Get this show on the road

Here in Portland, Oregon, the weather has taken a decided turn to the autumnal mode. While we’d all love to take a road trip to sunnier climes, we’re also happy to stay here and pack up the beautiful boxes of Shibui that get to see other parts of the country...and the world.

After a very successful stint at Knit Purl, downtown Portland’s favorite LYS, our Luxury, Sock, Argyle, and Baby trunk shows are hitting the road. While at Knit Purl, the sumptuous samples helped book and yarn sales soar; over 50 Socks booklets left, usually accompanied by a few skeins of Staccato or Sock; and nearly 100 Luxury booklets were sold. Needless to say, Silk Cloud, Baby Alpaca, and Staccato sales were off the chart! 

To help avoid the dreaded same-as-sample-itis (you know what we mean; when everyone who comes in MUST make the pattern in the exact same colourway as the sample garment.....), we’ve had our army of knitting elves swatch a variety of combinations of fiber and colour. We’ve put these together in a neat little booklet that will accompany the Luxury trunk show, and will help customers visualize different opportunities to make a garment that is uniquely their own.  Here are some of the many samples made blocking before they joined the show:

To schedule a trunk show for your shop, contact Lindsay at lindsay(at)shibuiknits(dot)com. She’ll let you know what slots are available for a two week showing. As the holidays approach, all three of these packages highlight items that make perfect holiday gifts or just provide a bit of a treat for the knitter during the cooler months to come.

- Kristin F.

Long, hot summer days

(c) visualdensity (flickr)

Nothing says summer to me like sunflowers. They're absolutely iconic of warmth, sunshine, and lazy days.  Which is probably why I associate rich golden yellows and mellow oranges with the height of summer.  In reflection of that, I pulled together my favorite August colors to share...

Staccato Butter	Staccato Bohemian	Staccato Sprout
Highland Wool Pagoda	Sock Finch	Staccato Redwood

I'm sure plenty of people will argue with me and say these are fall colors, but I'm sticking to my choices.  Think marigolds and lilies and bumblebees and, of course, sunflowers, and you might just agree.

It'd be fun to share more, but we're just swamped (have you seen the Fall Staccato multis?).  Check back on Thursday for an update on the goings on in ShibuiLand.  Oh, and keep a weather eye on the horizon for an action-packed Newsletter!

~ Sara M.

Sock On This

It may seem arbitrary, looking in from the outside, but we do have a plan at work here.  In fact, the release of our upcoming booklets Shibui Luxury and Shibui Socks is so organized that we have spreadsheets with dates, locations, and all sorts of other serious information.

But that isn't half as interesting as a lot of other topics like, oh, pretty pictures and my own brand of introspective color theory.  I was browsing ravelry (looking for new Shibui projects to admire) and found quite a few that are worth fav'ing:

• Murf's TINY Tea Leaves Cardi, knit with Shibui Sock in 'Mulberry'
• Knittimo's Wisp, knit with Shibui Silk Cloud in 'Mulberry'
• Nonsie's Girasole, knit with Shibui Sock in 'Wasabi'
• Erron's Swallowtail Shawl, knit with Shibui Silk Cloud in 'Mulberry'
• Annika72's Friedas Decke, knit with Shibui Sock in 'Orchid', 'Peony', and 'Wasabi'

Which tells me one of two things, either: a) 'Mulberry' and 'Wasabi' are the bestest colors ever as far as our loyal knitters on ravelry are concerned; or, b) I only noticed the projects knit in red-violet or green yarn.  Let's hope it's (a).

But even if you're not tickled pink by 'Mulberry' and 'Wasabi', you should try browsing the Projects pages (all 458 of them!) for Shibui yarns on ravelry.  It's amazing to see what people have been making with our yarns.  And quite inspiring, too.  I've found many new patterns to try that way.

Speaking of inspiring patterns on ravelry, did you know that Shibui Luxury and Shibui Socks are now in the ravelry database as sources?  Not all the patterns have been added (see first paragraph re: schedule), but expect to see a new pattern every couple of days or so.

You'd better believe I went and clicked that little heart button the moment Eustacia was up (shown above).   I just love this pattern.  It's so sensual looking.  And the way the fabric feels?  Oh... my.  I helped Kristin block the sample shown in the booklet and that was an decadent experience I won't forget soon.  Staccato and Silk Cloud really do make for a dynamic duo.

And not just for enveloping wraps, either.  See Isabella:

A pair of bedsocks worthy of the Medici.  Silk?  Check.  Merino?  Also check.  And add the softest kid mohair available to give the pair a subtle halo and super-fuzzy feel.  Now, Isabella isn't on ravelry... yet.  But I have it on good authority (thank you, again, schedule) that the pattern will be up soon.

We do, however, have two more patterns from Shibui Socks that are on ravelry.  The first, Willamette:

Were knit with Sock in 'Marine' and they feature a modified half-linen stitch pattern that does really cool things with hand-painted yarn.  The socks are mirrored because the designer is ever so slightly OCD.  (Ahem.)  Then we have Alameda:

Knit with Staccato in 'Green Apple'.  This pattern has three sizes (Child, Woman's Man's) and is shown in both adult sizes in the booklet.  You can see more pictures on ravelry.  The design features seed rib, making it perfect for almost anyone.  Men, women, children, you name it.  It's a great simple sock that won't bore you to tears while knitting it and that the recipient will actually wear when it's done.

As of 4:30pm PDT, six of the ten patterns from Shibui Socks are on ravelry.  But you can only get a sneak peek at what's coming next here...

Waterfront.  Just don't tell anyone I told you.  And be sure to act surprised when it pops up.

But now I must away.  Until next time, stay cool!
~ Sara M.