A Yarn Story

Share Your Knits! 😍
Our good friend Allison REALLY delivered for this special edition of 'Share Your Knits' this week!

For every item of AYS knitwear you wore to our anniversary party a couple of weeks ago, we gave you a raffle ticket...and goodness were we hoping for a Joey moment and sure enough, we had it 😂

Allison was my very first customer 10 years ago and has become my BKFF (best knitting friend forever) and she's knit a lot of sweaters in that time. I think she wore 15 and there were a couple of scarves wrapped around her to start as well.

We have a video where she talks through each knit which we'll release soon.

Thank you for understanding the assignment, Allison, and for being a true highlight of the evening and AYS's 10 years

NEW ARRIVALS ❤
We had a big old delivery from Hide & Hammer this week! This new Mulberry colourway is one I've been waiting to arrive for months now and I've had to try very hard not to take one of each bag as soon as they arrived.

Here's a link to all the goodies 👇
https://ctrk.klclick.com/l/01JCMVCNDXSNSDG8SW176R0JDC_8

In this delivery we got all three sizes of the:

👜 Iconic Roll Top Bag
👜 Neat Tote Bag
👜 Nesting Bags
👜 ..and the brand new Deco Bag design

All of these bags have been made in Hide & Hammer's new thicker canvas and are so, so beautiful. We now have Midnight, Honey, Mulberry and Black available in most styles. If you don't see the bag you want, sign up for the 'notify me when in stock' option or drop us an email and let us know what you're looking for.

Moody Birthday Shots 📷
We've LOTS of wonderful photos and videos from our 10 Year Anniversary celebration at Wolf Wine (including my dear friend Allison who showed up wearing 15 sweaters she's made over the years in yarn she's gotten at AYS!) but here's a few moody shots to kick things off.

Packed full of friends old and new, knitwear, laughter and joy, it was an amazing evening - thank you to everyone who came to celebrate. More soon...

Spincycle Has Arrived 🙏
We have a slew of shades in Dream State and Dyed in the Wool that we haven't seen in a while - most notable to arrive were Bad Egg and Rabbit Hole. Take a look at 📷 2 and let us know in the comments which you prefer 👇

You're all lucky I've been in Cumbria this week or these two shades might not have made it to this weekend 😂.

Share Your Knits! 😍
We had a lovely customer from Australia pop in the other week wearing her Instant Crush by Joji Locatelli. She knit this using Walcot Yarns x Boutique Les Garçons Fluff in Cold Rain, Velvet, Marmalade and Boreal and had been wearing it non-stop on their five weeks of travels around the UK. A Fluff sweater really is a fantastic travel companion, so soft and so light!

We'd LOVE to see your latest knit. Share yours and help us inspire yarn lovers around the globe. Tap the link in our bio to submit your photo 👉

About Tuesday: US Election Thoughts 🇺🇸
On Wednesday morning I awoke to news of a US election not going the way I hoped it would. I felt quite forlorn.

We had a really lovely walk up a nearby fell here in Cumbria and I sat and watched a creek flow through some woodlands and reminded myself that if I believe my vote matters (which I very much do) then I also believe that my everyday actions matter and those are what I am going to continue to focus on.

The greater geopolitics of this world are bigger and farther beyond what the vast majority of us can affect on a daily basis and so it's overwhelming to think about the world that way. What I can do, is continue to try to build the kind of world I want to have.

For me personally this means:
💜 Running my business in a way that benefits all of its stakeholders and not just my own bank account
💜 Being involved in my local community in anyways that I can
💜 Donating funds to organizations that are doing work I think is important and don't have capacity or skills to work in myself
💜 Voting, and most vitally having conversations with everyone

I believe deeply that there is more that connects us with one another than divides us, and that most people want the same things in and for this world, we just have different ideas of how to achieve that and that's ok.

So conversations are vital, talking and listening to those whose opinions differ from our own and engaging in the whys of that is how we move forward. In a world full of video soundbites and character maximums on social media, where it's far too easy to enrage one another and be misunderstood, I invite you to have real conversations with those around you.

It's not always easy but shying away from uncomfortable discourse is, in part, how we got to where we are. If you're not happy where we are, then the best thing to do is keep working towards a world you are happy with.

I'm going to keep knitting and taking walks in nature to sooth my nerves and my soul and I'm going to keep talking to people, listening to their stories and sharing my own and work towards the kind of world I want to live in.

Love to you all!
~ Carmen

✨ GIVEAWAY - WEEK 10 ✨
It's our FINAL giveaway and we're going BIG with this one! This week you can win a place at one of our Country House Retreats in 2025 (RRP ~£1,250) 😮

HOW TO ENTER:
✅ 1. Like this photo
✅ 2. Tag as many friends in the comments as you like (ONE friend per comment). More comments = better chance of winning
✅ 3. Share this post to your Stories and tag 👍
✅ 4. For TEN bonus entries, join our mailing list. Tap the link in our bio and click 'ENTER THE GIVEAWAY'

Competition closes at 23:59 GMT on Sunday 10th November. We'll announce the winner on Monday 11th November. Full Ts & Cs can be seen using the link in our bio

Good luck 🤞

NEW BUNDLE
The Amersfoort Scarf by the uber-talented Salt & Stone Knits is knit using Origin by Walcot Yarns. The colour shown in the images is Juniper - a deep, earthy green that feels like it belongs in the wild.

https://ayarnstory.co.uk/collections/new-in/products/amersfoort-scarf-by-salt-stone-yarn-bundle

