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YARNMARKET.COM NEWS ISSUE #31
Gearing Up for Fall with Major Fashion Trends & Color Forecasts | A Big Yarnmarket Welcome to Trendsetter & Three Superb Yarns for the Fall | More New Yarns Now Available from Katia, Berroco & Crystal Palace | New Needles, Kits, Tools & Accessories for Those Crafty Folks in Your Life | Knitting for a Better World, Part 3: Even More Great Ways to Get Involved & Help Others | Knitting in the News | Customer Service the Yarnmarket Way
With only a few short weeks of summer left and the kids and teens back at school and in college, our knitting and crochet thoughts turn to plans for fashions that will see us through the fall & cooler weather with style & pizzazz. Of course, we also want to check out what the fashionistas have to say about the latest trends & best colors. We also want to stay comfortable & choose what fits with our personal sense of chic and what suits our body type & shape. So how do we manage all of that? Well, by checking out the major fashion trends for Fall 2006, adopting what works best for us and ignoring what doesn't. And you know you can count on Yarnmarket to keep you up to date, so let's get started with our fall fashion forecast of several dominant themes including:
(1) Creating the right knitwear to layer in your fall wardrobe for maximum impact,
(2) Using fur (faux for us, of course) appropriately for fun & funkiness,
(3) Handling the emphasis on volume without going overboard & getting buried by it, and
(4) Incorporating some of the most popular hues from the color forecast.
Starting off with layering your knitwear, consider the wide range of Project Ideas we have available for you in just the five areas of Shawls, Stoles & Wraps [52 projects], Women's Jackets & Coats [65], Women's Cardigans [58], Women's Ponchos & Capes [45] and Women's Vests [22]. In just these departments, you'll find over 240 projects to layer with your favorite wardrobe essentials and revamp your look for fall! Several of our favorite projects are exquisite layering options such as the Karaoke Rib Warmer Vest designed exclusively for Vogue Knitting International by Shiri Mor. Beautifully crafted of soy-wool blend Karaoke Multi from South West Trading Company, this bolero/shrug/vest is very versatile and incorporates what fashion-era.com calls "the 21st century layered look where different textures and a more somber palette play against each other."
We also like the unfitted style of the Lace Panel Vest, made stunning by the use of Lion & Lamb by Lorna's Laces; the exquisitely different Pearl Criss Cross Vest from Lang; Cynthia Rowley's Iceland Cabled Vest; the always extraordinary Prism Side to Side Vest; and the Crocheted Silk Garden Vest.
Then take a look at all the ways you can layer sensational jackets, shrugs and cardigans such as the Cabled Silk Shrug from Debbie Bliss, the Textural Shrug, the Eden Bolero Jacket, the Biggy Print Cropped Jacket, the Cashmere Bolero Shrug, the Amelie Bolero Jacket and the Zippered Caldo Cropped Jacket. The style possibilities are unlimited as they are also with ponchos, shawls, stoles & wraps like the lacy, elegant Glitter Alpaca Stole for lace aficionados everywhere, the Hooded Shawl, the Hooded Shoulder Cape, the Velvet Shawlette, the Beau Mini-Capelet, the Colore Collar with Shawl, the Brushed Alpaca Capelet, the Poyntz Pass Wrap, the Prism Shawl with Touch Me Trim, the Sheela & Scarlet Bat-Wing Cape, the Coty Crocheted Poncho and the Feathery Lace Stole.
Also keep in mind that some garments can combine several trends such as the Bigga & Foxy Vest that's great for layering but also has the furry trim described as the "must-have of the season" by NBC's Today Show fashion editor. Other hot furry looks include the Funky Fur Cape, the Funky Fur Long Sleeve Sweater, the Micio Bell Sleeved Cardigan and the Musique Coat that starts with a free pattern from Crystal Palace. Of course, we have the furry look for the little ones to as in the adorable & cuddly Funky Fur Coat, the precious Girl's Tiny Tots Pullover and the grown-up Funky Fur Bolero. We can even keep Fido & Fifi in style this fall with layering & fur as in the Suede Hooded Jacket and the Faux Fur Snazzy Jacket.
As for issues with what the New York Magazine calls "roomy knits" and others refer to as "volume," this is a huge style issue (please forgive our pun) that we will just touch upon for now. With "roomy" think unfitted & loose-fitting as in the designs found on the runways of Milan, New York & Paris and celebrated as the innovations of Derek Lam, Karl Lagerfeld & Zero Maria Cornejo. Or translate it into knitting projects, and consider the Yosemite Easy Vogue Cardigan, the Candy Bomber Jacket, the Raglan Cardigan Jacket and the Pandora Shadow Cardigan, just to mention a very few.
