Signs of Winter

No that's not a typo! Here's what we got on Monday....

By yesterday evening we had gotten this much stacked:

....and there's a lot more to stack. It won't fit in the shed. On to plan B (not sure what it is yet). Hopefully this means we will be nice and warm this winter with our wood stove.

And here is poor Mandy during the very-small-and-relatively-quiet-but-still-upsetting-to-her thunder storm last night:

Under/around the end table, infringing on Phoebe's space (who could care less about thunder).

What's happening around the shop:

Last Friday was the Altamont Library Chicken BBQ fundraiser and from the door of the shop there appeared to be a great turnout!:

Paul and I didn't get any this year since we were on a Lowe's mission once I closed the shop. But we'll get some next time (we've had it before - it's yummy).

Spinning Wheel ER:

Karin M-T (of the Periwinkle Sheep) brought her wheel in for some surgery. Her drive band had broken and I had ordered her a new one, however when she got it home she realized there was no way to get the band on. She has an older wheel, so I called Louet and they told me what to do. We had to unscrew the bracing bar from the main post, then un-bolt the wheel and slide the drive band in the gap.

Oh and while she was here, she brought some sock yarn!!!!!

Some GORGEOUS new colors!

What's off and about-to-be-on my needles?

Finished my Noro Leaf Shawl:

LOVE. IT. SO. MUCH. I only got through 19 out of 20 repeats with my 8 balls of Silk Garden, but it is plenty long (forgot to measure it). Very cozy. In case you forgot, the pattern is the Noro Leaf Shawl - 2010 Olympics Pattern by Deborah Anderson. She created the pattern and then knit it for her Olympics project this year. Patterns are for sale in the shop!

I also did two more squares for the Lizard Ridge Afghan:

(I really have to get a more neutral blocking background.) I finished one on Monday and one on Tuesday. Pretty quick to knit and once you get the hang of the pattern aqnd knitting wraps, it's really a breeze.

And this is about to be on my needles:

This is a 100% alpaca yarn from Maple Creek Farm that I got at Rhinebeck two years ago. There are 622 yards and I think it is DK or light worsted (the label didn't say and I didn't care because I loved the color). My plan for my upcoming vacation is to knit with yarn that I don't have in the shop (what??????). I have so much in my stash -- when I go to other yarn shops I usually buy yarns I don't have so I can test them out and see if I'd ever like to have them in the shop. But I never have time to test them out because I'm always knitting for the shop. So my vacation is the perfect time. I will be knitting the Citron Shawl from Knitty.com (or Ravelry). That is, if I don't decide to use a really pretty laceweight silk from Claudia's Handpaint that I just found in another basket in my crap-i-mean-craft room. The difference is that the alpaca is DK weight and would knit up MUCH faster.

Customer Show and Tell:

Here is Yvette and Wilna with the shawl that Yvette asked Wilna to knit for her so she could wear it to her son's wedding.

Gorgeous! And it will be beautiful on Yvette at her son's wedding.

And here is an adorable blanket, sweater and hat set Wilna made:

Annie's Turn-a-Square hat (from Ravelry) made with Noro Kureyon and Ella Rae Classic -- another of her orientation hats (she gives them to incoming international students):

Laura's very cute baby sweater made with sock yarn (can't remember the name of it!). She test-knit this sweater for the designer:

And her very pretty and soft drop stitch scarf made with Queensland Haze:

Lois baby blanket made with Dreambaby DK:

Whew! Apparently I had a lot to say today....

Paul's Frustration

THIS:

PLUS THIS:

EQUALS THIS:

ARGH!

Paul took so much time to plant a million petunias (ok, 36) and the bunnies are having a field day. Each day, another petunia gone. I'd like to look at the bright side and say that they are dead-heading them for us, but..... yeah, that's not really working.

More on yarn later.... (I finished my Noro Shawl!)

Just show and tell

I had lots of people show me their finished projects right after the last post and I didn't want to wait until the next one so here they are...

But first....
It's SANDY'S sweater!

I had forgotten who made this cute little sweater but her sister Sharon reminded me! thanks ;)



Nancy's 8 hour baby blanket made for a jungle themed baby room!:




Eleanor's fourth Done by Monday Afghan - she's making them for Christmas presents...

And she's got yarn for the fifth!



More cute knitted creatures from Stevie!

These are covering golf balls. There is a birdie and an eagle (get it? golf terms!). And a crab....not a golf term, but VERY cute just the same.



And her Blooming Cotton Scarf made with the Cotton Rich DK for a friend:



And Allison's bright Blooming Cotton Scarf, also made with Cotton Rich DK:




Jan's Saroyan scarf, made with Ella Rae Classic:

She loved it so much she's making another!


