New Handcrafted Glass Buttons!

As seen in the Fall 2008 Vogue issue, Bejeweled and Bedazzled handcrafted glass buttons. We are thankfully the artist creating these wondering buttons lives in Toronto and paid a visit to our shop. We have quite a few of her wonderful creations and hope you like them too.

Here is a snap shot of a few we have in the shop:



They are all beautiful and would like nice on a new hand knit item - or put them on an existing sweater!

Clapotis - Another one!!

I loves me the Clapotis - this is the 4th one I've knit - except this one is for the store not for me! I used Rosários 4 Sole Latte and so glad that I did, the drape this yarn creates is amazing.




Artsy Fartsy shots, curtesy of Sarah, photography extradranairre!!!!





Project Stats:

Pattern: Clapotis from knitty.com
Yarn: Rosários 4 Sole Latte - 3 balls
Needles Size: Addi Turbo 4mm

This yarn is made from milk fiber and is super soft and amazing to knit with. We carry four colours and it is currently on sale at 20% off!

This Week's Classes!

Hi all, we have some great classes coming up this week!

December 4th Fixing Mistakes - $20.00
Having issues with your knitting and need a bit of help to get you back on track? Bring in your knitting that is on a time out and we will show you how to fix any mistake you have.

Price: $20.00
Class Length- 1 – two hour session. Please bring the project you require help
with.
Instructor: Kate Atherley

December 6th - Virgin Knitter - $30.00
This class is suitable for total beginners! Learn to cast on, knit, purl and bind off. By the end of this two hour workshop you will have the skills required to make beautiful scarves!

Price: $30, includes yarn and 7mm straight needles.
Class Length: 1 – two hour session
Instructor: Emily Foden or Sarah Fay

December 7th - Knitting Expert Tips - $25.00
There are 8 commonly used methods for casting on – why are some better than others? There are at least 6 different methods for increasing – which should you use in your project? And what’s the best decrease? The right choices can make the knitting easier, and radically improve the look of your finished pieces. Suitable for advanced beginner or intermediate knitters, this session provides tips and techniques for choosing the best method for any situation.

Price: $25.00
Class Length- 1 – two hour session. Please bring light colour worsted weight yarn and appropriate yarn.
Instructor: Kate Atherley

Free Pattern! - The Manly Scarf

It's getting to be that time of year again, the scarf wearing, and giving time!  

I finished this scarf recently to give to my boyfriend, Dave.  He lost his old one on the streetcar! 

It's easy, and looks great, and the combination of black with the variegated colourways of Malabrigo makes it nice and manly.  Plus it's got absolutely zero itch factor – Malabrigo is soft enough for even the pickiest of mens necks!  Here you go! 

The Manly Scarf

Needles : 4.5 or 5mm 

Yarn : Malabrigo Worsted - two skeins, one black, one other colour

Cast on 25 stitches with the black yarn

knit two rows

switch to the second colour, and knit two rows

switch to the black yarn, carrying it up the side of the scarf, being careful not to pull too tightly. 

Continue knitting two rows of each colour and switching, carrying the yarn up the side, until the scarf is the desired length, or you run out of yarn! (I used about half of a ball of each colour) End with two rows of black.

Cast off loosely, weave in ends.  

Wrap, and place under the tree, for a fantastic present for the men in your life! 

Classic Elite Yarn - Oh My!

We were so excited to find out there is a Canadian supplier for Classic Elite yarns and when we did - we jumped on the bandwagon to order us some of this scumptious stuff! It was hard to pick which one to show first because we love them all:



Alpaca Sox
Nylon, Alpaca, Merino
450 yards, One Skein makes a pair
$24.00



Lush
50% Angora/50% Wool
123 yards, 4.5 sts=1"
$12.99



Princess
40% merino wool, 28% rayon, 10% cashmere, 7% angora, 15% nylon
150 yards, 5 sts=1"
$10.99



Inca Gold
100% Alpaca
109 yards, 5 sts=1
$10.99
109 yards

Sock Yarn Galore!

It has been awhile since we last posted, and we are so sorry! We have some great news and I find it hard to contain the excitment.