And our final concern is to think of the fall color forecasts and debate what will look best with our skin tones & complexions. As the Pantone Color Institute so aptly predicted several months ago, the neutrals of the spring & summer are carrying over into the fall, and earthtones and darker, more somber hues are turning up everywhere. According the Fashion Trendsetter, "The neutrals, while simple, provide a landscape for complexity." Translation? The taupes, browns, blacks and charcoals serve as the backdrop for periodic splashes of color to liven up the conservative, somber tones.
As fashion-era.com so aptly sums it up, "These bursts of color will be vital to add life to what is a fairly subdued murky palette with a great deal of monochrome gray schemes." So look for the rich colors of ruby, purple, gold, ultramarine and green to enliven your wardrobe. As for specific knitting projects, there's room in your wardrobe for the somber, elegant shades of the Dune Shawl or Poncho, but relieve the monochromatic approach with the rainbow hues of the Silk Garden Cabled Shawl and the Tundra Ruffled Jacket.
For months some of our long-time customers have been asking about whether we would be adding the lovely, luscious fibers of Trendsetter to the Yarnmarket family, and we're thrilled to say we now have Trendsetter Yarns and Trendsetter Patterns in stock for you! (You ask -- we listen!!) And just why are we so excited you might ask? We love the inventive, diverse fiber creations with beautiful, striking color combinations. Since many of these colors are offered in numerous yarns to make mixing & matching easier, it's no wonder Trendsetter has earned the reputation of being a world leader in the fashion yarns industry.
With the advice of company founder & head designer Barry Klein, we've started our collection with one of Trendsetter's most popular yarns along with two sensational gems newly arrived in the U.S. for the Fall 2006 season. One of Barry's multi-stranded, multi-textured yarns for the past few years, Dune has infinite design possibilities. Its vibrant colors change in rapid succession with a metallic thread throughout that sparkles through the halo of multi-hued mohair. Beautifully crafted in France, "Dune" is the perfect yarn for your heavy-worsted knitting & crochet projects such as soft & dazzling sweaters, jackets, scarves, hats & accessories. Just a few examples are the Dune Classic Collar Pullover and the Dune Lace Edge Pullover besides the Dune Shawl or Poncho already featured.
Then brand new for the Fall 2006 season comes Trendsetter's Pandora Shadow, the yarn that changes from matte-finish fluff to short eyelash to shiny ribbon, all at a random rate for added fun & creativity. The result in your knitting & crochet projects is lusciously soft yarn textures & color blends to delight you. Also "Pandora Shadow" demonstrates a terrific, innovative dye technique called "shadow dyeing" for clean, subtle color changes. Take a look at the lovely designs for "Pandora Shadow," & you'll see exactly what we mean in the Pandora Shadow Alternating Rib Pullover, the Pandora Shadow Classic Pullover, the Pandora Shadow Ribbed Cowl Neck Pullover and the Pandora Shadow Cardigan featured as a fall trend for layering & volume.
Also new for fall, we are carrying Yosemite from Trendsetter, the yarn that Barry Klein's been wanting to develop for years but had to wait for the technology to catch up with his imagination! He's wanted to offer a chunky, quick-to-knit, fall/winter option made from wool tops fiber but wasn't satisfied with the softness until he first touched "Yosemite." This yarn is truly different from the rest because it's a 50/50 blend of wool tops fiber & acrylic tops. Each fiber is dyed in different colors & then spun together from thick to thin for superb texture & shading. "Yosemite" works up beautifully & quickly in such creations as the Yosemite Cable Pullover and the Yosemite Easy Vogue Cardigan.
Of course, we've been expanding the fiber collections from some of your other favorite yarn companies including Katia, Berroco and Crystal Palace, for a grand total of 11 new yarns since the August Bulletin just a few short weeks ago. All are spectacular yarns with interesting textures and color mixes, and we can't wait to get started using them in our fall & winter projects.
First off, we've added four new yarns to the Katia collection, and they are featured in our two new Katia magazines: Katia #51 with women's & men's garments and Katia #39: Kids featuring boys' & girls' fashions. We are especially excited about the color coordinated pair of Venus and VIP, which promise to give us all endless design options. Self-striping, worsted-weight "Venus" works up sensationally in cardigans, pullovers, ponchos, scarves, hats, gloves, shawls & more! Then when you want to use something extraordinary for the sweater's cowl neckline or to accent the collar & cuffs of a jacket, turn to wonderfully chunky "VIP" boucle yarn for pizzazz & delicious texture. Add to the mix super-cool & tweedy Tundra with its subtle color changes and lovely, multi-textured & hued Eden, and you have excellent options for your cool-weather projects.
