The Making of the "Three in One" Kits

For those of you on our email list, you saw our latest Mixed Fiber piece on Thursday when we sent out our last email. This Mixed Fiber piece has always been a shawl... but this year we've added another free pattern for a scarf that can be worn as a cowl... so it's a Three in One!

Each fall we pick out new yarns to make up this mixed fiber piece. We try to get 700-750 yards of different fibers in colors that work well together. This year we we were even able to do it for over $10 less than last year's kit. Success!

As we walk through the shop and look for contenders, we're always conscious of yardage and price. Berroco Ultra Alpaca was our number one pick for the kit this year for a number of reasons. This yarn is beautiful. It's a great worsted weight yarn to work with. It's soft and warm, drapes beautifully and shows superb stitch definition. NOT that we needed stitch definition in this... but it's also got great yardage - 215 yards per skein - and the color selection is incredible. 

Then we wanted to add some color. Berroco Boboli stood out because of its gorgeous variegated shades. This glimmering wool blend is really soft and has a subtle shine, so we knew it would add a lot to this kit. And again, fabulous yardage (206).

After we picked Ultra Alpaca and Boboli, we wanted to add some texture. We chose Joseph Galler Flore II. This is a new yarn for us. We've had worsted weight mohairs off and on over the years. Some people love mohair, and some people hate it. I've never really been a fan of a mohair/wool blend as I find it scratchy. But this is a KID mohair and wool blend. And scratchy? It's not! It is wonderfully soft and I would wear it alone, like I do some of the laceweight kid mohair blends we carry. The yardage is only 98, but that didn't stop us from including it. It's that special!

We only needed one more yarn, and we chose Filatura di Crosa Gioiello. Gioiello is another kid mohair and wool blend, but in a much finer weight. It has the most beautiful shimmery and sparkly metallic running throughout it, and has a whopping 220 yards. So it gives this mixed fiber piece just a bit of PIZAZZ!

We're thilled with the shawl - but then that's no surprise... it's really one of our most popular samples each fall and winter. 

The shawl in the colorway "Nut"

And we love the new scarf/cowl! Because two patterns come with this kit, it really does appeal to a wider range of knitters.

The scarf in the colorway "Seafoam"

It's a nice wide scarf and is very versatile in terms of wearing!

Worn as a cowl

This is on sale (15% off) through 11/16/11 with code THREEINONE in your cart.

And crocheters, we're not trying to leave you out! We are hoping that maybe next year we can also add a crochet piece to the mix. Stay tuned.