May
Knitalong Mother’s Day Event
Posted by Shannon in the shop, books, eventsThe uber-talented Larissa Brown and Sarah Gilbert will be here at Twisted tomorrow (Thursday) night for a book-signing and Mother’s-Day-gift-making extravaganza! Larissa and her hubbie, Martin, wrote the most amazing book, Knitalong, which is filled to the brim with interesting stories of knitting as a community, both a physical community and a cyber one. Both Larissa and Sarah not only shared their knitting, writing, and photography talents, but their children, as well, who can be seen modeling many of the projects in the book, and for that, we are grateful, because they are so darned cute!
Larissa will be signing books and leading a Magic Yarn Ball project - perfect to give as a Mother’s Day Gift. You can buy the yarn and all the little gifts to go inside here at Twisted. Designer and photographer Sarah Gilbert, who has one pattern and many photos in the book, will join her.
Dads and children, this is your opportunity to get a great knittin’ gift for mom, a signed book and a Magic Yarn Ball!
At Twisted on NE Broadway, Portland, Oregon. May 8. 6 pm.
Apr
Yarn Harlot visit
Posted by Emily in contests, books, events, charityJust in case you haven’t already heard, the Yarn Harlot is coming to Portland, courtesy Blue Moon Fiber Arts, and fun is sure to be had.
Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, the beloved Yarn Harlot herself, will be at the World Forestry Center (Miller Hall) on April 22 at 7:00 pm. She is sure to keep us laughing and knitting as she shares her knit wisdom and wit. We are celebrating the arrival of her new book, Things I Learned from Knitting…Whether I Wanted To or Not. She will be signing this book and her other titles. Doors open at 5:00 pm for book sales and seating. There will be plenty of room and books so, no worries, reservations are NOT needed. A very special Socks that Rock lightweight will also be on sale! All profits from book sales go to Knitters Without Borders.
In addition, BMFA has put together an “Inexplicable Knitting Behavior Scavenger Hunt” to celebrate the Harlot’s visit and, since Earth Day is April 19, the Earth. Click here to see all the details of the Scavenger hunt. It is a printable pdf. Basically, on either Saturday 19th (Earth Day) or Tuesday 22nd (the day Stephanie is speaking) you and some knitting buddies are challenged to run around town taking pictures with a sock in progress at assigned locations. It is sure to be a blast and, for participating, you get a cool pin custom made for the event.
Apr
joy, and taiyo
Posted by Shannon in yarn, books, eventsfirst, a reminder that tonight is open crafting night! come on in, craft the evening away, fondle yarns, drink tea, fix the world’s problems…
with spring rearing its sunny head once in a while, thoughts turn to lighter-weight knitting. tank-tops and tee-shirts have become popular knitted items in recent years. and, sure, socks are always a sure bet - even in a warm fiber, socks are small enough to work on year-round. but sometimes you want something else. something in the middle. that, i firmly believe, is why eisaku noro created taiyo. taiyo is a worsted-weight cotton-silk-wool-nylon blend that has the appearance of kureyon with a softness not often seen in noro’s yarns. it comes in a 100-gram ball, which gives you almost 220 yards of yarn to play around with.
there is also a new book to complement the taiyo. jane ellison has come up with a bunch of new patterns to highlight the new noro yarns (how does she do it?!?!!?). there are some uber-cute taiyo sweaters (that may just have to be knit by me at some point this spring), and patterns using the kureyon sock and the silk garden lite yarns.
Mar
book review: drunk, divorced, and covered in cat hair
Posted by Shannon in booksemily is a genius. she really is. (but you all already knew that, didn’t you?) she came up with the idea for book reviews, and, since i just finished a book we recently got in the shop, i’ll get this party started.
laurie perry, aka crazy aunt purl, is the kind of woman you just plain want to be friends with. she’s smart, funny, self-depreciating without being self-loathing, and very, very honest. her fabulous, sweet, funny, and sometimes-sad memoir about getting dumped and bouncing back, knitting needles in hand, is a great read. she has a way of writing that makes you feel as though you are in the room with her, drinking coffee (or wine), best friends forever, laughing and crying about life.
in 2005, laurie started blogging about her life post-marriage, and that blog grew into the kind of memoir that even non-knitters will love. need a little something to pass the time when your hands need a break from knitting? read this book! you won’t be sorry.
Nov
Book worms rejoice
Posted by Emily in booksKnitting books are the ultimate, aren’t they?
To start with, they combine two of my personal addictions, knitting and books. Then there are all the gorgeous photos, enticing projects to plot, new techniques to learn…
Anyway, we have some great new titles here at Twisted that we wanted to share:
Son of a Stitch and Bitch, by Debbie Stoeller. The new book of 45 mens’ patterns by the incomparable author of Stitch and Bitch. Debbie Stoller knows that at least half the projects women knit are intended for the men in their lives. She also knows that knitting
for a boyfriend or husband or father is full of pitfalls. The answer Son of Stitch ‘N Bitch, the hip, smart knitter’s guide to knitting for men.
