Ficstitches Yarns Kit Club Review

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Have you heard of Ficstitches Yarns Kit Club? This unique subscription brings together two things I love – crochet, and reading. Each kit pairs an original story with a related crochet pattern and the yarn needed to make it, plus bonus treats too!

My friends at Ficstitches were kind enough to send me the summer 2020 kit for free to review. Take a peek inside with me!

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Unboxing the Summer Ficstitches Yarns Kit

I was so excited to receive my package, and I opened it in this live video on Facebook. Skip ahead to about 4 minutes in to see what’s inside.

Watch this video on YouTube

C. Jane Reid

Each Ficstitches Yarns Kit is based around a story, written by Carissa Jane Reid. My first introduction to this author was with her book “The Secret Stitch”

I reviewed this book, and it’s companion book of crochet patterns, way back in 2016 on the CGOA blog. I was excited to see the book in this kit was in the same story line.

The Donaghue Histories

There are now seven books in this series, and I’m sorry to say I haven’t kept up with it. Each of the books stands alone, while also being part of the same story line.

There is an author’s note inside this one however. It says that it is greatly enhanced by having read books 2, 3, and 6. To help people catch up, each of these 3 books is available in Kindle format for only 99 cents through July 2020!

I’ve already bought the kindle version of all three so I can catch up 🙂

Unraveling: The Madness of Adelaide Rourke

The new book in this kit is titled Unraveling: The Madness of Adelaide Rourke. I sat down to read it on Sunday morning, right after recording the unboxing video. By the afternoon, I had finished it – I couldn’t put it down!

Adelaide has spent her life in the company of several voices in her head, leading her to an obsessive study of her family’s history, and eventually to a breakdown and psychiatric hospital. In the back of the book, you can find her detailed, hand-drawn family trees.

But who is this cast of characters really? And what does wellness look like? The author has used her own experiences with mental illness to craft a thoughtful, and at times humorous exploration into schizophrenia, told from Adelaide’s perspective.

Broomstick Lace

Crochet comes up several times in the story, which ultimately features a broomstick lace shrug. This kind of lace, also called Jiffy Lace, is made by wrapping yarn around a large stick or knitting needle.

I was surprised to see the kit included a 20mm knitting needle for making broomstick lace! Even better, it’s from one of my favorite companies – Brittany Needles.

Addy’s Jiffy Lace Shrug

The summer Ficstitches Yarns Kit includes the pattern for the lace shrug featured in the story. The pattern was designed by talented crochet designer Laurinda Reddig of ReCrochetions.

It’s a simple construction, and includes helpful and detailed pattern notes. There’s even a bit of history about broomstick lace!

Basic broomstick lace forms very straight lines, but this pattern uses a clever technique to make the lines wavy. It does need a bit of concentration, but I think an adventurous beginner with a good grasp of basic stitches could handle it. It includes a full page picture tutorial, written instructions with great notes, and a chart too!

Baah Yarns

To make the shrug, the kit includes a skein of La Jolla Superwash Merino yarn from Baah Yarns. It’s a soft, fingering weight yarn in a colorway called Blue Magic.

As the story says, “The speckles of blue and green and lavender and spots of yellow echoed the landscape around her: the blue sky, the green shrubs and lavender hills, the sun newly risen over the mountains.”

Some fun extras

The kit also came with some extra treats. There’s a pretty, beaded bookmark with a heart shaped bead and a little tag that says “love”. There’s also a neat pin that says “Summer 2020” and has a closeup picture of the shrug in the background.

All of this came in a lovely, tie-dyed, drawstring bag just big enough to hold it all perfectly. This will make a great project bag!

The Fall Ficstitches Yarns Kit

The next kit will include part 1 of a new story. It’s the perfect time to join in! Pre-orders are now open, and the yarn selections look spectacular. Learn more at Ficstitches Yarns