Baaad Anna's Yarn Shop

This yarn shop is one I have driven by every time I go downtown and back since it opened in 2009, but the words on the logo were a bit off-putting. Baaad Anna's "Not Your Mama's Yarn Store" as I saw it meant perhaps I could be the Mama they were talking about. The owner and individuals working in the shop are all 20 or 30-somethings so it seemed apparent, at least to me, I would more than likely be out of place. So I have hesitated to stop in. Here's more detail about Baaad Anna's written by Janna Maria Vallee upon its opening.

On Saturday I decided it would be a good idea to actually check this assumption. And guess what, I may know the Mama because we are about the same age, but I might not be that person. Here's some quick pics of the shop itself. It is small, like most yarn shops, but it carries a nice variety of good quality yet affordable wool.

Blocking rods

In addition it offers some inventory other shops don't carry. Let me illustrate this point. Little Arrows lace shawl is coming together; it seems either my hands or my mind or both are gaining muscle memory so the knitting is becoming easier as I go. The shawl should be off the needles within a week and that means I need special equipment to block it into shape. (Lace shawls like Little Arrow demand blocking because without it they are little holey, uninspired, shapeless mesh.)

Blocking wires/blocking rods are used to accomplish the task of shaping lace, and it seems the terms blocking wires or rods are used interchangeably. They are stainless steel rods or spools of wire that are about .030 inch or .076 mm in diameter (See photo to the right). This makes them thin enough to be flexible yet strong enough to hold stretched wool or cotton in place during the blocking process. I have seen kits including these wires combined with stainless steel pins costing upwards of $40, so when I found Baaad Anna's had them for $8 sans the pins (I already own a set of stainless steel pins from my sewing days) I made a purchase. For the time being I only need 4 rods, but if more are needed in the future, I know the place to get them.

What I liked most about Baaad Anna's is their offering of unusual types of knitting/yarny classes. The store rents out all sorts of equipment you might need to take wool from essentially its raw, just off the sheep state, to yarn. At some point I'll outline all the steps in this process, but for now suffice it to say I'm glad there are yarn companies that do all of this. In order to encourage use of their rental equipment Baaad Anna's offers classes that focus on how to use it. I signed up for a class using a drop spindle for spinning roving into yarn. In my next post I'll outline the class experience and show you the "yarn" I made. Yarn is in quotation marks because, well just wait and see.

I am so glad I can now add Baaad Anna's to my list of go-to local yarn shops in my area. Variety is good in these sorts of things.

Anatomy of a Sock

I've been knitting socks for a relatively short time. One of the disconcerting things for me as I started following patterns for socks is the pattern designer assumes the knitter (in this case that would be me) knows all the parts of a sock. So I thought I'd devote a post to improve my own knowledge about the anatomy of a sock and maybe some of you will learn something about the humble yet necessary sock as well. Here's the names of the parts of the foot as I know them. #49 ankle, #50 heel, #51, instep, #52 ball, #53 big toe, #54 toe, #55 little toe, #56 toenail. There are some parts more important for this discussion; first the heel of a foot is generally used to refer to the entire C-shape from the ankle to the instep. Speaking of the instep, it refers to that curve near the bottom of the foot. And what seems to be missing in the design above is the sole which generally refers to the bottom of the foot in total or plantar aspect in more technical terms...

Ode to the Cat

It has been six months since Mike, the cat's, passing. I think of him every day and miss him especially when Paul is away. Mike was a being in the house with me and we were close. Grieving his death has been muddled with my Dad's passing and sometimes I feel guilty about that happening. As time passes the ache becomes less hurtful for both and I am starting to get mostly good memories in its place. Recently I helped celebrate Pablo Neruda's birthday with Jami, my poet and overall very creative friend. Guests were asked to select one poem written by Neruda to read to the small group who gathered for the celebration. I picked this one: Ode To The Cat -- Pablo Neruda There was something wrong with the animals: their tails were too long, and they had unfortunate heads. Then they started coming together, little by little fitting together to make a landscape, developing birthmarks, grace, flight. But the cat, only the cat turned ou...

Knitting-Related Guinness World Records

I had to share some of the Guinness World Records connected with knitting. It is amazing to me the type of skill, stamina and unique characteristics these record holders have in common. How about trying to knit with these SPNs?? Ingrid Wagner and her large needles and knitted swatch The largest knitting needles measured 3.5 m (11 ft 5.8 in) long and had a diameter of 8 cm (3.15 in). Ingrid Wagner, a rug and art creation artist, from the UK used the needles to knit a tension square of ten stitches by ten rows at the Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, on March, 10 2008. (And I complained about getting certain SPNs stuck in my clothes.) See how this swatch was done with merely 5 people managing the needles. And what about the yarn? It is truly ex-bulky. It looks like they're knitting in a warehouse, but with a wingspan of almost 24 feet or 7 m, you'd need all that space. Or h...

Flagel Knitting Files

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