WEBS Yarn Store

Let's Migrate!

2008-10-17T15:38:00.003-05:00

As promised! The new blog is ready!

Check it out at http://blog.yarn.com.

Be sure to update your links, bloglines, feeds, etc. Any problems - just email me at kathy.elkins AT yarn DOT com.

Comment on the new site and let me know what you think!

Kathy

Tomorrow's the Day!

2008-10-16T17:59:00.002-05:00

I can barely stand it! Tomorrow I will be redirecting to the new blog! Woohoo! It's taken much longer than I anticipated - somehow these tech things always do. I am very excited about the new blog, how it looks and all of the flexibility I have with the new platform.

So - tomorrow we'll celebrate (hopefully you will like it as much as I do) and then next week I'll be back to a consistent blog schedule!

Kathy

Coming Along

2008-10-07T18:44:00.002-05:00

Steve & I are back from our mini-vacation. Just a few short days away - no kids, no work-related reason for the trip. It was wonderful. Highlights - lots of downtime, great food and two holes where I out-drove Steve :) To clarify, I was playing from the ladies tees, he from the back, BUT, that is how a golf course is designed to work and although I didn't hit it as far as he did, I did out drive him.

I know I announced our migration to Wordpress a while back. Between our trip and the usual workings it takes to make these things happen, it's taking a tad longer than I had hoped. It is looking GREAT though! A few more days is all I think it will be, so please bear with me :)

Most important item right now - please be sure to join this Sunday from 12-4 for our 5th Annual Knit/Crochet for a Cure. We will be creating squares this year that will become blankets. If you are a spinner, come on in and bring your wheel. For those of you with Rigid Heddle Looms - bring them in as well. We're adapting a design for "strips" that you can weave and contribute to the cause. This is always a fun day, so please stop by.

Snacks and such as always. Raffles a definite. Come and join in this very worth cause to benefit the Cancer Connection right here in Northampton.

Kathy

On The Move!

2008-09-30T05:39:00.002-05:00

Tons to post about but it seems I am out of time! Steve and I are off for a few days of R&R - sun and golf which is our favorite kind of trip.

Most importantly, I want to let everyone know that this blog is on the move. I am migrating to Wordpress, which is something I've been planning for awhile. Many of you know my frustrations with Blogger and ultimately, I need more control over the blog for a variety of reasons. Stay tuned for the redirect and be sure to update your links when the move is complete. I'll keep you posted! Just bear with me and the tech team while they get this accomplished.

Kathy

The Week+ In Review

2008-09-21T15:16:00.013-05:00

September has been quite the whirlwind. Last I left you all, I was off on a trip to St. Louis. I was gone for 3 days, which isn't all that long, but long enough to unsettle the schedule. I was originally suppose to be gone longer, but Mom responsibilities called and Steve had to travel to Manhattan to speak at the Big Apple Knitters Guild Annual Luncheon. He didn't take any pictures, but I sure would've liked to have been a fly on the wall watching him and 87 knitters!

I left again last Tuesday to head to Cleveland for the second season taping of Knitting Daily TV. I was pretty nervous when we went for the taping last April, but this time was much less stressful. Steve once again stayed home. We've been away so much this year we really felt we couldn't leave the boys again unless it was necessary for us both to be somewhere. In this case it wasn't.

I was met at the airport by the lovely Shannon Okey, who was kind enough to give me a bit of a lift. It was greatly appreciated given that I did not have time to ship all of the "stuff" for my segments in advance so I had one huge suitcase with yarn and props for seven segments along with a second smaller bag packed with seven different outfits. I was also carrying with me yarn that she was in need of for a rush project, so the helping hands worked both ways! Thanks Shannon - great to see you!

I went directly to the studios to prep for my segments and then the next day was taping day!

I did take a few snapshots to share. Here's Liz Gipson and Eunny Jang prepping in the "Green Room" - it really is green.

Here's Shay Pendray working a project in between segments. She is one of the loveliest people I have ever met.

Here's Kim Werker on set prepping for a segment with producer Kathy.

It was great fun to do the TV thing again, but I was equally happy to head for home again.

The night before I left for Cleveland, the WEBS crew gathered for a surprise shower for Mary. I was in charge of carrying out the cover story and getting her to the restaurant on-time. She thought we were meeting our designer and one of our printers for dinner to discuss business. When we walked into the retaurant, she instead found this:

She was completely surprised and we had a lovely celebration. The wedding is only 3 weeks away and we're excited to share in her special day!

I flew home from Cleveland in time to record this week's podcast which featured Norah Gaughan! She was in town for a store appearance that night so it was the perfect opportunity to have her back on the show. I was a little delirious from the traveling and started out the interview by calling one of Berroco's yarns by the wrong name. Consumate professional - yep, that's me.

We finished the recording and Steve and I headed over to UMass to make a presentation to a marketing class. It was great fun but a little tough since Steve had written the presentation while I was gone. I think we muddled through pretty well.

Then it was back to the store to prep for the event with Norah. As exhausted as I was, the event was GREAT! We had many of the Fall '08 garments on hand and most in two sizes.

Our sales rep Andra and Berroco Designer (and former WEBS staffer) Cirilia modeled:

I picked this picture in particular because of the garment. I apologize that the shot is a bit blurry. This is Assemblage from NGV3 (Norah Gaughan Book volume 3). Norah explained that initially she had envisioned this cardigan with a wrap that would attach. She brought along the piece and attached it for us to see the look. I love Assemblage as is, but I like it this way too! It's knit in Pure Merino DK.

I am also including this picture of Portrait (knit in Inca Gold), also found in NGV3 for a reason.

The design inspiration for this garment is a knitted cable. Norah, with the help of Margery, pixelated what a knitted cable looks like and incorporated it into this design. When I first saw this garment, I did not see the cable. In fact, depending on the person, it has a sort of "hologram" effect as different people see different things. Now that we know what it is, it's clear as day. That Norah, she's a smart cookie.

I have video from both KDTV and Norah's event, but that's going to take a little more editing time. I will post them soon though!

The remainder of this week was uneventful. All I know Toto "there's no place like home".

Kathy

Wrap Ups and Ramp Ups

2008-09-10T11:02:00.006-05:00

Sorry for not posting sooner. The weekend was crazy with Twist and I took off yesterday for a business trip.

Twist was an absolute blast! Thanks to everyone who came out - especially those of you who made the trek in the remnants of Hanna. It was such a great community event - Lexie & Cory you guys rock!

Here's our own LA demoing the Rigid Heddle Loom on Friday evening.

I manned the show on Saturday and the interest in the loom was incredible.

Here's Christa & Tina from WEBS! Christa was selling her beautiful handknits while Tina makes amazing necklaces.

For those of you who missed the event, rumor has it that a Twist 2.0 may be in the works, so be sure to stay tuned!

Now, as much as I hate to say goodbye to summer, there's no question that fall is just around the corner. Our new fall catalog is arriving in homes and I have to say a great big "Thank you" to everyone who has taken time to email or post a comment or blog about it. We are really proud of this issue as it incorporates many new ideas I've been working on. If yours hasn't arrived yet, don't despair! The catalogs are at the mercy of the USPS so please have patience. If you aren't currently on our mailing list and want to receive a copy, simply email customerservice@yarn.com with the request and be sure to include your name and mailing address.

For those of you who have already dog-eared several pages, what projects are you planning to make? Time to get fall knitting in full swing!

Kathy

Ready, Set, Knit #95 Yarn, Events & Carol Sulcoski

2008-09-07T11:30:00.003-05:00

This week on Ready, Set, Knit Steve & I discuss more new yarns and upcoming events.

While Pixie is still on holiday, I invited back one of my favorite guests, author, indie dyer and blogger, Carol Sulcoski! Carol is co-author of the lovely book Knit So Fine and she has a second book due out this December, which we discuss. You can see Carol's gorgeous yarns at www.blackbunnyfibers.com and read her blog at www.goknitinyourhat.blogspot.com.

You can get Ready, Set, Knit at http://www.yarn.com/ or on iTunes!

Enjoy!

Kathy

P.S. If you have suggestions for topics, KALs or special guests, please email me at readysetknit@yarn.com! I'd love to hear from you!

Interweave Crochet Fall '08 Preview!

2008-09-05T14:51:00.003-05:00

Just posted is the preview for the Fall '08 issue! Check it out here http://interweavecrochet.com/issue/2008/materials_fall08.asp#ridgeswing.

The designs are really beautiful and I have to admit to being partial to the Stepping Stones Cardigan by Kristin Omdahl. She used our Valley Yarns Deerfield and the finished cardi is really stunning! Can't wait for the issue to arrive.

More updates from Twist are coming too!

Kathy

Twist is Tomorrow!

2008-09-04T15:53:00.004-05:00

Kicking off tomorrow is the first ever Twist here in Northampton. Twist is the creation of Lexie Barnes and her husband Corey. From the website: "Twist is a fresh kind of fair, showcasing original handmade goods and art from over 50 of the region's most talented crafters and artists. Two days of shopping start Friday evening on 9/5 with DJ beats and adult beverages."

In speaking with Lexie over the past few months about this endeavor, I know she and Corey were passionate about having a cool, hip event which would provide the opportunity for anyone to come and check out incredible art at affordable prices. I also know they are hoping to provide the artists with a showcase for their talent as well as an opportunity to sell their goods.

Steve & I are totally psyched to be a part of this event. We'll be there doing demos, there will be yarn to test drive, our Bead Store will be there as well. If you are in the area or are simply looking for something interesting to do this weekend, come on out to Noho and check out Twist!

The event runs Friday from 5pm-9pm and Saturday from 10am-8pm. The first 100 people will receive Twist Swag Bags. Admission is cheap - $3 for adults, $1 for kids 12 and under and FREE for those 5 and under. Hope to see all of you there!

Oh, and as promised:

It was the first day of school. Second and fourth grades. How the heck did that happen?

Kathy

You Won't Believe This

2008-09-03T15:38:00.004-05:00

Seriously. I hope you are sitting down and if you aren't I suggest you do before you read any further. What I am about to show you is, well, going to come as a bit of a surprise, especially coming from me. So here goes. Ready? I present to you knitting:

Knitting done by ME! I know, I know, it's pretty amazing. Owner of one of the largest yarn stores/websites in the country, who blogs about said store and yarn, is actually blogging about her very own knitting project. Shocking, isn't it?

My Staghorn Cabled Tunic is coming along! I am quite pleased with it and have really enjoyed working on it. Look at the lovely cables:

I am just about to work the armhole shaping and such to finish up the front then onto the back. Yeah, we finished this weeks ago on the Ready, Set, Knit KAL, but I never claimed to be a speedy knitter. Little bit here, little bit there. . . . There's even a shot I'll have this beauty done for Stitches East!

I am using our own Valley Yarns Northampton, (which is the yarn called for) in dark grey. The store sample was knit in light grey and I almost went with black (big surprise for those who know me and see me on a regular basis). I'm glad I opted for the dark grey. I was able to get gauge using the suggested needle size, which is a rarity for me. I started out on Colonial's Rosewood Circs (a personal fave) but the dark yarn and dark needles were not working out. I resisted the change until it was forced upon me (call it a mini-intervention). Next thing I knew I was on Skacel's Addi-Naturas, which I had not previously used. Love them! Not too pointy, nice and smooth with a perfect join. The cord is not quite as cooperative as the Colonial's but it's a minor intrusion.

In other news when is a crochet hook case not just a crochet hook case? A question I am sure many of you have pondered. Here, is the Lexie Barnes Dottie in the Diablo print:

Innocent, yet very functional crochet hook case.

When interpreted by a nine-year old boy about to start fourth grade, it morphs into this:

The coolest pencil case EVER! J1 spied this at the store yesterday and asked if he could get one for school. ABSOLUTELY! He's loaded and locked and ready for the first day tomorrow! Woohoo! J2 goes back too! Double woohoo! Truly, it's been a most awesome summer, but folks when I say it's time for them to be back to school, I mean it's really time. Even they are ready! Watch for cute, first day of school brag pictures tomorrow!

Kathy

Good Times, Good Memories

2008-08-31T16:19:00.008-05:00

Happy Labor Day weekend everyone! After a very wet, "Florida meets Kansas" kind of summer here in the northeast, we are being rewarded with an absolute gem of a weekend (well, at least today and tomorrow).

I've got a few photos from Midwest that I want to share, in addition to the videos I've already posted.

First, I think all of you are aware of my penchant for warm weather. The morning I left for Midwest, this was the temperature here (top = outdoor, bottom=indoor):

Yes, it can get very cold here in New England, but that is pushing things for mid-August. A reminder of things to come from Mother Nature I suppose. Makes it even more important to me to savor days like today.

We dined at the Weber Grill in Schaumburg with one of our suppliers and his lovely family. Unfortunately, the mini-van didn't have quite enough room for everyone. Steve lost the draw:

I was completely taken by this lovely scarf. I wrote down her name and have no idea where that little slip of paper is. It will turn up, but in the meantime, isn't this adorable?

She called it her diamond square scarf, as the crocheted squares are attached at the corner, thus looking like diamonds. She used SWTC Tofutsies in an array of colors. Here's a closeup.

I just love it.

This next shot also tickles me. Far from the only sighting of a WEBS purchase over the weekend, but this was on Thursday evening after the market preview in the lounge at the hotel.

What doesn't come through as clearly as I would have liked is that the bar is lit and the WEBS bag was glowing.

Lastly, here we all are in our exhausted glory. Show over, everything packed up and we were tired and hungry, but happy:

Thanks to Pete, Andra, Kirsten and KT for a SUPER effort. You guys rocked.

Before I put Midwest completely to bed, there's something else I want to share. Over the course of any show, there are what I will categorize as "moments". In the scope of the show, they are the memory makers for us. Working these tradeshows is hard, grueling work. This show, I made a point to try to keep track of some of the funnier "Quotes from Schaumburg" to share with all of you. Now remember, they might not seem as funny and entertaining to all of you, as they did to us at the time. Here goes:

"If I don't see fencing, I'm going to kill someone"

"You haven't seen Glenn Garry, Glenn Ross and I still married you?"

"There's a Grim Reaper in all of us" - Wanda, IA

"It feels like someone is breathing on me"

"He probably just smells cats" - owner of Daniel the Golden Lab

"My Noro people are here, should I smoke the credit card?" - anonymous

"What, are you chicken?"

"Yarn.com was here."

With that, need I say more? See you all in Baltimore for East!

Kathy

Ready, Set, Knit #94: Interviews with Rick Mondragon & Lexie Barnes!

2008-08-30T12:27:00.003-05:00

This week on Ready, Set, Knit Steve & I interview Rick Mondragon, Editor of Knitters Magazine. Get some insight into what it takes to bring each issue to life, Rick's thoughts on the fall issue and more!

We also had the pleasure of having our friend Lexie Barnes join us this week as well! Lexie and her husband Corey are producing a new event here in Northampton called Twist, which will be held Friday & Saturday, September 5th & 6th. Here from one of the participating artists, Sarah of Ansel Blue Designs as well! We hope to see you there next weekend!

You can get Ready, Set, Knit at http://www.yarn.com/ or on iTunes!

Kathy

Mastering Technology

2008-08-29T14:55:00.008-05:00

I think I simply wore Blogger out last night in trying to upload these videos. Sorry to have left you with the middle of the Oreo missing, but here we go.

All set and ready for the knitters!

Here is a quick tour of the Berroco section of our booth. In particular, check out the Babettes (Andra's and Pixie's) and the beautiful Assemblage Sweater. I "heart" Assemblage. There are three lovely versions for you to see!

I have some regular camera shots from the show that still need to be posted, so stay tuned for those.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Labor Day weekend. Remember, our retail store will be CLOSED Sunday (as always) and Monday in observance of the holiday! You can always order anytime at www.yarn.com!

Kathy

Stitches Midwest - The Recap

2008-08-28T16:17:00.009-05:00

Whew - what a show! We had such a great time at Midwest. Always so much fun to see our Midwest customers (and those of you who travelled even further). Thanks to everyone for making the weekend such a blast.

I thought I'd try a bit of a different twist in sharing Stitches with all of you. I did take a lot of pictures, some of which I will share with you, but first, I'd like to share this:

Yes, I know, probably not the safest video ever taken, but I was excited. I promised Steve I would not do this again.

We arrived at the convention center and here's where things stood:

Finally, time to call it a show:

I have to interim sections that just don't seem to be cooperating tonight including one great video of some of the Berroco garments. I am out of patience Blogger, so will leave you with these for tonight and the following questions. More tomorrow.

I'd love to know what you all think of the video. I promise (a) I will get better at it and (b) not include this many videos in any one post on a regular basis. I am excited. I've had this little Flip video cam ever since I saw Kim Werker with it - nearly a year ago. Not only is it adorable and super functional - it's orange, which I love.

I do have some cool photos from the show as well, which I will discuss tomorrow!

Kathy

Ready, Set, Knit #93: Interview w/Betsy Perry of Classic Elite Yarns

2008-08-25T14:23:00.002-05:00

This week on Ready, Set, Knit Steve & I interview Betsy Perry of Classic Elite Yarns. Here all about the new fall yarns and designs!

You can get Ready, Set, Knit at http://www.yarn.com/ or on iTunes!

Kathy

And We're Off

2008-08-22T07:21:00.004-05:00

Just a quick little post from here in Chicago. Our flight, set-up and opening night all went flawlessly. We could have opened at noon yesterday. If I do say so myself, we rocked the free world.

The Market Preview, which was last night, is for registered students only. They were quite an enthusiastic bunch and we had a blast seeing many familiar faces but meeting some new ones too. We had lots of nice comments about Ready, Set, Knit. It always freaks me out a bit to realize that people do actually listen. A few people commented how weird it was to be hearing our voices and seeing us in person.

After the market closed, we stayed here at the hotel for some appetizers. Stitches is a marathon and we've learned to pace ourselves.

I have to comment on the hotel. It is only two years old and it is lovely. Seriously lovely. The architecture, the decor, the details, the staff. . . .we're pretty pro-Marriott people and have stayed in many, across all the brands they have. This Renaisssance is among the best. I may never leave (I realize that could cause a multitude of issues, so just let me bask in my fantasy for a bit longer, okay?). Look at this - this is a feature in the bathroom of our standard room:

Love this place.

