Demands of My Sister

My sister gave me a gift card to Debbie Macomber's yarn shop for Christmas. This was delightful because it meant I had to go to the yarn shop before I left town. (Twist my arm...such punishment...)

We went to the shop and I walked around looking at literally every yarn available. I wanted to pick something out that I couldn't easily get online. I also wanted something that would have that festive, Christmas gift feel...so not dishcloth yarn...As I meandered about petting and squishing the pretty skeins, my mom and sister also wandered about.

Eventually Sister came over. Apparently she had found a hat that she HAD to have. Which translates to she found a hat that I was supposed to make for her. This happens fairly regularly when Sister and I go to yarn shops. It isn't that she can't knit. She can. I am pretty sure that we have taught her how. It is more that she doesn't see the point in it when I make her everything her heart desires.

I looked at the pattern and said I would make it if she bought the yarn for it. I would even pay for the pattern. (She seemed shocked that she had to buy the yarn...but that's the way the cookie crumbles.)

She picked out some lovely wool. I made the hat when I got back to TX. I must really love her to make something with stranded color work. I hate color work. It worked out well though, and she was very grateful when it came in the mail...Kentucky has been having LOTS of snow days this winter.

(Oh, and I bought myself some alpaca with the gift card...it is not yet assigned a project...)

O Canada! I Love to Shop In Thee!

While we were in Victoria, I forced my ever patient family to walk a good distance to a yarn shop I found in the yellow pages. (It was weird having to resort to analog research techniques...seeing as how I didn't want to pay the international rates to use my cell phone.)

We easily found the Beehive Wool Shop on Douglas Street...I loved that it was a wool shop, instead of a yarn shop. (Does that mean it is an LWS instead of an LYS?) It had a lot of space, great light, and loads of charm. The staff was delightfully helpful as well. AND it has been in business for over a century. AMAZING. Loved it. Highly recommend it. Go to Canada. Go to Victoria. Go to this shop.

I, of course, purchased some yarn. I wanted it to be Canadian yarn, er...wool, so I selected a skein of Tough Love sock yarn from Sweet Georgia Yarns. This yarn company is located in Vancouver, Canada...and the yarn is hand dyed. I dithered back and forth on the colorway before settling on "Violet Hill".

The fun thing was that when we got back to the ferry's customs to cross back into the US, the customs official asked if I had anything to declare. He sure gave me a funny look when I said yarn!

Home Sweet Home

Being in California for the weekend means that I can go to my "happy place"...



Knit This Purl That!

It is so nice to be home!

(Thank you Twilight for taking me, and helping me complete and then redeem my stash card!)

Commission Socks

My new boss, Dr. Boss, is a man after my own heart. A man obsessed with socks. Specifically, a man obsessed with crazy, quirky, eccentric socks. His obsession has reached the point that his wife has had to make a rule: for every new pair of socks he acquires, an old pair of socks must be disposed of.

He found out that I knit socks. He heard me wax eloquent on the joys of custom made handknit wool socks. He saw the crazy socks I have made for myself. He decided he needed socks.

Since Abilene has no yarn shop, and since the few craft stores/superstores that carry what passes for yarn do not have sock weight, I emailed him some links to online sock yarn suppliers. I did not realize what an ordeal selecting a yarn color would be for him.

In the end he decided he wanted to go with Berocco Sox, which I was going to order from Jimmy Beans Wool. But even after narrowing it down to a brand, he had a hard time narrowing it down to a color. Back and forth, back and forth...he kept changing his mind. Finally he got it down to two colors: Lancaster and Humberside. He could not decide.

That was when I had my moment of brilliance. I would make two pairs of socks...one in Lancaster for him, and one in Humberside for his wife. That way, maybe, he wouldn't have to get rid of a pair when he got the new pair...after all, she would be getting socks, too!

He went for it, and I ordered the yarn. Unfortunately the Lancaster was back ordered and has not yet arrived...the Humberside is here though, cast on, and started. Maybe I can get the Humbersides done before the Lancaster comes in. Fingers crossed!

Life without a LYS

Abilene, Abilene,prettiest town I've ever seen...

...has NO YARN SHOP!!!!

Now, there are places to buy yarn in town. You can get yarn from Wal-Mart. You can get yarn from one of the two craft stores...Michaels or Hobby Lobby. However selling yarn does not a yarn shop make.

