Today is the LAST DAY to join the Yarn Alliance

This is just a quick reminder that subscriptions to the InterStellar Yarn Alliance close at midnight tonight.  If you’ve been considering joining, thinking about it, checking out all the fab parcels and the lovely yarns…   now is the time!

Quotes from ISYA members, yarn club, yarn, knitting, crochet, yarn allianceclick here to join the interstellar yarn alliance, interstellar yarn alliance, yarn club, knitting, crochet, hand dyed, indie dyer

Each member will receive an exciting parcel delivered every other month containing:

  • SpaceCadetTM Creations yarn (light to medium weight) in an exclusive Yarn Alliance colourway (guaranteed not to be offered on the SpaceCadet website for at least 6 months)
  • A great Yarn Alliance gift tucked into every parcel!
  • The SpaceCadet’s Log exploring the inspiration for each colourway.
  • An InterStellar Yarn Alliance group on Ravelry where you can discuss WIPs, ask questions, and share FOs with fellow members.
  • The InterStellar Yarn Alliance newsletter with periodic special offers exclusively for members.
  • A 15% off couponevery six months

yarn club, yarn, knitting, crochet, sock yarn, indie dyer, hand dyed, space cadet, spacecadet

Subscriptions: 6 months (3 parcels) $125; or 12 months (6 parcels) $235

Parcels will be sent out in late October, December, February, April, June, and August. Subscription openings will be available in March and September. Shipping within the United States is included in the price; extra charges apply for shipping outside the US.

click here to join the interstellar yarn alliance, interstellar yarn alliance, yarn club, knitting, crochet, hand dyed, indie dyer

Remember, subscriptions close at midnight tonight!  Join now!

The Super Secret Thing and Other Exciting Stuff

The PLY Party was seriously crazy!  There were so many people that, at moments, I hardly knew where to stand.  It’s so much fun when it gets like that… when everyone’s starting to get a bit high on the fiber!

But, before I tell you all about it, I just want to let you know that there are only FOUR DAYS LEFT to join the InterStellar Yarn Alliance.  This is the SpaceCadet’s Cosmic Yarn Club and it is a BLAST!  Click here to read more about it, or just click on the button below to join now…

click here to join the interstellar yarn alliance, interstellar yarn alliance, yarn club, knitting, crochet, hand dyed, indie dyer

Ok, back to the PLY Party…  First, yeah, it was crazy, and then when it calmed down a little… well, that was really nice too, because I got to chat with some really great people.  A couple of them were members of the InterStellar Yarn Alliance: one I’d met before in person (and who had such nice things to say about the Alliance that she actually made me blush!) and one whom I’d known only through the forums — what a lovely surprise to get to meet her in person!

Yarns at the PLY Party, knitting, crochet, sock yarns, yarn, space cadet, spacecadet, lovelyarns

I also ended up in a conversation with a brand-new crocheter and showed her a couple of exciting patterns on Ravelry, so (I hope) I helped to get her even more excited about new yarny adventures.  And I had a wonderful conversation about England with a lady who’d lived there for years.  Really joyed meeting everyone!

But after a show…  exhaustion.  And yet, there’s so much to do!  First, I have to fill the shop back up after emptying it for the show.  That was supposed to happen Tuesday — I’m hoping to get it done today.  Check in throughout the day to see if I manage to do it…!

But more exciting than that are some great things on the horizon…

First, I’m working on an ebook: a short introduction to using hand-dyed yarns and choosing patterns that will bring out their best.  I know hand-dyeds can be a little daunting to some knitters and crocheters — all those crazy colours! — so this will be a quick guide on how to understand them and get started without fear.   It should be done in the next month or so, so if that sounds like what you’re looking for, be sure you’re signed up the newsletter to get first dibs!

yarns at the PLY Party, yarn, sock yarn, knitting, crocet, space cadet, spacecadet, lovelyarns, indie dyer, hand dyed

Speaking of newsletters, I’m about to send out the first InterStellar Yarn Alliance newsletter with exclusive offers just for members.  This is a new feature for the Yarn Alliance, so if you’re already a member, please make sure you’ve told me it’s ok to sign you up to the mailing list so you don’t miss out on the offers. (We value your privacy, so of course we will never put you on a mailing list that you haven’t requested to join.  Just fire an email to me with  “PUT ME ON THE ISYA MAILING LIST!” and I’ll get you on it straight away!).

