Preorder the 2024 ChemKnits Chanukah Yarn Samplers!

 I'm pleased to share that preorders of the 2024 ChemKnits Chanukah Yarn samplers are now available on Etsy!

Each night of Chanukah 2024, unwrap a 10 g miniskein of yarn and watch how the yarn was dyed in a new ChemKnits Tutorials dyeing video! New dyeing videos will be released every night of Chanukah on YouTube after sunset at 8:30 PM EST starting December 25, 2024.  Choose between Fingering Weight or DK Weight Samplers for 8 Nights (100 g total) that will include 8 - 10 g miniskeins & one 20 g miniskein to open over the 8 nights. Samplers will ship in mid-November 2024.   

You don't need to be Jewish to celebrate Chanukah with me. Treat yourself to a delightfully wrapped miniskein sampler complete with a Chanukah card signed by Rebecca from ChemKnits.  This unboxing will be an experience! In addition to the 9 miniskeins (8- 10 g, 1 -20 g) all samplers some fun extras, and a hand signed card from Rebecca.  

Bonus 100 g skein Add Ons

There are some fun add on full skein options for the 2024 Chanukah Sampler that you can purchase with your sampler.

• Bonus Sparkle Colorway - I am so excited to dye up this sparkly yarn (75% Superwash Merno / 20% Nylon / 5% Silver Stellina) that is available on both sock weight and DK weight yarn.

• Bonus Yak/Silk Blend Colorway - This colorway will be dyed on two similar yarn bases that are Superwash Merino / Silk / Yak blends. The DK weight yarn has a 60/20/20 ratio, and the sock weight has a 65/20/15 blend. The DK and sock bases will have the same colorway dyed on them.

The Yak/Silk Blend will be a different colorway than the Sparkle Colorway. During the preoroder period you need to purchase a 2024 sampler to purchase one of the add ons, but they do not need to be in the same order.

The dyeing of thesebonus skeins will also be feautred in the series. There will be 3 bonus videos that are part of the 2024 ChemKnits Chanukah Special (that technically will air in early 2025 because Chanukah starts so late this year!) Two of the videos will feature the dyeing of 100 g full skein colorways, and the third will be a behind the scenes vlog as I work on the series.

Extra Stitch Markers

There are two Chanukah themed progress keeper / stitch markers I made for past samplers that are available in the shop. One is a beautiful silver colored menorah, and the other is a dreidle I made out of clay... literally!

These progress keepers are ready to ship now and are available for everyone, you do not need to preorder any mystery 2024 Chanukah yarn, however I am happy to add them in with your samplers for you.

You can find all of the Chanukah listings in the "Chanukah" section of the ChemKnits Creations Etsy Shop.

Check out the 2023 ChemKnits Chanukah Special Playlist on YouTube to see what I created last year!

2023 ChemKnits Chanukah Yarn Sampler Preorders - Almost Ready to Ship!

Preorders for the 2023 ChemKnits Chanukah Samplers are still available and shipping will start soon! All of the yarn is dyed and I am currently wrapping and labeling miniskeins to pack up the samplers.  Shipping should start the week of November 7, 2023.  (Sampler shipping will happen in waves throughout the week, so don't worry if you don't receive a tracking number right away.) 

Each night of Chanukah 2023, unwrap a 10 g miniskein of yarn and watch how the yarn was dyed in a new ChemKnits Tutorials dyeing video! New dyeing videos will be released every night of Chanukah on YouTube after sunset at 8:30 PM EST starting December 7, 2023.  Choose between Fingering Weight or DK Weight Samplers for 8 Nights (100 g total) that will include 10 - 10 g miniskeins to open over the 8 nights. Samplers will ship in November 2023.   

You don't need to be Jewish to celebrate Chanukah with me. Treat yourself to a delightfully wrapped miniskein sampler complete with a Chanukah card signed by Rebecca from ChemKnits.  This unboxing will be an experience! All Samplers include 8-10 wrapped miniskeins (100 g total), some fun extras, and a hand signed card from Rebecca.  

