We were delighted to see ALBERT the UPS GUY at our door today with a big box from BRYSON. Inside? PATTERNS GALORE. We mean HUNDREDS. In addition to old favorites like VERMONT FIBER DESIGNS and FIBER TRENDS, we have added some new vendors like DOLCE HANDKNITS. So come check them out. And remember, if you buy yarn for the pattern project, the pattern is FREE!! Free is good.

Also in, our favorite workhouse needle holders from CIRCULAR SOLUTION. We have plenty of STRAIGHTS and CIRCS for you.

We had a wonderful weekend despite our having spaced out and forgotten to schedule a program yesterday! But we have a great one coming up. First of all, please note we will be CLOSED on SATURDAY, JULY 4 for the holidayl But join us on SUNDAY the 5th for the uber-popular WOVEN MARKET BAG. This is the perfect summer accessory-great for the beach, the produce stands, the flea market, etc. It takes 200 yards of worsted weight cotton (we did ours in LAUREL and had enough left over for another one!) and straight needles size 10.5 and circs in 24” size 13 or 15. If you want to sign up for this FREE program, just give us a call at 240.632.9276. But please do your homework beforehand—we will tell you what it is when you register. The bag has a flat and boring bottom to knit—no need to take class time to do it! We will, however teach you to pick up stitches and do some lace knitting. This is a great first lace project. And did we mention the program is free? We saw the same one advertised at a nearby store for $65. Save your money for YARN!!!!

And we have some exciting yet secretive news for the holiday weekend. Want to find out what it is? Make sure you are on our email mailing list. Simply go to the bottom left side of this home page and follow the instructions. You will get a couple of prompting messages back via email ensuring that you really want to sign up—aren’t anti-spam features great?

Kerry just can’t contain herself—the DELLA Q BAGS arrived today and she had to rush right over even though it’s not a usual work day for her. Why? Because she picked out the fabulous ISADORA model at the TNNA show, pronouncing it the PERFECT SUMMER KNITTING BAG. But you know what? It’s more. It can serve as a basket as well—it’s that sturdy.

Also in, reorders of the single best knitting reference we know-THE KNITTERS COMPANION. This portable and indispensable guide will get you through any knitting crisis or question.

This is just not our week. We sent out a correction to the class schedule and STILL got the dates wrong for ADVANCED BEGINNING KNITTING. The correct dates are MONDAY JULY 13/20/27 from 6-8 PM. Interested in learning about gauge and pattern reading? Give us a call at 240.632.9276 to sign up. The cost is $80 for the three sessions.

Yes, we are finally back to regulated temperature at the shop. We have to take a minute to thank our fabulous STAFF, truly, who soldiered on during the week without air conditioning—at times they were working in 86 degree heat. Many, many thanks. You all rock.

And now on to happy things. First off, it’s Thursday, so that means it’s BOOK OF THE WEEK time—this week we feature FEMININE KNITS. We just received this book (through www.amazon, of course) and it is gorgeous. Timeless and flirty garments that have structure and features that lend grace to the projects. And the book can be yours at a great price—just click on the link. Want something else? You can order ANY BOOK on amazon through our link to the site and we will benefit as well. We thank you for your support and we are just delighted to bring you the opportunity to get your craft books at a great price.

And join us this upcoming weekend. We will be wrapping up our SATURDAY KAL BLANKET SQUARES on BOTH DAYS this weekend. We somehow forgot to schedule a SUNDAY IN THE SALON, so let’s spend the entire weekend on the afghan, ok? Come either or both days from 2-4 PM. It will also give you a chance to check out the new yarns and buttons at the shop.

Finally, we noticed on a local store’s website that a class is being offered to knit a woven market bag. The fee is $65. Well, guess what? We are offering the same opportunity FOR FREEnext SUNDAY, JULY 5 during one of our SUNDAYS IN THE SALON. Hmmm. $65 that you can now spend on ….well…yarn!!! Don’t miss out on our free weekend programs. They are all listed on the left side of this home page.

