Puget Sound Sewing & Craft

Addi Turbos + Noro Yarns = Knitting Bliss!

Two incredibly exciting products for knitting have arrived at Pacific Fabrics & Crafts in the last month and we are just so awed by how wonderful they both are. Ready? Drum roll . . . Addi Turbo Needles and Noro Yarns!!!! I'll make this quick so you can head to one of our stores, pick out your needles and plan a dreamy project with Kureyon, Kureyon Sock, Silk Garden or Silk Garden Sock.

Would you like a Ferrari in your knitting basket? If you've used Addi Turbo circular knitting needles, you know these are the speedy race cars of knitting tools. Once you've tried them, you've got to have more! I didn't believe there could be such a difference until I felt the incredibly flexible cord, smooth needle to cord connection and knit a few stitches with the long taper points. Oh, my GOODNESS! There's just nothing like these needles and we have them in all our stores now. Yippee! We've started with the most popular sizes, but if you need something more, we can get a special order in for you quickly. My fingers are SOOO happy!

If you love color, you've got to try knitting or crochet with Noro Yarns. Designed by Eisaku Noro of Japan with a very painterly approach to hues and tones that will keep you inspired for lots of stitching. Take a look at Eisaku's web site, to see a little bit about their industrial yarns and how they mix colors, then head for a Pacific Fabrics & Crafts store to pick out yarn for your next masterpiece. You'll really feel like you're painting with yarn.

Just amazing! Kureyon (100% Wool) is so versatile. It looks marvelous in this darling child's sweater and hat, but I've seen it look absolutely outstanding in a simple garter stitch scarf, too. Look for Kureyon Sock (70% Wool/30% Nylon) to make cozy little "sweaters" for your feet! By the way, Kureyon is pronounced like "crayon". Now you're an expert!

Silk! Oh, how I love silk! There's just something so very royal about working with and wearing silk and Noro's Silk Garden (45% Silk/45% Mohair/10% Lambswool) really suits my princessy passion. Look for Silk Garden for sweaters like this amazing cardigan and Silk Garden Sock (40% Wool/25% Silk/25% Nylon/10% Mohair) to stitch up pampering socks to crown your cold tootsies!

There you go . . . ready, set, knit!

- Annette

Baa Baa Black Sheep, Have You Any Wool?

4-H Fleeces on Display

The Puyallup Fair is still going strong through this weekend.  I've been busy with various 4-H volunteer duties, and so I have to brag just a little bit - my niece Ciara's yearling Romney ewe (that's a female sheep who is a year old), Esmeralda (also known as 'Ezzie") won her fleece class!  Fleeces are shown according to the type of sheep it comes from (varies by breed) and the typical diameter of the wool from that breed.  Ezzie's wool, being from a natural colored Romney sheep, is considered 'coarse'.  That does not mean scratchy!  Romney wool is wonderfully soft and very desirable to hand spinners.   This was Ezzie's first shearing so we were very excited.  Her wool is likely to improve somewhat with age, so Ciara is looking forward to the fleeces yet to come!

Ezzie was also selected for the top Romney ewe, and she and Ciara did very well overall.  Ezzie was kept company by Ciara's aged Romney ewe (she is truly aged at 9 years old - but looks very youthful for her age), Harriett.  Harriett loves going to the Fair and makes sure that she gets as much attention as possible from fairgoers.  Here is Ciara and Ezzie (Ciara is kneeling) in the show ring.  Ciara and her sheep are now enjoying a well-earned rest at home and planning for next year's fairs.

There are still many fiber and sewing related things to see at the Puyallup Fair! 

--Pavilion Building
- Open Class Quilts, Garments, Knitting, Crochet, Needlework and more upstairs (there are escalators and an elevator in the building)
-4-H clothing and textile exhibits downstairs
- 4-H Fashion Revue - the original Project Runway!  See 4-H'ers model garments that they have made themselves.  Show is Saturday at 3pm on the Education Stage
- Washington State 4-H Fashion Revue Championships.  See the 'best of the best' from around the state as they compete for the state championshp and a new sewing machine! Sunday at 5pm on the Education Stage.

--Under the Grandstands/Expo Hall
- Quality Sewing's Viking booth.  See the new Diamond!
-The Artists in Action store.  I should warn you - there is some absolutely incredible yarn, roving, needlefelting and more in that store. 

--Outside Artists in Action under the Grandstands (South side)
- Sheep to Shawl contest winners.  The teams of entrants in this competition had a limited time and number of team members to spin and weave their entries.  Amazing!

