MillaMia Yarn from Sweden

I was recently in the Pasadena area visiting family, and while I was there I thought it would be fun to visit a LYS to see what different yarns they had. I ended up going to Skein, which was run by a very friendly couple and filled with some lovely yarns that I had never seen before. Please visit this cute little place if you have the opportunity. Anyway, one of the best yarns, both in quality and value, was MillaMia, which is an 100% merino wool collection. It has just a little bit of stretch to it, with lovely stitch definition, just perfect for either crochet or knitting.

Another nice thing about this line is that there is only one kind of yarn. It's so much less overwhelming to have the one type, 100% merino wool, with a wide array of colors than to have a brand with a dozen or more types of yarn, in dozens of different colors - yarn overload. The color palettes are very Scandinavian, so it's easy to dream up all kinds of Nordic mitten, hat, and scarf designs. I was thinking of making something like these with the red, cream, and light gray colors I bought.

I found these via Spanish blog Las Teje y Maneje, a super awesome website dedicated to all things crochet.

I also need to find a cute pattern for a little hat for my son, who would look so sweet in a little red hat for this winter. He hardly has any hair.

The company, founded by two gorgeous Swedish ladies, also publishes adorable pattern books for children. I love brightly colored striped sweaters for babies and kids, and these manage to be just that without looking like an eye test.

Well, maybe a little bit like an eye test. From the book Bright Young Things.

Unfortunately there are no stockists here in Phoenix, so if I want to get my hands on these things I'll have to order them over the internet. But I think it's worth the price.

Jessica Jones Textiles and Blog

I have long been a fan of Jessica Jones and her awesome blog How About Orange, so much so that I initially withheld sharing the blog with my friends for greedy personal reasons. Aside from the amazing tutorials and free paper projects and fonts, I especially love her awesome fabric print collections. Her most recent collection, Outside Oslo, is my favorite so far, because it is playfully and simply Scandinavian in theme, it's colorways are both smartly sophisticated and fun, yet it is accessible in availability and price. And it's not from IKEA. Though I do love IKEA fabric.  You may recognize the fabric photo below as the same that is in my blog title picture. I REALLY like this fabric.

I own the IKEA rocking chair in this picture. I'm not sure what that says about me.

This blog was inspired by a recent trip to a local discount fabric store, where I was able to find a large quantity of her Amusement Park Fireworks home decor weight fabric! In my amazement, I bought the whole lot, of course, and can't decide whether to recover a rocking chair cushion (see above) or make a shoulder bag. Or maybe both, since I bought enough to start my own fabric store.  

I bought this one...

And would also like this one.

I hope I'm lucky enough to find some of her Outside Oslo collection here in the Valley soon, though I'll probably just break down and buy it full-price from her website.
Be sure to browse through her super-awesome blog. But beware, you'll be stuck there forever looking through all the tutorials, free downloads, and "time wasters" she has posted.

http://howaboutorange.blogspot.com

Malabrigo Yarn

Every time I come across this line, it's usually made up into something so gorgeous, like a supersoft looking cowl, or a precious brightly-colored baby sweater, I know I'm going to have to pick some up soon. And although I can't knit very well (yet), I can definitely find something to crochet it into. 


Malabrigo, like it's competitor, Manos del Uruguay, is imported from South America and is made by women and kettle dyed in Uruguay. Most of the line is 100% Merino wool, so it's delicate and super-soft. When knitted up, it creates a slightly more rustic-looking stitch, which I tend to like over perfectly formed knits since my knitting is less than awesome. 

So cute! I wish I could wear this cowl now. Alas, it's impossible to wear a cowl at ANY time here in Phoenix, so I should probably learn to live with the 40 cowls I already have.

This is made with their lace, and the color palette is impressive!

This color match was made from a picture of a banana slug. Who knew they could be so beautiful? 

Malabrigo offers 17 different lines of yarns, from worsted 100% Merino wool to "Silpaca," 70% baby alpaca wool and 30% silk, with everything in between. Each line has so many gorgeously rich saturated colors. I hope I get some soon!

This blanket, a work in progress by Rebekka Seale, looks so soft and delicate. If you look at the colored ripples, you can see the subtle variations in color as a result of the hand-dying process. If you haven't already, please visit her site, Dear Friend. It's one of my absolute favorites!  

Exciting New Line of Fabric from David Butler

Parson Gray, a design brand created by David Butler, effuses a modern and naturalistic style appealing to both men and women. His first collection of prints, "Curious Nature" offers three colorways, with a smaller sampling of laminates. "The collection is a folk modern interpretation of natural elements. It weaves together a balance of hand-drawn patterns inspired by Japanese indigo and mid-century fine art. The palette is grounded in richly muted nature tones evoking deep forest and dark ocean balanced by bone ivory and oyster grays." (taken from facebook page)

You can win this bag!! See the facebook page for details. The winner will be chosen August 1st, 2012.

David Butler is the husband of the eponymous textile designer Amy Butler, whose intense, unique, and richly colorful patterns revolutionized the quilting world. 


What I love about this collection is the modern lines and sensibilities, and the color palettes, which though simple manage to not be boring or drab. I love how the orange ottoman pouf (cocoons - robe) really pops in the above picture. Also with a little boy and a husband in the house, my fabric stash could use an infusion of masculine prints in case I suddenly find time to sew them something.