Cool new fibers & kits & looms!

More cool stuff has arrived at the shop!  Frabjous Fibers hand-painted roving is in, in 4 different formats: Opulence Blend (30%superfine merino, 30% tussah silk, 20% baby camel, 20% royal baby alpaca), BFL-Silk Blend (70% BFL, 30% Tussah Silk), 100% BFL, and 100% Polwarth.  All these come in 8 ounce braids, except the Opulence Blend which is 4 ounces.  I am practicing my spinning like crazy so I can try one of these hand-paints (with less risk of messing it up).

For those of you who want something a bit less exotic or that you can paint yourself, I have Brown Sheep rovings - Wool Top, Superwash Top, and Punta Top.  These are all undyed, but as I also have dyes now, you can make any colors your heart desires.  The Country Classics dyes do not require any additional chemicals, just a bit of boiling water to dissolve them.

Also new today - the Schacht Cricket Loom, an entry level rigid heddle loom.  The Cricket comes as a complete kit, including an 8-dent reed, threading hook, warping peg, 2 table clamps, 2 stick shuttles, 2 balls of yarn, and complete instructions for 3 projects.  I also have 5-, 10-, and 12-dent reeds for the Cricket.

The Schacht School Loom is perfect for the young person who wants to try weaving, but I also think it could be used for a bit of tapestry experimentation.  At less than $60, it's hard to go wrong with this loom.

The Inkle Loom is specifically for making patterned, narrow bands, such as straps - imagine how cool it would be to weave your own straps for the handbag you wove or knitted.  This is also a good loom for younger people to test the weaving waters.

I also have received some of the Hand Painted Knitting Yarns (HPKY) kits, such as the Scarf in a Scarf and the Scarf in a Shrug.  Each of these kits contains enough yarn to knit a scarf or shrug, respectively, but the kicker is the color-matched silk scarf you weave through the scarf or the front edges of the shrug when the knitting is done.  I have more HPKY kits on their way, including kits for cardigans, kimonos, throws, and shawls. 

Purls of wisdom: never sniff a gift fish.