"Craftin' with some MadTosh (yeah)
Cast on and knit it with me!"

More cowbell!! It's the ninth week of Jimmy Beans Wool University! This week, we're going to be immersing ourselves in the world of music and learning how it ties into our favorite hobby!

Music has been close to our hearts since, well, really since ever (seriously, the oldest known musical instruments are flutes made from mammoth ivory and bird bone and are dated to be about 43,100 years old!). Music impacts our lives by being something to rely on for comfort, a way of storytelling, or just to relax. It's interesting that knitting and crocheting overlap a bunch of these musical traits despite being more modern in comparison.

A lot of us Beans were in a music class back in school (band, orchestra, and choir are all counted here!), which makes perusing some of Madelinetosh's colors an interesting scavenger hunt! Finding each music inspired shade is a fun little game we like to play. Even if the exact inspiration may not have been from a song or instrument, it's interesting to see who catches what COULD be a reference.

We've put together a mixtape of our favorite music inspired patterns as well as those colors from Madelinetosh we touched on.

With most hues available in just about every weight, each stunning shade translates beautifully to any project you could think of (Bonus points if it's a charted pattern since it reads very similarly to sheet music, hehe!)!

• Bittersweet
• Black Velvet
• Brass
• Dubrovnik*
• Gracenotes

* Dubrovnik is a fun one because it's a city in Croatia. Croatia also happens to be the home of the hauntingly beautiful Zadar Sea Organ - even the ocean plays an instrument!

DID YOU KNOW?: From the parts of your brain that deal with emotions and memory to the parts that deal with your fine-motor skills and overall creativity, music is one of the few things that activates every area!

"Go Shorties, it's your birthday!
We gon' knit stockings like it's yo' birthday!"

Playing instruments has been known to improve hand-eye coordination, which is helpful in, well, every situation where you need to use your hands! Knitting works in a similar way, especially when you get to the point where you memorize the pattern and just idly knit while you focus on other things. Building this skill also creates networks in your brain that can help protect you against Alzheimer's!

The needles we use are just as important as the yarn we use to create; they need to be sharp enough to avoid splitting our yarn, but comfortable enough to hold for long periods of time. ChiaoGoo's TWIST Red Lace Interchangeable Shorties Sets have got ya covered on that front! Perfect for knitting small diameter projects, these needles feature 2" and 3" tips with (memory-free) cables provided to make 9" and 14" circulars! These interchangeable sets also come with a needle gauge, stitch markers, end stoppers, connectors, and tightening keys all wrapped in a compact, travel-friendly case!

DID YOU KNOW?: According to studies, people with three or more years of music training have more refined fine motor skills than those who don't.

REEEEEEMIX!

"Groovin', vibin,
Craftin' the night away!"

Y'know, music is a funny thing. Somehow, it's able to perfectly encapsulate a mood we're experiencing without us having to try to explain it in words. It's just something you FEEL. For a lot of us, our hobbies do the same thing, being able to do the talking for us with how we want to express those emotions. From the colors we use to the patterns we craft, we pour a lot of our own feelings into our projects, which can make some beautiful creations no matter what sort of headspace we're in at the time.

As the names would suggest, Berroco has mixed things up with the unique blends of their Remix and Remix Light yarns! These bad boys are made entirely out of recycled fibers, making for a fun and eco-friendly yarn to treat your needles and hooks with! Featuring a tweedy appearance, Berroco Remix easily captures the spirit of coziness in both their worsted and DK weights, making for the perfect project yarn for just about anything in their rich color palette!

We're just vibin' - not stoppin' until the break of day! Made out of organic cotton and organic wool (with just a touch of nylon for some springiness), Berroco's aptly named Vibe yarn is ideal for any season with enough squish to keep you satisfied in its cloud of comfort! This heavy worsted weight yarn makes for quick and satisfying projects with a distinctive construction while the loftiness of the fibers keeps it from being too dense and heavy on your body!

DID YOU KNOW?: Your heartbeat synchronizes to the beat of the music you listen to, and that affects your blood pressure and respiration rate! So, listening to your favorite music keeps you healthy!

"My friend knits the Drums (of Autumn).
Her magic needles feel nothing but twine.
Nothing but twine."

Playing the drums (or any percussion instrument) as well as knitting helps improve ambidextrousness! While the trait of being so precise with both of your hands is rare, it's still an extremely useful and sought-after skill. The repetitive movements required of percussion instruments and knitting multiple rows in one sitting helps you keep this trait and increases your speed and range of movement for your wrists and fingers!