And her Drop Stitch Scarf made with Malabrigo:

Have you knitted with Malabrigo yet????? It's soooooooo nice.....

More summer stuff.... and a summer contest!

Homefront news:
This guy visits us every year and he stopped by this weekend:

It's so stunning to see this really tall bird standing in the yard! (this picture doesn't do it justice) Luckily Mandy, who was hanging out in the back yard, did not see it and it gave me a chance to look at it for a while. Then, something made it fly off and it was amazing to see it's wingspan.

And last week, I looked out the window to see this:

Just hanging out, lounging around. After about an hour, it got up and lazily walked around the yard, then out front and across the street.

I have a tomato starting on one of my two plants!

I had a bit of a rough start to get these going in their pots, but I think they're on track now. One plant has about 11 flowers on it so far, and the other has one.

The project of the weekend was building a shed (yes another one!) for the wood:

Enough of that. How about some talk about yarn and knitting?

Shop talk:

A fun summer contest --- the Tour de Fleece! Tour de Fleece corresponds with the timing of the Tour de France cycle race and hence, is a spinning contest. HOWEVER, taking a cue from the Knitmore Girls podcast, we are going to have "hand-cyclists" too, so those who do not spin (but instead knit or crochet) can still take part. The contest will run from July 3-July 25. The idea is similar to the Knitting Olympics in that you choose a project to spin, knit or crochet that would be a challenge for you to finish in the three week time frame. You can call or email me at the shop, or reply to the post on Ravelry (hopefully to be posted soon) to tell me what your project will be. I'll keep track of these and we'll have a drawing for a prize at the end.

Over the weekend, Yvette taught the Wet Felting class! Here are the coasters and table runner that they worked on:

It looked like a lot of fun!

What's on and off my needles?

I made another Lizard Ridge Afghan square with Noro Kureyon, to get ready for the upcoming class (Friday, August 6, 9-11am):

These are a little addicting and I'm going to make another after I finish my other project...

....the Noro Leaf Shawl made with Noro Silk Garden:

This is a pattern designed by local knitter/designer Deb Anderson and I love it! Easy to knit and I love the yarn. She made one with reds/pinks/oranges and it is stunning.

Customer Show and Tell:

Nancy's Bloody Stupid Johnson Hat, made with Baby Alpaca DK:

Mary Kate's Traveling Woman Shawl, made with Periwinkle Sheep sock yarn:

Here is Chris with her matching Lucy Bag and felted hat made with Ella Rae Classic:

Christina's first ever hat!!! Made with Baby Alpaca Grande Hand-dye:

Nancy's Irish Hiking Scarf, made with Baby Alpaca DK:

Karen's Drop Stitch Scarf made with Malabrigo Worsted:
Wonderful projects - very inspiring don't you think?

Signs of Summer!

Pretty overflowing flowers in the boxes out front.....

Strawberry picking....

To make freezer jam...

....YUMMY!

And FOUR people at the knit-in working on Blooming Cotton Scarves ( http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/blooming-cotton-scarf )!

Here is Karen's "Fruit Salad" (talk about summer!) Blooming Cotton Scarf:

A great summer project! (Another class is scheduled for Saturday, July 31 9-11am)

I've been knitting fast and furiously to get samples done for upcoming summer classes....

Here is my Tappan Zee Cardigan ( http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/tappan-zee-cardigan ) made with Silky Wool:

LOVE it! The DK weight yarn is perfect for summer, but can also be worn with a long sleeve shirt into the fall. (Class: Thursdays, July 8 & 22, 6-8pm) .... and of course, no buttons yet!

My 198 Yards of Heaven scarf ( http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/198-yds-of-heaven )made with Malabrigo worsted that I finished in ONE day! (I had this crazy notion, once I saw that it was starting to work up fairly quickly, that I could do it in a day. Started at noon, finished at 11pm. Had a break for dinner/making freezer jam from 5-8pm. My hands hurt.)

Unblocked:

Blocking...

...on a really unflattering pink striped towel! (Class: Thursday, August 5, 6-8pm)

Customer Show and Tell:

Susan in the Adult Surprise Jacket (her second) that she made for her daughter with Encore worsted:

A cute child's sweater made with Dreambaby DK and I forgot who knit it! Sorry!

Kathy's child's vest made with Encore worsted and Encore tweed for her grandson:

Annie's Foliage hat (http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/foliage )made with Malabrigo worsted:

And Annie's Turn a Square hat ( http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/turn-a-square ) by Jared Flood made with Noro Kureyon and Cascade 220, started on Saturday night and finished Sunday morning!