Knitting Little Luxuries by Louisa Harding. Pamper yourself and your friends with luxurious knitted gifts that can be made in no time. From a sumptuous striped cloche hat to a sophisticated wrap with delicate embroidery to fingerless mittens with lace edging, these quick-and-easy projects are stylish, luxurious, use small amounts of yarn, and can be created by even the novice knitter.
Barbara Walker Books, including the complete set of her Treasury of Knitting Patterns series, Mosaic Knitting, Knitting from the Top. Absolutely essential!
Elizabeth Zimmermann and Meg Swansen books from Schoolhouse Press, including the Spun Out Designs newsletters. Again, absolutely essential books for the hard core knitter.
Nov
interweave rocks
Posted by Shannon in the shop, books, patternswe have two, count ‘em, TWO new interweave mags in the shop.
the first is the always-popular holiday issue, with patterns by local designer (and twisted teacher) chrissy gardiner and twisted-gal blog-crush jarod flood (aka brooklyn tweed). it’s a great issue, with loads of projects large and small, easy and ambitious. in my own personal pre-holiday casting-on frenzy, i began jarod’s koolhaas hat last night. in dream in color classy. yummy.
we also have the anticipated winter 2007 knits in stock. and, no, the cover model is NOT jennifer garner (threw me for a loop, too). the insanely talented chrissy gardiner has a pattern in this issue, too! yaay for local talent! as usual, the mag is also full of gorgeous sweater patterns, a wicked-cool celtic-knot tote, and awesome socks from the afore-mentioned chrissy.
Oct
lisa, the sweater
Posted by Shannon in yarn, books, knittingif you’ve been in the shop, and wanted to knit this:
but wondered about the pattern, well, wonder no more, because we just got this book in:
with the lovely lisa pattern, and many many more.
oh, and we have oodles of debbie bliss’ cashmerino lines, too - and many more pattern books to go along with ‘em!
Oct
Ta-da
Posted by Emily in socks, booksJust a little F.O. report here. I have been working on these forever and, well, just got a bit sick of them. I picked them up again and darned if when I measured all I had left to do was the toe! So, a mere hour later I had a finished Traveler’s Stocking from Knitting on the Road by Nancy Bush. In Cherry Tree Hill Supersock Cherry color on two Addi Turbo 2.5mm circular needles.
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I love this sock.
Here’s the sock with another item in our store that is cherry colored and luscious - a painting by artist and friend Bonita Davis.
Oct
Crazy Aunt Purl
Posted by Emily in booksThose of you who read blogs are certainly familiar with Crazy Aunt Purl, a.k.a. Laurie Perry. Laurie has a new book out called Drunk, Divorced, and Covered in Cat Hair: The True-Life Misadventures of a 30-Something Who Learned to Knit After He Split. (Has any book, ever, anywhere had a better title?!)
Well, Laurie is on a book tour and dropped in on lil’ ol’ us at Twisted yesterday morning! This is thanks to Mims and Peggy from the Oregonian’s knitting blog, K2tog, who interviewed her and suggested Twisted as a good place to meet. Check out their blog soon for the interview with this witty and fantastic crafty lady!
From left to right: Mims Copeland, Laurie Perry, Peggy McMullen.
Oct
the many wonders of crochet
Posted by Shannon in books, classes, crochetcrochet gets a bad rep, and we’re here to tell you, it just ain’t fair! there are many funky things one can do with crochet:
1. create a designer knock-off
2. 
3. who needs voodoo dolls, when you can make a little depp-love for your very own
4. recreate your favorite video game characters: pacman, anyone?
6. or, check out this website, which is just plain FAB-YOUUU-LOUSSS, folks, and get a little inspiration
and that’s not even mentioning all of the beautiful, NORMAL things you can create with this wonderful fiber process. we have books like the happy hooker, and crochet me, with gorgeous crocheted garments and accessories.
so come on in, take a class, learn a new skill, crochet away this winter.
Learn to Crochet
Sunday, Nov 11, 18, 25.
12:00 – 2:00 pm
with Brooke Krawetz
$60
Materials: 5.0 – 6.0 mm crochet hook, worsted-
weight wool (preferably plain-colored and not too
dark)
or, for folks who already know the basics and are ready to delve into the world of super-cute japanese amigurumidom…
Amigurumi Workshop
Sunday, Dec 9. 12:00 - 2:00 pm
with Michelle Molis
$20
Materials: worsted-weight or smaller yarn and
crochet hook small enough to make quite tight fabric,
Amigurumi book ($6), eyes
Included: stuffing
give us a call at 503.922.1150 or stop in to register for these super-fly classes.