Happy New Year!

Did you accomplish all you set out to accomplish this year? I outlined three resolutions in my New Year's Post for 2011:

Learn to knit Continental-style.
I did! I've knit two sweaters and a hat this way, and it gets easier every day. And guess what? It IS faster!

Attend a big knitting event.
I went to two knitting events in 2011, Vogue Knitting Live and TNNA in June. Go me!

Put all my projects on Ravelry.
On this goal, I sadly fell short. I did improve my Ravelry notebook though!

I had another goal of completing a sweater every month in 2011...I did get through 11 of them (11.5 if you count an Aran knit baby sweater I made for a friend in the fabulous Liberty Wool), but Christmas gifts dominated my month of December and I just couldn't pull through. I do have a fellow knitter who went above and beyond...

Cheryl, aka Snuzy. May I present to you her 20 Sweaters of 2011!!!!

She wants you all to know that she will be finished with more sweaters by 12/31. Stay tuned for an addendum.

What are your knitting resolutions this year?


Image credit Sally M

Hello Billerica! Moving, Pt. 2

We're finally settling into our new spot, and everything is falling into place quite nicely. It's strange to move from an historic mill building, which has its pluses (character!) and its minuses (lots and lots of dust!), and into a completely new spot.

No more boxes on the floor!

Yup, all this yarn had to be shelved. There were TONS of it. Literally.

We spent a whole week just unpacking yarn...

CEY, Hot Off the Press

Even if I knit a sweater a month (ambitious!) I wouldn't make it through my queue of cold-weather sweaters until SEPTEMBER 2012! Sigh, I still couldn't resist casting on for a project from one of the new Winter knitting magazines. Given my current lust for angora, can you guess which one it is?

See projects in Classic Elite yarns from new editions of all your favorite magazines here!

Vogue Knitting, Holiday

Arm Warmers by Twinkle 1 hank of Twinkle Handknits/Baby Chunky in #81 Amethyst #28. Photo by Paul Amato.

Textured Jacket by Pat Olski, sized for X-Small/Small, Medium, Large 15 (19,23) hanks of Vista from Mountain Top/Classic Elite Yarns in #6003 Ash. Photo by Paul Amato.

Interweave Knits, Winter

You Can STILL Knit This Stocking!

We have a winner!!

We've moved!

Many of you already know, but Classic Elite Yarns is now in North Billerica! After decades in Lowell, we picked up and went south.

There was a certain mystique to our former spot, in an old mill building on the banks of a canal, hearing the drone of freight trains navigating their way north (though we might not miss the exhaust from said freight trains)...

And having our workspace in an artists' building was pretty cool, and gave us lots of backdrops for good photography.

A shot from the aptly named Artwork booklet, shot at the Western Ave. Studios.

From the booklet Panache, a trio of scarves in front of an old mill door.

But moving gave us an opportunity to regroup, to sift through decades of old stuff, and to evaluate what to keep and what we could let go of. And boy, was it a mess.

All our office stuff had to go in these giant boxes on wheels.

However, life must go on, in spite of ever-increasing disorganization.

That's A LOT of yarn to move

Still more yarn to move...

Oh wait, that was just what doesn't fit on the shelves.

Where all our pattern books once lived.

Heather cleared out this entire thing, and many others just like it.

They always look so big when they're empty.

Goodbye Lowell warehouse!

And now we're finally settled in to a completely new office and warehouse space with shiny new floors, super-organized (for now) shelves packed with yarn and books, and, this is the best part, a FORKLIFT. More pictures of our new space to come!

MillaMia Stocking Kits, just in time!

Have you knit a Christmas stocking yet? Christmas stockings have long been on my to-do list, and we may have found the perfect pattern from MillaMia, a line of yarns and patterns based in England.

Scroll down for a holiday giveaway!

MillaMia is an established European brand that is now being distributed by Classic Elite Yarns here in the States. Founded and operated by two sisters who spent their childhood summers in Sweden, MillaMia's style is distinctive and contemporary.

Their products include Naturally Soft Merino, a 100% extrafine Merino machine-washable sportweight yarn in 17 colors, a collection of beautifully styled patterns for children, and cushion and stocking kits for the holidays. You can find their entire range of products here in the States beginning in January 2012, but stocking kits are available now! 

Kits include the Candy Cane (4 balls of yarn plus the pattern), Cables (3 balls of yarn plus the pattern) and lastly the Nordic Star (3 balls of yarn plus the pattern). Though pictured above in Scarlet, these kits also come in Moss and Snow (red, green and white for the holidays!) You can buy stocking kits from the retailers listed below.  If your shop isn't listed here, don't worry! Keep checking our website here for new retailers and ask for it at your LYS.

• WEBS, Northampton, MA, http://yarn.com 
• Yarn Garden, Portland, OR,  http://www.yarngarden.net 
• Stitch House Dorchester, Dorchester, MA, http://www.stitchhousedorchester.com 
• Sweet Pea's Yarns and Gifts, St. Clair, MI, http://sweetpeasyarn.com/ 
• Hub Mills Store, N. Billerica, MA, http://www.hubmillsstore.com 

We want to give one lucky reader in the United States a chance to experience MillaMia and Naturally Soft Merino this holiday season. We're giving away one stocking kit of your choice! You'll be hooked. Just comment here and let us know how you prepare your home for the holidays. Be sure to include a way to reach you, either through Ravelry or email so we can notify you if you win! We will choose a winner on December 8th at noon. Comment away!