I can’t believe that today is the day!  Ever since we had the idea of creating the Gradient Explorers, I’ve been itching to get started on it and could hardly wait to share it with you.

We open the spaces at noon today and, as you know, there are only 25 spots available.  I’ll be sending an email out at midday with the link to sign-up page so be sure you’re on the mailing list and then have a look at the details now so you’re ready to grab your spot right at noon!

When the Gradient flows from hue to hue,

where will the colour take you next?

 

Gradients are all about adventure …and Gradient Sweater Sets

are that same adventure on a grand scale for a big impact!

 

So we’re taking the same idea from our super-popular Mini-Skein Club and applying it to full skeins for sweater-sized fun! Each month we dye a stunning colourway that flows into the next month’s colour… and into the next month’s colour …and into the next. See how cool this is? So come with us and explore the gradient that never ends!

 

Plus our Gradient Explorers colourways work with our standard colourways, so you can use the Never Ending Gradient on its own or mix in yarns from your SpaceCadet stash to build up your sweater set even faster! Each month, we tell you which colourways your new skein coordinates with best, so it’s all awesome surprise and no guesswork.

 

And, just for fun, we’ll occasionally dye special yarns in coordinating variegated colourways exclusively for our Gradient Explorers, that you can use to blend into your Gradient or use separately to create fun, coordinating accessories. Super cool!

 

First, you choose your subscription level:

Single: one skein of your chosen yarn
Double: two skeins of your chosen yarn (both dyed in the same colourway)

Then, choose your yarn:

Select the yarn you want to work in and we’ll dye your Never Ending Gradient onto that same yarn each month, so your skeins will always work together. You can choose from:

• Celeste (fingering): With a generous 490yds/100g, our super light fingering in 100% superwash merino works up on larger needles to create a light and airy fabric that’s perfect for warmer weather sweaters and cardigans
• Aurora (fingering): our super-soft cashmere-blend that’s just dreamy to work with. Constructed of 70% superwash merino, 20% cashmere, and 10% nylon, and with 350yds/100g, it has double the cashmere softness of most MCNs and that makes allll the difference!
• Lyra (sport): spun into a wonderful cabled 8-ply that gives incredible stitch definition, this 100% superwash merino yarn has 270yds/100g and is a beautifully sproingy yarn that is a joy to work with.
• Vega (worsted): this is the sister yarn to Lyra (above), in the same 100% superwash merino cabled 8-ply construction that gives such beautiful stitch definition, but in a quick knitting worsted with 210yds/100g.

Membership numbers in the Gradient Explorers are strictly limited so, each month, we’ll announce in the SpaceCadet newsletter how many spaces are available and when we’ll open them up (click here to get on our mailing list so you don’t miss your chance). And once you’re in, you’re totally in control of your subscription: stay in as long as you like and then you can cancel your subscription when you have enough Never Ending Gradient skeins for your project. (But just between us, can you ever get enough gradient? )

 

 

Gradient Explorers FAQs

I love this idea, but what do I make with Gradient Explorers yarns?!?

The possibilities are endless! Any sweater or cardigan designed in stripes or a gradient with work. For ideas, start by checking out the SpaceCadet’s Gradient Explorers Ideas board on Pinterest (click here). There you’ll find tons of patterns designed specifically for Gradient sweater sets that you are going to love!

And if you’re an experienced knitter or crocheter with the skills to calculate your own colour changes, then you can use any pattern for gradient skeins. Simply decided whether you want sharp colour breaks where you join in a new yarn or softer colour morphing by alternating skeins, then calculate where you’ll place the colour changes and cast on!

How do I make the Never Ending™ Gradient work? Can I start in any month and join that yarn to any other month’s yarn?

Each month’s yarn is designed to work with the yarn from the month before it and the month after it, so you’ll want to keep your yarns in order to maintain the gradient. Of course, if you’d like to create contrasting stripes, you can ignore the month-order and work the yarns any way you like!

I’m trying to join but it says it’s sold out. How do I get in?

