Baaad Anna's Yarn Store

Interested in knitting a gorgeous fair-isle sweater in under $40? We love these 25g of non-superwash British Yorkshire-spun 100% wool in gorgeous heathered colourway, and Baa Ram Ewe‘s Pip Colourwork mini balls are an amazing way to play with colour!

BUY ONLINE HERE

At $5.50/ball you can pick and choose from their selection of 14 colourways and knit up a storm if you match them with our home-grown Briggs & Little Sport, a robust and affordable yarn from the East Coast.

From the Baa Ram Ewe website: The rich tradition of stranded knitting in Shetland has always been admired and in recent years has grown in popularity but perhaps less well known is the history of Yorkshire colourwork, in particular that of the Knitters of the Dales. Designers and Yorkshire Knitting historians such as Penelope Hemingway, Ann Kingstone and Angharad Thomas celebrate this tradition in much of their work, and we thought it was about time we got on board and created our own dedicated Yorkshire colourwork yarn with British wool spun and dyed in Yorkshire. And the name? Pip comes from the traditional Swaledale ‘Yan Tan Thethera’ method of sheep counting: Yan (one), Tan (Two), Tether (Three), Mether (Four) and Pip- our Fifth baa ram ewe yarn!

Baa Ram Ewe’s Pip Colourwork yarns:

• 4ply Fingering Weight
• 25 gram balls
• 115 metres /126 yards
• 100% British Wool; Spun and Dyed in Yorkshire
• $5.50/ball

BUY ONLINE HERE

Join us this Sunday October 14th from 1-3pm for our knit-for-others open knit space called GIVE BACK SUNDAYS. We have a basket of donated yarn that is for the taking, so long as you use the material to create something to give away!

Our donation knitters have been very basy as of late, and we have been able to complete a record of 90 newborn purple hats for the annual Purple Cap Campaign. This is a fantastic initiative put on by Click for Babies. Their goal is to give out a tiny purple hat to every baby born in the province of BC during the month of November which helps to raise awareness about the Period of PURPLE Crying and prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome.

What does 90 newborn hats look like you may ask?

And collectively we were also able to give a bit of Thanksgiving cheer to the residents of the new Powell Street Modular Housing units in the Downtown East Side. This modular housing complex opened earlier this year and is thew only female-only unit of the new housing that have been going up around the City. It includes 39 units, and our Give Back Sundays and other donors offered 39 gorgeous merino and other natural fibre shawls, cowls and scarfs as a gift to the residents this last holiday weekend.

39 cowls for 39 recipients!

So come join us for an afternoon to crafting, giving and good company this weekend for our monthly Give Back Sunday event!

Ninety hats in groups of ten!! Thank you to all the hat knitters!

INTERMEDIATE TECHNIQUES WEEKEND SERIES with Holli Yeoh

Uplift your knits from “home made” to “hand knit” by learning fine finishings and other techniques that rival commercially made garments. In this series of three skill-building workshops we’ll work on cast ons, seams, full-fashioned increases and decreases, grafting, weaving in ends and more. You will feel a sense of pride and confidence in your finished projects!

Minimum 4 participants and maximum 9

Take individual classes OR save on registration when you take all three.

Register today ONLINE, or call 604-255-2577 to reserve your spot!

Photo courtesy of Holli Yeoh.

Part I:  Fully Fashioned Shaping

MATERIALS NEEDED: 

• Worsted weight yarn in a light to medium colour.  You can bring more than one colour if you want to make stripes or contrast edging and cuffs
• 4mm (US 6) or 4.5mm (US 7) size needle
• Cable needle
• Basic knitters toolkit
• Gauge swatch homework (give upon registration)

Materials can be purchased at Baaad Anna’s Yarn Store.

DATE: Saturday, Oct 13th from 10:00am – 1:00pm

COST: $55 for the one class OR $125 for the series

*****

Part II:  Short Rows

MATERIALS NEEDED: 

• Worsted weight yarn in a light to medium colour.  You can bring more than one colour if you want to make stripes or contrast edging and cuffs
• 4.5mm (US 7) size needles
• Self-locking stitch markers
• Basic knitters toolkit
• Homework (give upon registration)

Materials can be purchased at Baaad Anna’s Yarn Store.

DATE: Saturday, Oct 13th from 2:00 – 5:00pm

COST: $55 for the one class OR $125 for the series

*****

Part III:  Picking Up Stitches

MATERIALS NEEDED: 

• Two colours of Worsted weight yarn in a light to medium colour
• 3.75mm and 4mm (US 5 and 6) knitting needles
• Basic knitters toolkit
• Homework (give upon registration)

Materials can be purchased at Baaad Anna’s Yarn Store.

