Yarn – The Knit Picks Staff Knitting Blog

Get your Felici now before it’s gone!

There are so many reasons to love Felici Sock Yarn! First, let’s talk about how super soft the Merino wool is (hint: it’s super – duper soft, 19.5 microns). The touch of nylon adds strength and durability, making it suitable for the rigorous wear socks get. Aaaand, Felici is machine washable, so you can wear them daily and they’ll still be gorgeous. And we can’t forget about the colors! Lots and lots of amazing colors to use in socks, hats, mittens, baby items, and accessories. The biggest reason to love Felici? A Felici sale!

We know you love your Felici, and we are so excited to offer it at this amazing low price. While supplies last, you save 30%, bringing the price down to – drumroll, please – $3.84 USD per 50g ball. That’s right, your beloved fabulous Felici is on sale!

Fun Projects in Felici

The Wibbly Wobbly Cowl by Rachel Henry features Felici in Time Traveler. Rachel is a self-proclaimed Dr Who fan, but this fun cowl will look great in any color way. You can find the Wibbly Wobbly Cowl pattern on Ravelry as a free download.

How fun and colorful are these rainbow socks?! Designer Christina Rowell’s Love is Love Socks (left) pattern features simple colorwork combined with Felici Sock yarn in Rainbow.

Designer Kirsten Hall is a big fan of Felici! She knit up a handful of Hexagons socks (left), which pair Rainbow Felici and solid colors. And how about the Lonely Socks Club: Entrelac Socks she knit from Natalia Vasilieva’s pattern?? I just love both of these unique uses of Felici’s colors!

I’m in love with these fingerless gloves! Frankenfingers, by Elizabeth Green Musselman, proves that self-striping sock yarn isn’t just for socks! Although they are pictured in a discontinued color, I have two balls of Beyond the Wall (shown on the right) waiting to be knit in this pattern… and wouldn’t they look fabulous in Bubble ? (left) I know a little girl who NEEDS a pair!

The Fabulous Felici Sale ends soon!

As most of you know, Felici is a special reserve yarn that we bring in periodically, and when it’s gone… it’s gone. We sometimes bring back a super popular color way, but usually they are limited editions. So get your Felici now while supplies last.

The post Fabulous Felici sale! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

Everybody, I’m more excited than a kid on Christmas morning to introduce you to our newest yarn line. It’s a yarn I have wanted us to carry for ages, because the softness, lightness, and warmth are just incredible.

Wonderfluff is our new alpaca blend bulky weight yarn, and it’s so incredible, the entire office has been knitting Wonderfluff projects ever since it arrived a few weeks ago. What makes this yarn so special? Well, the construction is totally unique for us. It starts with a tube of strong, lightweight nylon mesh, and then the alpaca and merino fibers are blown into it, so that the tube catches and holds all the fibers securely. But because the fibers are blown in, not spun, there is also a lot of air trapped between the fibers, so even though the yarn knits up at a bulky weight, it’s so lightweight and feathery it just floats. This means you can make all sorts of bulky projects without them being super-heavy. I’m knitting an Inland cardigan in Bare and Finnley Heather right now, and I’ve previously made a version in Wool of the Andes Bulky. My Wonderfluff version feels like it weighs nothing compared to it, and it is SO soft. I mean, it’s hard to overstate how soft this yarn is- it’s right up there with every adorable baby animal I’ve ever cuddled. Don’t believe me? You can get a FREE BALL for yourself and decide! Just do a bit of shopping and spend $50 USD or more, and enter the code FREEBIE16 at checkout. We’ll include a free ball of Wonderfluff (in our choice of color) along with your order – but hurry, the offer is only until October 19th!

If you’re skeptical that one ball is enough to make a project, fear not! Each 50g ball has 142 yards (130 meters), and it has proven plenty to make a wide variety of projects. Stacey completed a Ripley hat on size 8 needles with one ball, and Alison made a Bandana Scarf with one ball of Cobblestone Heather.