Membership numbers in the Gradient Explorers are strictly limited so, each month, we’ll announce in the SpaceCadet newsletter how many spaces are available and when we’re opening them (the exact dates and times vary to give our customers across timezones a chance to get in, so click here to get on our mailing list so you don’t miss your chance). Once those spaces are gone, the club will show as “sold out” until we open spaces again.

If I end my subscription, can I rejoin again whenever I like?

Once you’re in the Gradient Explorers, you’re for as long as you’d like to keep your subscription (woot!). But if you leave, you’ll need to wait for us to open up spaces again to grab a spot.

What sorts of colourways can I expect in my parcel?

(or: does the gradient just go in rainbow order? I like rainbows but I’m not sure I want to wear rainbows.)

The best gradients combine colours you might not expect(!) so, while we occasionally work our way through analogous colours (hues that sit next to each other on the colour wheel, such as green-blue-purple) or fades of one hue, we also move around the colour wheel in unexpected ways (for example, purple-grey-yellow). The whole idea is have an adventure, so we never know where the colour will take us!

When will payment be taken? And when will my parcel arrive?

Your payment will be processed on the day you subscribe, and will automatically repeat on the same day each month of your membership.

All parcels go out near the end of the month: domestic deliveries are sent by Priority Mail, which usually takes about 2-3 days. International deliveries are sent by USPS First Class mail. You’ll get an email each month letting you know when your parcel has shipped.

Hey! My second payment has come out but I haven’t received my yarn yet!

Because each skein is dyed by hand and our membership numbers change every month, we need enough time to get everyone’s parcel dyed and ready. That usually takes between three to six weeks, depending on when you sign up and whether we are travelling to special events that month. When you join, your first parcel will be the following month’s parcel, and will go out at the end of the month (for example, if you join on January 20, your first shipment will be February’s parcel and will go out at the end of February). Because of this, you may end up making two payments before your first parcel arrives (in the example above, your payments would come out on Jan 20 and again on Feb 20, and if your first parcel ships on February 25, you will see two payments go out before your first parcel arrives). Although it is not ideal to have that happen, we can’t figure out a good way to avoid it, so we always track everyone’s payments carefully to ensure you receive all of your parcels.

When does my subscription end?

You can end your subscription whenever you have collected enough skeins for your project (or, any time you like).

What if I don’t like the colours? Can I return or exchange a skein?

So much of the fun of being in a subscription service like this is the excitement of discovering new yarns and exclusive colourways! Joining the Gradient Explorers with a sense of adventure means you’ll come along as we explore new worlds of colour together, and that is key to really getting the most of your club experience.

Because of the nature of the subscription set-up, we can accept returns or exchanges of shipments for faulty yarns only. However, if one of your skeins really isn’t working for you, you can always sell or destash it on Ravelry, in the SpaceCadet’s For Sale or Wanted thread (click here to go to it). Even if a colourway isn’t your cup of tea, it’s almost guaranteed that there’s another SpaceCadet fan who will be excited to snap it up!

Anything else I should know?

When you join, you’ll be added to the Gradient Explorers mailing list, which we use to share project ideas, subscription information, and to easily let you know of any changes to the service in the future.

And once you’ve joined, please do come over to the SpaceCadet Creations group on Ravelry and tell us all about the project you’re making or planning to make. We’d love to hear about it and see your progress!

So now you have all the details, you’re ready to jump aboard as soon as it opens.  If this looks as much fun to you as it does to me, be sure you’re on the mailing list and then keep your eye open for that email at noon today, and grab your spot before it goes!

 

What a delightful week it’s been!  The weather has cooled off nicely (what a relief — I start to melt in anything over 80F!), we sent every one of our One-of-a-Kinds off to their new homes (can’t wait for you to get them!), and there was a ton of interesting stuff in the fiber world that I wanted to share with you.

