Win A Sheep Felting Kit!

Lorna's Wool Sheep Kit, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

Hi All!

May Day is this Friday, and Rehoboth Beach is getting ready to celebrate! Lots of downtown shops will be participating in May Day weekend - putting out May Day baskets for display - colorful flowers will be all around town. As well as making May Day baskets, each participating shop will be donating a gift to a large basket to be raffled off. I'm going to donate a Lorna's Wool Felting Kit (see above) to make 2 sheep, a Wool and Hoop crewel embroidery kit, a Sublime Stitching packet of iron-on embroidery transfers, and a ball of yarn complete with it's own pattern for a one skein baby hat - that's an over $50 value! If you're interested in a chance to win these prizes, as well as those being donated by others, come on in to Kitschy Stitch May 1st, 2nd, or 3rd (or all three days if you'd like!) and make a purchase. I will have raffle tickets on hand that each customer can fill out for their chance to win. Lots of stores will be offering promotions and/or sales for the weekend as well. Kitschy Stitch is offering 10% off of fabric, and books as well as iced tea, lemonade, and cookies. I look forward to seeing you all then.
For more information on the May Day Weekend, please go to http://www.downtownrehoboth.com/May_Day_Weekend.htm
Thanks!

Happy Stitching To All!
Allison

We're Growing So Fast - store AND baby

Claudia Handpainted Yarns, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

Hi All!

What a great weekend we had here at the beach! On the way home from dinner at grandma's, my son refused to get in the stroller, and stomped the whole way back - quite a walk for a little guy! It was great fun even if the walk took 5 times as long! I hope you all had just as much fun!

We're still getting lots of new things in regularly, and we're getting it pretty well organized and on display despite ONE of us wanting to sort it his OWN way. I've finally resorted to keeping a baby gate up to block the side room. It's been much easier to tidy the shelves ONCE a day instead of the usual 7 or 8. It's a great treat when customers come in, because he knows the gate will be coming down, and that he can stand in the forbidden room delighted with himself for such an accomplishment!

Just arrived in the shop on Friday night -
Lantern Moon needle cases, baskets, and bags - I've already claimed one for my own, and am trying to shush the green polka dot bag from the persistent calling out to me. We'll see how long I last.

Claudia Handpainted Yarns! Gorgeous fingering weight yarn (seen above) with a feel and look similar to Koigu. They have changed the yarn they use for painting so that it's more durable and a better quality!

I met a woman recently who's departed husband had left behind a box full of yarn from a sheep they used to have in the back yard. She would like to have a sweater made from the yarn for her son. Since she doesn't knit, I said that I would help put the word out to see if anyone would be interested in knitting a sweater for pay. The sweater would be a plain knit crewneck adult men's. If you'd like more details, email me and I will forward your message to her. Just type SWEATER DETAILS in the subject, so that I will know without looking at the message to forward this along! (I don't feel comfortable just posting her contact info here) Thanks so much!

Trabajos Hat

Trabahos Hat, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

Hi All!

Here's the first "installment" of the new Holiday Gift series. Every month, I'll highlight either a knitted or sewn gift-able item. This month's Giftable is the Trabajos Hat. It's a simple stockinette hat worked on circulars and double points. The plain stitch really lets the yarn's coloring stand out instead of the two competing for your eye. The yarn is a supersoft single-ply 100% merino, and comes in both "semi-solid" and varigated. It's reminiscent of both Manos, and Malabrigo. The pattern is free with yarn purchase, so the whole project will cost merely $14 assuming you already have the correct needle size (I used a 7 for ribbing, and 9 for the body). I was able to knit this in 2 days (on and off knitting), and then after the baby got a hold of it (I only had 8 sts to go till done!) I completed it the 2nd time in just 1 day, so it's a quick knit.

