This week I invite you to ponder a simple question:

What’s your Big Y?

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. I know that yarn, creativity, and connection are important to me. Some days, it feels more important than food or even air. But WHY? And how does that intersect with other people’s big Ys?

For me personally, it all goes back to how I felt as a brand-new knitter. Confused, overwhelmed, and isolated for so many years. And later, when I started a yarn shop I realized how few people could ever get access to learn from the Stars.

Now I’ve dedicated my life’s work to closing that gap. Helping every Yarnie learn, grow, and connect. Helping you feel like the Star you truly are.

The Yarniverse is the latest embodiment of that dream – our membership that brings the Knit Stars experience to life 365 days a year. Yarniverse Membership is open now, with streaming access to 50+ Knit Stars masterclasses, a beautiful new student portal, and special “bonus content” from Season 9 Stars coming in July…you can check out all the benefits here.

Our Yarniverse membership portal just got a glow-up! 

This past week, I reached out to a handful of our Yarniverse members and asked, what’s YOUR big Y? Why is yarning important to you, and how does the Yarniverse support that? Here’s what they said…

“My Y is simply it brings me happiness. It brings me peace,” LeToya said.

“There’s a lot of things that have happened in the last five years with me and my family. I lost my father to dementia. I switched jobs,” LeToya said. “Making and the Yarniverse have been my calm in the storm.”

“And I have a funny story. Anyone who knows me knows that my other favorite thing is shoes, and I’ve found in the last year I’ve given myself permission to make for myself, and more often than not I buy shoes to match my yarn!”

LeToya working on her sweater while wearing her matching shoes. 💖

“I was making this Lazy Sunday State of Mind Sweater in Loops blue yarn, what I call my Tiffany blue sweater. I was working from home one day, and in a very bad mood, and I’d forgotten that I’d ordered these shoes to match my yarn. Then the shoes showed up, and in all of my pajama pants, messy hair, working from home glory, I got the shoes off the porch, put them on my feet, picked up my needles, and finished my sweater. It totally got me off sleeve island. It brought me peace and brought me back to my happy place.”

“So that’s what I would have to say is my Y.  Because it’s fun and it makes me happy!” LeToya said.

So my question to you this week is, what’s YOUR big Y? I would absolutely love if you made a short video and sent it to me (you can just hit reply on this email and I’ll see it!) We’ll be adding our favorite videos to this page where you can watch and get inspired by your fellow makers! 💞

xoxo,

Yarniverse members shown top to bottom, left to right: Nicole, Liz, Christine, Carolyn, Amy, and JuliAnne

Here’s what some of our other Yarnies in the Yarniverse had to say about their Big Y!

“The Yarniverse changed my life! The absolute support and encouragement of everyone there let me get out of my own way and find my calling as a YouTube creator and knitting teacher.” – Nicole

“Just like my knitting that goes everywhere with me, so does the Yarniverse!” – Liz

“In the Yarniverse I quickly learned that I don’t know what I don’t know…and it’s ok because others do! They share, they teach and I learn. Wrap that up in a community that’s supportive and encouraging for you to fail forward, and I mean c’mon? Why NOT?” – Christine

“My big Y is it’s all about you. The Yarnies, the makers, the dyers, the Knit Stars, you keep me happy, you keep me sane, the Yarniverse is a big deal. It’s all about YOU!” – Carolyn

“The Yarniverse is important to me because it connects me to such a diverse group of people and cultures from around the world. This not only boosts my creativity, and encourages me to try new things, but it also gives me different perspectives. I love hearing all the stories that are told in the Yarniverse and all the encouragement and support the community gives to each other.” – Amy

“My Y is that knitting engages my whole body, my brain, my heart, my hands, even my feet when I’m walking while knitting! It quiets my mind and the anxiety so I can focus. The real bonus is that I get an object at the end that I can keep for myself or give away. The Yarniverse makes me feel like I am part of something bigger than all of its components.” – JuliAnne

I’m super excited to announce that our special guest in the Yarniverse for June will be none other than Chelsea Heranic of @knittingtipsy

And this past weekend, in a very spur-of-the-moment “trust fall,” Chelsea and I decided to film our Yarniverse content together, in person, at the beach! She, her husband Steve, and their pup Rudy drove the 5+ hours from Orlando to Santa Rosa Beach, and we had a total blast filming, playing dress-up in all of Chelsea’s designs, boogie boarding, and dancing!

Once I tried on Chelsea’s “Tan and Tipsy” top, I had to cast on one for myself – using yarn that Chelsea brought me! We ended up doing a mini-swap and I gave her some of my Moondrake Suri Silk to make a baby pink version of Chelsea’s popular Beachy Breezy Cardi.

Anyway…this Tan and Tipsy top is coming along so fast! You should totally cast one on, and jump in on Chelsea’s free summer make-along by following her @knittingtipsy and her friend Bri @thelittlewolfknits

And if you crochet, you should also whip up a Malibu Barbie Bralette! Chelsea brought two to model and they were both stunning and so versatile.

Sunnie from the Knit Stars team has already made one…look how cute!

Shelley’s Amped Up Slaw

For Memorial Day weekend, we got invited over to our neighbor’s place (down the hall in our condo) for an impromptu soirée. Luke made some scrumptious BBQ ribs and I threw together my favorite coleslaw. The story behind this slaw is, when my kids were growing up, we would drive the 16 hours from Tulsa to Santa Rosa Beach each year – yep, the very place I now call home. After the looooong drive we’d always head to Zoe’s for a quick bite. That’s when I fell for their slaw that has the surprising addition of feta cheese! And over the years I’ve come up with my own simple version. It’s so simple, you can add it to your weekday lunch or dinner rotation in a snap.

Ingredients:

• Bag of store-bought coleslaw cabbage mix
• Italian dressing to taste – I use about ¼ cup and add more after stirring if needed
• Feta cheese – buy the crumbles, or crumble off a block. I use about ½ cup.
• Plenty of fresh-ground pepper
• Dash of kosher salt

Stir it all together really well and enjoy immediately, topped with your favorite protein for lunch or as a side for dinner. You can also pop it in the fridge and let it marinate an hour or more for a “wetter” slaw. Enjoy