Fiber Hound goes to TNNA!

Every year around the middle of summer, yarn shop owners, designers, and wholesalers from all over the world gather at a trade show hosted by TNNA (The National Needlearts Association). A purpose of the show is for yarn shops to see what is new and happening with the vending yarns and designers, along with notions and other fun yarn-related objects. This was my second year attending, and my purpose was to see what's new and to see what new bases were out there for dyers, as well as any other useful tools. Traveling with me was Kristen, who is looking to open a shop in the next year or so, and we enjoyed sharing our goal of talking to a TON of different people.

We traveled from South Bend, Indiana to Columbus, Ohio Friday evening, and enjoyed a 5 1/2 hour drive riddled with bizarre construction and the occasional detour. We stayed at an amazing B&B called Hawthorne Park Bed and Breakfast, which was a short drive from the convention center. The architecture of the home was incredible, and our hosts were very kind, and great cooks too! We ate the breakfast they made for us both Saturday and Sunday.

When we went to the convention center Saturday, we were able to enjoy the opening ceremonies, which played into this year's theme of "Hollywood". (We don't recall there being a theme last year.) This involved some guy performing various show tunes on a stage setup along with dancers, as well as what I can only assume was a specially composed song just for TNNA. It was weird, well done, and delightful, but mostly weird.

We met up with Schacht, the creator of the Zoom Loom, which I used to create the woven samples on the Fiber Hound website. They were delighted to see the samples in person, and thought that it was an ingenious idea to use the Zoom Loom in this fashion. I was excited to see how well it was marketed across the show floor; the majority of the yarn booths had a small sign with a sample of their yarns woven with it. It was so much fun to be able to chat with the creators of many great products.

We stopped at the Ravelry booth, which had the purpose of helping store owners use their pattern sales tool. While Kristen was learning about how to use the tool, I had the pleasure of meeting and talking to Casey, who does the main coding for the website. I showed him a picture of Dwight, and we chatted about how goofy both of our dogs were.

One can never have a blog about TNNA without mentioning Jeni's Ice Cream, which originates in Columbus. Eating their ice cream is considered a rite of passage for the trade show, because they're made from all natural ingredients, with both common and bizarre flavor combinations that all have delicious outcomes. Across the street from the convention center is North Market, which has a number of small restaurants and shops, as well as one of the Jeni's location. There is another down the street from the convention center, and they are both often packed. Because the trade show is going to be in Indianapolis next year, I'm sure thousands of people will mourn the lack of incredible ice cream.

TNNA was a delightful amount of fun. There are many things which occurred that I am not able to mention in this post because they're surprises for later, but I'm really excited about all the people I was able to connect with, as well as having made some decisions for the future of this business.

We surprised Dwight with a bowtie from a shop in Columbus.

Posted on June 26, 2013 by Caitlyn Faust and filed under Events, Behind The Scenes and tagged TNNA.

Yarn Bases of Fiber Hound

Within the past week, I launched the Bases page after finishing the samples made from each type of yarn. Just as I did with the Colorways page, I made individual knit, crocheted, and woven samples of each yarn base in order to show customers how the different yarns look and behave. Now that it's live, I'm excited to tell you more about each of the different yarns Fiber Hound has to offer.

Basenji

Basenji is a lace weight yarn made out of 100% superwash merino. This yarn is a 2-ply yarn which is loosely piled, creating the opportunity for gently draping fabric. Although the fabric it creates appears delicate, it’s actually quite sturdy, and is a perfect choice for shawls, sweaters, or other lacy projects.

Saluki

Saluki is made from 55% superwash BFL and 45% Silk, and is lace weight. BFL stands for Bluefaced Leicester (pronounced Lester), and is a British wool that is remarkably different than Merino. Raw Merino wool is extremely crimpy, while raw BFL is a straight, curly lock. Light reflects better off of straighter wool, therefore when combined with the sheen of silk, Saluki is the shiniest of all the yarns Fiber Hound currently carries. The ply structure is similar to Basenji, having two plies and a luxurious drape. Saluki is great for both extra special projects as well as everyday items, like lace garments and shawls.

Italian Greyhound

Italian Greyhound is a fingering weight singles yarn that is 100% superwash merino. It is gently spun, creating a soft fabric that has fantastic stitch definition. Because it has only one ply, it’s not a good choice for more heavy wearing objects such as socks or sweaters, as it will easily pill. It’s a great yarn for cabled projects, shawls, and hats, where its special characteristics will be most effective.

Dachshund

Dachshund is a tightly 2-ply fingering weight yarn, featuring a sturdy mix of 80% superwash Merino and 20% nylon. It makes an incredible choice for socks, as the nylon content and tighter ply makes the fabric very strong against the aggressive wear of feet. Because this yarn is a 2-ply, there is a lot of texture in the final fabric. This yarn is great for socks, shawls, sweaters, and pretty much everything else!