At first this was disconcerting to me. I was going to have to drive at least 2 hours into Dallas to find a "local" yarn shop. (Can one call it local when it is over 100 miles away?)

There were solutions. I adore KnitPicks. Jimmy Beans Wool is also nice. I could order yarn and have it shipped to me. I could make sure and ALWAYS find a local yarn shop to visit when I traveled. But what about when I just wanted to squeeze a skein of cashmere? Yarn shop trips are major stress busters for me!

Then I unpacked.

Hmmm...

I guess I do have a local yarn shop.



My stash!

Beware the Blogging Knitter

While pursuing yet more fun on my graduation vacation with my parents, I found myself in the small town of La Connor, WA. It is one of those adorable towns that is full of antique shops, bakeries, and artisan galleries.

It also had a yarn shop. The yarn shop was called Jennings Yarn & Needlecraft.

It was, without a doubt, the worst yarn shop experience of my life. (And that includes the shop where staff followed me around because they thought I was going to shop lift.)

Mom, Dad, and I went in there. I was actually initially impressed. It had quite a nice selection of Noro Kureyon (although it was priced quite a bit higher than the going market rate)...not to mention quite a few inspiring luxury fibers. (Angora. I love angora.)

However...the service was abysmal. The owner/employee was standing right there at the counter when we came in. Yet, we spent a good 5-10 minutes in the shop before we were even acknowledged. (The person cannot claim that she didn't see us...I mean, Dad is 6'5"...) Once we were acknowledged, it was with a curt hello. And that only came after Mom POINTEDLY stared at the woman as we walked by the register. Another 5-10 minutes passed, and the lady finally finally left the counter and came back to the back part of the shop.

She asked: "Did you want something?"
I answered: "Nothing specific."

Rather than saying she was available to help if I had any questions, or muttering any other number of polite stock sales phrases, she wheeled on her heel and went back to the register. I was baffled. I even had to stand at the counter a moment or two before she bothered to ask if I was ready to check out.

As we walked out of the shop, Mom marveled at the utter horror that seemed to pass for customer service. I told Mom that we could take comfort in the fact that they didn't know who they were ignoring. I am a blogger. I am a knitting blogger. One should not raise the ire of a literate and proliferate knitting blogger. I would eviscerate them in online literature.

Jennings Yarn & Needlecraft is in a delightful setting, but the staff is definitely below par. The fine fibers can not begin to make up for the shabby treatment. I can find better yarn elsewhere, the same yarn at a better price elsewhere, and anything I want online. I do not have to put up with your snottiness. And no one else should either!

AVOID THIS SHOP!!!

Sameness

I am fairly predictable when it comes to color.

My favorite color is orange.

I knit a lot of oranges/rusts/reds/browns.

When people give me yarn they tend to give me a lot of oranges/rusts/reds/browns.

The other color I knit a lot of is grey. I love grey. It doesn't show dirt like white, and it highlights stitch patterns better than black. It is elegant. It is neutral. It is classy.

I decided a few months ago that I needed to break out of my mold.

I needed to try knitting things not in oranges/rusts/reds/browns and not in grey.

So I ordered a bunch of yarn from KnitPicks. I bought yarn at my yarn shop.

...and everything I bought color coordinates.

It is all turquoise/blue/green/purple.

All of it.

(Proof of this is visible in the picture on my knitpicks package post.)

I guess if I really want to experience knitting hue variety I need to print off a picture of the color wheel and work my way around clockwise from project to project or something...

Predictability. It is a curse.

Arrival of a Package

A package came LAST Monday.

A package from KnitPicks.

It was patiently waiting on my patio when I got home from the airport.

Pretty yarn.

Very pretty yarn.

Very pretty pettable yarn.

I had to ignore the pretty pettable yarn for a week as I rushed to finish my schoolwork and work work.

But now I opened the yarn.

The pretty yarn.

The very pretty yarn.

The very pretty pettable yarn.

Will I be able to stop petting it long enough to pop some of it on the swift and ball it up?

That remains to be seen.

...

...

...still petting.

Review: Crafty Hands Yarn Shop

Sister had to teach on Friday, so I took her to her school in the morning, and then had the use of her car until lunch time. I decided to treat myself to the local yarn shop here in Bowling Green, Kentucky!

Crafty Hands Yarn Shop is conveniently located across the parking lot from a Starbucks. It is VERY easy to find. It is on the main drag, right off the freeway. (I mean, after all, even I found it...and without resorting to my iphone's GPS.)