And… there’s another Super Secret Thing in the works.  I can’t say any more about it, but I am so excited, I’m ready to burst!   All puffed up and ready to burst!    (…That was a hint.  Did you get it?)  The Super Secret Thing will be ready nearer the end of September — again, make sure you’re on the mailing list to hear about it first.

So, lots of exciting stuff going on.  And, also… the post-show exhaustion.  It’s sooooo not a good combination.  sigh…  Could someone please grab me a coffee?

Click here to join the InterStellar Yarn Alliance

A Look at the InterStellar Yarn Alliance Parcel

Ok… (looks around)…  ok, I think everyone’s got their parcels by now, so I think I’m safe to share the latest InterStellar Yarn Alliance parcel…

The light has changed recently, as summer turns into autumn.  There’s something more golden about its cast, it falls at gentler angle.  The aura of the end of summer is unmistakeable, and I wanted to capture that in a yarn.

yarn, sock yarn, bamboo, knitting, crochet, space cadet, spacecadet, hand dyed, indie dyer
Merino/Bamboo/Nylon fingering yarn in End Of Summer

So I chose this gorgeous 80% Superwash Merino, 20% Bamboo, 10% Nylon fingering weight, because Bamboo really captures the light to create a beautiful sheen across the yarn.  And then I dyed it in the shades of summer fields, as the grass turns to a deeper shade of green, and then begins to fade to gold.

To me, these colours perfectly capture the End of Summer.  And so that’s exactly what I named it!

yarn, sock yarn, knitting, crochet, ISYA, InterStellar Yarn Alliance, yarn club, space cadet, spacecadet, indie dyer, hand dyed
Colourway: End Of Summer

.

And here’s something really fun:  this month, I had Debbie at Divine Scentsations create some wonderful, hand-made soaps for the Yarn Alliance members.  She did four scents — Lavender, Peppermint Leaf, Lemongrass Tea, and Citrus Lavender — and they are incredible!  I can show you pictures but… oh! If only you could smell them!

yarn club, yarn, knitting, crochet, hand dyed, indie dyer, ISYA, Yarn Alliance, InterStellar Yarn Alliance, spacecadet, space cadet
Soaps from Divine Scentsations

One of the Alliance members said she knew she had Lavender even before she opened the package.  These soaps smell amazing!  I kept trying to pick my favourite scent but… it’s impossible.  They’re all really different but soooo delicious.

InterStellar Yarn Alliance, ISYA, yarn, hand dyed, indie dyer, knitting, crochet, spacecadet, space cadet, soap
Yay for InterStellar Yarn Alliance goodies!

————————————————————————————————–

Don’t forget, the InterStellar Yarn Alliance is open for subscriptions right now (and will close again after September 17).  To find out more about the great stuff that Alliance members get, click here.  And if you want to join the Alliance and be a part of all this fun, just click on the button below…Click here to join the InterStellar Yarn Alliance

The InterStellar Yarn Alliance is OPEN for Subscriptions!

I am so excited about this!  It’s the 2nd of September and that means…

(drumroll please)…

The InterStellar Yarn Alliance is open for subscriptions!

click here to join the interstellar yarn alliance, interstellar yarn alliance, yarn club, knitting, crochet, hand dyed, indie dyer

What is the InterStellar Yarn Alliance?  It’s the SpaceCadet’s fantastic yarn club, and it’s a hell of lot of fun.  If you like SpaceCadet yarns, you’ll love being in the Alliance.

yarn, yarn club, space cadet, spacecadet, indie dyer, hand dyed, knitting, crochet

Each member will receive an exciting parcel delivered every other month containing:

  • SpaceCadetTM Creations yarn (light to medium weight) in an exclusive Yarn Alliance colourway (guaranteed not to be offered on the SpaceCadet website for at least 6 months)
  • A great Yarn Alliance gift tucked into every parcel!
  • The SpaceCadet’s Log exploring the inspiration for each colourway.
  • An InterStellar Yarn Alliance group on Ravelry where you can discuss WIPs, ask questions, and share FOs with fellow members.
  • The InterStellar Yarn Alliance newsletter with periodic special offers exclusively for members.
  • A 15% off coupon every six months

yarn club, yarn, knitting, crochet, space cadet, spacecadet, hand dyed, indie dyer

yarn club, yarn, knitting, crochet, sock yarn, indie dyer, hand dyed, space cadet, spacecadetclick here to join the interstellar yarn alliance, interstellar yarn alliance, yarn club, knitting, crochet, hand dyed, indie dyer

Subscriptions: 6 months (3 parcels) $125; or 12 months (6 parcels) $235

Parcels will be sent out in late October, December, February, April, June, and August. Subscription openings will be available in March and September. Shipping within the United States is included in the price; extra charges apply for shipping outside the US.

yarn club, space cadet, spacecadet, yarn, knitting, crochet, hand dyed, indie dyer

September Events You Don’t Want to Miss!