--Showplex
- Quality Sewing's Pfaff and Brother booth.  Lots of amazing new machines, particularly the new Brother Quattro.  If you haven't seen it yet, it is definitely worth a look.

--Livestock Buildings
- FFA Exhibits and Animals of the World.  Various breeds and species of wool/fleece producing animals.

Knitty.com Turns 6 - Knitters Celebrate!

Knitting and spinning are my hobbies.  I've never thought of sewing as my hobby - it's always been my passion and now it's my profession.  But I really love to spin fiber and to knit sweaters, and that's what I do to relax when I have time away from my studio and all those pesky deadlines.  There's something about the feel of the fibers running through your fingers that soothes the tensions of the day away.

One of my favorite knitting-related websites is Knitty.com - which announced today that they are celebrating their 6th birthday!  For those of you not familiar with editor Amy Singer's "little purls of wisdom', you're in for a real treat.  Every issue is bursting with homespun wisdom (sorry, couldn't resist), technical articles and lots of patterns!  There's usually a little something for everyone, and for the more adventuresome amongst us, some of them are quite avant garde. For example, this awesome grass skirt from 2003.  I've been tempted to make one for the last 5 years, but I can't quite convince myself to put eyelash yarn around my hips.  Oh well.

For those of you who aren't knitting inclined but still like to play with yarn - or at least have an excuse to collect it - Pfaff and Viking have come out with just the thing for you.  It's a Yarn Couching Foot!  This little gem is made to be used with either an embroidery hoop (as pictured) or else as a free-motion foot.  It is so fun!  The yarn runs through guides (they come with the foot) and down through a channel in the foot.  As the machine stitches, the yarn is pulled through the channel, under the needle - couching it into place automatically.  The feet come with special embroidery designs made especially for these new feet.  If you don't have a Pfaff or Viking, there are some similar feet available for other brands.  Besides yarn, you can also use any type of cording or similar that can be fed through the channel in the foot.  A great new way to create gorgeous embellishment on your next project.

--Katrina
p.s. having a fun time at the Fair!  Lots of scrumptious yarn and roving at the Artists in Action booth this year.  Also, check out the Sheep to Shawl competition taking place next door to Artists in Action.  Participants from local weaving guilds must prepare, spin and weave their shawls using no more than a certain number of team members in a limited amount of time.  The end results - amazing!  Finished shawls will be judged on the afternoon of Monday, September 15.  Make sure to say hi to the folks at Quality Sewing, too!

Sew the Puyallup!

A Sewing and Fiber Enthusiast's Guide to the Puyallup Fair

Yes, indeed - it's that time again.  Time for the tacky Fair Theme Song to invade our TV sets and radios on a regular basis.

What you might not realize is that the Puyallup Fair is a great field trip for a sewing, craft or fiber enthusiast!  In fact, I'm a bit nostalgic because I bought my first Pfaff at the Fair 10 years ago.  No matter what you're interested in, there's a little something for everyone, and here's a guide to help you to make the most of it.

Daily:
The Pavilion Building (Gold Gate) is the host for not only the Washington State 4-H Fair sewing, craft and photography exhibits (and more), but also the Puyallup Fair's Open Class Quilts, Garments, Knitting and Crocheting exhibits.  Downstairs in the southern area of the building is where you can see exhibits created by youth from across the state.  Upstairs (there is an elevator in the southwestern corner, or escalators in the center of the west wall) is an incredible display of quilts, garments and much, much more from local artisans who have entered their work to be evaluated by the Fair judges.  There are often artisans performing demonstrations as well.

Under the Grandstands (Red or Gold Gate):  At the northwest corner of the Grandstands building is the Artists in Action store.  This is a fabulous place to stock up on roving, yarn, handwovens, pottery, jewelry - always an amazing selection of beautiful locally produced items.  I've found many 'gems' here over the years.  You can also get a contact list of the various artists for future mailorder reference, which is very handy.  Various artists are on hand demonstrating their crafts.

Showplex (Blue Gate)and Expo Building/Under the Grandstands (Red or Gold Gate): See the latest sewing, quilting and embroidery machines at the Quality Sewing booth!  If you haven't seen what the latest in sewing technology can do, prepare to be amazed.  I always find myself drooling over the multi-thread embroidery machines - I love just watching them stitch out a design.

