Lopi’s ready-made blankets are back! These blankets are gorgeous heirloom pieces, prefect for your home or cottage, ideal in the living room or at the end of the bed, and they also make beautiful gifts. Made of Icelandic wool, they are extremely durable, lightweight, breathable and warm. The fabric is additionally combed after weaving to make it soft. The blankets come in a wide variety of patterns and all are reversible. The offerings are extensive this year with twenty-seven styles available, so there’s something for everyone (I’m partial to the ones with the colour blocks, the monochrome textures and the graphic polka-dots). To see larger images check out the Lopi 2021 Blanket Catalog HERE. We also have a sample in store for you to see and feel.
Please note, these are ready-made blankets, they are not a knitting kit and unfortunately do not come with a stunning landscape as a back-drop.
Sizes vary, see images for dimensions
27 styles are available for 2021
Fully reversible
Made in Iceland
Hand Wash (or machine wash on delicate alone) in cold water with delicate wash (Eucalan or Soak), lay flat or hang to dry.
Pre-Orders
All pre-orders must be received by September 16th and will ship/be available for pick-up in early November. We will only be ordering these blankets once this year, and will only be filling pre-orders, so be sure to place your order if you want one!
USE code LOPI21 at checkout to take $20 off your Lopi blanket purchase!
The Wool
Icelandic wool has historically been crucial to the survival of the nation as it provided both warmth and protection throughout centuries of harsh weather. It is also quite unique compared to the wool of other sheep breeds. The inner fibres are fine, soft and highly insulating while the outer fibres are long, glossy and water repellent. Therefore products made of Icelandic wool are extremely durable, lightweight and breathable
The Manufacturer Ístex Ltd. is the main wool manufacturer in Iceland, with over a century of wool tradition behind their products. They create wool blankets, with narrative threads that weave together a modern sensibility of style, the artistic inspiration of a dramatic landscape and the unique quality of Icelandic yarn.
Our local knitting guild, The Needlework Guild of Canada, very graciously invited me to attend their first Knit in the Park, so I whipped up a little kit for them, a Pumpkin Beanie. I figured it’s timely, what with harvest season approaching. Plus, there is no child ever who isn’t ADORABLE in a pumpkin hat. Since our guild knits for charity I wanted it to be something that was gender neutral, and makes a great gift for anyone. I sized the hat from preemie to kids of all ages, and you should be able to get 2 pumpkin hats out of one kit (and probably a third green hat too). The yarn is the ever soft and Berroco Vintage, but if you want to upgrade go for the combo I assembled with Malabrigo Rios.
We wanted the skill level to be accessible to knitters in the beginner spectrum, so there isn’t any colourwork or charts, you just need the following skills:
Read a knitting pattern
Cast on & Bind off
Knit & Purl in the same row
Work in the round on circular & double pointed needles
I can’t believe I forgot to mention yesterday (smack my head) that we are going back to our Fall store hours this SUNDAY! Starting THIS WEEK we will be open Monday to Sunday from 11 am to 6pm.
Use discount code SHOP10 to receive an extra 10% off all online orders of $75+
We really need to move out the summery yarns … if you are inclined towards the linens and cottons and blends therein, or you live in a warm climate, this is an excellent opportunity … use the discount code SHOP10 in your online order of over $75 and you’ll get an EXTRA 10% Off, on top of the 25%. Seriously, we need the space ….
After my update yesterday my friend Jo sent me a great podcast episode. I was feeling a bit disappointed that I didn’t have an opportunity to share it because it’s timely with the pandemic psychology …. but now I do! As with many things Jo sends me, I have to listen to it again to really take it all in. I thought it was just going to be about the pandemic stuff, but it was so much more. Amy Cuddy’s story is just remarkable, it deserves its own episode. At the start of the episode I felt really intimidated and resistant, like these women were so far beyond me, but within a few minutes I was like “No, these women are my people … I’ve just been undervaluing myself”. Thank you Jo, I love you and I’m so grateful for you. I don’t know how to access the heart emoji on my keyboard, so in their absence please visualize a bunch of them.