Kathy

Chicago Bound

2008-08-19T17:07:00.011-05:00

Stitches Midwest is nearly upon us! This year's show is in a brand new location in Schaumburg, IL. Our home for a few days will be the Renaissance Hotel & Convention Center. It's a brand new facility and we'll be the only show happening. Registered students can shop the market on Thursday evening from 5-8pm. The market is open to the general public Friday and Saturday from 10-6pm and Sunday 10-4pm. We will be in booths 513-618. Our crew this year includes Pete our Ops Mgr (in other words, he makes sure your orders get picked, packed & shipped), KT our Asst. Store Manager, Kirsten our Design Coordinator, Andra our most faboo Berroco rep and of course Steve & I. Be sure to stop by, say hi, do a little shopping, check out our Valley Yarns and garments (including all the new ones for fall!), Berroco's fall line and garments (Andra will have both of her Assemblages on display, plus lots more). We'll have some Kauni in the booth (get it while it lasts) and lots of great deals.

In other news, last week we received the new Nectar pattern book from Rowan. It's stunning.

We also have Kim Hargreaves Heartfelt and this great garment is on display in the store.

Knit in Kid Classic - isn't it lovely?

And I love the necklace (courtesy of WEBS Beads):

When we received in Artyarns Silk Pearl and Beaded Pearl & Sequins, I was in love. But we all know I am the slowest knitter around, so when Leslie Ann commented that she was wanting to give it a whirl on the Rigid Heddle Loom, I knew we could accomplish two things at once:

Isn't it gorgeous. I know, the photo doesn't do it justice. I am bringing home a Schacht Flip Loom after Midwest and I am making one of these in every colorway. This beauty took one hank of Silk Pearl for warp and one skein of Bead Pearl and Sequins for weft.

LA - I cannot thank you enough!

In other news, several of us had the chance to celebrate the upcoming wedding of Mary. Here's the lovely bride and groom.

We had a great time and are looking forward to the wedding this fall.

Oh and look at this creation - a wedding cake made from towels!

People are so clever! It was very cool.

J1 & J2's epic summer continued last week with our 3rd Red Sox game of the season.

This one was extra special because (a) I won tickets and I NEVER win anything and (b) the raffle I entered help to contribute to medical expenses for a very sick child in our town.

The seats were incredible:

We even had a waitress and menus!

Fenway franks never tasted so good!

I hope to see lots of you in Chicago!

Kathy

P.S. Don't forget - I am now on Facebook and have created a WEBS Page. It still needs some work, but it's coming along. If you are on Facebook, look me up as a friend and certainly join the WEBS page!

Podcast Show 92: Interview with Karen Morris

2008-08-16T16:16:00.004-05:00

This week on Ready, Set, Knit Steve & I interview Karen Morris, author of "The Beading Answer Book" which is a terrific reference book for beaders of any level. Be sure to visit WEBS Beads!

Pixie & I wrap up the Staghorn Cabled Tunic KAL!

You can get Ready, Set, Knit at http://www.yarn.com/ or on iTunes!

Kathy

Tax Free Weekend!

2008-08-15T10:39:00.003-05:00

This weekend is Tax Free Weekend here in Massachusetts. All purchases of taxable goods under $2500 will save the standard 5% sales tax! We are fortunate that yarn is not taxed here, but there are lots of items that are! Things like looms, spinning wheels, knitting needles, books, bags and other accessories. That means if you've been thinking about purchasing a spinning wheel, this weekend you'll save the 5% sales tax. On some of these larger ticket items, we could be talking about enough savings to cover the gas to get here, or even lunch!

But wait! You know Steve and I like to make things extra exciting so in addition to saving 5% on the sales tax, we'll also take 10% off the original price! Now we're talking some serious savings!

Remember, this applies to in-store, in-stock purchases only. For those of you considering a loom, this applies only to a single purchase with a price under $2,500.

This is a great opportunity to get a jump start on some holiday shopping. Think about getting that special knitter a set of 24" Addi Turbo circs in the complete size range - now that would be a GREAT gift and you'd save quite a bit of money (approximately $50.00 savings!). Okay, so maybe that's a bit extravagant, but you get the idea!

We look forward to seeing everyone tomorrow - it's going to be a great day!

Kathy

Thoughts from Cape Cod

2008-08-07T10:55:00.005-05:00

We are wrapping up our week here at the Cape and it has been a great vacation. The trip has not been the reason I haven't blogged. The blog was locked down by Blogger late last week. Their software identified a bunch of blogs as potential "spammers". It was fixed within a day or so, but I didn't realize this. It was posted here on "Blogger Buzz", but I was waiting for an email response to my request for a "review" of my blog. Oh well, we are on vacation after all so it's not as if I would have been posting everyday.

Unfortunately, I am now late to the party with a few important happenings and such.

1. Last Friday, the much anticipated Twist Collective went live. Twist Collective is a new on-line magazine that was developed by Kate Gilbert and a trio of very talented friends. The premise was to bring together talented designers and writers and provide them with not only a platform for their work, but also provide them with more flexibility with usage of their work. I interviewed Kate on Ready, Set, Knit, last week and we had a great conversation about her new venture. Overall, I love Twist Collective. I think the format is fresh, the designs are terrific and the content is well done. Twist Collective will be published quarterly and will have smaller updates in between. If you haven't already checked it out, you should take a few minutes to do so.

2. On Monday, another new on-line knitting magazine went live - Knotions.com, published by Jody Pirello. Jody's take is all about knitting smarter. She has made the patterns printer friendly, charts that are clickable and easy to enlarge. She offers technique tutorials along with interesting articles. I especially liked the Fall '08 color trends story. Jody will be our guest on this week's podcast, so be sure to check that out on Saturday, 8/9!

3. WEBS' August Sale is in full swing! Amazing savings on yarns for knitters and weavers!

4. Stitches Midwest is only two weeks away! The show will be held at the Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel & Convention Center in Schaumburg, IL. This is a new location for the show and we are pretty excited about it! Not that we didn't like Rosemont, but in Schaumburg, the convention center only hosts one event at a time plus the facility is pretty new, so it should be a lovely knitting extravaganza! We will be there in booths 513-618 with all of our Valley Yarns, Berroco, including all of the new fall yarns, pattern books and many, many, many of the actual model garments for you to see! Plus, we'll have some other fabulous yarns along with some great closeout deals. If you are planning to come to the show be sure to stop by!

5. I forgot to mention that WEBS Beads is participating in our August Sale as well! They will be having weekly specials throughout August. If you live in the area or plan to be during August, be sure to stop by and see what they've got on special! This week we're offering 15% off all findings and stringing materials. Savings in-store only!

6. Our Fall Class Schedule is posted on-line! We have an incredible selection of classes for knitters, crocheters, weavers, spinners, dyers and more! We've got some great guest teachers coming as well. Clara Parkes, Kristen Nicholas, Susanna Hansson and Galina Khmeleva will all be at WEBS this fall! What is sure to be "the" event of the season happens on September 17th, when Norah Gaughan returns to WEBS! This is a rare chance to spend time with Norah, discuss the new fall yarns and designs with her, learn how they came to be and try on all of the amazing garments! Be sure to check out all of the classes and events and get yourself signed up!

7. I am working hard on the Staghorn Cable Tunic, which is our current KAL on Ready, Set, Knit!. I am a slow knitter, but I am loving this pattern and the entire design in general. It really is not difficult at all, which is why it's a perfect summer project. Yes, it's working with wool, but it's really not that bad to work with, even in the heat. It's going to be a great layering piece all fall and winter long. Speaking of Valley Yarns patterns, all of our new fall patterns that will be featured in the next catalog, are already up on-line!

Well, I think that covers everything! Back to vacation!

Kathy

NY Sheep & Wool

2008-07-31T16:20:00.005-05:00

WEBS will be hosting another bus trip to this year's NY Sheep & Wool Festival. The date is Saturday, October 18th. We've reserved two buses and need to have enough registrations to be sure we're covering the costs for both by the middle of August. Last year's trip was a sell-out, so I am confident we'll fill two buses this year. We'll depart WEBS around 7:30am and return around 6pm-ish. We'll provide a continental breakfast for everyone, but please bring your own coffee! There will be lots of fun on the trip out to Rhinebeck including fun games with prizes! Bring along your latest project, relax on our motor coach bus and enjoy a phenomenal day in Rhinebeck! Cost of the trip is $65.00 all inclusive. Get yourself registered today so you don't miss out!

On another note, this summer has been wrought with really bizarre weather here in Western Massachusetts. We've had a couple of reported tornadoes, over 12" of rain in the past month (record breaking) and more severe thunderstorms than I can remember in one summer. Now, you all know I am a weather buff and I've been loving a lot of this, but things have really gotten out of control. This afternoon we had a shower come through, a couple of distant rumbles of thunder and some wind. It was tame in comparison to what some of our storms have been like. I hurried the kids in, got the windows closed, fielded a call from a neighbor and then, I turned around and my patio umbrella was gone! I looked all around the yard and scanned the neighbors' yards, but couldn't find it. Once the heavy rain stopped, I sent the boys out for a look and sure enough, they found it:

Yes, it's on the roof, where else would it be? Only 7 and 9 year old boys would even think to look up!

Kathy

Seasons Collide

2008-07-30T16:04:00.007-05:00

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:

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

Knitting Daily TV Launches!

2008-07-28T15:21:00.004-05:00

Interweave's Knitting Daily TV has finally arrived! WEBS is thrilled to be one of the major sponsors of this exciting new PBS show!

The website is now live and full of information about each episode. Interweave purchased the rights to Shay Pendray's Needlearts Studio and completely revamped the show. Hosted by Eunny Jang, Kim Werker, Liz Gipson and Shay Pendray, KDTV covers a wide variety of fiber crafts, although knitting is certainly the main focus. They all did such an amazing job!

There are thirteen total episodes in this first season and cover topics from "The Sweater", "Knitting Lace", "Cables" and so much more. Each show features segments that are geared towards the show's topic and include things like "Getting Started" or a "You Made It" where the host and a guest discuss and highlight a single project made and interpreted by different people. There's also the "Progressive Project" in which a project is covered step by step from start to finish. There are lots of great tips and tricks and general information.

As I've blogged about previously, I had the opportunity to tape several segments of the show. I have a set of the DVDs sitting here at my house and I have to be perfectly honest - I haven't had the courage to watch them yet!

I know, I am being ridiculous. The first time we recorded the podcast it was torture listening to myself back. Now, it's not big deal and I can honestly assess when I've done a reasonable job or where things could have been done better. I have no doubt that will be the case with these shows, but it's still intimidating!

For those of you right here in Western Mass (actually, Massachusetts in general) neither of the PBS stations (Boston & Springfield) are carrying the show. Although there is a wee little piece of me that is just an itty, bitty bit relieved, the reality is the shows are super and deserve air time. It's important to note that PBS programming is not within Interweave's control. Each PBS station can independently decide if they are going to carry the show. If you want the show in your area, now is the time to write a letter, send and email or make a phone call. Here is the contact information for Springfield and Boston. You can get more information on this at the Knitting Daily TV website.

Also on the website you will find many of the patterns that are demonstrated and discussed on the show, along with some show clips, etc. Be sure to check it out!

The highlight of the day today was an impromptu visit from Marianne Adams, owner of The Yarn Boutique in Lafayette, CA. She and her husband Bob are on an East Coast Adventure and made time to stop by for a visit. Marianne & I have been friends for awhile now and although we chat on email and such, we only see each other at tradeshows, which is far from conducive for socializing in any meaningful way. This was such a nice treat and the first time I've been able to meet her husband. I only wish my day hadn't been so hectic, but it was great to catch up, if even for only a little bit. I've never had the chance to visit her store, but if any of you find yourself in her area, be sure to check it out!

I also owe a shout out to Katkoe on Ravelry. She has a great avatar featuring stitch markers she crafted herself. I commented to her that I loved them and she was nice enough to send me a pair! I was so touched! There is nothing better than surprise gifts:

These so epitomize my knitting, it's almost NOT funny! It is a good reminder for me that is only yarn and it is only knitting and it is NOT the end of the world (even if sometimes it feels that way). Thanks Katkoe!!!

Kathy

P.S. For any of you who have Facebook pages, I have finally set-up my own page and would love to add some more friends!

Got Yarn?

2008-07-25T15:22:00.006-05:00

Um, yeah, we've got yarn, a lot of yarn. So much yarn has come in this week, I gave up trying to take photos and document it all. It's truly mind boggling!

We received in all of Classic Elite fall yarns, all of Tahki/Stacy Charles and Rowan! Seriously, the staff is on such overload at this point, everyone is sort of just wandering around babbling with dazed looks on their faces. It's been a lot to process both physically and mentally. I will touch on a few highlights, but please understand, this is merely the tip of the yarn mountain.

Kaffe Fassett introduces a new chunky weight yarn called Colourscape. It is so beautiful. I will take a picture of it on the store shelves (forgot today - remember the babbling and dazed looks, I'm there too). It knits at 3.5 sts = 1" on 10.5 needles and has 175 yards for $23.95.

Classic Elite Ariosa is a roving style yarn that is 90% extrafine merino/10% cashmere. It feels awesome! It also knits at 3.5 sts = 1" on 10.5 needles and has 87 yards for $11.99. Classic Elite has also introduced another collection of gorgeous designs to support all of their new yarns.

Plymouth has a new yarn in their Bristol Gallery Collection called Ashton. Ashton is 50% baby alpaca/40% fine merino/10% silk. This DK weight yarn has 122 yards and is just scrumptious. This is one that would make some great scarves for holiday gifts!

From Filatura Di Crosa, we've added a yarn called Ricciolo. This yarn is a blend of 51% mohair/49% acrylic. It's a light, lofty multi-colored boucle. It's fun, its fancy and Steve and I felt strongly that we needed to mix things up a bit. Ricciolo knits at 3 sts =1" on a 10.5 needles. Each ball has 66 yards and because of it's Italian heritage, retails at $12.95/ball. This yarn will make great trim, hats, scarves, etc.

Okay, that's it for yarns for now. Be sure to go through our list of New Yarns to see everything (and I know there will be more up this weekend!)

Earlier in the week, Mary and I headed off to Mt. Skinner State Park for our fall photoshoot. It was hot and muggy and sticky and icky - not the best of days for wearing sweaters, carrying sweaters, styling sweaters and looks, etc. What I can say is that every sweaty moment was SO worth it. Here are a few outtakes:

Pretty awesome view. We live in such a beautiful place!

This shoot was not for the faint of heart. From the drive up the mountain, to the "don't let the model fall over the edge" moments, we worked really hard to capture some amazing shots.

Our model Amy was such a trooper! Nothing phased her and despite the heat, humidity and rough terrain, she was upbeat, pleasant and cooperative throughout the entire shoot. We made sure every shot was ready to go before wrapping her in wool, alpaca, silk. . . . . .

Towards the end, Mary spied this bird. We were all immediately taken with it's intense blue color:

My picture doesn't do it justice, but trust me when I say it was incredible. We didn't know what it was. It was small-ish like a bluebird, but way too insanely blue to be one. Back at the ranch, we were told it's an Indigo Bunting. I am not a huge bird person but let me tell you, Indigo Buntings are welcome at my house anytime!

Last weekend, we escaped for a couple of days to visit friends on Cape Cod. There were fried clams, steamed clams, lots of fun and laughter and of course the beach! Here's Jackson at Nauset Beach at the National Seashore:

The waves were pretty strong that day and all of the kids ended up pretty scraped up and a bit battered, but with some great summer memories.

Here's the crew in all their glory:

Summertime, good friends and the beach. It just doesn't get any better than that!

Kathy

P.S. I have no idea why Blogger has decided to change my font and not give me the option to change it back to my standard. Another reason I will be breaking up with Blogger in the near future. Grrr. . . . .

Fast and Furious and a little Freddie

2008-07-17T16:29:00.002-05:00

There is all sorts of stuff happening and new products arriving faster than I can photograph them and get them up here. I'm going to get right to things.

First up, we are thrilled to introduce five brand spanking new colors from Fiesta Yarns. What makes these extra special? They are exclusive to WEBS! Woohoo! Here they are in Baby Boom, a personal fave:

The color names are (from left to right) - Chesapeake, PB&J, Autumn Lace,Sangria Swirl, and Mulberry Tree. These colors will also be available in other Fiesta yarns and stay tuned for more collaborations with Fiesta!

As I've blogged about many times, going to TNNA is a chance for me to search for cool new accessories and such. One of the items we picked up this year is The Fibersphere (I feel like there should be an echoing sound coming through your computer as I type that!)

It's actually a pretty cool little product. You can safe encase your working ball of yarn into the sphere, protecting it from pets, kids, the elements, etc. If you need/want to take the ball out of the sphere, all you have to do is unsnap it. No cutting of your working yarn. Pretty clever!

Plus, when you purchase this pink version, a portion of the proceeds are donated to Cancer Research. Cost is $20.00.

Blue Sky Alpacas also ventured into the project containment realm and introduced these adorable little project bags:

They are called "Pretty Cheep Project Bags" and are made from 100% cotton muslin, measure 12" square and are washable! Each bag has a red tag affixed to it for jotting notes about the project contained in the bag! At only $6.50, they are a "bahgain" (as we Bostonians say) and way cuter than a ziploc!

On this week's podcast, Steve & I have the pleasure of interviewing Michele Orne, author of the just released book "Inspired to Knit - Creating Exquisite Handknits" from Interweave Press.

We actually had the opportunity to meet Michele at TNNA and she is just lovely, as is her book. Rather than approach design from the purely technical standpoint, she delves into the inspirational side of design and how things in everyday life can invoke an idea or concept. Michele is a big proponent of Mood Boards and discusses how to compile and use them. To top off this lovely book, there are 21 stunning designs. Here are a few of my faves:

The Amber Beaded Cardigan:

This cardi actually started out as a shrug. You can see it in the sketch.

Michele decided to add the skirt on after and it created a completely different garment. I personally love it as is and love the shrug version as well. What is also interesting is that the beads are sewn on after the garment was completed.

The Seed-Stitch Poet Jacket appeals to me for it's beautiful lines and gentle shaping:

I also love the Tiny Twists Camisole:

Finally, this coat, the Winter Wonderland Coat took my breath away:

I could go on, but I'll stop here. You need to buy this book. The interview is on this week's podcast which is now up on iTunes and our website.

Last up, I didn't even realize this was in the store already, until I spied it on the shelf:

I took it and put it in my office so I can enjoy an entire year's worth of Yarn Harlot witicisms. I'm telling you all now - if you know of anyone who will want or love this as a gift, buy early, buy often. Do not email me three days before Christmas begging me to send you my copy - I adore you all and would do almost anything for you, but I'm not coughing up the calendar.