So I am going to grab a cup of tea and go sit on the porch, and I hope you have something relaxing to drink too, and let’s dive into this week’s fibery goodness!…

Image ©Hunter Hammersen, used with permission

I am always excited when Hunter Hammersen designs a new pattern in our yarn because 1) her designs are beautiful and always filled with delightful little details and 2) her patterns often come with multiple options.  Here newest design (above)  is no exception   …and it’s releasing next week   …and it’s designed in SpaceCadet Oriana   …and we’re doing an Oriana Shop Update to go along with the pattern release.  So much good stuff!   If you’re on her mailing list, you’ll get a coupon for the new pattern (and it’s a different and bigger coupon than the one she puts on her blog/instagram/twitter).  And if you’re on our mailing list, you’ll hear first when the shop update goes live so you get your favourite colour.  Bingo!

Speaking of Hunter, I am super excited to hear that she’s updated her Curls 2 book to include stitch maps for all of the patterns.  If you don’t know what that means, stitch maps are a little bit like knitting charts reworked to resemble crochet charts (which I find much more intuitive to read) but Hunter explains it much better than I do (and with pictures!) so head over to her blog and read all about it.  And if you already own the electronic versions Curls or Curls 2, check your Ravelry library for the update!

Image ©Hunter Hammersen, used with permission

I am in awe of Laura Bireck who designed and knit her own lace wedding dress.  Not only because she started the actual design process in only January and her wedding was in May, and not only because that also included an online crash course in lace design, and not only because of the fabulously McGuyver way she blocked it (using a tripod and upholstery foam — whaaat?!?) but because the result was absolutely stunning!  I am so very inspired now.

This is not at all knitting related but watching it absolutely made go all warm and fuzzy inside.  When strangers act like friends, does it change how they feel about each other?

This week I received an email from Sacia Ashe (left), a 15-year-old avid knitter who has just launched A Purl Stitch, to provide “modern knitting patterns and a fresh look at the knitting community.”  She asked if I would be her first interview for the new site and of course I said yes.  Click here to give her some love…  and see who the next generation of knitters is going to be following!

 

The SpaceCadet’s Gradient Explorers Opens on Friday!

In last week’s newsletter, I told you about our exciting new club where we create a Never Ending gradient, just as we do for our Mini-Skeins, but for full-sized skeins so they build up into sweater sets!  How cool is that?  Just like the Gradient Mini-Skeins, each month’s colours will flow into the next but in larger skeins to create bigger colour blocks and more gradual shifts that are perfect for sweaters.  You choose the yarn you want to receive each month: Vega (merino worsted), Lyra (merino sport), Aurora (fingering with cashmere), or Celeste (light merino fingering).  And then we start dyeing, all in colours that coordinate them with our regular colourways so they’ll work with your stash, plus we’ll  add some exciting club-exclusive variegateds too!

Only 25 Spots Available and Only Via the Mailing List!

Because this club is truly an adventure for our most intrepid yarn explorers, we’re keeping it very small: only 25 spots will be available in that first month.   Those spaces will be going live on Friday at 12noon (eastern) and the link will be available first only in an email we send out to our mailing list so make sure you are on our list, set an reminder on your phone for noon on Friday July 28 and keep your eyes on your inbox so you can get one of those spots to start your gradient collection right from the very first skein!

Combining Yarn Giveaway: Which Project Do You Most Admire?

If you’re part of our Combining Yarns KCAL, you’ll want to get in on this giveaway and share your thoughts of the most worthy project in the KCAL!  We’ve gathered photos of everyone’s projects and posted them together in a thread so you can vote on your favourite and then leave a comment sharing what it is you most admire about that particular project.  It’s a great way to show support to your fellow KCALers and, when you leave your comment, you’re in with a chance for a $25 gift certificate!  Click here to join the fun!

 

This is such a happy design!  A little silly, a little funky…  and undeniably happy.  Even the name makes me smile!

Hmmm…. go for subtle colour changes or for high contrast?  Or what about alternating blocks of a coordinating semi-solid and variegated?  I’m thinking maybe Troublemaker and Molten Cool — saturated and dramatic!

 

I’ve got exciting news!  A couple of weeks ago, two things came together that, in hindsight, were so obviously meant to be together that I nearly slapped myself on the forehead.  You know that feeling where sometimes it takes forever for you to see something right in front of your eyes?  Yep, that.  But the result is so cool: we are starting a new club and it’s going to be awesome!

