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Visit Ancient Arts Yarns + Dye Studio - 607 Manitou Road SE, Calgary, Alberta

Visit Ancient Arts Yarns + Dye Studio - 607 Manitou Road SE, Calgary, Alberta

Blog Posts - Ancient Arts Yarns

This year for the Holidays, Ancient Arts is doing a Knit-A-Long that’s a little bit different. Most knitters/crocheters/fibre artists have at some time (or all the time) decided that making home made gifts is the way to go. I think we’ve all been there, starting with a great idea and then losing the joy in …
  • 2 min read
Fall is in the air (and on the ground where I live) and that means this dyer’s heart turns to new colours! Every change of seasons leads to me wanting to capture something about them in yarn. Autumn is my favorite season and always makes me very nostalgic. This year is no exception and several …
I will tell anyone who asks me about Holiday Knitting that I never go down that road. I don’t knit gifts for the Holidays. Not this knitter! Nope. Never. And that, my friends, is what we, members of the knitting world, call a big fat lie. I don’t knit gifts…except for a couple of pair …
When I was 21 years old, I headed off to Scotland in April. I was well-equipped for the weather, since I lived on the very northern tip of Vancouver Island. My regular wardrobe for April at home had all the perfect garments! First day, taking the train from Glasgow to Edinburgh, I left my toque …
I’m a natural fibre snob. I’ll be the first to admit it. I work REALLY hard at not being too disparaging of synthetics, mostly because I don’t want to discourage anyone that does crafting. I don’t want to make a handcrafter feel that their hard work is not valuable because they used acrylic. But it’s …
  • 3 min read
From the time I was a wee child I swore that as I grew older I would never, ever say “You young whippersnappers! It was so much better in my day!” Yet here I am, saying it. Well, I could leave out the “whippersnappers” I guess! I have lost count of the number of times I …
A question I am often asked is “What is it like to be a hand dyer?” I think there can be a lot of mystery and mythos around hand dyeing as a career. Some see it as being very artsy, ethereal, and connected to a higher creative plane. Certainly one of my friends who finally …
Where does inspiration come from? For me, inspiration comes flying from just about anywhere, and shows up in various states of completion. Often it’s a medley of memories, colours, and history that all come together into one overall idea. Sometimes, I have no idea where it comes from! A great example of such a medley …
Knitting is a long time love of mine. I love the process, the yarn, the colour. I love touching and ogling yarns. I love the process of making things. I’m a maker. I obsessively hobby. I’m one of THOSE people. I like to learn how to do everything myself, I wish to be beholden to …
I am often asked where I get the yarn that I dye for Ancient Arts. One would think it should be a simple process. Go to the yarn store, choose something nifty and nice, buy it, take it back to the studio, dye it, and start hugging it! Alas. It isn’t anywhere near this easy. …
For this week’s blog post we decided to check in with each one of the Ancient Arts knitting team to get some thoughts from each of us on the Stacked Stitch Wrap KAL. For me, Caroline S, the KAL is proving to be a really unique and fun experience. I have a confession to make. …
We are celebrating Ancient Arts Yarn being featured in the Stacked Stitch Wrap by Xandy Peters on the cover of Vogue Knitting! The lovely and talented Xandy Peters has been kind enough to guest blog a really fantastic article on colour theory. We’ve also created Yarn Kits available in colour combinations selected by Xandy Peters, and Caroline …
  • 3 min read