing faster than I could imagine during the SS registration, I just snagged what I could get.

What a happy thing that I snagged a spot in this class.

I mean... LOOK AT THEM! Did you stop breathing for a second!?!?!? I did when I first laid eyes on the finished product. I had no clue what I was getting into when I signed up for the class. There was no picture on the website, I just knew I was in for a pair of 'beautiful beaded baby booties'. Beautiful they are! But who says that they have to be for a baby???

Mine will surely assume a spot on my shelves for a while.

I mean... look at it! Doesn't it just look like it grew up in that tree?


I am forecasting more knitting with beads in my near knitting future.

In other Sock Summit news. You may have heard that the world record was broken during that week for 'most number of knitters knitting in one spot, at one time'.

The record was made in Australia last winter- 236 knitters.

Sock Summit? 935 knitters.

Lynn and Tara accounted for two of that 935.

I only wish I could have gotten a photo of the camera men who were documenting this event for the evening news. They looked like they had just witnessed an elephant casually operating an ATM.

Lastly, I feel the need to share with you flower photos at every post while the weather is nice.

We will look back on these photos with a tear in our eye in about... ooooh.... five months.

Photos Anyone?

I have an idea. If I were to attempt to write out everything I saw and did at the Sock Summit, 'blogger' would likely kick me off their site for rambling incessantly.

So, how about... a photo montage? With captions and wee notes about what you're looking at?
Would that work? Pictures are worth a thousand words so allow me to condense your reading material for the day. I think this might be the best way to give you a sense of what was going on over in Portland last week.

SO- here we go!

First off, I present to you, the lovely Meg Swansen (my new hero) and her assistant Amy Detjen. (This photo was taken shortly after those Barbara Walker tears were shed).

Is there anything this duo can't do? They've been together for 18 years.
That's an anniversary worth celebrating!

Impressive.

Do you not love Meg's adoring look?
They're in this for the long haul.

Now, that's... me. With my moccasin sock.
There will be no close-up shots of this sock because frankly, it's terrible workmanship. But man-oh-man, was I ever happy regardless!

Can't you tell?

And man! I even picked colours to match the wild carpet!


Do you know what I'm holding? A Wearable Art stocking that (I do believe) Meg made with her own two hands. Again, I shall refrain from showing you in close detail my version of this sock because it's such atrocious knitting. I was distracted by stories from Meg and Amy, the fact that Barbara Walker was sitting behind me and all the lovely new knitters surrounding me... BUT- again I stress, I had a hoot making it.


OK- it's only getting better. This is Elizabeth Zimmerman's Arch Shaped Stocking that Meg made and Lynn (yes, ME) is wearing.
I wore such an appropriate outfit for the occasion.
Wouldn't you say?
If only there was a mate... I just might have marched right outta that room.
I guess they suspected that some awful person just might do that... hence the fact they only brought one.
Heh.
I looked like a suspect the second I walked into that room wearing a pencil skirt. I just know it.


And here is the cherry on the top of the really delicious cake... Lynn, Barbara Walker and Tara (my trusty travel companion and photographer). Does she just not look like the toughest cookie on the block???
Yeah, I'm referring to both Tara AND Barbara of course.
Whoa.


See the pink socks in Barbara's lap? She was getting into the spirit of things.
What a good sport.
In fact, the Yarn Harlot has a picture of her wearing these pink beauties all finished up.

And lastly, I leave you with this.


I'll let you take what you want from that one.

Next post, I promise you show you something that I actually knit, and am not ashamed to share with you.

Let Me Sock it to You

We're back.

Safe and Sound.

And... overflowing with sock yarn and sock patterns. (You should see my kitchen table. I must keep the blinds closed so the neighbors don't think I've totally gone off the deep end.)

I shall update you throughout the week as I decompress and sort through all of my class knitting and yarn purchasing.

I will tell you though- it was an absolute blast.
A ridiculously wonderful blast.

My highlight?
Let me share.

Picture this if you will- sitting in a room, listening to Meg Swanson (my new hero) teach her mother's Wearable Art Stocking only to have Barbara Walker in the back of the room.
But that's not all! The best part?
When Meg kindly asked Barbara if she was the one who invented SSK.
The answer? Yes.
Meg's assistant teared up.
I kid you not.
I think I might have too.
Or, maybe it was just dry eyes from convention centre air.

And Portland?
Good city.

Better doughnuts.

I sure do love myself a Vanilla Dip doughnut during my mid-afternoon low blood sugar moment.

Voodoo doughnuts.

I dig.

Some Things Never Change

Do you know where I'm off to next week?

The Sock Summit.

I'm busting at the seams with excitement.

It will be four fun-filled days of knitting socks, talking socks, and shopping socks. Oddly though... I highly doubt I'll actually be wearing socks.

In any case, I will be taking several classes with fabulous knitting peeps (Hello? Is that Meg Swanson in the room?) AND I have to do HOMEWORK for them.

