Merry Christmas Y'all!

I am fixin' to head on home for the day...the shop has been pretty quiet, except for a few people coming in. I figured it would be like this.

The rest of the family is at home, getting ready for the Christmas Play at church. I need to go home, dress a bit nicer and attend (even though I have seen the play 2 years now + most of the rehearsels. LOL BUT, Taylor is a narrator this year, Tori has the solo at the end (plus she and another girl will be singing as the people arrive to the play), Sam has a singing part and Amanda is an angel. I can't miss that!

LaLa thanks for the awesome book! I LOVE it!

Eloise, I hope your birthday is an awesome one!

Everybuggy, I thank you for your friendship, care and prayers, I can honestly say, y'all are the best friends I could ever ask for.

Have a safe and Merry Christmas and I will see you next Wednesday (knit In and business as usual) & Thursday night for Knit In!

We'll have to do a "What I Got for Christmas" Show and Tell!

later and lots of love!

kat

I've been Tagged!

Thursday, December 20, 2007

A Christmas Meme
I got tagged by Becky to do this Christmas meme, so here goes:

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?--Both...it depends on the gift and if I'm being a lazy butt.

2. Real or artificial tree? - Artificial. Since the stupid tree farn closed down, we just have been using an artificial pre lit tree.(I prefer real!)

3. When do you put up your tree? - The day after Thanksgiving. The kids get upset if we don't, except when we got the real tree, then we would wait until about 1 week before Christmas.

4. When do you take the tree down? Right after New Years day.

5. Do you like eggnog? I prefer "boiled custard" but everyone calls it egg nog at my house. Lots of nutmeg, warm and homemade. If you want my recipe let me know.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? - we were terribly poor and my mom was afraid I wouldn't get anything...I guess I was 3 years old. Some ladies where she worked gave her some barbie doll patterns and a box of fabric...for years my Barbies were the most stylish of any of my friends. A black velvet evening gown, a "fur" coat, and some other gorgeous gowns and outfits.

7. Do you have a nativity scene? - Several.

8. Worst Christmas gift you've ever received? -I would have to say, growing up an only child, I never understood why people would give me board games. I had no one to play with ...then, my friends who had big families had those games and were tired of playing them. So they never wanted to play them at my house. My mother and her husband were always "too busy" and "that's not really our thing"and NEVER wanted to play with me. To this day I have a hard time with board games.

9. Mail or e-mail Christmas cards? - Neither this year. I just haven't felt like doing any. Usually I mail cards but I will send fun e-cards too.

10. Favorite Christmas movie? - hmmmmm...Holiday Inn, White Christmas and Charlie Brown

11. When do you start shopping for Christmas? - ummmmm...usually at the last week before Christmas...bad, I know.

12. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? - I like all of the goodies at Christmas and goose...

13. Clear or colored lights on the tree? - It depends...one year we had all red lights and bows and ornaments...if it has a theme colored. I really like white lights and white bows, silver and gold ornaments.

14. Favorite Christmas song? - White Christmas

So now I have to tag 3 people - and leave them comments to let them know they've been tagged.. I tag the following:
LaLa
dingledaisy
amy
and anyone else who wants to play.

Only 5 more days to Christmas y'all!
kat

GRRRRRR!

Grrrrrr!
well, good news and bad news...which do you want to hear first?

*deep breath* Chia Goo will not be here until...Monday. I called and asked.

banging head on keyboard. xdkl.csaa @!seos;pp-;['0 @oseroe45-0p4! # llop-[sw34d54! feeling dizzy and queasy...

*sigh*on the other hand, when I was going through the needles on the board this afternoon, I DID find 2 packages of Addi size 10, 16" circulars. wooo hooo...AFTER I turned away Daniel and some others, thinking I didn't have any. Then I called Hank, she is bringing some needles for me tomorrow morning. *muwaaaah!* thank you Hank!

Then I called Melissa at Stash. She has size 10 double points! Hoooray Melissa!!!! Tony is being my "gopher" and is going by her shop to pick them up for me. Go Tony!