Finally, I leave you with Freddie, our unofficial store cat, who lives nearby and comes over to visit and get some love:

Freddie is one big lover-boy of a cat. He will not take no for an answer when he comes calling and if you try to ignore him or push him away, he'll do this:

He will interrupt any and all work until he gets what he wants. He's been known to sprawl right across a keyboard or worse, get in your lap and nuzzle his entire face into someone's neck. Again, not conducive to say answering customers' phone calls.

We love Freddie.

Kathy

NOTE: Due to a couple of technical difficulties, I was not able to publish this post on Thursday when I originally wrote it.

Franklin's Colorway is Here!

2008-07-15T16:20:00.009-05:00

It was quite the day today at the shop! Among the many boxes of yarn that arrived today was this:

Finally! Franklin's "Color Commentary" colorway from Lorna's Laces! If you haven't already heard, Lorna's is teaming up with celebrity bloggers to create limited edition colorways in their Shephard Sock Yarn. What fun! Shephard Sock is already a great sock yarn and the "color of the month" concept has pretty much been done, but I am loving this refreshing new take on limited edition colors. Franklin is Franklin Habit of The Panopticon blog and soon to be released book "It Itches" from Interweave Press. If you don't normally read his blog, I strongly encourage you to add it to your bloglines!

I can't wait to see what some of the other bloggers come up with! If you are interested in owning a skein of this yarn, I suggest you order quickly or stop by the store before it's all gone. (Note: small glitch with the shipment and we only received one bag today, but do not despair, the balance of our order will be here in a couple of days). The "Color Commentary" colorways retail for $11.00/2oz hank and you will need two hanks for a pair of socks.

I have a couple of other exciting new products to share with you, but those will have to wait until tomorrow! There's no way I can ever blog about everything new that comes in, so I encourage all of you to frequently check our New Yarns section.

I do want to show you this:

Another fab creation from one of our amazing customers. This is our own Valley Yarns Longmeadow - doubled! Let me tell you, it felt and looked incredible!

Kathy

Louet Mooi

2008-07-14T15:28:00.002-05:00

Of all the new products we had the chance to check out at the TNNA Market back in June, there is no question that Mooi, a new yarn from Louet, was not only the most interesting, but the product that created the most buzz. The buzz was so loud that the folks at Louet went back to Canada and did everything possible to expedite the availability of this yarn from it's original ship date of late summer. Thanks to them for whatever hoops they had to jump through!

Mooi (pronounced "moi" - although I know we'll end up calling it "moo-ee") is the Dutch word for "pretty". It is a blend of 70% bamboo/15% bison/15% cashmere. I know, I was skeptical at first too! Don't let this ecletic blend fool you. It is incredible. What is really intriguing is that bamboo is dyed, while the bison and cashmere remain in their natural colorations. The bison also adds a bit of a soft "haze" to the yarn. Speaking of colors, although the palette only features 7 colors, they are spectacular. I have to give Josh, our photographer-in-residence a shout out for the excellent job he did in shooting this particular yarn. My monitor here at home (which is nothing special) shows the colors beautifully and you are easily able to see the bison fiber.

Mooi is a lace weight yarn, knitting at 7-8 sts/inch on a #2-#4 needle. It needs to be handwashed (of course) and each 100 gram hank contains 350 yards. Now, given the incredible fiber blend, you know we are dealing with a luxury product. The price per hank for Mooi is $49.95/hank, discountable. I know, even with the discount it's a bit extravagant, but this yarn is so totally worth it. Also, you need to take into consideration that just like products produced here in the U.S., Mooi is produced in Canada on Prince Edward Island and therefore a higher price point is to be expected.

Anyone else who has been able to see this yarn in person or stops by the store to check it out, please let us know what you! Leave me a comment!

Also, just a couple of quick shots from a fun family day yesterday at Fenway Park! It was a gorgeous day in Boston and at Fenway! Red Sox are leading the AL East at the All-Star break.

Happy times here in Red Sox Nation!

Kathy

New KnitScene!

2008-07-13T09:00:00.007-05:00

The Fall issue of Knitscene is out!

It is now in a larger format, which I think it is great. There are several interesting projects in the issue, but there's one that I am particularly fond of:

This is the Matryoshka Stole. I love the design, I love the beads, I love the size. What I really love is that it is knit in our own Valley Yarns Stockbridge! But what makes this even better is that it was designed and knit by Cirilia who works for us in the store, has designed for us and has model in our catalog!

Even more exciting - Cirilia is profiled in Knitscene's "One Cool Knitter" feature.

If you haven't picked up the fall issue yet, stop by the store or you can order it on-line.

Oh, and for those of you intrigued by that sweet capped sleeved sweater Cirilia is wearing in the article, I know where you can get it! It's the Gallery Jacket, and it's also designed by Cirilia. The yarn is our own Valley Yarns Sheffield.

Congratulations Cirilia! We are very excited for you!

Kathy

You're Suppose to Listen to Your Mother!

2008-07-11T13:32:00.008-05:00

Well, either I'm failing as a parent or he can read very well, because it's obvious our oldest child simply does not listen. Why is that you ask? Well, let's just review this.

See! I was quite clear - "Don't rush to be nine", I said. I did not use any advanced vocabulary or vague grammatical nuances, I used simple, basic language that any eight year old with a decent 2nd grade education could easily comprehend. Do you think he listened to me? Of course not. Nope, he just whizzed through an entire year, despite my pleas and as of 1:43pm this afternoon, EDT, he is officially nine.

I mean, he started out like this:

These were adorable times, but honestly, growing out of the reflux stage and the I-don't-want-to-sleep-at-night phase was kinda okay with me.

These flashes of independence were charming:

I was even okay with how easily he took on the role of big brother:

I could even handle his opinionated personality that appeared pretty earlier on:

(Note: trust me when I say the "opinionated" portion of his personality was apparent waaaay before this photo was taken).

When he donned this and whispered in my ear "Mommy, I really AM a Superhero", I was okay with that, because I knew what was under that mask:

And even as Steve & I revelled when he started school, we didn't think much of it, heck it was only preschool:

But last year I was very serious about the "getting older" stuff. It had to stop, or at least slow down to a pace I could handle. But once again, my requests were cast aside and he went ahead and skated-swung-sang-played piano-Wii'd-learned-and-grew his way through another year.

In the end, I guess the only thing we can really do is say "Happy Birthday Jackson! We Love You!"

P.S. To celebrate Jackson's Birthday, we have a great new product in the house! We are pleased to welcome Silk Garden Sock! Eight fabulous colors of Silk Garden are now available in sock weight! It's 40% lambswool/25% silk/25% nylon/10% kid mohair with 330 yards. Price is $19.99 and it is discountable! One ball will make a pair, but I know this yarn will be used for so much more than just socks! Let the celebration begin!

We Have Campers!

2008-07-10T16:03:00.007-05:00

And look. . . they're dyeing:

This week we hosted our Summer Fiber Camp. What fun it has been! Our Counselor-in-Residence, Leslie Ann has once again put together a faboo program. We've had a full house of young ladies who all but one already know how to knit. Besides knitting and felting, today was dyeing day and tomorrow they will bring their dried skeins back in. Cannot wait to see them!

Just a couple of quick product updates. For those of you who own the Denise Interchangeable Set of Needles, we are now stocking their new Fabric-Sided Organizers:

These lightweight cases are lightweight and have enough space to store all of your extra needles. Additionally, there are two snap in pockets for storing all of your extra knitting necessities:

Since they can snap out, you can easily take on or both along with you! What makes these cases even better? They are "Made in the USA". Love that!

You can see more pictures here. Be sure to come on back to http://www.yarn.com/ to place your order! The cases are only $55.00!

The other item I want to share with you isn't going to be on the site until tomorrow (I'll add the link, promise!) but I just couldn't wait to post these:

This is Happy Choices, a new product from Plymouth Yarn Company. These are 90% Superwash Merino/10% Nylon Sock Flats. Unravel as you knit and you'll end up with an amazing pair of hand-dyed socks! Want to create your own? No problem, we have the blanks as well! Each flat has 384 yards and has a recommended gauge of 8 sts = 1" on #1 needles. The dyed flats retail for $23.99 and are discountable, while the blank flats are $17.99. These are only 3 of the 8 colorways available. Link will be live tomorrow morning (Note: Link is live)!

Still practicing with my new camera (I will have to breakdown and peruse the directions eventually). Here's a shot of Steve doing what he loves to do most of all:

Ringing up a customer who had filled one of our big shopping carts with big cones! The picture is a bit dark - need to figure that out.

As for me, I was relegated to "signing" duty:

These are the letters for July's One Skein Contest and Club packets. Although there are a lot, I feel obligated to hand-sign each one. I tried going to just the letter "K" a few months ago, but that just seemed weird. I've gone through part of the stack and off to do the rest as soon as I am done with this post. I really can't complain. I get sit out here:

It's gorgeous here today and I get to sit out on the deck and enjoy. Even those non-lizards in the area can't complain today.

Kathy

Let's Test This Baby Out

2008-07-09T16:14:00.005-05:00

Alrighty now! I have my new camera and I have to say - I love it! It's small and lightweight and sleek and oh so pretty! It's not as fancy as my last camera, but it did so much more than I needed it to do.

Let's toss up a test picture and see what we think:

Now that's a mighty fine looking picture, if I do say so myself. Look at the Blue Sky Alpaca - the cotton is in the foreground and the alpaca/silk is towards the back. Colors look good!

I was running out, so I only had a few moments to snap a couple of shots.

It was my turn for the baseball camp carpool - 4 sweaty, filthy boys, exhausted, boys. All four talked the entire way home - all at the same time. To have that energy after 6 1/2 hours of baseball camp in the 90 degree/high humidity weather. . . . . . .

Let's test another shot:

Ah, the Artyarns display looks JUST like that! Woohoo!

Okay, one last test shot:

This is the display at the front of the store. It is currently featuring several of our new Valley Yarns designs from our latest catalog. The color on the felted bags is a bit muddy, but dark colors are always tough without really good lighting. The store lighting is great, but it's certainly not meant for photography.

Kathy

Back In Business. . . . Sort of. . . . .

2008-07-08T16:42:00.006-05:00

The photography in today's post is brought to you by J1's digital camera. Last year's b'day present. Given it was his 8th b'day, it's not what would be considered a "high quality" camera. Hopefully the pictures won't be too terrible.

I had planned to not post any pictures until my camera was replaced. I did accomplish that yesterday, but in the meantime, I had to go to the store on Sunday. After gathering the few things I needed I decided to take a quick run through the store to see what was new and how the reorganization of product was coming along. Well, the store looks great AND - there is so much new product!!! It was truly a bit overwhelming. I grabbed a WEBS bag and as the boys were yelling "can we go home now" I ran around the shop, shoving yarn into the bag like I was a contestant on one of those grocery store challenges where you have only so many minutes to throw as much food as possible into your cart.

What I'm showing you below barely scratches the surface of "New":

First up, is the new Jill Eaton yarn from Classic Elite called Minnow Merino. It's 100% Extra Fine Merino Wool, dyed in palette of gorgeous brights. Each 50 gram hank has 77 yards and it knits at 4.5 sts on a #8. Minnow Merino retails for $7.95 and it's machine washable! Here's a sampling of four of the 19 colors we are carrying:

Next up, I grabbed this:

This is Rio de la Plata Merino Sock. Not only is this a new yarn for us, Rio de la Plata is a new vendor. Steve and I felt this sock yarn was unique and beautiful. It's machine washable, which to me is important in a sock yarn and has 437 yards for $20.50. We currently have 11 colors which represent a nice balance between fun brights and more sophisticated darks/jewel tones.

This next yarn is not new in the marketplace, but it is new for us. Inca Alpaca is one of Classic Elite's staples and it's a yarn we've never carried before. Why?? Who knows. It happens sometimes. We're happy to have it in now. The colors are stunning and the yarn feels incredible. It's worsted weight and is $8.50/hank for 109 yards. The pattern support for this yarn is amazing!

At this point in my sprint through the store, I was stopped dead in my tracks by this:

This, my friends is Jade Sapphire 2-ply Silk/Cashmere (can you hear the harps?). This fingering weight beauty has 400 fabulous yards and is 55% silk/45% cashmere. At $33.00/hank it's not cheap, but it is so worth every penny.

It has been well documented here and on our podcast that I love sparkle and glitz. There's no doubt that Artyarns is among the best in our industry at luxurious fibers and over the past couple of seasons, they've brought sparkly yarns to a whole new level. While visiting Iris and Elliot in NY a few weeks back, we were totally smitten with these two yarns:

Yes, even Steve was loving them (how could he not!). The yarn on the right is Silk Pearl. It is 100% silk and it is among the most beautiful of silks I have ever seen. The twist on this yarn makes it virtually pill-proof. Each hank has 170 yards for $40.00. It knits at 5 sts on a #6.

It's sparkly friend is Beaded Pearl and Sequins. Yes, Iris took the gorgeous silk and added beads and sequins. For those of you who love beaded projects but cringe at the thought of stringing along the beads, this yarn is perfect! Although it knits at the same gauge as Silk Pearl, each hank has only 80 yards for $56.00. Yes, it's a splurge, but a little goes a long way.

Next up was a yarn that Karen mentioned in her post last week. It was also suppose to be the feature of my July 4th post (which never materialized due to previously discussed camera issues). This yarn has been in the works, in one iteration or another for a very, very, very long time. Steve and I have been wanting to offer a "Made in the USA" product, but have really struggled to find the right product, the right mill to work with, etc. As Dorothy said "happiness is sometimes right in your own backyard" (or something like that). Anyways, here is our newest Valley Yarn - Hadley:

Hadley is not only spun and dyed right here in the US, but right here in New England by our long-time friends at JaggerSpun, makers of Zephyr. It's a blend of 50% silk/50% wool. It knits at 5 sts on a #5 or #6 needle and each ball has 109 yards. We are so pleased with this yarn. The colors are not done justice by this photograph at all. The colors are gorgeous, vibrant, sophisticated. The wool and the silk take the dye slightly differently which creates just a breathtaking tonal-ish affect. Being that this is a US-made product, the costs involved in creating it are much higher than if we sourced it elsewhere in the world, but we think it's worth it and we hope you do as well. Hadley retails at $8.99/ball and comes in 18 yummy colors.

Whew! So much yarn, so little time. There's more, plus new accessories. But those will come in the following days, with photographs from my new camera!

Kathy

What I Learned on My Summer Vacation

2008-07-05T13:08:00.002-05:00

Sunscreen + Digital Camera = Disaster.

My posts will be pictureless for a few days.

Kathy

Shop Talk

2008-07-02T10:31:00.003-05:00

Hello out there to all of our fabulous WEBS fans & customers! My name is Karen and I am the store manager for WEBS. I have been invited to tell you a little bit about the happenings at the store.

First off, this past Saturday we had Carol Sulcoski co-author along with Lisa Myers & Laura Grutzeck of Knit So Fine, she was one of the nicest people I have been privileged to meet working here at WEBS. A big thank you to all of you who came to meet Carol and check out her fabulous book. I of course with a few other staffers purchased the book. I don't know about all of you, but I do truly enjoy knitting with skinny yarn which is what this book is all about. If you don't like how a bulky yarn makes you look, take a minute to look at this amazing book. They have a section on the beginning of the book that shows a Barbie doll, and we know how perfect Barbie’s shape is; and they knit two dresses one in bulky and one in thin yarn, the difference is amazing! They also show a couple of swatches that 2 different people knit with the same yarn and the same size needle, this shows exactly why we should always swatch before tackling a sweater!

What else is happening you ask? Or what is new in the store? Here are a couple of items that have come in that our staff is in love with. Just in time for the 4th of July celebration we received "Hadley" this yarn is a 50/50 combination of wool and silk in 18 gorgeous colors, wait it gets even better! You may ask why it is just in time for the 4th of July? This yarn is made right here in the USA in coordination with Jagger Spun out of Springvale Maine! I can't wait to see what Kirsten our designer is cooking up with this one.

Another favorite of our staff is kind of silly; actually it’s not yarn, although it is yarn related! It is a jumbo sweater shaver. After searching high and low to locate a supplier of a sweater shaver we finally found one, and it is definitely JUMBO in size. This is perfect for all of those beautiful sweaters you all have knit that have pilled and you are tired of pulling them off one by one. Check it out on our web site.

There is one other new line of yarn we have received that has been getting a lot of love from our customers. Jojoland is the name of the company and we are currently carrying “Rhythm” which is a worsted weight and “Melody” which is a fingering weight. These have beautiful colorways with long color repeats which result in stunning fabric.

There are so many items I could talk about, but will save it for future posts. Have a relaxing 4th of July weekend everyone!

Karen

Valley Yarns Catalog

2008-07-01T12:57:00.008-05:00

Have you received yours yet? Our June 2008 catalogs mailed about 10 days ago, so if yours hasn't arrived yet, keep checking your mail! For those of you who have received the catalog, I think you like it! Customer Service and Shipping have been crazy and I hear many customers are coming into the store, catalog in-hand and already dog-earred and notated for project selection!

Here's the cover:

What I love about our June catalog, is that it features just our Valley Yarns line. They are always included in our other catalogs, when we also highlight the best from all of our favorite yarn distributors. I just love having this one issue where we can really showcase our yarns and our fabulous designs!

The early favorites seem to be the Firmaments Lace Shawl, knit in 2/14 Alpaca/Silk, the Diagonal Mesh Shawl, knit in Goshen and the Quilted Diamond Vest knit in Berkshire. I'm pretty tickled about the Diamond Vest. It has been a general design concept that I've had in my head for sometime. Linda, our Customer Service Manager finally got tired enough of listening blab on about wanting a chunky, outdoorsy vest and finally figured it out!

One of my personal favorites is the Staghorn Cable Tunic which is knit in Northampton. This garment will be featured on the podcast as our next knitalong. I have it with me on this trip and although I've hit a bit of a roadblock, I am still loving the pattern and cannot wait to wear it!

There are plenty of adorable designs for summer knitting such as the Striped Pullover designed by Mary Beth Temple and knit in Southwick and also in Southwick, the stunning cover sweater - the Ladder and Vine Cardi.

There are also two adorable baby items knit in Longmeadow - the Eyelet and Garter Baby Blanket and the Sweet Sabina Cardigan.

What's your favorite?

If you haven't yet received the Valley Yarns Catalog, be patient. If you are not on our mailing list and would like to receive a catalog, just email customerservice@yarn.com all of your pertinent mailing info and we'll be happy to send one out to you!