Some of the bonus full skein add-on options are currently sold out, but you can still preorder a Bonus Silk Sock colorway to your Chanukah Sampler.  I will restock the Yarn Mops (DK, Sock, and Worsted Weight) and the DK Silk Sparkle Non-Superwash bonus colorway after I have shipped all of the outstanding preorders.  All bonus skeins will be wrapped and labeled with the date they are featured in a YouTube video and come with a bonus progress keeper.  

The 2022 ChemKnits Chanukah Sampler.  Last year's samplers include 8 - 10 g minis and 1 - 20 g mini skein. The packaging and bonuses for the 2023 Sampler will be different.   

There are more FAQ's on the 2023 ChemKnits Chanukah Yarn Sampler listing in the ChemKnits Creations Etsy Shop.  Please check out the whole listing, or reach out to me via Etsy Messages if you have any questions about this year's series.  

I will be in the live chat for the premiere during multiple of the episodes. It is so much fun to hang out and react to the videos while answering questions and chatting with you!  Once we get closer to the start of Chanukah (December 7, 2023 is the first night this year), I will make a post here with the approximate run time of the episodes and any nights I will not personally be in the live chat.  

Watch the livestream announcement of the 2023 Chanukah Sampler Preorders below:

The 2022 ChemKnits Chanukah Special is Here!

Welcome to the 2022 ChemKnits Chanukah Special!  Every night of Chanukah (plus a few nights beyond) there will be a new yarn dyeing video on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube Channel published at 8:30 PM Eastern Time. 

Each video will air as a live premiere, so we can watch the video together and react in a live chat in real time.  After the video is finished it will be available on demand like a regular YouTube video.  To help you know what to expect, here are the runtimes and nights I will be in the live chat room:

• 12/18 Night 1 - Runtime 32 minutes
• I will pop into the live chat but I may be a bit late and it might be a short visit in the chat room.  (I'm celebrating the first night of Chanukah in person with family and friends! I won't have footage of this for the vlog, but I'm super excited!) 
• 12/19 Night 2 - Runtime 36 minutes 
• I will be in the premiere live chat!  
• 12/20 Night 3 - Runtime 32 minutes 
• I will be in the premiere live chat!  
• 12/21 Night 4 -  Runtime 30 minutes
• I will be in the premiere live chat!  
• 12/22 Night 5 - Runtime 35 minutes 
•  I will be in the premiere live chat!  
• 12/23 Night 6 -  Runtime 33 minutes 
• I will be in the premiere live chat!  
• 12/24 Night 7 -  Runtime 34 minutes 
• I will not be in the live chat for night 7.  Christmas Eve is our big family Christmas celebration with my husband's family. I grew up celebrating Chanukah, and my husband grew up celebrating Christmas. We are a blended family now and celebrate each other's traditions together.  
• 12/25 Night 8 - Runtime 34 minutes
• I will try to be in the live chat but it is tentative.  I will update closer to Christmas Day! 
• 12/26 Bonus DK Colorway - Runtime 31 minutes
• I will be in the premiere live chat!  
• 12/27 Bonus Sparkle Colorway -  Runtime 32 minutes
• I will be in the premiere live chat!  
• 12/28 Chanukah Vlog (behind the scenes) -  Runtime 53 minutes
• I will be in the premiere live chat!  

The entire schedule of when I will be in the live chat is subject to change, so see the pinned post on the upcoming premiere in the YouTube chat for the latest updates.  I'll also try to update this post as I have notice. 

If you miss a video, don't worry!  All of them will be in the 2022 ChemKnits Chanukah Special Playlist so you can catch up on any videos you missed.  

The 2022 Chanukah Samplers have sold out, but you can still pick up some awesome hand dyed ChemKnits yarn on Etsy. Want to make sure you know when I launch special preorders in the future?  You can follow me on Patreon even if you don't sign up for any of the tiers.  I always announce in a public post when new preorders are available and you can get an email notification that the post is up.

Preorder the 2022 ChemKnits Chanukah Sampler!

You can now preorder the 2022 ChemKnits Chanukah Samplers in the ChemKnits Creations Etsy shop!  Each night of Chanukah I will have a new yarn dyeing video and you can preorder samplers or full skeins from the series in the linked listings.

