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

It's Never Too Early!

It's still cold outside but that doesn't mean it's too soon to work on warm weather projects. I've just started crocheting this beach cover up and it's already putting visions in my head of sunshine, sand and waves! http://www.redheart.com/free-patterns/south-beach-cover (Also available on Ravelry).

I was a little hesitant to put aside my chunky and wool yarns for cotton but this Cascade Yarns "Sunseeker" made the switch easy. It has a perfect amount of metallic to catch the sunlight and make any project glisten. Yarns By Design has it available in several summer shades. Stay tuned for more updates and ideas on warm weather projects!

Look out, Summer- this project has sparkle!

Our Sunseeker by Cascade Yarns love the sunshine!

Warmly, 

Yarns By Design

Tin Can Knits Mad Colour

Winter can be so so dreary, especially in February. It is my least favorite my least favorite month, I start to get sick of winter and I am ready for spring. I forget we still have so far to go, and its is so.so.gray… 

That is where Tin Can Knits come into play! Their new book, Mad Colour, is full of bright beautiful patterns and colors! We just recently received our copies of it, and with the the much anticipated trunk show! Wow! These ladies are super talented! Their use of color with this book is unbelievable! I think my personal favorite thing about their style, is the ease in which each pattern is written. A newbie could take on any one of their patterns and be fine, because of how well they are written. The detail in explaining each step, they don't miss a beat! Below are some photos of the color bomb currently exploding at YBD! Come by and see it for yourself, and be sure to grab a copy of Mad Colour today, online or in our boutique! 

The Prism Hat...

Tin Can Knits new book, Mad Colour...

 The Bounce Blanket