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The latest exhibit, Every Day Something Good Happens opens June 1st in our gallery space, and runs through July 31st. This exhibit features the fabulous art quilts of Therese May.
Therese's work has been selected for exhibitions at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington , DC and the Louvre in Paris , France . She has won numerous awards and been featured in many books and magazines. In addition to Therese May's other awards and recognitions, she was commissioned twice, in 1991 and 1992, to create quilts for the City of San Jose, California, and her two 196-square-foot works hang in the San Jose Convention Center.
With a focus on transformational healing, her work is centered on wholeness, integration and creativity through art and the quilt-making process. Therese has been part of the San Jose art community for the past 37 years and has participated in all of the Silicon Valley Open Studios. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in painting and a master of arts degree in design, with emphasis on the art quilt.
Meet Therese at our Artist Reception on Sunday, June 8th, 1pm to 3pm.
We have new colors in everybody's favorite yarn, Cascade 220 and its cousin, Cascade 220 Superwash and Cascade 220 Superwash Paints.
We also have new colors in Crystal Palace Kid Merino (great for shawls, by itself or combined with other yarns) and Crystal Palace Bamboozle (a lovely stretchy yarn for summer tops or kids clothes).
Kid Merino Projects
Bamboozle Projects
Crystal Palace 's bamboo blend sock yarn, Panda Silk, has hit our shelves, and we can't wait to make some cool summer socks out of it! Two balls make a pair!
Panda Silk Projects
Check the Crystal Palace website for inspiration.
I finally finished my first project out of Fitted Knits by Stefanie Japel. I bought this book because I love almost every pattern. The patterns are easy to understand, almost all the tops are knitted top-down (which allows you to fit to your body), it has great pictures and diagrams and best of all it has tops for every season.
Since summer is almost here I figured I would start with a summer project in one of my favorite colors: PINK!!! I picked the Drop Stitch lace tank, since it has no sleeves it would be quick to knit. I used the yarn the pattern called for: Cascade Pima Tencel. The pattern notes that it is "very stretchy" and to knit 6" smaller than your bust size, they are not kidding!
As with most things I have knit I made couple of minor alterations. I tend to see patterns as guidelines, so I am free to alter them to fit me. I didn't want to put buttons so I made the V-neck a bit higher. I also changed the ribbing to be at my waist instead of my hips. I also chose to wear it "wrong-side" out, I liked this side better than the "right-side". It was a very easy project to knit, great summer top to wear alone or under jackets. The yarn is super soft when knit.
Hope everyone is having a great spring and looking forward to summer. We have lots of summer weight yarns and cute patterns to knit during the warm months. Hope to see you soon! 
I have taken the plunge and decided I would try my to do a felting project. I couldn't help but choose a Noni pattern. I love her patterns, they are so colorful and original and they tend to have flowers... my favorite!!
I have chosen "The Retro Bag, a smallish triangle bag with Shirley Poppies". I just got my yarn today (Cascade 220), it took me a while to pick out the colors. I am sure most of you have have spent countless hours picking out colors :) I decided to make the bag in a camel color and picked shades of pinks and coral for the poppies.
Wish me luck.... I will keep you posted as it comes along 
Last week's heat wave should be a reminder that summer is coming. Don't forget to sign up for our Kids' Summer Day Camp for fiber arts. It's a great place to keep cool and learn something new. We'll having knitting, crocheting, hand felting, needle felting, Kool-Aid dyeing and more!
Check out our kids page for more information or download the brochure.
We've gotten quite a few calls about the blanket pattern in the email we sent out this week. The pattern for Babette Blanket is available on Interweave's website.
It's great that you can order a single pattern from back issues of Interweave Knits & Interweave Crochet!
Mark your calendars for the Third Saturday of each month from 1:00PM to 3:00PM starting on May 17th. Beadz and commuknity are teaming up to “bring on the fun” and it’s FREE! We will be hosting demos, tastings and project events on that Saturday afternoon each month.
This joint venture is kicking off on May 17that 1:00PM with a Tour de Beadz and Yarn.
The Tour will begin with an opportunity to explore the world of yarn and beads where they intersect with a tour of community’s fabulous yarns that can be used for beaded garments and jewelry, a tour of Beadz and all those scrumptious beads and culminate with a buffet of beads and yarn suitable for beading. You will have an opportunity to experiment with a variety of bead sizes and types with several different yarns and a few tricks for putting it all together. The tasting will be held in our workshop. Be sure to sign up ahead of time as space is limited.
June 21st we will have a free demo of Flip Flop Embellishments to kick off the first day of summer! Our staff will show you some fun ways to use needle felting, beads and novelty yarn to make your feet look fancy. Sign up ahead of time for this event. We will have all the supplies you will need to purchase to make these fun summer sandals that afternoon or to take home.
We are excited to offer self-service blocking for free in our workshop! It's hard to find a space around the house that's big enough to layout a shawl or sweater. And nearly impossible to find a place that's out of the way.
Use our workshop --- we have table space, a steamer and blocking board that you are welcome to use.
Call the shop at 408-993-9333 for details.