There are three listings for Chanukah 2022:

• 2022 ChemKnits Chanukah Samplers - Choose between Sock or DK weight 75% Superwash Merino / 25% Nylon yarn.  Each sampler will have 9 wrapped miniskeins totaling 100 g, a hand signed card from Rebecca, and multiple fun extras.  8 of the 10 gram minis will be wrapped with a number and the date that corresponds to a night of Chanukah for you to unwrap while watching a new Yarn Dyeing Video on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube Channel.
• Sparkle Add-On Full Skein - 100 g skein of a sock weight Superwash Merino/ Lurex Blend featured in a bonus Chanukah video. This is a different colorway from the DK weight below. 
• DK Add-On Full Skein - 100 g of DK weight Superwash Merino / Yak / Silk yarn featured in a bonus Chanukah dyeing video.  This is a different colorway from the Sparkle colorway above. 

You don't need to be Jewish to participate in the ChemKnits Chanukah Special!  I invite you all to celebrate with me.  This is one of my favorite events of the year because it is so much fun creating these videos!

******************  Frequently Asked Questions ******************

Most of the information below is included in the Etsy listings, but I figured that I would include it here for clarity.

WHEN IS CHANUKAH 2022?

The first night of Chanukah is December 18, 2022 and the 8th night is December 26, 2022.  I will release each dyeing video (1-8) after sunset EST on the corresponding night of Chanukah.  The bonus videos for any add on colorways will be released after the 8th night.  Release dates will be included in a letter inside the samplers.  All of the yarn dyeing tutorial videos will be publicly available on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube Channel.  https://tinyurl.com/2022ChemKnitsChanukah

WHEN WILL SAMPLERS SHIP?

2022 Chanukah Samplers will ship in early November 2022. 

ARE THE SPARKLE and DK ADD-ONS THE SAME COLORWAY?

No, each add-on base will have a unique colorway.  The DK and Sparkle bases on their own are quite different looking, so I will be dyeing each a colorway to complement the beautiful yarn using different techniques.  They may both be featured in the same dyeing video, or I might split it up into two different videos. 

CAN YOU COMBINE SHIPPING FROM MULTIPLE CHANUKAH ORDERS?

No.  Due to the volume of orders, in 2022 I will not combine shipping of orders of multiple samplers or add-on skeins that are ordered after the initial sampler order.  Thank you for your understanding. 

I FORGOT TO PURCHASE AN ADD-ON SKEIN, CAN I ORDER IT SEPARATELY?

Yes! As long as you ordered a 2022 Chanukah Sampler you can purchase an add-on.  Please note that for 2022 I cannot combine orders into one package, but you are welcome to place multiple orders.

CAN ALL OF THE MINIS BE USED IN ONE PROJECT?  IS THIS A FADE SET?

All of the miniskeins will feature the same 75% Superwash Merino / 25% Nylon yarn base in either Fingering Weight or DK weight.  These can easily be combined in one project, however they are not being dyed with a specific fade or colorwork project in mind.  There will be a variety of dye techniques on each of the minis ranging from speckles, semi solids, and more.

CAN YOU ACCOMMODATE COLOR PREFERENCES?

No.  The colors will be a surprise (which is part of the fun!)  While each sampler won't necessarily be identical, the techniques used for each night will be similar across samplers.

CAN I OPEN THE BOX ONCE IT ARRIVES AND AVOID SPOILERS?

You can open the box to avoid spoilers on the yarn colorways. The yarn mini-skeins are all wrapped.   The “fun extras” will be spoiled as they are visible in the box, but you won’t spoil any of the colorways or dyeing techniques by opening up the sampler box.

THE ITEM I WANT SOLD OUT - WILL YOU BE RESTOCKING THEM?

I always hold back some Samplers until after I have shipped out the pre-orders.  There will be a small restock early November.  I never offer preorders for yarn or bases that I do not currently have in my possession. 

WHERE CAN I FIND THE VIDEOS?

The videos will be published on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube channel starting Sunday December 18, 2022 at 8:30 PM EST.  You can find all of the videos as they are published in the 2022 ChemKnits Chanukah Special Playlist. 

The ChemKnits Chanukah videos are available to everyone, you do not have to purchase a sampler to join in on the fun. 

WHAT IS A YOUTUBE PREMIERE? 

A YouTube Premiere is when the video airs as a live event for the first play through. If you join the video a few minutes late, you will start watching in the middle of the video, like it were a live TV event. (However, you can rewind to start at the beginning.)  After the premiere is the video, the video will be available to watch on-demand.  

