Blonde Chicken Boutique

Shades of Hemp

Tara — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 15:52:02 +0000

This week has been all about the hemp.

I got a ginormous wholesale order from a fiber artist, so I have been winding + dyeing for days.

(This is actually a giant pile of yarn I sold to someone at Starbucks last month. If you’re ever in town, shoot me an email and you get your own pile of yarn + coffee!)

This color (pumpkin) seems to be the most popular:

Emily is making a gorgeous Waves of Grain scarf:

(the free pattern is here, on Knitty). Emily is @emilyroots on Twitter is a new spinning convert, so go welcome her to the club!

And @fracksmom is making a cowl out of it.
(I’m pretty sure it’s not for her dog, he’s just modeling it!)

If you’re wondering what you might make with hemp laceweight, I’ve compiled a whole list of patterns and you’ll probably love the projects other knitters are making on Ravelry.

Oh, and if you want a little skein for yourself (it’s actually a huge skein: 625 yards/2 oz), you can get it right here.

Farmer’s Market Inspiration

Tara — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 13:08:29 +0000

A photo tour of this week’s inspiration, all of it from the local farmers.

Green beans

Carrots and peaches

Watermelon

The result of the inspiration, which you can use to inspire your summer.

Never hate another sweater

Tara — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 16:23:00 +0000

This week I found the best resource EVER on knitting sweaters that fit and flatter your shape.

I am so blown away, all I can do is tell you to go there NOW and read the entire thing. It’s the Fit to Flatter series, by Amy Herzog on Stash Knit Repeat.

After you read the whole series (and take pictures of yourself…and measure yourself), check out her Fit to Flatter review of the new Twist. It’s a fabulous explanation of how to take the principles of picking-the-right-pattern and to apply it to the patterns you already love.

If you want to chat about knitting sweaters that fit, check out the Ravelry group (I’ll be there!). And if you’re looking for some sweater patterns that will look great in handspun yarn, check out this list of handspun sweater patterns.

But let’s get personal…

According to some incriminating photos of my in my yoga pants + tank top, I have a slightly bottom-heavy (but just slightly, the line is like, 1 cm bigger on bottom), so I need sweaters that have more interest near my face. Because I appreciate anything slimming, I should look for sweaters that create vertical lines (like, an open cardigan that hangs straight).

Have I been choosing the right sweaters?

Let’s have a look:

My very favorite sweater is my own pattern and I call it Cabled Satisfaction. It’s based on Elizabeth Zimmerman’s bottom-up sweaters. Knit in the round, with big cables up the fronts and little cables at the raglan decreases that join in the cabled top border. I think it fits all the requirements!

Right now, I’m working on the Apothecary Sweater, which has an entrelac panel at the neck and down the front. The bottom hem is plain, as are the sleeves. I actually only have one sleeve left and now that I’ve read the series, I’m going to make sure that the hem of the sweater and the sleeves end at different points (and that it’s not my widest point!)

The unfinished sweater I’m most excited about is Amelia. Her front panels of vertical lines and the fact that I’m going to wear her open (not buttoned at the top like the pattern shows), are flattering. I’ve lengthened the waist band (to hit my natural waist and highlight it). If I had read the series first, I may have skipped the strong horizontal border of garter stitch. (I’m way past the point shown in the photo..I need to take some more pictures!)

What are you knitting? Is it flattering?

Tell me in the comments!

Talking to Yarn-Lovers: Kim Werker

Tara — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 13:00:31 +0000

Welcome to the first installment of Talking to Yarn-Lovers. Each week I’ll have an interview with a different yarn-lover (maker, knitter, crocheter). If you want to share your yarn-love, sign up here and I’ll email you some questions!

Today I’m talking to Kim Werker, writer, editor, celebrator of ugly, and all-around-crafty-gal.

How long have you been knitting or crocheting?

I’ve been knitting for seven years and crocheting for six.

Where do you find handmade yarn? Do you have any favorites?

I find handmade yarn online, in local yarn shops, and at fibre festivals.

I’m absolutely in love with Felicia Lo’s Sweetgeorgia Yarns, which are hand-dyed here in Vancouver. I’m currently crocheting a shawl out of hand-dyed silk yarn from Indigo Moon, which also happens to be a local-ish yarn – she dyes off the coast on Gabriola Island.

What have you made with handspun yarn?

I made a hat with your yarn:

And I just crocheted a scarf in handspun yarn from Yummy Yarn (pictured at top of post)

What tips do you have for working with handspun yarn?

I love to let handspun yarn speak for itself – using simple stitches allows the texture of the yarn to really shine.

What tips do you have for working with handdyed yarn?

Swatch! See how the colours behave.

What tips do you offer for choosing an eco-friendly yarn?

Pay attention to cotton. Cotton can be one of the most eco-UNfriendly yarns out there. With more and more organic cottons on the market (indicating the cotton has been grown without using the harshest chemicals), it’s easier than ever to make smart decisions at the yarn store.

