I love announcing new shops! Here’s one:

We are Urban knitfits- based in Portland Maine.  We make cozy wool fashion accessories and items for the home.  We love to work with eco wool, and about 80% of our projects are made with Peruvian eco wool!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/urbanknitfits

All of your comments were wonderful. I will compile a list and try to encompass everyone’s suggestions in this blog. Thanks so much for playing.

I have to make a disclaimer. I thought when I said that my puppy (and now my daughter’s puppy) chose the winners, that it was kind of implied that I am not a pet free person. My puppy really does choose the winners. That being said, please know that anything you win on this blog does NOT come from a pet free home. Smoke free, yes, but pet free, no. Neither will ever change. So…. ready for the next giveaway?…….. stay tuned!

But enough of that. I have enough yarn in my stash room to substitute just about anything. So what do I do?

I find out how many yards of yarn I need for my project. Then I connect to www.yarndex.com and find the brand and name of the yarn that is required and find out both the weight of the yarn and how many yards are on each skein. From there I multiply how many yards on each skein by how many skeins are called for to give me the total yardage suggested for my project. I then take that number into my own private lys yarn room and go from there.

That’s my best advice for substituting yarn. You can always take 2 or more lighter weight yarns and hold them together to get a heavier weight also, but that’s kind of sketchy.

Join knitting expert Eunny Jang, crochet ace Kim Werker, spinning and weaving fiberista Liz Gipson, and favorite stitcher Shay Pendray on Knitting Daily Series 300, where yarn and fiber take center stage.

Featured Knitting Daily Season 300 guests include Halcyon Blake, Laura Bryant, Dawn Butler, Jil Eaton, Kathy Elkins, Abby Franquemont, Mary Scott Huff, Adina Klein, Barry Klein, Kelly Lealos, Beth Lutz, Kathy Merrick, Lisa Myers, Shirley Paden, Kristen Rengren, Iris Schreier, Penny Sitler, Becca Smith, Andrea Wong, and Kathy Zimmerman. Learn a variety of cast-on methods, the basics for managing your yarns in colorwork, how to knit jogless stripes in the round, tips on becoming a designer, and more.

4-DVD Set. Total run time is approximately 5 hours, 48 minutes. This DVD Set is for your private home viewing only. It is not authorized for other use. Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.

Go here for more info on this DVD series: http://www.interweavestore.com/Knitting/Video/Knitting-Daily-TV-Series-300.html

But, if you want to win one free, you’re going to have to put on your knitting, I mean thinking caps!

I want to know this: What would you like to see more of in this blog? I try to give you lots of free patterns, book reviews and website ideas. What do you want more of? Let me know how to make this a better blog and maybe you’ll be the one to win this awesome series!

Entries will be accepted until Friday Nov 13th, 5PM EST.

With just a few simple techniques tucked up into your brain, you can read them easily too, and soon, you’ll look forward to those charts. They’re sure a lot easier than the long lines of text!

Go here: http://www.examiner.com/x-6976-Phoenix-Knitting-Examiner~y2009m11d3-Knitting-tip-of-the-week-reading-charts?cid=examiner-email

I’ve always loved Kim’s designs, they’re flirty and fun, like this long cardigan/tunic.  Definitely something to check out!

Enough said!

Go here: http://www.thedailygreen.com/living-green/blogs/recycling-design-technology/kate-pokorny-knit-yurt-461009

And, the directions are on Spud and Chloe’s blog, here: http://www.spudandchloe.com/blog/2009/10/old-fashioned-yarn-dolls/

This might just be the perfect way to ignite a love for crafts and all thing yarny with your youngin’s!

Try this:

That’s right! You can now knit your own light switch! And while the instructions are kind of hard to understand (different language), it’s still pretty cool. Go here: http://blog.livedoor.jp/m203gow/archives/65326860.html

Don’t give up my peeps, there’s another one coming…..

The Close-Knit Gators, a new charity-based knitting club on campus, held their second weekly meeting Tuesday night.

When finished, about 40 pumpkin hats will be donated to the Shands Children’s Hospital at the UF for Halloween.

Read the rest here: http://www.alligator.org/news/local/article_76441cb5-3b5d-5384-9381-c7af11182578.html

The AIDS orphans in Southern Africa belong to one of the fastest growing, but least desirable groups of children in need, on earth.

Go here to help! http://www.knit-a-square.com/aidsorphans.html

Here’s the free pattern for the scarf, from Midnight Sky Fibers: http://blog.midnightskyfibers.com/2009/10/new-patterns-ugh-site-down.html

http://www.maggiesrags.com/tips_color.htm

An example of Fair Isle or stranded knitting can be seen is this pretty Seashore Sweater.

While, Intarsia is represented in this Night Sky sweater.

 Check out all of the ins, outs, rules and variations, at Maggie’s Rags!