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Giveaway: NeedleTravel Fiber & Fabric Mania Guidebook

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needletravel guide book

Jennifer is our winner!

The weekend before last I spent in Columbus, Ohio, at the summer show for the National Needlearts Association, the major trade group for needle crafters. I had a great time and met a lot of people in the industry, which was fun.

I also picked up some goodies to share, including this book. The NeedleTravel Fiber & Fabric Mania book is a companion to a website and app that list yarn, fabric and other fiber-related shops around the country. If you do a lot of traveling and like to check in on the LYS while you’re there, this is a great guide. It’s hard to believe that not everyone has smart phones and always on Internet access, but if you’re more of an analog person the paper guide is a great choice.

This book only covers the United States, so please only enter if you live here. Thank you!

If you’d like a chance to win this book, leave a comment on this post before the end of the day Sunday, June 14. Why don’t you tell me about your local yarn store, if you have one. Mine is Hand Held, a sweet little shop in an old house, with a great selection and a lovely shop cat, Sasha.

Thanks for visiting, commenting and sharing, and good luck!

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Comments

  1. I dont have a local LYS… I would have to travel 25 miles to the closest one. What a great idea book idea though!

  2. Other than Joann’s I go to a store that is call Three Bags Full. The staff is friendly and always willing to help. The store is one I could get lost in their yarns. It is just a great place to go .

  5. There are a couple, but I know that our local Vidlers store carries a lot of yarn. Our elderly friend from Canada likes to shop there when she visits us. Thanks and God bless!

  8. I always look up yarn stores before I go on a road trip or other travel. I also try to buy something local at the stores I visit. A book and companion site/app is a great way to help plan alongside a vacation or business trip.

  9. I’d love to win this guide. My favorite was Yellow Dog Knitting in Eau Claire, WI, but they moved from Barstow Street and I really miss them. So I’ve moved on to quilting – and have too many favorites to list! Sew Little Time in Baldwin, Wisconsin is the closest!

  12. as an avid knitter, cross stitcher and quilter, I would LOVE this book! I always try to find at least one of those types of stores when I am on vacation. My favourite yarn store is Northwest Handspun Yarns, in Bellingham WA….about an hour away from me 🙂

  13. Wow, this a great book since I travel alot! We don’t have a local yarn shop, unfortunately. I have to order all my stuff online because the nearest yarn shop is over 2 hours away.

  15. My lys is an hour away. But they carry a nice selection of yarn and books. I just wish they would carry more crochet material—they cater mostly to knitting.

  17. Mine is The Yarn Shop at Nob Hill, a friendly place with beautiful selection and a welcoming attitude to crocheters. I took an inspiring freeform-crochet class there.

  19. Oh my what a wonderful book idea. We travel a lot and I love finding local yarn and fabric stores.

  20. When I go somewhere I always look up a craft store I can only buy what will fit in my overnight bag that way I can’t go crazy. The book sounds very helpful. Thanks for the wonderful giveaway and have a great day.

  21. I generally go to Joann’s for my yarn . I love the idea of your booklet and I have traveling plans for the summer so I could really use it !

  22. My local yarn store is a tiny shop I visit as often as my budget allows. I’d love a directory to all the closest shops I could visit!

Have you read?

Book Review: Knitovation Stitch Dictionary

There’s always room for more stitch dictionaries on your shelf, but Andrea Rangel’s Knitovation Stitch Dictionary is unlike those stitch pattern books you might already own. That’s because this one is full of colorwork stitch patterns rather than textured stitches, lace or cables, so the designs are ripe for adding to hats, sweaters and other projects with a stockinette stitch background. 

The book starts with a quick introduction to knitting colorwork that’s also unlike what you’ve probably seen before, because it’s less about the colors themselves and more about the kinds of fibers you choose, how the yarn is prepared and the gauge you’re working at and how those things all change the look of a design. 

Most of the book is filled with motif designs and swatches. The motifs were designed and named by Andrea’s husband Sean, who is an artist and brings a bit of whimsy to the designs. 

You’ll find some classic looking leaves and flowers, mosaics and waves, but also rubber ducks, penguins, puzzle pieces, cherries and cows, snails and teapots, eyeballs and chess pieces, to name a few. Many of the designs also have funny names, like a fish named toilet bound, or cats in suits called corporate fat cat.

Of course you can use the designs in any way you want on any project you like, but there are also three patterns in the book — for a hat, a sweater and a pair of fingerless gloves — plus discussion of how the motifs were added, adjusting patterns for a different size or gauge, and adding your own motifs. 

If you like adding a bit of colorwork to otherwise plain projects that other people have designed, or you’re ready to start making your own designs with fun motifs, this book is a great place to start. The fun and funny motifs are sure to inspire you to want to pick up your needles and add a little more color to your projects. 

About the book: 160 pages, hardcover, 150+ motifs and three knitting patterns. Published 2023 by Interweave, suggested retail $28.