Lili Lace Yarn is the easiest lace yarn to work with!

Do you like lace but are a bit afraid of really thin yarn?  Do I have a yarn for you!

This is Lili Lace Yarn:  875 yards of a 2-ply, slightly heavier lace wt yarn in 100% merino.  It knits and crochets up so easily.  I've done so many shawls from "regular" lace yarn, and I love it, but for ease and speed, Lili yarn tops it.  There's just enough weight to it, so that you don't feel as if it's going to slide off your needles, and the stitches are really easy to see (especially if your eyes are not as young as they were.)  Price is a very competitive $30/skein.  Needle size can go from a 2 or 3 to a 6, if you like your shawls to be really lacy.  It is a glorious yarn to work with, I can promise you that!

Cameras and lights and monitors being what they are, the colors in the picture are pretty accurate (at least on my monitor).  The upper left hand yarn, the purple one, is move vivid and so is the upper right hand one.  That one is called Paprika, and really looks like the real thing.  Given that I'm Hungarian, I know the color of paprika, and this is it.

Where?  In my Etsy shop, of course!

A hint on working with any lace yarn:  use needles with a tiny bit of drag to them.  The Knit Pro wooden ones are perfect.  A good sharp point, and the yarn doesn't slide off the way it would with a metal needle.  Addi lace needles are also very good.  Bamboo will work well provided that the point is sharp.

End of Year Sale!

Ta da!

It's the PennyRose Yarns End of Year Sale!  Amazing prices with everything reduced.  Yarns that were previously on sale, are now further reduced!

http://fritzl.etsy.com

Go forth and buy yarn!  I need to make space to dye up more goodies.  

 

Sale ends Dec. 31, 2012

PennyRose Yarns is back!

Yippee!  After a horrendous year, with both our moms passing away, I'm finally feeling a bit more human.  So to celebrate, I'm back to dyeing yarn.  Just a little bit at a time; that quilting is always calling me, but the urge to knit and dye is coming back.  I'm so pleased. 
I spent much of the last year taking my mom to various doctors, hospital visits, etc, etc.  And my dear mother-in-law was ill for such a long time, too.  We went up to MA a lot to visit.  It's time to get back to living. 

 http:fritzl.etsy.com

Here are the first two yarn listed today.  There will be more and more, including a few bundles, but this is a good place to start.

Toffee Lili Lace Yarn, with that incredible 875 yards of merino.  A bit heavier than "normal" lace yarn, it works up very easily and is a pleasure to wear and to knit or crochet.  $33.00 + shipping.

Here's Tracy Benji yarn, 470+ yards of superwash merino.  No nylon, so probably not for socks, but makes lovely shawlettes and baby clothing.  $21.00 + shipping.

WHERE?  http:fritzl.etsy.com

PennyRose Yarns is back in business. 

The Yarnarian loves lace yarn!

This yarn is irresistible. I know, because I dye it and touch it and admire it and knit with it. I'm talking about my Carrie yarn: 80/20 merino/silk, approx 1300 yards, and wonderful, wonderful, wonderful! I really mean wonderful! As in: you don't need to knit with it; just drape it around your neck. It's that soft and delicious. $34/skein.

Yep, these are variegated yarns, BUT the values in each one are pretty close and the yarns will knit up as almost solids with a sparkle to them.

Adobe. This looks like a sun-kissed southwest moment, and will work up as an almost solid yarn.




Calm. A gentle pale green combination that will work up as an almost solid.




Soft Clay. A wonderful neutral yarn with a truly unusual colorway.




Sweet Love. More beautiful in person than you can imagine!




Gentle. Just what the name implies: a soft, gentle touch.




Tender Love. Beyond lovely!




And 2 yarns that I haven't dyed since a year ago. I found them in my pile of odd and end yarns and remembered how much I love knitting with them. These are Judith yarns: 80/10/10 merino/cashmere/silk 125 grams and 800+ yards. The yarn is a 3-ply light fingering weight, and perfect for lace. A bit heavier than Carrie, but lighter than my sock yarns. And that yardage can't be beat. $35/skein!

The first one is Blush, and I'm just showing it to you. I think my dearest friend (for whom the yarn is named) wants it. But just in case she doesn't, then it's up for grabs.




And this one is Cool Breeze, and it looks just like what you would imagine a cool breeze would be.




You want before I list on Etsy? email me at
fritzL234 AT yahoo DOT com

Lace Yarn!

Lace knitters, this is for you. I tend not to sell a lot of lace yarn except when it is in conjunction with a mystery KAL. The thing is that I really like to dye lace yarn, but how many skeins can I use for myself? I only dye up almost solids in lace; variegateds are tricky to use. While I'm happy to do one as an occasional custom order, I know that as a group, they don't sell well, and anyhow, when I knit lace shawls, I want the pattern to show up and not fight with the yarn. So here's my question? Would you be interested in a selection of colors that I can dye up as custom colors for you? e.g.. I would have maybe 10 different colors that you could choose from and then I would dye to order. Does this sound realistic? Would you be interested?