We've chosen six other Origin colours we think would be perfect for the Amersfoort Scarf - we'd love to know which you'd select. Let us know 👇

✨ GIVEAWAY - WEEK 9 ✨
It's the penultimate week of our 10 year anniversary giveaway and this week we've a fantastic prize: 5 skeins of Walcot Yarns Opus or Origin in any colour(s) you wish 😍

HOW TO ENTER:
✅ 1. Like this photo
✅ 2. Tag three fellow crafters in the comments
✅ 3. For FIVE bonus entries, share this post to your Stories (tap the 'share' icon below this image and then 'Add to story'. Tag so we can register your extra entries 👍)

Competition closes at 23:59 GMT on Sunday 3rd November. We'll announce the winner on Monday 4th November. Full Ts & Cs can be seen using the link in our bio

Good luck 🤞

Last Chance Offers 😍
We've made some BIG reductions to the items in our Last Chance section as we seriously need room for some new yarn we found at Rhinebeck! There's a lot there including yarn from Knitting for Olive, Fonty, The Fibre Co., Les Garcons and mYak as well as tools and notions from Hide & Hammerand cocoknits and even some Laine Magazines.

Browse special offers here 👇

https://ayarnstory.co.uk/collections/last-chance

RESTOCK: Camarose.dk Snefnug
Yep - would you believe it! We only took delivery of our last batch of Snefnug a couple of weeks ago and here we are restocking the shelves. This yarn is very sought after! So, it goes without saying that if you're on the hunt for this beautiful yarn, don't delay! 👇

https://ayarnstory.co.uk/collections/camarose/products/camarose-snefnug

Back in Stock: John Arbon Textiles Exmoor Sock 🧦
The Exmoor Sock promises nothing less than pure luxury together with a durable finish and excellent stitch definition. Spun and dyed in the UK, this yarn blends hard-wearing fibres from Exmoor Blueface sheep with bouncy Devon Zwartbles, soft Bluefaced Leicester and tactile Falklands Corriedale. Finally, a small amount of nylon is added for strength.

If you are a sock knitter, you're going to love this yarn (though it also makes lovely mitts, hats and shawls too). The colour palette is wonderful (as are the names, taken from old local dialect).

We want to know your favourite (name and colour!) - let us know 👇

📷 2: Bell Heather
📷 3: Aggy
📷 4: Blooth
📷 5: Bibble Bug
📷 6: Bulderin' Clouds
📷 7: Dimity
📷 8: Hemel
📷 9: Drumble
📷 10: Oddmedod

The Clint shawl by Natasja Hornby was inspired by the ancient art of quilting, transformed into a modern, wearable shawl.

Knit entirely in garter stitch, this project suits most skill levels. Each block is knit modularly, attaching to the main body as you go, simplifying the construction and keeping it engaging.

Isager Merilin colours used here:
🔵 Colour 1: 10 - 3 balls
🟤 Colour 2: 59s - 2 balls
🟢 Colour 3: 16 - 1 ball
🟠 Colour 4: 1 - 1 ball

We love the colour combination here. What do you think? 👇

✨ GIVEAWAY - WEEK 8 ✨
Our 10th birthday is right around the corner (have you got your tickets yet?) so we're celebrating with 10 weeks of giveaways.

This week, win a £100 voucher to spend online or in-store at A Yarn Story.

HOW TO ENTER:
✅ 1. Like this photo
✅ 2. Tag three fellow crafters in the comments
✅ 3. For TEN bonus entries, leave a comment on our latest YouTube video: https://youtu.be/Ijr7Rvpbxm4

Competition closes at 23:59 GMT on Sunday 27th October. We'll announce the winner on Monday 28th October! Full Ts & Cs can be seen using the link in our bio

Good luck 🤞

Share Your Knits! 😍
Doesn't Johnnie look fantastic in the Dunbar vest by Pat Menchini? Knitted for him by his wife Liz in Uschitita DK, it's the perfect Autumn layering piece. I love how the semi-solidness of the hand dyed yarn really accentuates the pattern, just an excellent knit!

We'd LOVE to see your latest knit. Share yours and help us inspire yarn lovers around the globe. Tap the link in our bio to submit your photo 👉

✨ GIVEAWAY - WEEK 7 ✨
We're entering our last few weeks of our 10th birthday giveaway. This week one lucky winner will score a beautiful Hide & Hammer Leather Needle Case (RRP £250 🤩).

HOW TO ENTER:
✅ 1. Like this photo
✅ 2. Share this post to your Stories (tap the 'share' icon then 'Add to story'.)
✅ 3. For FIVE bonus entries, have a listen to our Podcast on Apple Podcasts (https://bit.ly/4f33XOa) or Spotify (https://bit.ly/3QKRBBA).

If you could Like, Follow, Subscribe or Share the podcast, we'd *hugely* appreciate it.

Competition closes at 23:59 GMT on Sunday 20th October. We'll announce the winner on Monday 21st October! Full Ts & Cs can be seen using the link in our bio

Good luck 🤞

ISAGER RESTOCK 🧶
I haven't had such trouble with a delivery in a long time - it took over 3 weeks for us to receive all of our boxes of Isager from UPS! It is all here now though and we have plenty of yarn for all your project needs.

Shop here 👇
https://ayarnstory.co.uk/collections/isager

We've had a big delivery of:
✅ Spinni
✅ Alpaca 1
✅ Jensen
✅ Silk Mohair
✅ Tweed
✅ Soft
✅ Eco Baby
✅ ...and added Merilin to the mix!

There are new shades of some of your favorites as well, so if you're looking for some color blending in mohair for example, there are even more choices.