So, let me tell you about the two things that came together.  The first was that we were doing one of the things I enjoy most: planning out the colours for the Ombre & Gradient mix for the Mini-Skein Club.  We decide them about six months in advance and I love seeing how the colour story is going to progress across the next half-year of the Never Ending Gradient.  Then, just a about an hour later, I was dyeing some gradient sweater sets for a shop and I remarked to my assistant how hard it is to keep them in stock — they’re so beautiful that it feels like they disappear from the shop as soon as we dye them.

And then it came to me, just as clear as a bell: we should create a Never Ending gradient, just as we do for our Mini-Skeins, but for full-sized skeins so they build up into sweater sets!  How cool is that?  Just like the Gradient Mini-Skeins, each month’s colours will flow into the next but in larger skeins to create bigger colour blocks and more gradual shifts that are perfect for sweaters.  And we’ve got some amazing ideas to coordinate them with our regular colourways so they’ll work with your stash and to add some exciting club-exclusive variegateds too! (But more on that when we open the club on next Friday)

Now, part of what makes this so exciting is that it’s as much of an adventure for us as it is for you — I can’t wait to start playing with these colours! — but, because it is an adventure and we’re still working out the details, I’m going to keep it very small and just for our most intrepid yarn explorers: only 25 spots will be available in that first month.   So if this sounds as exciting to you as it does to me, keep your eyes on your inbox on Friday July 28 so you can get one of those spots to start your gradient collection right from the very first skein!

Ok, now that I’ve shared the news that had me bubbling over, let’s get the rest of the day off to a fibery good start.  I’ve got a jam-packed newsletter in store for you, so here we go…

If you’ve ever wanted to take a class on Craftsy, the online craft learning site, but have been stumped by which one to choose, you’ll be interested to know that the site has announced that it will begin offering a subscription payment model next year in addition to its current a la carte classes.  Members will be able to watch any class in the entire Craftsy catalogue for a monthly fee as well as the option to purchase a class to “Own Forever” for an additional cost.

As much as our own fiber-related hobbies are filled with all the good feels that come with being creative and making stuff, we all know that the textile industry’s history is a lot darker.  I found this article fascinating (if macabre) on the “Kiss of Death” in New England textile mills, which resulted in the spread of tuberculosis causing 36% of all deaths among female textile workers.

Non-fiber related but awesome nonetheless: the BBC has announced that the 13th Doctor will be a woman! (see the trailer here) Big grins in my household.  Yours too?

This made me very happy to see: when a woman took a couple of days off work for her mental health, her CEO publicly supported her decision.  As I wrote recently on the blog, I’m a firm believer in workplaces recognising and supporting their employees’ realities (if you haven’t read my philosophy, you’ll find it here), and reading this was hugely encouraging.

(shawl pin from Michelle’s Assortment)

When it comes to taking finished object photos, I think one of the hardest things is know what to do with your hands.  I’ve found we get the best shots when my model is adjusting her shawl pin — seems odd, I know, but it’s natural movement, it takes away all the tension of “posing”, and it gives her something to do with her hands.  Need more ideas?  This quick guide is aimed at wedding photography but the principles are the same for getting shots of your FOs in action.

One-of-a-Kind Shop Update: This Friday at Noon!

(this is kind of long, so make sure you scroll to the bottom to see this week’s pattern picks — they’re worth it!)

If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll know I got so excited about some of the One-of-a-Kinds we’ve dyed lately that I was nearly bursting!  So I decided to do a quick shop update this Friday at noon (eastern).  We’ve got single skeins and sweater sets (some of which match and some of which coordinate) and, being One-of-a-Kinds, it is absolutely first-come first-served, so look through the pictures below to decide which one(s) you love most so you don’t miss out on anything when they go live on Friday (my favourite by far is number 33).

(Also, I made a crab! He pops up a couple of times…  Check out him out!)

The Combining Yarns KCAL Giveaway

I’m so chuffed with all the amazing projects folks are doing for our Combining Yarns KCAL.  And this week, we’re going to run a fab giveaway all about choosing which project we admire the most.  If you’re in the KCAL, keep your eyes the SpaceCadet Ravelry group for all the details on how to enter as soon as I post them!