One of our must-haves at TNNA was the lovely POEMS yarn from WISDOM YARNS. POEMS is a self-striping yarn that can be used for either felted or non-felted projects; it is soft, felts quickly, and comes in striking colorways. So we bought NINE of them. And they’re here!!! Check out the sample below, and watch for some really cool free patterns to go along with the yarn. But if you have any patterns for KUREYON or SILK GARDEN, they will work very well with POEMS.

Just one more day, folks. We had a blown valve in the AC system. It will be fixed tomorrow morning between 11-2 thanks to Scott and the lovely folks at PRESIDENTIAL HEATING and AIR (we’re happy to give them a shout out). So hang in there. We really appreciate everyone’s support and kind words.

And we’re basically “on call” to receive any TNNA stuff that comes in while we are off over the next two days. So stay tuned. We have word that the DELLA Q BAGS shipped!

it is really quite comfortable in the shop. The rain, though hideously annoying, has kept the air cool. So come on out! We promise you won’t be sweating all over the yarn! We will keep the door open and have some fans going.

Our AC is out. Please come hang with us, but wear really cool clothes. Like tank tops, shorts, even a bathing suit will be allowed. Some of our regulars have offered to bring fans (thanks, Dorothy) and we’ve taken them up on it, but it’s still going to be warm!

Can we get a WOO HOO? We are so excited that our first TNNA arrival is a NEW VENDOR—the elegant and quite yummy FIBRE COMPANY. Their yarns are exquisite and their pattern support is outstanding.

We bought two of their yarns: ROAD TO CHINA, a blend of BABY ALPACA, CASHMERE, CAMEL and SILK. Gorgeous, huh? And the colors are clear and beautiful:

And then there is TERRA, which combines BABY ALPACA, WOOL and SILK. And lots of personality. And beautiful colors as well:

To whet your appetite, here is a sample of the pattern support. We will have lots of these FREE patterns available at the shop—KERRY has been downloading herself into a stupor:

Check out more info about them at www.thefibreco.com/. But trust us, the yarn is worth a visit to the shop!

Wow! The TNNA show was chock full of new books for our perusal—you can look forward to lots of upcoming titles through our Amazon affiliate program. The book for this week is near and dear to our heart as anyone who has experienced the WoolWinders culture can attest: PINTS AND PURLS. This hilarious yet thoughtful book emphasizes projects that are meant to be knit within a group setting…and that setting may contain some wine or other spirits. Check it out. We plan on featuring some of these projects during the SUNDAYS IN THE SALON this fall. And remember. By purchasing the book through our Amazon link, you not only get a great price but you help support your local LYS. That’s us.







And there is still time to join our SATURDAY KAL—AFGHAN SQUARES. We meet from 2-4 PM, the program is free, and yes there will be support and snacks and wine.

In the established WoolWinders tradition, we will be CLOSED SUNDAY for Father’s Day. This gives our staff a chance to spend the day catering to every whim of our spouse. Yeah, yeah, we know. And that’s different from every other Sunday how??????

Except for the fact that we are the only two people who can make a wrong turn using both a GPS and MAPQUEST, the TNNA adventure was fabulous. We won’t disclose too much, as a full report will be the featured story in next week’s SUMMER NEWSLETTER, but we can sum up the show by saying “We came, We Saw, We Bought.” Wonderful stuff. New vendors like ANNIE ADAMS ADORNMENTS (shawl pins) and FIBRE COMPANY (yummy ultra soft sustainable fibers); new products from old friends like NICHOLE (Schaefer sock yarn), SUPER YAK (from Karabella) and MINI MOCHI (Crystal Palace Yarns). New bags from DELLA Q. New buttons. Amazing stuff from TILLI TOMAS. OK, we have said too much already. We’re pooped from the long drive. But expect to see new things on the website, complete with pictures, as soon as they come in.

