Author: Susan Cropper

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Happy 2014 to all you lovely knitters and crocheters out there! We had such a lovely time over Christmas, helping you choose projects to give as gifts, helping your loved ones choose presents for you, and generally revelling in the cold weather and festive vibe. We’re not too sad the holidays are over because there is so much to look forward to at Loop in 2014. There are new yarns (!), wonderful workshops and lots of fun to be had this year, and we wanted to share some of that excitement with you. So here is a round-up of our favourite …

Happy New Year! Read more →

A Very Happy Christmas from Loop! Wishing you all the best for a yarn-filled 2014 from Camden Passage in London. — Loop will be open 28 & 29 December and we look forward to seeing you in the new year! — opening hours

With just four more sleeps until Christmas, you might think your gift-knitting ship has sailed. But with the help of the newly arrived Malabrigo Mecha, we did a little experiment and discovered that this Chunky Seeded Cowl can save the day! Knit in just three evenings, you can have a super-cosy cowl and great gift by Christmas morning.

The Christmas season is in full frenzy now, with just under two weeks until the biggest gift giving day of the year. It can be easy to be swept away in it all, but two new arrivals at Loop have the power to make us pause and meditate on the small, special things in life. Often at this time of year, knitters and crocheters can think of nothing but the chunkiest of wools for whipping up quick projects (more on that next week!), but it turns out that the perfect gift you’ve been looking for might be the one made …

The Finest of Threads Read more →

Two of our favourite things this winter are the new Fancy Tiger Crafts Heirloom yarn and, of course, pom poms! Our Sophie (resident knitting punster and window-dresser extraordinaire) has designed a super-easy hat pattern incorporating both these wonderful things. Sophie’s Hat is a great Christmas gift for anyone, young and old, male and female, and it knits up super quickly – perfect for last minute gifts. It can be knit either back and forth on straight needles for the absolute hat novice, or in the round on circular needles for those of you ready to give that a go! Either way, it’s …

Sophie’s Hat – Free Pattern Read more →

We pride ourselves on the wonderful yarns, sourced from around the world, that grace the shelves of Loop. But of course we hold a special place in our knitty hearts for British wool. So when we got the chance to stock the very classic and very British Toft yarns, we jumped at it! Their alpaca fur pom poms might have also had something to do with it…

It is now properly cold here in London but, as knitters, we’re embracing it. This winter, one of our biggest joys will be knitting with the newly arrived Eden Cottage Yarns. Hand dyed in Yorkshire, dyer Victoria Magnus’ colours all carry a silvery tone and romantic atmosphere of the northern English landscape. At Loop we now carry two of Victoria’s yarns: the merino and silk blended Titus 4-ply – utterly gorgeous for lace shawls and other special accessories – and Bowland DK – a Blue Faced Leicester wool that we can’t wait to make piles of jumpers in. Here’s a …

An Eden Cottage Winter Read more →

We know it’s still over a month until Christmas but, as knitters, we’re inherently inclined to plan ahead. A few years ago we compiled lists of what we would ask Father Christmas for if the elves made yarn and haberdashery and we thought it would be fun to do it again! We think it might be useful when you’re compiling your own wishlists, or if you’re thinking about shopping for a knit or crochet inclined friend. We also mentioned a few years ago that you can create an online wishlist from any shop using the Amazon Universal Wishlist Button. That …

Christmas Wishlists! Read more →

We’re doing our best not to turn the heaters on in the shop this week, in spite of it getting very cold – what is knitwear for, after all? We’ve had delivery of some lovely things which have reminded us just how well us knitters do “warm”. We can’t think of a better way to keep toasty than with the magic of cables – those deceptively simple twists that create a  wind-proof, double-thickness fabric. If they’re good enough for seafaring Irishmen, they’re good enough for us.

Look what’s landed at Loop this week, just in time for the cold weather. It’s the beautiful, rustic and warm Heirloom from Fancy Tiger Crafts. Raised, milled and dyed in the US, it’s a 100% Romney wool yarn.  Romney sheep are the descendants of English medieval longwool breeds, and produce a lustrous, hardworking wool with a long staple length, which is perfect for warm, sturdy items that will hold up to wear for years to come. We love that the name they chose for this yarn, Heirloom, reflects that. And it’s not just the fibre that we love so much …

Fancy Tiger Heirloom at Loop! Read more →