Alexa: Gourmet Crafter

You might be asking yourself, where has the Gourmet Crafter gone? Will she come back? Is she knitting? Or maybe (probably) you haven’t been wondering at all but hopefully you will be glad I’m back in action. Where have I been: dying. A few months ago my good friend Kalin introduced me to dying with Kool-Aid and I was hooked. I took a wonderful class with Felicia from Sweet Georgia yarns and took it to the next level. I was so smitten with dying, the satisfying feeling of taking blank yarn from white or beige to beautiful brilliant colours. That was when I had the bright idea to create my own line of yarn: Gourmet Crafter Yarns.

As usual, I wanted to combine my love of photography and colour with a love of yarn and knitting. I took some of my favorite photos from around town and a few from across the country and used them as colourway inspiration. Some are handpainted, some are kettle dyed. I had so much fun creating the concept and developing the yarns. I learn more each time I do it!

Without further ado I would like to introduce Gourmet Sock

115g (approximately 380 yards or 347 meters)

80% Superwash Merino, 10% Cashmere, 10% Nylon

28 stitches per 4 inches

Suggested Needle Size : 2.25mm- 3.25mm (US1-3)

Colours:

Davie Street: So named for the famously flamboyant street in Vancouver. I have always loved the rainbow, so cheerful.

Whale Watching: So named for a fantastic whale watching trip I took with my husband in the Bay of Fundy. If you look closely you can see the spout of a Humpback whale in the distance. The beautiful blue green waters were the inspiration for this colourway.

Granville Island Cherries: One of my favorite things to do is to head down to the Granville Island market for some fresh produce, fresh pasta (Yam and Chestnut Triangolini is my personal fave), delicious bagels and much much more. Rainier and regular cherries (what are regular cherries called?) are plentiful in Vancouver in the summer and I always enjoy a bowl.

Hastings Graffiti: A few months ago my friend James and I went on a photography excursion with the goal of getting some cool graffiti. There were many pieces to choose from in Gastown and beyond. This particular piece is on Hastings street.

Moraine Lake: As I may have mentioned my cousin and I took a trip to Winnipeg and on the way we stopped in Banff and checked out the lovely Moraine Lake, so famously featured on the Canadian $20 bill.

Backyard Greens: I love the greens in my Mumsy’s backyard. She always has lots of plants and flowers in both her back and front yard, I had lots to choose from but I have been a bit taken with bright greens of any kind this year!

Fall Leaves: Living on Burnaby Mountain I enjoy watching the leaves change. Not only does it signal the start of knitting season (not that I don’t get my fair share in the off season but warm and woolies go much better with cold weather, let’s face it). As well as a changing of seasons I also love the colours of fall which make their way through the leaves. From green to yellow, orange, red, and finally brown. These bright red leaves with their dark burgundy veins (I know they aren’t really veins but I couldn’t think of a better way to describe them) were photographed just outside my door.

Robin’s Egg: Last but not least a speckled delight. Robin’s eggs are always so beautiful with their soft blue speckled with brown.

I started out with a small amount of yarn (30 skeins) and a few photos. I was originally planning on putting them up for sale on Etsy but when Anina and Jan (my awesome bosses at Urban Yarns and no, I’m not just saying that because they might read this!) saw the yarn they had to have it all! So, my yarn can be purchased at Urban Yarns and can be ordered via email (Urban Yarns contanct info here). If you have any questions, or requests for the next batch, you can email me at gourmetcrafter@gmail.com