Now I must go back to work and do things with strings (and internets) …. xox Haley
It’s time to touch base and connect! I initially wrote this blog post/newsletter in mid August in a state irritation, but I didn’t want to pass those feelings on to you, so I sat on it.
Classes? Sorry, still on hold for Pandemic.
Unfortunately, I am not presently scheduling classes and don’t plan on it in the near future. I mentioned in July’s Housekeeping that we are not offering any service where people have to spend more that 5 to 10 minutes together, and that still stands, vaccination or no. I wrote a whole big segment explaining why I’m not comfortable doing it, citing lots of references, but you know what …. it’s doesn’t matter. We’ll offer classes again when we feel it’s SAFE. Reading and editing that section was SUCH A BUMMER (probably why I sat on it for a month). I want to embrace and engender joy, and growth, and change. The world is going to spin, it doesn’t need me to keep it going. I’ve got my sights set on greater things, I choose to lean into the positive and see what comes out of that.
What I’m Working On
Last week on CBC radio I heard a journalist say “Let’s face it, at this point (in the pandemic) we’re all just phoning it in”. He was referring to the psychological burnout a lot of people have been experiencing. I haven’t gotten to that place yet (or maybe I have and I’m just in denial). Anyway, since COVID started I’ve been struggling with creative block. Luckily it hasn’t affected ability to come up with projects for you, my research skills are all intact, but I’ve been struggling with a serious case the UFOs (unfinished objects). I have a pile of marginally started projects on my dining room table … they’re sad little things, languishing in project bags. Anyway, if you’ve been wondering where my personal finished projects have gone, they haven’t.
You guys often ask what I’m working on, so the following are the very best of my best laid plans and good intentions …..
STRIPES! By Andrea Mowry
I have started swatching for STRIPES!. I’m using Fibre Co Road to China Light. I’m trying to work with the yarns that make me happiest and bring me the most joy. I’ve combined some neutrals and purples for my palette (see below … they’re in no particular order). The yarn is all wound up and ready to go!
Fibre Co Road to China Light colours (clockwise, starting from the left): Tanzanite, Riverstone, Agate, Ametrine, Carnelian, Grey Pearl, Smoky Quartz.
On the C Train
I plan on making an On the C Train (aka. hat) for the guy in my life. I levelled up this summer and I have an awesome new person in my life, one who definitely deserves a hat made with something beautiful. I’m again using Fibre Co Road to China Light, but this time a bold colour that celebrates life – sapphire!
Reykr
My upstairs neighbour David often pops for a chat and to pick up the mail, and one day he laid eyes on this shade of yellow and it was LOVE, nothing else would do (the yarn is Berroco Vintage 51131 Citrus). David is both sight impaired and profoundly colour blind in really interesting ways, so he experiences colour in a very different way than most people. In my experience, for him to get excited about a colour is unusual. So David gets a hat so he can enjoy his yellow all the time.
On a tangent … I wonder how he sees his yellow? I don’t know why I’ve never realized just how much I take my ability to perceive colour for granted? I come from a family rich in colour blind genes and I have a few friends who are colour blind – I feel like I should have noticed this a long time ago. Enjoying colour is one more thing to add to my gratitude list. Maybe enjoying all of my senses can be piled on as well … a gratitude list is a list that never needs to end.
Some Kind Of Hat for the Kid
I decided to be slightly proactive and start scouting holiday gifts for the kids early this year. Over dinner I was talking to my sister-in-law about sizing and in a bit of a panic, my nice asked if I was still going to do my annual crazy coloured hats (they aren’t actually crazy, I just choose bold colour combinations). I told her that if she wanted one I would make it for her, but I think this year it should actually be ‘crazy’. My niece is the girl in the Rolling Stones song “She’s a Rainbow” … she takes after her aunt, but unlike her aunt, she has been known to wear all of the colours at the same time. So this year she gets ALL THE COLOURS. The loose plan is to make a basic beanie with 2 strands of Schoppel Edition 3 (colour 2296 English Garden) held together, and topping it off with a synthetic pompom (colour 1250 Mermaid) that attaches with a snap. The yarn and the pompom match perfectly, so that should be a sight. The yarn is already marled and transitions as you work with it, so overall it should be quite a carnival of millinery.
