More About Tomorrow's Swap

"Chicken Bag" made by Charlotte from My Moriko's pattern, done in Blue Sky Fiber's Sweater

Hello everyone! First thing we want to say is that this community's response to our swap and yarn collection has already been incredible. You are all absolutely amazing! We already have a number of bags of yarn for swapping and donating both to the midwives and to Sno-Valley Senior Center. The excitement around it seems to be contagious and we love it! A few people have asked some great questions that other people are probably thinking so we wanted to add a few more FAQs about the yarn swap tomorrow

• Q: Can I bring pattern books or magazines?
  

• A: Yes! As long as they are in readable/usable condition and haven't had pages ripped out or excessively marked up, you're absolutely welcome to bring knitting/crochet books and/or magazines
  

• Q: Can I bring hand-spun yarn?
  

• A: Yes, as long as you know the fiber content and write and attach a label that states the said fiber content. The yardage would also be ideal to add to that label as that is information most people want to know. The same rules apply to handspun as industry yarn: it must be clean and free of any strong odors (like cigarette smoke, the scent of lanolin is okay). It also must be a "whole" skein, in the sense that it shouldn't be a collection of scraps and should be considered "finished" AKA plied if that was the intention

• Q: Can I bring yarns that's on cones as opposed to traditional hanks/skeins/balls/caked?

• A: Yes, as along it has a label, is a full cone of yarn, and is clean and free from strong odors
  

• Q: Will there be any kind of organization to the swap or will it be a free-for-all?
  

• A: There will be 3-6 foot tables, taped off into sections by yarn weight. So please sort your yarns by weight if you're pre-sorting them. Otherwise, you're welcome to do it at the shop and there will be a staff person to help. There will also be a smaller table for needles, notions, project bags, books, etc. Yarn will not be sorted by fiber so please be cautious if you have an allergy to a particular fiber. There will be nitrile gloves available if you need them to avoid reactions. If the tables get full, which they likely will, there will be large, labeled rectangular bags under the tables for overflow that people can pick through. We wish we had space for more tables but we will just have to make do with what we have this time. If the event is big, we may look at partnering with another organization or business that has more space for the next swap. Bear in mind that space is a major consideration so we appreciate your kindness and patience in advance. Thank you!
  

• Q: Do I have take home anything that doesn't get swapped?
  

• A: No! Any leftover yarn or yarn specifically designated for it, will be donated to Sno-Valley Senior Center in Carnation to support their arts and crafts activities as well as crafty seniors
  

  
  

• Q: I have some full skeins but they don't have tags. Can I bring them?
  

• A: Unfortunately, they cannot be added to the swap, due to allergen concerns and will be pulled from tables if spotted. HOWEVER you are welcome to bag them up and we'll still donate them to Sno-Valley Senior Center. If you know their fiber content/if they have wool/animal fiber in them, it would be kind of you to mark them or the bag as such

• Q: Can I still drop off yarn if I can't make it tomorrow?
  

• A: Yes! Please do! We're open our normal hours from 10-3 today but Brandy will be at the shop until probably at least 4pm starting to get things set up if you want to just drop things off

• Q: Do I have to be there the entire time? Is there a specific time window for dropping off yarn?
  

• A: No to both! The swap will be ongoing the entire time we're open, from 10am until we close at 3pm. You're welcome to swing by whenever you have time and you can hang around as long as you'd like. Please be advised that, unlike normal, we may only have a handful of chairs available due to space limitations so it's unfortunately not a good day to bring your knit group by to hang out.
  

• Q: Is there any entry fee or cost to participate?
  

• A: No, the event is completely free and open to all who craft! The shop will be open for shopping while the swap is occurring so you're also welcome to pick up any crafty needs you may have while you're here
  

  
  

• Q: You're still collecting for the midwives learning to knit in African right? What if I want to help but don't have an baby-soft DK or worsted yarn or size 8 needles?
  

• A: Yes! And thank you for wanting to help. We'll have a box clearly marked for donation to them for drop off. If you don't have anything to donate but still want to help, you can always purchase size 8 circular needles, stitch markers, or yarn at the shop to donate. Yarns we'd recommend are Blue Sky Fibers Sweater, Juniper Moon Farms Cotton+Merino, Cascade Yarns Anchor Bay, Blue Sky Fibers Organic Cotton Worsted, Queensland Coastal Cotton, Malabrigo Verano, Blue Sky Fibers Woolstok, Malabrigo Rios and/or Arroyo and/or Dos Tierras, and Knitting For Olive Heavy Merino
  

That's all the questions we've received so far. If you have more questions, please feel free to reply to this email, shoot us an email at info@quintessentialknits.com or call the shop at (425) 575-8354 and we'll be happy to help