Call us wimps, but we will be closed today, Monday, February 28. We are expecting 6-8 inches of snow, all the schools are closed, and we don't expect that many of you will venture out, particularly since we saw TONS of you over the weekend buying projects in anticipation of the storm!!!! So stay inside, knit your projects, and stay safe.

Tonight's class will be rescheduled. Thanks for your cooperation.

We just sent the spring class schedule to our webmistress this morning. If you are local, we have hard copies at the store awaiting your review. We have some terrific new classes as well as old favorites beginning in April. Come see our offerings!

And we received restocks of perfect project yarns: Himalayan Recycled Silk and Schaefer Laurel yarn in the Judy Garland colorway. Woo hoo!

We will be closing at 4 PM today because of the snow and icy conditions of the road. We will reopen at 11 AM tomorrow. Everyone stay safe!

We were speechless when we unpacked our notions order from Bryson today. Its contents revealed something more valuable than gold: SIZE 11 SHORT STRAIGHT NEEDLES!!! Yes! We now have them in stock. 48 pairs of them. So don't put off those novelty scarves any longer.

And we received two favorites today: Martingale Press' Little Box of Scarves and the 365 Knitting Stitches perennial calendar. Both of these are indispensable to our knitting library, and in fact we are knitting some store samples from LBOS! Come see the finished results! They are fast, fun, and fabulous!

And we can't forget our monthly shipment of notions. We order these in quantities of 48 now so we don't run out, and are fully stocked with scissors, markers, crochet hooks and the like. And thanks to our pal Lenni, we now carry the Susan Bates Peg-It Knitting Counter. We admit to being intrigued by this gadget which allows you to keep track of multiple rows, increases and decreases. Hmmm. What will this do to the yellow post-it business?????

And the lovely Missy from Wool in the Woods must have DRIVEN down with the Americana Afghan kits that arrived today! We called her just yesterday to see if she had any in stock! Come see these works of art in pale greens, ivory, and lavendars. They knit on SIZE 17 needles holding three yarns together! Could anything be quicker?

Seven gorgeous colors of hand-dyed 100% Pima Cotton! We couldn't keep this yarn in stock last year...Schaefer Laurel is a dream to work with, wear, and care for. It knits at a 4.5-5 stitches to the inch, so the pattern possibilities are endless. As with most hand-dyes, the put up is enormous-400 yards per skein, so the cost of $36.99 per skein is not unrealistic (two skeins make a sweater!). Cheryl Schaefer names all of her yarn colors after famous women. So whether you want to knit Frida Kahlo, Emily Dickinson, Shari Lewis, Elizabeth Blackwell, Empress Wu Zhao, Billie Holiday, or Sonja Henie, you will be working with beautiful yarns and beautiful colors.

We are expecting the rest of the colors within two weeks.

Liana was nice enough to email this picture of the shawl she made for her sister's birthday. It is from Nancy Wiseman's Shawls, Stoles and Scarves and Liana just raved about the ease of the pattern and the drape of the shawl. Want to move on from scarves? This is the perfect project!

And we confess to being skeptical about the Big Bad Baby Blanket in Stitch and Bitch. Who in their right mind would make a baby blanket out of Koigu! Well, have we changed our tune!!! Why? Because Koigu is machine washable AND dryable! And because you are using it double on size 9 needles, the blanket is a quick knit. And at around $80, reasonable for a finished project that will last as an heirloom. We made this for our friends Samantha and Greg who had a beautiful little boy last November. But we wouldn't appear in the photo because Lew took it first thing this morning...not our prettiest time of day.

We love Federal Holidays at WoolWinders because so many friends have the day off and drop by to keep us company! And to make the day even better, Ted the UPS Guy (whom we HAVE fixed up, ladies!) brought us two wonderful packages. First we received the natural colored Bagsmith Project bag (we are expecting the Black next week). If you need a practical knitting bag to add to your arsenal, come see this one-it is our current favorite. It is sturdy, lightweight, and possesses TONS of pockets for everything ranging from needles to an IPod!

And a new book from XRX arrived-Ponchos and Wraps, A Knitters Dozen. Perfect for spring/summer wraps.

We have been busy at work today finalizing the spring class schedule, so stay tuned. Lots of new stuff on the horizon! We expect to have the class schedule out March 1, along with our spring newsletter. Remember that our classes follow the seasons; these classes will be held during April, May and June.

For those of you who registered, don't forget the Absolute Beginners Knitting class this Sunday, Feb. 22 at 10 AM! We have lots of yummy yarns to play with!

We learned from Rowan today that our spring order will ship next week. That will be cause for much excitement-we LOVE Rowan's cottons, silks and blends. In fact, we are knitting a Summer Tweed top right now and are enjoying every stitch!

Walter the UPS Guy brought us a box of more Maggie Knits Linen. He joined us in ooohing and aaahing over the lovely colors: mint, lilac, stone and sage. Not really, he was far more concerned with the lack of legibility on our signature..... but the colors are wonderful and they join the three bins of this fabulous yarn we already had. A preview? We are scheduling a class this spring called "Maggie's Shawl Three Ways" during which students can make a lovely lightweight shawl using one of three EASY lace patterns.

