Be Inspired Hand spun wool and mohair yarns for knitting and crocheting sweaters and accessories.

Trammel and I spent the last week and a half in Europe, mainly for the Handerbeit & Hobby show that takes place every year in Cologne, Germany. It's an amazing show that attracts yarn shop buyers and knitwear designers from all over Europe and beyond. We started off the trip in London and spent 2 days there before heading to Germany. Last but not least, we took a mini 3 day vacation in Paris.  Here's a mini recap in photos! 

In London, I visited the shop Loop which is a MUST see if you're ever in London.  It's full of the best yarns and ideas.  Susan Cropper, the shop owner there, was the first person to ever buy Knit Collage yarns so Loop has a special place in my heart too.

Their newest book is just out! I got to see the finished samples in person at Loop- they are stunning.  For more info or to purchase the book, visit the Loop website here.

Next, we took the train up to Suffolk to visit the shop Half Penny Home.  It's situated not far from London but feels like worlds away, and is set in the beautiful countryside.  This is the entrance to the shop with the owner, Nicola- so cute!

Fabulous prayer flags made with our yarn in the shop!

Adorable, adorable tea kettle cozy knit in our yarns!  We're hoping to have this pattern at some point soon too :)

Our teeny booth at the H+H tradeshow.  We split it with Artyarns which was lots of fun!

The owner of an amazing shop in Holland, Schouten Handwerken, and I. They ordered after a year of thinking about it, yay!

2 Polish gals came wearing our yarn, love love love!

Barbara, the owner of Dibadu, a German shop in her 'Summer of Love' scarf using our Sugar Magnolia.  Overall it was a fantastic show for us and I can't wait to ship out to more shops all across Europe.

Last but not least, a few pics from Paris.  I shot this while running along the Seine on our last morning. That's Notre Dame in the distance.  I think Paris might be my favorite place to run, no hills and gorgeous scenery.

The weather was amazing, just the perfect time of year to be there!

Of course we had lots of wine! Perfect end to a great trip!

The past 2 weeks have gone by soooo quickly! They just flew by but it's been a ton of fun!  I spent 2 days at yarn stores just north of Boston, at the North Shore Yarn Crawl at the end of March. Then Trammel and I flew over to Europe for the yarn tradeshow H+H.  Busy, exhausting but so rewarding to connect with more Knit Collage knitters and yarn shop owners.  Below are all the highlights from the yarn crawl and I'll post the rest of the European pics this weekend.

Yarns in the Farms, on of my favorite yarns stores.  A magic cottage full of gorgeous yarns!

The door at Yarns in the Farms, words to live by. I also love this wreath so much!

The Knit Collage table that they put together for the yarn crawl.

A detail shot of the beautiful dress designed by Jill, the owner of Yarns in the Farms, using our Pixie Dust yarn and Be Sweet's Boucle mohair.  I bought yarn to make a dress for myself so stay tuned for the total pic of that.  I wore this the whole day and got tons of compliments, although I felt a little guilty since Jill knit it, not me!

The Space Case by Alex Tinsley hat modeled by the shop's chic model!

Awesome crochet hat knit by a Knit Collage enthusiast that lives in Bermuda.  Serious talent and she didn't use a pattern, impressive. I love to see our yarn in crochet because not many people try it that way. Purple Haze and Morning Glory stripes. shown here. 

I'm so mad I didn't take more pics at a Loom with a View, the other shop I spent the day at. It's located in downtown Newburyport, which was such a cute town to visit.  There were tons of independant shops and restaurants everywhere.  The perfect location for a yarn shop that offers tons of classes, including weaving on some intimidatingly large looms.   And of course, they have a gorgeous range of yarns and craft supplies. How adorable are these hats?!  These were knit by Cheryl, the designer at URGENT NEEDS Handwork, she also works part time at the shop.  These are her seriously cute twin daughters.   I really loved her designs and am planning to knit up a blanket she designed that is so gorgeous! Ok pics to come of all the Euopean travels over the weekend!

Last fall I met an amazing designer named Tanis Gray through email and then a long phone chat.  After checking out her website I was totally wowed by her gorgeous creations and knew we had to work with her somehow!   She has an impressive background, having worked at Martha Stewart and as the Yarn Editor at Vogue Knitting.  On top of that she has published over 250 designs and has a fantastic new book out called Capitol Knits. Featured in her book is a gorgeous shawl pattern that uses our Stargazer silk yarn.  The design looks a little bit difficult for my skills but I think it could be a fun challenge and is next on my to do list! The design is inspired by the LED tunnel between the 2 wings of the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC.  Take a look at the photos below and if you're interested in purchasing her book or the pattern, visit her ravelry page by clicking here.

She's done this as a stripe with another non-Knit Collage yarn. You could also try it using all Knit Collage Stargazer :) The color featured here is Blue Lagoon Stargazer.

We've also collaborated with Tanis on a few designs that we hope to launch soon (as soon as our Ravelry shop launches!).  She designed a beautiful cable cowl for us in Pixie Dust.  I think this might be next year's go-to Christmas gift to knit for my friends and family.