Fun New Stuff from the TNNA Show

Last weekend Cleveland, Ohio hosted The National Needlearts Association trade show. The TNNA annual summer show is where yarn companies, yarn stores, designers and others meet to find out about new products and do some awesome networking. This year was no exception.

Cleveland was a new venue for the show, and a surprisingly nice one. The convention center was sparkly and new, and just downstairs from my hotel. I had a lovely view of Lake Erie from my hotel room. (True Confession: I need to work on my geography. I had to look it up because I wasn’t entirely positive which Lake that was.)

Even better, I found a lot of cool products to share with you. You may find some of these appearing at a local yarn store near you. And if they don’t, tell your LYSO (local yarn shop owner) about them so they can get them in.

Some of the following contain affiliate links, which don’t cost you anything, but help support this site.

Knitbaahpurl has a line of awesome sheepy products. You may have seen their “Lay Flat to Dry” t-shirts, but what about a “Three Sheeps to the Wind” stemless wine glass, or a “Sheep Wrecked” mug? You can see—and buy—everything online, as well as at your local store.

I was not the only person wearing one of their “Sheep Happens” shirts at Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival in May. We both got compliments and questions about where to get your own. Now you know!

Speaking of sheepy, the UK company Toft has adorable crochet amigurumi kits from Edward’s Menagerie. These things are killer cute—and not just for kids. They are a great way to encourage new crocheters, and you’re sure to find your favorite animal. I’m pretty sure one of these is going to end up in my sheep collection. Check them out on Instagram at #edsanimals.

And if you love the animals and don’t need the kits, take a look at the book Edward’s Menagerie and other books by designer Kerry Lord, like Edward’s Crochet Imaginarium (for mix-and-match monsters) and Edward’s Menagerie: Dogs.

Clothezure solves the problem of tricky shawl pins in a fun and fashionable way. For years, I’ve made my own shawl “buttons” by sewing a shank between a fancy button and a plain one, but Clothezure takes it one step further. Attractive decorative buttons are fitted with either a magnet or toggle-and-bungee system, to allow shawls and other garments to stay closed securely without having to pierce holes in the fabric. (It’s hard to explain, but it works.) They are currently available at a select number of shops, and I have it on good authority that there will soon be an online store which will feature one-of-a-kind designs made from estate jewelry and vintage buttons. I think shawl wearers are definitely going to want more than one of these.

Shellican has oh-so-cute pins and notions for crafters. I was particularly taken with the enamel stitch marker pins, but there were really too many cute ones to name. Support your local economy by buying local.

“Alpaca My Bag” Swet Bag is a cute washable wet/dry bag from Gleener. (It took me a second—say it out loud.) The bag comes in two sizes and is perfect for gym clothes, dirty laundry, a diaper bag. Or for keeping your knitting and crochet projects away from your stinky workout clothes!

Oh, and there was yarn! Lots and lots of yarn! I’ve got several projects in the works, and got yarn for all of them. In the upcoming weeks, I’ll be knitting and crocheting up a storm.

Can you add a P.S. to a blog post? While we’re on the topic of cool products, I want to give a shout-out to Madder Root, who I met (and spent a lot of money with) at Maryland Sheep and Wool. They have awesomely attractive knitting bags and t-shirts, as well as temporary knitting tattoos! Next show, I’m going to be all inked-up. Temporarily of course.