What I Really Want for Valentine’s Day

06FebFebruary 6, 2017 By Stephanie

Every shop I went into this weekend is decked out for Valentine’s Day: there are hearts and roses and teddy bears and chocolates and on and on… Can I tell you it feels a little silly to me? It really does — I haven’t wanted much of any of this stuff since I was about fourteen years old. …Ok, maybe the chocolate but not in that huge quantity, thank you very much.

For me, on Valentine’s Day, I don’t need anything big and showy. In truth, it’s just about what really matters: the strength of the emotion and the yarn.

The what? The Valentine’s Day yarn, of course. There’s always yarn on Valentine’s Day, right? There should be yarn on Valentine’s Day! I don’t see how anyone could possibly devise a holiday that’s about love and swooning and being swept off your feet and somehow not have yarn involved… That doesn’t make any kind of sense!

So to celebrate Valentine’s Day the way it ought to be celebrated, we’ve put together three absolutely gorgeous Valentine’s Day Mini-Skein Collections. They are sweet and bite-sized, the perfect way to a knitter or crocheter’s heart If you know someone who is might get muddled and give you a teddy bear with Mylar balloons, these Valentine’s Day Mini-Skein Collections are a super-easy way to put them on the right track!

(…Maybe just send the link to this page? Sometimes subtlety can be over-rated).

And if Valentine’s Day fills your heart with anything but love, we created colourways to that have got you covered no matter how you feel about the holiday:

Love Is Forever: a romantic collections of pink, red, purple, and chocolate brown
Envy: a selection of jealous greens, yellows, golds, and browns
Bite Me!: a moody palette of teals, blues, purples and earth-browns

All The Details

Available in limited quantities and only until Feb 14th, but our last ordering day to ship for (domestic) Valentine’s Day delivery is Wed Feb 8th (before 5pm est), so click here to order straight away!

Each Valentine’s Day Mini-Skein Collection is comprised of four 20g (approx) mini-skeins in an assortment of SpaceCadet® fingering yarns in coordinating semi-solid and variegated colourways. Each skein’s yardage depends on the type of yarn — click here for yarn and yardage details. Each set’s colourways are one-of-a-kind and will differ slightly from those pictured here.

Limited Editions: Autumn Walk

09OctOctober 9, 2015 By Stephanie

This is a fantastic time of year… Because of the changing leaves? Nope. Because of the lovely smell of autumn in the air? Nope. Because of all the wonderful Fall holidays coming up? Nooooo… because it’s the start of knitting and crocheting season! And there is nothing like the cooling air, the wonderful smell of autumn, and the changing leaves to make me want to pick out a gorgeous skein and cast on a new project.

And that is why I can’t wait to show you our latest Limited Editions Collection, chosen directly from September’s Mini-Skein Club bundles. But first, let me show you both colourway mixes….

The Multicolour Mix

Here’s the Multicolour Mix and I am just in love with this one! With colourways that range from bold and bright to soft and sublime to dark and moody, this bundle has a little of everything — and gives you everything you need to really make a project pop!

The Ombre & Gradient Mix

And here’s where we really embraced the changing seasons! See those wonderfully mellow, faded autumn shades in September’s Ombre & Gradient Mix? Aren’t they just the most delicious colours? And the way they blend together is just divine . Seriously, check out Teresa’s stunning granny square to see how well they work together!

Limited Editions

So why not turn all that autumn goodness into a full-size sweater kit? Oh, we can do that! Look how gorgeous it is…

As the days grow shorter and the air begins to cool, the brash shades of summer begin to mellow and blend, becoming subdued hues that make for the perfect Autumn Walk.

Watch as the colours change in your hands, flowing from deep pine greens through into soft browns, stunning golds, and then morphs into stunning faded blues. And then — because this is a SpaceCadet Start Anywhere Kit — the colours of the last skein flow back again into the first!

(Where’s the order button? This kit is exclusive to September Mini-Skein Club members. If that’s you, look for an email arriving shortly with your members-only link!)

If you’re not in the Mini-Skein Club, don’t worry — you can still get some of that warm and spicy yarn goodness. Check out our Pumpkin Spice colourway (…what?!?)

Pumpkin Spice is warm and tawny and golden and spicy and… Well you needed something else Pumpkin Spice in your life, right?

Available on three bases, until October 22 only

A beautiful combination of cool grey and rich green, MossRock is the colours of stepping stones running along a brook that gently runs through dark woods.

(Where’s the order button? This colourway is exclusive to September Mini-Skein Club members. If that’s you, look for an email arriving shortly with your members-only link!)

So full of zip and zing, you can almost taste it! Twist‘s deep magenta fades into crisp whites and hit every shade of pink in between.

Available on three bases, until October 22 only

As soft as hope and as delicate as dreams, gentle yellows, peaches, greys and whites swirl together in these Little Wishes.

(Where’s the order button? This colourway is exclusive to September Mini-Skein Club members. If that’s you, look for an email arriving shortly with your members-only link!)

Want Alllll These Colourways?

