I’m a Knit Picks knitter. When you work/teach in yarn stores (I used to) you are encouraged not to say that too loudly. Stores can carry the Knit Picks Needles and Hooks and Accessories but they can’t carry the yarn. The yarn is exclusive to Knit Picks. So for a long time I didn’t do much with Knit Picks yarn because I couldn’t work with it at the store or show off my finished objects. Even so I managed to sneak in a ball of Wool of the Andes here and a ball of Palette there. How could I resist? Its so freaking cheap.

Now that I’m independent and I can use whatever I want, I’m using Knit Picks more and more. I like their stuff. I like their needles and I’m discovering that I like a lot of their yarn too. But to be perfectly honest I’ve always had a soft spot for this company because they pay independent knit/crochet designers more for patterns than pretty much anyone else in the business. So when I (finally) figured out how to set up on-line affiliate arrangements with companies, I went right to Knit Picks.* I think my readers will be happy with whatever they order from them and I wanted to be part of an organization that valued designers.

If all that sounded like a commercial or an endorsement, I apologize. I’ve been wanting to get that out there (that I honestly like and use this company) for a while. And I figured an “Open the Box from Knit Picks” post was as good a place as any.

So let’s get to opening that box.

I love getting yarn in the mail. Getting any package is always nice but yarn? That’s stash. You pick up your box and you know that you have new stash in there. You tear open the box right away so that your new stash can live in its new home with all the rest of your stash. That’s why getting yarn in the mail is on the list of stuff that I like.

But let’s take a closer look at the haul shall we?

Chroma is a long colorway yarn that comes in two weights: worsted and fingering. I got one of each… for nebulous, not-completely-formed reasons that had to do with comparing the two types. Mostly because I like long colorway yarns and Chroma is a nice long colorway yarn. Its 70% wool and 30% nylon in a single ply. Each ball is 100g and with the worsted you get 198 yds while in the fingering you get 396 yds.

Needle sets, the kind with tips in different sizes and multiple cords can be a commitment. You don’t want to get a whole set and then not like the tips (or the cords). Knit Picks seems to get that. They have these mini-sets to try and I’m trying them. You get one set of Nickel plated tips in US size 7 (4.5 mm) and set of wooden tips in US size 6 (4 mm). You can get the wood set in any of their other pretty multi-colors, like Caspian or Rainbow. I got mine in Majestic, which is their newest needle color. Isn’t it pretty?

By the way, they have Caspian wood hooks for crocheters too. I have a student who just bought one, in size H or something, and she is in love. She is currently trying to figure a way to justify buying a whole set of Caspian hooks.

That’s the important/serious/I’m-a-knitter stuff. But I got some happy/might-as-well accessories too.

Its a zippered pouch with a metal ring so I can clip it to my big bag. Bags are vital to us crafters. We never have enough ways to hold all our junk treasured tools and notions. The outside of this bag is vinyl and the inside is polyester (and clooks like knitting!) so the bag should hold up to hard wear. I’ll be sure to let you know.

Isn’t that cute? Yeah. Stitch markers are going in there.

And labels. I do love me some labels. No gifted handmade item should be gifted-away without a label! Because you’ll need to “explain how much love has gone into making your project” and that comes right from the Knit Picks web site and I could not agree more.

Did you have fun? I did. I love getting yarn and stuff in the mail so I wanted to share that. Hope you had fun going through it all. If you were me, there would be more fun in store because then you would get to play with all of it too. I’ve already got my stitch markers corralled in their new tin. I’m putting those needles to work on my Pie Are Square shawl. And that Colorblock pouch is already holding some of my junk treasured tools and notions. I’m sure it will be full by the end of the week.

*Being an affiliate of Knit Picks means that I get a small commission when you follow a link from me to them and buy something. Those commissions help pay for this site. So if you do buy from Knit Picks, or the other handful of companies I have affiliate deals with… thanks! I appreciate the support!