Kathy

Beach Blanket Blogging

2008-06-27T11:39:00.010-05:00

Well - not quite, but almost!

Before I jump into a myriad of items, I want to remind everyone that we are having a great book signing event at the store tomorrow! Starting at 3:00pm, Carol Sulcoski, co-author of Knit So Fine, will be at WEBS signing copies of the book. I am so excited we were able to find a date that worked for both our insane schedules (hers is worse than mine - she has 3 kids!). My only regret is that I'll miss the event! I hope someone remembers to get a book signed for me :) If you are planning to shop tomorrow, come in the afternoon and see Carol. Besides signing copies of her book, I am sure she'd be up for chatting about her blog and Black Bunny Fibers! Have fun Carol!

Why am I missing this event you ask? We are off on Steve and Kathy's Excellent Adventure - part 2. We've made our way to the lovely gulf shores of Florida, J1 & J2 in tow this itme around. We're here for Convergence - the bi-annual weaving tradeshow. For those of you who are knitters, Convegence is the equivalent of Stitches. The venue changes each year, as local guilds are key to hosting the show. This year, the Florida Tropical Weavers Guild stepped up to take on the challenge and Tampa Convention Center is the location. The show is open to the public through tomorrow. There are all sorts of cool weaving stuff, yarn, etc., but there are also lots of gorgeous finished goods and ancillary products. If you are in the area, stop by the show! For us, this is a nice combination of business trip and family vacation.

You may have read yesterday's post by Kirsten. I realized over the last few weeks that despite my good intentions and best efforts I could not keep up with the blog as effectively as I would like. I also think that we have so many things happening at the store and in the business, that my perspective alone can be somewhat limiting. Kirsten is an exceptional knitter. I have seen her walk around, knitting lace AND chewing gum! All joking aside, she is incredibly talented and will bring a lot to the blog. Plus, she's got a wry sense of humor that I hope you will all enjoy!

I've also enlisted our Store Manager Karen to join us here on the blog as well. With my crazy schedule, there are cool things happening and I miss them, which means you miss them too! Karen is an extraordinary knitter in her own right as well. I'm excited to be able to shae more in the way of new yarns, customer projects, etc.

No worries though - you aren't getting rid of me that easily. I love the blog.

On the trip down here, I worked on the Staghorn Cabled Tunic - a brand new design featured in our latest catalog. It has been receiving rave reviews in the store and both Pixie and Iove it. Here's where I am at so far:

I am using our Valley Yarns Northampton, which is the recommended yarn. I choose the dark grey colorway since I'm pretty much a zebra when it comes to dressing myself.

When reading patterns, I am very literal and need everything spelled out for me. I think it's partly how I learn, but I also think i stems from my crochet background, where patterns are basically spelled out row by row. Love that!

I am really enjoying the pattern and hope to make good progress over the next week or so.

On the vacation side of this trip, I have a couple of cute pictures to share. First up - the only way to fly:

J2 is cuddled in with "Barky". Barky was a prize I won for him last year at Busch Gardens. He decided since we were coming back to Barky's hometown, he should be allowed to come along on the trip. Both boys are big stuffed animal kids and we always have at least one friend along on any trip, but a 36" stuffed dog seemed a bit much. I obviously lost that battle.

Secondly, the person who is taking care of our room is obviously a Mom. Who else would be sure each of the animals had their own chocolate each night?

Lastly, here is J1 standing along side Scorpion. This is the sane reasonable child in this scenario.

Wondering where J2 is in this scenario? He's here:

He came off smiling and telling our sitter it wasn't so bad and asking if she was okay.

Kathy

From the Design Desk

2008-06-26T13:54:00.014-05:00

Hello?
Is this thing on?
Ahem
Hi! My name is Kirsten, and I'm the design coordinator here at Webs. (Hi, Kirsten...)

Since I've horribly neglected my own personal blog, and since Kathy's thumbs were getting sore typing updates on her PDA while she was on the road, we decided to kill two birds with one stone and swing the spotlight over to my desk every other week or so to give a peek into the Willy Wonka-like world of pattern wrangling. It's true. I've been pressing Steve and Kathy to let me hire a staff of little orange dwarves, and they're this close to caving. I figure if I don't screw this blog thing up, I can get them and some lickable wallpaper in a two-for-one deal.

So, without further, silly ado, my first post is going to be about one of my latest designs that will be premiering in the Valley Yarns '08 catalog, the 222 Chevron Tunic knit in Springfield. Springfield was a really surprising little yarn. A cotton bouclé, you'd think it'd be hard and crunchy. But from the first time I felt it, I was very impressed with its softness, which is given body by its unusual texture. We knew that it was destined for number of very comfortable summer essentials, though it would also be perfect in all-seasons sweaters for the non-woolie crowd.

After a week or two of casting about for just the right thing, I became inspired by the image of a long, sleek, sleeveless sweater with a deep v-neck. It's a classic pullover vest, but its length makes it new and feminine. A simple lace stitch at the bottom mirrors the v-neck on top and adds just the right touch of interest. It was important to make sure that the stitch had bold, clean lines that wouldn't be obscured by the texture of the yarn, and I think this one really fit the bill.

It also serves as a good introduction to a very handy but lesser-known double decrease that has really grabbed my fascination. Unlike a k3tog, which slants to the right, and a sl1-k2tog-psso, which (sort of) slants to the left, the lace stitch here uses a sl2tog-k1-p2sso, which sticks the central stitch on top and points straight up. It's a mystery to me why it's not seen more often, since it's no more challenging than the others and it doesn't have the directionality of the other double decreases. And, if you have a series of them, they focus your eye a bit on that central stitch, making it almost look like a pole going straight up the knitting.

Since I've still got your attention (except YOU there, in the back. I see you back there, "texting" or "blue-toothing" or whatever it is you kids do these days...) I'll show you exactly how it's done.

First, slip 2 stitches as if you're going to knit them together. You go up into both of them at once and slip them both off at once.You'll see how they're kind of twisted around each other on the right hand needle. That's good.
Next, knit one. You know how to do this part.Then, take those two slipped stitches from before and pass them over the stitch you just knit. Just stick the tip of your left hand needle into both of them at once and pass them both over the knit stitch as if you were binding off.Et voilà! A neat, clean little double decrease that doesn't lean one way or another.In addition to lace, this would be great for waist shaping or a raglan seam worked in the round from the bottom-up, anywhere where you want a double decrease, really. It's certainly not the last time you'll see it in one of my designs. But if you have any problems with it, don't despair, you can work a sl1-k2tog-psso if that's more comfortable for you. Better to have a slightly different decrease than to give up on the whole project. And, as always, my email inbox (khipsky(at)yarn.com) is always open if you have questions or comments. I promise I won't yell at you for getting fingerprints on the walls of the bubble chamber or stealing an everlasting gobstopper.

Ramblings

2008-06-21T15:12:00.004-05:00

1. While at TNNA, I had the distinct pleasure to completely embarrass myself upon being introduced to Franklin. I think I actually jumped up and down and there's no question my voice increased in pitch to something equivalent to pre-teen girl at the American Idols on Tour Concert. It was quite a thrill and I'm hoping to have a big party for him at WEBS when his new book debuts this fall :)

2. While in Chicago, Steve and I got to go to Wrigley Field to see a Cubs game. It was very exciting - we are both (all if you include J1 and J2) big sports fans, so any trip to one of this country's iconic sports venues is always a treat. Unfortunately, in my effort to better manage my photos, I seemed to have deleted the shots I took. Bummer.

3. Speaking of iconic sports venues, I've been asked by several folks what I did for Steve's 40th birthday besides (a) take him to a yarn show (b) dinner and (c) get him to the Hyatt for free beer and dry ice from SPM? Well, to say the least he is not an easy one to surprise, impress or buy for. I was DETERMINED to wow him. And I did :) With the help of his parents, I was able to book a trip to next year's Master's Tournament in Augusta. For any of you who golf or know a golfer, Augusta National is legendary and very difficult to access. It will be a great trip.

4. Knitting. So a funny thing happened on our Excellent Adventure, Part 1 - I did not take a single knitting or crochet project with me. The reaction to knitters at the show was pretty interesting. Most were immediately concerned "What do you mean you don't have a project with you?" "Did you forget it?" "Was it confiscated at airport security?" "Did you lose it?". Most then immediately started rummaging through their knitting bag, pulling out random projects to give to me. Everyone was HIGHLY stressed that I did not have yarn and needles in my possession. I appreciated the concern and the offers, but declined the projects politely. When asked what was wrong, I have to say, I didn't really have a good answer. It's not that I was feeling lazy or anything. I've been dragging yarn home at the normal pace as new, interesting things have been coming in, but for some reason, I guess I just haven't been very inspired. I walked around the store for a good 20 minutes before heading ot the airport, fondling yarn, looking at patterns, etc., and just couldn't make up my mind - nothing was REALLY speaking to me.

Now, I'm not exactly known to be a high-producing knitter. I start a lot of projects and finishing, well, finishing things is not my forte. Maybe that's the problem. I have so many projects in process, it's kind of ridiculous. I thought about pulling them all out and organizing them - forcing myself to finish one before starting something new or brining home more yarn, but then I decided that would just be an exercise in futility. Why create a situation in which I'm going to feel badly for all that I haven't accomplished?

So, I spent 10 days away without any knitting. I did procure some yarn at the show, which I've previously documented. I have to say, I think it was the best thing I could have done for myself. This past week, I've been feeling so much more motivated. I've got 2+ projects in the works now and I'm psyched about them!

First, our next KAL on Ready, Set, Knit will be this:

It's a new design done out of our Valley Yarns Northampton called the Staghorn Cabled Tunic. Isn't it adorable? It looks good on so many body shapes and the design itself is ingenious in it's simplicity, as well as it's style. I've already swatched and I'm ready to cast on and get going. I'm sure Pixie is already 1/2 way done with the project, but that' s okay. (Note to Pixie - I really don't want to know how far along you are, okay?).

Next up, we have a brand new yarn that is about to debut and I'm working on a shawl design for it. More about "Hadley" in a future post :)

Lastly, Gail, the Kangaroo Dyer has done it once again. There is rarely a yarn that comes into the store that doesn't some how make its way to her dye studio. The new Sterling Silk and Silver is her lastest endeavor. She showed me a hank just before I left and it took my breath away, even in the midsts of my funk. I finally broke down and emailed her that I HAD to have a skein. She brought me three and here is the one I chose:

It's unbelievalbly gorgeous. I have the one skein and will do a very simple scarf for myself and I will love it and wear it and be happy and sparkle-y. Thanks Gail!

So, have any of you run into a similar situation, where your knitting or crochet just isn't doing it for you? Have you ever taken a vacation from your projects? I'd love to hear your experiences.

Kathy

Kathy & Steve's Excellent Adventure Part 1

2008-06-19T16:03:00.008-05:00

Many of you have probably read on other blogs all about TNNA - our semi-annual industry tradeshow, where shop owners can take classes and meet with all of the yarn & accessory companies under one roof. I love TNNA, in fact, I love tradeshows in general. I know, I'm weird.

Now, in true blogger fashion, I brought along my camera. But alas, I have failed you all. I really didn't take any pictures. I'm not sure why this is, although I'm sure it is related to the reason I did not bring a single project with me. I know - you are all gasping and starting to sweat. Many of my fellow shop owners did the same as they fumbled through their knitting bags, pulling out projects to give to me. I gracefully declined. More on this topic later.

Two of the most fabulous summaries of the show that was can be found on Stephanie's blog and on Franklin's blog.

We celebrated Steve's 40th birthday on Friday evening with our friends from Fiesta yarns, Jeannie and Brad, who happened to be celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary! We had a grand time. Steve's special day was on Saturday and after a long day at the show, attending a reception thrown by the folks at Interweave to celebrate Knitting Daily TV and then dinner, we reconvened at the Hyatt where there were simply an amazing array of knitterati gathered. Again, cameraless, but again SPM's blog provides a much better summary than I could have written anyway.

Steve was pretty pumped that Steph bought him a birthday beer - if only we could have been in Toronto this past weekend to return the favor. For me, I got to see some old friends and make new ones. I got to meet Abby - who I knew of, but had never met. She was walking around, talking and spinning on her drop spindle all at the same time. We were talking about yarn (surprise) and somehow the conversation turned to cashmere and sparkle. Steve mentioned that this is the "perfect" Kathy yarn - as I love cashmere and nearly all things sparkly. Abby's eyes bug out of her head and she gets all excited and runs off to get something out of her bag. She explains that before coming to the show, she worked up some beautiful cashmere-blend fiber and added a bit of angelina to it. After the fact she thought she had ruined perfectly good cashmere by adding the glitz - she wondered who in the world would want cashmere batts with sparkle? She packed it and figured maybe it would find a home. And it did:

The picture doesn't do it justice. I was floored that she gave me this. I hugged it and cuddled it for the rest of the evening. I bragged about it to everyone who happened by our group. "Look, it's cashmere-y and sparkle-y and Abby made it and she gave it to me, ME!!"

On the way back to the hotel that night, I was still on cloud 9 with my little bundle of fiber, babbling to Steve about it. Then, he burst my bubble. How? He reminded me I don't know how to spin. Minor detail, my dear, minor detail.

The rest of the show was great. I scored a copy of Nancy Thomas' new book Tweed:

We have it in the store as well, it's got some great patterns and a wonderful history of of the origins of tweed.

One of our priorities at the show was catching up with Tobias and Antonio from Malabrigo. As many of you know, there was a fire at their mill at the beginning of the month, just before the show. Everyone was alright, but it looks like everything was a complete loss. They emphasized that they will be dyeing yarn again soon and the most important thing is that nobody was hurt. Tobias always comes to the show with something new to share with us and despite the fire, he was able to bring along this:

It's Malabrigo Sock Yarn. Given the circumstances, we probably won't see it in the store for quite awhile, but that's okay - we can be patient!

Instead of heading for home after TNNA, we went onto Chicago for another conference. This one was non-yarn related, but still very good in it's own right. Our timing was perfect. The conference ended and we stayed two additional days to celebrate this:

This is my nephew Daniel, my sister's only son. He graduated from the University of Chicago with a Master's Degree in Philosophy and will be entering their PhD program this fall. Way to go Daniel!

After graduation, Steve and I headed to the airport to finally come home. We had been gone for a long time and were really missing the boys. Unfortunately, United Airlines had other plans for us. Our flight was cancelled. After a small meltdown, we gathered ourselves, weighed our options and decided to try again the next morning. We headed over to Rosemont and our hotel room. Does Rosemont ring a bell to anyone? It should. How about this:

Guesses anyone?

It was a terrific trip, but it's really good to be home.

Kathy

Babette

2008-06-15T12:48:00.009-05:00

I must make apologies for not posting Pixie's Babette photos sooner. For those of you who have emailed, left comments on the blog and on Ravelry, here, at long last is what I have of Pixie's Babette:

The squares are truly breathtaking.

A couple of points I'd like to make about this project:

1. Pixie used our Valley Yarns Northampton. At $4.99/ball for 240 yards, it's a "bahgain" as us native Bostonians would say.

2. She used a "G" hook - be sure to swatch! For worsted weight yarn such as Northampton a "G" or "H" is usually recommended, but you can't be sure without a swatch.

3. Pixie did follow the schematic exactly, which means that because she was using a heavier weight yarn than called for, her finished blanket came out to be 56" x 64", much larger than the finished measurements in the pattern state.

4. Pixie used a total of 17 colors, just like the pattern calls for. She used 2 balls of Lizard Green, Eggplant and Laguna Blue (her favorites) and one of 15 other colors. Pixie went a little crazy on this project and rather than follow a "formula" for the creation of the squares, she selected randomly. Knowing Pixie like I do, this must have been a little tough for her! Like me, Pixie likes to have a plan and stick to it!

5. The pattern is from Interweave Crochet, Spring 2006 and is now also available at http://www.knittingdaily.com/.

The color in this finished shot is off and appears much brighter than it actually is - the photos above are much more accurate. I think something was lost in the translation from our professional photographer's system to importing it here:

For those of you working on your Babette's, please let me know how it's coming along and email pictures to readysetknit@yarn.com - Pixie and I would love to see them!

Kathy

NOTE: Tuesday, 6/17 - the full photo of Babette on the bed has been fixed! Thanks to our most faboo photographer for fixing the CMYK conversion!

Catching Up - Yet Again

2008-05-25T17:09:00.010-05:00

I know - when am I not catching up on posts? I really need someone to figure out how to add a 25th hour to the day, at a minimum. Or maybe I need to slow down? What makes me feel better is that in reading other blogs and talking to friends and such, I am not alone. I think we're all running harder, in more varying directions than ever before.

Take the fact that it's Memorial Day Weekend. I swear, we were just in Orlando in Florida. That was 2 months ago, but it feels like last week. The boys are done with school in just a couple of weeks - they will officially become 2nd and 4th graders. We won't even broach how that has happend. Especially given I had the chance over the past few days to hang with a couple of moms with new bambinos (more on that later).

So, I still owe you more info on the SWTC yarns. I've got my notes, but honestly, I don't feel like chatting about yarn right now (sorry Joe & Jonelle). I promise I will give you the low down on their great new products soon. There are lots of other bits and pieces I'd like to get taken care of in this post.

1. The day before the tent sale was our shoot for the Valley Yarns Catalog. I love doing the shoots and the VY one is always a favorite. What fun to showcase our yarns and designs! It's always a busy day and organization is key:

Thanks to Mary and Penny for keeping us on track!

For this shoot, I decided we would work with two models. I always struggle with the look and variety of the shots. We were privileged to have the lovely Cirilia once again agreeing to model for us. Our own KT, who also models, was both willing and available for the shoot as well. One of the concerns I always have in terms of "look" is the age factor. We tend to strive for that "ageless" look. I was a bit nervous that Cirilia and KT's youthful beauty might not be quite right for us, but I am just thrilled with how the shots came out! I can't wait to share the final catalog with all of you. Until it's ready, here are a few behind the scenes shots:

2. After the tent sale, I headed to Orlando for a conference. It was a learning opportunity for me, but I was also a speaker on a panel. Talk about a reality check! This was not a yarn conference - so I wasn't exactly with my people. Needless to say, there was a lot to take in and more than a few nerves prior to the presentation. Fortunately all went well and there was even a knitter in the audience!

