FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE

Why don't you offer free shipping on all orders?

La Cave à Laine is a small business. I pay the normal postage rate to La Poste (the French post system) and you get charged the amount of the shipping, plus a very small handle fee. I am no Amazon, baby!

BUT, sometimes, for a limited time, you can get free shipping on orders over:

- EU 100€

Are your products really handmade?

Yes, they are. All project bags, pouches and stitch markers are made by me, in my atelier in France: I cut and sew and iron all the item I sell. I have the occasional help from my mom, during very busy period, and my children enjoy to bead the stitch markers once in a while.

I sometime collaborate with yarn dyers for kit and knitting patterns.

I buy some of the stitch markers and pins.

 

Do you create all your knitting pattern?

Yes, I do. All my knitting patterns are the result of my own work, plus the work of very skilled tech editors. I normally buy the yarn I use for my samples (that I knit myself), I make my own photography and if the model it's not me or a dummy, is one of my friends.

If you want to read a good article on how a knitting pattern costs, head over to Wolly Wormhead's blog.

For the reasons explained in the post above and many more, my patterns have a cost: once a year my newsletter subscribers get a free pattern to thank them to stick with me and my business.

 

Where are you based?

I live in Southern Alsace. My atelier is in Saint Louis, Alsace: a border town right in the middle of a crossroad of France, Suisse and Germany.

My atelier is inside an old industrial building, called Cité Danzas: it is not normally open to the public, but you can write me if you wish to visit.

 

Why do you sound strange/ Cannot you check your spelling?

I was born and raised in Italy, by an all Italian family. I have first learned English in Ireland when I was 17 years old. I do spelling mistakes even in my mother language, go figure! Plus right now I live in France, and in a typical day of mine I speak 3 to 4 languages: Italian (with my children and French husband), French (with the teachers in school and with all the other people I see), English (online and with some of my local friends) and sometime I have to use even my basic German. At the end of a normal day I even think in 3 languages all at once...

So, that's why I do sound "different": I am polyglot!

 

How do I clean my project bag?

Your project bag is made from 100% cotton and cotton thread. The fabric is fully washable if you ever need to clean it, and my recommendations are as follows:

• All project bags:

Spot cleaning preferred: I strongly recommend spot cleaning with a soap stick to gently rub out the stained area. Your bag is sewn with unwashed, heavyweight 100% cotton fabric. If you prefer this super-crisp fabric appearance, avoid immersing it in water and only spot clean. On rare occasions, super saturated colours could bleed in lighter colours. To minimize this effect, add a bit of white vinegar to your washing water.

• Hand-dye project bags

Spot cleaning preferred, but machine washing is possible: all hand-dyed project bags are cleaned in a washing machine before AND after dyeing, so your bag should not shrink nor warp nor bleed. That said, minor bleeding is always a risk, so add a bit of vinegar to your washing water. You will need a firm pressing after washing. Use a very hot iron with steam.