One fun feature of premieres is the live chat room, where you can chat and interact with other viewers while watching the video.  

WILL CHEMKNITS BE IN THE LIVE CHAT FOR THE PREMIERE? 

I will be in the live chat during the video premieres as often as I can, but I may miss some nights due to family holiday celebrations.  Chatting in the live premieres is one of my favorite parts of special series like this, I love watching you predict the colors and techniques that are coming up. 

2021 ChemKnits Chanukah Samplers Preorder!

You can now preorder the 2021 ChemKnits Chanukah Samplers in the ChemKnits Creations Etsy shop!

There are three listings for Chanukah 2021:

• 2021 ChemKnits Chanukah Samplers - Choose between Sock or DK weight 75% Superwash Merino / 25% Nylon yarn. Each sampler will have 9-10 wrapped miniskeins totaling 100 g, a hand signed card from Rebecca, and multiple fun extras. 8 of the 10 gram minis will be wrapped with a number and the date that corresponds to a night of Chanukah for you to unwrap while watching a new Yarn Dyeing Video on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube Channel.
• Add-On Full Skeins - For 2021 there will be two planned colorways you can add-on to your samplers. The first colorway will be on Sparkle Sock (a Superwash Merino blend with either Stellina or Lurex) and the second is a Donegal Yarn with Multi-Colored Neps available in both Sock or DK weights. Each add-on skein will be wrapped with a progress keeper.
• Add-on Yarn Mop - New for 2021, you can pre-order a mystery yarn mop dyed in one of the Chanukah videos. Some of these colorways that use up leftover dye have become my favorites every year. Choose between Sock Yarn (75/25 Superwash Merino / Nylon) or DK (100% Superwash Merino). Each yarn mop add-on skein will be wrapped with a progress keeper.

You don't need to be Jewish to participate in the ChemKnits Chanukah Special! I invite you all to celebrate with me. This is one of my favorite events of the year because it is so much fun creating these videos!

****************** Frequently Asked Questions ******************

Most of the information below is included in the Etsy listings, but I figured that I would include it here for clarity.

WHEN IS CHANUKAH 2021?

The first night of Chanukah is November 28, 2021 and the 8th night is November December 5, 2021. I will release each dyeing video (1-8) after sunset EST on the corresponding night of Chanukah. The bonus videos (#9) and for any add on colorways will be released after the 8th night. Release dates will be included in a letter inside the samplers. All of the yarn dyeing tutorial videos will be publicly available on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube Channel. https://tinyurl.com/2021ChemKnitsChanukah

WHEN WILL SAMPLERS SHIP?

Samplers will ship in late October/early November 2021.

CAN YOU COMBINE SHIPPING FROM MULTIPLE CHANUKAH ORDERS?

No. Due to the volume of orders, in 2021 I will not combine shipping of orders of multiple samplers or add-on skeins that are ordered after the initial sampler order. Thank you for your understanding.

I FORGOT TO PURCHASE AN ADD-ON SKEIN, CAN I ORDER IT SEPARATELY?

Yes! As long as you ordered a 2021 Chanukah Sampler you can purchase an add-on. Please note that for 2021 I cannot combine orders into one package, but you are welcome to place multiple orders.

CAN ALL OF THE MINIS BE USED IN ONE PROJECT? IS THIS A FADE SET?

All of the miniskeins will feature the same 75% Superwash Merino / 25% Nylon yarn base in either Fingering Weight or DK weight. These can easily be combined in one project, however they are not being dyed with a specific fade or colorwork project in mind. There will be a variety of dye techniques on each of the minis ranging from speckles, semi solids, and more.

CAN YOU ACCOMMODATE COLOR PREFERENCES?

No. The colors will be a surprise (which is part of the fun!) While each sampler won't necessarily be identical, the techniques used for each night will be similar across samplers.

CAN I OPEN THE BOX ONCE IT ARRIVES AND AVOID SPOILERS?

You can open the box to avoid spoilers on the yarn colorways. The yarn mini-skeins are all wrapped. The “fun extras” will be spoiled as they are visible in the box, but you won’t spoil any of the colorways or dyeing techniques by opening up the sampler box.