Read & Knit
My current audiobook recommendation is Joyful by Ingreid Fetell Lee. I assumed (incorrectly) that it was going to be a self-helpy type thing, but I was happy to found some kind of new or unique genre – literary non-fiction about a quasi-spiritual topic from a design (as in the stuff people go to art school to learn) perspective. Joy is one of those emotions that shares a lot of space in the venn diagram of spiritual/mental/physical life. The book addresses joy from a very physical standpoint, which is interesting because the two things I’ve noticed when people talk about joy is 1. you’ve got to cultivate gratitude, and 2. you’ve got to get into your body. I think kids (and puppies) are extremely good at being joyful, and it wasn’t until I got on a trampoline with my nice and nephew that I realized how physical an experience childhood is, and how completely they are in their bodies (and in contrast how disconnected I was from mine by comparison). Fetell Lee isn’t going to lead you down the path to enlightenment, but she’s collected a lot of valuable insight about how to find and create joy though our physical surroundings, so if you want to cultivate more joy in your life, it’s a very worthwhile read.
Growth & Connection
Since January of this year I’ve added online courses as part of my self-care practice. I’ve taken a few on Mindvalley, and currently I’m doing The Formula with Dr Joe Dispenza. I’ll qualify that I prefer the type class where the coursework is a meditation – I’ve been to university several times and I’m a little over jumping through the hoops of acquiring information, I’m more into stretching my soul (which is actually a lot less heavy lifting, since souls are naturally very bendy). One of my favourite things about online courses is it’s all on your timeline and at your pace. You can take as little or as much from it as you like (or need), and like a good book or movie, you’ll be able to go deeper and learn more the second or third time you take it (I know Jeffrey Allen designs his courses this way).
I don’t always understand analytically what Dispenza is going on about, but because this type of course isn’t about consuming information, I just take it as a “listen to me now, believe me later” kind of thing and don’t worry about the rest. I’m taking the course with six other people and we’re all at different places in it, each of us going at our own speed. Anyway, we all feel like it’s helping and we’re making progress …. I feel like deleting the original blog post is a good sign of transformation and growth.
PRE-ORDER Knitters Pride Self-Love Interchangeable Set
PRE-ORDERS will ship/be available for pick-up in store as soon as they arrive (we expect to receive our shipment around the start of October).
This beautiful Interchangeable knitting needle set features calming and delicate pastel colour needles in eight different sizes and includes a Knitting Journal to keep records of your projects or write other notes, as well as a crocheted rose bookmark.It comes with an assortment of accessories (cables, end caps, keys and connectors, bookmark) enclosed in a luxurious suede pouch.
4 memory-free, stainless-steel cables in lengths of 60cm, 80cm (2 nos.) & 100cm
4 end caps
4 keys
1 set of cable connectors
1 crocheted rose bookmark
1 Knitting Journal
1 suede pouch for accessories
1 suede needle case
Self-Love ….
As an aside … I love that the subject of self-love is coming up. Self-love is one of the most important things in life … when you are able to love yourself unconditionally you are able to share love with everyone and everything else. I know I’m stating the obvious, which is that no ‘product’ can give you self-love. Unconditional self-love is something that has to be cultivated and grown, it takes time and work. Beware of marketing that promises instant results (and usually comes with a hefty price-tag), it’s snake-oil. Self-love is as much about the journey as it is the destination (this is a reminder for me also), so lean in, relax and enjoy the journey … you only get to live this particular life once, fill it with joy!
PRE-ORDERS will ship/be available for pick-up in store as soon as they arrive (we will update the website with the timing as soon as we get a date).
For this year’s collaboration with DARUMA, Amirisu teamed up with designers Alice Caetano and Fiona Alice. Drawing inspiration from British fashion, Sublation DARUMA Collection 2021 features eleven gorgeous knitwear pieces that are fun to knit and cozy to wear.
Epistemology DARUMA Collection 2020 features ten timeless and stylish amirisu designs, with photographs taken at DARUMA’s vintage-looking dye house in Kyoto.
