Knitting

Free Patterns, Tutorials and Project Ideas

Yarnmarket Sold to Love Knitting

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yarnmarket sold to love knittingAccording to a notice on their website and an email sent to subscribers, Yarnmarket has closed its doors and its remaining stock has been sold to Love Knitting.

Yarnmarket was an online yarn, pattern and notions store that was in business for more than 10 years.

The email, sent as usual by Jan and the Yarnmarket Staff says in part:

I and the Yarnmarket staff are saddened to see our beloved store close. We also thank you for your support and for allowing us to serve you for so many years. The good news is that LoveKnitting has purchased our remaining stock of beautiful yarns and other products along with our websites and is carrying on the Yarnmarket tradition.

Just as with Yarnmarket, the LoveKnitting staff and managers are dedicated to customer service and providing quality products. They are currently in the process of adding the Yarnmarket stock to their website and will let you know when it’s ready for you to enjoy once again.

Love Knitting is a British company and states on its website’s announcement that for now all orders will be shipping form the UK but should be able to get to American customers withing 7 business days. Check out their FAQ if you have orders, gift certificates or returns for Yarnmarket.

I always hate to see consolidation and fewer choice in the marketplace, but I wish everyone involved the best in the future!

Update: I had a reader on Facebook ask about the future of the yarn directory Yarndex, which was also owned by Yarnmarket. I asked Love Knitting and got this reply:

We have no plans to delete yarndex completely, but it is a little outdated and does need some work on all the new yarns. I am afraid that is all I can say at the moment.

It would take a lot of love and time to get it up to date, but I certainly hope it happens some day!

Comments

  1. Sarah,

    Thanks for the best wishes: we’re excited to be able to continue Yarnmarket’s justly proud history of great customer service. We’re working hard to add products that Yarnmarket stocked to our range and improve our overall service to US customers.

    Anyone with further questions or concerns should feel free to contact us at [email protected].

    Thanks again,

    Nigel from Loveknitting.

Have you read?

Pencil Knitting Patterns

Getting ready for back to school makes me think about pencil crafts, so let’s take a look at some pencil themed knitting patterns! 

I recently made a pencil on a circular knitting machine, and it was a fun, quick, easy project that uses little bits of leftover yarn (and if you don’t have yellow you can make it a colored pencil using whatever color’s your favorite). And if you want to make a bigger version check out this pattern from Orange Olive Road on Etsy.

If you want to knit a pencil pillow by hand, check out Sketchy, available on Ravelry from Shana S. Cohen. This one uses worsted weight yarn and has two size options and the choice to make a pencil with an eraser or a colored pencil. 

Pencil scarves seem to be the most popular kind of pencil knitting pattern, and there are lot of cute ones. This one from Cosy Craft UK mostly uses garter stitch, with some welts to add texture and what looks like an I-cord edging. It calls for DK weight yarn. 

If you want to go all garter stitch try this version from Emsley Co Creations, which uses five colors of DK weight yarn and just a little shaping to make the point of the pencil.

There’s also this fun, mostly stockinette so it looks like it curls a bit, pencil pattern that looks like it’s worked in chunky yarn from Little Knits Studio. This one uses just a little garter stitch and easy shaping for the point. 

If you don’t want a pencil scarf, how about some pencil socks? The No. 2 Pencil Socks from The Yarn Enabler are available from Ravelry and use five colors of sock yarn. They feature wide ribs to mimic the texture of a pencil and have options to be worked from the top down or the toe up. 

Needs Sharpening by Alexander Walker is a free pattern on Ravelry that uses five colors of sock yarn to make a sort of shortie sock. The little bit of black at the tips of the toes inspired the name. These, too, can be worked in either direction and are available in three sizes.