Holly was able to complete the Walking on the Moon sweater with just 4 balls of Wonderfluff on size 15 needles. Because of the fiber’s halo, even on large needles the fibers intertwine and fluff up to fill in the gaps between stitches, so there aren’t any cold spots. The gorgeous heathered colors are so lovely and feel perfect for autumn.

I’m so thrilled with this yarn, and ready make even more projects with it. I’m also so excited to see what you make with it! So treat yourself to $50 worth of goodies, and grab your free skein of the amazing Wonderfluff until October 19th with the promo FREEBIE16. Happy crafting!

The post Introducing…Wonderfluff! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

Coming up with new yarn colors is one of my favorite parts of my job. Today, we take a peek behind the scenes on how we choose colors for one of our popular yarns, Hawthorne Speckle.

First step: make use of all my millions of Pinterest pins! (See, I knew I’d find a way to justify hours of Pinterest surfing.) Just look at all those delectable color combos. Thanks, Internet!

Color inspiration for KnitPicks yarn
Another great source of inspiration is our very own Yarn Value Pack page! There are so many lovely color-curated sets that make for fabulous multi-colored yarn ideas. Here are a few of my favorites. Aren’t they lovely?

Once I have a good collection of photos, I open them in Illustrator and mock up the colorways. After printing them, the Knit Picks team votes for their favorites with very fancy, high-tech sticky notes.
Choose Yarn Colors at KnitPicks.com
Choosing Yarn Colors at KnitPicks.com

One of the winners was Italian Ice Speckle. Below is an example of how it was conceptualized and the end result, with a photo of our Comfy yarn serving as inspiration.

Blueberry Speckle was another fun one to make, with a beautiful wash of blues from our Alpaca Cloud yarn serving as inspiration:

After that, the files are sent to our yarn factory and the speckle magic happens! We love Speckles so much it makes us want to dance. What’s your favorite of our speckle colors?

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The post Behind the Scenes: Creating Speckle Yarn appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

Oversized knit and crochet projects are showing up everywhere lately – huge arm-knitted blankets, chunky ottomans, garter stitch pillows, you name it. I absolutely love the dramatic impact of these home décor accessories, but I absolutely do not love the usual price tag associated with extra-heavy supersized projects. I have also tried to make some of the jumbo-gauge projects I’ve seen on Ravelry using multiple strands of worsted weight or bulky weight yarn, but the look isn’t quite the same as those gorgeous pictures I see on Pinterest.

Our Tuff Puff super bulky 100% wool yarn came out last year and was a huge success, so we decided to try introducing it in an even heavier, chunkier version. Super Tuff Puff is twice the size of the original with 44 yards per 200g (as opposed to Tuff Puff’s 44 yards per 100g). You can see the difference between the two yarns in the image above, with the original laying on the Super Tuff Puff! It’s a softly spun single ply yarn that knits up at about 1.5 stitches per inch, making it perfect for patterns like the Puff Daddy Pouf. (which I’m making in Canary yellow for my daughter’s bedroom).

We carry a range of jumbo knitting needles, perfect for jumbo and super bulky yarn. For crochet, your best bet would be the 12mm or 15mm Amour plastic crochet hook for getting the appropriate gauge.

We also carry Super Tuff Puff kits in two colorways, Rainbow and Deep Plaid. They include everything you need to get started with jumbo yarn (including knitting needles, jumbo yarn needles and jumbo stitch markers) and are a great way to try out a few colors of Super Tuff Puff together at a 20% discount.

If you’re looking for some inspiration for great jumbo-gauge projects, here’s a roundup of patterns that could work!

Jumbo Yarn Patterns
Eleventh Hour Blanket
Beautyberry Blanket
Mountain Cowl
Bobble Sheep Pillow
Kitty Pouf

The post New yarn alert: Super Tuff Puff! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

As the days get shorter and the air grows chilly, it’s time to warm up with some woolly projects! This month’s free downloadable calendar features some of our favorites patterns from our recent Under 200 collection. Clockwise from L-R: Kearsarge Shawl by Kathi Snodgrass, knit in the ultra-luxe Diadem DK Copper; Leanan Hat by Stephannie Tallent, knit in our rustic and warm City Tweed HW Blue Blood; Zigzagging Hat and Mitts by Mone Dräger knit in silky soft Gloss DK Masala and Daya Headband by Allison O’Mahony knit in our bright and fun Tuff Puff Pomegranate. All of these projects will keep you warm this winter – and are perfect for last minute holiday gifts too!

