The Blue Brick

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Etsy Updates :)

February 12, 2016

Friday February 19th, at 11am EST there will be a small Etsy update featuring a few new yarns that I’ve been working on (hopefully some gradients too, but not making promises there yet!). These two are based off some photos I took during the Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastián in beautiful Puerto Rico.

The first one is called Calle San Sebastián, and it’s based off a photo I took of the beautiful cobblestone streets in Old San Juan.

The yarn that resulted from this lot is a tonal blue, with very subtle variegation. Kinda reminds me of denim :) I love it on our Manitoulin Merino base.

The second new colour is based off an evening photo I took of decorations on someone’s balcony near one of the concert venues. The sky was pink, blue and purple, the houses were dark, and there was this bright line of orange lanterns on the balcony.

The resulting colour is soft and variegated, very serene. I love the little pops of colour that I added to represent the lamps.

Keep an eye out for more colours in the next few days :) I’ll make sure to preview them all before Friday so you can plan your shopping!
Gradient Yarn

February 8, 2016

Exciting news – this month The Blue Brick has a new product arriving in our Etsy store, our very own hand painted gradient yarns!

We’ve been working hard on test drives and refining to bring you the smoothest, most vibrant long-run colour gradients, which will be available soon on all of our bases, from worsted to lace.

I can’t tell you how much fun we’ve had doing this; it’s an entirely new way to experience colour. Sunsets, the ocean, the night sky–the natural world surrounds us with gorgeous transitional tones, the perfect inspiration for my photography and yarns.

I will be pairing these yarns with designs that are built to take full advantage of the slow colour changes, moving seamlessly between hues in shawls, cowls, and even matched half-skeins for socks and fingerless gloves.

I’m excited to see where this colour adventure takes us. Look out for a gradient skein making its way to our March club colour! Remember, the club is opt-in every month, so you don’t need to be a member to take advantage. Check back soon for sneak peeks :)
New Orleans, there’s gotta be a colour way in here somewhere…

February 5, 2016

What a bizarre, surreal place the French Quarter is. New Orleans, with its voodoo, death culture, endless bars, boutiques and neon lights, can really make you feel like you’re in another world. I wouldn’t want to live there… but it was fascinating to visit. I’ll be doing a study based on the very last photo, the dark streets and neon lights, I’m sure there is a colour way in there ;)
Dark, Moody Neutrals

February 4, 2016

Just a mood board to show where my head is at today, I’ve got a fresh shipment of yarn on the way, so look forward to an Etsy update mid-month =D
February Club – Forty Shades of Green

January 27, 2016
The February club colour is finally ready, and it goes on sale at our Etsy site starting Friday morning January 29th :)

Based on a photo I took in Ireland, ‘Forty Shades of Green’ (so named for a song Johnny Cash wrote after he traveled through Ireland) is a rich, tonal green with fabulous stitch definition on our Escarpment DK yarn.

The pattern is a one-skein cowl that is knitted sideways and then seamed. Rich celtic cables run sideways along the cowl, framed by a smaller cable below and a moss stitch background.

Don’t be intimidated by those cables; they are less complicated than they look, and the rest of the cowl is just moss stitch. I provide written directions as well as charts, and there will be video tutorials on my blog to help with any of the trickier bits (the video section is a goal I had for 2016, so this will be the first!).

The result is a cute little bandana cowl that sits up nice and high on the neck, but can be pulled close for warmth, with beautiful details. Made from less than 256 yards of DK weight it’s also a relatively quick knit. You’ll be done in time for St. Patricks day!

Just a quick recap on how the Blue Brick’s yarn club works:
- Pattern and yarn are listed together on our Etsy site.
- You will have 3 days to purchase as many skeins as you like, from just one kit, to a sweaters worth.
- After those three days are up, I will dye all the yarn to order, and ship out kits within 2 weeks.
- Kits will contain the yarn, the photo on a 5×7 metallic print and a printed copy of the pattern.
- The pattern is exclusive to the club for one month, after which is is released to Ravelry
- Once a club colourway is done, it will no longer be available.
I love the flexibility this gives everyone, you can opt in or out each month depending on how much you like the yarn, and I can design patterns with new bases, multiple skeins, or even get a guest designer to take part.

See you on January 29th!
Starry Night Pattern Release

January 26, 2016
Starry night, the one-skein shawl pattern is available on Ravelry! You can see the Ravelry project page here. “Starry Night” was designed for 1 precious skein of luxury sock yarn; The Blue Brick’s December/January club colour in a merino/cashmere/stellina blend for 420 yards of smooshy, sparkly goodness.

The pattern itself works equally well with variegated and tonal yarns, and is an easy, mindless knit, while producing a beautifully textural shawl. Large needles make the piece fly by, and allow you to block to a very generous size if desired.

| Pattern notes:
‘Starry Night’ is structured such that you can begin the openwork at any time, and switch back to the ribbed texture at any time, so the pattern is very easy to customize to different yarns and different tastes. This pattern as written is designed to use up almost all of a 420 yard skein of fingering weight yarn; the sample had 5g of yarn remaining after cast off.

ERRATA: Thank you to Knottyengr for finding these!

There should be four markers in the set up row, which is worked as follows:
Set up row 1: Slip 1, k1, place marker, yo, kfb, place marker, k1, place marker, kfb, place marker, yo, k2. (11 Stitches total)

There are 18 repeats for the initial body section, not 8.

