Doing a show is always exciting and energising, but one of the best things is that I come away with a better understanding of what our customers want.  Just talking to the folks who walk into our booth is all it takes — when I hear the same question coming up again and again, I know it’s something that’s important to you guys.

“What Do I Make With Them?”

And so it was this weekend at the Pittsburgh Knit & Crochet Festival.  Everyone was drawn to the big bowl of SpaceCadet Mini-Skeins, but we kept hearing the question, “But what do I make with them?”

To be honest, I struggle a little to answer this question — not because I can’t think of an answer, but because I can think of so many.  The thing is, with Mini-Skeins, it’s not so much a matter of finding patterns for them as it a case of just finding inspiration, because Mini-Skeins don’t have to follow rules.  You can use them all together in one project, you can use one on its own to add an accent, you can go for matching colours or you can mix them all up.  Yes, Mini-Skeins are little bundles of yarn but, actually, I think of them more as yarn crayons that you use to add a punch of colour to your project in any way you fancy.  And when you do that, it’s a whole different way of approaching colour in your knitting and crochet.

Get Inspired!

So where to go for inspiration?  Probably the best place is the SpaceCadet Mini-Skein Ideas board on Pinterest.  Jade and I have curated a fantastic collection of project ideas to get you started — everything from gorgeous striped cardigans to quick hats and mitts to adorable amigurumi.  Some of the projects are constructed entirely from Mini-Skeins and many others are designed to use them as accents but, either way, there is a wealth of inspiration there just waiting to spark your imagination and get you thinking of creative ways to use Mini-Skeins in all kinds of different projects.

(If you’re not already a Pinterest user, let me tell you, it’s possibly one of the most addictive places on the web.  But it’s one of the most useful as well.  Almost every image, or “pin”, links through to the original source — just click on the image to go to the webpage it came from.  And so as you pin images and build your pinboards, what you’re actually doing is collecting bookmarks   …Bookmarks that are beautiful to look at, easy to peruse, and wonderfully inspiring.  See how it could get addictive?  To start using Pinterest, click here to join and then start following us at SpaceCadetYarn!)

And your next stop, of course, should be Ravelry.  Add “mini skeins” to your pattern search, and it will give you all sorts of projects specifically designed to be made with these little bundles of yarny goodness.

Oh, and I just have to share with you…  on the Singlehanded Knits podcast this week, my friend Mel and her sweet daughter Alana model their latest take on Mini-Skein creativity (fun spoiler: it includes pom-poms!).  I think it might be my favourite episode ever because, as much as I love playing with colour and dyeing up all these wonderful little yarn crayons for you guys, absolutely nothing compares to seeing the innovative ways that folks turn them into completed projects!

Got some SpaceCadetMini-Skeins in your stash? Fantastic!  Come over to the SpaceCadet group on Ravelry, and show us how you’ve used them to colour your world.  We’d love to see!