DATE: Friday, Oct 12th from 6:00pm – 9:00pm

COST: $55 for the one class OR $125 for the series

INSTRUCTOR: Holli Yeoh, of  Holli Yeoh Designs

Register today ONLINE, or call 604-255-2577 to reserve your spot!

And not that kind of Spin Class! The more enjoyable, creative and fibre-loving spin class is coming to Baaad Anna’s… join us while there is still space available!

Register today ONLINE, or call 604-255-2577 to reserve your spot!

INTRO TO WHEEL SPINNING

This is a two day beginner spinning class using an Ashford Kiwi Wheel, and includes equipment rental for a 10 day period.  Participants will learn how to set up and use the equipment. All materials included ($40 reduction in cost if you have your own Ashford Wheel). Minimum 2 and maximum 4 participants.

Materials (INCLUDED): Participants will receive a three week rental of an Ashford Two Treadle Kiwi Spinning Wheel and 100 grams of Corriedale wool in two colours of your choice.

DATES: Saturdays October 6 & 13th from 10:00am – noon.

COST: $135 (+tax) plus $80 deposit on the Spinning wheel

Reserve ONLINE here.

*****

LEARN TO SPIN WITH A DROP SPINDLE

Want to learn to spin your own yarn? This two hour workshop will teach the basics of how to make your yarn with a drop spindle. Participants will be spinning a single ply yarn and will receive a basic intro to the process of spinning your own yarn from beginning to end. Participants will also learn various drafting techniques. Minimum 3 and maximum 6 participants.

Materials (INCLUDED): Participants will receive top whorl spindle and 50 grams of Corriedale wool in the colour of your choice.

DATES: Saturday October 6th from 1:00 – 3:00pm

COST: $70 – $90 (+tax) sliding scale

Register ONLINE here.

Over the past two weeks we have been sharing with you the various new items we will be showcasing at Knit City, but we have a few more surprises to share with you.

Photo credit: Caitlin Sheperd.

In store for the weekend of KnitCity we will be hosting a trunk show of the talented young local designer, Caitlin Sheperd of pluckypigeonknits. Come check out her stunning Pigeons on Parade matching kids and adult sweater, as well as her many other kids and adult garment designs. Caitlin brings together locally-inspired fair-isle elements with wonderfully East Van-symbolic pigeons and bicycles, or enhances classic rustic garments a touch of delicate lace.

We will even have a kit for her new Lacy Day Fingerless Mitts on sale both in store at at Knit City this weekend. And you can even match these mitts with a Lacy Day Sweater!

 Photo by Caitlin Sheperd.

Also on Sunday the shop will be hosting Iron Dog Books, a local Mobile Book Truck in front of the store.

We are so excited to partner with one of our regulars, Hilary Atleo whose amazing Book Truck is becoming a Lower Mainland icon! Hilary will be bringing a wide range of pre-loved knitting, fibre arts, crafting and makers books that can be swooped up by visiting yarnies, including lots of Martin Storey, lots of Erica Knight, a smattering of other cool titles.

And lastly, if you have ever considered expanding into other fibre arts such as spinning or weaving, Ashford will be coming to Knit City and our staff would be able to help you find any fibre arts equipment your heart desires! Come visit us at the Ashford booth, and maybe even try your hands on the amazing e-Spinner!

And if you missed our previous updates on all the fun things that you can find in our KnitCity booth, you can sneak a peek here, here, here, here, here and here! Looking forward to seeing you at the show!

Welcome back Woolen Boon! We have a selection of fingering-weight gorgeousness of this indie-dyed yarn coming with us to Knit City this year!

Photo by Woolen Boon dyer Sonya Brazell.

Having launch this indie initially last year for the West Coast Knitter’s Guild’s yarn crawl,  this yarn has a tendency to come and go super fast whenever we get it in… and our booth is the only place you will find Woolen Boon west of the Rockies! Come and check out their spectacular sprinkles and semi-tonals to spruce up your Fall knits!

So many pretties! Photo by Woolen Boon dyer Sonya Brazell.

Ever knit from a sock blank? A sock blank is a machine-knit stockinette rectangle of 100g or 150g which can then be dyed in patterns or designs, and then pulled apart to create a uniquely hand-dyed skein of yarn.

Another benefit of a sock blank is that it can be dyed in a way that allows a skein of yarn to knit up as a gradient from one colour to another. And if you’ve never had a chance to knit with one, we are bringing a selection of Wollmeise Rolls in these gradient shawl blanks… 150g/575 yards of Wollmeise Pure 100% merino in their most gorgeous colourways!