So, I figure I should have enough for everyone tomorrow. *huge sigh of relief*!

I talked to the woman from hiyahiya needles today and was pleasantly surprised...there is an off chance that the needles might could possibly show up tomorrow! I am very excited to get them, but if they don't, well, ok, I tried and they got here in a fraction of the time. They ship Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays by first class or priority unless you have an emergency and are willing to pay extra for express...which I should have done but too late now.

Anyway, I am getting ready to shut down for the night and go home. I look forward to seeing everyone tomorrow and BTW, did you know there are only 11 days until Christmas?! ACK!!!

later!
kat

KNIT IN TONIGHT!

I am impatiently waiting for my orders from Chia Goo and Simply Soft. LOL I would hope, pray, knock on wood, fingers crossed, i's dotted...no wait...I mean...well, phooey...I am waiting for my orders to come in. I am not sure how it will go, I ordered in timely fashion, that doesn't mean that my orders will get here in a timely fashion! LOL

I have a whole mess of bamboo straights, circulars and double points ordered. They SHOULD be here tomorrow at the latest! Then there is the Opal Sock yarn from Simply Soft...maybe they will be here today or tomorrow? LaLa has also promised some more of her sock yarn as well! It is awesome stuff, you have got to see it!

I also have been doing some research on a new line of needles. You may have heard of them, maybe not. I have been following the new hiyahiya needles distributed by The KnittingZone. Not only have they been getting rave reviews, they are reasonably priced and fast when it comes to processing your order! I am so excited and look forward to my first order arriving asap! (like I ordered this morning and will have my order the next day?) That my dears, is AWESOMNESS!

Don't forget about our Knit In tonight and of course, it is open to all fiber arts. It will be loads of fun tonight so you really DO NOT want to miss out.

I need to get back to my knitting...I finished the torso of the brown Cashvero cardigan I have been working on and am working on the sleeves. I may actually get it done before Christmas! Maybe...

I have a bit of a let down... the grey hound sweater wasn't quite big enough for Belle. The neck was fine, the chest and body was great and well...the arm holes were just a tad too tight. How dissapointing...I may have to make a whole new sweater...that's ok, the other sweater can be put on display. On the other hand, Belle got mad when they took it off of her and she growled, snatched the sweater and ran off with it. Apparently she got up on the bed and was snuggling with it. They put her snood on and managed to "sneak" the sweater from her. Oh well...back to the drawing board!

I put the lace scarf for Renee' on the back burner until I get some of these "almost done" projects out of the way...I needed a break.
Ok, well, I really need to get to work. I can't wait to see everyone tonight!

kat

NMS Fibers Guild Today

Ahhhhhh! Tis the season for the Annual Fiber Crawl! All the fun and festivities begin here at That Yarn Shop with appetizers and beverages. I have Christmas Music on, the punch chilling and hmmmmm...the floors could do with a quick vacuuuming.

I expect Patty will be here soon too. I tried to set up as much stuff as I could. One member stopped by with a cheese ball and crackers. The cheese ball is nestled up in the fridge having a lovely conversation with the punch's sparkling personality. LOL

After we snack, visit, maybe talk a little shop and treason, we will make our way over to LaLa's for dinner. After that we will head over to Carol's for dessert. MMMMMMM...dessert!

Anyway, the weather stinks, no one thinks about knitting with heat and humidity. Come on, is this some sort of a cruel joke? 70+ weather? In December?!!!! For crying on a tropical island, send some cold this way will ya?

Oh well, I am going to run the vacuum cleaner right quick and get ready for the festivities.

later!
kat

Winter Knitty is Up!

New Knitty is Up!
OMGoodness! I LOVE the newest pattern!!!!It is absolutely gorgeous and I must have it. It is lace, mohair, beads, a wimple or cowl (which I would actually wear) all in one! I may have to break down and order some more Mohair Lace weight yarn for the shop...gads! *sigh*

http://knitty.com/ISSUEwinter07/PATTicequeen.html

You just have to see the beautiful blue one...is that not gorgeous? I am completely enamoured with it now...I must save the pattern now and add it to my ever growing list of things to do.

