Intro to Lace

Most of you know that I'm a fairly new knitter and everything is exciting and new to me, but I'll be honest, sometimes things just seem completely out of my league! Lace work is one of those things, I truly admire the beauty and work put into these beautiful things and then I think to myself, there is no way I'm there yet.

Well, with that said we just got the new Addi Turbo Lace needles in from Skacel and suddenly the soft muted shades of the Rowan Kidsilk Haze began calling to me. I found some projects that peaked my interest in the Rowan magazine as well and thought to myself, I must do something with this NOW!

Here's a peek....it is a simple, understated, narrow scarf pattern (Fiber Trends - Lacy Accents) in its infancy. I absolutely LOVE the needles and am enthralled with this soft, elegant looking piece. I will definitely be doing more lace work in the near future! Perhaps the gorgeous Lace Shawl in Romantic Style by Jennie Atkinson.

Creating Community & Knitting with Purpose

Many people have asked me what Knitting with Purpose means. I came up with this title for our "Charity" knitting, my thought was simply to give the knitting of kindness that our customers have been doing in knitting healing hats, a title. I am a strong proponet of living life with purpose, finding ways to make a difference, being an active citizen of ones community. Building community can be one of the most important things we as human beings do with our lives. I heard something like this as I was growing up from my grandmother, who practiced what she preached. My dear sweet Nana was a long time Kent resident and she gave to others throughout her life, always feeling it was just part of being a decent human being. She volunteered for many years at the Kent Food Bank and felt a deep connection to her "community" of fellow volunteers, friends and neighbors. As a knitter you instantly become a part of a bigger community and I wanted to build on that and provide a purpose to the ever growing community of Renaissance Yarns http://www.renaissanceyarns.com/

One of the most recent endeavors into creating and nurturing my community has come through the desire to knit hats for women who have been affected by Breast Cancer and have lost their hair due to chemotherapy. This desire was welcomed with open arms by the wonderful women who frequent our yarn shop. An idea became a reality and we gathered over 80 hats to donate last October during Breast Cancer Awareness month. Since that time I was asked by the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance volunteer coordinator if we would continue to knit hats not only for women, but men and children who are also battling cancer and have lost their hair to chemotherapy too. Nancy and I are thrilled to honor their request and have dedicated a regularly scheduled time each month to Knitting with Purpose.

Please join us the 3rd Friday of every month, beginning this Friday March 16th from 5-8 pm. Light refreshments will be served. Healing Hat pattern is available in the shop or via the Community link on our website.

Renewal

It's that time of year when renewal is seen everywhere, the trees are awakening buds swelling the tiniest of flowers emerge from the depths of the earth and open themselves to the brief and fleeting moments of sunlight. The birds can be heard singing and the nesting begins, lawnmowers will not be far behind and our neighbors will begin the rituals of spring cleaning in their yards and homes.

Nancy and I felt a need to renew ourselves this last Monday and took one of our days off to trek up north to Woodinville and visit one of our favorite places on earth MOLBAK'S nursery www.molbaks.com. We were in our element, full of hope and promise, gardening has a way of bringing out the best in both of us. The beauty found in the plants this time of year is unbelievable not to mention all the fabulous ideas they display in containers as well as patio and entertaining departments. We felt like we had died and gone to heaven. We found some beautiful colors to bring back to the shop and a few treats for ourselves!

We then went and visited a fellow local yarn shop and enjoyed our time there with owner Deb, tried some Mango & Red Raspberry Iced Tea, enjoyed seeing some yarns we do not carry and again we were in our element. From there we enjoyed ourselves at one of our favorite lunch spots, came back to the shop to drop off our goodies and headed to Suburbia for a couple of latte's and some knitting. It was one of the most enjoyable days we've had in a long time, we realized how much we miss spending time together doing those things we use to but just don't get much time to do anymore. I highly recommend grabbing a friend and heading out for a day of renewal, connecting with one another and enjoying each other's company. A special thank you to Nancy for making my day a fabulous one, I love ya!