Welcome to our first-ever Scoop takeover! 🤗

We invited Adella Colvin, the genius behind LolaBean Yarn Co to guest-write the lead article for this week’s Scoop, and of course she came through, big-time! Read on to learn about how Knit Stars and LolaBean came together for first-of-its-kind collaboration.

“Everything started roughly two years ago. Shelley had approached me about becoming a featured dyer for their Hot Loops Wall.

With so much going on at the time, I had to decline. About a year ago, Shelley approached me again, but this time it was about being a featured dyer for what she described as a “whole new model in our industry–a multi-faceted collaboration”. She piqued my interests and after many a Zoom conversation, she convinced me that I could do this.

Shelley laid out the particulars of this collaboration. I was asked to curate a palette of yarn that would be dyed in Peru and then I would hand dye complimentary colors to go along with them. You would think curating a palette would come easy to a yarn dyer, right? WRONG! There were so many different color cards and swatches to look at. It was rather overwhelming at first. I almost regretted making the decision, but as time went on, I became more comfortable, and my mind slowly was put at ease. As I was making my selections, I was trying to be mindful of not only selecting colors that represented my own color sense, but also colors that anybody, despite their own color preferences (bright, neutral, etc.), would appreciate. As a result of all that hard work, we now have two brand new yarn lines: Cool Beans and Dream Bean.

With the colors selected and yarn dyed, the next step was selecting patterns that I wanted samples knit up in to showcase the yarn. THIS was the easy part. I went with designers that I admired, some that I have collaborated with on other projects, and some who I would love to collaborate with on future projects. I wanted to use patterns designed by people whose moral fabric was just as beautiful as the fabric in the designs that they created. I think I nailed that. I also wanted to ensure that I put a spotlight on creators who happened to fall under the BIPOC umbrella, as they are the most underrepresented in this industry. I think I nailed that too.

Color selection? Check!

Pattern selection? Check!

Was I ready for the big reveal?

I was a ball of nerves. You might even say that I was a “hot mess”. Is this going to work? Will it be received well? Am I going to let down Shelley and the Knit Stars team? After all, they took a big risk with backing this project. I was filled with a lot of doubts and fears. But all of that disappeared once Knit Stars opened their flagship location and online ordering began. I was absolutely floored by the response to this project. The kind words, social media tags and posts, and the purchases that people made, and continue to make, let me know that this collaboration was an absolute success.

There was a time when I didn’t think LolaBean Yarn Co would be a thing. If you had told me ten years ago that I’d be collaborating with such wonderful people and companies, and that I’d have two additional yarn lines, I would not have believed you. But here we are.

Adella Colvin
Founder, LolaBean Yarn Co.

Be sure to follow Adella on Instagram @lolabeanyarnco and for extra credit and fun, follow her husband @iam_jimmythemodel too!

P.S. To shop the entire LolaBean Hot Loops Collection, CLICK HERE.

There are few things better than a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie. We invited Adella to share a recipe with you, and she had this to say about these Neiman Marcus chocolate chip cookies: “Me and my mom make these every year. They’re my favorite. Best. Cookies. Ever.”

Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1-3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 teaspoons instant espresso coffee powder
1-1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Cream the butter with the sugars using an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy (approximately 30 seconds).
2) Beat in the egg and the vanilla extract for another 30 seconds.
3) In a mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients and beat into the butter mixture at low speed for about 15 seconds. Stir in the espresso coffee powder and chocolate chips.
4) Using a 1-ounce scoop or a 2-tablespoon measure, drop cookie dough onto a greased cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Gently press down on the dough with the back of a spoon to spread out into a 2 inch circle. Bake for about 20 minutes or until nicely browned around the edges. Bake a little longer for a crispier cookie.
Yield: 2 dozen cookies