All posts tagged: Yarn

Scheepjes Namaste Yarn – Plus free “Shavasana Hexagon Motif” crochet pattern!

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In case you haven’t seen the new beauty by Scheepjes Yarns, I wanted to show it off! I had the pleasure of testing out a ball of Namaste before it was released, and of course I could not resist creating a crochet hexagon motif right away. A mondo hexie crochet blanket has been on my list for a while now, and Namaste was the perfect yarn for it. So let’s check out the yarn, and then the free Shavasana Hexagon Motif crochet pattern is ready for you at the end of this post! Here’s the teaser image from Scheepjes for Namaste. Gorgeous! The tagline for Namaste is that “crafting is the new yoga,” and this resonated with me because my eldest daughter and I have been doing yoga together four days a week for the past two months. It’s such a sweet moment of connection for us when she gets home from school, and a great time for us to both work on our balance – mental, physical, and spiritual. Plus added bonus, we hold …

Relaxghans Ebook: Six free stash-buster crochet blanket patterns designed with peace in mind

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In January, I decided to create a series of blanket patterns that were designed with an air of peacefulness and tranquility. Patterns that you can work on whenever you like, without stressing over any element. I’ve been saying lately: Crochet is meant to de-stress you, not re-stress you. The high strung and tightly wound among you will undoubtedly want to meticulously plan layouts, bypass stash to buy fresh new yarn, or frustratedly obsess over every pattern quirk. This includes me. I am not a laid back person, and I’m as tightly wound as they come, but I’m trying to get better at relaxing. While constant tension does play a factor in CypressTextiles upward motion and in my own personal continuous improvement (pressure makes diamonds, or what-have-you), I’ve recently begun to appreciate letting the light in a bit more. Maybe you also need to let some light in? Join me as I release a new free blanket pattern on the last day of every month from February to July. (Yes! The first pattern releases tomorrow, Feb …

Crochet Pattern: Hundred Chain Scarf – Our Tribe Yarn

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Well, guys, what can I say? I’m a part of the neatest thing since sliced bread – grabbing the baton from Miss Neriss on this Scheepjes Blogger blog hop – (Thank you, Nerissa!!), and it’s now my turn to introduce Our Tribe yarn. [Related Link: Browse this yarn*!] Look at that pile of loveliness and tell me you don’t want to just reach out and squeeze a skein. A few months ago, Scheepjes reached out to me and asked me for six colors that I thought faded well with one another. I was quite puzzled but I replied with a set of colors which have always been in my heart and often make an appearance in my projects (Trellis and Chevron, Desert Bloom, Moon Landing, and many more). These salient shades included a nice turquoise, a mint green, and an olive green, among others. The navy blue, coral, and deeper teal colors I chose are all hinted at in my yarn skein, but the real superstar is the mint and olive combo. I was actually …

Amazon Blanket gets a chic pastel palette

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When I was asked to make another Amazon Blanket in a new color palette, I agreed on the spot.  When I found out the colors would come to be an airy pastel array, anchored to the ground with a seriously cobalt blue, I started to get giddy.  And when I cut into the first granny square of fifty-five, my heart melted and I fell in love instantly. [Related: Amazon Blanket blog post] Just look at this Scheepjes | Softfun* and Softfun Denim* chic pastel palette…  How did this color spread come about? Well the recipient wanted a blanket for her daughter that would provoke happiness instantly just by looking at it. (Yes, this is a custom order! No I don’t do custom orders anymore! Slowly backing away now..) So after three palette proposals, and a few color swaps, we came up with the above spread. Actually when I look at it, it reminds me of a top secret project that I worked on with my good friend Carol Janik – The Hoosier Crocheter – Tester …

