Local Yarn Shops Bring the Fiber Community Together

Local yarn shops are owned and staffed by people who live and breathe yarn.  These are the people who understand the needs, wants, and desires of crocheters, knitters, and fiber artists of all kind.

Laurel Hill respects and appreciates the vital role independent, retail yarn stores play in their local communities.  Sharing one’s expertise with others, and teaching the ancient craft of knit and crochet is the foundation that provides stability and growth in the hand-knitting industry.    

To meet each retail shop’s individual, unique requirements, we have designed a starter kit that allows retail stores to select items and quantities that match their customer’s needs.

Our starter kit includes the following:

- 2 each of Laurel Hill Straight Knitting Needles sizes 4-5-6-7-8-9-10-10.5-11-13-15

- 1 triangular pair of needles size 8

- 1 each Laurel Hill crochet hooks sizes D-E-F-G-7-H-I-J-K-L-M

- 1 Nam Oc crochet hook size F

- 1 Trai crochet hook size K

- 1 Double Point Sock Needle package of six needles 2mm

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Dye Your Own Yarn With Kool-Aid

I felt a strong sense of nostalgia as I scoured my neighborhood grocery store looking for the sugary, powdered substance that my parents only let me have in moderation when growing up.

I found the Kool-Aid aisle almost instantaneously.  After quickly glancing at my choices of changin’ cherry, pink lemonade, and black cherry, I found what I was looking for: blue moon berry.  It was the perfect blend of turquoise and aqua, which I would use to dye my yarn.

Kool-Aid is readily available and non-toxic, which makes it the perfect substance to dye your own yarn.  Kool-Aid dyeing works on animal fibers such as wool, mohair, and alpaca but does not work on cotton or synthetics.  You must use pure wool yarn for the best results!

For steps on how to dye your own yarn with Kool-Aid visit Wool Festival.com.

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Portland’s First Sock Summit is a Hit

Last Friday 935 avid knitters, who gathered at the Oregon Convention Center, had the satisfaction of setting a world knitting record.  The enthused crowd knitted and purled nonstop for 15 minutes.  It was a moment that will go down in knitting history.

Why socks? Devoted knitters believe socks are great for trying new patterns and techniques, easy to transport around, offer a variety of patterns, and are necessary;therefore, always serving as the perfect gift.

Those who visited the Sock Summit marketplace toured an overwhelming amount of booths, and had the chance to knit on the world’s largest sock.  The Sock Museum was also a highlight, which showcased socks from each decade.

Laurel Hill would like to personally thank the knitters and crocheters at Sock Summit who test drove our new products.  This was very beneficial and inspiring as it gave us a better understanding of how to meet your knitting and crochet needs.

We would also like to thank you in advance for introducing us to your local yarn shop. 

 

 

 

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Crochet and Environmental Enthusiasts Crochet Coral Reef to Warn About the Effects of Global Warming

Coral reefs around the world are dying off at a rate faster than rain forests.  Scientists now believe the reef will be devastated in the coming years. 

One of the greatest wonders of the natural world, the Great Barrier Reef stretches along the coast of Queensland, Australia.  However, global warming and pollutants threaten the reef.  

For this reason, the Crochet Reef project commenced to draw attention to how rising temperatures and pollution are slowly destroying the reef. 

The Crochet Reef is made up of many different “sub-reefs,” each with its own colors and styling.  These include the following: the Bleached Reef, the Beaded Reef, the Branched Anemone Garden, and The Ladies’ Silurian Atoll, which contains close to 1000 individual crochet pieces made by dozens of contributors around the world.

In addition to the woolen reefs, there is a Toxic Reef crocheted from yarn and plastic trash.  The Toxic Reef is a part of the project that responds to the escalating issue of plastic trash that is problematic to our oceans and killing marine life.

For more information about the project view the Ted Talks Margaret Wertheim on the beautiful math of coral.

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