The short sleeved sweater below was knit with two of the shawl blanks (300g total) with alternating rows to elongate the gradient colour effect!

Another new option from our favourite yarn, Rohrspatz & Wollmeise are minis! These sets of 6-, 8-, or 10-minis are affectionately labelled Birdies, and come in 30g/ 115 yards of each colour. What can you do with Birdies? Check out this work-in-progress that will be finished and on display at our booth at KnitCity, which uses two packs of contrasting Birdies…

Visit us at KnitCity to see the largest selection of Wollmeise Rolls and Birdies on the West Coast. (In fact, perhaps in all of North America!)

This year at Knit City are excited to re-launch another favorite yarn that we were lucky enough to be the only Canadian yarn store to secure… TuskenKnits.

Last year’s TuskenKnits‘ custom Find Your Fade set; All these colours will still be available, and more!

Tuskenknits is best known for her amazing tonals, and antique depth she gives to her colours. Launching at KnitCity last year, this yarn is only otherwise available through the dyer’s own updates, so we are so happy to be able show this yarn to the West Coast in person again this year! Hand-dyed from the Seattle area by a lovely lady named Maria, this yarn has a cult following on Instagram. What’s amazing about this year is the deep tonals in very rustic colours (think: antique grey-toned saturated gem-tones like rust, mustard, antique rose), which are a great match to the wild speckles that have been recently so popular.

Photos compliments of TuskenKnits.

We will be stocking her Fife (merino/nylon with a nice twist) and Fuzz (merino, mohair, nylon: strong with a soft halo) bases of this yarn. We will have most of her available colours, which include some amazing new colourways since last year! I can’t wait to get my own sweater-quantity of Maria’s amazing yarn on my needles!

Ever wanted to come in with a knit and just have someone to walk you through the next hour of the pattern? Or have a pro answer some of your most puzzling knit questions?

On Sunday Sept 23rd from 9:30-11:00am as part of our Building Blocks Beyond the Basics series this stand-alone workshop is open to anyone who would want that extra bit of in-person help that is hard to find in the knit world! This hour and a half workshop has a maximum of 8 participants, where each person can present what they want to improve on and learn from each other’s questions. Bring your knits and the teacher will work through the various questions getting as many of the answers through hands-on instruction.

Learn something new!

In preparation, there are some great Open Questions webpages to get some of the answers to the most common-asked knit questions; but nothing beats hands-on learning, so come prepared with your knitting and a question or two that is simple enough to be answered in a short workshop but impactful enough to take your knits to a new level!

Details: Ask a Teacher/ Review Anything

Sunday Sept 23rd 9:30-11:00am

Cost: $19, or as part of the 12-pass Building Blocks series

To save your spot register in store or by calling us at 604 255 2577. Or just drop in on Sunday morning to check if space is still available.

Last year Baaad Anna’s debuted our 12 Days of Knitmas Advent Calendar which included 12 wrapped knit-themed presents for the hard-to-shop-for knitter in your life… perhaps that is YOU?! It included a full skein of our most coveted yarn in our store, and the secret is now out that it was a skein of fingering weight Rohrspatz & Wollmeise.

It sold out quick! But guess what? Our 2018 version will be available for sale at Knit City!

Check out some of the teaser pics from last year’s advent goodies! Photos courtesy of A. Bantog.

This year’s version has all new items and includes wooden advent number buttons to keep track of days, as well as a brand new custom Canadian indie dyed skein made specifically for Baaad Anna’s. There’s something absolutely unique about this year’s full skein that will only be revealed in the new year! As for the rest of the goodies, you will have to wait and see what this year’s calendar brings.

Wanna sneak peak?…

The 2018 Baaad Anna’s 12 Days of Knitmas… what could be hidden inside?

The 2018 Baaad Anna’s 12 Days of Knitmas advent calendar has a limited run, and will be available for the week leading up to Knit City only as a pre-sale to last year’s Advent purchasers. They will officially go on sale at Knit City, and be available for purchase in store or online starting October 1st.

Treat yourself to an early winter gift while supplies last!

The 2017 Advent… all wrapped up! Photo courtesy of A. Bantog.

A gorgeous skein of Wollmeise for Day 12! Photo courtesy of A. Bantog.

Pre-sale exclusive to 2017 Advent customers: Sept 21st, 2018.

Available for sale at Knit City: Sept 29th & 30th: Nov 27th, 2018.

Available for purchase in-store or online: Oct 1st, 2018.