Simple Knits | November Elves

With the holidays coming up, little 'somethings' really come in handy (and are very much appreciated), so that's just what I've got for us for our November Simple Knits project... say hello to the Jolly Wee Elf by Churchmouse Yarns & Teas!

Aren't they totally adorable? Each elf measures about 3-1/2" tall and is knit in fingering weight yarn - if you use 3 colors of Rowan's Fine Tweed (this is what Churchmouse knit theirs with and what I'll be using for mine), the 3 colors will knit up into 5 elves with extra left in the contrasting colors, so you can pick a couple main colors and for a gaggle of elves!

One of the things I love about these little ones, is they can be used year after year - if you're gifting, add a loop to the top of your Wee Elf and you've got an ornament that doubles as a personalized touch to a wrapped gift. 

The Jolly Wee Elf is simple to knit and has some fun techniques wrapped up in the small package. The base is knit flat, then stitches are picked up around the edges to knit the body in the round - no fumbling with double-points with a super-small circumference. There's also a bit of brilliance with weighting down the bottom with a washer so it weighs the base down nicely so your elves will stand upright and sit nice and flat. 

So, pop on over to Ravelry for more details and click on over to ravelry to purchase the pattern from Churchmouse Yarns & Teas. If you want to use Rowan's Fine Tweed for a rustic elf, visit Firefly Fibers in person or can order from our online shop -20% OFF in-store and online through the holiday season! 

And... don't forget to share your progress in our Ravelry thread - these should be quick knit (especially after the first one), so be sure to add individual posts for each finished elf for more chances to win a Simple Knits Knitalong prize. 

Happy Jolly Wee Elf Knitting!

Cheers, Alisa

All photos © Churchmouse Yarns & Teas

On the Needles | Sweaters and Baa-bles, oh my...

October has been lovely in Wisconsin - the temps have been cool enough to start wearing the handknits, but not so much to have to bundle up yet. I love fall and the instinctual nature that comes with it to suddenly knit everything and prepare for winter. It's unrealistic to knit everything, but that never seems to stop me and I usually do find the time to get most of it done. This fall is no exception. 

I have a lot on the needles and maybe one day I'll get brave enough to divulge the dirty details, but for today, here's a peek at what's getting the most attention...

I have two sweaters that are actively in progress, the first is Eddy. It's a built-in CustomFit design and a fast knit. I cast on last weekend when we went we made a run to IKEA to pick up more shelving for the shop and knit a good portion of the back in the car and finished it up on Monday evening. See, I told you it was fast. These are the sleeves in progress last night after wrapping up the work week and tonight I'll be finishing up the sleeve caps and casting on the front. I'm confident that I'll be ready to start seaming in just a few days.  

This one is knit to fit me, but it won't be FOR me. Yeah, I'm really okay with this and have not lost my mind. One of the lovey shops that participates in the CustomFit program has coordinated a CustomFit trunk show and I'm one of the shops that volunteered to knit a sweater to donate. I'm really excited to see everything come together with this joint effort from the shops and I think Eddy will be popular with sweater knitters from beginner to experienced - larger yarn, quick knit, super cozy and a classic cowl neck style. 

Next up is another CustomFit sweater... this one is a beta-test for the new shapes that will be launching in the near future. I'm testing a straight shape and I'm using Meadow Road by Bonnie Sennot for the front and back lace design. It's really coming along nicely and I should be on sleeves for this one in just a few days, too. I usually opt for neutrals and fitted sweaters, so this will be quite a change for me and I'm kind of excited. 

The last project I have to share today is one that jumped onto my needles this morning, Baa-ble by Donna Smith. I fell in love with this version knit by Courtney Kelley of Kelbourne Woolens in their newest Fibre Co yarn, Cumbria. This gorgeous new yarn is featured in our fall knitalong and I haven't had a chance to knit with it yet, but a couple weeks ago I saw Courtney had cast on her version of Baa-ble in Cumbria. So, for what seemed like forever (really, it was about 2 weeks), I sat on pins and needles waiting for our backordered colors of Cumbria to arrive and the wait was finally over this last Friday.

This picture is from this morning and I'm now getting into the sheep and loving it - along with one of our new yarn bowls that also just arrived this last week! I'm knitting like the wind so I can make some fabulous Baa-ble kits for our lovely knitters when I get back to the shop this week. Yes, I said KITS!!! If you're interested in one of these kits, just contact the shop and we'll email you as soon as they're ready. Otherwise, just stay tuned... 

Oh, that lovely Fringe Supply Field Bag that my 2 sweaters are being transported in, is another new arrival at Firefly Fibers (it's been a rather exciting week)! I've had one for awhile and I absolutely love it and am confident it will be with me for the long haul. 

So, there you have it. I'm going to go back to "reading" Eleanor & Park via audible and knitting on Baa-ble until I'm summoned by Mr. Yarnista to record this week's podcast episode. 

Cheers!

Simple Knits | October

Hello, lovelies! I have something really special for you for October's Simple Knits Knitalong project - there was a bit of a delay in getting started this month, but I think it will be well worth the wait and I hope you agree...

I've been anxiously waiting the arrival of a super-special new yarn from Julie Asselin. In case you haven't noticed, I have a bit of a crush on all of Julie's yarns... she has an amazing sense of color and her yarn bases are pretty fabulous.  So, knowing that her brand new yarn, Nurtured, would be arriving at Firefly Fibers at the beginning of October had me thinking that this month it might be a bit more about the yarn than the pattern - after all, I'm really excited to get this new yarn onto my needles and I thought you might like to try it, too. 

Meet Nurtured...

Nurtured by Julie Asselin

"As fiber lovers we really wanted to come up with a classic, non superwash yarn that would meet all of our criteria for a great product that knitters will enjoy working with, maybe getting some of them to rediscover the joys of more traditional yarns!" ~Julie Asselin

Nice, isn't it? Nurtured is a worsted weight woolen spun yarn that has a bit of residual lanolin from the spinning process and that's something that I ABSOLUTELY love - it smells fabulously like sheep AND it's super nourishing on the hands as you knit. After washing, Nurtured plumps, softens, and brightens for a gorgeous finished project. Nurtured is sure to become a 'go-to' classic yarn.

This month I want to give you a few options since we have a brand new yarn to try out, and also because the gift-giving season will be here before we know it. So, I have 3 accessories for you to choose from (as usual, you can knit as many of each as you want)...

Option #1 - Dreieke by Very Shannon (1 skein): 

Option #2 - Spate by Jane Richmond (2 skeins):

Option #3 - Turbulence by Laura Chau of Cosmicpluto Knits (2 skeins - 1 each color):

Nurtured really is a must-try yarn and these smaller accessories are the perfect introduction or reminder of how beautiful rustic yarns can be. But... if you'd like to use a different worsted weight yarn for any of these projects, that's perfectly okay and we'd love to see these designs knit up in any yarn - Simple Knits is all about taking and making time for smaller projects.

I hope you knit along this month and enjoy the project selections. Nurtured is available at Firefly Fibers and we do have a sample hat knit knit up in Nurtured so you can really see how the yarn transforms after washing. If you're not local and want to try Nurtured, it's available here in our online shop and I'll pack it up for you right away and ship it off.

Want to hear more about Nurtured? Mr. Yarnista and I talk about how awesome Nurtured is in Episode 9 of our podcast. psst... you can subscribe to our podcast in iTunes or with any other podcatcher. 

Cheers!