Borzoi

Borzoi is a very special yarn, featuring 80% superwash BFL and 20% Bamboo. The combination of these two fibers creates a magical yarn, which has a sheen similar to silk. Because bamboo is a plant fiber, it does not absorb the dye in the same way that animal fibers do, and if you look closely, you can see a whitish haze surrounding the yarn. Because bamboo is a renewable resource, it also makes this yarn more eco-friendly. Borzoi has four plies, which makes it great for cables, socks, sweaters, and shawls!

Bluetick Coonhound

Bluetick Coonhound is a uniquely constructed sport weight yarn, created from eight plies that were chain-plied together. To chain ply a yarn, previously plied yarns are then plied together; in this yarn, four 2-ply yarns were plied together to create a super round, springy yarn. It’s made of 100% superwash Merino, and is fantastic for cables, sweaters, and socks.

Afghan Hound

Afghan Hound is a 4-ply yarn that is 50% superwash Merino, and 50% silk, creating a DK weight yarn that creates a very smooshy and luxurious fabric. While this yarn doesn’t have a sheen as bright as Saluki, it will be very obvious you’re working with something special. It’s a great yarn for sweaters, hats, and mittens.

Norwegian Elkhound

Norwegian Elkhound is a 4-ply 100% superwash Merino yarn that is very hard wearing, but still soft and squishy! It’s tough enough to be great for outerwear sweaters, but soft enough that it can be worn against sensitive skin for scarves, mittens and hats. The stitch definition makes it great for patterns with cables and texture!

Making all of the different swatches took a lot of time, but I think all of this effort for the swatches has really paid off. I feel it gives visitors to this website a special look at how the yarns can react in different formats, as well as a better way to see which yarn is the best fit for any project.

Which weight of yarn do you prefer working with? Do you tend to gravitate towards heavier weight yarns, or lighter weight? Is there a particular fiber you simply love, or refuse to work with?

Dwight, unlike cats, apparently does not like being in boxes.

Posted on June 19, 2013 by Caitlyn Faust and filed under Behind The Scenes and tagged Basenji Saluki Italian Greyhound Dachshund Borzoi Bluetick Coonhound Afghan Hound Norwegian Elkhound.

Downtown South Bend First Friday (In Review)

Last Friday was my first booth experience at the Downtown South Bend First Friday event, Dog Days of Summer. My interest in having a booth there was a last minute idea; I had visited the event for a few years previous and there were five or six people selling various things. Because of the branding of my business, I thought it was a good fit for the dog-themed event.

Dwight and Nutmeg enjoying the magical shade device.

I'd be the first to admit that when I signed up for a booth, I wasn't 100% ready for it in regards to my supplies. I had gathered a few items for testing a few months earlier, as there's a downtown art fair later in the summer at which I will be a vendor, but I had not yet acquired a tent or tables. I was able to purchase a nice 10x10 tent from a hardware store, and borrow some tables and tablecloths. We did a few test setups in my backyard, so when the date actually came around, I was confident about the booth's appearance.

At the event, Kristen and I were able to set up everything beautifully. One of the advertised activities for the event was a scavenger hunt, where everyone participating goes around getting stamps from various booths and local shops for the end goal of getting into a raffle. This brought a lot of people over to our area, and when getting a stamp, we would ask them if they knew anyone who knits, crochets, or weaves (which seemed more encompassing than asking if they did so themselves), and if they said yes, I had a special coupon specially made for the event. Regardless of their answer, my next question was, "Do you know any puppies who like dog treats or tennis balls?" Their answers were always some form of yes, and we got to delight in giving many different types of dogs treats! There were many adorable dogs and puppies of all sizes, which added to the fun of the event.

One of the best surprises was a visit from Dr. Menk, who had been my choir director at Saint Mary's College, with her dog Hans, who has been immortalized in Fiber Hound literature. On the tag for my Dachshund yarn, I give a story Dr. Menk bringing him to class and how he would bark at the students who came in late.

Not everything went perfectly - while we had weights on our tent, it became very windy at certain points of the evening, so Kristen and I had to hold on to the tent and Bernadette (the mannequin) so they would not fly away or fall over. The price displays I chose fell over multiple times, becoming cracked and scratched on the concrete. These things and others, while unfortunate, were great to know as weaknesses; they are things that can easily be improved upon. Because of this event, I feel much more prepared to take on others, knowing what worked and what didn't.

While we didn't sell much yarn, I feel that it was a successful event. I met a lot of great people (and dogs), I put the Fiber Hound name out there in the South Bend community, and I learned a lot about setting up my booth at an outdoor fair. Even better, I'm now prepared for Art Beat, which should be a much more successful venue for selling yarn!'