To get the free November 2016 calendar background of your choosing (for smart phones, tablets and desktop computers), simply click the applicable device icon below. Enjoy!

Desktop wallpaper calendar for mobile 2015

Desktop wallpaper calendar for tablet 2015

Desktop wallpaper calendar for desktop 2015

The post November 2016 Calendar appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

I’m so excited for our Sale of the Month! This month, it’s our super-soft, washable bulky yarn Biggo, available for just $6.79 a hank! For me, Biggo is one of my favorite yarns because it’s so soft and big, PLUS it’s machine-washable, so it’s really great for sweaters and home decor. The 2-ply construction and the 50% nylon content mean it’s very durable too. And I have to admit that I love all the heather colors. They just give a project that extra something that really makes it special.

I even used Biggo in my art-inspired home decor pattern book, Big Art Knits, for the Hesse Blanket. This blanket features a gorgeous drop stitch on a background of reverse stockinette. It reminds me of waves moving up and down a beach. I held the yarn double for maximum fast crafting. With two sizes to choose from, you can make a throw or a full-size blanket in no time on size 15 needles.

I chose to use Biggo in Brass Heather, but I also love the deep, rich purple of Duchess Heather, the icy blue of Wonderland Heather, and the perfect neutral that is Dove Heather. I think each would make a fabulous blanket!

Remember, this sale is only good until November 30, so shop early to make sure you don’t miss it!

The post The Monthly Yarn Sale – Biggo! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

Suggested weekend plans: make a lot of room in your stash corner (or room), because our BIG SALE is just days away! It begins bright and early on Monday, November 14 at 6am Pacific Standard Time and runs through Monday, November 21. Bookmark the sale page now so you can quickly access it Monday morning.

Here are just a few of the exciting things we have planned for you during The Big Sale:

Over 1,000 yarns at up to 60% off (More yarn than EVER during a cyber sale!)
Special value luxury yarn, introduced just for this sale. (It’s soft. So very, very soft!)
A brand-spanking new yarn. (From one of your very favorite yarn families)
The return of a very special limited edition yarn. (Yep, we know you’ve been anxiously waiting!)

Are you just dying to know more? Okay, here’s a little sneak peek for you:

As if that wasn’t enough to get you excited about this year’s Big Sale, there’s more:

15% off select Knit Picks Exclusive Merchandise
NEW product releases
And much – MUCH -more. But you’ll have to wait until Monday… we can’t give all the surprises away!

So plan to go to bed extra early on Sunday, November 13 (or stay up extra late, depending on your time zone) so you can be bright eyed and bushy tailed on Monday, November 14. Here’s a handy Time Zone Converter for our friends in Australia and the United Kingdom, so you don’t miss out on any of the action!

You’d better get working on your shopping list… we’ll see you all on Monday!

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The post The Big Sale Sneak Peek! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

Introducing our brand new Chroma Twist yarn! Available in fingering and bulky weights, this yarn is perfect for accessories like socks, mittens, cowls, shawls and hats. Three strands of our existing Chroma colorways have been plied together for mesmerizing, shifting colors over our new 100g hanks. Each skein is unique as the plies twist together in a slightly different color order each time, and these colorways don’t have repeats within each individual hank either.

We’ve been having so much fun mixing and matching colors as well as dreaming up projects that take advantage of the variation within each hank! Read on for free pattern inspiration with Chroma Twist Fingering!

Stacey’s Do The Twist Socks show off Chroma Twist Fingering’s stunning shifting colors. A simple top down sock pattern, you can breeze through a pair and add a dash of color to your wardrobe.

Knit in stranded colorwork from the cuff up, these beautiful mittens will keep your hands warm on the coldest of days! The Liliiflora Mittens uses Stroll Black to create a strong, graphic pattern as Chroma Twist Fingering’s gradient shifts in the background. Stunning and easily customizeable with your unique color choices, these mittens are perfectly timeless and oh-so wearable.