3. Came home from the conference, got life a bit under control (how do two small boys and one dad produce SO MUCH LAUNDRY in just a couple of days?). Then it was off to visit our friends Iris and Elliot at Artyarns. We had never been to their studio/offices before so this was a real treat. I only took a few shots, as I didn't want to share too much of their operation. Look at this luscious yarn:

4. Got into the store on Friday morning to find an email from Brooklyn Tweed! Yes - THAT Brooklyn Tweed! He was going to making a visit to the store with Jess from Ravelry and Adrianne from Hello Yarn "tomorrow" which I read as Saturday. It was only a couple of hours later when I found them in the store:

Tomorrow really meant "today" since Jared sent the email on Thursday evening. It was great fun to meet him, especially after having interviewed him on the podcast.

5. After reading Brooklyn's email and getting myself all excited I could barely stand it when I got an email titled "Coming to WEBS" - from none other than January One herself!! I've been a HUGE fan of her blog for quite awhile and although I've had the opportunity to speak with her I'd never met her. So yesterday after J2's little league game, I zipped down to the store to spend some time with her and her beautiful Meli:

The pictures she posts of her on her blog are spectacular, but this is one of the most gorgeous babies I have ever seen and as good as the pictures are, there's nothing like seeing her in person. Seriously. I told Cara that she needs to hook Meli up wth Lexie Barnes' son "C", who is too cute for his own good as well.

Along the way of this past week, I got my first serious dose of him when Lexie came into visit and not only is he cute, he's charming. It's great fun to enjoy all of these babies and not have all of the work associated with them. As overwhelming as it is at times that J1 and J2 are getting so big, I love every milestone they achieve, I love their independence and I love that they can't call it a day until I've tucked them in and done "acts" with the stuffed animal of choice for the night's cuddle.

6. To top of the blog-tastic week that was at WEBS, Steve and I interviewed Carol from goknitinyourhat.blogspot.com for this week's show! She is also a fave blogger of mine and is the co-author of a faboo new book, Knit So Fine. Check out the podcast and more importantly the book! Carol will be coming to WEBS in June for a book signing. Date to be announced so stayed tuned!

So now it's Memorial Day weekend. We completely missed Mass Sheep and Wool, which is causing me some guilt. I love going and feel we need to support the event as much as possible since many of the folks involved support us. Unfortunately, we can't be everywhere and a big breakfast at home with the family took priority this year.

Enjoy the unofficial start of summer - it's my favorite time of year :)

Kathy

Wrap It Up and Put A Bow On It

2008-05-18T21:12:00.005-05:00

And let's call it a Tent Sale! What a weekend! I mean, how else would someone like me celebrate a birthday? At Tent Sale! I've only got a few minutes to post - I'm in Florida for a conference. Never a dull moment.

We kicked off Saturday with a live broadcast of Ready, Set, Knit! So much fun, especially since we had the pleasure of Cat Bordhi joining us on air.

Then the staff decided it would be a good idea to sing Happy Birthday to me while we were on the air. I did score an adorable and delicious cake:

Then the shoppers came.

Thanks to everyone who came out for the event. Thanks to all of our local shepherds who came on Saturday for the Fleece Market. Finally, a great big thank you to our amazing staff. Once again, you all did an outstanding job!

The Anniversary Sale contines for another week o so, be sure to get your orders in before it's over!

Kathy

Tent Sale & Fleece Market Tomorrow!

2008-05-16T16:40:00.004-05:00

Yes - it's that time again! That crazy wonderful, let's clear out as much yarn as possible time of year! The WEBS Annual Tent Sale! Our two day extravaganza kicks off tomorrow at 10am and runs until 5:30pm. We'll be back open on Sunday at 10am for Tent Part Deux! Steve has put together some incredible deals and steals under the tent, we'll have garments for sale, many books marked down 30% PLUS all of the anniversary sale yarns are still on sale!

Tomorrow has some extra fun excitement built in. First, we'll be recording our weekly radio show/podcast, Ready, Set, Knit! LIVE from the tent!! This will be the second time we've done a live show. If you live in the area or are on your way to the sale, tune into WHMP 1400 or 1240 at 9am! We'll also be interviewing a SUPER special guest! We've got a knitting rock star in the house this weekend!

We have our entire WEBS team working tomorrow - we'll have SEVEN registers running (5 in the store and 2 in the tent). In the store, the three regular registers will be running, plus three more in front of the windows. There will be ONE FEEDER LINE FOR ALL FIVE REGISTERS. Every register will have one person ringing and one person bagging. We should be able to keep up pretty well. We have staff on the store floor, in the tent and in the warehouse. We have a team of folks dedicated to just restocking the tent and the store.

In addition to the sale itself, Saturday always features our Annual Fleece Market! We have 12 local farmers/shepherds coming this year and they will be selling their fleeces, yarns, etc. I think we may even have a couple of alpacas in the house! I love alpacas, so this would particularly thrill me :)

WEBS Beads will also be participating at their location down the street. They have their own tent with special deals. Plus, we have a ton of new inventory! Alison and I attended a show last Saturday and brought back so many new items - more pearls, more semi-precious, more faceted semi-precious strands, wood, bone and porcelain. We also just added gorgeous lampwork beads from World Peas. We have beads and larger focal beads PLUS some goddesses! Be sure to stop into the bead store if you come by this weekend! They will be open both days as well.

We look forward to seeing everyone this weekend!

Kathy

SWTC

2008-05-13T16:40:00.007-05:00

Last week on our podcast, Ready, Set, Knit!, we had the pleasure of interviewing Joe Raffino, owner of Southwest Trading Company (SWTC). It was extra special because Joe had just been at the NENA show, only 45 minutes from the shop so he was able to be in-studio with us when we recorded. He had samples of the new yarns they are introducing and not only did he share info about the yarns on the podcast, but he also allowed me to photograph the items he had for the blog!

The first new yarn they have is Therapi, which is a wool/silk/jade blend. Yes, jade. We had heard about this yarn and to say the least, I was skeptical. What the heck would jade add to yarn? What was it's reason for being, other than being an interesting conversation piece? Jade is considered the most valuable of precious stones and among other things is considered a symbol of tranquility. Knitting and crochet are known to be stress reducers (when we're not fighting with a project) so the theoretical link between the jade component of the yarn and the zen we achieve when knitting or crocheting (again, when not fighting with a project). The yarn itself is quite lovely - the silk and jade add a nice luster to the wool and the fiber has a soft hand. It knits at 5 sts = 1" on a US #7 needle.

Look at those beautiful colors!

Now I have to admit something - I left my other notes on the other yarns at work! Yikes! I guess we'll have to have SWTC part 2 tomorrow!

I hope all of you Moms had a great Mother's Day. I had a wonderful one myself. I got to sleep in a bit, I received great gifts from the boys' and then we went and golfed as a family. The weather was perfect and it was just a great day.

Jonathan presented me with this:

This is not your average bouquest of construction paper flowers. Look what you get when you pull each flower out of the vase:

A list of the chores he was willing to do so that I could relax on Mother's Day. Here's the only one that really mattered to me:

Jackson brought me this:

And this:

I particularly love #10. The reason? I did NOT get him an iPod. Dad did (sorry honey).

More SWTC tomorrow and photos of Pixie's Babette from our Crochet-A-Long!

Kathy

This and That

2008-05-07T16:35:00.005-05:00

So, I think we've sufficiently recovered from the Harlot. I personally did not have much time to really recover before I had to prep for yet another major event. This one was not yarn-related, but equally important. Last Friday night was the annual fundraising auction at the boys' school of which I was chair. The event raises much needed money for financial aid and last year's event was a bit of a bust, so the pressure was on. Ultimately, the event came off wonderfully, but by Saturday afternoon I was ready to curl up in the produce section at Whole Foods. I consider myself someone who is a pretty tough cookie with good stamina, but this past week was just over the top. It's all behind us now with only things like Tent Sale, end of the school year, TNNA, Convergence, etc., ahead of us. Piece of cake after this past week.

I have a few random items to share, so here goes:

1. On Monday Steve and I attended NENA - the New England Needlearts Association annual tradeshow. This is sort of a mini-TNNA. Many of industry's vendors show here, but on a much smaller scale than at TNNA. Although we've done a majority of our fall buying already, we still go to see some smaller vendors, follow-up with reps and just be supportive of the show. It's only 45 minutes from the shop, so it would be rather strange to not go. I scored a couple of skeins of yarn from J Knits:

This is a hand-dyed line out of Amesbury, MA that we currently do not carry. Not sure where we'll end up with this, but I grabbed a couple of skeins of their new sock yarn (the bottom skein) not only to consider for the store, but also for Melissa, who was unable to attend the show and just might have a need for sock yarn for some project involving knitting socks and lots of words, compiled together.. . . .at some point. I haven't given her the yarn yet, you like MMO?

It's 60% superwash merino/15% bamboo/15% nylon and 10% silk.

2. Speaking of sock yarn, in the madness that was last week, our newest Valley Yarn arrived. Huntington is a 75% wool/25% nylon with 218 yarns on a 50 gram hank. It knits at 7-8 sts to the inch on a #2 or #3 needle. It's available in 11 solid colors and it is just scrumptious! It's soft, it has a lovely twist and it knits like a dream. Huntington retails at $4.29/hank which means you can have a pair of scrum-dilly-icious socks for $8.58!! Don't forget - sock yarn is not just for socks! Huntington would be great for handwarmers, baby items or even a lovely shawl/wrap for the summer months.

3. So there appears to be a theme going on here - unintended, but still a theme. Steve and I see a lot of yarn. We see yarn from our wholesale partners, we see yarn from mills, we see yarn from small independent folks who may be hand dyeing yarn or raising their own animals and spinning their own yarn - I am talking a TON of yarn. We see amazing yarn and some yarns that make us say "what were they thinking?". Every now and again, a very memorable yarn comes along. The skein I am about to show you was shown to me at least 8 months ago. At the time, the producer was not in a position to take us on as a customer due to the scope of her operation. Well, the sales rep was in the other day and put this skein of yarn in front of me for a second time. This skein has stayed with me since I first saw it - it was love at first sight. Primarily due to the colorway. It takes a lot to make me stand up and take notice of a yarn, but this skein did just that and did it again yesterday when it was pulled out of it's bag. I *heart* this skein:

The even better news? This little company is ready to start doing business with us. Now, I'm going to be a bit of a tease and not reveal the source until the yarn is in the house. Sorry, I know, not totally nice, but I'm so excited I had to share so you could all be excited too. It should only be a couple of weeks until the yarn is here and then I will reveal all.

Tomorrow/Friday I'll be updating the blog with our current Babette CAL from Ready, Set, Knit! with pictures of Pixie's beautiful creation and, well, shots of the yarn that I chose (I am such a laggard). Plus, I've got some info on the newest yarns from SWTC that I can also share with you. Joe Raffino joined us this week for our podcast so be sure to listen this weekend to the show!

Kathy

Unbelievable

2008-04-28T15:19:00.007-05:00

What else can I say? Yesterday was simply amazing. I'm not even sure where to begin with this post, so I'm just going to type it all out and if it's less than cohesive, my apologies.

First - I have to say a huge, HUGE thank you to Stephanie. She was gracious, funny, patient and entertaining. Not that any of that surprises me or anyone who has ever had the chance to see her in person, but knowing how tired I am today and knowing she didn't get to sleep in her own bed last night and had to be up before 6am to go to the airport to do it all over again, I am in awe of how she does it. I am so tired today my eyeballs hurt.

I knew we might be attaining a new level of craziness when I arrived yesterday morning to not only find folks already in the parking lot and waiting for the store to open, they had brought chairs and were hanging out. Some of the first folks through the door were two of my favorite whom I had not seen in awhile. Itsapurlman and his lovely wife made the trip for the event. As great as it was to see them, it was even more exciting when they pulled out this:

This is the Hupah from their wedding last fall. The yarn is our own Deerfield. Guido and his then fiance came to WEBS to interview Steve and I for his podcast. I had the honor of helping them select the yarn. I had not seen the finished product, though I had followed it's progress on Guido's blog and those of his friends. It is truly breathtaking and is now a lovely, cozy blanket that they use in their home. Thanks so much for bringing it along!!

Here's a couple of shots of the "calm before the Harlot":

By the time Stephanie arrived at 11am, the store was in fully engaged in controlled chaos, but by about 12:15, I was starting to panic (quietly, inside). I was EXTREMELY worried we weren't going to have enough books, I was PETRIFIED that Stephanie wasn't going to make it through the line of knitters waiting to get their books singed before she had to leave for the Calvin (although I did institute a plan B and ultimately she did get all of the knitters through the line) and there were so many people shopping and waiting to check out and the lines were getting all knotted up and confused that I was really worried. Not that anyone seemed upset, I just didn't feel like we were in control anymore:

(Note: check out http://www.splityarn.com/ for an even better shot of the store)

Seriously - I went over to Steve, who was working one of the registers and whisphered to him "Honey, I think we're on the verge of losing control". He grunted at me - this was not a good sign. I was looking for reassurance, I was looking for a "Don't worry Kath", but instead, I got a grunt. After being together for as long as we have been, I know that grunts are never a good sign. We've done a lot of events and have proven we have the ability to handle really large crowds, we handle ginormous crowds at Stitches in much smaller space than we have in the store and it never even phases me. I'm not quite sure why I didn't think we'd be okay - maybe my slight claustrophobia was getting the better of me.

I went back over to Steve shortly before I left for the Calvin and things were still wild and I said "We're never going to get everyone out of here in time for the event" and this time he said "I have a plan." I wasn't 100% sure it would work. I left WEBS and headed to the Calvin not knowing if (a) I would be opening the show on my own without Steve and (b) if all of the knitters would get out of WEBS and to the Calvin on time. In the end, Steve's plan worked and he was at the Calvin to kick off the show and all of the knitters made it there too.

Although there was one woman, who came in a bit late, a bit frazzled and explained to me that her friend found a bat on the sidewalk and was going to miss the show because she was standing over the bat since it was highly unusual to find a bat, on the sidewalk in the middle of the day and who should she call about the bat. I suggested the police - who could put her in touch with animal control. The woman left and I can't say I ever saw her return - I have no idea what happened there. If there's anyone with an update on that, please post in the comments.

The show was awesome, the crowd was amazing and Stephanie truly out did herself. As one person said to me "I laughed so hard I was exhausted when I left". That about sums it up. Justonescarf (from Ravelry) was there and an entertaining addition to the post-show Q&A once again this year. I'm going to be trying to schedule him for the podcast in the coming weeks, so stayed tuned for that.

Back at the store, there was more signings, more shopping and more knitterly fun. Steve addressed some of the issues we encountered while Stephanie was speaking and although the afternoon proved just as busy as the morning, we definitely were on top of things.

What really made the day, besides having the privelege of hosting Stephanie, was our most amazing staff. They handled everything flawlessly and are simply the best. Thanks to Mary, Karen, Jenna, Cirilia, Tina, Jaz, Leslie Ann, Gail, Elisabeth, KT, Dena and Pixie. Plus all of our wonderful customers who came and really made a great time for all of us! Thank you so much for coming to the shop and the event! Besides having the best yarn store staff on the planet, we definitely have the best customers.

Here's a couple of shots I took:

The first one is Leah, who is a knitter (wearing a sweater she knit - quite talented). The second two young knitters were just super cute!

I didn't take all that many pictures. In fact, as we were heading to dinner with Stephanie, Jess and Splityarn and her mum, I said to Steph, "I never got a picture with you" and her response was "Kath, I think people will know we were together today".

Kathy

Harlot Day is Tomorrow!

2008-04-26T16:09:00.004-05:00

I have been composing this post in my head for the better part of today as I've been running errands, getting ready for the event, attending J2's first little league game of the season, etc. I even took a couple of cool pictures to share, as teasers. . . . .

Before posting, I decided to see how things went at SPM's Chicago event last night. I knew she was having some weather issues - I spoke with Amy at Storey mid-afternoon yesterday and she shared what was going. I never, in a million years, thought things would turn out as they did. I just logged onto the Harlot's blog and in matter of seconds thought I was going to throw-up. SHE NEVER MADE IT TO CHICAGO!! No event, no Harlot. I am sick for her, I am sick for the owner of Nana's Knitting Shop - the planning, the work and quite honestly the expense that goes into an event like this is beyond words. Then there are the knitters, who have all been so kind and understanding in the comments, but for sure were all heartbroken. I can only imagine how Stephanie must have felt, sitting at Pearson, as the realization that she was not going to make the event began to become a reality. There are no words.

So, I feel as if I really can't be all rah-rah excited right now (well, I am excited, but I feel it inappropriate to gloat).

For anyone who has not read the email we sent out, the Ravelry posts I've made (and got in trouble for posting the same thing in three different forums - oh well) OR the information on our website, please go here so you know what's happening tomorrow.

The one thing I have to share with you all is this - I saw it this morning as I went to the bank:

The folks at the Calvin wouldn't indulge me last year and I insisted on it this year - threatening them with me on a ladder, with a big Sharpie, in the middle of the night. I guess they took me seriously.

See you all tomorrow - it's going to be an absolute blast.

Kathy

Harding and Harlot

2008-04-22T18:06:00.002-05:00

A big thanks to everyone who joined us on Friday evening for our event with Louisa Harding. What great fun we had! Unfortunately, I left my camera sitting on the desk of my home office, but luckily Skrillaknits was armed and at the ready. I'll posting pictures shortly, but did not want to let too much time pass before posting.

We've also introduced a new Valley Yarn - Springfield. It was in our Spring catalog and we're working on a couple of patterns to support this great new yarn. Springfield is 88% cotton/12% acrylic and has a textured "crimp" to it. It's super soft and knits at 5 sts = 1" on a #6 needle and has 110 yards. Springfield is available in 11 colors and is $3.49/ball - oh and it's made in Italy.

The focus of our world right now is Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's return to WEBS this Sunday, April 27th. Full details of the event are now available at www.yarn.com. Just click on the button on our homepage for all of the details. It is going to be a great day!

Kathy

Hello Cleveland

2008-04-17T16:57:00.006-05:00

Steve and I are just back from a quick road trip to Cleveland. What's in Cleveland you ask? Well, besides one of the easiest airports I've ever navigated, good food and nice spring weather, there is Beachwood Studios. What is Beachwood Studios? It's a major production facility for PBS. Why, you may ask, were we there? A few years earlier and my boys' would have asked if we were visiting Clifford The Big Red Dog or going to Dragonland with Max and Emmie. This trip was all fiber related - we were there for the inaugural taping of Interweave Press' new show - Knitting Daily TV. Knitting Daily TV is the new incarnation of Shay Pendray's Needlearts Studio, which has been on the air for several years. Interweave has taken over production of the show and is evolving it into KDTV. WEBS is one of the underwriters and we were asked to participate in several segments. So with lots of work in advance and some crazy last minute knitting (thanks Kirsten, thanks Melissa), Steve and I ventured off to Cleveland.

