Fun New Tools - Try your hand at a Lucet

We welcome summer buy adding some new products to our Patchwork Frog family.

We are now carrying hand crafted Wool Tree Mills products. We have stocked two items. Lucets and Wool tree wool stands.

A Lucet is a medieval wool fork that was used to make a square cording that can be used for trim, ties, belts laces and bracelets. Easy to use and easy to learn this is even a fun tool to teach your children, The best part is that it is small and easy to carry and requires no counting stiches or reading a pattern

We also have Wool Tree stands. Simple place your yarn ball on the stand through the center hole and knit. The tree rotated as you knit. Never have your yarn roll away from you again.

http://patchworkfrog.com/woodtreemills.html

Reports Reviews and What is new for Spring in the world of yarn

The winter TNNA (National Needle Art) show has ended. I took classes and was able to see all the new items, yarn and patterns available for Spring and Summer and I will be sharing information and new arrivals as quickly as I am able to get things sorted and unpacked.

If you haven’t tired Tunisian Crochet because you thought it was only for blankets you will be very surprised. Several new books are available with easy and interesting patterns. I snagged a preview copy of Sheryl Theis latest book "Tunisian Crochet Encore" and I have already started to make the poncho on page 31 the book will be available in March

　

　

　

　

　



New Arrivals:

Denise in a Della for Crochet, Double_Ended Style


This version of the popular Denise in a Della Q set includes 2 hooks of each size. Ideal for stitchers who like double_ended Tunisian crochet.Includes:2 each of 12 hook sizes from F5 (3.75mm) to 19 (15mm)6 cords (5", 9", 12", 14", 16" and 19") (13, 23, 30, 36, 41 and 48 cm)4 end buttons; and 2 extenders.Everything you need for Afghan, Tunisian, or regular crocheting. All in a specially adapted della Q case of luxurious poly/silk, with hook pockets labeled in US and metric sizes. Measurements: 3 ¾" x 7 ½" x 1 ?" (9.5 cm x 19 cm x 4.8 cm) when closed, 14 ¾" x 7 ½" (37.5 cm x 19 cm) open. $79.95 http://patchworkfrog.com/crochet.html

Denise in a Della Double, jewelry roll style


Includes 14 pairs of knitting needles (US5/3.75mm_ US19/15mm including a second pair of US5/3.75mm needles and 7mm needles), plus12 crochet hooks (from F5/3.75mm to 19/15mm), and 9 cords (2 each of 3" & 5", 1 each of 9", 12", 14", 16" and 19") (8, 13, 23, 30, 36, 41 and 48 cm), along with 4 end buttons, and 2 extenders. All in a specially adapted della Q case of poly/silk, with needle pockets labeled in US and metric sizes. Measurements: 3 ¾" x 7 ½" x 2 ½" (9.5 cm x 19 cm x 6.3 cm) when closed, 14 ½" x 13 ½" (37 cm x 34.5 cm) open. Available in four colors. $114.95 http://patchworkfrog.com/deniseneedles.html

Knittingfever is super excited to announce the Monster Crochet Along with 10 brand new designs made exclusively for them by FreshStitches: adorable crochet amigurumi!

Amigurumi is a style of crocheted (or knit) stuffed animals from Japan with an emphasis on cute. You’ve probably seen them before, and have maybe even made a few, but this is a whole new batch to play with.

StaceyTrock has designed 10 brand new monster patterns for us using Ella Rae Classic Wool yarn. There will be two patterns each week from now until Halloween.

Meet Alfo

 

 

Your first, fierce new friend is Alfo! A ten-inch tall googly-eye monster ready to shout his love from the mountain tops. Or maybe the back of a dark cave, you decide where Alfo lives.

Download the pattern here. You’ll need the main color, small amounts of two contrasting colors, and plastic eyes (if desired).

Alfo is made with basic shapes, which makes him a good building block for the other monsters.

Stacey’s patterns are very well written with clear instructions and pictures of the various steps to let you know you’re on the right track.

Meet Bixi

 

The second monster looking to creep into your heart is Bixi! This 5.5 inch-tall bundle of monstrous delight has its arms flung wide in welcome.

Download the Bixi pattern here. You’ll notice Bixi uses a few more colors than Alfo.