We have received so much sock yarn in the last week, we are bursting at the seams. Look at all the FA sock yarn we received:



And another picture in it's home:



We also received new colours of Misti Alpaca Sock Yarn:



Not sure if this is the best for last or not, but it comes pretty close! This is one of the new yarns we have brought into the Naked Sheep = Classic Elite Alpaca Sox. The picture doesn't do it justice. Please come in and feel it - it is so freaking soft.



Each skein will make a pair of socks and the price range is between $22.00 to $27.00.

WE promise to post more of the fiber goodness more often as we can't be the only ones to enjoy such fab stuff.

Knit On.

Lisa

How cute is this dress? This is the Wiggle Dress and Bolero designed and knit by Kate Atherly aka wisehildaknits. It is made with Luxury Superwash DK and Crystal Palace Squiggle yarns. This is an exclusive pattern available at the store. What a great Christmas gift, non?



It is even cuter and a sweeter on this cutie:



The patterns are $5.00 each and we care a wide range of colours in both yarns.

Good news - The Naked Sheep is now open on Mondays! Come browse or knit with our newest team member - Kim! She is very friendly and has a great eye for colour.

We are now carrying Tahki Donegal Tweed! This yarn is so wonderful, words don't do it justice. The price is $16.99/skein and has 183 yards. You can make a 43" sweater with just 6 skeins. We have the Cobblestone sweater on display at the shop, so if you are not sure about this yarn, take one look at the sweater and you'll be in love.

We have been very busy beavers scouring our suppliers' pattern libraries to bring you some great ones. We now carry a large quantity of Pure & Simple Patterns, Fiddlestick Knitting Lace Patterns - from easy to extremely difficult, toy patterns, felted purses, mittens, hats, blankets.

In the very near future, Zephyr Style patterns will arrive! These are all made knitting from the top down using any worsted weight yarn.

Our newest book arrivals are Mason-Dixon Knitting Outside the Lines, Knitting Lace Triangles by Evelyn Clark, Magic Loop how to book, Fitted Knits, Debbie Bliss - The Baby Knits book and oh so much more!

We hope to see you soon!

With the weather turning cold on us now - what a great time to learn how to knit socks to keep them warm and toasty! We have a workshop on October 10th and 17th to help you work your way through to a finished sock. Emily our great instructor will lead you through knitting the cast on, leg, gusset, foot and toe decreases. At the end you will have completed a mini sock to get you prepared to make a pair to fit your footies!

The cost is $50.00, the sessions are 2 hours each and we include 4.5mm needles and a ball of worsted weight yarn. Call us or come in to the store to register.

Your feet will love you!

Eco Wool!

Yes, two blog posts in one day today! I just couldn't wait to telll you all that the Cascade Eco Wool, and Eco + have arrived in the store! Apparently, we are the first in Canada to be carrying this yarn, so do come in and have a look!

Eco Wool is a 14-16 st / 4 inch wool comes in beautiful right from the sheep colours and has a whopping 437m per skein!
Eco + has the same yardage, and comes in some wonderful non-sheepy colours!

That means that you'd only need 3 skeins for a sweater!
Just look at this comparison... a normal size skein vs. a ball of Eco Wool:



It's HUGE!

We've got lots in stock, so come on in, and check it out!

Fleece Artist is In!!!

It's always an exciting day at the Sheep when the big boxes from Nova Scotia arrive. We are now burtsting with colourful and smooshy soft sock yarn and roving!



Also, we've got a bunch of great Moebius Capelet kits, with a fantastic pattern from Cat Bordhi in beautiful colours,



And, some super warm thrummed mitten and sock kits for those cold winter nights, after snowball fights!


Come and get them fast, because Fleece Artist tends to fly outta here!

Malabrigo socky goodness!

When we got Malabrigo's sock yarn in a few weeks ago, I really couldn't wait to start knitting with it. This yarn is so soft, and smooshy, and amazing to knit with. and the colours are just amazing! they seem to shimmer, and the verigation is so beautiful!


This is a sock that, regrettably I'm not knitting for myself. It's just a basic no-purl feather and fan pattern, and I love it.
And, this is one of the advantages to knitting a sock with magic loop - you can try it on as you go!



and yes, I've already bought another skein in green for socks just for me!

