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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!

Next Pattern:

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: Brooklyn Tweed’s Knit & Crochet Blankets

Blankets are a great blank slate project that you can change up in a million different ways. From color to stitch pattern to size, the possibilities are almost endless.

Jared Flood, the designer behind Brooklyn Tweed, was inspired by a log cabin quilt his mother made in 1995 to re-create that design in knitting, which led to more blankets and ultimate Brooklyn Tweed’s Knit and Crochet Blankets, which includes 25 patterns from an array of designers using different skills and techniques to make cozy, pretty blankets.

The patterns are divided into three aesthetic themes: traditions, minimalism and colorplay. The patterns are rated on a scale of one to five, with one being the easiest, and there aren’t any pieces rated five. Two blankets are rated one, 14 are two, eight are three and one is four. 

In addition, three of the 25 patterns are crocheted, but they either use single crochet or granny stitch, so they are pretty easy even if you don’t do a lot of crochet. You can see all the patterns on Ravelry.

Some of my favorites include Rattan by Rastus Hsu, a chunky blanket worked in knits and purls with simple crossing stitches to make a raised woven look; Homewood by Seth Richardson, covers in dramatic, loopy cables; Ainur Berkimbayeva’s Tessellate, one of the beginner projects that doesn’t really look beginner but is totally worked in knit and purl stitches; Warp + Weft by Aist? Butkevi?ien?, which is mostly knits and purls but makes a fun woven look fabric that blew my mind a little bit; and the same designer’s Canyonland, a multicolored blanket with wavy stripes.

The patterns tell you how to resize them for different dimensions and include information on pattern repeats where it is possible to make a totally custom size.

Many different techniques are included here such as cables, lace, shadow knitting, intarsia and other colorwork techniques, as well as modular knitting and lots of sewing pieces together. The patterns are all presented with charts, but there are line by line written instructions available on the Brooklyn Tweed website if you need them.

The book ends with a deep dive into log cabin knitting, telling the story of the quilt Jared’s mom made and how he made it in knitting, as well as the multitude of variations you can make if you want your own log cabin style design.

The back of the book includes a little written information about some of the special techniques needed, but there are no photos.

This is a lovely book full of inspiration for knitting and crochet blankets for any skill level. If you like to make blankets as gifts or aspire to have a handmade blanket in every room of the house, these designs would be a great place to start.

About the book: 192 pages, paperback, 25 patterns. Published 2024 by Abrams Books, suggested retail price $24.99.

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