My son has to have a "Dirty Santa" gift for next Monday's Annual Boy Scout Christmas Party, (which just happens to fall on Monday, the same day as the Hernando Christmas Parade.) I think I have to make something...the price range is between $10 and $15 for a gift. Hmmmmm...Mountain Color yarn $19.00 + my time making the fingerless gloves on size 6 dp's should MORE than cover that...right?

I am still inching along on Renee's scarf...gads it feels like I am going at snail's pace on this thing, that mixed with the fact I keep having to put it to the side to work on "quickie" projects for the holidays. It will get done...I told Tony last night, "Well, at the rate I am going, it will be done by next year October (which I believe is the official Breast Cancer Awareness Month)." *sigh* I must not grow weary in well doing.

I got to see Amy's http://geauxamyb.blogster.com/ socks that she is working on. They are sooooo cute and she did them in Nashua's CF cotton. They are really looking great! Hi Amy! I heard about Nick praying last night, he is such a cutie!

Eloise http://dingledaisy.blogster.com/ is down with a bad cold and won't be joining us tonight for Knit In. Keep her in your prayers and thoughts for a speedy -quick recovery. We want her to be able to be at the Fiber Crawl with the Fibers Guild Saturday.

Lala http://www.lalasknits.blogspot.com/ has been hard at work dyeing sock yarn! She apparently has dyed herself a bit in the process. We are looking forward to seeing the colors she has chosen for the sock yarn...even if we have to look at her hands and imagine. I am very excited about the sock yarn and her stepping out and doing this. She has a beautiful sense of color and I can't imagine her not taking off with this. Hopefully she will have pics posted, but if not, you can by the shop and see them up close and personal after this weekend.

Patty Holmberg has brought some more hand dyed rovings into the shop. A gorgeous lilac and a really unique green which reminds me of a patina type color. I spun up some lilac that she gave me Monday as a gift. OMGoodness! Spinning it was like "butta". It spun so smoothly and consistently it was amazing! There will be more to come too. More colors and more varieties.

Well, I need to get with it. I have some things to get done and a customer just called to say she was on her way.

Happy knitting and remember, its only 19 more days to Christmas!
kat

Lace, Lace, Lace...

Lace seems to be the thing lately and no small wonder. Lace is delicate, beautiful, ethereal. It stops us in our tracks and we give a little sigh, as we dream of knitting up a shawl that is as delicate as a cloud against our skin.

I am not really a shawl person, but I really love the challenge and beauty of lace. I am, believe it or not, loving the Oriel Lace Scarf that I am sloooooooooowwwwwwwly plugging away at. It is exciting to see the pattern and scarf take shape.

My big thing right now is beads...I want to so much to make something, lacey, beaded and beyond words beautiful! I keep looking and looking, but just can't seem to find what I am looking for (which may be the impossible). I did find a lovely pattern called the Cheshire Cat Stole.

It has beading that you can't really see in these pics. If you download the PDF file, you'll see the beads a lot clearer.

I just got an order in for a customer, so I need to hunt her phone number down and see if I can get in touch with her.

I'll see ya'll later.
kat

A New Week & New Stuff!

I have a lot on my plate right now. Business has been slower than molasses on a cold winters day, but we keep plugging ahead. I have great plans for January! We'll have weaving, hand spinning with drop spindles, needle felting and more!LaLa is going to teach a new season of basic and advance sock classes too!

Tori's foot is doing very well, we change the dressing everyday and it just keeps looking better and better. The doc took her off of her pain meds, she would get really bad car sick everyday and he said, "take her off of them." So, now she just takes a couple of ADVIL and she's good. He told me to throw out the Tylenol and not put her on those for any reason...Tylenol apparently causes liver failure after prolonged and normal use. Who knew?! I had been using Tylenol for years and I know that my liver does not function well, that was my last check up report. Now I know why. I have osteoarthritis in my lower back and took it for pain. Now I take Aleeve...whatever.