Then from Berroco and Crystal Palace, we've two more lovelies from each company for an even wider range of fall/winter & all-seasons choices. For your upcoming projects for babies & children and those for family & friends with sensitive skin, take a look at ultra-soft & comfy, solid-colored Plush and color-coordinated, multi Plush Colors. These two lovelies are 100% nylon, polar fleece with techno-fur for a sensational, chunky-weight, chenille effect with periodic, delicate eyelashes for added softness.
Also Crystal Palace's Bunny Hop Solid knits up & crochets into cuddly baby & children's clothing because of its great mix of 50% acrylic & 42% nylon with a touch of angora for extra softness. But all three of these terrific, supersoft choices are also available in adult colors, so use "Bunny Hop Solid" for socks, scarves & worsted-weight sweaters, and the "Plush" duo for any chunky-weight, quick-to-knit project all year long!
Our final new yarn is the wonderfully variegated Aran Print from Crystal Palace. For feltable fun & lovely color combos, choose "Aran Print" for your heavy worsted creations all fall & winter. Just imagine what great sweaters, ponchos, hats, scarves, gloves & more you can knit & crochet for yourself and as gorgeous gifts for your friends & family.
Besides all of these terrific projects & yarns we've been adding, we've expanded many of our other departments, especially Needles, Kits, Tools and Fashion Accessories. Starting off with the latest in knitting needles, you've read about them in Vogue, you've seen them advertised, and now we have in stock the latest innovation in knitting needles -- The Knit Lite from Clover Needlecraft. Just the thing for knitting in dimly lighted areas or when your eyes need a little boost because these battery-operated knitting needles have tips that light up! Then when your needles start to lose their glow, be sure to have on hand several packs of the Knit Lite Batteries for your convenience.
Other new additions to our Knitting Needles & Crochet Hooks department are for those of you who love our current collections. With our Pony Knitting Needles along with the recently added Children's Knitting Needles, we've expanded our collection of Pony Pearl Straight Needles. We now carry all available sizes (from 0 to 36 U.S.) in these high-impact yet flexible plastic knitting needles. Their added benefit? Each pair is 15.75" long for those of you who prefer the longest straight needles available, and they're the brand of knitting needle recommended in Sirdar patterns.
Then for lovers of the "Little Bag" kit series, we recommend the Little Raisin Bag Kit from The BagSmith. In a lovely dark purplish brown just right for the fall color forecast, this bag can be knitted or crocheted and comes with a free DVD featuring additional tips & demonstrations of the specific techniques used to complete this terrific creation.
As one of our favorite new tools, we've added to our collection Knit One Crochet Too's handy-dandy, 2-in-1 Snip 'n Ruler. Small enough to fit easily in your favorite project bag or tote, this nifty little tool includes a 6-inch ruler for checking gauge & other measurements along with a built-in, recessed cutting edge to replace those scissors maybe getting you in trouble with airport security. The "Snip 'n Ruler" makes a great gift item too for your crafty friends & relatives.
In our Fashion Accessories area, we now have available a terrific, sophisticated, natural bamboo bag handle. With the Twisted Bamboo Purse Handle from South West Trading Company. This out-of-the-ordinary design has wonderful craftsmanship & a high-gloss varnished finish that lets the splendid medium brown of the wood shine through while maintaining its durability. It's the perfect finishing touch to your favorite handbag or tote as in the Bamboo Handbag that also uses South West's Magic Purse Form and Magnetic Purse Snap.
As we explained in July's charity feature, we're glad to do our small part to encourage knitters & crocheters to get involved in such a worthwhile initiative as the Afghans for Afghans not-for-profit organization. As an update on that initiative, their new campaign is focusing n 900 wool sweaters and vests for school children, sizes 7-18 years. The goal is to supply one wool vest or sweater to each child in the three schools run by Afghans 4 Tomorrow, a U.S.-based nonprofit that operates schools and social services in Afghanistan. Two of the schools are in Kabul and the other is in Wardak. The Wardak school has recently been rebuilt after being attacked twice by the Taliban. For more information about this project and details about fiber content, patterns, etc., check out www.afghansforafghans.org/900kids.
We honor and recognize those who have recently taken part in the Afghans for Afghans charitable efforts and who were selected in the July drawing to receive Yarnmarket gift certificates:
Ruth Blott,
Carla Parsons and
Anne Chamberlain.
Thank you for all your hard work and for giving to others with your time & talents.
We also want to continue promoting the charitable groups and organizations for which you knit and crochet and have received some terrific suggestions to add to last month's list. Here are several of the not-for-profits you have suggested since the August newsletter:
Janet G. of Michigan recommends that you consider the Heartmade Blessings, a not-for-profit, world-wide group of volunteers who provide handcrafted items to those suffering from a loss, tragedy, illness or rough time. Janet describes the crocheted afghan squares that are assembled into comfort afghans & sent all over North America. They also create afghans for military families who have lost loved ones in Iraq & Afghanistan and special "bearghans" for children age 6 and under.