Our Mini-Skein Club Members get access to all these colourways so, if you’re not in the club, you’re missing out! And not just on the full-skeins here but on all the wonderful bundles of yarny goodness we deliver to your door every month. The Mini-Skein Club is where we really explore colour, letting our imaginations run wild to create ten new colourways each and every month — and our club members get to join in on all that fun, diving right into the colours and trying all of SpaceCadet’s fingering yarns along the way. Click here to join us!

Our Spring SpaceCadet One-of-a-Kind Special Event!

26AprApril 27, 2015 By Stephanie

A few weeks ago, just after I’d mentioned on the blog that we were taking a wonderful collection of One-of-a-Kind SpaceCadet yarns to our spring shows, a customer emailed to ask if we could offer them on line for the folks who live too far away to come to our shows. We do a great deal of experimentation in the studio, which creates a ton of incredibly beautiful one-of-a-kind colourways, with layer upon layer of colour, but we rarely offer them for sale online simply because it takes so long to photograph and get them all up on the website. But that email got me thinking… I realised she was right, it would be great to occasionally offer our experimental colourways to all our customers, so I decided that once the shows were over, we’d do a something special.

Our Spring SpaceCadet One-of-a-Kind Colourways Special Event

So here it is — your chance to get your hands on all those lovely yarns that you don’t normally see in our shop! There are 65 skeins of Celeste fingering…

*sound of a record scratching*

Ok, wait, an amazing thing happened yesterday, but it kind of changes everything. So before I go any further, let me quickly explain. I had planned to open the One-of-a-Kind Special Event to the public this morning, but also decided to reward the folks who’ve joined our mailing list by giving them a one day’s advanced notice. Sundays are quiet in the online world, most people are busy and don’t check their email. I thought, it would be a nice, gentle way to ease into the Special Event…

Well… I was wrong! The folks on our mailing list went nuts for the One-of-a-Kind colourways and jumped straight in with both feet. It was amazing to watch the orders come flying in, knowing that each one represented a SpaceCadet customer who’d found a yarn they just LOVED! I have to tell you, I think getting to be that kind of a match-maker has to be one of the best parts of my job, but it does mean that a lot of the One-of-a-Kind skeins are gone. Now, there are some wonderful colourways left (including my personal favourite — any guesses which one it is?), but it turns out, you’ve got to be superfast to grab the ones that are calling out to you before they disappear!

Ok, so now that I’ve explained, let’s get back to our regularly scheduled programme…

There’s the summer-friendly Celeste fingering, our wildly popular Lyra sport, beautiful Elara bulky, and three kinds of laceweight — so you’re sure to find something that you love! But they’re available for only 10 days, so be quick.

Perfect for Mother’s Day!

Oh, and if you’re stumped for what to get your mother for Mother’s Day, pick a colourway for her and leave your gift message in the notes section when you place your order. Or you suspect your family might be planning to get you something… erm… disappointing for Mother’s Day, then share this post and drop some heavy hints — chances are, they’ll be grateful for the help!

Ready to get started?

It’s easy — just scroll down and click on one of the images below — fingering, sport, bulky, or lace — to see all the other colourways available. They’re all dyed and ready to go, so we’ll get your order packed and out to you quickly. Can’t wait to see what you pick!

So there you have it — the last 24 hours have been amazing and I’ve learned how much folks really love our One-of-a-Kind colourways. We never stop playing with colour and producing amazing yarns, so I think we might make this a semi-annual event to share our beautiful experimentations with you.

But the real moral of this story? It’s TOTALLY worth being on our mailing list! If you’re not already on it, click here and let’s get that fixed right now.

The SpaceCadet’s Pattern Picks: 3 Fab Patterns from Dark Matter Knits

20AprApril 20, 2015 By Stephanie

Finding our Pattern Picks is one of the most awesome parts of my job — I scroll through Ravelry, browsing gorgeous pattern after gorgeous pattern, and still get to call it “work”. But this time, the scrolling was over pretty quickly. Because I ended up on Elizabeth Green Musselman’s Ravelry page (you know her as Dark Matter Knits and from the Dark Matter Knits podcast) — and BOOM — I found three patterns that I just fell head over heels for. And I think you will too — check them out…

Bettina Cowl and Mitts

Now if I’m honest, I don’t usually recommend variegated yarns for lace patterns — most of the time, the colours hide the complicated stitchwork and the result is often not everything it could have been. But I have to admit, every time I look at the Bettina Cowl and Mitts, I just see it in the grey-blue-blacks of Blueshift, one this month’s limited edition colourways. Even though it’s variegated, I think here the stitch pattern would work with the colours, shifting them around to create an almost heathered effect. I love the little details: the buttons, the lovely leaf motif, and the way you wear the cowl three different ways. And if a variegated yarn doesn’t work for you, I think the stitchwork would look stunning in Lyra in a semi-solid like Feather or Dark Skies. Don’t you agree?