I just have to share this with you…

I got the most wonderful opportunity the other day: a text message from an acquaintance, someone I know from outside the world of knitting and crochet (there aren’t many but there are a few), who has just learned to crochet and texted me to say that she absolutely loved crocheting her granny squares but was working with acrylic yarn that she found itchy and…  and…   she asked, did I know of an alternative?

::record scratching::

Do I know of an alternative to acrylic yarn?  Why yes… yes, I do!  And, can I tell you my glee at the prospect of introducing a newbie to the delights of natural fibers and quality yarn?  I mean, honestly, I think I fairly skipped into the stock room to pick out a few skeins for her try.  The weight she’d been using fell somewhere between Lyra and Vega, so I grabbed a skein each from our One-of-a-Kinds, and then a few random Mini-Skeins too, put them together in a gift bag and delivered them to her door.  Not because I want her buy SpaceCadet as such but just because it is such a delight to share the beauty of quality wool and the fun of hand-dyed yarn with someone who has never tried it before.

Opportunities like that don’t seem to roll around often enough (most of the folks I talk to are hand-dyed aficionados).  How do we as a group bring more new knitters and crocheters on this wonderful journey?  It’s something I want to think about more …and hear your experiences of it too.  Who taught you to knit or crochet?  What was your first experience with higher quality yarn and what made you take that step up?  And who have you brought along on that journey as well?  Hit “reply” and tell me — I’d love to hear your story!

 

• I don’t know if my friend is a left-handed crocheter but, if she were, I’d want her to see this article entitled, “10 Must-Know Tricks for Left-Handed Crocheters.”  In fact, most of it applies to knitters too, so it’s well worth sharing.

• This week, while I was working in the studio, I listened to the Power Purls Podcast (from Kara Gott-Warner, former editor of Creative Knitting magazine) and really enjoyed her 7 Tips to Become an Intuitive Knitter (click here jump to the right point in the recording).  I’ve just cast on a shawl that I’m going to make up as I go along, so the timing couldn’t be more perfect.

• It’s no secret I get excited about colour, so I found fascinating Ann Weaver’s article on using complentary colours in knit design.

• I was ridiculously excited to find SpaceCadet had made Knitty’s TNNA round-up: Amy Singer really loved our Sweater Sets!  I do too and they go so fast.  We’ve got only a few in stock right now but they include two colourways that make my mouth water: Perilous and Turpitude.

 

So listening to the Power Purls Podcast (mentioned above) got me thinking about being intuitive in our knitting and crochet, and inspired today’s Pop Quiz.  I know I’m at the extreme end of the intuitive scale (meaning I always want to make up my projects on the needles but then always regret it!).  Where are you?

Are You an Intuitive Knitter/Crocheter?

Click the link and let me know!

 

The SpaceMonster Club Closes on Friday

Spaces in the SpaceMonster Club went super fast and it’s been amazing to see all the new members joining!  I’m so glad to have you guys aboard.  Now, there are only a handful of spaces left, so click here for all the details before the subscription period closes on Friday.

July One-of-a-Kinds

I was putting some new One-of-a-Kinds away in the stock room and they were just blowing me away!  In fact, you can see my reaction and a sneak peek at them here.  I’m not sure when we’ll get them in the shop, but I think it might be time for mid-summer One-of-a-Kind shop update.  Keep an eye on your inbox for the date and more news as we closer!

 

All images © the respective designers and used with permission

 

One of the things I enjoy most about my job is showing folks the different ways yarn takes colour.  I find fascinating all the different elements that play into it and I love sharing that with the customers I meet at shows and the classes I (occasionally) teach at shops.  Last week on the blog, I went over Three (Basic) Things That Impact How Different Yarn Bases Takes Colour (spoiler: it’s way more interesting than just fiber content!).  If you’ve ever picked up two different yarns, even made out of the same fiber, and been puzzled by how different they looked, click here and read up!

