It's been a WHOLE YEAR!!

It's so hard to believe that tomorrow Knits by the Sea will be celebrating our one year anniversary! It seems like just yesterday we were unpacking our very first order of yarn. So in celebration of this milestone we will be having a party and sale! Be sure to come by tomorrow from 12:00 - 4:30 for refreshments (the adult kind!) and sales. The whole store will be 10% off (except consignment items) so this is a great chance to stock up! For photos of how it all began you can check out our newsletter here!

A huge thank you must go out to everyone who has helped get this started. And a big thank you to everyone who has supported the store. You the customer are who has made this an amazing first year. Thank you so much for your continued support. We really hope you can join us on Sunday in celebrating this milestone for Knits by the Sea.

New Season, New Window!

Kiersten, Kat and I had a fun evening here last Friday revamping the window just in time for the Whale Festival Parade on Saturday. A big thank you to Kiersten for her help and for putting together an amazing new display. Come and see for yourself as the picture doesn't do it justice! Lots of yummy yarns on display including a little taste of the SweetGeorgia yarn that will be out in full display for the weekend of April 1-3 for our first Sock Retreat with Cookie A.

And another yarn teaser- we received a big shipment from YarnCandy (now known as Sweet Fibre). We will also be putting out this lovely yarn on Friday April 1. We brought in more of her amazing sock yarn with 10% cashmere that makes it just SO soft and more colours of her cashmere and silk blend.

So lots of new yarns to come and pet. Be sure to stop by!

Learn to Crochet Part 2!

Knits by the Sea is now offering our first beyond the basics crochet class coming up on Tuesday March 29 from 6:00 - 9:00. If you already have a basic knowledge of crocheting this is a great next step. The class is based on a mobile phone case so you get to learn to read a pattern and increase your stitch knowledge! It's a fun evening of crocheting that is not to be missed! The pattern is included in the cost of the class. Love the design? You can see more of Sandra Claesen's designs on Ravelry.

Whale Festival is starting this Saturday and we are looking forward to the parade and all the other fun events happening next week. Due to all the events happening in town we will be cancelling our Stitch Night for the first time ever! We hope you understand. So Wednesday March 23 there will be no Stitch Night.

And with Cookie A. joining us the following weekend after Whale Festival we are moving our Stitch Night to Friday April 1. There will be lots of good food and some new sock yarn to gaze upon. So be sure to come out for this special Stitch Night/kick off to our very first retreat!

More Patterns!

We just got in some more great patterns from Never Not Knitting designer Alana Dakos. This talented designer always has great patterns and these new ones are no exception! Two great berets (like the Seedling beret pictured above), a great hand warmer and a beautiful neck warmer. Come in and see for yourself!

And just in case you aren't following us on Facebook we wanted to mention here that we got voted one of Tofino's favourite new businesses of 2010 in the Tofino Times. We are so thrilled and honoured to have been one of the businesses selected. Thank you Tofino for voting for us!!

Still some space in our upcoming sock retreat if you are thinking about coming out. We are really looking forward to meeting author/designer Cookie A. and learning more about sock design. For more details you can go here.

March Newsletter Posted

Our March Newsletter is posted! Go here to find out what is happening here at Knits by the Sea. We have some new project classes that have been posted and some new technique classes that we are offering over the next couple of months. For all the details on upcoming classes go here!

Whale Fest is coming and we are very excited about the grey whales coming back to Tofino. Whale Fest will be happening from March 19-26 with lots of different events. Sandy has put together some great kits for this special time of year. We now offer a complete Grey Whale needle felting kit! Make your very own grey whale. This is a complete kit with everything you need to make it. We will be adding more west coast themed kits over the next couple of months so stay tuned!

Great Donations!

All of us here at Knits by the Sea want to give a big thank you to all of the wonderful people who donated some of their stash at the Yarn Swap on Saturday. It was so generous of all of you and we really appreciate all your support. Now we have the task of knitting/crocheting up all this yarn! We already have some volunteers (thank you!!) but if you are interested in helping out too just contact us! We can get you some yarn and patterns to get you started.

The Knits by the Sea relay team is officially registered! So we are dusting off our running shoes and getting ready to run in the June 12th Edge to Edge marathon.

It's incredible to think our retreat with Cookie A. is just over a month away now! We are really looking forward to meeting this amazing author/designer. Everyone we have spoken to who has taken a class with her has nothing but good things to say! We still have some spots available if you are thinking of coming to Tofino for this fun weekend of sock design! Our website has all the details!

Yarn Swap Details and Team Knits by the Sea!

We are hosting our very first Yarn Swap! It's coming up on Saturday February 19th from 4:00 to 7:00. So bring your stash and trade with other yarn lovers! Your old yarn could be someone elses inspiration! It will be a fun afternoon of trading and refreshments.

We will also be accepting donations of yarn on that day as well. All of this yarn will be knit/crocheted into items that will be sold at the store and various fairs and all profits will be donated to the SPCA. Want volunteer to knit/crochet some items? Contact us at info@knitsbythesea.com or call the shop at 250-725-3700.

A Knits by the Sea Relay Marathon team is forming! And we need 2 more people to join! The Edge to Edge Marathon that runs between Tofino and Ucluelet on June 12th is the one we are planning on participating in. Being part of a relay team means each member will have to run 7-10 km depending on which part of the race you run. Knits by the Sea will cover all registration fees and will be providing team gear! So if you are up for a challenge and are willing to come to Tofino for the weekend of the race contact us!