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National Parks 2020: Lake Clark National Park and Preserve

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It’s time once again to explore more National Parks through yarny goodness. Over the past four years, we have explored the United States through its National Parks, and in 2020, we will have represented them all. Many of these are lesser-known National Parks, and we hope you spend some time exploring them through the links we’ve shared.

Check out our Socks on Vacay/Socks on Staycay summertime sock knitting collaboration with our friend Shannon Squire, too: https://shannonsquire.com/socks-on-vacay-staycay-2020/

Thanks for exploring parks and making socks with us once again this summer! To get your yarn, check out our list of LYS’s offering National Parks (Parks yarn will ONLY be available at our LYS partners through the summer): https://knittedwit.com/

Where is this National Park located?

Lake Clark National Park is located in southwest Alaska, about 100 miles southwest of Anchorage.

Whose land does this National Park reside upon?

people first came to the Lake Clark region around the end of the last ice age. Dena’ina, Yup’ik, and Sugpiaq peoples. The Dena’ina people have called Qizhjeh Vena, also known as Lake Clark, home for thousands of years, and still reside here, living with and off the land, and working to preserve their culture.

When was it established as a National Park?

December 2, 1980

Why is this park amazing?

Volcanoes steam, salmon run, bears forage, and craggy mountains reflect in shimmering turquoise lakes. Here, too, local people and culture still depend on the land and water. Lake Clark preserves the ancestral homelands of the Dena’ina people, an intact ecosystem at the headwaters of the largest sockeye salmon fishery in the world, and a rich cultural wilderness.

Why did we choose these colors?

With a park name of Lake Clark, OF COURSE we’re going to showcase the lake and the area surrounding it for our colorway. Rich blues and greens run through the skein, making us all want to jump in a lake in celebration.

For more information:

Why “menstrual products”?

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Some folks may wonder, as we advertise the menstrual products drive we’re hosting as a part of our Halloween Harry Potter Pub Quiz Extravaganza, why we’re using the phrase “menstrual products” instead of “feminine hygiene products.” Well, it’s because not all people who use menstrual products are females.

Language is so powerful, so important. That old phrase “sticks and stones may break your bones but words will never hurt you” is a big lie. Words CAN hurt. Words DO hurt. Just look at the current occupant of the White House, and tell all of folks who have been victims of hate crimes since he started spewing his racist rhetoric that his words will never hurt them.

If we, as cis, white women, who have so many privileges just by dint of our outward appearance, can help folks who don’t share those privileges feel even just a wee bit more comfortable in the world, you know we’re going to do it. And that’s why adopting more inclusive language is so important, and it’s something we’d implore all of those in our orbit to do, as well. It is completely and totally painless to change our language surrounding menstrual products. Look, I said menstrual products and it actually felt good.

Now, let’s get rid of as many of these exclusionary (and outright racist/sexist/othering) words and phrases as we can, ok? I, for one, have taken to saying y’all instead of you guys, because we are not all guys, and y’all sounds cute. What else can we do to make language a bit more inclusive?

National Parks 2019: Sequoia & Kings Canyon

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Skein of our National Parks colorway Sequoia & Kings Canyon in Sock

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park is another fabulous park with huge variances in wildlife, terrain, and geography. The elevation gradient is over 13,000 feet, and it’s home to the breathtaking Giant Sequoias and the ecosystem which gives life to them.

February Sassy Holidays 2019: Gumdrop Day

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This club is exclusive to our Local Yarn Shop partners, so if you see a color way you need, contact your LYS! There is a list of Sassy Holidays-celebrating LYSs on our home page.

Friday, February 15th is National Gumdrop Day! There isn’t much information available on the origins of Gumdrop Day, so we’re going to share some gumdrop facts as we chew on some gumdrops of our very own and journey through Gumdrop Pass on our way up Gumdrop Mountain, playing Candyland with our kiddos…

Gumdrops are chewy, often sugar-coated candies that are well-known around the winter holidays as a treat AND a decoration for gingerbread houses. They come in fruit and spiced versions, and were believed to have been invented in 1801. The largest gumdrop ever created was a bit more than ten pounds (!) The NASA Apollo Command modules were nicknamed “Gumdrops” because of their conical shape (but don’t try to eat those; you’ll get a broken tooth or two!)