Weekends:

4-H Fashion Revue competition: Saturdays and Sundays at 3:00 pm on the Education Stage.   Not to be missed:  Washington State 4-H Fashion Revue Championship, Sunday, September 21 at 5:00 pm on the Education Stage.  The competitors in Fashion Revue must make and model their own garments and be interviewed by a judge regarding their clothing construction and sewing knowledge. My heartfelt thanks as Superintendent to Quality Sewing for continuing to be a major sponsor of the State Championship!

September 5 - 7:  Open Class Sheep Show and Fleece Show.  Ongoing through the weekend.  An outstanding time to see many different breeds of sheep (and Angora goats as well) and their fleeces.  Not to be missed -The Puyallup Cup on Sunday, September 7th at 6:00 pm.  This is the 'circle of champions' for the show - the outstanding exhibits from each breed compete for the overall 'best of the best'.  One of the largest displays of sheep breeds in the U.S. - all in the same arena at the same time.

September 12 - 16: 4-H Sheep Show and Fleece Show.  The actual sheep show will take place on Sunday.  Fleeces and sheep will be on display (not to be handled) throughout this time.  At times 4-H youth will be demonstrating fiber skills and working to prepare their sheep for show.

September 17 - 21: Animals of the World.  An exhibit of exotic animals from around the globe, including some fiber producing animals such as yaks.  My favorite: the Tennessee Fainting Goats.

For much more information, including a terrific Fair Planner with daily calendars, visit www.thefair.com.

If you still haven't found what you're looking for, just remember that the Puyallup branches of Pacific Fabrics and Quality Sewing are just up the hill!  Conveniently located right next to each other, across from South Hill Mall.

--Katrina

Crafty Camping (Complete with Crocheted Cat Toy!)

I love camping – this year my sweetheart Steve and I went on our third annual camping trip up to our friend’s family’s lake property near Granite Falls.  The weather was beautiful, the fire was warm, the food was plentiful, and the lake was endlessly inviting.  We swam, fished, kayaked, and just relaxed by the shore.  Our dog, Mariah, loves swimming, and had a blissful if exhausting time.

The mosquitoes were happy to see us, but the one real fly in my ointment was that I cannot, of course, take many of my crafting projects along.  No sewing machine ruled out the quilts I am currently working on, and it’s too dirty to bring my embroidered flour-sack towels project.  So I had my latest granny-square afghan, and my cool friend Julie worked on knitting a fuzzy scarf. 

A girl who was there brought her world-class adorable kitten to the campsite – it mostly stayed on a leash or in the tent, and was much spoiled and adored.  I thought it might need a little entertainment, and used my crafty skills to make it a super-quick cat toy, which kept Peanut happy for hours.  This was so quick, easy, and well-liked, I thought I might share this quick project with you!

You’ll need: 

A bit of worsted weight yarn

A size F crochet hook

Something to stuff it with – I didn’t have stuffing, and I thought the kitty might like something that crackled anyway, so I cut off the top inch of a potato-chip bag, crumpled it up, and used that!

Chain two.

 

In first chain, single-crochet six times.

Starting with your first single-crochet stitch, single-crochet twice.  Repeat for all six single-crochet stitches. You should now have 12 stitches.

 

As you head around the next row, you will alternate single-crocheting once and single crocheting twice in each of your 12 stitches.  When you finish this row, you should have 18 stitches.

 

For the next two rows, just keep going around, single-crocheting only once in each stitch. 

After you have done two rows of 18 stitches, you will begin to decrease.  In your first stitch, you just single-crochet.  In your second stitch, you will single-crochet the next two stitches together.  Continue all the way around the row, finishing with 12 stitches.

In your next row, you will conitinue to decrease, but now it will be every time, you crochet tow stitches together, finishing with six stitches. 

Stuff your little ball, and continue to join stitches together till there is only one stitch left.  Pull out your yarn, leaving a long tail to swing your cat toy by or to tie to a chair leg or the top of your tent.  Peanut was enthralled when I made it “come alive” by teasing it across the grass, but was very happy entertaining herself when it was swinging from something. 

PS – If you don’t know how to crochet, I highly recommend it!  It’s super easy, really creatively flexible, and a great crafty skill for take-along projects.  We offer classes at PacFab stores, or, if you have trouble finding one that works with your schedule, there are several good books on the subject.  There are several simple little booklets, or, if you’d like something more adventurous, Debbie Stoller, the author of Stitch and Bitch: The Knitter’s Handbook,  has a provocatively titled book on crochet:  The Happy Hooker.  It’s got lots of great projects,  and is a fun read.