Happy New Year (and happy new yarns)!

Here's to 2010! Warm wishes for a wonderful new year!


Our 20% yarn sale is still on, and will be into the new year. We've got so many great new yarns! One yarn that isn't really new is Noro Kureyon sock yarn. Folks thought it was scratchy for the feet, so we stopped carrying it. Well, we saw a simply gorgeous shawl made of it and were convinced to bring it back into the store. Seems it isn't as scratchy as we remember, but no matter, even the designers are using it to make everything except socks! The cardigan above is made from this yarn. The pattern is from Jenny Watson's Noro Book #3. We don't have a photograph of the shawl just yet, but we do have a free pattern for it at the store. Don't forget to ask for one. It'd be beautiful made from the Noro yarn, but it'll work up just as nicely with many of your favorite sock yarns.

We are carrying a new Noro yarn - Yuzen. It's 56% Wool, 34% Silk, 10% Mohair, and simply gorgeous. Here's a lovely cardigan from "Jane Ellison's Noro Family" pattern book:


We just hung up some huge skeins of Cherry Tree Hill Merino hand-painted lace yarn. The skeins have 2400 yards of luscious 100% merino - enough for two shawls. C'mon in so you can see it and touch it in person!

Let's see. What else? So many new yarns are coming in every day. There's many new colors of the amazingly soft but bulky Baby Alpaca Grande, and Baby Alpaca Grande Tweed. This is another yarn that has to be felt next to the skin. It's the softest bulky we've ever touched!

2010 is going to be a very good year for knitters!

Hero Arts Party

Just so you can't say we aren't giving you enough notice, there will be a Hero Arts Party on February 20th from 10:00am to noon. It's the price of a regular stamping class - seven dollars. Even if you're not a big stamper, you might want to check this one out! To get a taste of Hero Arts stamping and get all sorts of nifty crafty ideas and free projects, too, take yourself over to the Hero Club Blog.

And of course, Merry Christmas! Hope you and yours are happy, healthy, and toasty warm!

Class schedule through the end of the year

Wednesday, December 16th from 1:00-3:00 Christmas Cards by Papercute with Sue
This will be extra-fun. Lots of new ideas and cute cards.

Saturday, December 19th from 10:00-12:00 A Variety of Christmas Cards with Sue
Last chance to make cards at a class in the store! Let's do a little punching, some snow, some Santas - a workshop of many cards!

Wednesday, December 30th from 1:00-3:00 Christmas Thank You Cards with Sharon
It'll be time to make and send those thank you cards.

All classes, as usual, are seven dollars. Bring stamping supplies, scissors, a glue stick, and double-stick tape. Call 872-2118 for more info or to sign up.

There's still a few sewing and quilting classes before the year is up. Call 872-5403 for more info.

If you click on the wreath image above, it will open in a new window. That way, you can print it out.

Browse yarns in the comfort of your own home

Scroll down on the the sidebar, at right, and you'll find a list of yarn companies. Now, you can browse colors from the comfort of your own home! The list will be growing every week, so keep an eye on it. But don't let the shortness of this list fool you: the Plymouth site has more than a dozen yarns that we carry in the store. Check it out. It might save you some stress if you tend to get overwhelmed by the amount of yarn that's in the store. Lots of people do get yarn overload - it's hard not love nearly everything one sees and touches.

Wondering what these swatches are? They're Araucania Panguipulli, a beautiful yarn with an unpronouncable name. It's not in the store yet; we're just giving you a peek of what's to come! It's a soft, marled yarn in 100% merino that knits up fast. We're really looking forward to trying it. The sample scarves that are in the store now are just so luscious.

Winter yarn sale

Yes, we had a big party and everything is on sale, but it's not over! All our yarn is on sale at 20% off and will be until January 13th. C'mon in and save! Plus, new exciting yarns are coming in. Right now we're going to let that be a surprise, but soon we'll be posting pics of some of these very special yarns, including new yarns from Noro and Arucania. They are simply gorgeous! Check out the Arucania color swatch scarves that we put in the store today.

And now, more pictures from Saturday:

Ken and Sally

Sale? Party? Sue and the stampers just keep on going, no matter what! Looks like fun.

At least one person posed for the camera. Bette's working hard, as usual.

No yarn from the store was used in the knitting of Scott's Norwegian sweater. Tsk tsk!

