shopping guide - samhain edition

happy spooky season! it’s time for the autumn shop update, perfect for stocking up on sweater lots and single skeins for accessories as we begin gift knitting in earnest, and filling in those wardrobe holes as we pull out last year’s cold weather gear to take stock of what needs to be added. this update is a doozy! we’ve got 46 new sweater lots of roots, the debut of the new taproots mini skeins (28g skeins of roots, perfect for dipping your toe into working with natural dyes, swatching out new ideas, and colourwork), a refreshed rainbow of canadian worsted and sapling, and some limited edition pembina rambouillet sport (perfect for anyone participating in pembina fibreshed’s one year one outfit challenge). we’re also waiting on a restock of coffee and square gauge rulers as well as the arrival of g-uld denmark’s english translation of their natural dyeing book the colours of nature, all of which will hopefully arrive around the same timeline. plus we’ve got a restock in the herbal remedies department with more joint joy kits, 2oz bottles of knitter’s joint massage oil, more knitter’s joint salve (the small jars are perfect stocking stuffers/tiny gifts), freshly cured soaps, and a very limited edition forest bathing kit containing conifer-infused bath salts, soap, and forager’s lip balm. if you love the whiff of the evergreens on your winter walks, this will be a total delight for you. and if the mention of winter has you wrinkling your nose, well, just stick with your pumpkin spice in the interim and get something cozy on your needles so you’re prepared for it.

the update will appear at 8am winnipeg time this friday, so let’s get into your previews so you can plan out your purchases. and if you’re inspired by all the colours by the end but don’t feel super confident about working with all-natural yarns or how to use them in your favourite patterns, check out my new masterclass that will help you sort all of that out before the update drops!

roots & introducing taproots!

y’all have been asking for mini skeins of roots fingering for a few years now, and it’s finally happening! on top of the 46 new sweater lots of roots hitting the shop on friday, you’ll also find the debut of taproots, its sweet baby sibling! these handwound (you’re welcome) minis are 28g with 108 yards (99 metres) each, making them perfect for a good swatching adventure, colourwork plans, and dipping your toe into the magic of naturally dyed natural yarns. if you’ve been wanting to try roots but have been nervous to splurge on a full skein, try out a taproots mini to see if you like it. and might i also suggest an adorable bouquet of them stuffed into a stocking or gift bag? i already have a couple of colourwork sweaters i’m planning for them, but it’ll be a bit of time before i get around to that. in the meantime, tin can knits’ strange brew is a great option.

limited edition pembina rambouillet sport

pembina rambouillet sport is the result of hanging out with my dear friend christel on her farm a couple of weekends ago for a hide-tanning workshop with mara cur. she had a small batch of her own creamy rambouillet, spun literally a 5-minute walk down the road at long way homestead, and since her own customers prefer a heavier weight of yarn, wanted to know if i could do something with it. rambouillet is basically the canadian version of merino (the breeds are extremely similar cousins, with rambouillet being a hardier sheep more suited to our harsh prairie winters - incidentally, it also typically makes up the majority of the wool that goes into roots and canadian worsted), and it takes natural dyes beautifully. i used up the remainder of my summer marigold harvest (luckily, the autumn harvest is a big one this year so we’ll have plenty for the next early season batch of socks) and tossed in some onions skins from my csa for a little extra gold, and then with the second lot i harvested my remaining indigo and did a fresh leaf application on top of the marigold/onion exhaust, resulting in the most incredible bright green. i split the batch in two so that there were sweater lots possible, but you could totally just grab a skein or two for an accessory. the wanderling mitts would be absolutely adorable, if i do say so myself.

i wish i’d had it last month for the fibre trail since several people came by asking about products for pembina fibreshed’s one year one outfit challenge (the locally dyed hill & down sock doesn’t count since the wool and spinning were both alberta-based), but that’s ok! local pick-up is easy peasy anyway and canada post pick-ups are a regular occurrence around here, so you can have it delivered right to your door with plenty of time for holiday knitting. in fact, if you’re nervous about knitting with natural yarns, i would recommend this as your first trial after you watch the knitting with natural yarns masterclass - the worsted spun plus soft rambouillet makes this the closest yarn to those commercial superwash merino yarns, so it’ll be a little easier to work with.

canadian worsted & sapling

we’ve got a nice little restock of canadian worsted and sapling to freshen up their rainbow palettes. they knit up as a proper aran weight, making them great for quick knits and cold weather layers.

limited edition forest bathing kits

and to round out the update, we’ve got limited edition forest bathing kits. these conifer-inspired and -infused herbal goodies are like taking a walk through an evergreen forest - bright, citrusy, and woodsy notes to delight your senses and open your nostrils and lungs as we head into chilly weather and closed doors and windows. the salt soak is 100% canadian and primarily locally sourced, made with canadian pink salt from saskatchewan and featuring locally sourced pine needles, cedar bough, and blue spruce needles as well as balsam fir essential oil distilled by abode manitoba. the forest soap features juniper, fir, and cedarwood essential oils and is topped with local cedar and blue spruce needles, and a tin of forager’s lip balm rounds out the kit. if you live in the north and love these scents, you’ll adore this kit, and if you don’t live in the north and would like to experience a bit of our winter wonderland, you’ll also adore it.

the update will go live on friday at 8am winnipeg time, so be sure to set your alarm! and a quick note that pattern prices will be raising on december 1, so if you’re already planning out your holiday knitting and budget, this is the time to stock up on individual patterns as well as e-collections.

curious about how to take care of your naturally dyed knits long-term? you can find the natural dye care guide in the creative coven community as well as natural dyeing 101 now. and if you need some help figuring out how to work with natural yarns, the new masterclass is a great option for you. my newsletter subscribers have been getting sneak peeks - it’s definitely the best place to stay informed with new products, upcoming shop updates, the latest news, special discount codes, and more! you can join the coven for your weekly news round-up here. we’ll have a holiday gift guide closer to yule season, but first up we’ve got witch’s new year to celebrate with samhain! tell your ghosts hello from me.