Thea
The Patchwork Frog
www.patchworkFrog.com

 

Summer Shawls - Part 1

We enjoyed a wonderful two week vacation in Mexico and I finally had time to knit and read.
I actually read 4 books and finished 3 shawls so I get to cross off some things on my “To Do” list. I will be posting pictures of each one separately.
Spring and summer are a wonderful time to wear shawls and there were several on Ravelry that I had stored in my library hoping to find the time to knit them. For those of you who are looking for alternative projects using the wonderful ruffling yarns you should consider making this shawl.
Using Marina Glitz http://patchworkfrog.com/rozettiyarns.html#glitz  I made the circular shawl on Ravelry called kelp-forest-shawlette, a free pattern, and before you knit do watch the video it helps.  I started mine a few times before I got it the way I wanted it. http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/kelp-forest-shawlette the pattern called for using two balls of yarn but when i finished the first ball I realized that it was big enough so here is a great idea for another one bal project. I have tried this shawl on several people and it is wonderful. Since you fold it over doubling the lace you can control how low the back drapes. No matter if you wear it with jeans, a sun dress or a sexy black dress for dinner out it will certainly be a favorite and what a wonderful special gift for some lucky person if you don’t want to make it for yourself. You can knit this one in an afternoon and it is light and the perfect carry along project. I used #9 needles. You can use a larger needle but it doesn’t change the gauge as it is determined by the holes in the yarn and I found that working with a smaller needle was actually better. About every 12 inches a gentle tug on the yarn to pull down the lace is advisable

FEBRUARY DISCOUNTS

Valentines Day is just around the corner and as our gift to you we will have started something new. We will be featuring items that will be offered at a 10% discount. A notice will go out announcing the featured discount and it will be available for a short time only. The discounts will keep changing so get yours while they are active. This month we will be picking items that are red or pink. Some of these items will be new arrivals including yarn so check back often to get your discount before it is gone.
Please check the What’s new Page to see which item is featured if you missed our announcement on Facebook or our Yahoo group page.
The first item offered at a discount is Fix A Stitch. A wonderful tool to have in your knitting bag.
http://patchworkfrog.com/notions.html and remember orders of $65 and over qualify for free shipping.

The Patchwork Frog Knitting Blog: Preview "FEBRUARY DISCOUNTS"

The Patchwork Frog Knitting Blog: Preview "FEBRUARY DISCOUNTS"

Dreamz Interchangeable Knitting Needles - my evaluation

Dreamz Interchangeable Knitting Needles

Do you Dreamz in color? I finally had the time to try the new Dreamz wooden interchangeable needles and I found that I like them very much.

A bit of background first. The first interchangeable needles that I can remember were offered by Boye. The needles were steel, each size being a different color. The man designed the needles for his wife, he then designed a hard resin set where the needles snapped into the cords and he named this set after his wife, Denise. The Denise company was sold a while back to a family who has taken this set and made many changes. The Denise set has been one of my personal favorites, and the standard by which I measure other needles because I find them comfortable to use. The one complaint that I have is it is sometimes hard to read the needle size especially on the older sets and i have to admit that since I owned several (4 ) from before I started my business I often am working with the older sets although I did buy myself one of the Pink sets that supports breast cancer and the markings on the newer needle are much easier to read .

The Dreamz design is similar the Boye set and the same as the Knit Picks set but at a better price. The needles are colored wood with each size a different color. This means you can easily match up the pairs. Unlike the Boye set the cable is soft and flexible and the join to the needle is amazingly smooth. The needle tips are just pointed enough to make them easy to work with but not so pointed that they will split the yarn. Each cord comes with a small tool that can be inserted into a small hole to help you tighten the connection.

The set comes in a zippered plastic pouch with sleeves to hold the needle points and a removable pouch to hold the cables. End buttons and tightening tools are in small zip lock bags.

The basic set offers needle sizes 4 though 11. Also included are needle markers so if you transfer your work to a holder you just slip on a marker to let you know what size needle you were using.

All of this is priced at $82.00 http://patchworkfrog.com/dreamz.html. You can add to the basic set the chunky set which has needles US 13, 15, and 17 tips plus two cords, 24" and 32 " four end caps, two keys, and a flat envelope style carrying case that you can put into the larger case that holds the delux set.