Kathy told us about the gorgeous STRICKWEAR kits a while back, and when we found out they weren’t going to be at TNNA, we ordered them now. We plan on featuring them at a SATURDAY KAL, but we have a sneaking suspicion they won’t last that long. They are remarkable. you can choose from the MOBIUS CAPELET, the BOLERO, or the ADAGIO SHAWL in amazing colorways:

We bought at least three colorways for each design; they are kitted up in a lovely clear bag for the perfect viewing. The yarns are scrumptious merino….yum. We’re thinking this won’t be the last order….what do you think?

This is not a time of year we generally get new stuff in—after all, we are going to the big TNNA show this weekend. But we simply ran out of some things, so we had to restock. We have a great selection now of some very popular yarns from CASCADE: 220, 220 SUPERWASH, SIERRA and ALPACA LACE.

And the amazing SHELBY was in the shop today so we could do a massive FALL ORDER with her. We ordered SOCK YARN, an ALPACA/CASHMERE blend, WORSTED WEIGHT , and a lovely fingering weight that simply SPARKLES. look for these beauties to be here in a few months…we are just delighted to be working with a local talent like SHELBY. Below is a teaser of her colorways:

And did we mention the big TNNA show is this weekend? We will be off to Columbus, Ohio to do a lot of shopping. We will be open all weekend thanks to our wonderful staff; we will, however be closed next Monday as we drive back.

Welcome to the 21st Century! During our annual Staff Meeting, one of our amazing emplyees suggested that we investigate a link to Amazon.com to assist our customers in buying books at a great value. So we did. OK, Lew did. And voila—our newest feature. Every Thursday we will have a BOOK OF THE WEEK on our blog. Click onto the link, purchase the book from www.amazon.com (they have amazing prices) and WoolWinders gets a credit. This is a great way to help our wonderful customers who want to support their local LYS (that would be us) but understand that we simply can’t carry every book and our prices will be considerably higher than on the web. Isn’t modern technology wonderful?

And so, without further ado, the book of the week:

How great is this book? We bought FOUR last week and gave them as gifts. One recipient sent us an email saying she found 12, yes TWELVE, patterns she wanted to make.

Yet another reason to look forward to Thursdays.

to open and coo over the stuff we’ve received. So in the shop NOW are the following: CRYSTAL PALACE NEEDLES (straight and dpns), the new issue of VERENA ( a very hip and trendy knitting mag) and some exquisite beaded and sequined yarn from TILLI TOMAS. The last item won’t last long as our FEARLESS FELTING workshop FILLED within TWO DAYS!!!! So hurry in if you want to check out this beautiful feltable yarn.

We are so excited about the upcoming weekend that we couldn’t wait until our usual Thursday to post.
First off, SHELBY will be at the shop Thursday night from 6-8 PM to show off her new sock yarn. WoolWinders is proud to be THE ONLY shop to carry Shelby’s amazing colorways. Come check them out. We bought a small quantity to start and we’re guessing they won’t last long. But don’t worry—we have already talked to her about re-orders.

Next, we start our JUNE KAL on SATURDAY with the uber-popular LACE THROW SQUARES. Want an easy way to learn lace knitting? Need a portable project for upcoming vacations? This is the project for you! The squares are lovely and simple to knit. Sewn together, they create a beautiful throw:

And on Sunday, just in time for FATHER’S DAY, we will be knitting the LINEN STITCH TIE. This is a gorgeous handknit tie in a stitch so interesting it looks like weaving. And hey, you could get TWO from one skein of SHELBY’S YARN!!! Other choices are JITTERBUG, MELODY, or KOIGU. The tie can easily be knit in two weeks.

Both programs are FREE OF CHARGE and run from 2-4 PM.Basic knitting skills (casting on, knitting, purling, and binding off) are required. We ask that you do call and sign up so we have a spot at the table for you (and enough wine, quite frankly).

Yep, it’s at the shop! It should be up on the website in a few days, thanks to our lovely webmistress Stacy. But if you can’t wait, just come on in and get a “hard” copy (gasp)

And stay tuned for some exciting announcements that will bring the shop into the 21st century.