'Twas the knit before Christmas.

‘Twas two days before Christmas, and all through the store,
Every shopper was thinking…“I can knit one gift more!”
The bulky-weight scarves were churned out with care,


In hopes that the final row soon would be there.


The wives were nestled at home in their Snuggies,
While Loops gift cards were being bought by their hubbies.

And Marilyn in her pompom hat, whipped up five more,
A family of smiles, she was sure to score.


Then out by the couch arose such a clatter,
This client’s huge needles clicked out, “Size does matter.”


All day we helped knitters, with boo-boos and issues,
Wrapped goodies and stuffers in vibrant blue tissues,

Then out to the Loopsmobile I had to dash.
“Got projects to finish!” I called as I passed.

But they heard me exclaim, ere I drove to my loft,
“Merry Christmas to all, and to all a cast-off!”

...Wishing everyone a wonderful holiday and lots of blue gift cards,
- Shelley

P.S. Sale starts Monday the 27th!

Anyone can be a hat girl.

I've never thought of myself as much of a hat girl. I always feel slightly over-dramatic wearing one, unless I'm in New York City at Christmastime and it's, like, three degrees with blizzard conditions.

But this slouchy beret craze has finally gotten to me. And to be honest, I've been kinda burned out on the stockinette stitch. After I finished the Golden Vintage Cardigan in Pear Tree Supersoft 8-Ply:


...and the black capelet in Bergere Merinos:


...it was time for a small, exciting project. I found just the ticket in Ysolda Teague's Rose Red beret. The pattern was perfectly written, with line-by-line instructions, and enough interest to keep things juicy without crossing my eyes. I could still watch TV (on most of the rows) while knitting.

Plus, I got to dive into our Bergere Origins Alpaga yarn. This stuff is amazing. It's a single ply alpaca-merino blend - I've felt a lot of these blends over the years – but this one takes the cake. It held the stitch definition but delivered unbelievably cushy softness at the same time. I barely went into the third skein to make the size medium.


This was done in just a few days. And the result? A hat photo I'm not ashamed to share!


Hooray for hats! Maybe you, too, should search for your inner Hat Girl.

- Shelley
shop online at loopsknitting.com