Earth Day is Wednesday! In honor of Earth Day, I'll be offering a 10% discount on Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy and Katia Lino (Linen) so that you can get your grocery bag knitting on! I'll have a handout of online sites where you can find free bag patterns. Let's get those plastic bags out of our lives!
Also on sale, will be the Classic Elite Verde Collection Yarns - Sprout (chunky organic cotton with a great twist), Solstice (organic cotton and wool), and Allegoro (organic cotton and linen). All the Verde yarns will be 15% off. (The Allegoro could be used for a shopping tote as well!)
Debbie Bliss Eco - Fairtrade 100% Organic Cotton - will be 20% off for the Earth Day sale, and the book which accompanies the yarn will be 15% off as well.
My novelty cotton fabrics will be on sale at 10% off for those of you who would like to sew a shopping bag rather than knitting or crocheting one!
Come in and see the Earth Day goodies that will be on sale from Wednesday April 22, to Monday, April 27th!

Happy Stitching To All!
Allison

Plymouth Yarn Now Available

Baby Alpaca Grande, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

Plymouth yarns are in the shop, and on the shelves. If you've been in in the past 1-2 weeks, you've probably already noticed them, but if you haven't been here that recently, they would be new to you. My favorite, Baby Alpaca Grande, which is more of a fall/winter yarn is in stock in 9 lovely colors (see above, in rocking chair), Llama cotton worsted - a mottled cotton and llama blend in sherbert-ish colors, Boku (a Noro "knock-off" - picture on my flickr) in beautiful varigated shades at a gauge of 4sts to the inch on a 7, Trabajos Del Peru (similar to Malabrigo and/or Manos Del Uruguay) in both multi-tonal, and multi colored. I've made a one skein hat with it already - it's a free pattern with purchase. There's more new yarn in the store as well as more "single" patterns in the binders!

I've been knitting a lot of fall type items lately, and have decided that if I can keep it up, I'll have all my holiday knitting done with time to actually enjoy the season rather than sitting on the sidelines, knitting like crazy with a headless gingerbread man at my side. If you'd like to avoid the last minute chaos of holiday season knitting, I'll be highlighting a different project each month that will be branded "gift worthy" - meaning it is a smallish knit, is fashionable, takes a small amount of yarn, and the pattern source is either a single pattern, or a free online source. Affordable, quick(ish), cute, and fun! I'll be posting the first project soon! (And you'll know that if I can complete it with a baby, you'll have no problem completing it!)

Scheduling Conflict

Teal Hand-Dyed Fun, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

A few weeks ago, I scheduled a meeting with my lovely Cascade rep for today, Thursday from 2 to 3 forgetting that the knit night would be in danger of overlapping with this. Cynthia (the rep) had said she might be running a little late, and so I told her not to rush. Now, it's right around the corner from 4 pm, and I'm concerned because I don't want to be a bad host, but it didn't occur to me to mention it last week. Therefore, if you read this, know that you're still welcome to come and knit, but that I will be occupied (which I am a lot of the time anyway). We'll see how it goes! I know that most people won't get this message in time, but I figured I'd make the effort! Thanks and Sorry!

Happy Stitching To All

Rainy Day Fun

Oilcloth Lunch Sack, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

Hi All!

I hope everyone took advantage of the bone chilling windy day by sitting near a fire and stitching away! I think I got a little carried away with my Spring preparations, having already packed all my sweaters away into tupperwares in the basement for storage till September. Today I found myself wishing I had waited just one more week. As I became more and more chilly, I realized I had a wool peacoat in the closet, so I went to go fish it out, and hurredly put it on. I was so grateful to be toasty again, that it was a whole hour before I realized I had baby food spatterings randomly all over. I was both embarrassed at the slip up, and grateful that most of my customers are mommies and/or grandmas! Baby food is a special kind of sticky - it's that so so sticky that even after having gone through the wash, some of my clothing is often still "infected" with the stains.

