Thursday, August 31, 2006

Dye Classes


Dye classes are available to groups here at the Wool2Dye4 studio. Group size is limited to 5 students (six, if you beg me). Classes last four hours. Cost of the class is $20 plus purchase of one 8 oz skein of yarn to dye in class. Students bring a lunch, and I furnish drinks and dessert.

To organize a class and reserve a date, email info@wool2dye4.com. My studio is in Lynchburg Virginia and there are terrific Bed and Breakfasts nearby for lodging.

The picture is of the most recent class's dye jobs -- all colorful and vibrant, and one black skein of Licorice Twist (which will become part of a Halloween stocking).

Monday, August 28, 2006

Felting Yarn at a Good Price

I have in stock about 40 pounds of a bulky yarn that felts very well. Cestari Fine Merino, Babies Breath comes in 4 oz skeins of about 210 yards each. Cost: $10 per skein.

This is a good price to try out some new skills. This yarn is good enough to give you a nice finished yarn -- if your experiments turn out well! -- but not prohibitively expensive.

It is listed on the SPECIALS page of the website. To order, just email me and tell me how many skeins you'd like. I will invoice you through PayPal and ship when your payment clears. Easy!

Good for felting, hats, Kool Aid dyeing, acid and natural dye experiments, warm wraps/scarves. This is a good deal.

Sunday, August 27, 2006

Pricing Hand Knit Items

A friend who has been in the retail end of the yarn business for years recently reminded me of the formula for pricing handknit items.

Cost of materials plus $0.15 x number of yards = Cost of Hand Knit Items.

Friday, August 18, 2006

Aran Sweater Yarns

Today a customer wrote that she is about to begin an Aran sweater, and wanted me to help her decide if Andee or Montana would be a better choice. Her concerns were that the yarn be smooth enough to make good cables and that it feel soft against the skin.

My answer: Montana will probably make a nicer cable. It is a firm three-ply in a very round yarn, which always makes better cables. It is a soft Merino and will probably knit up into a good Aran Sweater.

My suggestion: Blue Faced Leicester ARAN. This is the very yarn that is used in the British Isles for Aran sweaters. It is a three-ply, nice and round. When I first saw it, I thought that it was a little big for an Aran sweater, but it has some stretch to the fiber and knits up into a truly nice fabric. It also makes cables that have definition.

Saturday, August 05, 2006

Bulky Blue Faced Leicester

A new yarn has arrived from England, a bulky BFL in two-ply. Interesting, fluffy, and definitely bulky at around 560 yards per pound. This yarn is wound onto half-kilo cones, which is just a touch more than one pound, and sells for $40 per cone. I've been needing a bulky yarn and I think that the BFL will be a good one. Yes, it is bit more expensive than merino, but not out of sight, and it is Blue Faced Leicester after all, a rare breed.

Soon a picture and description will go on the website. First I will list it on the SPECIALS page while waiting for my webmaster to post it on the HOME page and integrate it into the website.