The fall weather is fianlly here, and at the Sheep we hare very happy to see new knitters taking up the craft to keep themselves warm on these crisp cool days. The first attempts at knitting can be a little bit frustrating, but we're here to help you out, and we have some great classes coming up that are intended to do just that!

Here's a look at some exciting classes that are coming up soon...

Mobius Cast-on

Thursday September 25 7-9pm.

$30.00/ person

Are you are fascinated by mobius knitting, but completely stumped by the process? You're not alone, thats why we have this class! In this one 2-hour session knitting wizz Kate Atherly will cover the mobius cast on, as well as knitting and finishing with an i-cord bind-off.

Magic Loop Socks

Monday September 29 7-9

$30.00/ person

For those of you out there who love to knit socks, but are not very fond of DPNs, magic loop knitting is the solution for you. This technique will allow you to knit in the round on one long circular needle (which can be reused on other non-sock projects!) Instructor Sarah will cover casting on and knitting in the round using magic loop. You will also learn how to adapt basic sock knitting techniques to magic loop (heel, gusset, toe)

Smart Knitters Finish First

SaturdaySeptember 27 9-11am

$30.00/person

In this two hour workshop you'll learn smart techniques that will speed up the knitting process. Instructor Kathryn has some great tips and tricks that are sure to make you knitting more fun than it already is!

Of course, these are just a few of the classes that we offer at the Sheep. You can visit our website for more class details.

Righteous Rowan Related News

What started out as an ordinary day at the Sheep (knitting, chatting about knitting, helping folks with knitting related problems and questions...) quickly took an exciting turn when my favourite UPS guy lumbered through our door with these rather large boxes. Large boxes are always a good sign at the Sheep; the larger the box the more yarn it generally contains!





Inside these specific boxes was something so exciting that I had to take photos throughout the unwrapping process, just to stretch things out as far as I could. These wonderful magical boxes contained bags upon bags of Rowan Yarns!


We've all been waiting with baited breath for our fall delivery from Rowan, and today it finally arrived! Amongst the many beautiful new yarns that are gracing our shelves at the moment is the brand new (and very exciting) Rowan Purelife Organic Wool! This 100% organic wool is a DK weight yarn that'll get you 125 meters of knitting pleasure for just $13.95. This yarn is dyed with low impact, all-natural plant dyes. For those of you out there looking for an eco-friendly yarn, it doesn't get much better than this!



We are stocking the complete range of eight colours at the Sheep, and this photo does not do them justice, so come have a look for yourself!










Alongside Rowan Purelife came Felted Tweed (pictured left), Little Big Wool, Cocoon, and Kidsilk Haze! And as a lace addict I can say that I am very happy to see our Kidsilk shelves refreshed (the colours are beautiful!) My mind is already racing with new project ideas!

Hi all, Lisa here! I am so exciting to be the new owner of the Naked Sheep and share all the wonderful changes the store has gone through in the last month. Not only has the store been flipped upside down (in a good way!), but we have received some great yarns and patterns. Not to mention we have decided to bring in Addi Turbo circulars, hot books and tonnes more lace and sock yarn.

I am not lying, this is only one bin of our sock yarn, but one of the best: Malabrigo Sock yarn...Yummy!



Want more? Our own Naked Sheep colourway, dyed by Maggie of Dyed In The Wool Handmade:



It is so beautiful that words can't explain how fabulous this sock yarn is. Thanks Maggie!

Here are two ladies that are regulars at the Sheep. Kathryn (on the right) is celebrating her birthday by doing the only thing I would do - knitting with a great friend:



We also received the new Interweave Felt magazine - the projects in this magazine are super fun to make, more copis of the fall issue of Vogue and Interweave knits. The first batch of these issues sold out too quickly, so we brought in more.

Hope to knit with you soon.

We're back, after a short hiatus, and ready for knit bloggin' .I've got blog-fulls of news to share with you, so pull up a comfy seat, and perhaps pop some popcorn because you may be here a while.

New Owner!

The Naked Sheep has a new owner. Lisa took over the store on August 12, and since then has really turned some things around (just keep reading). In honor of her aquisition the Sheep will be offering 15% off all regular priced items (excluding classes) for the entire month of September! Woo Hoo! Lisa is in the store weeknights and weekends, so pop by to meet the new owner of the Naked Sheep, and score some bargains while you're at it.