Our Gumdrop colorway, perfectly and aptly named Gumdrop, contains the primary Gumdrop colorways, red, yellow, green, and blue. But the real question is, are they the fruit-flavored gumdrops, or the spiced gumdrops?

So, grab your skein, grab a bag of gumdrops, and celebrate this sweetest day! 

2018 National Parks. Week 7: Gates of the Arctic

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We really do hate to play favorites, particularly when each color is so unique and beautiful, but this color is this year’s answer to last year’s favorite, Acadia. For Week 7, we are visiting Gates of the Arctic National Park, and oooh, baby, is it a gorgeous place to be!

Check out our inspiration photo for this park, and tell me that you don’t want to climb right into the screen.

Remember, get this colorway on our website starting today! Make socks with us this Summer as a part of our 2nd Annual Summertime Sock Knitting Extravaganza, otherwise known as Socks on Vacay. Use #socksonvacay2018 on IG while sharing photos of your Knitted Wit/Shannon Squire socks (must use our yarn and Shannon’s patterns to be eligible), and you might just win a prize!

WIP Wednesday—a day late and a sleeve short

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Well, my lack of reading skills struck again. I was supposed to knit x rows between increase rounds and knit -x so the increase was way too fast. Last night I ripped it out and started again this morning. My new game plan is to have a pencil and make hash marks for how many rows I’ve knit. I have the attention span of a gnat, or more likely I’m constantly interrupted and can’t remember what I was just doing! (project details really fast: Little Weekender by Adventure Du Jour, yarn is Bulky in Unicorn Giggles. This batch is a very muddy version.)Ripppppp out the sleeve!

Two different skeins, but looking pretty good for a match. And really, I love this yarn soooo much I  don’t mind all the reknitting I’ve been doing. I’m choosing to look at it as an opportunity to learn new tricks to take to the next pattern. I’m 90% sure I’ll be knitting one of these in my size, so I’ll be knitting another one soon enough!I couldn’t keep my knits and my purls where they needed to be!!! There were plenty of reasons to rip back 😉

Time for a change of scenery! Don’t worry, I cast on new socks that didn’t require any brain power! I’m using Shannon’s Winter Weekend Socks. The yarn I’m using is Victory DK in our first HerStory color, Radio Active Rainbow!! They are growing so fast!!! I have about an inch and a half until I get to the heel. For the moment they’re going to sit in my stack of socks that are to the heel. But that’s a story for another day 😉

Bubble Bath Day!

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Y’all know how I like to keep it sassy, so this year we started the Sassy Holidays Club!! Once a month we’ll send a new color, to the yarn shops listed below, that is inspired by a holiday in that month.

These super special skeins of Victory Fingering will be available at the following local yarn stores:

  • Cozy
  • Elgin Knit Works
  • Ewe-nique Knits
  • For Yarn’s Sake
  • Knot Another Hat Shop
  • Loop
  • Needles Rochelle
  • Tangled Purls
  • The Knitters Nest
  • The Tinsmith’s Wife
  • Threads & Ewe
  • Yarn Shop Santa Cruz
  • Yarnz4Ewe

January has Bubble Bath Day at the beginning of the month and I really couldn’t think of a more fitting color for the month! Baths are the best in the winter, trying to get warm and relaxed after a busy day. The colors hint at the iridescent colors of bubbles, and it’s just the happiest!

 

A dear friend of mine introduced me to Korean skin care, and it’s fair to say I’m a bit obsessed. Not crazy about taking a bath, take a moment to do something nice for yourself and your skin! A little bit of love goes a long way.

Mmmmmm and lavender might just be my favorite scent ever. My big summer goal is to make it to a lavender festival. And maybe roll around in the field 😉 There’s a chance I’m counting down the days to summer tonight!

What do you do for self care? What’s feels like a quick easy thing to do and what’s a more luxurious take? Some times for me, cleaning the bathroom feels luxurious to get to that bath! And at the end I still have a clean bathroom!!

WIP Wednesday!

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Hey y’all!! I’ve been needle deep in Little Weekender by Adventure Du Jour Designs! I’m using Knitted Wit Bulky in Unicorn Giggles. This is our super wash merino Bulky, not our Big Sky Bulky– a Targhee non super wash. This is also a very muddy Unicorn Giggles, but I’m obsessed. I’m doing size 6 for Frances, but secretly I’m hoping it doesn’t fit her and I can keep it as a sample. I’ve knit the front in one skein and had a teeny bit left over. The back is taller so I’m not sure if I’ll be able to knit the whole way in one skein. I am not alternating skeins, call me a dare devil!