What's so depressing is that when I learned I had 'homework', I immediately seized up. Really? Did they have to call it that? Because even though I enjoy knitting toroughly, I'm having a very hard time with this. I'm experiencing flashbacks to school days when I would do everything BUT my homework.

Like... knit dishcloths.

So, that's what I'm doing. Rather than actually doing the dishes, OR knitting sock legs, I'm knitting dishcloths.

I won't even show you a picture.

They're boring, boring dishcloths.

And as stressed out as I'm getting over getting this homework done- I have a very nice assortment of new kitchen accessories.

Here.

Maybe looking at the garden will help.

Once a bad student... Always a bad student.

In other news, apparently Mary's Yarns is making the slow transition from being a specialty yarn shop, to being a specialty root vegetable shop.


Look closely....


Happy long weekend!

These Boots Were Made for Walking

My friends are having babies... I can't believe it. Marriage? Babies? Is it that time of life already??? I wasn't even aware that my body was capable of producing such a miracle. Fortunately, being a knitter (or in this case, amateur crocheter) is a good thing when babies start appearing. What could be more fun than cranking out some mukluks- baby size?!?!?!




The pattern? Here.

I won't lie. I'm far from the world's greatest crocheter, but I must admit to having had a bit of a problem reading this pattern. I'm new to this crochet business... ok? I think I might have made a few parts up. I know for a fact that I made the leg much longer than called for, but that's just me not wanting to stop.


The yarn? One ball, you heard me ONE BALL!!!! of Drops Fabel. Shade # 911.
That's a pair of baby boots for only $5.50!
You can afford to give people you don't even know baby boots for that price!

The hook? 3 mm
But, don't let that scare you. These puppies whip up in no time.

And of course- flowers.


They match the boots! I couldn't resist.

Just in the Nick of Time

Had I waited another day or two, this project would have been chucked in the basement to stay cool until the hot months are behind us once again. I'm a bit of a wimp when it comes to heat... and this project isn't for a wussy like me. Sheesh.

BUT- I got my buns in gear and finished it up just in time. I'm so pleased. SO pleased. You have no idea. In fact, all those close to me are sick of hearing me ramble on and on and ooooonnnnnn about how much I love it. It actually inspired me to sew some curtains and cushions to match (they're still works in progress- but they're happening!)


The yarn? A Fleece Artist Kit called 'Northern Lights Blanket'.
The needle? 8 mm .
The cozy-factor? Off the charts.

I think I've decided love making blankets. No need to worry about fit, or shaping. They make perfect evening/trashy TV knitting! Admittedly, LOTS of trashy TV was consumed in the final days of this blanket.

And of course, every throw needs giant tassels! I tossed a bit of Louisa Harding's Sari Ribbon to make it a little bit more glam.

Tassels and sparkles... sounds like my idea of a perfect outfit- I mean, blanket.


And finally, a rose for you on this hot June day.


Should you happen to live in Toronto, take a drive/bike/stroll around Bloor West. The roses that have overtaken some of the bricks on buildings are worth causing a traffic accident over.

Off to drink more iced tea.

Sweet Little Baby Sweater

Even with no babies in my life in the foreseeable near future, I have a love of knitting wee things- clothing in particular. Such a good way to get a garment out of your system, without commiting to days and months of the same colour and stitch. You know?


I had a hankering to cast on February Lady, but was able to overcome that by knitting the original, baby version.


'What's the original?' You wonder. The Elizabeth Zimmerman 'Best Baby Sweater' that was originally published in Vogue Knitting in the 90's.

It can also be found in Zimmerman's 'Knitter's Almanac'.

Knit back and forth, top down, on two needles with only TWO balls of yarn.

YEOW! Two.
I used Naturally's Classic Prints- a DK weight 100% beautifully soft superwash wool.
(Shade #888)

SO- now that's out of my system, I can get back to my crocheted baby boots.

Crocheted boots would look dumb on me anyway.

Why Helloooo Spring. So Nice of you to Join Us!

Spring is here and now I can reach deep into the back of my closet and pull out some of the things I finished just in time for the snow to fall last year. They got tossed around in the closet, and some almost near- forgotten, but it's nice to see them again.
Especially because it means that the warm weather is here.

I can feel it.

What is it? Roundabout Leaf Tank by Norah Gaughan from her book Knitting Nature.
What yarn? Kelly by Filtes King- sadly, it is no longer. It's a cotton/acrylic blend.
What needles? 5 mm
Get it? Hmmm??? The name? See the leafs? And the round-about ways of this tank? Man. It was so fun I want to relive this whole project.

Another day, another yarn.

The tank is knit in a big strip, starting at the bottom and going up around and around. I felt very much like I was being forced to think out of the knitted-tank-top-box and this is a good thing. We need a good knitting kick-in-the-pants every now and again.

Norah Gaughan gives good kicks.

And one more thing.


I don't think I have been this happy to see Spring in my entire life.

I hope you all had lovely long weekend with your knitting and/or amongst the flowers.

