A Dress? Now THIS is a Dress!

03AugApril 14, 2015 By Stephanie

If you were listening closely in the middle of June, I am quite certain that you heard a loud noise in the distance. And you might have thought it was just a child yelling three streets over, or a dog who suddenly spotted a stray cat, or a distant explosion of some sort. But no, it was me, letting out a scream on the day I met a dress.

I was at TNNA and had run into Heather Dixon, the designer at Army of Knitters and the creative director at Clotheshorse magazine. And, after some lovely chit-chat about the Universal Importance of a good cup of tea, Heather suddenly said, “Oh, the dress!” and took this little number down from the rail…

Months and months previously, Heather and Mindy Brown, the editorial director at Clotheshorse (and the designer of the dress) had asked me to dye some Celeste in the colourway Stewed Cranberries for a segment they were doing on indie dyers. And so I dyed it up and sent it off and… went back to normal life. And I think maybe I knew it was for a dress, but I really didn’t have any vision of what it might eventually be like. I have no idea why, but my head had conjured up something like a heavy, elongated sweater with cables running down the front…

So when Heather pulled Bayeux, it was so completely NOT what I was expecting… And so incredibly gorgeous — with that fabulous combination of knitted top and crocheted skirt, lovely nipped-in waist, sweet capped sleeves, and asymmetrical crochet hemline — that I think I actually let out a little scream right there on the TNNA show floor.

And that is the noise that you heard. But then, if you’d suddenly realised that the yarn you’d dyed and sent away those many months ago had been turned into something so incredibly stunning as Bayeux, you’d have squealed too, right?

I’ve put a bunch of Celeste in the shop that will be perfect for this dress, in Stewed Cranberries, Honey, and a really gorgeous experimental green. And a bunch of other great yarns too… Click here to check it out!

(Also, everyone please cross fingers that the next shop update will be in the new shop! There’s a lot of work between here and there, but I am really looking forward to having that big button above take you to the brand new SpaceCadet shop! Wooot!)

Hey, I just have to tell you about this because I am so excited! Do you remember a few weeks ago I introduced you to the wonderful Melissa and her new podcast SingleHandedKnits, which she records beneath the palm trees and on the beaches of Hawaii? Well, Melissa is putting together a fantastic KAL in honour of the upcoming election. It’s called Sock the Vote, and Melissa has asked me to dye custom colourways for two the “parties”. It’s going to be a BLAST! But spaces are limited and going fast so — quick! — click here to take a mid-day trip to Hawaii and let Melissa explain all about it.

…You know what? Go ahead and click that link regardless. Because no matter where you are or what you’re doing right now, somehow everything just feels that much better when you see those palm tree swaying in the background. And, seriously, Melissa is just such a lovely, positive person, you can’t help but smile as soon as you see her. Go on, click!

Exciting News: Upcoming SpaceCadetYarns & a New Shop

27JulApril 14, 2015 By Stephanie

Summer is a lazy time — long days, blue skies, and sunlight dappled through the trees. Maybe some cold drinks and, if you’re very lucky, a hammock. Boy oh boy, I need to grab me some of that!

But, I have felt anything but lazy! While summer is going great guns* outside, I am busy preparing for the cooler months that will follow. I have several hundred pounds of yarn to dye, some great LYSs to send orders to, and some fabulous yarn festivals to prep for (including…. Rhinebeck!!!! Squee with me!!!).

Yep, it’s a busy time here. But as well as all that, there are a few other exciting things that I’m working on, and I am dying to share them with you. So, before I go back into the studio, let me just give you a sneak peek…

A Brand New SpaceCadet Shop!

I have been dreaming about this for nearly two years now and I can’t believe it’s almost here! My Big Summer Project is to put together a brand new SpaceCadet shop — one that I can totally customise to make it super-easy for you to search for the yarn you know you want …or browse for the one that you never knew you needed so much! Easy and adventurous — isn’t that the way that yarn shopping should be?

As soon as the new shop is ready, I’ll make sure you know about it (believe me, I’ll be singing it on the rooftops!). In the meantime, it’s still very much a Work In Progress but here’s a quick look:

(Please, do a little happy dance with me, will you?)

Fabulous New Yarns!

Ok, this just has me giddy with excitement! As I started laying out the new shop, I realised what I really, really wanted to go along with it is a truly great fleet of yarns. So we’ve spent these last few months auditioning new yarns: dyeing them up, trying them out, (and, of course snorgling them!). And, after a really difficult elimination process, we’ve finally decided which we liked best.