Details
10 patterns: 4 sweaters, 1 cardigan, 1 scarf, 2 cowls, 1 hat, & 1 pair of mittens
Cascade’s annual blanket Mystery Knit-A-Long (MKAL) is starting on September 29th, and this year they are using CASCADE 220 SUPERWASH! To join just sign up for the Cascade Yarns newsletter to get the bi-weekly installments. All the details are available in their newsletter, right HERE.
Get 15% Off when you purchase all of your yarn for this project in one transaction (17 balls or more)! Use code CASCADEMKAL at check-out.*
* Discount does not apply to special-orders. Discount only applies to inventory that is already in stock, or that we already carry on a regular basis and is already in our database.
What is an MKAL?
MKAL stands for Mystery Knit A Long! Knit Alongs (KALs) are fun, social activity in which a group of knitters all make the same project in a specified timeframe. … A section of the pattern (clue) is released at regular intervals, and at the end of the Knit Along, the final design is revealed.
Cascade 220 Superwash is a staple around here! It’s made with 100% machine washable Peruvian wool which is easy to work with and wear (it softens up considerable after washing). It’s very popular for all kinds of projects, including baby, kids, accessories, sweaters, blankets, etc.
Colour A: 5 skeins
Colour B: 4 skeins
Colour C: 4 skeins
Colour D: 4 skeins
Colours
It’s hard for us to carry every colour in this yarn line (they have SO MANY colours that we already have to split it up into heathered and solid colours for tech reasons), but we can always look into special-ordering a colour you want for your MKAL blanket, or finding a substitute that works. All the colours available to us through our Canadian distributor are HERE.
The colours in the pictures below below are provided by Cascade Yarns, and may not be accurate. The photos on our website have been colour-corrected to match the actually yarn as possible. The colour combinations offer a colour palette suggestions, but you can choose any colour you like. Most of the colour combinations seem to have 1 dark colour, two medium colours, and 1 light or bright colour.
Our Summer Sale is extended! Take 25% off select products until Sept 13 th, 11:59pm. The discount will automatically be applied at check-out, so you don’t need to jump through the hoops of remembering to enter the code.
Our Deadline to submit our order for Lopi Blankets is fast approaching! If you’ve had your eye on one (or more) now is the time.
The most common question about Lopi blankets is are they soft? The answer is no, not especially. Icelandic wool is lofty, warm and durable, but softness is not its wheelhouse. I feel like the Lopi blankets are softer than the craft yarn for knitting and crochet – we have a blanket in store if you’d like to touch and see for yourself. If you’ve got a cottage or house that’s constantly cold, you’ll love these blankets, the yarn is an excellent insulator. If you want something beautiful and stylish to throw over a chair or sofa, they are wonderful – they are very grammable and make a gorgeous statement piece for house staging.
Lopi Blankets
Lopi’s ready-made blankets are back! These blankets are gorgeous heirloom pieces, prefect for your home or cottage, ideal in the living room or at the end of the bed, and they also make beautiful gifts. Made of Icelandic wool, they are extremely durable, lightweight, breathable and warm. The fabric is additionally combed after weaving to make it soft. The blankets come in a wide variety of patterns and all are reversible. The offerings are extensive this year with twenty-seven styles available, so there’s something for everyone (I’m partial to the ones with the colour blocks, the monochrome textures and the graphic polka-dots). To see larger images check out the Lopi 2021 Blanket Catalog HERE. We also have a sample in store for you to see and feel.
Please note, these are ready-made blankets, they are not a knitting kit and unfortunately do not come with a stunning landscape as a back-drop.
Sizes vary, see images for dimensions
27 styles are available for 2021
Fully reversible
Made in Iceland
Hand Wash (or machine wash on delicate alone) in cold water with delicate wash (Eucalan or Soak), lay flat or hang to dry.
Pre-Orders
All pre-orders must be received by September 16th and will ship/be available for pick-up in early November. We will only be ordering these blankets once this year, and will only be filling pre-orders, so be sure to place your order if you want one!
USE code LOPI21 at checkout to take $20 off your Lopi blanket purchase!