With colors inspired by the beautiful blue skies of the Carolinas and the delicate Dogwood flower, our own Bean, Rachel Roden, designed this beautiful wrap to celebrate "Droughtlander coming to an end" last year! Hailing from North Carolina herself, Rachel felt extra compelled to make a beautiful design everyone could enjoy wearing and knitting as we all watched our favorite time-traveling duo! Whether you're a new viewer or just eagerly waiting for 2020 to arrive for that next season, this shawl is a treat to create! Each kit includes 3 skeins of Mrs. Crosby Satchel and a download code for Rachel's pattern, Drums of Autumn, which is available for download from Unraveled Designs' Ravelry!

DID YOU KNOW?: Playing the drums is a workout in itself and has been proven to accelerate immune responses in your body to help fight off disease!

Indie Hand-dyes in the Club (hey, hey!)

"Once on Jimmy's Indie Club hill,
Two needles knit and the world stood still."

The best thing about indie music is that it can open the door to new genres for you to enjoy. Jimmy's Indie Club does the same thing by introducing you to exclusive colorways made by independent dyers, opening the door to new yarns, colors, and opportunities to use that special pattern you've kept squirreled away. Each month comes with one skein of a wonderfully unique hue only available at Jimmy Beans Wool coupled with an enamel pin to commemorate the dyer!

Our July dyer was Junkyarn with the inspirational colorway, Tocmetone, to pay respects to the incredible indigenous woman most know as Sarah Winnemucca. The name Tocmetone means "Shell Flower" in the Paiute language, and to appropriately pay homage to her character and her accomplishments, the colorway was named after her true name rather than her later given name. This colorway features a variegated, earthy base with some splashes of deep denim and marvelous mauve woven throughout it!

Missed out on this fabulous fiber? Sign up now to receive August's color before it's gone! A little piggy told us that this month's stunning shade is by Oink Pigments!

DID YOU KNOW?: "Indie" is a term that has come to mean many things. In the music world, it's typically used for an artist that releases music without a record label or a type of sound that's a little experimental and can't be placed in one mainstream genre.

School Quizzes Are Our Forte!

"These quizzes can be
As easy as Do, Re, Mi!"

Our required reading is alive with the sound of music! On our blog, we're harmonizing to the tune of "Dr. Speckle & Mr. Plied"! Reading through this can help you get all 5 questions correct on your next quiz to get a perfect score of 100%! Doing this puts you in the running to win a fully loaded Namaste Maker's Backpack or Namaste Maker's Train Case when school is over! Have you missed a quiz in the past few weeks or haven't taken any at all? You're able to go back and take them ALL even after the next class session!

Remember those summer projects we talked about when school began? By completing one of them and sending in pictures of your project by the end of the summer, you will be entered in a drawing for the title of V.I.P. (Very Important Pupil) and will be featured in the following newsletter's Show and Tell section!

DID YOU KNOW?: Students that have a musical education, on average, show higher SAT scores than students that do not.

"When we tie knots, they call us Macramena!
HEEEEEYYY MACRAMENA!"

We've all seen that one science experiment: Plants flourish to classical music while they wilt to rock music. Well, luckily for us, that experiment may actually hold some truth to it (though not in the way we all first thought)! What is it about music that may change our plants so drastically? Well, it would be hard to find an ear on a plant, so hearing the melodies can't be it, right? It turns out the vibrations produced by various types of music are felt by the plant in the form of pressure in the sound waves!

Maybe chancing your music taste against your plants is a little too strange for your tastes. After all, the best things you can give to your plants are sunlight and water drainage; having a home-made hanging cradle for them is a fun and chic way to provide the TLC it deserves! That being said, we're so excited to announce that we're bringing back the Beginner's Macrame Class on Saturday, August 17th! Gissell is back and ready to teach us all four basic knot techniques to cradle the provided succulent and make a beautiful work of art at the same time!

Do you live in the area and are interested in learning? We would love to have you! This class will take place from 10:00 AM - 12:00 Noon and refreshments will be provided. Spots are limited, reserve yours now at 1 (775) 827-9276!

DID YOU KNOW?: Humming is great for your health! Not only does humming your favorite melody help put you in a better mood, but it can also improve the airflow in your sinuses.

Shibui's Cascading Joplin Cardigan

"Feelin' good was good enough for Marie,
Good enough for Marie and a trunk show of Shibui!"

This open, breezy project from Shibui Knits is versatile, with the ability to be styled up for a night on the town, or styled down for a comfortable evening at home. This waterfall cardigan has a pleasant drape thanks to Shibui Knits Twig yarn, and fits all body types with ease, featuring a wide ribbed hem that adds a touch of interest. This piece is worked flat in one piece from the bottom up before splitting at the arm holes. And the best part? The sleeves are also optional, able to make this comfy cardi into a vivacious vest!