Oh, Kim makes a GREAT point about cotton! I wrote a bit about how bad cotton is for the environment here. Remember: just because it’s “natural”, doesn’t mean it isn’t drenched in chemicals!

Thanks, Kim, for sharing your tips + projects!

Kim is doing an awesome thing to raise money for a disease that’s ravaged her family. It’s the Pancreatic Craftacular and you can donate directly or buy something from a donor crafter. See all the donors here and remember that 20% of every skein of yarn I sell will go straight to Pancreatic Cancer research (until September 12).

Weekend Inspiration

Tara — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 15:34:23 +0000

Last weekend, I took off.
With just a few days planning, I jumped in the car and headed east.

In five hours, I was in Charleston.
Saturday morning, I woke up and explored Isle of Palm, SC.

then explored downtown Charleston.

On Sunday, before driving home, I checked out Angel Oak:

A 400 year old oak tree.

It wasn’t long. And it wasn’t a lot.
But it was enough.

Enough to interrupt my daily pattern.
Enough to give me a new perspective.
Enough to remind me to branch out, to try new things, to grow with grace and beauty.

It’s safe to say you’ll be seeing new inspirations in the Boutique. New colors, new clarity and new textures.

What are you doing this weekend to inspire your work?

PS. I was able to just drop everything because, thanks to my biz systems, I didn’t have to actually drop anything. You can learn more about systems for your crafty biz this afternoon, here.

The wrap-stitch and bind-off how-to

Tara — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 16:02:13 +0000

If you bought a skein of banana yarn at the Big Crafty last week, you got a free pattern: the Slanty Surprise Shawl.

If you missed it then, you can still get a (free) shawl pattern, by purchasing a skein of banana yarn from the Boutique, in the next week. (Offer ends 8/1)

The pattern is mostly the wrap-stitch (did I make this up? I don’t know!) and it’s a little hard to explain verbally, although it’s super-simple to perform.

Here’s how you do it!

And the bind-off is basically a crochet bind-off…but with your knitting needles. Here’s what I mean:

(behind the scenes note: I am wearing the same skirt in the photoshoot for the patterns and in the tutorials. Different days, same skirt.)

If you have any questions or comments (would you like to see more videos?), leave them in the comments!

The Biiiig Crafty!

Tara — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 13:24:54 +0000

The Big Crafty was awesome!

A big thank you to everyone who came out and said hello, we were so happy to meet so many of you (despite how serious I look in this photo – I was hot!)

Our booth was spilling over with handmade yarn from me (of course!)

and a bunch of other yarnies.

For the full list, check out A Novel Yarn.

PS. If you got a pattern at the show? I’ll be posting those videos I promised tomorrow! Come back for them or just subscribe and it’ll come right to your inbox.

See me this weekend in Asheville!

Tara — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 13:00:08 +0000

I will be at Big Crafty this Sunday, 7/11 in Asheville (with bunches of yarn!)!

My favorite part? The delicous Short Street Cakes (the ONE place that makes gluten-free cupcakes!) will be there with cupcakes. Woo!

You can get directions to the show here.

I will be in spot #5, which you can find on this map (pdf).

Need even more incentive? Mention that you saw this blog post and you’ll get a FREE pattern. It’s super secret and not for sale yet, but it looks like this:

Let me know in the comments in you plan on coming!

I want YOU (for fame and glory)

Tara — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 17:49:56 +0000

I’ve been thinking a lot about working with handmade, eco-friendly yarn ever since I posted the list of over 40 patterns for handspun and handdyed yarn.

I’m knitting this shawl out of my banana yarn:

And this shawl out of UrbanGypz’s handdyed seasilk yarn (delicious!)

How do YOU work with handmade or eco-friendly yarn?

I’d love to collect your stories, opinions and tips and create a resource for all of us.

If you’d like to talk about handmade or eco-friendly yarn and how it fits into your crafting, just let me know by filling this out. I want to hear from EVERYone: new knitters, old crocheters, yarn professionals, average joes!

Each week, I’ll share your stories here, so we can all learn from each other!

PS. If you know someone who would like to talk about their own crafting, send them this link: http://bit.ly/bMlYXt

Happy 1 year anniversary!

Tara — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 16:30:58 +0000

Today’s my anniversary!

I have been self-employed, making handspun yarn, full-time for one year!

Instead of writing about, let me tell you what it’s like:

But most importantly?

I want to say, THANK YOU!

Without you and your support at the Boutique, I wouldn’t be able to pay the bills.
Without your delightful emails, I wouldn’t love what I do.
Without your encouragement and sympathy during hard times, I wouldn’t be able to go back to the wheel each day.

Thanks for making this last year awesome.

Here’s to many more fabulous, yarny, colorful adventures!

PS. Completely unrelated but entirely serendiptously, I’m almost at 600 sales in my etsy shop. The person who buys the 600th item will get a free skein of yarn in their order! Get yours here.