Be aware that this yarn gauge is a bit misleading. Although the ball band says 4.5 stitches to the inch on a size 8, that will create a very open stitch that may require a cami or shell underneath. If you want to knit a tighter shell or top, you will more likely want to knit on size 6 needles and aim for 5 stitches to the inch. Of course for the shawl we will be working on larger needles for open stitches!

We returned from our day and a half off (thank you, marvelous staff)to some new spring yarns, favorite patterns, and the new Spring Knitters Magazine.

Manos is a perennial favorite, and we received backorders of some rich, warm variegateds. Along with the yarn came Judith's new brilliant pattern book, Cotton Collection 2. Her designs for Stria, the Spring cotton yarn, is amazing. If you have not knit with this hand-spun kettle-dyed 100% cotton, look no further than Cotton Collection 1 or 2 for inspiration.

From Crystal Palace we received new spring colors of Little Flowers and Fizz, novelty yarns that seem to fly out of here. They are perfect for Spring scarves!

And the Spring Knitters? Chock full of sweaters, ponchos, scarves and the like. Lynne declares it full of "high yield color work." Our magazines never last long around here, so hurry in!

We were so surprised today when Ted the UPS Guy* walked in today with a HUGE box from Prism Yarns! Laura Bryant is a genius with her line of novelty yarns, well deserving of the name ROYALTY of NOVELTY YARNS (We call her that anyway!). We are blessed with reorders of Wild Stuff and new skeins of Light Stuff, perfect for summer tees and shells. You have to see this yarn to believe it-Laura hand-dyes and hand-ties all sorts of yarns into one beautiful skein. The yarn is surprisingly easy to work with and creates one-of-a-kind spectacular garments and accessories. If you need inspiration, we also carry four books that will give wonderful ideas: Knitting with Hand-Dyed Yarns, Knitting with Novelty Yarns, The Ultimate Knitted Tee, and HandPaint Country. Treat yourself or someone you love with these treasures!

*Yes, we had a TREMENDOUS response to our Win a Date with Ted. Stay tuned.

We will soon be working with Destination Knits, a great group based in Washington, DC. They are passionate about teaching the craft of knitting and sponsor some fabulous workshops. We look forward to having them at WoolWinders beginning in April. Want to experience them before that? Check out their program next Saturday, February 19:

Sweater in a Day (Advanced Beginner - Intermediate)

Learn the basics of knitting a sweater from start to finish in this 6-hour workshop. We will knit a sweater sized for a doll or bear and learn about gauge, paired increases and decreases, and basic garment assembly and finishing. You will leave the workshop with a beautifully constructed miniature garment and the confidence and skill to tackle a full-sized garment on your own!

For more information, including registration, please go to www.destinationknits.com! Thanks.

Christina models her beautiful cashmerino aran sweater. Hard to believe that she has only been knitting for a year! Doesn't she look great? The sweater fits perfectly!

Alas, Lynne's Manos effort did not turn out as well. She approached her error in typical Lynne fashion, with good humor and taking full responsibility! On the positive side, her stitch work and finishing techniques are fantastic!


The difference between the two? Christina did a gauge swatch, and Lynne did not! If you don't get correct gauge for a sweater, you may join Lynne in making one that ALL your friends can get into at the same time!

The promised remainder of fabulous cottons from Araucania yarns came in today; what beautiful spring colorways adorn our shelves! And along with those yarns came a full complement of Debbie Bliss Cotton DK and her new book, Simply Family. As always, her designs are clean, beautifully written, and lovely.

We also received restocks of eyelash yarn from Berroco; this yarn has remained very popular after the holidays. So don't put off those funky novelty scarves; try mixing the eyelash with some of our new cottons for dazzling spring accessories!

The new Interweave has arrived at the store as well!

Finally, don't miss our Valentine's Day Sale which begins TOMORROW, Thursday February 10 and will last through Monday, when we close at 5:00 PM (a bit earlier than normal; we are off for a romantic evening at the Birchmere to see Lyle Lovett among others.....). Receive 15% off yarns that are red, white, or pink, or contain even a smidge of those colors! If this is the first you've read about the sale, you are NOT on our email list. Don't miss other exciting news from WoolWinders!!! Simply sign in on the bottom left of the home page, and follow the easy three step process that gets you on our mailing list! We respect privacy laws, so you are assured that this process will not lead to any selling of lists, or any additional spam.

Our doors are wide open on this February day of rare 60 degree weather, and as our thoughts turned to Spring, Walter the UPS Guy brought in two HUGE boxes of cotton yarn from Knitting Fever. We were delighted to receive Patagonia and Nature Cotton, two brand new yarns from Araucania in Chile. These gorgeous yarns are kettle dyed to produce extraordinary colorways,and knit at a quick 3.5 stitches to the inch on needles 10-11. Great for transitional garments as the weather warms up, or for a cozy blanket any time of the year. And we always have customers seeking alternatives to wool-these natural fiber yarns are PERFECT!