The result is a fleet of yarns that is going to make your fingers itch to cast on! Folks, we’re going from seven yarns to 18. There will be some beautiful heavier yarns — sport, DK, worsted, and bulky — and a fantastic line up of lighter yarns, including four laceweights and no less than eight fingering yarns! Wanna see them? Welllll… they’re not dry enough to photograph yet, but the tags might give you a little clue. Here, have a quick look…

(Intrigued…? Stay tuned, they’ll be available very soon!)

The Yarn Harlot’s Omlet Could Be Yours!

Ok, this last one has nothing to do with my special summer projects, but I just have to share it with you! As you might know, the Yarn Harlot, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, picked up a skein of SpaceCadet laceweight yarn from one of my trunk shows in Cleveland and has been knitting it in a beautiful pattern called Omelet. She finished it this week and I have to admit, when she posted the photos on her blog, I was blown away. It’s a stunning shawl.

And it could be yours! Yep, that’s right — the Yarn Harlot has knit the most intricate, ethereal, gorgeous piece of lacework that nobody should ever dream of giving away and… she’s auctioning it off to the highest bidder! It’s all to raise funds as she takes part in the 14th Annual Friends For Life Bike Rally in support of Toronto People With AIDS Foundation. Through the amazing generosity of knitters, she has already raised thousands of dollars — but she’s doing this one last push before the bike rally begins this weekend.

If you’d like a chance to win the Omelet shawl knit by the Yarn Harlot, click here to find out how to bid for it. As for me, I am so just thrilled that she’s chosen to make such a beautiful project out of a skein of SpaceCadet yarn (which I honestly thought she was buying just to be polite!). …And then is using it for such a good cause.

*Do people say “going great guns” over here? Is that a phrase you use in the States? If not, it means everything’s going along just fine.

Pattern Roll-Call: Is Garter Stitch the Answer to Everything?

20JulApril 14, 2015 By Stephanie

Sometimes less is more, sometimes simple is best. And so often I forget about that and all caught up in fancy and complicated and intricate and time-consuming… And then someone pulls out their project and I go over to smoosh it and I realise it’s garter stitch. Garter stitch! So simple, so easy, and — I forget this every time — so lovely and smooshy.

I love the feel of garter stitch fabric between my fingers. It feels thick and firm and, when I squeeze it, it resists, pushes back, holds its ground. Soft, delicate, drapey fabrics are all well and good, but there’s something about garter stitch… It holds a special place in my heart.

And it’s easy! And versatile! And because it tends to hide every other row, it does really interesting things to hand-dyed and variegated yarns. And did I mention easy? At the end of long project slogging away at some complicated lacework, coming back to garter stitch feels like going home to an old friend.

We have three samples that we take to shows that never fail to get people’s pulses racing. “What is this pattern?”, they ask. “Where can I get it?” They’re all three are by Martina Behm, they’re all eye-catching, and every one of them is simple, straightforward, and garter-stitch. It’s no wonder everyone makes a beeline for them!

They are Lintalla, with its lovely frilled edge; Trillian, with an intriguing eyelet edging; and Hitchhiker which, if you finish it, will actually teach you the answer to the ultimate question of life (…the universe and everything). And even though they’re all garter stitch, the construction itself is intriguing: you cast on just a few stitches at one corner, and then grow the shawl by knitting longer and longer rows until it forms an asymmetrical triangle. How cool is that?!?

But as much as I love those three, Martina’s newest design has got me positively swooning. This one has all the hallmarks of her other shawls — a corner start, asymmetrical shaping, and lovely garter stitch — but Leftie is… wait for it… designed to feature mini-skeins! Mini-Skeins!!!

The mini-skeins are worked as stripes that travel diagonally across the shawl to create a lovely border of little leaves along one side. Use only a few colours for a subdued shawl or grab as many mini-skeins as you can to create a riot of colour. Leftie will look gorgeous either way.

And if you need a little colour inspiration, how about a supply of mini-skeins delivered right to your door? Join SpaceCadet’s Mini-Skein Club and every month you’ll receive a beautiful bundle (or two!) of five 20g skeins made from a mix of the SpaceCadet’s fingering yarns. Play with the colours, try out the yarns, and stay in only until you have enough mini-skeins for your project size. Click here to read more!

The One I Very Nearly Didn’t Come Through On

12JulApril 14, 2015 By Stephanie

I want you to pity me, ok? I mean, if you’re a knitter or crocheter, you’ll get what I saying. Because last week, we sent the InterStellar Yarn Alliance parcels to the club members and, while I was so excited to send them out, you have to consider the situation I was in only the day before…

The day before the parcels went out, I was surrounded by an enormous pile of smooshy, wonderful yarns in a colourway that I loved. …That I just loved. Oh, and right next to that pile? There was a stack of goodies that were making my whole house smell incredible and which made me just want to sit there and breathe… breathe… Mmmmmm…

So the pity… Well, that comes in because I knew that the very next day, I’d have to send all that loveliness away. And I wanted them all. I wanted them all for meeeee. My dear members of the InterStellar Yarn Alliance, you very nearly never got your parcels!

