Scrap Yarn Scarf

Have you signed up yet to attend the Girls' Night Out Workshop (GNOW) on Friday, February 29?? It should be a great workshop to help teach us about color theory and a chance to use up some of our yarn stash. Lisa will be our teacher. She's such a fun gal that it promises to be a great evening. If you've not had a chance to stop in at The Yarn Haven and see the model, then here are a couple of photos to entice you to sign up for the workshop.

This workshop is for knitters and crocheters!! You can also make this scarf wider and have a wonderful rectangular shawl. So if you're the least bit interested, please stop by and sign up. Seats are filling up...and you know I only have so many chairs. :-) The time will be from 6-9 pm and cost is only $25. You'll not only have your own stash to choose from...you can choose yarns from others' stash as well. (As long as they don't mind swapping with you.)

Be sure to watch for other GNOWs coming every 5th Friday of the month. Mark your calendar with GNOW for every 5th Friday this year and then watch the newsletter for details.

Show and Tell Friday

My customers make some of the most awesome things. They come in The Yarn Haven with a great idea for something they want to knit or crochet. Then we pick out the yarn and they go home to work on their new project. And then many times I find myself picking out yarn for myself to do that same project. :-) I get some great ideas that way.

So today, I have a couple of projects to show you that people have shared with me. The first one is a scarf made out of the Jasper yarn from Berroco. Marilyn made her son a beautiful scarf out of the brown color. I've seen this yarn knitted up in stockinette and it is so pretty...but it is equally nice in garter stitch. I think it makes a nicer man's scarf in the garter stitch. I think her son will really like it.

And then there is the first graduate of Lisa's Crayon Box Jacket class. Pam came into the shop this week modeling her newly finished jacket. As you can see it is gorgeous! What fun to use so many different shades of the same colors! This is the very first sweater that Pam has ever made. Her smiling face says it all. The others in the class are still working on completing their jackets. I hope to showcase them as soon as they are finished. So if you like this jacket and think you would like to make one for yourself, you might want to stop by the shop and sign up for the next Crayon Box Jacket class coming on Tuesdays in March. It really is a fun class and you'll learn a lot about putting different colors together. Plus Lisa is a great teacher! We're glad to have her on The Yarn Haven team!

Please bring your projects by the shop when you have finished them. If I have my camera with me, I'll take a picture of them and post them on the blog during one of our Show and Tell Fridays. Thanks Marilyn and Pam for sharing your finished projects with us!

New Class added to the Schedule

Have you seen the gorgeous shawl hanging in the Aran weight section? Lisa Hackman, one of our teachers, knit it up using a friend's pattern. Here's a couple of photos of what it looks like.

It's simple, beautiful and a great project to start if you want to learn how to do lace knitting. So we're going to offer a class on it at The Yarn Haven on Saturday, February 23 from 9 am - Noon. It is made out of Farmhouse Yarns' Silk Blend yarn. And the best part is that the yarn used for this project is already in the sale bin. Many of you may have overlooked this yarn before. But it will not be ignored. We have a shell/vest made up and also a scarf to you to see how the yarn looks in other items. It's a beautiful yarn and Lisa just knew it would look great in a shawl. She was right.

I hope you'll stop by to see the shawl and sign up for the class. Class spots are already filling up!

Friday Night Knitting Club & My First Anniversary

Last night was so much fun at our Friday Night Knitting Club. We were missing several of our "regulars", but had several new faces come join us. About 20 of us gathered to sit and knit or crochet.

We always have something special for the 1st Friday of each month. Tonight's special was to have Donna Ellenburg share with us how to make the "Best Friends Dolls". She had made one for each of her granddaughters for Christmas, but they were kind enough to allow her to gather them back up and bring to show us. The dolls were soooo cute. What little girl wouldn't want to have one! Bev Howard had also made a couple of the dolls and she brought hers to show as well.

About 5 years ago, Donna saw the pattern for these dolls in a Interweave Knits magazine. She filed it away to use later. When she began making the dolls right before Christmas, several folks saw them and fell in love with them. Since the magazine was out of print, I contacted Interweave Press, and for a small fee and the promise that I wouldn't sell the pattern, they graciously gave me permission to make copies. In fact, they will be sending me a colored copy to reprint. Donna had several "tips" she shared about things she learned in making the dolls. I will be typing up those tips and having them available to hand out with the doll pattern. Hopefully, by the end of the month, we'll not only have the pattern to give out, but the tips sheet as well. So a big thank you goes to Donna...and to Bev...for sharing their dolls with us. Don't be surprised if you see a Doll Knit-a-long in the future. It would really be a fun thing to do together. I know my granddaughter would be thrilled to have one. If you'd be interested in a knit-a-long making the dolls, please leave me a comment and let me know.

Today was the first anniversary of The Yarn Haven. Tonight as I sit here in the shop, trying to catch up on some paperwork, I have a smile on my face. This past year has been so much fun starting the yarn shop. Don't get me wrong...it's been a lot of work. Working 12 hour days, 6 days a week, and not bringing home a paycheck this year has been hard. But the satisfaction of making it through my first year, and thinking of all the new friends I have made, and just the joy of having a job that is so fulfilling has made it worth every minute. I have so enjoyed helping people find just the right project to work on. And I had rejoiced with them when they finish a project and bring it in for me to see. I've taught a lot of people to knit or crochet for the first time in their lives. And to see these new knitters and crocheters taking those first baby steps...and turning them into toddler steps...and then encouraging them to take preschooler steps...has been very enjoyable. And I have been so blessed to have such gifted teachers in Mimi and Jackie...and now Lisa. They have given me such great ideas to share with you all. And I am also so thankful for Marilyn Dunn. She comes by every Thursday just to help me put away the inventory. Others have helped along the way as well and I appreciated each and every one of them for everything they have done. So thank you to everyone who has ever walked through the door of The Yarn Haven. I hope you continue to find it a place that is warm and welcoming and one that encourages you to grow in your knitting and crocheting projects. Yes, tonight I am feeling very blessed. The Lord has certainly been good to me this year.