Here is a heads up for what's coming up this week @ That Yarn Shop!

We have beautiful, hand dyed, wool rovings for Needle Felting available. They are packaged in 4 color combinations, per bag for $6.00. There are even more colors to come!

Also available; beautiful, natural and hand dyed wool Rovings!

Rovings are tops which have been drafted into a continuous strand prior to spinning. They can be used as they are for knitting or weaving, giving a bulky effect or drawn out and hand spun to make your own gorgeous yarn! Different weights, colors and types available!

Wednesday Knit In -All fiber arts welcomed! 10:00am - 2:00pm (bring a snack or sack lunch, your knitting and lets have a good time)

Thursday After Hours Knit In- All fiber arts welcomed!

6:00pm - 9:00pm

Bring your latest WIP and lets have a good time!

Kids Knit Friday! 1:00-4:00 (for ages 8 and up) call for more information!

For our December (12/08/07) NMS Fibers Guild meeting, we will be having our Holiday “Loom Crawl/Fiber Crawl”.

To explain a “Crawl”, everyone meets at a member’s home and the crawl begins with appetizers. Then all “Crawl” to the next member’s home and we have dinner. After dinner, we “Crawl” to the next member’s home to have desert! Since we are not a weaving guild, we are renaming the “Crawl” to fit our little group, hence “Fiber Crawl”. Our starting point will be our normal meeting place, That Yarn Shop, in Hernando. We will meet at 3:00pm for appetizers. Around 4:00 (?), we will then crawl to the next member's home in Hernando for dinner. Dessert will be at our next member's home. Maps will be available. NMS Guild Members only.

I guess that is about it for now.
knit on ya'll!
kat

Multitasking

Can you knit a pair of socks AND write a felted bag pattern at the same time? Apparently it is possible but I am afraid if I will have a bunch of boo boo's on the final draft. LOL naaaaaah...



I find myself going back to socks for solace when I am stressing over projects and life. I was kind of in between projects last night. I finished amanda's fingerless glove and didn't want to work on the Oriel Lace Scarf for Renee', lest I mess up on that 28 row pattern. It was late, I was tired and decided...you know what? I'll use all of my leftover sock yarn and make some crazy socks. I make socks that come just over my ankles and I have a size 6 1/2 shoe so, needless to say, I usually have left over sock yarn. So I cast on and started playing. There is absolutely NO rhyme or reason to the pattern. They are just plain jane socks, no fancy shmancy patterns...just a plain stockinette with a maybe if I am lucky 1-1/2 - 2 inch cuff. The colors are not matching at all and who cares? I don't have to think about them...they just flow and I am loving it. Yeah, I am a socker...can't deny it anymore.



I can't wait to see Lala's sock yarn! I know it will be fabulitious! She is supposed to bring it in today. HOORAY!!!

I know...vacuum...I'm on it.

kat

Thursday Knit In!

I kind of feel like this guy right now...."help! I'm trapped, save me!" I don't know why but Christmas is really bumming me out right now. Oh well...LOL

Amanda finished her top down hat and has been sporting it proudly. She did a great job and it looks just "too cute".

picture courtesy of "dingledaisy"

If anyone is interested and able to. Tonight is our Thursday After Hours Knit In . It will run from 6:00 - 9:00 pm (the store is open for business too).
We also invite you to bring your used books that you would like to trade or swap. They can be fiction, non fiction, romance, gardening, cook books, how-to, inspirational, even kids books; whatever. (Use some discretion, as we do have the occasional young un' around.) It will be lots of fun! Please come in with your latest "WIP", some old books you don't mind parting with and lets have a good time!

I almost done with amanda's other fingerless glove. I am working up the palm now and have put the thumb stitches on waste yarn...I so wish I had a battery in my camera! Anyway, I will get to mark that one off my " TO DO" list soon.

