I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving holiday. I had a wonderful week off, interrupted by our little Small Business Saturday sale, and thanks to everyone who came! I’m very happy to announce that the winners of our Advent Calendars were Donna Hain and Janet Kakareka, both of whom will have a lot of fun opening those little doors next month, and figuring out things to do with all their little mini-skeins. Next year there will be one with my name on it!
I visited my sister and came home with 4 knitting commissions! She wants another lightweight cowl like the one I made her last year, only in a different color. This is the pattern I used, the Ocean Waves Loop from Swans Island Company:
According to my sister (and Chinese acupuncture), keeping the back of your neck warm is crucial to keeping your body warm and will protect you from colds and other winter ills! And as I sit here at my computer on this chilly morning with a throw over my shoulders like an old lady, I can attest to feeling much warmer with it covering the back of my neck. I can also attest to the fact that if I switched out the throw for a beautiful infinity scarf, I would look much more stylish and much less like a haggard old crone.
The other requests came from my niece, mother of Maxwell the Great (Nephew), who, by the way, is the cutest little guy ever and is in constant motion and thoroughly in love with trucks and heavy machinery of any kind. He needs a sweater, perhaps with a truck on it! She needs another pair of socks, and would love a simple navy turtleneck in a warm soft fabric, which she is having a hard time finding in the stores.
How much do I love being asked for knitted things?!! I absolutely love it. I enjoy knitting no matter what, and I’m lucky that I can do so much of it because the demands of the store are never-ending, but it’s really special when someone you love asks you for something. I found the most beautiful navy yarn in my stash, 80% merino and 20% cashmere, and have made a beginning on her sweater.
I’m using Laura Aylor’s Burn for the numbers and basic construction, but will change the style quite a bit to add a full fold-over turtleneck, full-length sleeves, deep ribbing at the cuffs and bottom, and more ease overall.
We’re adding a class on Sunday, December 10 from 1 – 4 p.m. , $35 class fee, to make the Last-Minute Mittlets in luscious Cashmere Light. One $28 ball of yarn makes a pair of the softest, warmest fingerless mitts you’ve ever worn! You’ll need the yarn, size 10 or 10.5 double points, some markers and the pattern (from us or from Ravelry).
I have more to talk about but I have to catch up with everything I didn’t do when I was lounging about last week. I believe there are about 400 emails waiting for me to delete, plus somewhere around 400 errands to run today. I must get on – see you soon!