It was a blast (I can say that now) but it was also very stressful. Steve refused to participate in any on-air segments, so I was on my own. Fortunately, each segment included a host - I got to work with Liz Gipson, editor of Handwoven Magazine and Shay Pendray herself. I participated in 7 different segments within the 13 episodes that were being taped this week. I had lots of props and such, which all had to be set-up in advance in the "green room" (it really is green - look at the walls in the background).

I have to also say a big, huge thanks to Mary, who packed up everything I needed for the show, in bags, labeled with which segment they were for and what she had included. I had everything I needed and it was really, really, REALLY easy to set-up my segments. Mary rocks!

I also had to have seven different outfits - one for each segment - which would not normally be an issue since I'm a bit of a clothes horse, but PBS has rules - rules that basically excluded my entire wardrobe (no black or white allowed). Also, no big prints, polka dots or skinny stripes. . .no red, preferably no pastels, nothing too warm as the set can be hot, but no short sleeves or sleeveless because they can be "unnattractive". Plus, whatever I wore had to be able to have a microphone attached to it. I did figure it out and did not have to appear naked (I'm sure that would've broken another PBS rule, although it was not clearly stated).

Knitting Daily TV will air this July. If you previously were able to get Shay's show in your area, there's a very good chance you will get KDTV. If you didn't, now may be the time to get all of your fiber (and non-fiber friends for that matter) to contact your local PBS affiliate and encourage them to pick up the show. Interweave has done a great job of restructuring the show, hosts include not only Liz and Shay, but also Eunny Yang and Kim Werker. They have all sorts of fun topics and interesting guests (if I do say so myself). I"ll pass more information along as it becomes available and if you aren't a regular subscriber to knittingdaily.com, go there now and sign-up!

This was an incredibly nerve-wracking experience, but I am so glad we did it. If you don't challenge yourself, you'll never know what you are capable of (or so they say). What really reassured me that this was the right thing to do, was this sign on the inside of the door to the elevator at our hotel:

Seriously, where have you ever seen a sheep sign on the inside of an elevator door before? Steve and I were both a bit stunned and tickled at the same time, to say the least.

Kathy

P.S. Don't forget - Louisa Harding at WEBS tomorrow starting at 5:00pm! Don't worry if you can't be there right at 5 - pop in when you can. I saw Louisa in Cleveland and she's really looking forward to her visit with us!

P.P.S. Be sure to listen to this week's Ready, Set, Knit! radio show/podcast on Saturday. Before Steve and I left we interviewed the Yarn Harlot and Melissa filled in for Pixie! It was a fun show - enjoy!

Oh My

2008-04-14T15:49:00.004-05:00

I knew it had been awhile since I had blogged. What I didn't realize was that it had been THAT long. Ugh. I'm not quite sure what happened other than life and other work-related stuff. It's been kind of nutty between travel (work & family), projects, beads. I've taken lots of pictures, it's not that the blog hasn't been on my mind. I just haven't been able to fit blogging into the weekly routine lately.

So, with that said, the only thing to do is catch up and go forward!

Last I left you we had just returned from Stitches West, which was awesome. So great to see so many of you out there.

Once we got back, we only had a little bit of time before we headed out on our March vacation with the kids. Florida as usual, but this year, we had a surprise for them:

They were going to Disney. First.Time. We didn't tell them until we were getting ready to head to the airport. They were stunned (we couldn't ask for much more of a reaction, given that it was 4:30 am). It was an awesome trip.

Steve and I really made every effort to disconnect for awhile. It's impossible to do so completely, but I think we did a better than average job on this trip. Which was great while we were away, but made things a bit harder when we got back.

First full weekend back was "Move the Bead Store" weekend. It went very well and we love the new space.

If you haven't been by to visit, please stop in when you can. We're offering a bunch of introductory classes and will be building upon that. We will be selling on-line, but not yet. You can check us out at www.websbeads.com.

We also kicked off our 34th Annual Anniversary Sale. I'm sure you've heard about it by now, but if not, be sure to click through and check out the amazing selection of yarns for knitters, weavers and crocheters.

Our event calendar is packed. This Friday night we have Louisa Harding at the store from 5-8pm. This event is FREE and will feature an informal talk by Louisa about her designs, yarn and everything that goes into creating her line each season. We'll have light hors d'ouevres and beverages as usual.

Next up on April 27th is the Yarn Harlot herself. More details will follow, but we're planning to open the store at 10am. She'll be in around 11ish to start signing books. Then it's over to the Calvin for the event at 2pm. Be sure to register here. We need a headcount! Then it's back to the store for more additional book signings. We'll be open until the last knitter leaves.

Then on May 17/18, it's Tent Sale Weekend! Saturday also features our annual Fleece Market. It's a fun and crazy time and something you don't want to miss. More details to follow on that as well.

Hopefully I'm back on track now. Thanks for your patience!

Kathy

Just Back

2008-02-25T20:24:00.002-05:00

I'm just back from Stitches and about to crawl into bed. I wanted to make a quick blog post to say a great big THANK YOU to everyone who visited our booth. It was an absolute blast seeing old friends and making lots of new ones. I'll have a complete wrap up with some pictures and such in the next day or so. I took some video which I am hoping to be able to add as well!

Thanks again to everyone for making the trip so much fun for all of us!

Kathy

But I Still Haven't Seen a Moose!

2008-02-18T17:33:00.006-05:00

Thanks to everyone who emailed and shared in the excitement of the upcoming Harlot event. I've made the registration link live on the previous post. Just remember - if you are registering a group of folks, we need everyone's name and contact info. There are lots of details to still be coordinated and we want everyone to be kept in the loop.

In the excitement of all things Harlot, I completely forgot to post pictures from our event with Wenlan. This was one of those events that we knew would be fun and not overwhelming, but we had no idea how AWESOME it really would be. For those of you who missed it - shame on you! It was simply one of the loveliest events. Wenlan was charming and funny and entertaining and very informative about her life as a fashion designer. We learned a lot about her view of garment construction and saw how beautiful her garments are when worn. Most importantly - how beautiful they are on different body types! Here are a few pics:

The ultimate star of the day has to go to Milan:

She wouldn't pose for me, but for Jackson and Jonathan she was workin' it! Thanks to our friends at Classic Elite for making this event happen and to Wenlan for making the trip up from NYC.

That's it for events for awhile - at least in-store. Next up for us is Stitches West! The show is this weekend, February 22-24 at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Show hours are 10-6 Friday & Saturday and 10-4 on Sunday. If you are already registered, there is a special shopping night on Thursday from 7-10pm. We will be in booths 701-709 and 800-809. That's 10 booths full of yarn, garments and lots of fun and inspiration. We've got 14 folks in tow with us - the biggest contigent we've ever brought west. Be sure to stop by, say "hi" and stock up on yarn at incredible savings! We're especially excited to be brining our own Valley Yarns with us again, including our brand new Colrain Laceweight. We'll have most of our garments with us as well.

Lastly, we took a quick weekend trip up to Maine with the boys. It was part business and part family escape. It's been so crazy here that we just felt like we needed to hang with the kids before taking off to California. What's wonderful about what we do is that no matter where we go, there are knitters:

This wasn't the only sighting we had, but the only one I was able to capture.

We took the kids to Delorme where we saw this:

Jonathan is a huge geography fan so he thoroughly enjoyed this visit. We also visited here:

I know it needs no further explanation.

The only disappointment of the weekend comes from Jonathan - he never did get to see a moose :)

Can't wait to see all of our West Coast customers later this week (and Teri from Hawaii - please bring warm weather Teri!).

Kathy

Make Your Plans NOW!

2008-02-14T18:02:00.004-05:00

The Yarn Harlot
April 27th (it's a Sunday)
2pm
The Calvin Theater
Book Signing and other festivities at WEBS (probably stuff before and after the Calvin)
FREE - but we need you to register (which is now live!).

Stayed tune for LOTS more info on parking, the festivities, etc.

NOTE: IF YOU ARE REGISTERING A GROUP, WE'LL NEED EVERYONE'S NAME AND EMAIL!!!

We are so excited!!! It's going to be a blast!

Kathy

Twinkle Event Tomorrow

2008-02-08T18:37:00.000-05:00

Hey Everyone

Just a quick reminder that tomorrow, February 9th, we are hosting fashion designer Wenlan Chia here at WEBS from 2-4:30pm. Come meet Wenlan, check out her beautiful Twinkle line of yarns, see her amazing designs AND check out her latest book, Weekend Knits, the much anticiapted follow-up to her book Big City Knits. She will be giving an informal presentation and signing her books. Wenlan is a 7th Avenue fashion designer - the opportunity to meet and discuss knitwear design and the latest fashion trends with someone like Wenlan is a rare treat!

Feel free to drop in an join us for this fun afternoon. As always, we'll have refreshments and fun giveaways!

Look forward to seeing you all tomorrow!

Kathy

Win Some and Lose Some

2008-02-05T18:00:00.000-05:00

Well, our beloved Patriots did not come through for us. They were simply out played. Congrats to the Giants and all of their fans. There was much sadness here - Jackson went to bed in tears and Jonathan, who had fallen asleep during the game, got up on Monday morning, asked what the score was and when I told him, burst into tears, ran back to his room and flung himself on his bed and pulled the covers over his head. A hard lesson in losing was learned.

Not all is lost - hope springs eternal as they say and if not that, a mother's determination to limit crying at 6:30am on Monday morning is without bounds. For one thing, spring training is nearly upon us so the boys have come to terms with the loss and are gearing up for a great season here in Red Sox Nation.

For another, we had a great celebration at WEBS on Sunday afternoon during our "pre-game" festivities:

Many thanks to our special guest, Mary Beth Temple, author of The Secret Language of Knitters. Charming as always, Mary Beth entertained a packed house with several excerpts from her book. Rumor has it there was serious snorting of water. . . . . .

I love our Super Bowl Event - everyone just comes and spends time together, working on projects, socializing and relaxing.

I am always tickled to see the spinners join in the fun too!

We were demonstrating the Schacht Flip Loom, which is a WEBS staff fave. It is a great way to dip your toe into the weaving pool. The loom is inexpensive, compact and easy to use. It's great for using up stash yarns or venturing into some of those coned yarns we have. Tons of possibilities and if you find you love the loom but want to be able to do more, there's our Weaving I class. We'll be offering a class this summer featuring the Flip, so if you have any interest, come into the store for a test drive and certainly watch for our class brochure coming this April.

Thanks to Gail and Leslie Ann for getting this organized!

Thanks also go out to everyone who has sent along well wishes for new adventure into the world of beading! We've been working this week to get new inventory into the store and plan to open this coming Monday, Feburary 11th. We'll be at the old location until April 1st, but we encourage everyone to come on over to the store and meet the great staff!

Finally, our next big event is this Saturday, Feburary 9th. Wenlan Chia, knitwear designer and author of Weekend Knits and Big City Knits will be at the store to discuss her yarns, her designs and all things fashion. This is an incredible opportunity to spend time with a 7th Avenue fashion designer! She just had her show at Bryant Park in NYC this past weekend as part of Fashion Week and less than a week later, she'll be at WEBS! I had the chance to meet her at TNNA and Wenlan is lovely and friendly and really looking forward to spending time with us so I encourage you to make every effort to join us on Saturday. Please be sure to register here so that we have enough chairs and of course food and goodies! A special thanks to our friends at Classic Elite Yarns for making this event happen!

Kathy

No, Not Beans. . . . . .And Not In California!

2008-02-01T14:46:00.000-05:00

For the past few months, I've been alluding to some behind-the-scenes-happenings at WEBS. I've been able to share with you some of the renovations that have been taking place. I know it's hard to appreciate the impact in a few two-dimensional pictures, but the changes are incredible. At the end of the day, I can't blame any of you for not being overly excited about new shipping areas and stockrooms and fancy order pickers and fresh paint and such. There have been some of you that have been enthused for the evolution of my office space into a more comfortable environment (read as: WARM).

Today, I hope I can generate a bit of excitement among you, get the blood flowing as they say. Steve and I are simply bursting like proud parents (no - we are not "literally" going to be proud parents to anyone that isn't already on the proverbial roster). I finally get to share with all of you another of our secret projects. This one came upon us unexpectedly but has turned into what we think is something awesome - a wonderful opportunity.

This morning, Steve and I purchased this:

Beader's Paradise is the local bead store in Northampton and it is now ours. I get goosebumps just typing those words! It's a small store that was founded by two lovely woman, Judy and Cindy seven years ago. Many of you may remember it being located on Pleasant Street, just a couple of blocks up from WEBS. They moved to Main Street and they are currently in a bit of a hidden spot on "the Button St. side of Masonic St.".

Steve and I are very, very excited. We know there is a lot of synergy between our business and beads. We also think there there is a lot of potential within the industry itself. We have a lot of work ahead of us!

How can you not be excited when you look at these:

We'll be re-opening the store within the next week or so and staying in the current location through the end of March. We'll then be relocating to Service Center Road in a space attached to Smith Glass. This means customers can easily walk between the two stores. Now we know for Beader's long-time customers another move is simply making you groan. But look at it this way - we'll be in a bigger, brighter, easier to access space with plenty of FREE parking. Plus lots of new and exciting products and classes and samples and. . . . just lots of great things. We will also be changing the name - we just think the WEBS name has too much recognition to not use it. We will be selling on-line as well, but that probably won't happen until this summer. Hours will be the same as the ones we have at the yarn store (M-Sat 10:00-5:30, Thurs 'til 8pm and closed Sundays).

If you are a beader, local or otherwise and have thoughts on things we should carry, please share your thoughts with me in the comments or privately at kathy.elkins@yarn.com.

Now I"m sure you are wondering about the bean reference in the title.

My mom will be 82 this year and her hearing is less than stellar. She refuses to do anything about it, so we just deal with it as best we can. I called her from California to catch up and realized I had not told her we were going to buy this business. She was quite tickled, which made me happy because as I've said in previous posts, she is not easily excited. A couple of days later, still in California and my sister emails me. She states she hopes there is a job opening at our new California store. I call her back and ask her what the heck she is talking about. Seems my mom told her we were "buying a bean store in California". To say my sister was bewildered would be an understatement. She had been trying to figure out why we would buy a bean store, what kinds of beans we would have, where the beans would be coming from, etc. Between the conversation with my sister and the visual of the conversation she and my mom must have had, I was laughing so hard I was crying. My sister and I will forever reference the store as "beans".

But beads are way more interesting than beans - imho :)

Kathy

The Most Important Day

2008-01-27T15:28:00.000-05:00

Today is the single most important day in January.

Today, January 27th is Jonathan's birthday. Today he is 7. He is just getting too big.

No, he did not get a cellphone nor does he have one - no worries.

This picture of him getting the update on Jackson's hockey game this morning just spoke volumes to me. . .

Then it was off to another bowling extravaganza:

Note the recurrence of the "hockey" theme:

Happiness is. . . a happy birthday boy:

Happy Birthday Jonathan!

Love,

Mom

That's My Story and I'm Stickin' To It

2008-01-26T16:08:00.000-05:00

Well, I guess we can check January off the list!

It appears that 2008 has no intention of moving any slower than 2007 did. At least we're one month closer to warmer weather. Has anyone noticed that the days are getting noticeably longer? Five o'clock around here isn't even dark anymore. Gives us summer people hope, despite what the thermometer says.

TNNA was a whirlwind all to itself. I went out a day early for industry meetings, which was nice. I love my work, I love my family and I treasure my alone time. Steve caught up with me the next day and we had the luxury of a dinner alone - no committments, no sitters to worry about. We were both exhausted with the time change, but we did get to enjoy a lovely meal together. Who cares that it was only 5pm "local" time - we were fashionably appropriate according to our internal clocks :)

After another day of industry stuff, TNNA finally kicked off with the fashion show. We had a dinner engagement that night so we were only able to stay for part of the festivities, but the garments we saw were breathtaking. I am looking forward to receiving the DVD and viewing it at home where there is much less distraction.

The next morning we attend the Tahki Stacy Charles breakfast. They host this event at each market for their customers. TSC previews all of their new yarns and designs and invites both Vogue Knitting and Interweave Knits & Crochet to present their editorial of TSC products. I love this event, even though we've already made our purchases. It's a good chance to review things again and see if we've missed anything.

Then, it was off to market! We had an extremely full appointment schedule for most of the show. We are usually focused on filling in any holes we may have, looking for smaller, independent companies or new companies and of course accessories. In all honesty, there was not a lot new or super exciting.

Friday night we attended a reception hosted by Potter Craft. Many of their authors were there along with retailers, magazine folks, etc. Here's a shot of a pretty impressive gathering of who's who:

Saturday featured THE highlight of the show:

In addition to signing books, Melissa did a reasonable job of spending money for us. First, she helped us pick colors of Louet Gems, which is a gorgeous yarn and featured heavily in her book. Then, at various times throughout the show, we'd walk into a vendor booth and they'd say "Oh, you're from WEBS! People have been stopping in saying if you added XYZ product they'd love to buy it from you". Now this is weird because the show is full of OTHER shops - nobody who would be buying anything from us. This happened a couple of times and we were a bit perplexed. Then, we were nearly tackled in the aisle by the owner of Conjoined Creations with a similar testimonial. That's when we finally figured it out.

MELISSA!

This is a shot of Long Beach from across the bay looking back at the city:

Thanks to Mother Nature for that last day of 75 degrees and sunny. The hour or so I got to enjoy sitting outside in the warmth of the sunshine was spectacular.

While we were gone, the renovations continued. Our office was packed, our furniture moved out and gutted. We're still in chaos, but things are coming along. We're living in the old shipping area, wrapped on two sides by plastic and functioning out of boxes. It will be worth the wait - saw the first coat of paint on the walls yesterday!

One of the major projects waiting for me when I was back was our next catalog shoot. The Spring Knitting catalog will be out shortly, as will our next weaving catalog. Spring knitting will feature lots of great new yarns and designs, including a few of our own. Here's a couple of behind the scenes shots:

We've had lots of new yarns and books arriving almost daily. I've got a lot of updating still ahead!