Stone Washed & Stone Washed XL 

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I recently received a shipment of yarn from Scheepjes Yarns, and I cannot stop brainstorming projects with this giant stash of Stone Washed and Stone Washed XL. Scheepjes was generous enough to provide one in every color. I made some yarn pegs to play palette mixer later, and then got to work designing. I truly love this yarn! Find Stonewashed and its XL buddy at LoveKnitting* (US), WoolWarehouse* (UK), and KnottyHouse* (CA), and other Scheepjes retailers. Trust me, you can put 10 random colors in your shopping cart and it’ll make a smashing palette. Obviously I’ve said this a hundred times, but this may be my favorite Scheepjes yarn… I’m swooning over my own photographs of it while putting together this post, and that’s saying something! If you’re wondering the difference between the original and XL versions, check out these two. They’re both the “Enstatite” color and it’s easy to see the thickness comparison. While the yarns look pretty much the same, the content is actually slightly different. Check out the ball bands on this …

Scheepjes Spirit

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When I got my hands on Scheepjes Spirit yarn, I knew it was something special. It has a beautiful “halo” about it like a wool yarn, but it is actually a cotton blend. And the subtle monochrome color changes are to die for. I love it so much I have to tell you all about it! Worked with these beauties this week and snapped a candid pic of them spilling out of my yarn bag ❤️❤️❤️ And then a posed shot: US shoppers can find Spirit at LoveKnitting* for free shipping on orders over $60, international shoppers can find it at WoolWarehouse* with free delivery to the UK on orders over £25, and as always, it is available at other Scheepjes retailers. Look at the gorgeous color range – and all of the yarns are named after animals (as in Spirit Animal!) I’m loving Grasshopper ❤️ The deets: Fiber Content: 56% Cotton, 46% Acrylic Needle size 1: 3.5 mm Needle size 2: 4 mm Ball weight: 50 gram Length: 210 meter Gauge: 22 stitches, 30 needles …

Scheepjes YARN 03 – The Tropical Issue 

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Scheepjes Yarns has come out with the third volume of their YARN Book-azine, the Tropical Issue. And I cannot wait to show you my contribution! I’m so proud to be included in a group of such talented designers.  When I saw the first two YARN volumes, the Sea Issue and Midnight Garden, I knew I wanted to be a part of this incredible project. Flipping through these beautiful volumes never gets old. Check them out at WoolWarehouse.com*.  First, the Sea Issue… Then, Midnight Garden… And now, the Tropical Issue! You can hop over to Ravelry and take a peek at all of the designs in the new Tropical Issue. I’ve chosen a couple of my favorites to show you here: the Piña Colada shawl by Nerissa Muijs, and the Cactus Puzzle Balls by Dedri Uys.  The design I made for this issue is the “Amazon Blanket” seen on the cover above at the bottom-right corner, and here in the following fantastically styled photos: You can imagine my glowing pride for my piece to be included …

Scheepjes Whirl

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Eeeep! Scheepjes adds another sugary-sweet yarn to their collections. I was just swatching with BonBon and Sugar Rush* the other day, and then I heard about the yummy Whirl upcoming release – well you know this girl has a sweet tooth! Check out this absolutely delicious sneak peek photo from Scheepjes: And drooooool over these ice cream-y names! Here are the scrumptious details for these sweet cakes: Made from a blend of 60% cotton/40% acrylic to produce projects that are lightweight and breathable.  Unlike other gradient yarns, Whirl has a generous twist to enable speed while working the yarn and to help prevent splitting. Whirl has a unique twisted plied section, which gives it a characteristic ‘flavour’ all of its own!  This Extra Large yarn cake holds an enormous 1000 meters of softly colour changing yarn, more than enough for a large shawl or wrap.  Each colour change is carefully tied in an optimum way to ensure the knot can be discretely hidden within your stitches.  Recommended hook / needle size: 3.5-4mm Whirl is available in all …

Scheepjes Secret Garden

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Try not to drool on your screen!! This yarn can definitely provoke a stare and drool effect. Shop: Deramores =  Buy it here*! || Wool Warehouse = Buy it here*! Details: Yarn Weight: DK Length: 93m Needle Size: 4mm Ball Weight: 50g Tension: 18 stitches, 23 rows to 10 cm on 4 mm needles Fibre: 20% Silk x 20% Cotton x 60% Polyester I wanted this next photo to be cat-free but let me zoom out to show you my cat Bootsie – lol.. She is very independent but has gotten extremely clingy since we took in a stray kitten a couple of weeks ago. The actual photo with the Secret Garden yarns I plan to use in my latest pattern brainstorm which will feature diamonds and bobbles ❤️❤️❤️ Peep all of the brand new Secret Garden “solids” – gorgeous tweeds – and notice the beautifully chosen colors for the little marly bits. I chose three of the multis for my project: Close up of Rambling Blooms because Heart Eyessss, I love this!! What kind of Aladdin …