Ok, it’s time for me to head to the studio — I’ve got a busy day ahead of me (today will be a lot of summer greens and maybe I’ll get to play with some autumn rusts too).  Thank you so much for letting me start the morning with you, and I hope you have a wonderful (and fiber-y) rest of the day.

Until next time, all my best!

I’ve shown you in the past how different yarns take colour differently.  We can put five of our favourite yarn bases in the same dyepot at the same time, and all five can come out decidedly differently.  In fact, we did!  Take a look:

Now, when customers ask me about this, I usually explain it in terms of fiber content, but there’s actually more to it than that — and it’s fascinating (well, at least I think it’s fascinating!).  Here, let me explain and I’ll try not geek out too much…

Three (Basic) Things That Impact How Different Yarn Bases Takes Colour

Fiber Content

The first is, of course, fiber content.  Different fibers react to our dyes differently and so the colour from the same dyebath can vary considerably from one yarn to another.  In the picture above, all the yarns were dyed together in the colourway “Tickled” but notice how soft and faded both Maia and Thebe are.  That’s because both of them contain substantial amounts of cellulose (plant) fibers, which our dyes (acid dyes) simply don’t stick to.  In the case of Thebe, linen makes of 35% of the yarn and it just doesn’t take the dye at all.  In the case of Maia, it’s the bamboo — 80% of the yarn — that doesn’t take on any dye.  The result is a much softer colour even though, if you look closely at the wool choke tie on the Thebe, you can see they went into the exact same dyebath.

But so far, I’m not telling you anything new, right?  If you’ve been reading my posts and emails for a while, you already know this!  It’s the basis for the awesome Combining Yarn KCAL that we’ve got going on at the moment, where lots of folks are taking two different but compatible yarns and combining them in the same project. Most people are working with my favourite combination, Celeste and Maia, and the results are stunning.  I asked them what they found surprising about combining two different yarns and one of the best comments was, “What surprised me the most is how fun it is to combine yarns.”  YASSSS!!!!   She went on, “I’ve never combined different types of yarns before and to be honest I wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for this KCAL.”  Oh, that makes me so happy.  That’s exactly what I’d hoped for when we started the KCAL and it’s what makes the way different fibers take dye so much fun!

But there’s more to the story than just fiber content.  Another factor in how yarn takes colour is…

Yarn Thickness

This is one that you might not think of straight away but then it totally makes sense when you do.   Yarn is dyed in bath of dye and water (so far, so obvious) and so the way it takes colour is dependent on how the yarn absorbs that water.  Some yarns absorb slowly, some absorb quickly, some resist the water with all their might, and others drink it up like a sponge.  The intensity of the final colour depends on the amount of dyewater (and dye) that the yarn has absorbed at the point where the dyepot comes up to temperature.  If less water has soaked into the yarn at that point, the colour will be softer, but if the water has really saturated the yarn, the colour will be more saturated as well.

Think of it like this: if you spilled your tea across your table and grabbed a paper towel with one hand and bunch of cotton balls with the other, you’d expect one of those to absorb the spill faster than the other, right?  The paper towel would soak the whole spill up super fast and the cotton balls would take a lot longer and leave half of it smeared all over the table.  It’s the same with yarn, and Capella is a great example of this.  It’s a 100% superwash merino single-ply worsted — basically one giant, soft puffball — and water soaks into it really slowly, giving a very soft and muted result.

You can see it in a lighter colour like Frigia (the light blue above), but it’s super noticeable on a darker shade such as Longing (the forest green).  Even though all these swatches have the exact same fiber content, the thickness of the yarn makes all the difference.  It’s not something you might think of at first, but it’s so logical once you do.

And the last thing we’re going to discuss brings elements of the other two together, and that’s…

Yarn Construction

It’s not just what it’s made of and it’s not just how thick it is, it’s also how the yarn is spun.  If you’ve ever tried spinning yourself, you’ll understand the importance of plies and the myriad ways they can be put together to affect a yarn’s look and behaviour.  That impact also extends to the way the yarn absorbs water and, therefore, dye.