Fun fact about me, I’m a terrible reader. I mean, I read a ton. Of romance novels. But I don’t do well with reading instructions. Over drinks with a teacher friend we tipsily diagnosed me as an auditory learner. I used to be anyways. I think part of it is I haven’t been in a learning situation in a while, so I’m out of the habit. Anyways, trying new patterns is a tough chore for me. You might have noticed I tend to knit the same thing over and over again. Once I have it figured out I don’t have to study the instructions as closely. I can intuit what needs to happen. The same with sewing. I can’t tell you how many mistakes I’ve made because I don’t read the instructions, or don’t slow down to read them thoroughly. For 2018 I really want to work on this skill. Teacher people: if you have an adult idea on reading comprehension let me know! Okay, but back to Little Weekender. It’s knit in Bulky so a quick project. The pattern isn’t super long so it wasn’t super intimidating to read through. And it’s knit in 4 pieces, front/back/sleeves. There’s also an adult version of this sweater, My Weekender, and I figure this is a good practice for the real deal when I make mine!Oh look! I did the side column wrong and had to drop stitches! No worries, I picked them all up and knit it right. Almost. I had to work it out two more times and finally got it right! Are there any projects that you haven’t tackled because it was intimidating? Or are you a fearless crafter? I’m excited about these successes to build confidence to tackle more projects! Okay, I have three more inches to go on the back! I’m going back in!

We’re Hiring!

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Hello fantastic people!! We have an opening for a full time position. The job is a little this, a little that, a lot of work and fun! You’ll be winding off yarn, rewinding yarn, labeling, and shipping orders. It’s a lot of work on your feet, lifting, and moving product around. This job requires flexibility (mostly emotionally when working with rewinding yarn) and a sense of humor.

We work 9-5, M-F, but can be flexible with the schedule. We’ll train you, we recognize this is a pretty specific skill set. That being said, this is a manufacturing job. You’ll be doing the same thing over and over and over. And over again. Recognizing economy of motion, and how to speed up your process once you have the skill down is very important.

Please send your resume to [email protected], sending it anywhere else will get it deleted. Resumes need to be received by 1/18/18. We look forward to hearing from you!

#2018MakeNine

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Have y’all seen that hashtag floating around? #2018MakeNine is dreamed up by Home Row Fiber Co, she calls it a gentle challenge for makers. For me, it’s the ticket to set some intentions for 2018 and make a plan. I find with out a plan, nothing gets done! And boy howdy, do I have a lot planned for 2018.

I like to pick a phrase or word that helps me focus on what I want to accomplish for the year. For 2018 I’m focusing on Makers Gonna Make. And I have a lot I want to make. I want to make quilts, yarn, accessories and garments, time for my family and my home, and time to be outside. I snagged four quilt photos, but I have a few more that are in the to make pile. I honestly don’t know what’s a reasonable amount to accomplish, but I’m setting myself up for success with Sewing Sundays once a month with some sewing friends. We’re doing it on the first Sunday of the month so I have the week to figure out a game plan and make the most of our time together. I think I’m going to see if I can get some cutting in so I’m actually sewing on Sunday.

I want to get back in to spinning yarn. I think. Spinning is something I enjoy but tends to fall to the bottom of the crafting list. I’m trying out a friend’s electric spinner to see if that’s a better fit for my current life. What I’m realizing is I need to read less and watch more TV so I can get through more spins and knits! For knitting I want to learn how to do brioche knitting. I’m on the hunt for a class, I do much better learning a new technique in person. The other mega knitting goal is to learn to do toe up heels from the sock master Shannon Squire. I am not exaggerating when I say I have about a dozen socks knit up to the heel. I can cast on with the best of them and knit and knit and knit. Time to turn the heel!

With all the kiddos getting older and a little more in control of their bodily functions, its getting easier to travel again. I’m planning for a summer full of lake time, hiking, and camping. Sundays will be fundays around here!

A big goal more related to Knitted Wit is blogging and being here. I’m calling it slow social media 😉 I want to tell you the stories behind our colors, because there almost always is one. I want to see what you’re making and share it with all our friends, too! Here is to a successful, colorful, joyful 2018!