A Verb for Keeping Warm

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A Verb for Keeping Warm We're all about making your own clothing! We are a queer-latinx-woman-owned small business in beautiful Oakland, California.
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A Verb for Keeping Warm is an interactive space that features a retail fiber arts store, classroom, meeting place, dye garden, and production studio for artisanal naturally dyed yarn and fiber. Visit us online or at our Brick and Mortar Saturdays 11am - 3pm.

In celebration of the anniversaries of the publication of The Modern Natural Dyer & Journeys in Natural Dyeing, we are g...
10/21/2026

In celebration of the anniversaries of the publication of The Modern Natural Dyer & Journeys in Natural Dyeing, we are giving away a collection of some of our favorite books celebrating fiber arts and nature!

Eleven long years ago, Kristine released The Modern Natural Dyer on 10/20/15. And then, joined by Adrienne and Sarah, released Journeys in Natural Dyeing on 10/20/2020.

To celebrate this anniversary, one lucky winner will receive a copy of ALL FIVE books:

📚 The Modern Natural Dyer by Kristine Vejar
📚 Journeys in Natural Dyeing by Kristine Vejar and Adrienne Rodriguez
📚 One Skein Knitting by Ksenia Naidyon
📚 The Mushroom Color Atlas by Julie Beeler
📚 World of Wonders by Aimee Nezhukumatathil

Both The Modern Natural Dyer and Journeys in Natural Dyeing will help you learn the ropes of natural dyeing; everything from indigo dyeing with your own, homegrown indigo to foraging for mushrooms to create color to using natural dyeing extracts to create long lasting hues in a rainbow of colors. They also include a whole slew of projects! And in Journeys in Natural Dyeing, you can meet artisans from Mexico, Indonesia, Iceland, and Japan who use natural dyes.

In addition to our books, you can find One Skein Knitting which is a treasure trove of stunning projects taking only one skein of yarn!

The Mushroom Color Atlas is an incredible resource for learning more about mushrooms and the color that can be created by using them in the dyeing process.

World of Wonders is one of those incredible books that spans genres and includes beautiful prose and illustrations illuminating the inspiring ways nature, from cara cara oranges to an octopus, can be our guide.

✨ To enter, comment below:
What's your dream project from one (or more!) of these books? ✨

We will be choosing a winner on Friday, 10/30!

Open to US participants only. One entry per person. Giveaway open until 11:59 PST on 10/29/26.

A new embroidery kit from is available!The Botanical Bouquet Embroidery Kits include everything you need to create your...
10/17/2026

A new embroidery kit from is available!

The Botanical Bouquet Embroidery Kits include everything you need to create your own piece of hand-stitched wall art. Create this stunning Botanical Bouquet Embroidery and take your embroidery knowledge and know how-up a notch!

You'll learn the Bullion Knot stitch, and practice other more foundational stitches like the french knot, satin stitch, stem stitch, and lazy daisy (or chain) stitch. When you're finished you'll not only be an embroidery pro, you'll also have a gorgeous new hand embroidered piece to display or give as a very sweet gift.

Kit includes everything you need: hoop, fabric, thread, needle, clippers, and embroidery pattern and instructions.

We have also restocked a variety of popular basket kits from Flax & Twine. Make a variety of different sweet nesting bowls and learn new a basket-weaving skill! These kits make delightful cozy winter activities and holiday gifts.

Kits are ready to ship now at the link in our bio!

A brand new offering is available for preorder: indigo-dyed Azuma bags by . These gorgeous bags are available in three s...
10/15/2026

A brand new offering is available for preorder: indigo-dyed Azuma bags by . These gorgeous bags are available in three stunning shades of sapphire blue. Order just the bag, or add on a set of sashiko threads to stitch your own unique embroidery.

The Azuma bag is made of 100% linen and generously sized to hold a large knitting project and keep it safely contained. Easily carry a sweater-in-progress and protect the yarn from snagging in your bag. Or pack it with a lunch, a book, and a light jacket, and tie the points together to create a handle and tuck it over your arm for an outing. This is a versatile bag with many possibilities!

We are offering the bag on its own, or with a set of sashiko threads in five indigo-dyed shades. Kristine chose to embellish hers with just a few lines of simple running stitch, like rays of sunlight traveling across the sky. Letting each color of thread shine against the blue linen.