Do you buy yarn when you see it, say at a craft fair? Or do you plan out your yarn purchases ahead of time? Can a pretty skein in an unexpected place sway you to break your rules?

And now for something completely different:

Twenty pound of yarn next to twenty pounds of Dwight.

Posted on June 12, 2013 by Caitlyn Faust and filed under Events.

Development of the Colorways Page

Originally in my development plan, I was going to dye all of the colors I had available out of Norwegian Elkhound for the purpose of creating colorcards for yarn stores. Out of this concept came the idea to create different types of swatches for a book intended for marketing purposes; a side use would be to display all of the beautiful colors on this website for easy viewing purposes. I decided to create a knit swatch, a crochet swatch in double crochet, and a woven swatch made from Schacht's Zoom Loom.

While I already knew how to make the knit swatch out of stockinette (as knitting is my main craft), I had to consult a friend as to what type of swatch would be appropriate for crocheted fabric. (Thanks Erin!) She suggested using the double crochet stitch, as it's commonly used for fabrics and swatches. I was able to learn to do this stitch with my minimal knowledge of crochet with help from the internet (thanks Youtube!), and it proved to be a delightfully fun thing to replicate. The final swatch was for weaving. I purchased the Zoom Loom because I knew it would create the size of the swatch I needed, without the hassle of setting up a larger loom. I consulted a friend to make sure that it would accurately portray the colorways when woven, and she verified that it would. (Thanks Kristen!) It's fantastic that the craft community has such a presence on the internet, as there's little that you can't learn with a simple search.

Thus begun the month-long process of knitting, crocheting, and weaving 4in x 4in squares. It was a terrible amount of fun being able to work with all of my own colorways, many for the first time, and I know that the colorways page on this website will be a huge resource for myself, and hopefully other people as well!

The Colorways page is easy to use: decide on a color you'd like to see, click on the colorway, and a lightbox will appear on your screen with the zoomed in image. To easily view other images, you can use the left or right arrows on your keyboard, click the image to view the next, or click on the x at the top right corner to choose another color.

My next project is to create different swatches of the types of yarn bases I carry. This part of the project will take far less time. There are 60 swatches for the colorway section; in comparison, there will be 24 swatches for the bases.

Now that you can see all of the colorways at once, which ones are your favorites?

Reminder: I will have a booth at the Downtown South Bend First Friday: Dog Days of Summer. Come visit me if you can, as I will have a special treat for both you and your pup! More details can be found on the Events page at the top.

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Caitlyn Faust and filed under Behind The Scenes and tagged colorways.

Skeinwinding & Reskeining

Last week, I received a new skeinwinder in the mail, purchased from WoodenSpinner!

A skeinwinder can be used for mainly two things, winding a skein or reskeining a skein. When spinning yarns from a spinning wheel or spindle, a niddy-noddy or skeinwinder can be used as tools to remove the yarn from a bobbin, rather than winding it into a ball by hand. Niddy-noddies can come in various forms, such as tiny wooden ones for sampling, hand crafted wooden ones, or PVC plastic. I started out with a PVC one until my fiance made a beautifully personalized niddy-noddy that, until last week, I used religiously.

The beautiful niddy noddy my fiance made for me. — The beautiful niddy noddy my fiance made for me.

There are two schools of thought for how a skein of yarn can look for its final form, generally based on personal preference of the dyer. The first is to keep the skeins naturally as they were right out of the dyepot; the second is to reskein the yarn, rearranging the yarn so that all the different colors lay next to each other. I consider reskeining yarns one of the yarn industry's magical little secrets because of what it can tell us. Reskeining rearranges the yarn so that all the different colors lay next to each other.

On the natural yarn, you can clearly see the pools of color. I think this is just as pretty as the skein below, but the reskeined yarn gives us a lot more information about what the final garment will look like. — On the natural yarn, you can clearly see the pools of color. I think this is just as pretty as the skein below, but the reskeined yarn gives us a lot more information about what the final garment will look like.

Reskeining on a niddy-noddy is far more labor intensive than using a skeinwinder, particularly for lace skeins, which is why most professionals choose skeinwinders. To use a niddy-noddy, you have to wrap the yarn around the four edges in a zig-zag pattern, twisting the niddy-noddy and the yarn to complete the movements. (I have gotten very sore from hours of this!) In comparison, skeinwinders can exist either vertically or horizontally, and spin around in a wheel. They're not as compact, but they're far easier to use because the range of motion is smaller. Like the niddy-noddy, they can come in many forms: PVC, furniture quality, as well as many having motorized options.

What do you think? Do you like skeins when they're natural, or after they've been reskeined?

Also, an upcoming event: I will have a booth at the Downtown South Bend First Friday: Dog Days of Summer. Come visit me if you can, as I will have a special treat for both you and your pup!

Posted on May 29, 2013 by Caitlyn Faust and filed under Behind The Scenes and tagged Sirius.