Kathy

Check It Before You Chuck It

2008-01-07T11:40:00.000-05:00

Steve and I are readying to head to California for TNNA's Spring Buying Market. We've already worked with our major vendors, seen their spring lines and placed our orders. There are many smaller vendors, both for yarn and accessories that don't necessarily have a sales rep or maybe are just now ready with new products.

The big trend for Spring '08 is organic, eco-friendly yarns. Just from our major suppliers alone, we saw many, many different organic cottons, some dyed naturally, some using the natural colors of the cotton itself. There were more bamboo and soy blends, which we had started to see last year. There's even a yarn coming out with jade fiber as a component! Need to see it and understand the process of getting the jade into the yarn before I can decide how I feel about it.

Blue Sky Alpacas has been offering an Organic Cotton for several seasons. To say they were ahead of the curve would be an understatement. They have several options in "natural" colorations and then a rainbow of colors that have been dyed commercially. We hear that their handspun organic cotton will be available in colors - we can't wait to see it at the show!

One of the first new arrivals of the season is Ecologico from Schachenmayr. It is 100% Untreated Virgin Wool. The labels are made from recyclable paper and the balls are packaged in recyclable brown paper bags as well - no plastic bags! The yarn itself is quite nice and comes in 5 colors and knits at 4 sts = 1" on a #8 or #9. Each ball has 58 yards and retails for $6.95. Here are three of them, the rest you can see on the web:

What I find interesting is the fact that the green "movement" is becoming more and more about the way we live. I like to think that we all do our part, in whatever way we can. What works for one person or one family, may not necessarily be something that the next person or family can incorporate into their lives at this time.

Our boys' school is doing a year-long study about the environment and during the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas, they do what is called "mini-term" which is when the entire school focuses on one topic and most of the academics are geared toward that topic. Jackson and Jonathan are now extremely aware of different types of energy - I had to go and change out all of the light bulbs in our house to the energy efficient ones, it was my compromise with Jackson as he stood in our kitchen freaking out because I told him we couldn't get solar panels. If they see me throwing something out that should be in the recycle bin, they let me know so in no uncertain terms. I think this is all great, except when I've accidentally discarded a recyclable item into the trash and they find it. To them, it's a hostile act against our planet and all humanity, for me, it's simply an honest mistake and "Yes honey, I will dig that yogurt container out from under all of the icky trash, rinse it and put it into the recycling". The mantra in our house is "Check it before you chuck it". Check what it is, can it be recycled and if so, rinse it out and then chuck it into the bin".

Getting back to yarn, just as last year was focused on "knitting from stash" for many folks, this year appears to be the year of "going green". As I said before, what works for one person may not be right for the next. There's already a group on Ravelry devoted to purchasing only eco-friendly, locally grown yarns this year. They are also committed to knitting from their stash before buying yarn. Some are opting to not use corn or soy based yarns, others are open to shopping at their LYS but only if they are owned by women or if they are buying products that support women's cooperatives, etc.

Now, don't misunderstand, I think this is all wonderful. I too am looking forward to the sheep & wool festivals that will be happening in the months to come. The pure uniqueness of the yarns just tickle me to no end, along with the incredible craftmanship. Some of the new organics we've purchased for the shop are on my list of must-haves too and project ideas are already swirling.

At the same time, there are some great yarns coming out that are not "green" but are still wonderful in their own right. Many of our old favorites are still around with new colors and pattern support.

It's going to be fun season - spring is always interesting, especially here in the Northeast where we often go from winter to summer overnight. Keep an eye in the store and on the website. The parade of new products should be starting in the next few days! I can hardly wait!

I'll try to update from California. Our laptop and my camera are not the best of friends so it may be pictureless posts until we're back.

One final note, the wonderful Sandy asked about the "charity" project that I am working on. Sandy is one of our local customers and one of the most giving, philanthropic folks I know and knits non-stop for many organizations. I have to correct myself and will edit that blog post as well. My project is for a "promotion" and not a charity, per se. I stand very much corrected and didn't even realize the faux pas until Sandy asked about helping out (see what I mean about her!). We are working to knit 100 scarves (might turn out to be less, we'll see) to be given away at a UMass hockey game. We often attend the games with the boys and during each game, the alumni association gives away two fleece scarves. Well, we thought they should be giving away hand knit scarves instead and that's exactly what they are going to do.

Kathy

And the Beat Goes On

2008-01-03T18:10:00.000-05:00

As the holidays came and went with the sale taking center stage at the store, there were other happenings going on all around us and not just minor ones.

There was the arrival of SOME of the Kauni yarn. I must emphasize the "SOME" part of that statement. Not everything we ordered initially was ready to ship and what did ship was far from consistent in terms of put-up. We received balls, hanks and cones, all of varying weight. Steve has spent quite a bit of time shaking his head at me.

Even the box arrived looking pretty tattered.

We've shipped what we could so far and have a fair amount of winding and combining to do, plus we are still waiting for several other colors from both our initial order to arrive and from the second order we placed. Please have patience - we'll get everything out, just know this has not been the easiest undertaking.

Over the past few months we've been working on two projects. The first of which has achieved a few milestones that I'd like to share.

For those of you who are local, you know that the building we are in used to house 3 separate businesses. As each one moved on, we acquired the space until the entire building was all us. The amount of space was great, but the layout of it was nothing short of a mess. We had our "Hallway of Death" which connected warehouse 2 and warehouse 3, was icky and had flickering lights. We used the space in these warehouses terribly inefficiently to boot. Plus, the back of the house operations (shipping, receiving, customer service, admin and our offices) were becoming a bit crowded. The shipping dept had a staff of 2 when Steve and I started. Today we have 8 plus a manager - all squeezed into the same space. Again - not very efficient. Starting to see a trend? In early 2007, Steve and I decided something had to change. Was it time to move? Separate the retail store operations from the on-line operations? Renovate? Well, renovate was the final decision after months of analysis, sleepless nights and dart throwing.

Warehouse 2 and 3 are now connected into one beautiful space (as warehouses go) and are fully racked the way a warehouse should be. We have created a brand new space for shipping that not only will fit our current staff but has room for growth. Customer Service has a beautiful new space:

What I missed photographing was the moving of the cubicles, piece by piece, through the store, during the sale. Literally, I'm not sure anyone even gave it a second thought given the circus environment that was already happening.

Renovations will continue. Here is where Customer Service used to be:

Through the doorway is our office. The wall will come down and Steve and I will have a much larger space with two major improvements. (1) The outer walls will be insulated so I won't freeze to death anymore and (2) we're getting our office carpeted. Now I know that doesn't seem like that big of a deal, but it is to me.

What this all means to you is that we will be better, faster and more efficient when picking, packing and shipping your orders. We're pretty good now and we truly appreciate all of the lovely emails we receive each day, but there's always room for improvement.

Oh, and the Hallway of Death? G.O.N.E. We built a connecting hallway between shipping, the warehouses and the new knitting yarn stockroom that we have aptly named the Hallway of Life.

Getting back to yarn and such, I was walking through the store during the holidays and this lovely sample popped out of nowhere:

It's the Henley Perfected from Interweave Knits Winter '07 issue. Knit in Blue Sky Alpacas Alpaca Silk, it is simply yummy. Even Jackson commented on it, saying how soft the yarn was and how perfect it would be for a charity scarf project we are working on. The boy has good taste.

For those of you who listen to the podcast or I guess especially for those of you who don't, our next KAL will be starting in two weeks. This time, we've selected Brooklyn Tweed's Hemlock Ring Throw. There has been a ton of buzz about this project and it fullfills two different goals for the year - lace knitting and "current/hot" projects". Now there is no arguing that this is not lace knitting in it's purest form, but it's a first step for those who have yet to jump into the pool. Secondly, no worries that every project we tackle will have to fit into the "current favorite".

Other things Pixie and I plan to tackle are colorwork, mittens, another Elizabeth Zimmermann project, crochet, just to name a few. If you have suggestions, please email me at readysetknit@yarn.com. That's how we decided on the Hemlock Ring!

Oh and remember just yesterday how I said I'd be trying to work on one new and one old project and that I had both already queued up for my trip to California? Well, my yarn-ADD kicked in as I innocently waited to use the ladies room today. There, sitting on the shelf where it's probably been for awhile, one I've probably seen numerous times, was a yarn. Today my friends, the yarn spoke to me.

It's a Gedifra closeout called Tiago, 50% silk/50% viscose. It supposedly knits at 3.75 stitches on a #10 or #10.5, but I'm skeptical. Each 50gm ball has 93ish yards and it has a lovely, natural look to it thanks to the way the silk dyes and the colors are softed and muted.

As I returned to my office, I passed by Steve and said "this Gedifra closeout is REALLY nice". He just smiled that "well I don't intentionally buy UGLY closeouts" and then said "yes, it is a really nice yarn". One bag of color 6867 is sitting here just waiting for me to stop typing! I'm thinking crochet rather than knit, but we'll see.

It's going to be a long yarn-filled year I think.

Kathy

The Plan

2008-01-02T17:28:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year! As frantic as the holidays can be - especially when you own and/or work in a retail store, I do love the fresh clean slate the New Year brings.

2007 has been a great year - certainly not without it's issues and such, but as I reflect back the issues truly seem minor in the grand scheme of things. It's certainly been a great year for fiber arts! Knitting has stayed strong and everyone's enthusiasm both in the store and on-line has been simply awesome. So many great new yarns, so many new books and what I think has been the biggest influence - the on-line community. From indy bloggers to forums to the world known as Ravelry, there is no question that the internet has had a significant influence and will continue to do so. The simple fact that we can all communicate, share ideas, discuss patterns, resolve problems and just simply enjoy communicating with others who share a similar passion, despite where we live, is simply awesome. That's not to say this mode of communication is perfect. Those "send" and "post" buttons can sometimes be clicked so quickly that we sometimes "type" before we "think".

As Pixie and I discussed on last week's podcast, I am pretty pleased with some of the new skills I've developed this year as a knitter, but I'd have to say that overall, I'm disappointed with my FO's or should I say, lack there of. There is no question that I have a finishing issue. I could resolve to not start another project before I finish the ones already in progress, but quite honestly, that is simply setting myself up to fail. There are enough things in life that don't go as planned, I don't need to add to that knowingly. I am going to try to concurrently work on something new and a WIP. I leave for TNNA next week and I'll be bringing along a long-in-the-works sweater and a new project for an event we're doing next month. I honestly get the best knitting/crocheting done when I'm flying - even more so than in the car.

Pixie and I also talked about some of the projects that we are going to work on this year on the podcast and they are definitely centered around skills I want to work on such as colorwork and mittens. I also want to get more competent with socks - yes I knit them this year, but I still really have to think about what I'm doing with a lot of stops and starts and double checking notes or with someone at the store. In general, I'm most interested in just knitting and crocheting more. I also want to dabble a bit more in designing both for our catalog and beyond. Please know, I use the word "designing" very loosely, but that little Vermont Felted Bag certainly held it's own this year.

What about all of you? What's your plan for the year? What are you hoping to accomplish both skillwise and project wise? Do you even have a plan or are you just going to go with the flow?

I've got some pictures to catch you all up on - a great sweater that appeared during the mayhem, some shots from our after Christmas pandemonium, I mean sale and a few other nuggets, including a few behind the scenes shots of one of our big projects that we've had in the works. I'll get to all of the that in the next day or so. I'll simply leave you with what truly the past couple of weeks have been all about, no matter how chaotic work and such have been:

Treats for Santa and the reindeer and Christmas morning.

Kathy

P.S. How is this larger picture format?

Christmas Cheer

2007-12-16T20:56:00.000-05:00

I spent much of last night riding the adrenaline wave of Melissa's launch party. We've done a lot of events, but this was just so much fun on so many levels.

Today was a planned slug day. The weather was predicted to be awful and it was! Snow and sleet and yuck all day. We opted not to open today - sorry to anyone that made the trek, but I can't imagine anyone would. It was truly that nasty out there! I can't say I did much slugging or knitting. I spent time communing with the laundry (how do two, small boys create so much??), attacking Jackson's closet. Mrs. Claus must come and take away toys and clothing the boys no longer use or fit into for those children less fortunate. Jonathan and I worked through his room and we all did the basement play area around Thanksgiving, but we've stalled since then. Mrs. Claus will be stopping by one day this week and the boys are feeling very good about things.

Next, I need to get right to an apology. To Knitting Contessa - who was so kind to ask me to participate in her 25 days of holiday blog interviews. Not only did she ask me (which I was incredibly honored by) but she kicked off her series with ME! Here I am, 15 days later finally getting the link posted. Tina - I will never be able to apologize enough. You did a beautiful job, not only with my interview, but all of the others throughout the month. For anyone who doesn't regularly read Knitting Contessa - now is the time to start. She has a lovely blog, her writing is witty and entertaining. Be sure to check out my interview and the rest of the series as well!

Now, I promised to build upon something on Melissa's blog. She stole this from Purling P's and I'm stealing it from Melissa Knits. Kind of a nice way to cap off the weekend.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? This truly depends on the gift. I LOVE to wrap gifts. I am big on ribbon and bows and such. My family thinks I'm nuts. Anytime I'm shopping and I"m offered gift wrap, I always say "NO", that's my favorite part! Some years are better than others in terms of the effort. Also, we definitely have specific "Santa" paper and "family paper". I messed up one year and Jonathan, at age of 3 or 4 noticed. I had to do some fast talking!

2. Real or artificial tree? REAL! I always had a fake tree growing up, so once I was out on my own, a real tree was a must. At this point, I could be convinced to get a nice fake tree with lights already strung, but Steve insists if we're going to have a tree, it must be real.

3. When do you put up the tree? It sort of depends on (a) our schedule (b) weather and (c) when Hanukkah is. Since Hanukkah was early this year, we waited until it was underway before getting the tree. Usually second weekend in December.

4. When do you take it down? It's out the door, deocrations packed away and gifts put away by New Year's Day.

5. Do you like eggnog? Not really.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? Oh - tough one. I was a HUGE Winnie the Pooh fanatic as a child. Unfortunately, there were no Disney stores or major licensing agreements in those days. What little was out there could be found at Sears. I still have ornaments that my mother found that are easily 35 years old. I always got a new Pooh Bear at Christmas and I still have them all. One year, I received a long gown - dark green with a high white ruffle neck and poufy sleeves. There were Winnie the Poohs all over the green fabric. I wore it the entire school vacation and I wanted to wear it the first day back at school. There was also the year I wanted to get my ears pierced and my mother refused. I was too young (13). My Aunt Dottie gave me pierced earrings for Christmas :)

7. Do you have a nativity scene? No.

8. Hardest person to buy for? It varies. This year, my ILs were tough. My mom is always hard. Some years I'm very inspired and other years it's more difficult, depending on the person.

9. Easiest person to buy for? The boys!

10. Worst Christmas present you ever got? Coat Hangers. From a former sister-in-law.

11. Mail or email Christmas cards? I have not sent Christmas cards in at least 3 years. I have the cards, just never get them done. It's depressing because we're being dropped off lists and not receiving as many cards. There just isn't enough time.

12. Favorite Christmas movie? Year Without a Santa Claus - I love Heat Miser and Snow Miser. Then of course Charlie Brown Christmas, Rudolph, The Grinch - I know these are more "shows" than "movies" but they are what I grew up with and I love watching them with the boys.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? November-ish, although I've always got an eye out, especially when travelling. If I see something I'll get it and stash it away.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Oh yeah.

15. Favorite thing to eat on Christmas? Sweet Pickles. We always had these at holidays growing up and it's just not Thanksgiving or Christmas without them.

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear.

17. Favorite Christmas song? Have Yourself a Merry LIttle Christmas, Christmas Wrapping and most sentimental is Silver Bells. Oh, but I love Carol of the Bells too!

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Home.

19. Can you name all of Santa’s Reindeer? Absolutely.

20. Angel or star on top of tree? Star. Given that Steve is Jewish, I have always felt that an Angel would not be appropriate, not am I a big angel person. We only recently found a star we love. For many years the top was either bare or just had ribbon. When the kids were first born, my mom (I think) gave Jackson a large Clifford the Big Red Dog furry ornament and we decided he should be the topper and he was until last year.

21. Open presents Christmas Eve or morning? Morning, but there is always a "Christmas Eve" present. When Steve and I were dating and first married we would exchange our gifts on Christmas Eve.

22. Most annoying thing this time of year? Grumpy people.

23. Do you decorate your tree in any theme or color? It's a hodge podge of memories. Ornaments from my childhood, exquisite ornaments given to us as gifts or something I've picked up, handmade ornaments from the kids - lots of Red Sox ornaments, hot wheel cars - whatever their passion is each year. Plus, we give the boys a special ornament each year so that when they go off on their own, they will have ornaments that are meaningful to start their own trees.

24. What do you leave for Santa? He gets cookies and milk. The reindeer get carrots and maybe some apple.

It's overwhelming to think one week from tomorrow, Santa flies! It's going to be a frantic week at work. Deadlines for shipping to customers are flying by (tomorrow is it for the West Coast without expedited shipping, Tuesday is South/Midwest and Wednesday is East), shoppers will be starting to panic and we've got to prep for the Year End Blowout Sale!

I'm going to see if I can steal a sneak peek from Steve's super-secret list and give you all some inside scoop later this week!

Kathy

And Sometimes That's Okay

2007-12-15T18:04:00.000-05:00

Despite my need for things to be symmetrical and my ducks to be neatly in a row, sometimes things get thrown out of whack for a reason. I do wholeheartedly believe that everything happens for a reason.

Today, a day earlier than planned we held the launch party for Melissa's first book "2-At-A-Time-Socks". It was suppose to be tomorrow, but when the weekend forecasts started coming in and snow/sleet/freezing rain along with high winds appeared to be more than just a prediction, we decided we had to make a very, very tough call. We know we disappointed some folks who simply could not come today. I am sorry beyond words. Given that we're a week from Christmas, the year-end sale, New Year's and Melissa's travel schedule, we really had no choice.

Thank you to everyone who came - what a GREAT day! It's been well documented that I truly love events, it's my background and my passionate. TODAY.WAS.AWESOME. We had a great turnout, our team did an incredible job, especially Mary and Karen! You guys truly rock. Everyone working in the store was great, LA thanks for the help, Sharlene - your floral arrangements were stunning and Linda we love your wine!

Then there was Melissa. As nervous as you were, as stressful the change was - YOU WERE INCREDIBLE! Great, great job! Fun was had by all!

We gave Melissa gifts:

There were others, but in the craziness of the day no photographs and trust me, the other chickens were way cooler, but mine, not so complex, but so from the heart.