Then of course she had to immediately toss in her current, in-progress sweater project. (Sneak peek at a new cardigan in Bread & Butter Everyday + Verb Frond that will be releasing at Sacred Sheep!)

No matter what goes in it, this is a must-have bag for the indigo-lover in your life. And in doing so, you are supporting an incredible group of artisans keeping the tradition of indigo farming and dyeing alive. A beautiful collaboration!

These bags are currently available for preorder, as BUAISOU will be dyeing them to order just for you. Reserve yours now!

LAST CALL to sign up for the Pro-Verbial Club for the 2026-27 subscription year!Pro-Verbial is a quarterly yarn and fibe...
10/13/2026

LAST CALL to sign up for the Pro-Verbial Club for the 2026-27 subscription year!

Pro-Verbial is a quarterly yarn and fiber subscription. Each shipment includes an exclusive shawl pattern and specially dyed yarn and fiber colorways. Join us and receive 4 seasonal shipments per year: November 1st, February 1st, May 1st, and August 1st.

We are so excited to welcome , , , and to this year's lineup, and to have such a wonderfully talented group of people on board. We are a bit ahead of the game this year, and have a pretty good sense of the yarns and colors being used and we have to say - there are some very beautiful designs in the works inherent of each of the designer's point of view.

To thank you for your participation and investment into the Verb community, all Pro-Verbial members receive 10% purchases of yarn, fabric, fiber, and threads.

Join us now for a year of beautiful yarn and knitting!

NEW ✨ One thing that folks are always asking about in the shop is for small lengths of wool yarn to mend a garment, do a...
10/11/2026

NEW ✨ One thing that folks are always asking about in the shop is for small lengths of wool yarn to mend a garment, do a little surface embroidery, or just want to add some interest to a scrappy project.

So we have put together a new offering: Flock Wool Embroidery Thread bundles.

Flock is one of our favorite yarns. It is a cozy lightweight yarn made from American wool and milled in Vermont at Green Mountain Spinnery. It is made of a single strand of yarn giving it a rustic, handspun homey feel.

We've taken full-size skeins of Flock and cut them along one end. Then pulled out individual strands, and twisted those together into small hanks. Each strand is about 56-60" long. Each hank contains 8 threads and weighs between 14-16g. All are naturally-dyed in our Oakland studio.

Choose from five colorway groupings: Hearth, Sunrise, Valley, Mountain, or Tide. (Photos are representative of what you receive, as each bundle is delightfully unique.)

Use these bundles to add embroidery to your knitwear as in Embroidery on Knits by .ni.ber.ta, or knit up little outfits for the creatures in Mouche & Friends or Chez Myrtil by !

Originally offered in the stunning pink coloway, we have had a lot of positive feedback about 's Seaport Shawl. (A strai...
10/09/2026

Originally offered in the stunning pink coloway, we have had a lot of positive feedback about 's Seaport Shawl. (A straightforward knit, with just enough texture to make it interesting, and an incredibly soft fabric!) So we decided to offer two new colorways! A thirst-quenching green and a blue so pure it is reminiscent of the perfect sky without a cloud in sight.

Tori's color is an eye-catching rose-pink that we named Cosmopolitan - in honor of Tori's NYC roots and the similarly ruby-colored cocktail.

Due to the fact that Wild Bloom is naturally silver, colors on this base will have a calming grey undertone.

Bundles include 1 skein each of Rumor and Wild Bloom in the following options:
Cosmopolitan + Cosmopolitan
Succulent + Succulent
Indigo Blue Sky + Raincloud*

(Indigo Blue Sky is included in our 2026 Fall palette, so this bundle will qualify you to enter the Harvest MAL!)

Bundles in all three colorways are ready to ship now!

While we're sadly not able to make it to Rhinebeck this year, in honor and gratitude of next weekend's festival, we are ...
10/08/2026

While we're sadly not able to make it to Rhinebeck this year, in honor and gratitude of next weekend's festival, we are re-releasing bundles of our Rhinebeck sweater from last year: the Peach Bourbon Tea Cardigan, designed by out of our Flock and Frond yarns.