THE ITEM I WANT SOLD OUT - WILL YOU BE RESTOCKING THEM?

I always hold back some Samplers until after I have shipped out the pre-orders. There will be a small restock at the end of October/beginning of November.

WHERE CAN I FIND THE VIDEOS?

The videos will be published on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube channel starting Sunday November 28, 2021 at 8:30 PM EST. You can find all of the videos as they are published in the 2021 ChemKnits Chanukah Special Playlist.

2019 ChemKnits Chanukah Sampler Prorders are Open!

Preorders for the 2019 ChemKnits Chanukah Yarn Samplers are now available in the ChemKnitsCreations Etsy Shop!  Every night of Chanukah (Starting 12/22/19), I will release a new yarn dyeing video that will correspond to one of the wrapped 10 g miniskeins in the samplers. You can touch, inspect up close, swatch, and knit with the yarn.  Each night will feature a different dyeing technique.  

Check out the listing for full details, but I wanted to go through some of the features of these samplers here on the ChemKnits blog.  

The videos will all be available on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube Channel through the 2019 Chanukah Special Playlist.  The playlist is currently empty, but it will fill up once the series starts.  

The first night of Chanukah is Dec 22, 2019 and the last night is Dec 30, 2018.  I will release each dyeing video (1-8) after sunset EST on the corresponding night of Chanukah.  There will also be some bonus videos that will be released after night 8. All of the yarn dyeing tutorial videos will be publicly available on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube Channel.  

Sampler Options

There are a few different options for the Chanukah Samplers.  Choose between DK weight and Fingering weight yarn.  All of the yarn in the sampler is 75% Superwash Merino / 25% Nylon (DK 245 yards / 100 g; Fingering 463 yards / 100 g).  You can choose between a full 8 night sampler (100 g total) or a half 4 night sampler (40 g total) in either of the yarn bases.  

4 Night Sampler - 4 wrapped miniskeins that correspond to either nights 1-4 or 5-8 of Chanukah. All wrapped packages will be labeled with the date to open them.  First Class Shipping within the US is included in the sampler price.  Why provide a half sampler?  Samplers can get expensive, and I wanted to provide an option for people who wanted to receive a sampler but couldn't justify purchasing the full sampler.  

8 Night Sampler - 8-10 wrapped miniskeins that correspond to nights 1-8 of the Chanukah Special.  There will be bonus miniskeins that feature "Leave No Dye Behind" yarn created as part of the series.  Some of these may be featured in bonus videos that will take place the week of Chanukah.  8 Night samplers also include some fun extras in addition to the yarn itself.  First Class Shipping within the US is included in the sampler price.  

When will the samplers ship?

The 2019 Chanukah Samplers will ship in mid-late November so they can arrive by the first night of Chanukah.  International Buyers - I cannot guarantee the shipping time since customs processing times can vary even if you upgrade to priority shipping.  

Are there any limited edition colorways? 

Yes!  If you purchase a sampler, you can add on a full skein (or multiple) of a limited edition 2019 Chanukah Yarn Colorway! (See the separate Etsy listing for full details.) Both options will include superwash wool (breed TBD) and maybe nylon.  The Sparkle Yarn will also include either Stellina or Lurex to give it some extra shine.  Each yarn base will feature a different colorway.  You are welcome to order multiple of either/both, and I will do my best to match dye lots.  First Class shipping is included in the price of the add-on skeins.

FAQ's

Do I need to be Jewish to purchase the sampler?

No! You don't need to be Jewish to celebrate Chanukah with me. I invite all of you to celebrate with me and my family.  Last year I made a little video sharing some of my family's Chanukah Traditions.  If people are interested, I can create another one this year.  We are a multi-faith family, so we celebrate both Chanukah and Christmas in our home.  

Can all of the minis be used in one project?  Is this a fade set?  

All of the miniskeins will feature the same 75% Superwash Merino / 25% Nylon yarn base in either Fingering Weight or DK weight.  These can easily be combined in one project, however they are not being dyed with a specific fade or colorwork project in mind.  There will be a variety of dye techniques on each of the minis ranging from speckles, semi solids, and more.  

What kinds of techniques will you use?  What kinds of dye? 