Is This a New Store?!

If you haven’t been into the store recently, I suggest you hurry on over to check out our amazing new look. The Sheep has been entirely rearranged into a bright and spacious fiber mecca! Shocked customer reactions so far have included…
· Stepping back outside to check the street number and sign
· Hysterical laughter
· Loss of speech
· Paralysis
…but don’t worry, these were only temporary reactions. In a few moments any extreme affects of shock seemed to fade away as the beautiful selection of new yarn came into view. Now here comes the most exciting part of all…the sheep’s shelves are currently overflowing with a stunning array of yarns brand new to the store. There are so many in fact that we could never fit them into a single blog post. For your continued readying pleasure, as well as to prevent any unfortunate sensory overload we’ll be slipping in posts about our favourite fall yarns over the next few weeks. That’s right folks, there are weeks worth of stunning new yarns in here, and more on the way as well.

Knit Night!

Everyone at the shop agrees that it is high time we invited all our loyal customers and friends out to share in some knitting fun with us. Beginning Spetember 3rd (thats tonight!), and running until the end of time (hopefully) we will be offering an evening of knit and fiber related fun. Knit nights will begin at 6:30, and go until "late" . We’d love to see you there!

New Classes!

The Sheep has a great line-up of classes for you this fall. Our September schedule is posted on our website, and available in the store. We are offering 8 classes that are brand new to the sheep, and here's a preview...

• Baby surprise Jacket class
• Knitting Magic Loop socks
• Stashbuster Amigurumi (taught by yours truely)
• Toe-up socks with gusset heel
• Smart Knitters Finish First

If you are interested in these or any other classes just give us a call, or pop by for more info

Ravelry Group!

We're all adicted to it, and we think its high time that you were too. Ravelry is a great places to share knitting knowledge, so the Sheep has decided to set up shop (so to speak) on Ravelry. We'll be posting store news, and sharing pics with all members. Plus its a dead easy way to ask us questions (we're always on there anyway!)

felting frenzy

As you know all too well by now, I am a devoted lover of all things cute...or should I say Kyuuto?
My latest endeavor into the world of Japanese Cuteness was through the medium of felt, and I loved it! This was my first attempt at needle felting, or felting anything for that matter, and I finally get what all the hype is about. It happens often that a customer will come into the store with a slightly frenzied look in their eyes searching for more felting needles and roving to felt. They carefully pick over colours, searching for the perfect fit for their projects, and leave dejected if the right eye colour isn't there. This behaviour now makes sence to me; I have joined the ranks of the frenzied felter, and I love it!

For my first attempt I decided to felt some birds. There are great instructions in Kyuuto's Fuzzy Felted Friends, and I figured that I should understand the basics of needle felting before I embark on the life-size deep sea diorama that I've been planning. Success! As it turns out, needle felting is quick and easy as well as being super fun. With just a felting needle and a pinch (or handful, depending on your project) of roving, you can make the soft and fuzzy likeness of just about anything you want!




In other Kyuuto news, I have just finished another amigurumi. This time its a bunny made from Noro Kochoran. Amigurumi are great fun to make, but even more fun to assemble as each lumpy little piece of crochet is transformed into one very cute creature!

February Baby Sweater...Check!

It took me all of 3 or 4 hours to finish this adorable little sweater. Now I'm wishing that I had more little people to knit for! I am very happy with the way my baby sweater turned out, all except for one buttonhole that went horrible wrong (no idea how I did this!) I made buttonholes with a simple yarnover and knit two together, just like E.Z. says. Mysteriously - and quite annoyingly - one buttonhole is double the size of all the others! Of course it won't be a problem to stitch it in more tightly, but I just love to complain.
I am yet to find buttons for this little sweater; the ones I had in reserve for it have turned out to be too small...whatever I do better get done quick before she grows out of it!
As my first Elizabeth Zimmermann pattern, I have to say that I really enjoyed all the creative freedoms that she provides in her patterns. I often find myself frustrated by very restrictive patterns, wanting to change certain elements, keep some, and eliminate others all together. This can be tricky with some patterns (as I have learned over and over again after ripping out yet another lumpy cone-head hat). E.Z. leaves room for knitters to be creative with her patterns, yarn and gauge are flexible. Stitch pattern and length are completely up to you. And with the aid of her percentages system, you have more control over your sweater than ever before...unless you write the pattern yourself of course!