I was greeted by a friendly staff person as soon as I walked in the door. She was bubbly and outgoing. She showed me where the Cascade 220 was, and then wound the skein I needed to complete a project I was working on. I was especially grateful for the fact that as she wound the yarn, she left me alone to browse. Nothing irks me more than looming salespeople.

She saw me admiring some koigu, and showed me a cardigan pattern in a book that uses Koigu AND Cascade 220 in a slipstitch pattern. (It was pretty...but was the only pattern in the whole book that I liked. I decided not to buy the book...I am getting it at the library instead.)

I ended up leaving the shop with one skein of Cascade 220, one skein of Koigu, and a skein of Ty-Dy cotton sock yarn.

And then I went across the parking lot to pick up a coffee.

Heaven.

If you happen to be in the Bowling Green area, I highly recommend this shop. Friendly staff...great selection of yarns...well organized and open floor plan.



[The pictures are from the shop's website...I forgot to take my camera in with me.]

Tax Returns

Thanks to Sister, and a timely phone call...I discovered that I was eligible for a tax refund I didn't know about.

This literally added some zeros to the amount I thought I would be getting back from the IRS.

I will be responsible with my windfall.

I will put half in savings as a cushion.

I will use half to pay down my debts.

But...

I will also allow myself a teeny tiny amount of "fun" money with which to purchase the yarn I needed (wanted) for a skirt I am making out of Custom Knits!

Woo-Hoo!

KnitPicks online shopping cart...HERE I COME!!!

Public Displays of Knitting: Florida Edition

Here are a few of the pictures from my Florida trip...a few of the knitterly pictures that is:



Knitting the Gotham Socks at a Starbucks in Temple Terrace.



Knitting Beret Pour Moi on my mattress on the floor of Blondie's dorm room.



Proudly wearing handknits in the college student center with Blondie. (Shortly after the picture was taken, I went back to knitting socks.)



Jester, looking clearly relieved that we have arrived at Knit 'n Knibble in one piece.



The 100% sugar cane yarn that I purchased at Knit 'n Knibble

All in all...I finished 2 projects on this trip, and made significant progress on 2 more. I also wore at least one handknit every single day...a scarf, a beret, socks, or wristwarmers!

Knit 'n Knibble

Jester stole her boyfriend's car while I was in Florida, and took me into a Tampa yarn shop...Knit 'n Knibble. (Isn't that a great name?) It was raining so hard that we could only see a few feet in front of the car, and were driving 20 MPH down the interstate. The roads in town were flooded. We passed some smaller cars that were stalling out in the deep water...luckily we were in an SUV. It was pretty scary. (I bought Jester a Krispy Kreme to make up for the terror that I put her through!)

We eventually found the yarn shop...it had moved, and google hadn't updated the address for it. It was on the same street, just a few blocks further south than we thought.

The shop had two major drawbacks:

The staff were obnoxiously intrusive. When we walked in, Jester and I were greeted by a chorus of hellos. That was fine. An employee asked if they could help us find anything, which was also fine, and actually nice. But then I said no...I was from out of town and just wanting to browse. This means, to those of you unfamiliar with the English language, that I just wanted to look around and see what they had. I wanted to squeeze the skeins and meander about. However, rather than letting us be, two other employees, essentially back to back, came up and asked us the same questions. Now, had this been a large store, like a Michael's or JoAnn's, I would have understood. But it wasn't. I could hear all of their conversations, and knew that they could hear Jester and I turn down help. They went from being friendly and helpful, to being annoying and obnoxious. (Jester actually asked me why they wouldn't leave us alone, and if they thought we were going to steal something. I don't see why they would think we were non-knitters...I was wearing a handknit beret, scarf, and socks...I even told them which book the beret pattern was out of...ugh.)

There were no snacks. The shop is called Knit 'n Knibble. It actually says on it's webpage :“Knit” in a comfortable place where you can enjoy a latte or cappucino while you “Knibble” on cookies and biscotti. This led me to believe that it was a combination coffee shop/yarn shop...also known as heaven on earth. But when we arrived, though we saw lots of tables to work at...there was no "coffee shop" area. Jester finally saw a coffee pot/espresso machine in a corner, but it was a standard home use one. And we never saw any food. (Another reason for the Krispy Kreme run on the way home.) False advertising? Definitely.