Tying Shoes Raises a Question

My granddaugher has outgrown her tennis shoes. We have always bought her the velcro shoes because she can put them on herself. Well, this time my son went shopping and came home with tennies that will need to be tied. He thought it was probably time she learned how to tie a shoe anyway. After all, she will be 5 years old soon.

So...as we each have shown Ariel how to tie her shoes, my family discovered something. All of the men in our family taught her how to tie her shoes one way and all the women in our family re-taught her "the correct way". Which raised the question...why do men and women tie shoes differently?

The men all gathered the loop on the right side holding it with their right hand and going around it with their left hand. The women all gathered the loop on the left side holding it with their left hand and going around it with their right hand. This, of course, led to some timed contests of who could do it faster. Not that my family is competitive or anything. :-)

So...which way do you loop your shoestrings when you tie them. Do you "right-loop" or "left-loop"? And are you male or female? It would be interesting to see if there are any men out there who "left loop" or women who "right loop".

And it raised another question...who taught you to tie a shoe? I know I was probably the one who taught my son to tie his shoes. But I sure didn't teach him one way and then do it differently myself. So somewhere along the way, he switched to the other way.

Now I know this has nothing whatsoever to do with knitting...but I was just curious to see if my family was just weird or possibly normal. Everyone in my family has been going around asking folks how they tie their shoes. I wanted to get in on all the fun...so I decided to ask you. It will be fun to see the results.

Back on the road to good health

Sorry I haven't been blogging lately. I have replaced blogging with coughing for the past 2 weeks. I just haven't had the energy to keep going at the same pace as before. Not a fun exchange...but one none the less. But now that I'm feeling a bit better...and coughing a little bit less...I'll try and fill you in on some of my knitting projects.

First of all, my UFO report. I finished my Panda Cotton socks!

I started these socks with my first 2 "Learn to Knit Socks" classes last spring. But since I'm trying to finish up UFOs this year, I worked on them a bit more and they are ready to wear. You should see these short-cuffed socks on my feet this spring when the weather turns a little warmer.

Many of you have noticed the gorgeous Crayon Box Jacket hanging up at the shop. Lisa made this jacket for her sister, and not only loaned it to us to admire, but offered to teach this class for us as well. I took the Crayon Box Jacket class last year at Market, but got to the class late and never really got a good grasp on how it worked. So I decided that when Lisa gave the class that I would be one of the students. I must say this has been a fun class...but a bit challenging. There are a lot of decisions to make along the way...such as which design to do each mitered square in...and which color(s) to do it in...and whether or not the yarn chosen needs an add-along yarn or not. But what fun it has been to see the various colors come alive. I chose to do mine in turquoise and purples...with a little pink, blue and lime added in for fun. So far, here is what my sleeve looks like.

I can't wait to finish this jacket. It should be hanging up on display in the next couple of weeks. Lisa has agreed to teach this class again on the Tuesdays in March. If you're interested in taking the class, be sure to sign up ASAP because I know there are a lot of folks interested. This is definitely a one of a kind jacket. A great way to use up some of your yarn stash...and add some new ones also. And it will sure bring out your creative side! Oh...the other gals in the class are making some absolutely beautiful jackets as well. We just might have to have a fashion show to show them all off.

Looking Back at 2007

Well, the new year of 2008 has arrived. I've thought a lot today about all the changes that have happened in my life this past year.

New Adventures...
This time last year I was about to begin one of the biggest adventures of my life...opening up a yarn shop. It hadn't been a long-time dream of mine...just an idea that began in the middle of the night. But the thoughts of having my own shop would not go away. It was my first thought every morning and the last thing I thought of before drifting off to sleep. The idea would not let me go...even thought I argued back that this was simply ridiculous. Afterall, I had never own my own business and I didn't have a clue of where to start. But the sheer joy of having something of my own...as well as envisioning how happy others would be to have a new yarn shop in town kept me going.

This time last year my house could hardly be decorated for Christmas because of all the boxes and boxes of yarn sitting around.

And I still remember the day I came home to find 13 large boxes of yarn sitting outside my garage door!

But even with wall to wall yarn at home, the first time I went into the empty rental space where I was going to open my shop, I looked around and said, "I'm going to have to buy more yarn to fill this place up!"

And the rest is history. Today, The Yarn Haven, has twice as much yarn as when I opened...and more is always on it's way!

New Relationships...

Another exciting event in my life this year was the marriage of my oldest daughter, Elizabeth.

After being a single mom for several years, we were glad that she and Matt tied the knot and gave her oldest son a new Daddy. We planned a simple ceremony and Elizabeth was a beautiful bride.

New Challenges...

And then around August our granddaughter came to live with us full-time. She has been a joy to have around, but it's been an adjustment to having a 4 year old to take care of. We enrolled her in preschool and she absolutely loves it! Our son comes home every weekend from Birmingham, where he is in pharmacy school, to see her. She loves her Daddy and can't wait to see him each Friday.

2008...

So 2007 was filled with new adventures, new relationships, and new challenges. My thoughts and prayers for 2008 is that it will be a year full of wonderful memories of family and friends...and I wouldn't mind a little more calm and balance in my life as well. :-)