BQueen Collection – Custom Dye Box

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You may remember my post back in mid-June when I photographed my first experience dyeing yarn with a BQueen Dye Box. If you haven’t seen that post, please hop over! It talks about the process and you’ll see the gorgeous yellow Safflower-dyed yarn. ❤️❤️ (The pattern for this square is “Crystal” from the Vibrant Vintage CAL!)  When I dyed my first hank, I instantly wanted 6 more colors on 6 more hanks to make – of course – a blanket! Wouldn’t that be too lush?? After a chit chat with super-cool BQueen founder, Makenzie, she informed me that she had some gears turning already for a custom type Dye Box.  I waited patiently and finally she told me it was ready! 6 hanks of Superwash Merino bulky and 6 gorgeous natural dye vials.  I put my yarn soaking and started mixing up the dyes in the cups Makenzie provides with each Box.  Here are the remaining 5 dyes and their name tags.. I couldn’t stop the vials from rolling around to get a shot of …

Scheepjes Colour Crafter: A yarn stash staple.

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I wanted to introduce y’all to a durable DK yarn that I just started using. Chances are if Scheepjes Colour Crafter isn’t already your go-to DK powerhouse, you have one that popped in your mind. I used to use a different one too, (probably the one you thought of!!) but the moment I laid hand on Colour Crafter, I never looked back. Check out this rich palette – can you tell I’m amped for Fall? I’ll be using these colors for an awesome pattern coming soon! Y’all will love it! This is only part of the selection that I have right now, and I suspect I’ll have all 93 (!) colors soon.. Here’s another palette that I’m using to update my Desert Bloom Blanket pattern. I love this yarn so much that I’m starting fresh with a whole new – larger – Desert Bloom in Colour Crafter. So what’s the yarn like? Scheepjes CC is ultra squishy and plush. Acrylic and easy care. One of the reasons I like it is that there isn’t much of …

Hurrah for Velvet!!

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Scheepjes || Velvet Yarn has arrived! And there’s one in every color – heart eyes! See all of my Projects and Patterns using this yarn! Ignore the pizza boxes and busy kids buried in Summer workbooks – when this yarn came I had to clear a spot and photograph! The label says Colour Crafter, which got me thinking… Wouldn’t it be lovely to mix and match shades of Colour Crafter and Velvet in the same project?!? I happened to have these coordinating shades of CC in my stash, but you could mix it way up and use any colors.. My head is already brainstorming!! And since these colors with the acid bleached retro look (totally bringing me back to the 90s) remind me of the fabulous WestKnits, I just have to use every one of these babies in the same project – not a solid in sight. Introducing my next free pattern (nameless!!): a biiiig sunburst-flower-type hexagon – 11 inch across, 10 inch tall! Colors on the left for flowers, colors on the right for joining. …

It’s official: I’m a Scheepjes Blogger!

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Yep, that’s right! After putting a LOT of thought into it, I made the commitment to partner up with Scheepjes – makers of *stunning* yarns – and I’m just so excited to see what comes of our budding relationship! What does that mean for you guys and gals? It means more variety on CypressTextiles.net – you’ll see I now have an entire section of my site dedicated to blogging my crafty Scheepjes endeavors.. And it also means I’ll be writing more patterns for pretty things along the way. 🙂 For now I think I’ll post a little yarny eye candy…  Just loooooook at some saturated rainbow-like gorgeousness: Linen Soft, Merino Soft, and Colour Crafter  And wowzers this pastelly heathery goodness – I’m swooning!! Softfun Aquarel, Stone Washed, and Catona (25gr) – peep how teensy these li’l candies are! 2 are the length of one Colour Crafter!! 😍😍😍 Colorwork will be so fun and granny squares – oh I can’t wait until I have a spare minute! I’ll be spending some time on www.scheepjeswol.com – brb …