Still, with the stains, and rain, it was a great day! I met with a new rep today, and am excited about a lot of great products that will be arriving in the store shortly. I have some Wonderful new knitting bags on the way, and the purchase I'm most excited about is a yarn that can best be described as "Malabrigo for Babies" It's a washable, single-ply wool, in great colors. I look forward to sharing it with everyone.

I sold some oilcloth today to a sweet woman who later informed me that she was able to make 3 lunch sacks out of just 1 yard! (1/2 yard each of 2 contrasting prints - like shown in the photo above.) She was on her third when we spoke, and I was so happy to hear that it worked out well for her. If you click the photo above, you'll be taken to my flickr site where the description of the photo will give you a website for the free lunch sack pattern.

Happy Rainy Day Stitching To All!

Allison

New Books, New Yarn, New Techniques

Afterthought Heel, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

Hi all!

I just restocked the book spinner with some great new titles including "Sock Innovations" by Cookie A, and "Japanese Inspired Knits" by Marianne Isager among others. Also in, is Scarf Style which I had a few requests for while it was out of stock. It's in now!

New Washable Worsted yarns are here as well in 10 colors. Now you don't have to use a size 5 needle or smaller to make a sweater for that special baby in your life!

I'm putting together the outline for a class on using circular needles and DPNs to make a simple but cute hat. I wonder if this is something that people would be interested in? Let me know by emailing, commenting, or calling. Thanks!

Also New in the shop is Retro Oilcloth in great straight from your grandma's kitchen prints. They make great totes for the beach, knitting bags, lunch sacks, picnic mats, play aprons for fingerpaints, or tablecloths

I hope you all enjoyed your weekend!

Happy Stitching To All,
Allison

Late Morning

Retro Oilcloth, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

Sometime this morning, our electricity went out. I woke up, went to check the time, and saw the clock was flashing. I ran downstairs to check the time on my cellphone, and when I got back upstairs, mid diaper change the business phone started ringing. I carried a naked baby down the stairs, but it was too late by the time I got there. I'm hoping that whoever was calling wasn't calling from the front porch! So, hopefully that will be the whole of my "bad" day. I did end up getting the shop open by 10:20 - not too shabby. I apologize to anyone who may have been inconvenienced this morning by our hectic mishap! Tonight I'm going shopping for a 9volt battery. Backup power!

Happy Stitching to All,
Allison

Earth Day Is Almost Here

Fused Grocery Bags, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

Earth Day is April 22nd; only 11 days away! Kitschy Stitch will be officially celebrating for a whole week of promotions and sales. Earth Week will kick off Wednesday, April 22nd (Earth Day "proper"), and the sales will last through Monday, April 27th.

Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy, and Katia Lino (linen) will be on sale at 10% off so that you can stock up to make reusable grocery/farmers market bags.

Other yarns will be going on sale as well. I'll announce more later (Soon!)

The photo above shows a beautiful tote made by fusing together old plastic bags. Find the project in the new book "Fabricate" in stock now.

News coming up:
Oddball yarn swap - get rid of that one remaining ball.
Hand dyed yarns available soon
New Inventory on shelves.
Classes TBA soon

What do These Have In Common?

What do These Have In Common?, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

They can all be found hiding under skeins of yarn on the shelves. (put there by guess who). Today I was chatting with a lovely lady from Dover, and mid-sentence she announced "Cuddles the Cow". I was confused for a second, then felt embarrassed as she pulled the book off the shelf. As I went to apologize, she proceeded to pull out a letter from my friend and a mini flag. Luckily the woman has some young grandchildren. I clean the shelves at the end of each day, and in the 2 hours he had been in the "shop" area this morning, he was already able to hoard away some goodies. Embarrassing, but funny.