Peach Bourbon Tea is the quintessential Fall cardigan; cozy cables coupled with warm hues of red and copper.

Thea's version is knit out of Flock Lucky Penny Whorl and Frond Candied Apple. These two yarns held together make an absolutely divine fabric that is lofty with a touch of shine.

Our palette for Peach Bourbon Tea is inspired by the stunning kernels of a corn cob harvested from our garden. Choose Thea's original colorway, or one of several other options dyed just for you.

Last year we dyed straight through our reserves of Flock to make bundles for this gorgeous Fall cardigan. So it has taken a little time for us to get a new batch of Flock milled. And we are so excited to offer these bundles to you again!

Have you started a project for the Harvest Make-a-long yet? Cast-on and post a photo by October 15th and be entered to w...
10/04/2026

Have you started a project for the Harvest Make-a-long yet? Cast-on and post a photo by October 15th and be entered to win gift cards!

Swipe through to see the list of Verb and Bread & Butter colors that are included in our color-based Fall MAL.

Need some inspiration for your project? Here are a few ideas (swipe to the end):

1. Andie by , knit in Soft Current in Passionflower
2. Foggy Morning Wrap by , knit in Wild Bloom held triple in Mollusk, Passionflower, and Quartz
3. Swoop by , knit in Floating in Indigo Blue Sky and Frond in Oasis
4. Cerulean Sour 2 Vest by , knit in Pretzel in Clear Night

We can't wait to see what you

Our fourth and final designer to introduce for this year's Pro-Verbial Club is Maaike van Geijn ().Maaike is a Dutch kni...
10/02/2026

Our fourth and final designer to introduce for this year's Pro-Verbial Club is Maaike van Geijn ().

Maaike is a Dutch knitwear designer and workshop teacher based in Schoorl, a small coastal village in the Netherlands surrounded by sea, dunes, and forest. She grew up between the United States and Haarlem, studied fashion and theater costume design, and earned a Master's degree in Theater Studies.

Maaike's love of colour is expressed in her work, in which colour and motifs play together. Her intention is to translate traditional knitting techniques in a contemporary way. While she strives for a certain elegance in her designs, she also wants her work to be playful in both form and colour. Above all, Maaike wants her designs to offer a pleasant knitting experience, allowing knitters to truly enjoy the process.

Maaike's work has been published worldwide in books and magazines – including Laine Magazine, Amirisu, John Arbon Textiles, Kate Davies, Erika Knight, and La Bien Aimée. She is also a sought-after workshop teacher, giving workshops in yarn shops and at festivals throughout Europe.

Maaike will be one of four designers creating an exclusive shawl pattern for Year 17 of Pro-Verbial.

Members will receive four quarterly shipments of exclusive patterns and hand-dyed yarn over the course of a year. Plus, save 10% on all yarn, fabric, fiber, and thread at Verb the whole year long!

Sign ups are now open! Join us!

Now that we have a new batch of Flock from the mill, we've finally restocked bundles for Nine Patch by ! This fun, scrap...
09/26/2026

Now that we have a new batch of Flock from the mill, we've finally restocked bundles for Nine Patch by ! This fun, scrappy project, knit in lightweight homey Flock, is a lovely piece for this end-of-summer weather.

Nine Patch is a fun, quilt-inspired, intarsia cardigan. Deep in the pandemic, feeling the need for serotonin-inducing tiny bursts of color, Julie began playing around with little swatches of leftover Verb yarn. Inspired by a patchwork sweater she designed in the 90s, she began to create a new rendition. And in predictable Julie-fashion, one rendition led to three variations!

The three variations Julie designed are shown here and are available as kits. You can choose to knit this sweater with elbow-length sleeves or as a vest - instructions for both are included. All kits include enough yarn to knit the version with elbow-length sleeves.

Flock is cozy lightweight yarn made from American wool and milled in Vermont at Green Mountain Spinnery. It is made of a single strand of yarn giving it a rustic, handspun homey feel. Flock is wonderfully soft.

Reserve your bundle now at the link in our bio!

Address

6328 San Pablo Avenue
Oakland, CA
94608

Opening Hours

Friday 11am - 3pm
Saturday 11am - 3pm

Telephone

(510) 595-8372

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