“Boy Meets Girl Hats” (plus more Spud & Chloe Outer patterns now available at Knitting Etc.)

From the same folks that brought us the luxurious Blue Sky Alpacas yarn, we received our first order of Spud & Chloe Outer in 8 colors yesterday. This superwash 65% wool, 35% organic cotton blend knits up to 2.5 sts/in and makes a warm, soft, yet rugged fabric perfect for winter hats and outer wear for both children and adults. When it gets muddy, throw it in the washing machine (cold wash) and dryer (tumble dry low) for easy cleaning!

“When I had my first baby I lost my mind,” says Adrienne Martini, author of the critically acclaimed Hillbilly Gothic. “Apart from high-grade pharmaceuticals, the only other thing that got me back on track was knitting.” Now, nearly six years later, the drugs are a distant memory but the yarn is still with her. In SWEATER QUEST: My Year of Knitting Dangerously (Free Press Trade Paperback Original; March 23, 2010; $15.00), Martini recounts her mission to knit the Holy Grail of sweaters while illuminating larger issues of perseverance and purpose, relationships and obsession.

As a working mother of two, Adrienne Martini’s life was full of moments that made her feel frustrated and helpless. Looking for a challenge whose execution she could control, one that would make her feel in charge, she decided to knit “Mary Tudor,” a famously rare and difficult pattern from an out-of-print book, in a discontinued yarn, by notorious genius designer Alice Starmore. The pattern’s mere mention can hush a roomful of experienced knitters, but as Martini explains, it “is a knitter’s Mount Everest. It is our Grail, our curse and our compulsion. I want one more than I can begin to tell you.”

Adrienne will be visiting Knitting Etc. on Saturday, July 31 from 1 to 3 pm to share her latest book with knitters in Ithaca. The event is free and open to the public. Please e-mail us if you plan to attend Adrienne’s talk and book signing so we can make sure there is enough room for everyone. We now have Sweater Quest in stock for those who would like to read the book before the event. Additional copies will also be available on July 31.

Our annual summer sale starts this Friday, July 9 to Sunday July 25. Everything in stock will be 10% - 60% off*!

New this year is our “Bag Sale”: receive additional discounts if you buy all the remaining stock of select colors of select yarns! Quantities and selections are limited. Look for the Bag Sale section in the shop. Come early before they are gone!

* Sale prices apply to only in-store purchases of in-stock items and cannot be combined with other discounts.

Our “Ithaca Jacket” (designed by a former Ithacan Connie Chang Chinchio for Winter/Spring 2010 issue of Knitscene magazine) sample arrived today. We grabbed an Ithacan to model it (Thanks Lynda!) The class starts on July 7. Call 277-1164 to sign up and make your Ithaca Jacket in time to wear it next fall!