Rita W. from California wrote to us about the great work done through the Knitters and Crocheters for Newborns: Caps to the Capital program as featured on the Save the Children website. This program asks knitters & crocheters to donate handmade caps for newborns so that young children in developing countries around the world can stay warm through those crucial early months of life. According to the Associated Press, over 4 million newborns die each year, and such simple, inexpensive interventions as warm, knit caps can work wonders.
Then Sherry S. of Massachusetts tells us about two worthwhile organizations -- one that focuses on needy children in the United States and the other helping children worldwide. Cubs for Kids started in 1998 to distribute donated teddy bears in hand-knitted outfits to children living in homeless shelters. Cubs for Kids provides the bear and the pattern for the sweater, hat and scarf. Knitters provide their time, talent and yarn to complete each outfit. For information on how to get involved, check out the group's 2006 Press Release.
In addition, Sherry S. draws our attention to an organization that's been helping children all over the world for many years -- Guideposts Knitting for Kids. Through the generous donations of knitters and crocheters, over the past 10 years more than 300,000 handmade sweaters have been sent to needy children in the United States and to countries overseas including Romania, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Kosovo, just to name a few.
Because we believe so strongly in this type of charitable giving, we'll keep highlighting other such groups and organizations especially over the next few months to remind us that those in need can benefit greatly from our beloved crafts. To suggest a non-profit, charitable group for us to feature, just e-mail the newsletter editor and share your suggestions. Please provide any details that you have including the website address, contact person's name, e-mail address, etc. Then watch future issues of this newsletter for updates through the upcoming holiday months.
Many of you have commented that you enjoy our news tidbits each month, so we've been checking the news services around the world for the best crafts-related items to keep you entertained & informed. This month we've found several serious and not-so-serious articles for you, so take a peek & let us know what you think.
First off, we've been fascinated lately about how the competitive spirit is affecting the knitting & crochet worlds.
Take for instance the story about how a group in Peterborough, England, is set on knitting the world's longest scarf (and from some of the photos, we'd say the widest too!). Starting last December, this small neighborhood has been working away and now has over 550 yards completed. That's the good news -- the bad news is that the current Guinness Book record for longest scarf stands currently at 35 miles (yes, you read it right -- that's miles). Add to that, a small community in Germany has the same goal, and you can see why they need lots of volunteers for this initiative. So if your competitive juices are starting to flow, check out CHALLENGE: Team are in it to win knit with wool-d record for more information.
Or maybe you're more in the mood to use your crafty talents in other ways, perhaps even to find your special someone? We have to admit we were intrigued by the press release issued by a yarn store in California citing the owners' many successes in matchmaking though their sponsored Singles Nights over the past year. Looking for Love at a Yarn Store explains it all for you!
Then you know from past columns how much we enjoy the use of knitting & crochet in art and fashion, and we've found several articles along these lines too:
Check out a fascinating description of a gallery in Rhode Island that carries the work of both a sculptor/designer who offer crocheted & knitted pieces in her section of the gallery. Sculptor Susan Marie Freda uses wire, lace, resin & glass. Her signature pieces are dresses crocheted from wire and then adorned with colorful tree sap, resin or glass. Then she puts her design talents to work in creating knitted & crochet jewelry in silver & gold and accented by semi-precious stones. Read all about her work in All things wood, stone, glass and wire at Gallery 4 from the local newspaper.
In terms of crocheted jewelry, you'll also enjoy the work of designer Sonya Ooten with its lovely, delicate look in earrings & bracelets. Take a look at the photos included in the blog review for Crocheted Jewelry from Sonya Ooten, and we bet you'll see exactly what we mean.
And just a reminder that this is the time of year for festivals, knit-outs, and state & county fairs, so watch your local newspapers for such events as the fiber arts festival in Bangor, Maine; the recent Alaska State Fair featuring exquisite needlearts displays; and the numerous Knit-Outs this month and next sponsored by the Craft Yarn Council and other local groups. (Take a look at the Council's Knit-Out & Crochet Events for possible get-togethers in your area.)
As you’ve come to expect at www.yarnmarket.com, we pride ourselves on our customer service and low error rate. Each order is carefully packed for you by Tina, Phyllis, Alma or Kim. We have an occasional glitch, but if something does go wrong, we’ll do everything we can to make it right for you . . . right away! Just send us an e-mail at orders@yarnmarket.com or call us at 1-888-996-9276, and we’ll take care of it for you. Our customer service hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday, or you can leave us a message and we’ll get back to you by e-mail or by phone.
Thanks for reading, and please enjoy these remaining weeks of warmer weather with your family & friends before the cool days & evenings of autumn arrive!
And as always,
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