The videos will feature both food coloring and commercial dyes (acid dyes and maybe some others.)  As for the techniques... that is a surprise!  #Nospoilers

Can I order more than one sampler? 

Yes!  There will definitely be some overlap in the colors, but there could be some differences on some nights.  

Can I order two 4-Night samplers to get a full one? 

No.  If the 8-night sampler is sold out in the yarn base you want, but there are some 4-night samplers available, DM me and I can combine it for you.  4-Night samplers have 40 g of yarn, the 8 night samplers have 100 g of yarn plus some fun extras.  

You are welcome to order multiple 4-Night samplers, but you could receive multiple nights 1-4 etc.  

Can you accommodate color preferences? 

Unfortunately, no.  All of the colors will be a surprise.  There might be some variation between different samplers depending on the type of technique that I used.  But it is completely random which miniskeins end up in which box.  

Are there other terms and conditions?

Yes - please see the 2019 Chanukah Sampler listing for full details.  

2018 Chanukah Special

Chanukah might be over for the year, but we don't really have to stop celebrating!  At the end of the summer, I decided that I wanted to create a special series for Chanukah.  I thought it would be fun to film 8 new dyeing videos with 8 dyeing techniques on 8 different yarn bases.  I would wind up the yarn in to miniskeins to create some samplers to share.

I underestimated a few aspects of this journey.  I thought it would be a lot of work, which it was, and that it was a lot of fun, which it also was.  I don't think I could have anticipated the positive response we got from all of you!  The holiday was truly filled with joy, laughter, and light, with the whole extended ChemKnits family (yes that includes you!)  

I did not expect it to be so hard to avoid sharing spoilers.  When I try something that works great, or I have a cool in progress shot, I love to share those on Instagram or Facebook. I didn't want to give away ANY hints from this series. I wanted everyone who purchased a sampler to be surprised and excited to open up their gift each night.  I have started sharing some of these in progress photos now, and I am so excited that you can finally see them! 

The ChemKnits 2018 Chanukah Sampler is different from a lot of indie dyer samplers/advent calendars for a few reasons.  A big one is that this set contained a mixture of different yarn bases.  I chose 8 different luxury yarns from KnitPicks:  Paragon, Imagination, Gloss, Andean Treasure, Galileo, Capra, Bare Hare, and Alux.  I wanted to send samples of different dyeing techniques and fiber types so you could swatch them and see how they might knit up differently.  

Each miniskein was wrapped in tissue paper inside a snowflake organza bag.  I used some cardboard labels with dreidel stickers to designate the nights.  On the back of each number label there is the fiber content and care instructions for the yarn.  Surprisingly, none of the yarns in this sampler were superwash.  Well, except for the bonus c

Since it might be hard (but not impossible) to make a complete project from the sampler, I wanted to give people an option to include a full 100 g skein of sock yarn. I picked KnitPicks Felici.  The yarn is similar to the stroll that I use all the time, but the spin is a little tighter and the Merino is softer. 

It took me a few tries to get this "Melted Wax" colorway right.  I attempted to make a speckled version that resulted in the birth of the Evil Faerie yarn.  In my second speckled attempt, I created something closer to the vision in my head, but ultimately I loved the way the primary colors mixed together when I dyed a twisted hank of yarn three different times. 

When I sat down to write this post, I mentioned that there were a few things I didn't expect to come out of this series.  After all, I've done other special weeks in the past. (Sock Blank Special, Cellulose Week, Indigo Week.)  I underestimated the positive challenge this would be to me as an indie dyer and an artist.  I wanted to make sure I created distinct colorways, but many of these yarn bases I had never dyed before, so I didn't always know if things would come out as I imagined in my head.  

Another added bonus - I had to reskein all of the yarn to create the samplers.  This means that we got to see where reskeining made a difference in how yarn looked when compared to the "as dyed" skein of yarn.  

It was an absolute pleasure to plan this series, and I am already starting to think about next years!  

If you missed an episode, don't worry!  There is a full recap of the whole week, but you can also find all of the videos in the following playlist: 

Happy Chanukah, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year, everyone!  Which yarn is your favorite?  Do you think I should do this again next year? 

This post contains some KnitPicks affiliate links.  I purchased all of the yarn and materials for this sampler myself.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.