Knit Along!

Join us for our first Knit Along…

Yarn pick-up begins Saturday July 9! KAL members, scroll all the way down for more details…..

The Newark Cultural Arts Center Store is excited to announce our very first Knit Along (KAL)! For newbies, a KAL is an opportunity to knit a new project with a group of people who are all working on the same or similar projects centered on a particular type of yarn. There’s an official start date, and an official end date. There are also weekly KAL days scheduled at the Store so everyone can meet, work through any questions about the patterns or knitting, share their progress, socialize, meet new people with similar interests, and just have fun!

In the spirit of learning and education that we foster at the Newark Cultural Arts Center, we picked a project using a very unique yarn that we’re guessing very few (if any) of you have used: Icelandic Plotulopi. Plotulopi  is an unspun yarn made from Icelandic sheep wool. Plotulopi is sold in “plates” rather than balls, skeins, or hanks, and is usually worked in 2 or more strands held together. Although it’s fragile on its own, it’s very strong once knitted and becomes softer with every wash. The finished product is unusually light and airy, yet very warm. A Plotulopi sweater makes an excellent outer garment. Another benefit: Plotulopi is very economical, just $10 / 100 gram plate before the KAL 10% discount! Most sweaters will use between 4-7 plates (depending on the number of colors chosen). And because the yarn is held double or triple, it knits up FAST!

The sweater patterns for this KAL are knit from the bottom up, in the round. If you’ve always wanted to knit a sweater and/or knit in the round—we’ve got you covered! You'll have all the support you need to be successful as we'll have open lounge KAL sessions once a week on Sundays. 

We've got plates of Plotulopi for you to look at in the Store, as well as a sample that's already been knitted up and blocked. You can see pictures of the yarn and sample on our Facebook or Instagram accounts right away.

For this KAL, we’re encouraging knitters to look over the Lopi website and select from one of the 52 beautiful patterns using this yarn. Once you’ve found a pattern, you’ll purchase it online, and then you’ll place your yarn and needle orders with us at the Store. We’ll make 1 yarn order with Lopi and distribute the yarn and needles at the Store. Orders for this KAL will receive a 10% discount off the yarn ($10 retail per plate) and needles. Here’s a link to the 52 patterns using Plotulopi, click on the ’Sizes and Materials’ tab after purchasing a pattern to see the colors, quantities, and needle size(s) necessary for your project:

https://lopidesign.is/en/category/plotulopi/

Use this link to see the colors available:

https://istex.is/en/vorur/plotulopi/

Needles will be ordered from Chiao Goo in the sizes you request. We recommend using the metal Lace Circular Needle line for this yarn as it will enable it to slip off the needles easily.

Important dates:

-Friday May 20: KAL opens. Begin selecting and purchasing patterns online, and placing yarn and needle orders through the Store. Yarn and needle orders can be emailed (newarkculturalartscenter@gmail.com , use subject ‘KAL’), or placed in person at the Store. Yarn and needle orders must be paid for in advance at the time of the order.

-Monday June 20: Last day to place KAL yarn and needle orders. Please note that the following colors are discontinued: Marsh (1420), Dark Woods (2020).

-Saturday July 9: Yarn pick-up begins! KAL participants can begin picking up their yarn and accessories anytime the Store is open beginning July 9!

KAL members will be contacted as soon as the yarn and needles arrive. We’ll begin meeting the Sunday after the orders arrive, and every Sunday after between 12-4 to work on our projects. The projected end date for projects will be Sunday Sept 25, giving everyone 12 weeks to finish their projects.

And lastly, please share this with any knitters, far and wide, who might be interested. We can ship yarn to anyone who is out of town.

Ready … Set … Knit!