Lace yarn is considerably more money for me to buy than sock yarn, so I don't want to dye up yarn that no one will want. On the other hand, I love dyeing it. And that is my conundrum.

Any ideas from you would be most appreciated. You can comment here on my blog, send a personal message to me on Ravelry (ruth on ravelry), or email me here:

fritzL234 AT yahoo DOT com.

No obligation, just me noodling around with an idea.

Hanne - Thanks for your thoughts. That's exactly what I was thinking too. People will buy sock yarn just for the fun of it. It's relatively inexpensive and takes not much time to knit up. Lace shawls are another matter. They take a lot of time, and people are much fussier about color. So, yeah, I think this might be a good idea. If you think of anything else, let me know. I appreciate any ideas.

Posie Knit - I was thinking of sending out small samples, perhaps a yard, of the undyed yarn to those who wanted them.

MK - that's a good idea. I have some ideas in my head that I have to translate into actual knitting and charts.

The Yarnarian is Sneaky!

Who ever heard of a heads-up on a Friday? OK, a mini-heads up. Just for the fun of it. Lace yarns today, sock yarns on Monday as usual. Hey, I have to keep you on your knitting toes.

2 half skeins of Emily lace yarn. 600+ yards and plenty for a scarf or small shawl. Go check out the patterns on Victorian Lace Today and you'll find plenty for a small skein. And the cost is half the usual cost, and you won't have to figure out what to do with leftovers.

Sapphire and Lichen




2 lovely skeins of Judith yarn: 800 yards of a skinny 3-ply non-superwash fingering wt lace yarn. If you love knitting lace but want a change from lace wt yarns, here you are. 80/10/10 merino/silk/cashmere!

Plum and gold!




Lichen is gone as well as Sapphire and Amethyst. The yarn sharks have been sharking!

The Yarnarian and Darth Yarnarian

I had a visit the other day from a strange character, Darth Yarnarian. Seems like this odd evil person decided to invade my dyeing chamber (AKA the laundry room).



And then as I cried: Fie! Be gone Evil Darth Yarnarian, this evil apparition disappeared, only to reappear upstairs with my new scarf!



I waved my magic wand, a wooden spoon, and said the magic words: "ipsy bipsy", and lo and behold there was a flash of fire, a clash of symbols and a roll of thunder (hey, it was pouring outside), and Darth Yarnarian went back to her evil demesne.

BTW, this is my awesome new respirator mask. Scary no? I sound like Darth Chicken when I breathe in it!

Dyeing news: I bought this amazing new lace yarn with 80/10/10 merino/cashmere/silk and I dyed it yesterday.



It is so soft and wonderful. Not superwash as I've mentioned somewhere else, but who in holy hell washes lace in the washing machine. Not moi, that's for sure. 800 yards of yarny goodness. I don't know what it will be, nor am I ready to work on it, but I just couldn't resist dyeing it.

The color is one that I wear all spring and summer, and it will look gorgeous over the browns and deep greens that I wear in the cool weather. I might have been subconsciously influenced by this top:




I wasn't wearing that top when I dyed. My dyeing clothing deserves a post all of its own, but I wore it the day before.

And if you notice, I'm modeling Titania's Waltz scarf. Yes, I know, it clashes, but this is what I had on, the Hubbo was dragooned into taking a couple of pics, as he kvetched loudly, so you get what you get.

Titania is the correct spelling. She is not Russian as in Tatiana; she is Oberon's consort; a fairy queen, and she bosses Oberon around because we women need to boss mens around, even kingly guys.

Here are the main rules about bossing mens around: they have to kill bugs, take out the garbage, reach whatever you can't, move furniture, drive if you hate driving, and make you howl with laughter. Women are so perfect that we don't need rules. Ebil laugh here. Mwahahaha. This must be the effect of Darth Yarnarian!

Off to slay evil chickens, do the dishes, etc, etc.

Sockmadmary - I don't know yet what colors I'm going to dye the new yarn in. I might take suggestions from you all, and then dye up. No obligation, just me getting a feel from what the Great International Public wants (or want as you Brits say, which I don't get, but so it goes).

Ruth in Ottawa - It's symbolic of cymbals or symbols or symbolism or botulism or...

Carolyn - The hair color depends a. on the dye job of my beautician, and b, how long it has been since the hair was colored. The real hair is virtually white, and makes me look ancient.

Holly - I have a silver gray somewhere in my dye collection. I bet it would look lovely in this yarn. Now to find it......

Ria & Scrabblequeen - It's my inner glamour that you're seeing.

Skeppie - Unfortunately it is moi. I think the mask adds a certain elegance to my appearance.

Henya - Purples and lavendars and such are one of my favorite combinations. I don't know about your part of Brooklyn with the summer aroma, but I gotta tell you that wandering through Manhattan on a hot swealtering day and walking past a pile of garbage bags is one of the delights of civilization!

CathyR - I personally think that the mask is very flattering.

