The Knaughty Knitter

I had a whole post planned yesterday when I left...It was gonna be great and now it has left my brain completely.  So I'll makeup something....I have been skeining yarn all day to dye tomorrow.  I found some 100% mohair - sport weight - that is luscious and will be for sale by Friday in whatever colors I do it....It has been sitting since I bought it at TNNA in June.  I love pure mohair - it seems so much softer than the stuff they add acrylic to.  There should be some hand dyed sock yarn that's dry by then too.

Oh and there's the list of UFO's in my closet.....Sheep Shawl, a Sweater from some mysterious Noro and random stripes of blue alpaca that I did the sleeves for first and now have to knit the back and one front, there's a shawl I started in yarns dyed with Brazilwood.  It is both knit and crochet and I would rip it out but I really like the knitted cat head in the middle of it..I may rip part of it and change the design to something a little more mindless for the rest of it...There a couple of long buried works -  a cotton shell with lacey bottom edge, a fair isle alpaca sweater I started before the store and ripped out and started again and will probably have to rip again, and a free form knit/crochet jacket in many purple yarns.     Current works in progress are a pair of clogs, a hat for the grandbaby, a Boku afghan for the store and the cursed feather and fan alpaca shawl that I manage a few rows a day on.  There are inumerable single socks completed through the gusset and I have not been able to make myself do the heel on them.  Waiting in the wings is a felted bowl I need to do for a present, and the Icelandic Shawl that was on Knitting Daily not too long ago.   I have finally spun most of the yarn for it and so am looking forward to starting that as soon as either the feather and fan thing or afghan are done.  Then there's the grandbaby sweater - one with paw prints on it, another I want to design with fair isle designs, red and white for the holidays.

What's on your needles?

There have been threads everywhere about what UFOs people have....so here's our contribution.  What is on your needles right now that you are excited about and then how many unfinished projects have you got going?  Comment on the blog to answer and you will be entered in a drawing that happens on our Birthday - Nov. 10th.  Not sure what it is for yet...it'll be good though.  We'll be TWO YEARS OLD!  Wonder what else I can cook up to celebrate?????

Fiber Festival

It was so busy, bigger than ever and really fun.  There were spinners and weavers and makers of great fiber things from everywhere.  There were sheep being sheared...

and fine and yummy alpaca and llama and dyers and ....It was a lot and really great this year.  There were lots of folks helping us out and I want to say a huge THANK YOU! to them.  Everyone went way above and beyond to help out and I couldn't have done it without you.

New Stuff, New Stuff, New Stuff

Yeah, Yeah, more new stuff...................It's good though....really.  Bulky Naturals and Hand dyes from Blue Sky Alpaca It's Alpaca & Wool...yummmm

And those lace shrug patterns from Yarn Place for the Graceful lace weight yarn came in FINALLY!

and Superwash worsted weight wool from Crystal Palace (Merino 5).  There were lots of boxes. And some patterns, and the new Knit Simple and The Great American Afghan Book....Another color of the yarngasm yarn - Ksar (camel/wool).  I made a little neckscarf out of it that I don't want to ever take off.

The Headline Should Read...

UPS Man Brings Yarngasms...

I wish you had feelanet (internet you could touch?, somthing like that) This is 50% camel/50% Wool in warm subtle colors.  It is the yarn you want to get naked and roll in. 

And I thought when the PacaPeds came in this morning I was gonna have a good day...Then it got better.

Just so you know this is Paca Peds (sock yarn with 20% Alpaca)

Pretty Felted Things

You could do this too.

Here's a collection of things Jan has made recently...A couple of really beautiful purses, scarves using a couple of different techniques, felted soap and felted flowers.

The class for this is all day Nov. 10th - that's a Saturday.  Come have fun with felt and take home your own awesome creations. 

Halloween Albera

Albera is ready for Halloween.  Are You?  This is my favorite weather - stormy and still a bit warm, a good breeze all the time and and big fluffy grey clouds...sort of like this yarn I spun this week that I think is the prettiest thing.  Reminds of Fall storms...

There's handspun for sale in the store if you hadn't seen it before.  Some similar to this is coming next week when it has dried from having the twist set. 

Inventory After Shock

I am still working on the paperwpork associated with inventory and getting all those numbers into the computer....................ugh.  There are over 13,000 balls of yarn and another 6,000 accessories and needles and books, spinning and weaving things, over 1800 patterns.....I am overwhelmed so until that's done I may be a little neglectful of the blog.... I am totally amazed and the counting of all that occurring in about 6 hours.....The folks who helped are amazing, thank you all.

WE ARE CLOSED TODAY

Just Today....for Inventory.  See you all Monday.

Audio Books!

I got surprises from Interweave this afternoon.  More of the Holiday Knits Gifts  issue  AND Audio Books - America Knits and Knitting Memories.  Can't you just picture sitting in nice chair listening to a knitting book, knitting a nice little something gift for a friend, cup of hot tea, yummy little snack to go with it.....okay it's too warm still, but think ahead...Stocking Stuffer.....part of gift basket for a knitter....

There's also Felt Forward, a new book full of fabulous felted stuff that would make great gifts for yourself or someone else.  And you can take Jan's Felting Class and learn even more about that. 

Just a word of reminder about classes - When there are visiting teachers or classes that require a lot of preparation  (folks who don't already work here) there are deadlines for signing up and paying for classes so the instructors can prepare properly for the class and so I can order materials.     The deadline for Jan's class is October 28th.  The other class with a deadline at the moment is Susan's Lace Project Class that starts on November 1st..  This one needs to be signed up for by Oct. 21st.