I looked at the calendar today and realised that September follows August… I don’t know that happened, but apparently, that means September is next month!  And that’s great because there’s a lot of super fun stuff happening in September…

PLY Party in Baltimore

knitting, yarn, crochet, lovelyarns, PLY party, spacecadet, space cadet, indie dyer, hand-dyed

First, we’re going to the PLY Party at Lovelyarns in Baltimore on Sept 11th.  Lovelyarns is a cool little LYS in Hampden that began carrying SpaceCadet Creations yarns over the summer and we’re delighted that they invited us to be part of the Peace Love Yarn (PLY) party, their yearly gathering of indie hand-dyers and spinners.  And they just posted a really cool little SpaceCadet bio on the PLY website.
If you’re in the Baltimore area, please do come out and join us! We’d love to meet you.

Ply Party
Sunday, September 11, 2011
12:00 – 6:00 PM
Lovelyarns 846 W. 36th Street  Baltimore, MD 21211
(click here for a map)

It’s going to be so much fun!

———————————————————————————————————

InterStellar Yarn Alliance Subscriptions Opening

yarn club, yarn, knitting, handdyed, indie dyer

And the other thing that September means is… subscriptions open for the InterStellar Yarn Alliance!  If you’ve watching all the fun stuff that Alliance members have been receiving in their parcels and want the chance to join in, keep your eyes open.  More details will be coming soon, but be sure you are signed up for the SpaceCadet newsletter to be the first to hear when subscriptions go live!

subscribe by email, yarn, knitting, crochet, indie dyer, hand-dyed

A Yarn Club, a Yarn Club, and… Another Yarn Club!

Now that everyone in the InterStellar Yarn Alliance should have received their latest parcels, I really want to show you what they got!

And as the weather turned hotter and hotter, I found myself inspired to dye a skein rich in the full-on colour of summer.  The yarn is Stella, a really wonderful 80/20 merino/nylon mix and the colourway is Starved for Colour.

knitting, yarn, hand-dyed, indie dyer, yarn club, space cadet, spacecadet

And then for fun, I created mini-skeins of Lucina, a lovely yarn in merino and nylon with a little added sparkle, and dyed them in coordinating colours — some Alliance members got purple, some blue, some green.  I kind of fell in love with the idea of using it to knit socks with sparkly toes and heels (I mean, seriously, how cool is sparkly toes and heels?!?), but it’d also look great as a border on a shawl, or collar and cuffs on a child’s cardigan.

yarn, knitting, indie dyer, hand-dyed, space cadet, spacecadet

Now, onto the really cool stuff… the goodies.  I was so in love with the custom SpaceCadet Tool Tins that Sarah Wilson, The Sexy Knitter, created for the last parcel, that I asked her if she could create a custom version of her adorable origami stitchmarkers…  And she did!  They were so cool that I squealed as soon as I saw them!  They came packaged in their own little glass vial.  Don’t you love them?!?

knitting, yarn, indie dyer, hand-dyed, space cadet, spacecadet

.

Guest-Dyer for the Cultured Purl

“Guest-Dyer” has a pretty nice ring to it, don’t you think?  I was thrilled when Shirani at The Cultured Purl  asked me if I’d be a Guest-Dyer for their Spectacular Summer of Socks Club.  She asked me to create a summery colourway, so I took inspiration from lazy summer lunches eaten under a bright blue sky…  And dyed Picnic, a custom colourway designed to create fun bursts of colour throughout the knitted fabric.

knitting, yarn, indie dyer, hand-dyed, space cadet, spacecadet

.

And… Another Yarn Club!

And, as if that wasn’t enough, I’ve been asked to dye for yet another club (squeee!).  I don’t know yet if I’m allowed to tell you who I’m dyeing for or what colours I’m making, but I can tell you that I just sent a skein of the yarn to the (very fabulous) designer and I can’t wait to see what she creates with it.  As soon as I know I have the go ahead…  I’ll tell you all about it!