2021 ChemKnits Chanukah Samplers Preorder!

You can now preorder the 2021 ChemKnits Chanukah Samplers in the ChemKnits Creations Etsy shop!

There are three listings for Chanukah 2021:

• 2021 ChemKnits Chanukah Samplers - Choose between Sock or DK weight 75% Superwash Merino / 25% Nylon yarn. Each sampler will have 9-10 wrapped miniskeins totaling 100 g, a hand signed card from Rebecca, and multiple fun extras. 8 of the 10 gram minis will be wrapped with a number and the date that corresponds to a night of Chanukah for you to unwrap while watching a new Yarn Dyeing Video on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube Channel.
• Add-On Full Skeins - For 2021 there will be two planned colorways you can add-on to your samplers. The first colorway will be on Sparkle Sock (a Superwash Merino blend with either Stellina or Lurex) and the second is a Donegal Yarn with Multi-Colored Neps available in both Sock or DK weights. Each add-on skein will be wrapped with a progress keeper.
• Add-on Yarn Mop - New for 2021, you can pre-order a mystery yarn mop dyed in one of the Chanukah videos. Some of these colorways that use up leftover dye have become my favorites every year. Choose between Sock Yarn (75/25 Superwash Merino / Nylon) or DK (100% Superwash Merino). Each yarn mop add-on skein will be wrapped with a progress keeper.

You don't need to be Jewish to participate in the ChemKnits Chanukah Special! I invite you all to celebrate with me. This is one of my favorite events of the year because it is so much fun creating these videos!

****************** Frequently Asked Questions ******************

Most of the information below is included in the Etsy listings, but I figured that I would include it here for clarity.

WHEN IS CHANUKAH 2021?

The first night of Chanukah is November 28, 2021 and the 8th night is November December 5, 2021. I will release each dyeing video (1-8) after sunset EST on the corresponding night of Chanukah. The bonus videos (#9) and for any add on colorways will be released after the 8th night. Release dates will be included in a letter inside the samplers. All of the yarn dyeing tutorial videos will be publicly available on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube Channel. https://tinyurl.com/2021ChemKnitsChanukah

WHEN WILL SAMPLERS SHIP?

Samplers will ship in late October/early November 2021.

CAN YOU COMBINE SHIPPING FROM MULTIPLE CHANUKAH ORDERS?

No. Due to the volume of orders, in 2021 I will not combine shipping of orders of multiple samplers or add-on skeins that are ordered after the initial sampler order. Thank you for your understanding.

I FORGOT TO PURCHASE AN ADD-ON SKEIN, CAN I ORDER IT SEPARATELY?

Yes! As long as you ordered a 2021 Chanukah Sampler you can purchase an add-on. Please note that for 2021 I cannot combine orders into one package, but you are welcome to place multiple orders.

CAN ALL OF THE MINIS BE USED IN ONE PROJECT? IS THIS A FADE SET?

All of the miniskeins will feature the same 75% Superwash Merino / 25% Nylon yarn base in either Fingering Weight or DK weight. These can easily be combined in one project, however they are not being dyed with a specific fade or colorwork project in mind. There will be a variety of dye techniques on each of the minis ranging from speckles, semi solids, and more.

CAN YOU ACCOMMODATE COLOR PREFERENCES?

No. The colors will be a surprise (which is part of the fun!) While each sampler won't necessarily be identical, the techniques used for each night will be similar across samplers.

CAN I OPEN THE BOX ONCE IT ARRIVES AND AVOID SPOILERS?

You can open the box to avoid spoilers on the yarn colorways. The yarn mini-skeins are all wrapped. The “fun extras” will be spoiled as they are visible in the box, but you won’t spoil any of the colorways or dyeing techniques by opening up the sampler box.

THE ITEM I WANT SOLD OUT - WILL YOU BE RESTOCKING THEM?

I always hold back some Samplers until after I have shipped out the pre-orders. There will be a small restock at the end of October/beginning of November.

WHERE CAN I FIND THE VIDEOS?

The videos will be published on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube channel starting Sunday November 28, 2021 at 8:30 PM EST. You can find all of the videos as they are published in the 2021 ChemKnits Chanukah Special Playlist.

2018 Chanukah Special

Chanukah might be over for the year, but we don't really have to stop celebrating!  At the end of the summer, I decided that I wanted to create a special series for Chanukah.  I thought it would be fun to film 8 new dyeing videos with 8 dyeing techniques on 8 different yarn bases.  I would wind up the yarn in to miniskeins to create some samplers to share.

I underestimated a few aspects of this journey.  I thought it would be a lot of work, which it was, and that it was a lot of fun, which it also was.  I don't think I could have anticipated the positive response we got from all of you!  The holiday was truly filled with joy, laughter, and light, with the whole extended ChemKnits family (yes that includes you!)  

I did not expect it to be so hard to avoid sharing spoilers.  When I try something that works great, or I have a cool in progress shot, I love to share those on Instagram or Facebook. I didn't want to give away ANY hints from this series. I wanted everyone who purchased a sampler to be surprised and excited to open up their gift each night.  I have started sharing some of these in progress photos now, and I am so excited that you can finally see them! 

The ChemKnits 2018 Chanukah Sampler is different from a lot of indie dyer samplers/advent calendars for a few reasons.  A big one is that this set contained a mixture of different yarn bases.  I chose 8 different luxury yarns from KnitPicks:  Paragon, Imagination, Gloss, Andean Treasure, Galileo, Capra, Bare Hare, and Alux.  I wanted to send samples of different dyeing techniques and fiber types so you could swatch them and see how they might knit up differently.  

Each miniskein was wrapped in tissue paper inside a snowflake organza bag.  I used some cardboard labels with dreidel stickers to designate the nights.  On the back of each number label there is the fiber content and care instructions for the yarn.  Surprisingly, none of the yarns in this sampler were superwash.  Well, except for the bonus c

Since it might be hard (but not impossible) to make a complete project from the sampler, I wanted to give people an option to include a full 100 g skein of sock yarn. I picked KnitPicks Felici.  The yarn is similar to the stroll that I use all the time, but the spin is a little tighter and the Merino is softer. 

It took me a few tries to get this "Melted Wax" colorway right.  I attempted to make a speckled version that resulted in the birth of the Evil Faerie yarn.  In my second speckled attempt, I created something closer to the vision in my head, but ultimately I loved the way the primary colors mixed together when I dyed a twisted hank of yarn three different times. 

When I sat down to write this post, I mentioned that there were a few things I didn't expect to come out of this series.  After all, I've done other special weeks in the past. (Sock Blank Special, Cellulose Week, Indigo Week.)  I underestimated the positive challenge this would be to me as an indie dyer and an artist.  I wanted to make sure I created distinct colorways, but many of these yarn bases I had never dyed before, so I didn't always know if things would come out as I imagined in my head.  

Another added bonus - I had to reskein all of the yarn to create the samplers.  This means that we got to see where reskeining made a difference in how yarn looked when compared to the "as dyed" skein of yarn.  

It was an absolute pleasure to plan this series, and I am already starting to think about next years!  

If you missed an episode, don't worry!  There is a full recap of the whole week, but you can also find all of the videos in the following playlist: 

Happy Chanukah, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year, everyone!  Which yarn is your favorite?  Do you think I should do this again next year? 

This post contains some KnitPicks affiliate links.  I purchased all of the yarn and materials for this sampler myself.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.