My original intention was to knit the Feb. Sweater and then the Baby Surprise Jacket both as gifts for my cousin's children who are 9 months and four years old. I've decided instead to knit my little cousin the River Forest Gansey sweater from Handknit Holidays. This is a great pattern, providing adult and child sizing for a worsted weight sweater with simple cabling and a easy but very pretty stitch pattern. I've chosen to knit this sweater in Cascade 220 Heathers (the yarn specified in the pattern) in a beautiful dark forest green. Aside from some minor confusion with the pattern charts all is well with the sweater, and I think it will be a fairly quick knit; good think I'm making the child version! Apologies for all the Gansey pics being out of focus...the light has been very strange in my apartment today!

Well, progress has been much slower than I expected, but the February Baby Sweater is looking very cute! I've been having a hard time focusing on my knitting recently (gasp!) Don't worry, I think I'm still winding down from my knitting frenzy at the cottage a week or so back. Luckily, the Feb. Baby Sweater is the perfect project for someone with knitting A.D.D. I raced through the garter stitch yoke in about half an hour, then a sleeve followed shortly after in the next half hour. It is worth mentioning that Elizabeth Zimmerman designed this sweater to be as quick and simple as possible (like so many of her other designs). The sweater is nearly seamless, the sleeves being the exception; as these are barely 5" seaming will not be a large undertaking. After the two sleeves are knit from the yoke, the body is joined and knit down to the garter stitch edging along the sweater bottom. Garter button bands are knit into the garment, and do not require picking up of stitches. The lace motif is just about as simple as it gets, instantly memorizable! All in all, if you're looking for maximum cute for a minimum investment of time and effort, this just might be the baby sweater for you.

I chose to use Jo Sharp Silkroad Tweed DK - a yarn that is currently 40% off in the store. Hem hem. This pattern does not provide conventional sizing, instead you control the size of your garment by changing your gauge. I'm making this sweater for my niece who is 9 months old, and through some creative figuring, I decided that a DK yarn would give me the perfect not-too-big-not-too-small size that I needed! I am using 4.5mm needles, in order to get a gauge of 20 stitches in 4". This is slightly large for a Dk weight yarn, but I want her to be able to grow into this sweater a little bit.

Thats all the news I've got for now. Hope to see you at the Summer Knitting Club meeting tonight!

The August Lady Sweater

My August knitting project is going to be the February Lady Sweater - The grown-up version of the baby sweater.  But, just knitting this sweater in August isn't enough of a challenge for me... I'm going to knit this sweater in 16 days, as part of the Ravelympics!   - The Olympics, Knitting-style! The idea is to complete a knitting project in the timeline of the Olympics, and there are teams, and events, and it's tonnes of fun!  

The yarn I've chosen for my February Lady is Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool - It's a DK weight yarn, which is smaller then the Aran yarn the pattern calls for, so to compensate, i've done some math, and figured out I need to go up two sizes and work on a 4mm needle to get a sweater that will fit me.  I've already knit up a swatch.  (this is considered training, and is allowed, before the Olympics start) 

Since the theme for this month is Elizabeth Zimmermann, here's some projects of hers I have completed recently.   You can find them both in the Opinionated Knitter, and Knitters Workshop. 

First, the famous, and ever popular Baby Surprise Jacket.  You've seen the one I knit from Silk Garden Lite, it's hanging in the store.  But here's one that I made from regular Silk Garden, for a 6-12 month size.  

The BSJ is knit all in one piece, all in garter stitch, this means that there is no purling! It's fun to knit, and so interesting. It looks beautiful in self-striping yarns, as well as verigated, or hand dyed yarns, and you can knit in any yarn in the store, and come up with a different size... from sock weight for a newborn, to big wool for a large child / small adult!

Next, there is the Tomten, which is another all-garter sweater.

This is a great sweater to try out striping on. I love the way the striping on the arms works to look like suspenders. I used Lang Zoom, which is a heavy worsted weight yarn, and I made it to fit my two year old cousin. It's a quick, and fun knit too!