Frankenfingers

How could I not share these with you?!? They’re so adorable! Designed originally for self-striping yarn, Frankenfingers would work perfectly with SpaceCadet Mini-Skeins. And what’s more, using minis lets you choose your own colour sequence! Use our Gradient Mix to morph from colour to colour or to create an ombre fade. Or pick our Multicolour Mix and go for something eclectic and fun! They’ll work in almost any of SpaceCadet’s fingering weight yarns, but choose Celeste or Ester for light and easy knitting.

Balinese Cardi

Now, this is just breathtaking! Created with a self striping gradient yarn cleverly combined with a semi-solid colourway for the main body, you can create the same effect with our Ombre & Gradient Mix Mini-Skeins — March’s minis would look stunning paired with coordinating semi-solids in Drizzle. Or, if you’re really adventurous, go completely off-trail and knit this in a SpaceCadet Gradient Sweater Kit. I’d love to see it in our favourite gradient colourway: Fervent!

But you know what? Even though the first thing you notice about the Balinese Cardi is the amazing colour, it’s a really beautiful design in its own right. The stitch detail down the sleeve and front placket is just delightful, and the shaping is flattering. If bright colour isn’t your thing, knit it in a semi-solid Sweater Kit and let those design details shine!

Limited Editions Close on Saturday

Don’t forget that the Limited Editions of our March Mini-Skein colourways close on Saturday. And it’s so exciting because this month’s selections are stunningly beautiful!if you’re in the Mini-Skein Club, you have access to all of our colourway picks but, even if you’re not, we’ve got a few for you too. Click here to see the colourways and grab a few skeins for yourself!

Join In on Our Idea Bank!

12AugApril 14, 2015 By Stephanie

We are all busy this week prepping the August Mini-Skein Club bundles (and I think they’re going to be a real treat this month, whether you’ve picked the Ombre&Gradient Mix or the Multicolour Mix — really fun colours coming your way!).

But I wanted to quickly share with you something wonderful that’s been happening in the SpaceCadet group on Ravelry! Now, we love collecting Mini-Skein project ideas for our club members on our Mini-Skein Ideas board on Pinterest — there are just so many fabulous and creative ways to add colour to your projects and scrolling through our Pinterest board is downright delicious.

But then I had a brainwave! As well as our collection on Pinterest, why not make this collaborative, and have all of you guys add your ideas too? So I started a thread on Ravelry — a place to share Mini-Skein project ideas and create a gorgeous look-book of patterns, an idea bank that we all contribute to. And it has become absolutely magic!

There are just two rules, and they are simple (and pretty fun too!):

Every suggestion has to include an image. Whether it’s a pattern on Ravelry or your own project, the idea is to create a visual idea book — and to be visual, it’s gotta have images! (and links are great too)
Chatting is welcome BUT you MUST also include an image and pattern idea in that same post. So, you can post a comment or reply to someone else’s post, but then you also have add in a pattern suggestion (and image) of your own in that post.

Want to join in the fun? Click here to check out the thread. And, hey, why not share your best Mini-Skein idea while you’re there?

Coming Soon

I’m crazy excited but I can’t say much, except to share this sneak peek…

…and these two key words: gorgeous new pattern and fabulous new kits! Mark your calendars for August 29th, and make sure you’re on the mailing list to be the first to hear about it!

Closing Soon

There’s less than one week left to order your fantastic SpaceCadet yarn bowl and mug from Pawley Studios. The orders are flying and it’s been so much fun! Don’t miss the chance to grab yours before they close on Aug 18! Click here to order or learn more.

Limited Editions: The Glorious Summer Sky

13JunApril 14, 2015 By Stephanie

It’s Friday the 13th and, though I’ve never really been fazed by that particular superstition (it’s Monday the 13th that seems like a bad combo to me — I mean, Friday the 13th is still a Friday), I know it might not feel like the friendliest of days*. But I’ve got a little something that will cheer things up a bit…

When we put together the SpaceCadet’s Mini-Skein Club bundles, it’s usually the Ombre & Gradient Mix that really calls out to me. But, when we were packing May’s parcels, I found myself falling head over heels for the Multicolour Mix. Here, see for yourself.

Seriously, as we were packing, I just kept picking the bundles up and staring at them. It was so hard to send them all away!

But there are three particular colourways that I loved so very much and were so much fun to create, I just knew I had to dye more. So… I am!

June Limited Editions

For the next seven days, we’re offering three stunning colourways inspired by the glorious summer sky — Nightwatch, Gaze Skyward, and Horizon Fire — as Limited Editions for custom dyeing. Available from June 13th to 19th only, they’re sure to go quick. Click here to nab yours!
Nightwatch is the incredible blues and purples of twilight, fading into deep gray-black as night falls.

Gaze Skyward is the glorious mid-day sky, so intense directly above and burning out to white along the edges of perception.

Horizon Fire is all the heat and shadows streaking across the breathtaking summer sky as the sun sinks slowly beneath the horizon.

Aren’t they gorgeous?!? I just love them, can’t wait to get dyeing them for you! Want one? Click here!

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*What else? It’s also a full moon. shudder!