Halcyon Yarn

Quick Knits: There IS still time before the holidays!

Thursday, November 20th, 2008 Posted in Current Issue, General News, New Items, Staff | 2 Comments »

Wanting to do something creative, but feeling like you might not get it done in time? Well it’s Quick Knits to the rescue! Here are 5 simple and quick gifts to give:

1. Amanda Hat The Amanda Hat is soft and fast! It’s a free downloadable pattern (thanks and nice work Gina!) that is yummy with our Malabrigo in any color. If you’re careful and knit to gauge, you can even whip up a pair of fingerless mitts to match! 2. Maine Morning Mitts by Clara Parks These fingerless mitts are a staple in northeastern outerwear. With the daily changes in temperature these mitts are just enough to ward off the chill while not being too bulky. Find the pattern in “The Book of Yarn” by Clara Parks or it’s a free download from knittersreview.com. Try it in Noro Kureyon! 3. Victorian Stole (Halcyon Exclusive) The Victorian Stole is a perfect quick knit for a luxurious holiday event or a light layer of warmth on a cool evening by the fire. We suggest Victorian Boucle, of course! 4. Snow Angels Add a festive touch to gift wrapping, hang on a tree or in a window - These snow angels are quick, easy and sweet! Five angels fly out of each skein of the wondrously soft Angora Fashion. 5 Multidirectional Scarf This is such a fun and fast knit! The multidirectional knitting adds a little design while the yarn does the rest. A great quick gift, and another great excuse to pick up some Noro Kureyon. You can download a version of the pattern here, or look at the comments for this post for the modified version pictured (modifications by Beth Hood).

Ravelry Group for Halcyon Yarn

Thursday, November 20th, 2008 Posted in General News, Notes | No Comments »

We’re a small company, and we love to get to know our customers. We have an exciting new way to do just that: We have a group on Ravelry! For those of you who haven’t heard of Ravelry, it’s a place for knitters and other fiber artists to share their work and ideas, have discussions and much more. We welcome people to join our group (you must join Ravelry first)… then we can chat-it-up with thoughts and opinions, share your projects, talk about favorite yarns, give us feedback, ask questions, spout non-sequiteurs and just join in the fun with us on Ravelry!

Glomitts and Gauntlets: Updates on our Knit-A-Long

Thursday, October 30th, 2008 Posted in Events, General News | 6 Comments »

As those of you who read our early July newsletter may remember, we had put out a call for our first ever knit-a-long (KAL). We were prompted to start the KAL at the request of Malta Phelps, a Maine mother who’s son, Sgt. Mike Wall, is stationed in Afghanistan. Mike reminisced with his mother (who doesn’t knit) about the hunting and fishing mittens his grandmother had made and requested some for his unit. Malta called us with a request for help and we passed that request along to all who were interested.

The response has been wonderful. We had some great introductions and discussions in our KAL forum, and have been awed by the wonderfully crafted donations of Glomitts and Guard’s Gauntlets that have come in from all over the US and even from the UK! So far, we have had over 40 pairs sent in and we know that there are more on the way.

Sgt. Wall’s parents recently visited us here at Halcyon Yarn, and they expressed their heartfelt thanks to all who have contributed. Malta said that she was overwhelmed by the response: “It’s just unbelievable and amazing, thank you so much”.  She also couldn’t wait for the supplies to arrive in Afghanistan.  Sgt. Wall will be there through June so they’re really gearing up for a long winter.

The experience has certainly made the events in Afghanistan more immediate to us here at Halcyon Yarn. It has been wonderful for us to hear updates on Sgt. Wall’s unit. The photos above of Sgt. Wall are from his unit’s newsletter. In these photos he’s entertaining local children by juggling and by drawing cartoons in the sand - a duty which he loves, but which makes him miss his own son as well. We hear news and updates from Sgt. Wall’s parents (shown here, L to R, Beth Hood, Beth Quivey, Halcyon Blake, Malta Phelps, and Richard Wall). We also have had some great posts in the forum for the KAL, where you can see the great diversity of people who have been moved to help.

It has also given us a better understanding of the work of another soldier who is in our thoughts: Nolan Hood. Nolan is the son of our designer and customer service representative, Beth Hood and her husband Jack. Nolan helped Beth to modify her Guard’s Gauntlet pattern when he was home visiting over the summer. We will be including a shipment of Glomitts and Guard’s Gauntlets to his unit as well. Nolan saw a recent article published in our local paper about the KAL, and gave us some encouragement from the field: “You guys have all done a wonderful thing. When we get them I will get some photos for you guys”. We can’t wait, and will share them when we get ‘em!

Thank you again to all who have contributed, you are really making an important difference in peoples lives!

We are still accepting Glomitts and Gauntlets. You can download the patterns here: Glomitt or Guard’s Gauntlet.

Please mail your finished items to:

KnitALong
Halcyon Yarn
12 School Street
Bath, ME 04530

Thank you for your help and support!

Caps For Kids and More: Fun, Fulfillment & Fibers

Thursday, October 30th, 2008 Posted in General News, Notes | 4 Comments »

The recent visit from Sgt. Wall’s family coincided with our regular seasonal preparations for our “Caps for Kids” drive. We had a great drive last year and you can see in this photo the boxes of hats that we were able to deliver on behalf of our customers! It was a wonderful feeling and an honor to be able to pass along your good will and beautiful caps to an appreciative Salvation Army. Thanks to all who contributed last year and we’re looking forward to seeing what you all come up with this year!

Now, with the holidays fast approaching (er, the “make it yourself” crowd have to start thinking a bit earlier then everyone else, no?), we’ve been thinking about giving in general. We thought that this would be a good time to highlight some of the many ways that knitters, weavers, and other fiber artists can help others through their work.

There are many knitting projects that are available to help different populations. You can find a listing on our charitable links page (and you can let us know of others to add). This time of year many contribute to our “Caps for Kids” program (donation to the Salvation Army and other local organizations), you can download the free pattern here. You can also contribute items to be given to Afghan men, women, and children directly through Afghans for Afghans. Closer to home, Project Linus has great free patterns and accepts donations that are used in hospitals and shelters in the US. Project Linus has many chapters, there may be one close to you!

Again, if you have the time and the fiber, be sure to check out our charitable links page, and find a way to help that is right for you. If you want to help out with the KAL for our troops in Afghanistan, or the Caps for Kids program, then we’ll be handling storing and moving the knitted goods, so please mail your finished items to:

Caps for Kids (or KnitALong)
C/O Beth Quivey
Halcyon Yarn
12 School Street
Bath, ME 04530

Thank you for your help and support!

Last Chance for Discontinued Colors

Wednesday, August 27th, 2008 Posted in General News | 1 Comment »

We’re updating several yarn lines with new colors, and have a bunch of discontinued colors still available. In Malabrigo Merino Worsted (you can find all colors here) we have 5 discontinued colors and in Aquarella (all colors here) we have 4 discontinued colors. These are beautiful and richly colored yarns, and we have some serious fans of these lines out there - So we wanted to give you a heads up that this is your last chance to stock up on these colors before they’re gone! Check them out on our sale page:

Aquarella Discontinued Colors $10.00/sk.
Malabrigo Merino Worsted Discontinued Colors $11.95/sk.

…once they’re gone, they’re gone!