Mod Babies Only Need Apply

Once again, inspired by a customer I cast on this blanket on a whim, and was blocking within the week. I couldn't stop. It was addictive. I canceled social plans so I could carry on with this blanket. You people have got to stop with this 'inspiration' stuff. I need to learn to live more vicariously through other people's projects.
Sigh...

Too bad I had so much darned fun!


The yarn? King Cole Splash (3 balls)
The pattern? Argosy Baby Blanket (click HERE for the free pattern)
The needles? 4.5 mm
The mods? The original pattern is written for a worsted weight, and I used a DK weight. SO- I made the blanket two extra increases to get the size I was going for (start knitting and you'll know what I mean when I say that).


Look at the blanket getting all cheeky with the flowers...

The best part? Someone pointed out that this colourway is 'Hannah Montana Purple'.
Fabulous.


ALSO- I would like to point out that the idea given to me to make a nail polish cozy in the previous post is nothing short of brilliant.
I'm on it.

It Just 'Felt' Right

I got a phone call last Tuesday from my dear friend Meghan's soon-to-be-Mother-in-law.
Meghan is getting married in six weeks, and made it quite clear to all of her loved ones that a shower was not expected, or even really wanted. Having to do SOMETHING to celebrate this exciting event, a 'bottle party' was thrown in her honor instead.
Each person brought her a bottle of wine.
I brought her a felted wine cozy.


No home should be without.

I am not the most knowledgeable wine person, but I do know a thing or two about anything knitted/felted.
My immediate reaction to an invitation of this sort was to cast on.

So, I did.
And this was the result.

Meghan is a knitter so I knew it wouldn't go unappreciated.

What fun!

The pattern? I sort of made it up by combining several patterns I had come across to get exactly what I wanted. The flower however is from the pattern by Noni for the Felted Farmer's Market Bags.
The yarn? Cascade 220 of course! What dreamy stuff to felt with.
The fun factor? Let's just say that if I didn't have 300 other things on the needles right now, I would be making everybody I have ever met one of these babies.

You can be sure you will see more of these.

Oh. And one more thing.
Of course I included a bottle of nail polish with her bottle of wine.
It was a bottle party after all.

A Very 'Mary' Post

Ms. Mary has been rather busy lately. Knitting wedding gifts, taking care of her ever-growing barnyard family... It's all been captured on camera and I'm here to share with you.

First- the important stuff.
The knitting.

A beautiful afghan.
This is a wedding gift for some friends of the family. Done on 8mm needles, it flew faster than a fighter jet. And the pattern was just complicated enough to keep it interesting, but not so much that she pulled patches of hair out while working on it.
It was 'delightful' to knit, she reports.

The pattern? Cabin Fever's 'The Eden Afghan'.
Yarn? A discontinued Lang yarn called 'Naimo' that's 50% merino, 50% alpaca.
We've decided that Alfa would be a fabulous substitute.
Needles- 8 mm.


And for those of you keeping track of her adventures in egg farming, I present to you her latest batch of hens. These babies are far better behaved than the other crew. So far anyway...

Did anyone happen to spot the write-up in the latest Vogue Knitting for 'knitted hen sweaters'?
I'm thinking this posse needs to be outfitted.

OH! But there's more! Allow my sister Emma to introduce to you the baby ducks.
I went up to visit them last weekend and the last time I held a little duck in my arms was in grade four when my class hatched duck eggs in the back of the room.

Man they're messy, but oh-so-sweet!

Chickens peck. Ducks don't.

AND-Ducks eat algae, and chickens don't. If they eat the algae, then all the fish in the pond can continue to live.

I swear there are reasons to this madness.

Hello Tulips, and Goodbye Yarn

When I arrived at the shop yesterday morning, this is what I saw.

Isn't Spring just the most exciting season of them all??? I can barely contain myself.

Then, when I arrived home at my place yesterday evening, THIS is the first thing I saw.


Cats are bad.

And I have too much yarn.

Most Boring Knitter of the Year

Why? Because I wasn't even knitting for a while. I had a project that bombed so bad that it made me want to run off and be a deep sea diver. Fortunately though, that feeling only lasted about 10 minutes. (FYI-10 minutes of no knitting, can feel like an eternity). You know that feeling though? When you've spent hours on a project, only to have it come out like something from... er, the inside of a cat? Yeah. That's pretty much what happened. BUT- as always, granny squares saved the day and I got over my funk.


Too bad it makes for painfully boring blogging.

Fortunately for me though, I have wonderful people around me that make things that actually turn out. Check it! Cute baby shrug. I suppose it's hard to see that it's a shrug without a baby actually IN the shrug, but that's what this is. UGH! I want one. (A shrug, not a baby- right now anyway).


The yarn? Cascade Luna.
The knitter? Christine.
The pattern? Knitting Pure and Simple Baby Shrug #288.

In just a few short weeks, some little hip baby will be strolling through the tulip garden in one wicked outfit. I have faith.


Oh, and yeah. I have been cranking out several things that aren't square, and aren't crocheted. I promise. You just wait and see! I'll show you!