uniqueyarnsblog

5 great reasons to attend the Unique Yarns Anniversary Sale.

Monday and Tuesday, July 2nd and 3rd, Unique Yarns is celebrating it's 5th anniversary by having a SALE!!!!  A really great sale.  You'll have a chance to reach into the fish bowl (no fish allowed) and pull out a discount from 10 to 40%.  Combine that with a full sheep card and things could get pretty darn exciting! 

Just in case you need a little motivation, here are the top 5 reasons to shop this sale:

5 - Christmas.  Yes, I said the word.  Christmas.  It comes every year and I'm betting you've got someone on your list that really wants something knitted by your hands.  Think how good you'll feel knowing you've already got a jump on your gift list, on sale, too!

4 - Venus, Dune, and Karaoke.  (remember that you can click on any picture to view it larger.)  Becky and John have recently returned from the TNNA yarn show where they purchased new and glorious fibers for the shop.  These include fibers that are new and amazing like Venus, along with some fabulous new colorways of old favorites, like Dune.  We're getting them on the shelf as soon as possible after they arrive and they will be included in the sale.  Who knows what the UPS man will deliver between now and July 2.

3- So I don't have to count it. Ok, I admit to being a little selfish here.  Inventory is coming and counting every.single.skein.of.yarn in the shop makes me a little queasy.  Please come in and make my life easier. 

4-  You deserve a treat.   When was the last time you did something just for you?  Yarn is 100% calorie free.  Indulge yourself with a fiber treat.

5!!!!!- It's yarn!!  Yarn, accessories, books, buttons, bags, INSPIRATION!  There really isn't any better reason than that. 

Unique Yarns Anniversary Sale, Monday, July 2 - and Tuesday, July 3, 10:00 am - 6:00 pm!  See you there!!  

Email newsletters and Spam filters

Unique Yarns is a busy place any time of the year and we do our best to keep you all up to date on the latest happenings.  One of the best ways to find out what's new is the email newsletter that Dr. John composes and sends out fairly regularly.  These newsletters have class info, sale info, coupons, tips and lots of other things you really don't want to miss out on.  If you've signed up to be on the mailing list and included your email address, you should be receiving them.  If you aren't, we think the problem might be your spam filter.

Spam filters are wonderful things.  They protect your computer from nasty virus filled emails, and even spare you having to see your box full of email you don't want.  Sometimes, however, they put things in the junk folder that you might actually want to see.....like.....say......a newsletter from Unique Yarns!!!!  Each email program is a little different, but almost all have a folder designated specifically for unwanted mail.  Check yours every now and then to see is maybe our newsletter got mis-routed. 

If you would like to be receiving email newsletters, come on into the shop and sign up!  If, for any reason, you would like to stop getting them there is an unsubscribe function at the very bottom of every email sent.  We want our communications with you to be fast, easy, and welcome.

A couple of classes to take note of:

There are still openings in the Counterpanes to Go class that starts this Thursday, June 21, 6:30 - 8:30. This is a great class if you've ever wanted to learn to read a chart.  It's a cute summer bag that has an interesting construction and lots of new stitch patterns to learn.

This Saturday, June 23, 10-noon, begins the two sessions class San Fransico Nights Shawl.  This beautiful shawl can be made in either a rectangle or triangle.  It's the perfect little summer something to throw over your shoulders on a cool evening. 

Bobbin Lace, Thursday, June 28, 10-noon, four sessions.  Explore the traditional art of bobbin lace making with an empahsis on tape lace.  This lace is so beautiful and the process is fascinating.  A great summer project!

The must have jacket of the summer.

Just in case you thought summer would be the time to set down the needles/hook, have a look at this.  Don't you just love this jacket?  It's the perfect summer project.  Really.  The fiber is cool, easy to work with cotton.  The style is fun and figure flattering.  The construction is uncomplicated.  What more can you ask for!  Nancy has her finished product hanging in the shop right now and you MUST come in and see it.  I tried to get a good picture last night, but failed miserably.  Her's is done in brown and blue and I am not kidding when I say it is FABULOUS.  And, the best part is that Nancy is teaching a class on this very jacket.  Class begins Thursday, June 21, 6:30-8:80 and runs 4 weeks.  Draped Summer Jacket.  It's on the back of the May-August class schedule.  Come in or call for registration.  You seriously do not want to miss out on this one.

A few other classes coming up:

Wet Felt Bag on a Ball - Saturday, June 16 (this Saturday!) 10-12.  Taught by Ginger and guaranteed to be a great time!

Continental Knitting - Thursday, June 28 - 10-12.  In knitting there is throwing and there is picking.  The continental knitters pick.  I've heard it's faster and know that it takes less movement than throwing.  Come in to this one session class and learn the technique that is all the buzz in knitting circles.  You can be a picker, too!

Wet felting is fun!

I apologize for the lack of posting here at the Unique blog.  I went on vacation and life got crazy.  We're back on track now and ready to talk about some Unique fun.

Yesterday Nancy and I were lucky enough to attend the wet felting class.  This class was the second in a series of four.  (More on that later!).  The day was lovely so tables were brought outside.  Wise idea since we made the greatest, bubbly mess.  EJ Rebman was our fabulous teacher, assisted by her lovely daughter-in-law, Tara.  In this first picture you can see my nice little pile of roving, waiting for soap and water to be added.  Basically, (and this is REALLY the short version of how this works.  Please pick up a book or consult the internet for better instructions.) you make a nice pile of roving, alternating layers vertically and horizontally.  Mine had 4 layers.  Then you add soap (we used Dawn) and as-hot-as-you-can-stand water.  Top with bubble wrap or a lingerie bag and rub.  And rub.  And rub.  Using the palm of your hands in a circular motion you rub until it begins to look like it is all felting together pretty well.

Jill popped her head out to say hi!

After the rubbing stage, you wet with hot water again and then wrap in a bamboo mat and roll.  Rub and roll!  This fulls your piece and makes it stiffen up.  It also shrinks a bit during this process.  In the end you have a really creative piece of felt.  The texture is different from the felt created by knitting first (that was the first felting class), but the wet felt method gives you a whole new set of options like balls, squares, any shape and combination of color you can think of. 

You can see both finished felt pieces there on the left.  This morning, mine was dry, so I took my rotary cutter and cut off a slice so you could see the interior. It's a little sandwich of color.  As you can tell, I'm fired up about this new skill.  If you have kids, this would be such a great summer activity!

As I mentioned, this was the second class in the 4 class series "Felting 101".  Each one is a stand alone, 2 hour, $25 class.  You can just take one, or more.  Completely up to you.  One session classes are great for a busy summer schedule.  Next class is "Recycled Felting", Wednesday, July 18 from 10 to noon.  The class description in the newsletter reads: Environmentally responsible, cheap, fast and fun using re-purposed knits.  I'm already signed up.  Won't you join me?!