We received six solid colors of the Nature Cotton and ten of the variegated Patagonia. And more is on the way! Wow, are we ready to knit cottons!

Don't forget about our Noro Bag Sale! Full bags of Noro yarns at 20% off! They are going fast.

It seems that each day at least a few people come in to the shop ready to knit for a baby or baby-to-be. We received two of our favorite washable yarns for just such cozy items today: Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece and Skacel Hobby Kids.

Cotton Fleece is a blend of cotton and wool, and knits to a cozy 5 to the inch. The price point is great-$7.99 for 200 yards. We confess to using this yarn for adult goodies as well, but it makes a terrific baby blanket! And we are well stocked on neutral colors of white, cream, and yellow as well as brighter tones. More is to come in the next few weeks (light blue, violet, etc).

And many of you have been searching for a substitute for the Sirdar yarns we are selling down. We LOVE Skacel Hobby Kids. Knit at a DK weight and machine washable, the colors are brightly variegated for adorable tot sweaters! Check out the yarn in the baby/kids section at the back of the store! Use any pattern that knits at 5.5 stitches to the inch and you are ready to go!

And also in, the very popular Stitch n Bitch and Stitch n Bitch Nation (two fabulous books for the new knitter!) and Denise Interchangeable Needles. These all fly out of here and make perfect Valentine's Day gifts!

Spring is in the air today and it caused us to take stock in some of our inventory. Whoops! We obviously underordered Himalaya Recycled Silk, as it is completely gone!! Don't despair; we are ordering more TODAY and will blog about it when it is back in stock.

On the other hand, we overordered Noro yarns this past season, and are having a RARE sale. Buy a whole bag and get 20% off! Whole bags (10 skeins) only, and the yarn is non-returnable. Choose from among the following fabulous Noro yarns:

YARN COLOR NO. # DISCOUNT PRICE/BAG

Kureyon 128 3 $71.12
134 2
138 3
146 4
149 2
150 3
55 2
92 2

Silk Garden 204 4 $95.92
206 2
208 4
211 3
213 5
37 3

Transitions 2,4,6,7,8 1 $207.92

Yoroi 2,4 2 $167.92
3 1
5 3

Iro 16,19,42,44 2 $159.92
41,40 1

Kochoron 1,10,11,31 2 $159.92
21 4

Blossom 6 1 $87.92
7,9 2
8 3

Manos Del Uruguay has been one of our best selling yarns since the day we opened. We started with 15 colors and carry over 45 now, including the variegated beauties that sell out as quickly as we get them in. But today we received restocks! So think about that Spring jacket or sweater in this beautiful yarn.

Its companion cotton yarn, Stria, was launched last year. We could not keep it in stock, and this year six colors were added to the palette. We are fully stocked with ALL the colors now, along with the fabulous (and easy) pattern book. We LOVED working with this last year and are already eyeing the new colors for a summer shell!

Walter the UPS Guy brought us old favorites today as well as a new
friend! We worship at the shrine of Sally Melville, and are delighted that we have her two fabulous books back in stock: The Knit Stitch and the Purl Stitch. And to complement our gorgeous linen yarn, we have Maggie's Ireland back as well. Even if you don't knit a thing from the book, the pictures will make you long to visit the Emerald Isle!

And our new friend? For two years we have been intrigued by Himalaya Yarns. So we took the plunge and ordered their Recycled Silk. Made of 100% silk (yes it IS recycled!), the colorways are assorted and you can just mix and match to make fabulous scarves, bags, vests, and even sweaters. It's a fast knit on a size 10-10.5 needle. So come and try this interesting and unusual fiber.

This is what happens when you come to work on your day off. We got in Rowan 37 full of spring patterns and delights, and are taking it home tonight to drool over....and on a more practical note we received a large box from Crystal Palace. Although we now have a LOT of needles, don't rush here for size 11s. These seem to be the elusive size this year, and NONE of our vendors have them as yet; they are promised by mid-February. We do have several Pony Pearls in that size, however,so don't put off those scarves!

Amy sent us this picture of the felted bag she made for her young friend Ashlee. Cool, huh? Winter is the perfect time for felting! If you are curious about this knitting process, take part in this Sunday's Felted Market Bag class from 10-12 (it continues Sunday February 13 as well. You will learn all about boiling knitting wool and end up with a fabulous bag in the process!

Sometimes we see a yarn line that just speaks to us. This was the case when our lovely rep Donna showed us the Spring line from Wool in the Woods, a small company that spins and hand-dyes yarns in Pennsylvania. We fell in love with their cottons, rayons and silks; the colors and textures. So we bought the whole line. That would be six yarns, four colors each, and enough skeins to make great wraps, sweaters, shells and the like. Doesn't Pat look like she is enjoying herself amidst the yarns?