Despite this, it was a nice yarn shop with a great selection. Their exotic fiber collection was especially impressive, as was the wall of sock yarn. I bought some Cascade 220 for felted purse samples since they had it priced way below anywhere out here in CA. I also bought two skeins of black fingering weight that is 100% sugar cane. (Blondie licked it when I got back to the dorm. She said it didn't taste like sugar...) They also had some gorgeous samples. Jester fell in love with a sample beanie that was just beyond her ability...it was essentially an adult version of the Envy beanie, so I am going to make it for her. (Well, I am going to make a version of it, since the sample was made from an alpaca, camel, silk blend that was $60/skein...)

To sum up: nice selection, annoying staff, no food...but an afternoon well spent with a wonderful friend!

I didn't take any pictures in the shop...the staff made me too uncomfortable...but I found the one's here on another blogger's site.

Yarn Shop Review...and Mom!

Mom is in town this weekend...mostly to visit Nephew. However, today she is all mine!

I picked her up at the airport, and we went into Lafayette...which is very cute! I wish I had gone there sooner.

We parked at the new library, and enjoyed it's wonderment. We walked to a little diner called Squirrel's Cafe...which inexplicably served traditional English fare.

Then we did what we came to do. We went to the yarn shop.

Yarn Boutique was a very nice store. It had a huge selection, and high quality luxury yarns that I had never even heard of. I will definitely be going back because the selection was astounding. Also, the staff were friendly, knowledgeable, and knew their stock. (This was particularly important since they have a TON of yarn stuffed into a very small space. I sort of figured out the organization system, but not quite. If I had needed something specific, I would have needed a lot of help finding it.)

I asked Mom to sum up what she thought of the Yarn Boutique in a few words...and here is her review: friendly, great selection, crowded.

We rounded off our day with dinner at Sweet Tomatos, and a couple of quilt stores in the area. Tonight I will drive her up to Brother and Sis-in-Law's and leave her there.

Today was fun. I love being just Mom and I!

Magic Word

SALE!!!!

Knit This Purl That is having a pre-inventory sale this week. And they were kind enough to send out an email letting me know.

I went. I shopped. I bought.



In my own defense, I didn't buy as much as I could have.

And I did go in with a plan.

Which I stuck to.

(Although a better plan would have been to avoid the shop like the plague until after the sale had passed.)

Oh well.

What can I say?

I am a weak willed woman!

New Needles

For Christmas, Mom gave me 2 pairs of nickel plated circular knitting needles from knitpicks to use for sock knitting. She thought it was silly that I only had one pair of sock needles, and she loves the knitpick ones.

She, of course, was anxious to get my opinion on them. I, however, didn't have spare sock yarn with me on my trip.

What's a girl to do?

(Buy more yarn of course!)

I went out to coffee with my friend Spirit that Saturday morning, and sweet-talked her into taking me to Pacific Fabrics. There I was forced to buy some Crystal Palace Panda Superwash in "Dark Night" just so I could test drive the needles. What a hardship!

I cast on my boring old plain vanilla 2x2 rib socks. This not only gave me a purse portable brain-free project, but it allowed me to focus more on the needles than the yarn or pattern.

Needle Review: These are AMAZING. I HIGHLY recommend them. I like these more than...gasp...Addi Turbos. (And they are a fraction of the price!) The points are sharp, the needles slide gleefully into the stitches, and the purple cable makes me smile. So...thanks Mom!

(FYI: The color "Dark Night" -sounds like- Dark Knight -another name for- Batman -who lives in- Gotham...thus the socks are called the Gotham Socks...)

Resolutions

Some of my knitting resolutions for 2010:

1. Learn to knit on double pointed needles. It doesn't matter that I love using circulars. It doesn't matter if I never use them for anything ever. Just knowing how will make me a more well rounded knitter. (Kind of like everyone should learn to drive a stick shift, even if they only ever own automatics.)

2. Finish a project before I purchase a new one.

3. Check the stash before I make a purchase.

4. Do not over commit myself with commissions, gifts, etc. and neglect my own personal pleasure knitting.

5. Post a blog entry every odd dated day. (Which I have actually been pretty good about lately!)

6. Teach an average of one person to knit per month. (This one should actually be ridiculously easy since I tend to get good turn out at my library programs.)

And other goals, that can't really be considered resolutions:

1. Look into opening an etsy store front.

2. Keep trying to possibly get published.

We'll see how these go...