So, on the topic of errata, I am looking for a test-knitter for the February club. Here are the details:
- One-skein project
- DK weight, (about 256 yards)
- Cables
- Short-rows
- Mattress stitch.
It’s not terribly complex, but I am looking for someone who is comfortable with both charts and written instructions (I provide both) and can work to a deadline (2 weeks from the delivery of the yarn/pdf). I can offer you the skein of club yarn for free, the pattern (of course) and $50 in compensation for your time and talents (so I would prefer someone with a paypal address). If interested, please email me at hello@thebluebrick.ca with a quick description of yourself, your comfort level with the above and any past test-knitting projects that you’d like to share with me. Looking forward to hearing from you!
Time to Grow

January 8, 2016

Big news at the Blue Brick today ! One thing I learned over the holidays, and with our first club shipment is that the Blue Brick has grown beyond the ability of Tito and I to run it on our own without leaving our day jobs, so we are bringing on the most capable, organized, committed, consummate professional I know; my dad.

Starting in February, daddy will be taking shipping, book keeping, inventory, databasing, and tax filing off my plate, allowing The Blue Brick more room for growth, productivity, and creativity. This means more time to devote to my true loves; designing patterns and colourways.

It also means more yarn, more colours, a signature line (coming soon!) and less frustration at Etsy checkouts. I think you will all be thrilled with the new things we’ll be able to bring to you.

In the meantime, the Blue Brick will be closed for 2 weeks while we get organized. When we reopen, I’ll have the new 40 Shades of Green pattern ready for you, and a much smoother club experience for everyone. The Etsy store will still be open for patterns and the resin jewellery book, but all yarn will temporarily go missing.

I’m looking forward to this. Change is good, growth is good, and the Blue Brick is becoming a true family business, which is what I’ve always wanted for it. Exciting things are coming!
Ravelry and things

January 6, 2016
Starry Night, the very last shipments, are going out tonight. With your tracking number there should be a note from me with a coupon code for 15% off your next purchase, to thank you for your patience while we dealt with Shodan and the holiday closures to get everyone’s packages out (let me know if you didn’t get one!). Truly, we appreciated the kind words and support you sent our way.

With that in mind, I am adding the pattern to the Ravelry library of all who requested it (email me if you forgot, or if I forget ;) ) and wanted to let you know a few things:
1. The Blue Brick has a quiet, but definitely functional Ravelry Group! Click here to visit and please join us, I promise to interact with it more often. I have brought on the amazing Rayna from First Light Hand Crafts to be my group moderator, she’s a rockstar and will help me keep it going.
2. It turns out there are several things on Ravelry called ‘Starry Night’ so please click here for the official pattern listing so you can link up your WIP.
3. My yarns are also listed on Ravelry, and you can see all of them by clicking here. Thank you so much to everyone who linked up their yarn to help the Blue Brick expand its Ravelry presence!
4. For those of you who want to purchase the pattern alone, it will be available on February 1st, on Ravelry, and I will announce it and share the link here :)
Wow! A post without a single photo? Here is a sneak peek of February’s colour way: ‘Forty Shades of Green’…
Hubby’s Christmas Socks

January 5, 2016

Last November, the folks over at Yarn Canada asked if I would give a review of Patons Kroy Socks. I picked out a few colours and cast on… for socks of course :) First favourite thing? They’re self-striping. The stripes are perfect, and it’s possible to get quite OCD about it… which I did.

Kayleigh-Approved

The second thing is the robust nylon content, 25%, which makes for nice, sturdy socks.

The third thing is the yarn itself; not merino, but wool, so I expected it to be scratchy but was pleasantly surprised. It’s not splitty either, which provided a nice, comfortable knit. The yardage is also quite decent, 166 yards per 50g ball. I bought two balls because I wanted longer socks, but one ball would do for, say, a pair of ankle socks (unless you were picky about matching stripes, in which case maxing out your yardage will be tough).

Hubby loves his so much that I’ve cast on a pair for myself :) So yes, I would definitely knit with it again. Personally, I prefer merino/nylon blends, but sometimes you just need a really hard-wearing sock (think hubby in construction) and this yarn fits the bill.

You can see the full selection of Patons Kroy Sock yarns here. Pattern is Kate Atherley’s Basic Ribbed Sock (which is very awesome and totally free). Ravelry project page here.
Dear 2015

December 31, 2015

Where to start? On the whole, you were very good to me.

The Blue Brick officially became a business

We spent a beautiful summer bringing our resin jewelry to art shows across Southern Ontario

I wrote a design that was published by Sweet Georgia

I designed a colour way that went viral

The Blue Brick became a successful indie yarn dyer

I married my best 2-legged friend

We toured Europe

2 of my best friends had the most beautiful baby in history (I’m biased).

And we launched a yarn club.

But the year ended tragically, I said goodbye to my best 4-legged friend.

Looking back on 2015 I am filled with gratitude for all we have experienced & accomplished, and for the beautiful network of friends, customers, blog readers and patrons of the Blue Brick that make what we do so rewarding.

I couldn’t believe the outpouring of love, support and solidarity for Shodan and the tough decisions we had to make. Truly, the Blue Brick has the most amazing customers in the world. For that I am truly grateful.

From our family to yours, I wish you the very best of 2016. Health, happiness, love, life and prosperity. Onwards!