Archive for May, 2007
Sometimes there are projects that tug at your heart - this is one of them. So, if you’re going to read this you might want to get a box of tissues. Hospice of the Valley is working with Kara and Hospice Caring Project to provide a Children’s Bereavement Camp. They are expecting between 60 and 70 children at the camp on July 22nd. One of the things that these children will receive are little bears dressed up by all of us. The bears have been donated by Bay Area Bears. Come help us dress little bears for grieving children.
Marge Rau, one of our most enthusiatic knitters, is working with us on creating outfits for little bears. Marge will be here on Sunday, June 10th between 10 am and 12 pm to tell you about the charity and all of us will help you get started. We will provide you with the patterns - generously donated from various sources. There are even some donated yarn at the store of you want. If you want to buy the yarn, you will get 10% off. We will meet every Sunday from June 10th to July 15th to finish dressing as many bears as possible.
When you come in, you get to sign up for dressing a bear, pick your pattern, and take the bear home with you. We need all bears to be completed and returned to Nine Rubies by July 15th.
May 30th, 2007
The school year may be winding down, but things are still hopping here at the shop. Here’s a run down on some upcoming events of interest.
Saturday, June 2nd: Stash-Busting Mitered Square Blanket Drop-In Demo.
We’re always looking for ways to use up those ends of skeins of yarn that are left over from projects.Our intrepid teacher Linda has come up with a great idea. She’s making a blanket out of mitered squares using scraps of yarn! All you need is your left-over yarn and a pair of needles that is most appropriate. Come see a free demonstration of the technique on Saturday, June 2nd from 12-2 pm. You’ll be amazed at how easy the technique is to master and how great the squares look. The blanket looks great in both solid and variegated yarns, so bring in what you’ve got. You might be able to swap scraps with another knitter. This workshop will surely get the creative juices flowing.
Saturday, June 9th: Worldwide Knit in Public Day
Here are Nine Rubies, we’re all about spreading thejoy and fun of knitting and crochet. Turns out that we’re not the only ones! Thanks to an industrious woman named Danielle, knitters the world over are getting together in groups to knit in public. We hope that you and you knitterly friends willjoin us at Central Park in San Mateo from 11 am to 1 pm on Saturday, June 9th. We’ll be meeting in the oval green area in front of the stage.
We’re hoping for good weather, but if it’s raining, we’ll be at the San Mateo library.
Monday and Tuesday, June 18th and 19th: Lily Chin Workshops and Book Signing
By now you’ve probably heard that we have knitting expert Lily Chin coming to the shop to do a book signing and several workshops. The response has been great, so we’ve decided to move the event to the beautiful San Mateo Library. It’s just down the street from the store. If you’re sitting on the fence, there are still a few seats available in all three workshops. In addition, we are hosting a free reception and book signing with Lily. Even if you haven’t signed up for class, feel free to come by to meet Lily - she’s areally dynamic person and a wonderful ambassador for knitting.
Here’s a complete schedule of events, all of which will take place at the library:
Monday, June 18th:
3 pm - 5 pm: Reception, trunk show and book signing (free)
6 pm -9 pm: Short-row shaping ($65, advance registration required)
Tuesday, June 19th:
9 am - 12 pm: Tips and Tricks ($65, advance registration required)
1:30 pm - 4:30 pm: Reversbles cables ($65, advance registration required)
If you have signed up for the workshops, please make sure that you received the supply list and homework. You can call the store or stop by to get the information.
May 25th, 2007
The Maker Faire is happening this weekend (May 19th and 20th) at the San Mateo County Fairgrounds - it’s a fun event - a unique combination of do-it-yourself craft projects, robot-building and so much more. Your kids and family will love you for taking them there - we’re going on Saturday.
On Sunday, the 20th at 10:30 am, a group of knitters (yes, knitting is part of the Maker Faire) will be meeting up at the store to knit and chat and then some of them will head over to the event.
Come join Nicole and Jenny, the girls behind the podcast called Stash and Burn - they have invited their listeners here that day. We’re looking forward to the entertaining duo.