You're in the Wrong Field

Candid, my nay-saying coworker, has finally come around.

All the way around.

When I mentioned that I was making my ornaments for the ornament exchange, she poo-pooed the idea. She felt that I should just buck up and face the mall traffic. She thinks my whole knitting thing is silly. I apparently act like an old woman.

(You may recall that she was also averse to the whole CONCEPT of knitted dishcloths...until she got one!)

Well, I took the finished ornaments to work with me on Saturday, and wrapped them on my lunch break. Candid saw them and told me that they were beautiful. She was astonished at how professional they looked. (She even went so far as to say that she might pay for something like that.) She also saw one of the Christmas queue commissions on Saturday, and was impressed by it as well.

I was flattered, and surprised...since it was, after all, Candid.

I was even more surprised this morning when I heard her discussing them with one of my other co-workers. She brought them up, and asked if Miss-A had seen them. She then told me that she thinks I am in the wrong field. She suggested that I open a retail store or a yarn store...or at least teach classes professionally. (As opposed to the for free stuff I do here at the library.)

Hmmm...my own boutique...it is a thought.

(Although, I fear if I knit as a full-time professional that it might lose some of its charm...and I highly doubt that I could completely support myself that way...)

Crisis Averted...Sort Of

Thought I would give an update even though it is an "even" day.

After taking a major chill pill last night, I re-evaluated my situation.

I could either unravel the whole project and start over, adjusting it so that the yarn I had would be sufficient. (So not going to happen...)

OR

I could go to different stores and try to find more yarn and hope that the dye lots were close enough that it wouldn't matter.

I obviously went with the second.

Without divulging what the project is, since it is a commission for a GIFT...I can say that it has stripes. So, I am going to intersperse the new skeins with the old skeins until the old ones run out. The new skeins appear to be identical to the old ones, but better safe than sorry. Luckily they should be separated by enough space that any minute differences won't show.

I hope.

(Postscript for my mother: I know I told you yesterday morning that I had purchased the rest of the yarn. But it turned out that it was the wrong brand. I hadn't taken the ball bands in with me at the store, and they had moved stuff around to mask how low their stock was. I grabbed yarn from the right aisle that was the right color, but the yarn I needed was wool/acrylic blend and the stuff I bought was 100% acrylic. I realized the error when I got to work. Called my friend, she told me they were out of what I needed. So...I got the right stuff at another store after work tonight, and will return the wrong stuff tomorrow.)

Crisis!

I started a commission project.

I went to the store and purchased the yarn.

It was on sale! Woo-Hoo.

I bought a bunch of it.

I started the project.

I knit faithfully on it every chance I got. (At work on breaks, at home during movies...it is a very handily brain-free project. Knit every stitch for forever and a day with an occasional color change.)

I am out of yarn.

The project is not done.

The project apparently eats yarn like I eat green beans. Voraciously.

The store, having had a sale on this particular brand of yarn, is out of my colors.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!

Warm Hearts Warm Heads

My friend Belle's mother was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. She has already had the required surgery, but now must also undergo chemo.

Belle called me last week to schedule a time for me to come over and help her with some quilting she wants to do. (Yes, I quilt. I actually am probably a more skilled, though less frequent, quilter than knitter. Quilting isn't as portable as knitting...) While she had me on the phone she asked, in a plaintive manner, if I would consider possibly knitting her mother a chemo cap.

Here is the thing. I am very busy right now with school and work and life. Belle knows this. I am also trying to finish up my gift project queue. Belle knows this as well. She was very reluctant to request anything, but really wanted the chemo cap.

Here is the other thing. My mother had breast cancer. My grandmother had breast cancer. I knit mostly because I see it as a way that I can serve others. There were no grad school assignments, library duties, or social obligations that were going to keep me from making that cap.

I went to Knit This, Purl That on Sunday and purchased the softest yarn I could find. It is a cashmere, silk, merino blend. I found several patterns online, and had Belle pick out the one she liked the best. Then I put all other projects on hold till I got the cap finished. (I had a deadline set...tonight when I was going over to Belle's house for the quilting counseling.)

I got it done.

Here is Belle modeling it. (Please note...this photo was taken LATE at night after approximately 6 hours of quilting...)



Best wishes to Belle's mother! I hope that as this cap keeps her head warm, she is reminded of all the warm hearts who love her and are praying for her speedy and full recovery.