shop update!

At long last it is time for a SHOP UPDATE! 

Click over the the VIOLA etsy shop next TUESDAY, FEBRUARY the 2nd @ 3pm EST for the latest and greatest!

I know, it's been a while. The past few months at Viola HQ have been action packed, and the time has flown by since the last shop update. I'm really excited about the yarns and colours that are lined up for next Tuesday. I think They're well worth the wait, hope you do too...

Polwarth + Alpaca is back at last! It's been away for a while, so for those of you who do not remember, Powarth + Alpaca is spun by my lovely friends at John Arbon Textiles. It's a blend of 70% Polwarth 15% Brown Alpaca and 15% White Alpaca. The natural hint of colour in the undyed yarn gives the finished colours such richness and depth. The yarn itself is light as air, soft, squishy and warm. It's good stuff!

I knit myself a Quill shawl in Polwarth + Alpaca and it has seen a LOT of action this autumn/winter. It was a perfect yarn and project pairing! Recently, I've been dreaming of a fair isle garment knit in this delightful stuff. Still in the dreaming/planning stages with that project...

 
Perhaps the best bit of news, however, is that MOHAIR LACE is returning! In the olden days of Viola (pre England) I dyed a very similar base, and it was so dreamy. When I took up dyeing again last year, I struggled to get the same base again. Just when I thought all hope was lost, this stunningly beautiful yarn appeared! Talk about good fortune, I'm still jumping for joy! 

The new Mohair Lace is almost exactly the same yarn as it's predecessor. It is a blend of 72% Kid Mohair and 28% Silk. Each 50g skein is 420 meters long.

I've just finished up a shawl (a very late birthday present for my mum) using Mohair Lace doubled with Merino Lace. The Mohair is in Twig (light golden brown) and Merino is in Ghost. I cannot even say how pleased I am with this project. I often find it really difficult to knit something so simple...always wanting to throw in some crazy detail, cable, stripe, lace, all of the above. Keeping it simple really paid off this time round!

It's a standard garter stitch triangle with this picot bind off. I'm going to be borrowing this shawl ALL THE TIME...I'll have to knit another one...that's ok. For anyone interested in knitting their own Mohair Cloud Shawl (that's what I'm calling it) I'll have lots of Mohair Lace coming up in the update, as well as Merino Lace to team it up with.

I used a 5mm needle, 2 full skeins of Mohair Lace and just over 1 skein of Merino Lace. It's big enough to wrap every which way, and light soft and cozy to boot! I wore it the other day layered over my favourite Mohair sweater (knit a very long time ago, and worn all the time!) Wearing all those layers of Mohair, whilst sorting Mohair Lace was a great treat.