May 14th, 2007
We were so excited that we were having Lily Chin teach workshops at the store in June we were a bit stumped when someone asked us “Who is Lily Chin?” We struggled with superlatives and came up with very little concrete - she’s the instructor that fills up classes fast…who designs…has her own yarn line…. So we did a little bit of research and this is what we came up with.
Lily is a true New Yorker. She was born in the Bronx of immigrant parents. She learned to “knit” when she was eight. We mean knit. She was only taught the knit stitch, so after miles of garter stitch scarves, she gave it up. Who can blame her, really? She learned to crochet soon after, and took to that like a duck to water. In fact, by the time she was 12 or 13 years old, she was selling her crocheted items to her teachers! In high school, she was allowed to wear a mini-skirt because she had crocheted it herself.
Undaunted by her prior boring experience with knitting, Lily went back to teach herself everything she didn’t learn the first time around. Obviously she mastered it. Her first pattern was published in 1981, and in the last 26 years, her work has appeared in many knitting magazines. One of her knitted bathing suits (yes, a knitted bathing suit) was even in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue one year!
Lily is also the author of four knitting and crochet books. Her first book, Mosaic Magic, was first published in 1999. It uses a surprisingly simple crochet technique that creates mosaic blocks of color. Next was Urban Knitter in 2002. Here Lily began her focus on shape and fit in garments. There are even two patterns for sports bras in this book.
Lily has also written one of the seminal books on combining knitting and crocheting with beads, as evidenced by the aptly title Knit and Crochet with Beads (2004). This book has some wonderful projects and includes instructions for several different techniques.
Lily’s most recent book, Couture Crochet Workshops, takes crocheted garments to another level by emphasizing style, fit and drape. All of these books are available at the shop and Lily will be here to sign them on Monday, June 18th.
This woman clearly never sleeps. Not only does she have her own yarn line (which you can see at the store), she’s been on TV shows such as David Letterman, Martha Stewart and the CBS Early Show. She even hosted her own show on Oxygen. Not only that, she still finds time to be the representative for charity projects such as The Red Scarf Project, Warm Up America, and Caps for Kids. Lily feels strongly that every time a non-knitter or non-crocheter sees someone who enjoys those crafts, there’s an opportunity to bring them into the fold.We couldn’t agree more.
Our workshops have something for every skill level, so consider signing up for more than one. We know you will learn a tremendous amount and enjoy Lily’s energy and enthusiasm for our favorite craft.
May 8th, 2007
The tragic shooting at Virginia Tech touched everyone across the country, but of course, the town of Blacksburg, Virgina has been dealt the heaviest blow. A local knitting shop, Mosaic Knitting Shop was profiled in today’s New York Times. The shop has started an afghan project that we think is a wonderful way to show the victim’s families how much people care. You can read the details about the project here:Hokie Healing. The bottom line is that they are accepting 8″ by 8″ squares to make blankets. In addition to size, they are requesting specific colors: (VT colors only - maroon, burnt orange, white and black) and they suggest the cuddliest yarn you can afford. We have several stitch dictionaries in the shop that you are welcome to peruse for ideas for patterns.
Nine Rubies Knitting will be collecting the sqaures until May 21st. If you are participating, please drop off your square before then. We’ll send them all to the shop in Virginia.
May 3rd, 2007
We’re big fans of the Yarn Harlot’s blog here at the store. Obviously, she is a spectacular knitter, and many of her projects are a manifestation of her knitting prowess. So wasn’t it great to see her post (http://www.yarnharlot.ca/blog/archives/2007/04/30/random_monday_.html) that talked about the wonderfully easy (and totally knock out) ruffled scarf that we have in the shop? We have the identical yarn in several colors available, and as Stephanie says, it only takes a few hours to make up a great gift. Take care of some holidays gifts in May, and you’ll be as calm as can be when November and december roll around. Heck you can even have one done in time for Mother’s Day.
Check out the look in the summer colorway:
May 1st, 2007
