If you somehow didn’t make it into the shop for the annual Miss Babs Trunk Show last weekend, don’t panic. While you won’t get to meet Babs herself or see the shop tables piled high with her glorious, squishy, must-stashable yarn, we did keep some of the (best, obviously) goodies of the show, including a couple new bases to try out. Here’s the scoop:
New! Kunlun
A luxurious DK weight, Kunlun is a must-have combination of 70% Merino wool, 15% cashmere and 15% cultivated silk. The 3-ply beauty comes in at 280 yards per skein, is super soft to the touch and is in the dictionary under “perfect drape.” We saw it at the trunk show knit up as the Braidsmaid (which incidentally I had recently finished in a pure merino; this made me want to knit another one immediately!).
Another pretty option would be the Infinitude Scarf (a free pattern!), which Babs modified into a very short cowl. The original would be amazing, though, in a semisolid or a Babette.
Kunlun
- Weight: DK
- Yardage: 280 yards
- Base: MCS – 70% Merino wool, 15% cashmere, 15% silk
- Price: $36
New! Keira
Babs also left us a new-to-space heavy fingering weight option: Keira. It is a 100% superwash Merino and with its 4-ply construction has superb stitch definition and, as Babs says, “very little halo.” But wait, there’s more! The skeins come in at a whopping 560 yards each. It’s the Yowza of fingering weight! (*swoon*) Here are a few projects that will tempt you further (as if you need help):
Match & Move is perfect in this graphic black & white version using, what else, Graphic and Ebony. Babs used just one skein of each color for this and had leftovers of each you can save for another project!
Another gorgeous option would be the Alecia Beth cardigan. The tiny cables will just pop in this yarn.
Another sweater option, because I’m kind of obsessing over the simplicity of it at the moment, is Arrow from the fall Amirisu issue (some gorgeous stuff, as usual).
Keira
- Weight: Heavy fingering
- Yardage: 560 yards
- Base: 100% superwash Merino wool
- Price: $35
All stocked up!
We also are fully stocked on the favorites we know and love, from heaviest to lightest:
- K2 – 240 yards of chunky, 100% Merino wool, $38
- Yowza – 560 yards of light worsted, 100% superwash Merino wool, $38
- Yummy 3-ply – 335 yards of sport weight, 100% superwash Merino wool, $29
- Yummy 2-ply – 400 yards of fingering weight, 100% superwash Merino wool, $26
- Yummy Toes – 133 yards of fingering weight, 100% superwash Merino wool, $9.50
- Gradient Kits (yes!) – five Yummy Toes (133 yards each), 100% superwash Merino wool, $47.50
Project ideas
K2: The Boshoku cowl from Alexandria-based designer Olga Buraya-Kefelian, can go either way. Show off the muted color changes of a semisolid or go wild with something like a Perfectly Wreckless or a Zombie Prom, as shown here.
Yowza: With four Yowza Weigh-It Shawl options from Susan B. Anderson, you can’t go wrong to start here. Our pick of the four from the show is this cozy Weigh-It No. 2, knit up in the inspiring Coffee Break.
Yummy 3-ply: Who says you can’t do lacework in a variegated yarn? Break the so-called rules. It’s your project! Look at how lovely this Zuzu’s Petals cowl turned out in the Deep Sea Jellyfish colorway (once again proving this is one of The. Best. Colors. Ever.):
Yummy 2-ply: There are literally too many project ideas for this yarn. Too many! … FINE. A few highlighted options:
- Loop shawl, designed specifically for a solid + a crazy colorway by Babs. (Note you must make the edge of this very loose!) Needs 1 skein of MC and one Yummy Toes for the CC for the smaller size.
- Duane Park Triangle shawl, which was a very popular KAL this summer in space. Needs two skeins of contrasting colors.
- Hitofude Cardigan, which everyone should make if you haven’t yet. The pattern is cheaper than a cup of coffee and the construction is brilliant.
Best use of Yummy Toes: The Albers Cowl of course! (This pattern is also great for using up leftovers of Yummy 2-Ply.) Needs five to seven of the mini skeins (only 350-450 yards, but who doesn’t want options?!). Love this version from Trudy:
Best use of Gradient Kit (because, ombre): My favorite idea seen at the trunk show for the gradient kits was The Joker and the Thief, which requires one Gradient Kit, one extra Yummy Toe and one Yummy 2-ply (note that every last inch of the 2-ply was used for this project!).
