Summer Solstice: keep cool with linen!

Tomorrow is officially the first day of summer. The summer solstice brings backyard barbeques, days spent at the pool and the search for the perfect breathable knit or crochet project. The search is over with linen yarn.

"Crete" pattern made by Sandy using Shibui Knits linen yarn: lightweight and beautiful. 

Linen yarn is made by using fibers from the stalk of the flax (also known as linseed) plant. It has been used for over 8,000 years, first with Mediterranean civilizations and later adopted by Europe.

This top is hot weather ready, made with Shibui- Twig (46% linen) by Tamara.

So, why linen? Linen is:

• vegan friendly 
• hypo-allergenic
• breathable and lightweight (perfect for warm weather garments)
• absorbent- wicks moisture away from skin for an airy cool feeling
• durable- about 30% stronger than cotton
• quick drying (try it for a beach coverup!)
• long lasting- with careful laundering, the item will last for years. The more linen is used and washed, the softer it gets. 
• natural textured look- no need for fancy stitches or complicated patterns, linen's texture comes naturally.

"Vested Interest" pattern made by Natalie using 100% linen (Quince & Co.- Kestrel )

Yarns By Design has many linen yarns to try. Shibui Knits- Reed, Louet North America- Euroflax and Euroflax Lace, Habu- Fine Linen, Quince and Co.- Kestrel and Sparrow and Claudia and Co.- Hand Painted Yarns are all 100% linen. We also have linen blends including Shibui Knits- Twig, Rowan- Cotton Lustre,  and The Fibre Co.- Savannah. All of these will give you the lustrous and lightweight wearability you want this summer. 

Lots of linen options at Yarns By Design!

Check us out online or shop our boutique to pick up your stash of the coolest fiber in town. 

Be sure to comment below to share your linen yarn experience or bring in your linen projects to show off. We love to see what our customers create. 

Warmly, 

Sarah with Yarns By Design

sarah@yarnsbydesignpa.com

Knit and crochet mistakes: you aren't alone.

Last week, I wrote about starting a crochet summer pattern for a beach cover up. It was going so smoothly and then…(you've all been there) I got stuck. I tried talking to the pattern: "what are you talking about?!" but it didn't answer back. I unraveled and started the section over then over again. After expressing my frustrations to my knitter friend, she tells me "keep frogging or move on to something else". She then explained to me what frogging means. In knitting and crocheting, a frog says "rip it rip it" referring to undoing rows of work due to errors. So I frogged some more but it still didn't look right. I felt like a failure. I consider myself an advanced crocheter, so why couldn't I make this work?
I turned to the pattern on Ravelry.com and realized I wasn't alone. There were other crocheters out there showing the same frustrations. Some got through it, some decided to iron out the errors on their own and some (including me) gave up and moved on to something else. It feels good to let go!
I found this similar pattern http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/summer-beach-cover-up and am moving along nicely with it. Lesson learned: if you get the pattern from Ravelry, look at the project notes from fellow fiber friends if they are available. There are great tips and wonderful pictures too.
Interested in learning more about this feature on Ravelry and how to take advantage of everything else it has to offer? Sign up for our Ravelry 101 class at Yarns By Design on February 23, 2016 from 5:30-7pm. http://yarnsbydesignpa.com/social/classes.html

New pattern + same yarn= happy crocheter!

Warmly, 

YBD