I am in search for the perfect button for my clutch bag...I wanted a button that looks like a peppermint candy...I may have to go to Hancock Fabrics but I KNOW there must be one out there....somewhere.

I need to get on some other things before this evening. I didn't get all of the books I had intended to bring for tonight, but I did get some. I kind of got to thinking too...magazines would be great to swap as well. I'll put the word out on that...

Anyone heard from Dora or her husband? I am curious to know how the babies and momma are. If anyone hears from her, give me a call or drop me an email.

ok...I need to get to work..see ya'll tonight!

kat

need directions? here's a link to get a map

http://www.thatyarnshop.com/contactus.html

Knitting Right Along...

Well, Tori is here at the shop after her laser surgery. They found another spot on the bottom of her foot and took care of it too. She is here, 1/2 out of it and complaining that her foot is beginning to ache just a bit. We gave her some pain meds and her antibiotics and she is kind of...well, not loopy but kind of like her brain is foggy. LOL

We had the usual gals today and they were all busy with their own projects. It was neat to see what everyone is doing. Judith is making this gorgeous beaded scarf. Brenda is attempting the fingerless gloves and doing pretty great. Eloise was working on this gorgeous feather and fan neck warmer. It was done up in a beautiful green tweedy looking yarn.

Terry stopped by for a bit and bought some yarn for a hat. It was good to see her again. She has been "hiding out" at home as of late. Dora stopped by with her sister. She was so excited to see everyone before she went to the hospital today to have the twins. IN FACT, she is there right NOW having the twins by c-section! Prayers are with her for sure! I can't wait to see the babies!

I have a great idea for this Thursday's Knit In. How about used book swap? I know I have some books that I wouldn't mind trading some books (though I don't have many) for something else. Anyone else in for this idea? It can be any book you like. Cook books, romance, just whatever you want to swap.

I guess I had better get back to work...I just wanted to quick drop ya'll a post and let you know how it's going.

later!
kat

A New Week

Monday, a new week and actually I have to say...there isn't much going on. Just the usual stuff this week, oh! and a Felted Clutch Class on Saturday afternoon, December 1. I'll need to get that together so everyone can get there supplies and sign up for class.

It will take 1-2 skeins of Cascade or Nashua, 100% worsted wool, size US 10 - 11, circular needles, a tapestry needle and some creativity. LOL

I finished the scarf I was helping my son with. It is a pink and black scarf using Cashvero by Cascade. It turned out to be very cute. We added fringe, because after all, it is for a teenage girl. LOL so, now I have that one off of my list. HOORAY! When I remember to buy a new battery for my camera, I will be sure and take pictures, it's not going anywhere until closer to Christmas.

I am still working on the Oriel Lace Scarf for my friend Renee'. It is painfully slow going but incredibly gratifying. It is going to be absolutely gorgeous whenever I get it finished. I am loving the Cashmere by Jade Sapphire. It is definitely worth every penny. I can't imagine using anything else for this project now.

Well, I need to get with it, I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I know we did.

later,

kat

Trying To Find a Blog Home

I am a wandering about, trying to find a place to call "home". I have tried a few other sites and they are just too complicated...or I am just too lazy to make it work. (probably the latter is true). Anyway, blogster is having some issues. I think they are upgrading, updating etc. and I have found that some of you check my blogs for updates on what is coming up and what I have planned here. Amy said she sometimes misses my emails and I know others of you probably do the same.

So, I know LaLa and finemartialfiber will be pleased to see me here. LOL

Yesterday was a good day at the shop and the Knit In was even better. I was unsure if anyone would show, but we had 6 people here and that was great!

I have been kind of delinquent as of late on posting to our yahoo group and I manage just a few minutes at ravelry lately. Although I did manage to spend enough time to print out 1 pattern for myself. I'll try and work on that.

Well, I need to change the Marker Board in the front window and get my little fanny in gear and start knitting SOMETHING! (as I have discovered I have over 15 projects in the lurks....ACK!)

Have a great weekend!

kat