The Wool
Icelandic wool has historically been crucial to the survival of the nation as it provided both warmth and protection throughout centuries of harsh weather. It is also quite unique compared to the wool of other sheep breeds. The inner fibres are fine, soft and highly insulating while the outer fibres are long, glossy and water repellent. Therefore products made of Icelandic wool are extremely durable, lightweight and breathable
The Manufacturer Ístex Ltd. is the main wool manufacturer in Iceland, with over a century of wool tradition behind their products. They create wool blankets, with narrative threads that weave together a modern sensibility of style, the artistic inspiration of a dramatic landscape and the unique quality of Icelandic yarn.
Our Summer Sale is ending soon, September 6th is the last day to get 25% Off! Take advantage now, before it goes away!
Labour Day Long Weekend Store Hours
Friday Sept 3: 11 am to 5 pm
Saturday Sept 4: CLOSED
Sunday Sept 5: CLOSED
Monday Sept: CLOSED
LONG WEEKEND PROJECTS
I was thinking wouldn’t it be great to have a small project that’s for the long weekend? Something small, portable, not too challenging. I settled on cloths: face cloths, dish cloths, etc. I know I cherish the little linen cloths I’ve made with Quince & Co Sparrow (they’re like the energizer bunny of textiles, they just keep going …) and I figured you might feel inspired to make something pretty for yourself. There are lots of patterns on Ravely for cloths, but here are a few I found that sparked some joy, and my absolute favourites follow below:
Note: the pattern seems to have neglected to explain how to make an I-Cord (the loop at the tops of the cloth), so here is an I-cord tutorial for those of you who are not familiar with the technique. Alternately, you can skip the I-cord, make your cloth loop free and just weave in your ends – there’s no rule that says a cloth must to have a loop.
Size
Approximately 10 x 10 inches
Yarn Options
Main Colour: 100m required per washcloth. Contrast Colour: 24m required per washcloth.
As soon as I saw Adara I thought “Hello sweetie, you’re going to be my next favourite sweater!” Then I swatched with the yarn and I KNEW it. Berroco Lucca is a new blend of cashmere and cotton, and it is so soft and buttery – I have a feeling that once you put this sweater on you’ll never want to take it off (you may even want to make another in a different colour). It isn’t just a perfect closet staple, its the sweater of your heart.
The design features all over garter stitch with slightly leafy looking lace panels up the sides and arms. Rolled edges finish things off and add a modern, simple polish. Adara is worked flat in pieces and seamed (seams give a sweater stability and structure, which is helpful with a fibre blend of cashmere and cotton … if you’re going to spend the time and money to make a cashmere sweater, it should be beautiful too). The lace pattern is charted.
Newsletter Special: 10% Off, use code KITSTOGO at check-out!
The Yarn
Berroco Lucca is a luxurious, soft and buttery yarn made in Italy from a blend of premium cashmere and cotton. It has beautiful stitch definition and soft drape, and it’s perfect for making just about anything you want to touch your skin (sweaters, shawls & wraps, cowls, hats, scarves, mitts, blankets – you name it. The colour is very delicately marled, giving the finished knit a bit of subtle dimension while still keeping that classic cashmere look. Lucca is definitely a yarn you’ll want to come back to over and over again … I’m so convinced of this that this kit includes the entire Digital eBook: Berroco no. 426 Lucca (you’re going to want to make more).
Lucca is worsted weight and normally knits 20sts/4″(10cm) on 4.5mm/US7 needles. Lucca ismachine washable (not often something a cashmere does well), but lay it flat to dry.
Note:If you love this pattern but the yarn is a little too precious, we can work with you to make up a kit for you in another yarn – just contact us!
PRE-ORDER NOTE
These kits are a SPECIAL PRE-ORDER – we aren’t stocking them in the store on a regular basis, but you have the option to order them at any time (it will be available to purchase as long as the manufacturer makes it available to us). Your kit will ship or be available for pick-up once it arrives, and we will contact you. If you need your kit for a specific date please let us know and we can find out if it’s feasible.
FYI: The yarn mills still aren’t up and running at full capacity, international shipping is still lagging, and it’s going to be another hit-or-miss year in terms of availability from distributors. If you want something in a particular colour I suggest you order early, shipments are already a bit backed up.