Olivia23 - Can't you just see me in that mask at the MOA! That would surely terrify everyone except for Miss P and the Hubbo!

The Yarnarian is Shifting into Vacation Mode

One week from tomorrow and we're off to the Cape, G-d willing. And I'm now in official vacation mode. I don't even feel like dyeing. Can you even imagine? I just want to walk and knit and read and veg and schlep behind the Hubbo on his endless thrift shop forays. I must be getting sick. Thrift shops? In the millions? It's a disease.

Knitting news: I started a scarf the other day in my Emily lace yarn. I had dyed up 2 half skeins in medium and light violet, and wanted to play with the yarns. You know I'm into these half skeins, but how to convince others that they need to play with them too. Hah! Such fun. Here's the beginning of the scarf. the first pic shows the 2 colors together.




What you don't know is what comes next. I'd love to get to that point before leaving next week. We'll see. My cranky wrists rule the knitting.

My trip into the city (people from the metro NY area refer to it as the city) yesterday was delightful; even the sun came out for a bit. I met my friend at Lord & Taylor, where we had pumpkin pancakes for lunch, and we chatted and shared projects, and then walked over to Bryant Park to check out Kinokuniya. I like the one in Palisades Mall better. They have less merchandise there, but more in the knitting world and less in the crochet world. I didn't buy anything but had an enjoyable browse.

Off to package yarns for the sotm shipment.

BTW, if you want the lastest news on what and when I'm listing on Etsy, you can join up here. Or you can continue to read the blog, or you can do both. Scary, isn't it? Advertising is very expensive for a little operation like me, and this gets the word out, plus it might end up as a venue for a KAL, or not. You know me.

Henya - In the immortal words of the Hubbo: Calm down. Hold your girdle (whatever that means). I'm just taking a short break. The trouble with working at home is that you're always working, So to get a break, I need to go away. Recharge my batteries, Get energized. Yarn will emerge indeed after my Cape Cod moment.

Carolyn - Oh, lady, you know I need this trip! You need a trip too. So you and the Hubs should drive up north to Cape Cod and relax. Maybe flying into Boston is easier than that long, long drive of yours. But wait a bit, it's going to be chilly this time of year.

The Yarnarian Answers the Question.

So what is this thing?



It's this:





Many years ago, I knit a shawl with a border of 2 matching colors, and I loved it. I got lots of complements on it too.

So I was thinking about dyeing up lace yarn that matched. And that's what that pretty blob of yarn is. 2 2-oz skeins of Emily lace yarn dyed from the same batch of dye only in lighter and darker values. Each skein is over 600 yards, more than enough to make a scarf or smaller shawl, and with a matching 600 yard skein for color work or borders or ruffles or whatever you want. Is that cool or what?

I'm going to sell the skeins bundled together for the usual Emily lace price of $32, and for that price you can get 2 scarves, or a larger shawl with trim or whatever you want to do with it.

If you like this idea, but want a custom order, let me know. It's hard for me to figure out what colors people want here. So, I'm perfectly amenable for a custom order here.

Here are the first 2 bundles:

Apple Green, just perfect for spring and summer. Those are the pics above.

Tapestry Rose, an antique rose color that I'm wild about:






And that's my new mania.

We're off to pick up elder grandkid tomorrw. A. is coming to spend his spring break with us. We plan on having a lot of fun with him. He wants to dye yarn with me, and we'll take him to weird and wacky museums, activities, etc. He's almost 9, way too smart for his own good, and tons of fun. I'll try to blog here and there, but you'll understand if I drop off the blogosphere for a while.

Linda - What do you thing about colors to dye?

The Yarnarian Gets Laced.

Some lovely new lace yarns are up and ready for you. I'm thinking spring, and lace yarn always seems springtime to me.

Pretty Pastel:



Gem:




English Garden:





Emerald:



Before Dusk:



Spring Pink:



All available here in my Etsy shop.


So now I have 11 brand new lace yarns in total, and I still feel like dyeing more. But instead, I'm working on some new springtime sock yarns.

I have such a case of spring fever, and March, that most dreaded month, is still ahead of us. By the time March rolls around, I'm thoroughly sick of winter, and March here always comes with snow storms and such. Blech. Still, we get a nice reward afterward.

The Yarnarian Has a Visit from the PQ!

In case you were wondering, the PQ is the Pastel Queen, aka my alter ego. Yesterday she came out with a vengeance and I dyed up 4 stunning pale pale lace yarns, all in Zephyr. I love doing yarns like this. They are pale enough so that any pattern shows up, but they still have some color. The PQ was most gracious about my dyeing efforts. Here they are:

Cameo, Violet, Mint, and Blush.






And then, much to the Pastel Queen's horror, I did a couple of much darker sock yarns:

Canyon and Walk in the Woods:




These goodies and more will arrive in my Etsy shop over the week.

Off to the gym. I really need it today. I'm loggy and have no energy. Off to tread on the treadmill and lift those weights.

Jen - I'm glad you like the yarns. I was just working on the sock but have to take a little break and do some laundry.