Joyce Fassbender’s Salon Windows Cowl is the perfect chill-chaser accessory. This cowl starts with a provisional cast on and knit in the round lengthwise, then finished with the ends grafted together so there’s no wrong side. Fully charted, this cowl will keep you warm and stylish all winter long!

Chroma Twist has quickly become an office favorite with piles of the colorful yarn in every cube as we busily whip up new projects. Stay tuned for more inspiration, patterns and general Twist love over the coming weeks!

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The post New Chroma Twist Yarn! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

{frolic!}
Felici is Back

Top Row: Toucan, Pinata, Unicorn, Jamboree, Slumber Party. Bottom Row: Beyond the Wall (returning), Chickadee, Soft Serve, Limeade, Saltwater Taffy[/caption]

Felici lovers, rejoice! Your favorite self-striping sock yarn is BACK with 9 new colors, and 4 returning favorites. There is something for everyone in this winter’s limited release of colors, including plenty of bright color combinations (your faves), plus several muted colorways well as a couple of the more masculine colors you asked for. We are pretty excited about this selection of NEW Felici colors, and we think you will be as well.

I have yet to knit anything with Felici (GASP, I know!), but I just ordered several balls of Chickadee to make socks for my husband. He absolutely loves soft wool socks, and now that I’m confident – mostly, I think – in my sock knitting skills I want to make him a pair of Go Your Own Way Socks.

Lost Lakes – a returning favorite – has my boys’ names all over it! I plan to make an Ethel Beanie for both of them, using a different solid colored coordinating yarn so they “go” together, but aren’t exactly the same. I may even make one for the hubs, too… so they can all be adorable in stripes together!

You’ll {heart} Felici!

If you’ve never knit with Felici before, you are in for a treat! It is the softest Merino wool that we carry, so you can expect very happy feet. But be warned: Felici is addictive! It’s also a limited release yarn, which means that we bring it in periodically in new color combinations but we don’t have it available year-round. You can expect to see a couple of the best-selling color combinations with each release, but otherwise… once a color is gone… it’s GONE. You’d better grab your favorites while you can!

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The post New Felici colors are here! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

If you’re ready for some color to perk up the darker months, you’ll love December’s Monthly Yarn Sale: 20% off all Stroll Hand Painted. Although we have yet to hit “official” Winter, some days it feels like the best of Fall is behind us. Where we call home, the leaves have fallen, the grey days seem to have set in, and it’s anyone guess the next time we’ll see real sunshine. Even the affirmed sun-averse like myself can find ourselves yearning for something bright. Stroll Hand Painted is the perfect answer, especially at 20% off!

The fingering weight Stroll base is exactly what you could want for socks. The superwash Merino wool makes it super soft and super squishy, great for sensitive feet, while the Nylon gives it the durability that you need to make the socks it’s intended for last. But the gentle twist and loft actually lends itself well to accessories like shawls and cowls. Either way, it’s machine-washable, making it perfect for gifts to non-knitters.

The real appeal of the Hand Painted is, of course, the color. Color schemes are hand-picked and hand-painted, giving every skein unpredictable waves and splashes of color. It’s the flair of colorwork, without the. . .work! While complicated stitches might get a little lost, a single skein of Hand Painted will make a multihued masterpiece of even a simple stockinette sock. But that’s not to say that you can’t have fun with handpainted yarns; I’ve picked out a few patterns specifically designed for Stroll Hand Painted yarn that show the variety of possibilities for getting the most out it.

Arrow Gloves

Our first pattern is part of our On the Go collection (which features 3 patterns for Stroll Hand Painted, available in print or ebook). It’s already one of our most popular glove patterns, and you can probably see why! Using a highly contrasted colorway, Red Wing Blackbird, with a simple stitch that alters the line of color, it shows off the contrasts in a unique and interesting way. With Hand Painted, the color does most of the work for you, so a little texture goes a long way!