Have a look at these two swatches dyed in the colourway “Fathoms Down” on Celeste and Lyra.  Both are 100% superwash merino and relatively similar weights (Celeste is fingering, Lyra is sport) but their construction is decidedly different.  Celeste is a simple 3-ply: three thin strands twisted together to form one yarn.  Whereas Lyra is a cabled 8-ply: eight thin strands twisted first in pairs and then four of those pairs are twisted together in the opposite direction to form a yarn is incredibly round and gives great stitch definition.

Now in both yarns, that first set of strands (three for Celeste and eight for Lyra) are about the same thickness and, all other things being equal, they’d absorb the dye in a similar fashion.  But they way they are then twisted together — the way the yarn is constructed — is what makes the difference to how the final colour looks.  Even though the first plies are no thicker, the twisting and twisting again means it’s much harder for the dyewater to soak into Lyra.  It absorbs more slowly and the dye is free to float about in the dyebath for longer.

The result is a decidedly different effect on the two yarns, and it can be especially noticeable in variegated colourways.  See how the colours on the “Fathoms Down” Lyra swatch look more blended?  And in Celeste, they look sharper and more distinct?  That’s because the dye was able to aborb into the Celeste quickly and stuck in that spot, instead of swirling around in the dyebath and soaking in slowly.  In the “Molten Cool,” the difference is really striking — the colours hit Celeste and just didn’t budge!  On Lyra, they are much more blended.

What Does this Mean to You?

Do you need to worry about this?  Not at all — it’s part of the nature of hand-dyed yarn and, to me, part of its beauty.  As long as you understand and are comfortable with the differences when you plan your projects, it’ll be smooth sailing.  Most knitters and crocheters I meet have no idea how these three factors affect the yarn they buy.  Now that you do, you’re ahead of the game!

Is this all there is to it?  Not by a long shot!  There are a ton of different outside factors that impact the way dye adheres to yarn and, as I said, I could totally geek out about this and go on for ever and ever!

The Fourth of July is such an awesome holiday: family get-togethers, wonderful weather, hamburgers, corn on the cob, and fireworks.  Well, the food and fireworks are practically a given but we always have to just hope for the wonderful weather, right?  Here in Pittsburgh, we lucked out yesterday — the sun shone all day, the temperature was fantastic, and the humidity (believe it or not) was low and comfortable.  Honestly, I don’t think it could have been a nicer day.

Which makes coming back to reality this morning all the harder, right?  If you’re sitting at a desk right now or heading out to an office, I know how tough that is after all the fun of a holiday weekend.  So this week I’ve really tried to put together some special stuff to ease you back into real life in a gentler, more fiber-rich kind of way.  There’s some great yarny tips and tutorials, a few extras just for fun, and three pattern picks I’m super excited about (guess which is my favourite!).

Ok, ready to get started?  Here we go…

Even though everyone seems to think of knitting and crochet as cold weather activities, I find I knit more during the summer than any other time of year.  There’s something about sitting in the dying sunlight on a summer’s evening that makes me want to just grab my needles and relax.  But summer brings a lot of extra chores and, while the world may view a lawn-mowing robot as a frivolous luxury, when you look at it in terms of extra time gained to knit and crochet….  well, maybe it becomes something of a summertime necessity?  Regardless, I have to admit I am highly intrigued by Viking’s iMow.  Even the video is strangely hypnotic.

In our Combining Yarns KCAL, a lot of folks are making shawls and I know that, at shows, I get asked a lot about the yardage required for different types of shawls.  So I know this article from Laura Aylor about using Excel to estimate shawl yardages will be a handy resource.  Calculations create cast-on confidence, yes?

One of the strangest textile-related things I came across all week (perhaps all my life?) is this item in the Part-Time Genius podcast, discussing a study that found that rats dressed in polyester trousers lost their sex drive in statistically greater numbers than rats dressed in cotton or wool trousers.  Yes, you read that right.  And yes, somebody studied this.  But the thing that jumped out at me?  There’s real value in working with natural fibers.  And that disdain you have for manmade fibers like acrylic?  It might be a good thing for more reasons that we realised!