The same woman who found the baby's stash spot, told me about a new great database for finding yarn shops in various cities. I had already known about Sweaterbabe - www.sweaterbabe.com - and about America's Knitting - www.americasknitting.com, but hadn't known of Knit Map. www.knitmap.com is great because you can post reviews of shops, and let people know about what you liked about each destination. Also, the site lets you know whether the shop offers classes, refreshments, and other great tidbits. I added my shop today, and unfortunately the site has a little glitch that won't recognize the fact that I'm closed on Tuesdays. I'm not sure how to fix that, but have emailed the site in the hopes that they can update it. If anyone wants to go on to the site, and give feedback about my shop, I'd really appreciate that. (also, check out the site overall, cause it's pretty clever)

There is a KAL (knit along) in the works. A couple of ladies that come into the shop are discussing having a knit along for the Classic Elite bamboo flared tank. I said I'd put the word out here, to see if there was further interest. The tank is knit sideways, with short rows forming the flared "skirt". Location and dates TBA, but check back here for info, or call/email to let me know you're interested and I can get everyone in contact. You can see the picture of the pattern here: http://www.classiceliteyarns.com/popup.php?i=/dadabik/uploads/BamBooGarterTankLg.jpg
You may have to copy and paste it into your address bar, but the address is correct.

More KAL's to be announced soon.

Last bit of news for now is that learn to knit classes will be announced soon. Check back here, or call. (or join my email list by emailing me at kitschystitch@yahoo.com and put "Add Me" in the subject line. Thanks!

Happy Stitching To All!,
Allison

Peeps - Now with More Fiber, and Fewer Calories

Knitted Chick by Rebekah, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

Hi All!,

The above photo was knitted by Rebekah (I have a feeling I've butchered the spelling of her name but she seems like a forgiving person)

Just a quick note to encourage you to check out this great online freebie knitting pattern -

http://kat-knits.blogspot.com/2007/03/some-easter-peeps.html

Now, we don't celebrate "proper" Easter here, but we definitely celebrate Spring, and I have in the past guzzled down a package of peeps (or perhaps two) in a sitting. (I should be worried about my willingness to admit that!)

Too cute! I saw a finished "peep" today and was so taken with it, that I requested the lovely knitter let me hug it! (yes, that actually did happen. i'm not too proud to admit i hugged a knitted chick) I even asked to hold it after I had already given it back once. My photo doesn't do it justice. An hour after gushing over it, and wishing I could steal it away, I put Owen's sweater to the side to cast on for one of my own and I'm already 75% done!

Aside from this being adorable, it uses up little scraps you might have hiding around the house.

I hope Becka doesn't mind that I've posted this. (Let me know if I should remove this please!)

Happy Stitching To All,
Allison

Spring in My Backyard

Spring in My Backyard, originally uploaded by Kitschy Stitch.

Hi All!,

Can you believe the gorgeous view I have out my kitchen window? Even with how gloomy it was outside today, I had lovely spring flowers! Right as I'm getting into the groove of all my knitting projects, Spring has crept up. I'm so grateful we had such a mild winter with barely any snow! I feel spoiled!

I hope that everyone is doing well. I just wanted to let everyone know that there's still ONE MORE DAY to sign up for the sock knitting class we're hosting. Friday April 3rd from Noon to 3. Come on by and register Thursday!

In the mail today was a great new book from Noro - 19 gorgeous designs in those signature colors. Click below to see the patterns!

http://www.knittingfever.com/c/noro/book/676/

Also newly received are Addi Turbo Needles. Don't get me wrong, I'm still a die hard fan of the bamboo, but I know we each have our own preferences of needles, so if you happen to be in favor of the Addi needles, you can now get them here!!! Addi is great as well because they offer some sizes that I'm not able to get in the bamboo - such as 40" long cables, or 00 sizes. I'm still trying to work out their permanent "home", but for now some of them are sharing pegs with the Clover while the others sit patiently in a box. Let me know what size you're looking for, and I'm more than happy to dig it out for you!

Have you been in yet to see the Classic Elite garments on display? They'll be gone in two weeks, so come in soon to get inspired.

I made an order today for Plymouth yarns. More on that to come.