Charlatan Shawl

Our second pattern pairs a Hand Painted colorway, Coffeehouse, with a Tonal colorway, Mocha, both in Stroll. The subtle color of the Tonal allows for some lace and tones down the more contrasting color changes of the Hand Painted, which draws out the rich tones of the former and gives the shawl the color and drama it would otherwise lack. This shawl has a lot going on, but the pairing of colorways balances everything out nicely.

Sci-Fi Socks

And finally we have a sock pattern! Even with a strongly-colored variegation, it’s still possible to do some interesting colorwork. These socks pair a strong Hand Painted with a solid color (also Stroll) to coordinate and emphasize by picking out a contrasting color that matches a color in the Hand Painted that you want to draw out.

So, whether you want something simple and still colorful, an interesting pattern with dramatic colorwork, or to spice up another pattern with some variegation, Stroll Hand Painted gives you plenty of options for drear-busting socks and accessories. Find a Stroll Hand Painted pattern and get your favorite colorway early before they sell out!

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The post Monthly Yarn Sale – Stroll Hand Painted appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

Get your Felici now before it’s gone!

Fun Projects in Felici

How fun and colorful are these rainbow socks?! Designer Christina Rowell’s Love is Love Socks (left) pattern features simple colorwork combined with Felici Sock yarn in Rainbow.

The Fabulous Felici Sale ends soon!

The post Fabulous Felici sale! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

The post Introducing…Wonderfluff! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

Coming up with new yarn colors is one of my favorite parts of my job. Today, we take a peek behind the scenes on how we choose colors for one of our popular yarns, Hawthorne Speckle.

First step: make use of all my millions of Pinterest pins! (See, I knew I’d find a way to justify hours of Pinterest surfing.) Just look at all those delectable color combos. Thanks, Internet!

One of the winners was Italian Ice Speckle. Below is an example of how it was conceptualized and the end result, with a photo of our Comfy yarn serving as inspiration.

Save

The post Behind the Scenes: Creating Speckle Yarn appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

We carry a range of jumbo knitting needles, perfect for jumbo and super bulky yarn. For crochet, your best bet would be the 12mm or 15mm Amour plastic crochet hook for getting the appropriate gauge.

If you’re looking for some inspiration for great jumbo-gauge projects, here’s a roundup of patterns that could work!

Jumbo Yarn Patterns
Eleventh Hour Blanket
Beautyberry Blanket
Mountain Cowl
Bobble Sheep Pillow
Kitty Pouf

The post New yarn alert: Super Tuff Puff! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

To get the free November 2016 calendar background of your choosing (for smart phones, tablets and desktop computers), simply click the applicable device icon below. Enjoy!

The post November 2016 Calendar appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

Remember, this sale is only good until November 30, so shop early to make sure you don’t miss it!

The post The Monthly Yarn Sale – Biggo! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

Here are just a few of the exciting things we have planned for you during The Big Sale:

Over 1,000 yarns at up to 60% off (More yarn than EVER during a cyber sale!)
Special value luxury yarn, introduced just for this sale. (It’s soft. So very, very soft!)
A brand-spanking new yarn. (From one of your very favorite yarn families)
The return of a very special limited edition yarn. (Yep, we know you’ve been anxiously waiting!)

Are you just dying to know more? Okay, here’s a little sneak peek for you:

As if that wasn’t enough to get you excited about this year’s Big Sale, there’s more:

15% off select Knit Picks Exclusive Merchandise
NEW product releases
And much – MUCH -more. But you’ll have to wait until Monday… we can’t give all the surprises away!

You’d better get working on your shopping list… we’ll see you all on Monday!

Save

The post The Big Sale Sneak Peek! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

Stacey’s Do The Twist Socks show off Chroma Twist Fingering’s stunning shifting colors. A simple top down sock pattern, you can breeze through a pair and add a dash of color to your wardrobe.

Save

The post New Chroma Twist Yarn! appeared first on KnitPicks Staff Knitting Blog.

{frolic!}
Felici is Back

Top Row: Toucan, Pinata, Unicorn, Jamboree, Slumber Party. Bottom Row: Beyond the Wall (returning), Chickadee, Soft Serve, Limeade, Saltwater Taffy[/caption]