long time, no tales...
Spring was an absolute whirlwind with the launch of our first preorder of the year, and now months have passed since I last sent out an issue and we’re already in summer!
We have so many exciting plans for Long Dog Yarn this summer that I cannot wait to catch you up on, including the launch of a new summer collection and news on our next preorder, plus a few updates from my garden (of course!).
floral hues for summer making
This summer we are launching a new, floral inspired collection that has been rattling around my brain for years. Featuring nine new tonal colorways, Hollyhocks in Santa Fe, is inspired by the gorgeous towering hollyhocks that bloom throughout Santa Fe each summer and bring me so much joy (and inspiration!).
We’re trying out a new model of offering this collection as dyed-to-order through the season (the end of August, to be exact) on our line up of summer yarns, including my favorite merino/cotton blend and a brand new merino/bamboo yarn. The collection officially launches in the shop on June 26 with a planned turnaround of 2-4 weeks.
from my garden
My 2026 garden is officially in full swing! This year I’m still growing the good ol’ favorites: lots of tomatoes & peppers, with a sprinkling of cucumbers, zucchini, and greens.
This year my goal was to try to grow as many of my plants from seed as I could, and I am really proud of my tomato line-up this year: all but 3 plants were grown from seed. I did lose a few plants to a virus and one late season hail storm, but we have a fun mixture of new varieties to try out this season along with my favorites (Cherokee Purple!) that I know are great producers here in northern NM and are delicious to boot.
Now I just (not so patiently) wait for tomato season to arrive and bring with it some delicious sandwiches and salads.
news from the studio
The past few weeks in the studio have been primarily spent dyeing up loads of new yarns for the shop, including our new Fantasy Sock & DK and developing the new colorways for the Hollyhocks in Santa Fe collection. Now we are shifting to dyeing up July’s club colorways for the Sing-along Club and our very last Happiest Club on Earth boxes.
Speaking of the Sing-along Club, we’re planning on bringing back the first six months’ colorways for a preorder in July, so I’ll be working on dyeing each of them + their coordinating tonals across our line-up of yarns and fiber. Prepping for preorders is always a lot of work behind the scenes that isn’t always apparent. It always takes a lot of time and investment getting everything dyed, photographed, and promoted before a collection is even launched. But I have had so much fun creating the colors for the club so far this year and I’m excited to bring them all back!
my go-to summer treat
I am officially declaring this my summer of guava!
Trader Joes’s released a new guava nectar and I am loving it so much. I have been adding it to their lemonade for a super refreshing and delicious afternoon sip or as a juicy addition to my iced tea.
I honestly cannot recommend it enough.
inspiration station
Summer knits are some of my favorites - they seem to go so quickly for that fast gratification! And our summer yarns, blends of wool & cotton and, now, wool & bamboo are also some of my favorite yarns to work with. So my summer making queue is quite lengthy, but here are a few patterns that are on the top of my list to cast on this summer.
Tori Yu just released the newest pattern in her Avenue series, the Avenue Tank. I love Tori’s patterns so much and have made several of them. They are very well designed and fit beautifully, so I know the Avenue Tank will be another staple in my summer wardrobe.
I have been on a vest kick lately - they are such a versatile piece that my wardrobe was completely missing. I love that I can wear them on their own in these warmer months, and then switch to using them as a layering piece when the weather begins to turn cooler.
Floral motifs also seem to really be having a moment in knit designs lately that I am loving, and the Ravenna Sleeveless by Michele Frazzetta is a perfect combination of both of these trends.
I’m very excited to cast this lovely design on using our new Summer Sock yarn.
your amazing makes
@sailorscoutmandy recently finished this absolutely stunning Study Hall Shawl using colors from the Our Yarn Means Death Collection. When I was designing the collection, I was absolutely feral for someone to use this grungy green + neon pink combo and now my dream has finally come true!
If you have used our yarns in your makes, please tag us @longdogyarn on Instagram or share in our Discord. We are currently running a make-along in the Discord and you could also win some great prizes when you share your makes!
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