But you’re a yarn addict too, so I know you understand.

The colourway for this parcel is called Juicy, and it is inspired by all the colours of the fruits and flowers that the heat of summer produces. And the gift is hand-made candles from Debbie at Divine Scentsations, in one of three sets of delicious scents perfect for the season: Fruits, Florals, or Clean & Fresh.

See what I mean? Reallllly hard to send away.

The InterStellar Yarn Alliance will open for subscriptions for two weeks only in September. If you’d like to be one of the first to hear about it, make sure you’re signed up for the SpaceCadet Creations mailing list. Click here to join it.

A Super-Cool New Swag Shop and a Shop Update!

06JulApril 14, 2015 By Stephanie

The heat’s getting to you too, right? We’ve been in the high 90s for weeks now (…well, it feels like weeks anyway) and the longer it goes on, the less I seem to be able to think. I mean, I’m squirreled away in an air-conditioned office so I shouldn’t even notice the heat and yet… oh, as that mercury climbs, my ability to focus just seems to vapourise.

It’s not just me, right? It’s you too…? Tell me it is, because the temperature is set to hit 100F (37C!) this weekend and I think I’m just going to melt into a little puddle of uselessness right there on the floor — and I kinda need to know you’re right there with me!

Tour de Fleece

So when your brain is melting into mush it’s probably best to concentrate on the simple things, right? Tour de Fleece couldn’t have come at a better time, and I’ve given myself permission to spend a little quality time with my (most beloved) Lendrum. I’m spinning some top that I dyed absolutely ages ago that, when I pulled it out of the dyepots, I didn’t like at all. I shoved it in a bag and promptly forgot about it. When I finally came across it again about a month ago, I realised I can’t even remember what the fiber content is…. merino? superwash? merino/alpaca? I have no idea but — I’ll tell you what — I am loving these colours now. What was I thinking?!? Here’s my progress, day by day…

The SpaceCadet’s Swag Shop

Wait!, you say. You’re in an office? You’re not in the studio? Well, in truth, this job is split pretty evenly between the dyepots and the computer. And while most of the time I’m elbows deep in yummy yarns and dye, summer is the ideal time to get a little behind-the-scenes work done on all the great ideas I come up with throughout the rest of the year.

And I’ve been working on some really exciting stuff too — I can’t wait to show you! Most of it’s only in the beginning stages, but I can share one really cool thing with you… At every festival we do, at every trunk show, people are always telling us how much they love the SpaceCadet (we love him too!), and then someone always asks, can I get a SpaceCadet t-shirt? I’ve never be able to offer them one before, but I now I can! Check this out — the SpaceCadet Swag Shop! SpaceCadet t-shirts, tank tops, tote bags, and all kinds of cool stuff… Squeeeeee!!!!

Shop Update

Oooh, and there’s one other thing I can do even when I’m melting in this insane heat… How about a shop update? There’s some incredibly rich colours in this one, and a few one-of-a-kinds, so click here to have a look before they disappear.

I Couldn’t Help Myself! Project Bags from CristineCreates

22JunApril 14, 2015 By Stephanie

I’m mad busy at the moment getting ready for TNNA this weekend. If you don’t know what that is, it’s The National Needlearts Association’s Summer Show, and it’s one of the most fiber-fantastic (and fiberista-fantastic) events of the entire year. We’ll be shopping for new yarns, so we can do a major revamp and extension of the SpaceCadet line-up later in the season. Exciting or what?!? Stay tuned for updates.

So today, I was packing my bags and — as any self-respecting knitter does — choosing my knitting projects. And as I lined my current WIPs up on the bed, I realised they were all in the lovely new project bags that I’ve totally fallen in love with. And I suddenly thought, hey, I ought to share them with you…

I love the gorgeous vibrant patterns — I mean, who wants to hide her knitting away? A busy floral on the outside and, inside, stripes or polka dots to balance. I’m kind of a sucker for dots — they make me happy! — so I turned this one inside out.

Yep, they’re fully reversible! And with a drawstring that I’ve tied in a loop so I can knit with the bag over my arm.

I got them from CristineCreates on Etsy. I meant to only get one… but I kinda couldn’t help myself. You know what I mean… right?

Y’know, I… I couldn’t just have my projects sitting there naked, could I?