Truly, 60 years of family and friends.

Happy 60th Anniversary!

Saturday was the big sale and party for the 60th anniversary of the store. Wow, it was a madhouse!

Folks got all sorts of goodies. Here's Joyce, Bea, and Ken with the cake before it started being gobbled up. What's in the crockpot? Meatballs in barbecue sauce. Yum!

More photos are on their way. If you recognize yourself in one of them, leave a comment with your name (unless you want to remain anonymous).

On Saturday, as we were loading up your bags,we heard so much about all the projects that are being planned. Don't forget to take some pictures and send them to us. We want to see what you've made!

Free felted bag, slipper, and hat patterns

Click here for a big collection of excellent free patterns for felted bags, hats, and slippers. We have lots of bulky weight single-ply yarns in stock that you can use. Come in and look around!

And don't forget to print out the one-day-only sale coupon for December 12th! You'll find it below.

Beautiful new yarns

Cherry Tree Hill yarns have always been special. We've got two new additions in the store. Charmed is a lovely hand dyed baby alpaca yarn with a bit of glitter. The fingerless mitts shown above are a wonderful quick-to-make Christmas gift!

Even though we're overflowing with sock yarn, we couldn't resist the soft and subtle colorways of Cherry Tree Hill's new superwash 100% merino fingering weight yarn. Because of its special high twist, there's no need for nylon.

60th Anniversary Celebration!

On December 12th, we're having our big 60th anniversary celebration! There will be refreshments, door prizes, surprises (even we don't know what they are yet!) and the coupon above. Click on the coupon image (it'll open in a new window) and then print it out. If you're unable to print it, just mention you saw it on the blog.

It's a great chance to get some of those things you've been wanting at discount. As Joyce says, "It's all therapy!" No guilt necessary 'cause crafting is good for your mental health!

We look forward to seeing you then!

Discount yarns

There's always yarn on sale at the store. Come in and find something irresistible!


We just put out a lot of Sirdar Denim yarn. It's a great yarn for so many projects - it's next to skin soft and machine washable.





We've got some beautiful Jknits hand-dyed bulky - perfect for making a quick hat for Christmas. Don't forget to ask for one of our free hat patterns!

These two yarns are just the tip of the iceberg. If you've to the store, you'll know that our sale yarn bins are always overflowing - so much fun to explore!

Lucy Neatby workshops

We will have some truly special knitting workshops on Tuesday and Wednesday, October 6th and 7th, with Canadian knitter extraordinaire Lucy Neatby. That's Lucy above, and you can learn more about her at her own colorful blog, "Happy Stitches."

Lucy describes herself as a "technical knitter." Here a run-down of the workshops:

Tuesday Morning 9-Noon "Ship Shape Shoulders"
Suitable for beginners and up.
Learn to work short rows to eliminate stair-steps on the shoulders of sweaters. Deal with cables, mismatched seams.

Tuesday Afternoon 1-4 "Fringes, Folderols, and Furbelows"
For intermediate knitters.
A mixed bag of interesting techniques to add exciting beginning and finishing touches to your knitting.

Wednesday Morning 9-Noon "Gilding the Lily"
Must have working knowledge of kitchener and mattress stitch as these will not be covered in detail.
We will look at a variety of refinements to the detailing of your pieces, owkr on provisional cast-ons, make a double knit pocket, and trim a choice of pocket top. A more intensive class than the others.

Wednesday afternoon 1-4 "Merrily Down the Tubes"
Advanced Class
Test and compare many methods of achieving a tubular cast-on. Incorporate invisible channels suitable for i-cord or elastic within a a rib followed by a sewn tubular bind-off for single and double rib fabrics.

All workshops are $30. Call 207-872-2118 for more details, find out what supplies and swatches you need to bring with you, and to sign up. This should be fun!

What's new

Here's Joyce, busy as usual, talking on the phone, and picking out new Fiesta yarn. Well, that's not so new. What's new is this blog, which we hope you'll enjoy. We're also working on a new website.

Stop by here weekly as we'll be posting news, sales, and events. We hope to also post pics of your projects or any sewing, quilting, knitting, crocheting, stamping or other crafts tips that you'd like to share. Just click the "view my complete profile" link for our e-mail address.

Comments are welcome. We hope that this will become the store's new on-line community.