The most wonderful shot of the day is this:

An Omie with her granddaughter, at her first book launch, surrounded by yarn, good friends, family. . . .doesn't get any better than this. (Not to mention, the darling GD was not happy until in said Omie's arms - only a few days old and she already knows the score. Smart little girl that April is.)

I'm going to keep this short because (a) Steve is home and hungry (b) Jackson spent 6 hours at the store and even he has had enough of computer/video game and is also hungry (c) Jonathan barfed in the parking lot approximately 1 hour before the event and (d) well, it's Saturday night, it's been a week.

I have to apologize for the photos. I left my memory card in my home computer (bad blogger). Fortunately, Petey, our Ops Mgr (read - they guy in charge of making sure you get your mail orders) suggested "the camera" we use for yarn photography. The camera is high end and definitely smelled the fear in me. Being reduced to "point and click" did not make the camera happy whatsoever.

I have a very important and overdue link I'll blog tomorrow and I"m also going to pull something from Melissa's blog. I will also update the links here, but seriously my family is about to meltdown.

Kathy

Not According to Plan

2007-12-13T16:04:00.000-05:00

It has been a very strange week. I'm a relatively organized gal and like things to go according to plan. I'm not so rigid that I can't handle a few curve balls now and again, but too much at one time can sort of send me over the edge. I have not worked a full day at the store in 8 days and nothing has really gone according to plan for the following reasons:

1. Steve was on jury duty from last Wednesday until Tuesday of this week. It was a very difficult deliberation with an outcome he is not happy about. He did his civic duty and did it well. For me though, let me just say, it's not easy being Steve. Despite the fact that we work together, live together and spend A Lot of time together, there are things that we don't talk about, things he's doing or working on that I don't necessarily know about. Normally this is not an issue - I trust Steve has his responsibilities under control as he does with me. It does become a problem when Steve is suddenly, unexpectedly unavailable for 8 hours per day for 5 days.

2. I spent five hours here at home on Friday afternoon waiting for the "Geek Squad" to come an install Steve's Hanukkah surprise. I waited and waited and waited and waited. Go ahead, guess what happend. They didn't show. I was beside myself. I couldn't even be angry I was so upset. Steve is impossible to buy for and I rarely get to surprise him. The kids were totally in on this and we had all pinky-swore not to spill the beans. They held up their end of the deal, as did I. We were sneaky, we were stealth. He had no idea. It was the perfect plan - I even had a big bow already to adorn said installed gift. Instead, three said faces showed Steve the box, with the gift in it, uninstalled. Needless to say it went back the next day and never again shall I shop at Best Buy. I'll spare you all the gorey details - all I know is that we treated our customers the way I was treated, you would all refuse to shop with us again too. I went to another store purchased a replacement gift, had the electrician here this morning (our own electrician this time - he is definitely NOT a geek). We take the gift out of the box, we are all excited and then as Steve is admiring the bells and whistles, we realize that something is missing. We realize - THEY GAVE ME THE WRONG ITEM. I paid for item X and they gave me item Y and item X has more features than item Y. Next year he's getting underwear for Hanukkah.

3. Jackson's "possibly" broken finger turns out to be broken with a "displaced chip". We went from the pediatrician, to the hospital for x-rays and then onto an orthopedic for an evaluation. All turned out well in the end, but as the ped was explaining that "if" it was chipped and "if" it was displaced, it could result in his finger growing strangely without further "treatment" (he never said the "S" word, but it was screaming in my head) all I could think of was that we had waited five days to have it looked at and what terrible parents we were. Again, all is well. The chip is already healing. The only downside - no hockey until after New Year's.

4. Tuesday evening - 3am - Jonathan comes into our room crying, saying his belly is upset. I said "do you think you're going to throw up" and he says "yes". As I start to tell him to get to the bathroom he instead decides our bedroom floor is a better option. I'll spare you the details, but trust me when I say this was not a good situation. Two days at home with "barf boy" was not on this week's schedule.

5. There is a very big snow storm currently hitting us. Jonathan was already home sick as mentioned above, so the timing was actually pretty good for this one. It's actually quite beautiful outside right now.

6. Unfortunately, the next storm is not nearly timed as well. It is scheduled to hit here Saturday night into Sunday and is expected to be an even stronger storm than we are experiencing today. This is a major problem, because we were scheduled to have Melissa Morgan-Oakes HUGE launch party for her book this Sunday. WE HAVE CHANGED THE DATE!! If you are registered or thinking about coming - DO NOT COME ON SUNDAY! The new date is this SATURDAY 12/15 from 1-3pm. This should get everyone on the road and home safely long before the first flake floats down. Melissa will be there, the book will be there, yummy food and beverages will be available. Super special giveaways will be up for grabs! Plus, you know you need a project to work on during the snowstorm on Sunday! Don't let Melissa down - this is her first book! I'm expecting to see you all Saturday - this Saturday at 1pm!!

On the knitting front, I can't say much since the projects are gifts and I'm not sure if the recipients tune in here regularly. Here's a couple of sneak peeks:

(NOTE - Both of these pictures came out terribly. Especially the first one which is a to-die-for beautiful yarn.)

The time at home also gave me the chance to accomplish this:

I'll leave you with this:

Coming out of the hospital this week, Jackson was mesmerized by the beauty of this tree. Gotta love that kid.

Kathy

P.S. Blogger will not let me upload my pictures. This is so perfect. . .

P.P.S. Blogger has now decided to cooperate :)

Hanukkah Flambe

2007-12-06T18:56:00.000-05:00

Happy Hanukkah to those of you who celebrate. We get to enjoy both holidays since Steve is Jewish and I am not. It's always great for us when there's time between the two. It gives us a chance to really focus on them individually and talk about why the meaning of each and the importantce and such. Despite our best efforts, when the two coincide, it becomes just a non-stop-present-fest which is not good.

Back in November, Jonathan and I were in Tarjay (a.k.a. Target) and he spotted a "Paint Your Own Menorah" kit. He was all excited and I was thrilled. Two kits were in the basket before my cutie-patootie could even give it a good "pleeeeaaaassseee, Mom?". The boys worked diligently on them and Jackson decided he would give his to his grandparents and we would keep Jonathan's for our family. So for the past three nights we've lit two menorahs. We lit the candles tonight, said the prayer, opened gifts and when Steve turned around, Jonathan's handpainted keepsake menorah WAS ON FIRE. Not toast-your -marshmellows fire but "hurry before the smoke detectors go off" kind of fire. This is the aftermath:

About a half hour later as the candles were dwindling to nothing it dawns on me "Art & Barbara have one of these too!" I call them and warn them of impending danger. All is well.

I will call Target tomorrow about this product. I no longer have the packaging, but obviously there is a problem. We still had a lovely celebration tonight:

Notice Jackson's pinky finger. Yes, that is a splint. He jammed his finger yesterday and despite his complaints, there was no swelling. We figured he was just being dramatic. Well, today it was swollen and uncomfortable and the very responsible folks at his school took him to the health center and the nurse examined him and put a splint on his "possibly broken" finger. He thinks he looks cool, I concede complete defeat on any mother-of-the-year awards (gently pounding head against wall for not being more on top of this).

In knitting news, I am working on two top secret projects, one of which will achieve it's deadline, one which I don't think will. Hey, it's not like the house is going to burn down. . . .

We've received in some new yarn, but I am sans pictures. Sorry. Steve has been empanelled in a jury and I've had to be me and Steve, which is not easy. This week's podcast I am alone again and well, I basically talk as if I've free-based a pot of espresso. Who knew I could go without breathing for 12 minutes! Sorry, I digress, on to the yarn.

First, we have carried Schaefer Anne for quite some time in the store, but never on the web. Well, we've changed that. Six of the twelve colors are in. Anne retails for $26.00/skein.

Anne's brand new baby sister Heather will also be on-line and in the store. Heather is a 55% merino/35% silk/15% nylon gorgeous sock yarn. We only have 3 colors in - the other 9 are coming. Cost is $29.00/skein.

We also just received in Happy Feet from Plymouth. A great sock yarn with a nice twist, Happy Feet has beautiful colors. Each hank is 50 gm, so you'll need 2 for a pair. Price - hold on folks - price is $6.99/skein!

I'll be posting some great gift ideas in the next post.

Also, if you listen to our podcast and have any suggestions for KAL's for 2008, please post them. We are planning the schedule and have some great ideas, but would love to hear what would tickle you! Is there a project you think would be great, a technique you want to learn about? Let us know - we can do whatever we want, whatever you want!

Happy Knitting!

Kathy

The Most Wonderful Time. . . . .

2007-11-29T18:51:00.000-05:00

Yes, I love this time of year, but what I love even more is having cool stuff to share with you. Steve and I like happy customers, we love it when you find just what you wanted/needed and we love being able to "surprise" you every now and again.

Today my cherished blog readers, today you have hit the jackpot. We do our best to bring you fresh and new and exciting products and events and today, today is the Perfect Yarn Storm. What is most magical is that this is traditionally not a time when we get much "new" in. This is partially the nature of the industry and partially our own design, given how busy it is.

First up is new, gorgeous luxury - meet Artyarns Ensemble:

I am rarely at a loss for words, but this yarn, there are no words. It's beyond yummy, it's beyond faboo, it's beyond every Kathy-ism I have for the best of the best yarns. The ones that make my little ole heart go pitter-patter. This yarn makes me twitchy and for those of you that know me, when something makes me twitchy, well, it's something beyond words.

Now I realize, this yarn is on the high-end. It's 75% silk/25% cashmere and it's $50.00/hank, discountable. It's put-up in 100gm hanks, with 256 yards and knits at 4 1/2 sts = 1" on #7. It is the holidays folks and this is the time to splurge a little - whether you are getting the yarn to create a most special gift or are ASKING for the yarn from your non-knitting-shopper, this has the WOW factor.

Next up - I need all Noro Fans and Sock Knitters to sit down. I want you take a deep breath - hold it for 3 seconds and exhale. Please repeat. I give you. . . . . . Kureyon Sock Yarn:

Breathe, remember to breathe folks!

Kureyon Sock is 75% wool/25% nylon and is put-up on 100 gram balls (one ball makes a pair!) and has 471 yards for $18.95. There are twelve incredible colors. I nearly fainted when I realized color 40 was among the selection.

Here's the deal. This yarn is NOT HERE YET. We are taking pre-orders. Go to the website or call customer service (800.367.9327) to place your order. We are expecting the yarn to arrive in early December, barring any issues coming through customs. The website indidcates our inventory on each color is OUT OF STOCK. Please ignore this and go ahead and place your order. We will not charge your card until we ship the yarn. If you order additional items, we will hold those until the sock yarn comes in.

This last yarn is one that there has experienced tremendous chatter on blogs, forums, etc. It's been one of those elusive, yet coveted yarns. The folks on the WEBS group on Ravelry are the ones that really got the ball rolling for this yarn, so to them I say thanks and all of you should do the same. Because of their enthusiasm, insistence and shear will, we will now be carrying Kauni Effekt from Denmark. This is the 100% wool, fingering weight yarn that has extremely long color repeats and is truly like nothing else in the marketplace today. This yarn is not without it's quirks. The skeins are "approximately" 150 grams - some a bit bigger, some a bit smaller. The approximate yardage is 660 yards and we will be selling it for $17.99/skein, discountable. There are two IMPORTANT points with this yarn. First, like the Kureyon Sock Yarn, it is a PREORDER. Ignore the "out of stock" and order today! Second, our order has been broken into two shipments based on availability. The first shipment should (and I do emphasize SHOULD) be here in a couple of weeks-ish. It will contain the following Kauni colors:

EQ, EJ, EN, EP, ER, ES, ET

The second shipment which should follow approximately two weeks later will have Kauni colors:

EC, EG, EK, EL, EV

We'll see how we do, reorder or add where we need to.

Changing gears a bit, I want to mention this week's Ready, Set, Knit! podcast. We will be featuring an interview with Melissa Morgan Oakes, friend of WEBS and to me personally. I've mentioned before that her FIRST book, 2-At-A-Time-Socks is debuting later this month. We're having a big party on December 16th (click here for details, to register for the event and PREORDER the book). Check out the podcast this week to learn more about the book and about Melissa.

Next, a wee bit of show and tell. Our own Leslie Ann Bestor was definitely "Queen" for the day today. Leslie Ann works in the store, teaches, designs, does just about any fiber art you can imagine and does them exceptionally well. Today, she brought in her latest weaving project. It's a blanket for her daughter for Christmas. What is extra special about this blanket is she used Tahki/Stacy Charles Mosaic. It is a stunning piece:

Also, the latest issue of Interweave Crochet arrived today and in it is one of LA's designs! Be sure to check out the darling Chevron Bag she created!

Finally, a few special moments over the last week that I'd like to share. The first picture is from Thanksgiving Day:

Although Jackson insisted on eating his turkey once again with ketchup, it appears everyone ended the day quite satisfied. They are cuddled under a Malabrigo woven blanket :)

Then, on Monday morning, Steve and Jonathan noticed this outside:

And this:

We were in awe and I was a fright to see in my robe and penny loafers in the yard taking these shots. It was well worth it though! The rainbow was to the west and stretched from behind one neighbors house over the street and down behind another house. It was gone in a matter of minutes as a cold front was moving in.

Last, but again, far from least is Freddie:

Freddie is a neighborhood cat who hangs out at the store. He is a love to the "nth" degree. He cuddles, he purrs, he lays on our desks and keyboards to prevent us from working. He flops on the floor of the store in front of customers. On this day, he cuddle with our Blue Sky Alpaca critters and was a bit annoyed when I disturbed his nap.

Well, that's it everyone, I've got nothing left. I've given you all I've got and I've gots no more.

Plus, it's almost time for Grey's.

Enjoy!

Kathy

So What's on Your List?

2007-11-23T19:01:00.000-05:00

I'm sure there were many of you braving various shopping venues today, be it the mall or your LYS. Nice to see so many faces at WEBS today as well - thanks for finding the time to stop in!

It was interesting to see what people were buying - there's definitely been a shift to holiday projects. At the same time, I was tickled when a couple of customers said that they were buying yarn for themselves. I got to thinking that as knitters, crocheters, even weavers and spinners, our time is dominated with creating gifts for friends, family, co-workers, school teachers over the next few weeks. Most of us have probably overestimated what we can accomplish. So when it's all said and done, what are you hoping for this holiday season? A pair of needles? Maybe a set of crochet hooks? A few skeins of that yummy yarn that is just a little more than you want to spend on yourself? Maybe a gift certificate for a class?

For me, there are two things that are interrelated. The first is time. Granted, this is something that I need to control as much as anything, but I would love to feel I have the time to go to one of our drop ins and just hang out and knit or crochet. I've made attempts to do this, but it just never seems to pan out. Gail, the Kangaroo Dyer is determined to get me up to her house to do some dyeing - again, it's simply a matter of making the time. I know some of you will say that if it was important I'd "find" the time. To a certain extent, I guess I can't argue that point but it's not as if I"m wasting time or making excuses.

The second thing, dependent on the time issue, is to continue to build my skills. Pixie and I will be talking about this towards the end of the year on the podcast. We had some goals in mind this year for our KAL's and the skills we wanted to tackle. I'm pretty pleased with our accomplishments and want to make sure we build new skills into next year's KAL. If it works out that my own personal goals can be incorporated then that is the best of both worlds.

I would love to hear your thoughts and what it is you are hoping to unwrap over the next few weeks of celebrations.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We had a lovely celebration and the food turned out great. After three years there is no doubt, brining is the only way to prep a turkey.

Kathy

Holidays - Part 1

2007-11-21T20:23:00.000-05:00

So here we are on Thanksgiving Eve. The WEBS team is off to their respective celebrations - sorry we didn't get everyone out earlier!

Last night, Steve, the boys and I watched the classic - Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. I grew up watching the Peanuts holiday series. I love them all. I love that my children love them and feel the same excitement watching them with the boys, the thrill of getting to stay up a bit late. . . it's a tradition.

I love the holidays - every last thing about them. I always have. I love that this special time of year has been enhanced by adding Hanukkah to the mix. From now until New Year's is a magical time at our house. I'll share more of this as we work our way through the next few weeks, but right now, it's turkey time!

(Happy 7th Birthday Jacob!)

We keep Thanksgiving simple. My family doesn't come - they are two hours away and well, we work retail. We are open the day before and after Thanksgiving. I think they got tired of being "moved" in and out a bit briskly. It's all good. We're a pretty practical group. So tomorrow we'll celebrate with the boys and "B and Grandpa" and have a lovely meal. What more could 4 1/2 people want than a 17 lb turkey, four veggies, stuffing, gravy, appetizers, salad and dessert? If you don't hear from us on Friday, we're just comatose at our house - send help!

It's been a funny year here at WEBS and for the Elkins Family. The year has been on fast forward since January. I've blogged about it and talked about it on our podcast, Ready, Set, Knit!. I'm still feeling that we're somewhere around late August or so, but the calendar tells me to cook a turkey, so I will oblige. It's also been a really good year and we have so very much to be thankful for.

It's also been a tough three weeks for us. At the end of October we lost someone we considered a friend and important business associate. She was killed in a car accident on her way to work. It is a a tremendous loss on so many levels, but especially for her husband and two teenage daughters. Then, just last week, we found out one of the owners of the family run office supply store next door to us had passed away unexpectedly after a long battle with cancer. Again, someone who had been nothing but helpful and supportive of us, with two teenage daughters and a wonderful wife. Two amazing, vibrant people gone in the blink of an eye. Yeah, we've got a lot to be thankful for and a lot of sadness to process. As we enjoy tomorrow and celebrate, our thoughts will be with both of these families.

We are thankful so much and without getting completely mushy, I do have to say "thanks" to all of you who take time to read this blog -as erratic as it is, for listening to the podcast and for shopping with us, be it in the store or on-line. We don't take any of it for granted. We are grateful that you choose to shop with us, listen to us, read what we have to say. We know how crazy life is and that choices have to made, priorities set. The simple fact that we are included in your life is something that we truly appreciate.

We hope that each of you enjoy your day/weekend. Whatever your traditions are.

With that, I will ask, what do you cherish about Thanksgiving and what are you thankful for this year? Also, what are you knitting/crocheting as you work your way through the next few days? Personally, I've got a special crochet project in the works. I just hope I can get it done in time!

You will find that these will be recurring questions over the next few weeks. For those of you who receive our holiday catalog, you'll see that our staff was kind enough to share some of their holiday memories with all of you and I'll also try to share what they are working (in general) for the holidays.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Kathy