August is Uppon us

Hi all, hope that July treated you well, and that you were able to get a lot of knitting done! As you might already know by now, we will be having a Summer Knitting Club meeting on Wednesday at 7 pm. Bring yourself and some knitting and spend a couple hours chatting with people who love to knit as much as you do. We'll talk about our lace and sock projects from the past two months, and our plans for August, which I am about to disclose to you right now....

The project theme for our third and final month of Summer Knitting Club is...Elizabeth Zimmerman! Our pattern recommendations for this month are the Baby Surprise Jacket, Tomten Jacket and February Baby Sweater. However, there are adult versions of all of these patterns available, so if you're craving a larger project, why not make a sweater for yourself? If you are unfamiliar with these patterns, or Elizabeth Zimmerman for that matter, pop by the store to have a look at her books...or at least look her up on Wikipedia. If you're a Ravelry member, there is a "Zimmermaniacs" group that has loads of information in its forums on her and her patterns.

I've decided to start out August by knitting the February Baby Sweater, because I have a soft spot for lace (of course!) The yarn I've selected is Jo Sharp DK Tweed in an icy blue colour that I love. I have yet to cast on, but here's a look at the yarn...





Hope to see you on Wednesday evening. And just a small reminder that our Jazzy Jazzfest sale is still alive and strong. Save 40% on most of the yarn in the store. Until August 8th.

Summer Knitting Club Meeting at Long Last!

IMG_2165
Originally uploaded by emily.foden

I know you thought I had forgotten, but I never did, and here it is... the "july" knitting club meeting will be held next Wednesday (August 6th) evening around 7 pm. All are welcome, even if you are not an official member of our Summer Knitting Club. Just bring yourself and some knitting (socks preferably). Sarah and I will be there with our sock projects from July, and I know that you can't wait to see how her Red Herring Sock has turned out!

In the end I only made it through 3 pairs of socks, but I'm quite happy with each of them. Reuban's Ribby Riverbeds were a big hit!

My Ocean Toes are the most comfortable socks I've worn in a long time, and they fit so well.

And my Embossed Leaves are certainly the prettiest socks that I have ever made.

Stay tuned for information about our August projects, and the prize draw for all club members at the end of the summer. Till then keep on knitting!

I'm Still Here!

You may have been wondering about where on earth I've been this past week. At least I hope you were. Well, I am here to put your worries to rest and tell you that I was not abducted by aliens, nor have I joined the circus, or any other type of organization that interferes with knitting. I have been knitting away happily, but away from any computer with which I might blog. I've been cottaging with family, but am now back in the city and up to all my old tricks once again!

I brought several projects up to the cottage with me; not knowing how much knitting time I would get in I felt it was better to bring too much than not enough. The first order of business on my knitting agenda were my Embossed Leaves socks (from Interweave's Favourite Socks Book). Impressively, I knit the entire lace portion of one sock in a single day. Thats right, the cuff was waiting for me in the morning, I knit the leg, heel flap, heel turn, instep and foot all in one day! This feat was made possible by the simple lace pattern on this sock. I never memorized the 16 round lace repeat, instead I did something quite a bit better; I read the previous rounds! Sounds like a simple enough idea, and it is. Decreases only move one stitch to the right or the left from round to round, and yarn-overs are always centered on a central column of single stitches. Another thing that made this pattern knit so quick was the fact that each repeat was quite large. In a stitch pattern with a 4 or 5 round repeat, you've got to knit a lot of repeats before you get anywhere. But there were only 7 lace repeats in my entire sock! Now thats easy livin'...or something like that anyway.

I should mention also that I used Fleece Artist Somoko; a beautiful mohair/silk/merino/nylon blend sock yarn. It worked beautifully with my lacy socks, and has a lovely halo of fuzz. I also removed the last 8 rounds of lace before the toe, in order to make the sock short enough to fit my foot. All the sock photos in this post were taken at the cottage (on the beach at Georgian Bay) by my Jeremy.

I also took some great shots of my Ocean Toes socks, it wasn't the ocean, but this lake was as close as I was going to get!

To all you Summer Knitting Clubbers, I have not forgotten about our meeting (but this week has slowed me down considerably) I will hope fully post a month-end date within the next few days).







And don't forget that we still have one more month to go. Our August projects will be posted very soon, and I can't wait to start mine up!