If you’ve never knit intarsia, it’s something to add to your repetoire.  If you have but you hated the way the yarn gaped or looked messy at the join, you’ll want to read YarnSub’s excellent tutorial on the Twist-and-Weave technique for colour changes.  The difference in how the finished knitting looks is remarkable!

Shop Update: This Friday July 7

I realised last week that Lucina has been selling pretty quickly lately, so we’ve been busy dyeing up plenty more to go into a shop update this Friday at noon.  If you’ve never knit with Lucina before, you’re in for a treat because, while the sparkle is beautiful to look at (see it in the photo above?), it’s a surprisingly subtle and soft yarn.  You’ll definitely want to try it to create something really special.  Watch your inbox on Friday for a reminder or set an alarm on your phone now for Friday, July 7 at noon (eastern) to get in on the fun!

The SpaceMonster Club is Open to Subscriptions

The SpaceMonster Club has been closed for six long months but it opened to new subscribers on Friday and, wow, did the response blow me away!  So many new members jumped on the chance to get into the club that, just five days later, there are only a few spaces left.  I am so thrilled to welcome all the new members and can’t wait to get to know you all.  Please be sure to come over to Ravelry and introduce yourself!

And if you’d like to get one of those last few spaces, click here for all the details.  It’s going to be a great season and we’d love to have you join us!

Combining Yarns KCAL: What Are You Discovering?

It’s hard to believe we are now halfway through our 3rd week of the Combining Yarns KCAL and the projects are starting to look amazing!  And now that everyone has been working with two (or more!) different yarns in one project, I’m wondering: what has surprised you about the way your yarns are working together?  If you’re working with Maia and Celeste, what have you discovered about them that you weren’t expecting? Are they combining the way you thought they would? Have they surprised you in any way? Come over to Ravelry and share with us what you’ve discovered as you’ve worked on your project.

If you are looking for a pattern for your SpaceCadet Mini-Skeins (or even if you’re not), may I introduce you to Rift?  I can see this being worked so many different ways:

• with Ombre Minis as the small accent stripes and a neutral for the larger panels in between
• with Ombre Minis for the larger panels and a single contrasting colour for the accent stripes
• with a few wildly variegated Multicolour Minis as the accent stripes (a great way to use variegated yarn without it having a chance to pool!)

And, if you’re still thinking of ideas for our Combining Yarns KCAL, this is an amazing choice!  Alternate Maia and Celeste in a single colour in the larger panels so they go matte-sheen-matte-sheen, and then choose a SpaceCadet Mini-Skein from your stash in a contrasting colour for the accents stripes.

Plus, Rift is 25% off today only — go grab it quick!

 

 

And here’s a design that just fills me with joy!  First, because it was Chantal’s wedding dress (and the pictures from her wedding day are just adorable) and, second, because the dress itself is nothing short of fabulous.  It’s the depictions of the houses and buildings of Reykjavík, Iceland, that first caught my eye.  But look a little more closely and see the detailed shaping around the bodice and the lovely draping of the neckline.  Then imagine this dress knit in a dark shade of SpaceCadet Lucina (say, Dark Skies or Gobsmack), so the subtle sparkle in the yarn creates the effect of a starry night sky above the city.  Gorgeous!

 

Finally, a Personal Request from Me to You

You know I love putting these newsletters together for you — gathering all the news through the week, finding great patterns, thinking of all the things I want to share with you — and I get such joy from knowing you can relax and take your time as you read through it all.  And I’d really love to share all this fun with even more people so, if you know a knitter or crocheter who would enjoy this newsletter as much as you and I do, please invite them to join our mailing list.  It’s easy:

• Just send them to this url: http://spacecadetyarn.com/get-the-spacecadet-newsletter/
• Click here to share it on Facebook
• Click here to tweet it

Thank you so much — I really appreciate it!

Ok, and with that, I think I’d better get off to work myself.  Today’s to-do list includes some photography, a bunch of order packing (woot! goodies on the way!), and a couple of new colourways to try out that I can’t wait to dye.  Even though we’re all back at work, it’s good to have exciting things to look forward to.  I hope you’ve got a few of those tucked into your day as well.  So until next time, all my best!