Seasons Collide

Our annual Summer Sale is on! This sale is all about clearing out closeout inventory. There are some great deals and steals to be had this year - Steve took no prisoners and is serious about making some room out in the warehouse. For those of you who have ever shopped the store, you know we always have a $2.00 bin. This is where odds and ends land. Well, Steve has added a $2.00 bin to the on-line sale this year! Fun for all! Be sure to check out the great buys on some really nice yarns for knitters, crocheters and weavers. Just remember, when they are gone, they are GONE!

We received our copies of Vogue Knitting Fall '08 a few days ago. I will readily admit that I don't run to the receiving area to grab my copy like I do when Interweave Knits comes. Usually there are a couple of patterns I like, but that's usually it. Well, Fall '08 is a completely different story. It is a really, really, REALLY nice issue. Look at the cover - LOOK AT THE MITTENS:

Designed by Jared of Brooklyn Tweed fame, those are mittens - serious mittens.

Called Green Autumn, they are classic, beautiful, challenging - perfect. The entire mitten spread has some great designs, some a bit more out there then others (from my perspective, but that's just me and my own personal aesthetic). Overall, very nicely done.

As I turned the page I was hit with this:

OMG - it's stunning. Secondly, it's designed by Robin Melanson, who I had the chance to meet briefly and is lovely and thirdly, she used Blue Sky Alpaca Melange.

Then there's this:

I love this too! Knit in Torino Bulky means it will move along. It's seed stitch surrounded by ribbing and knit from the top down. It's rated as an "intermediate" pattern (whereas the other two are "experienced" so won't be showing up on my needles anytime soon) so maybe I'll take it on. We'll see.

At this point, I am loving VK Fall '08 and as I continue to flip the pages (liking other things along the way, not just the ones I'm mentioning here) I come to this:

Norah Gaughan design using Berroco Peruvia. What else needs to be said?

Last, there is this one by Elsebeth Lavold:

Another "experienced" knit so unlikely to be knit by me, but it sure is pretty.

So, hat's off to Trisha Malcolm and her team - fabulous job one and all! Plus the editorial content is quite good too including articles about the Canadian knitting scene and our friends Jess and Casey at Ravelry. This is a nicely done issue.

Okay, what else? Oh, I received a wonderful surprise in the mail about a week or so ago from Iris at Artyarns:

It's beautiful and I was very touched that she thought to send it to me. Cashmere and crochet - what more could I ask for? This will be some pretty intense crocheting since the cashmere is her single ply Cashmere 1 and the pattern calls for a "C" hook. All of the circles are crocheted separately and joined as you go-ish. It's definitely going in the queue! Thanks Iris!

Last night, several of us went out to fete the lovely and talented Cirilia.

Many of you know her from the store and others from our catalog. She has been with us since she graduate 3 years ago and has brought so much to WEBS. Well, she is leaving and we are very sad. Fortunately, she is staying in the industry so I know we will still get to cross paths and such. I am not sure if I am at liberty to say where she is going (she wasn't sure either) so I'm going to play it safe and say nothing other than "Go Get 'Em Cirilia!"

Lastly, a Happy, Happy Birthday to Barbara Elkins! B - we hope you are enjoying your day - we enjoyed your cake!

Kathy