Snow Days...

What fun our family has had the past couple of days with the recent snow storm. On Monday, my hubby, my son & my granddaughter went out and starting building an igloo. They worked on it for a good part of the day. Finally, by evening it was finished. It's just big enough for 2 people to get inside.


Here are the 3 generations of igloo building folks!



My son even built a little seat inside for Ariel to sit on. We sent the photos in to the TV stations and were excited to hear from other people that WATE had put one of the photos on their broadcast. Ariel's been going around saying that now our whole family is famous.


Building igloos is not something new with the Gray family. I went back and looked up igloos that we had made from previous years. Here's one we made in 1986 when we were visiting my folks here in Knoxville. My son and oldest daughter was in this photo...along with Dad being inside the igloo. My son was 7 years old...the same age that my granddaughter is now. It's quite fun to see how similar they look...and act. I remember my hubby wanting the kids to sleep overnight in this igloo. There's no way that I was going to allow that to happen. I had great fears of them being buried alive in the middle of the night when the igloo collapsed around them.

Another igloo was made the following year when we lived in Lawrenceville, Georgia. All 3 of our children helped that year...along with the neighborhood kids.

That igloo had a window that we could peek in. Our youngest daughter's smiling face is captured in this photo.

Every time we see an igloo it brings back memories of excited children, cold hands & feet, pink cheeks, hot chocolate and a tired mom and dad. I wasn't able to help with this year's igloo because of my back problems. But I was there in spirit...and ready to snap some photos to look back on in the years to come.

Jasmine seemed to enjoy the snow...even though she hates to be cold. I caught her last week sleeping on top of a pillow that we have at the shop as a shop model. I didn't have the heart to wake her up and make her move. She looked so comfy there.

I hope your family enjoyed the snow this week. But I have to admit I'm ready for it to all go away now. I need to get back on a regular schedule and stay at the shop long enough to get some more yarn ordered. But for a while the winter winderland that we had was an enjoyable event...one that made some more family memories.

Happy New Year...2011

It's hard to believe that another year has come and gone. Have you made your New Year's Resolutions yet? Here are ours:

• To give you a sale each week of 2011! Each week a different yarn will be on sale. So if you come frequentlyto the shop, you'll get the best savings.
• To give away a gift certificate each month to the "Knitter or Crocheter of the Month"! Just bring in your finished projects, fill out a card with the details on your project and let us take your picture either wearing or holding your finished project. At the end of each month we'll draw the name of the person who will win a gift certificate and be featured on our website. Yarn must be purchased at The Yarn Haven to be eligible for the drawing. The first drawing will be at the end of January.
• To give you rewards for being a loyal Yarn Haven customer! We are always looking for ways to make your shopping experience more enjoyable & rewarding, so we're proud to announce the launch of our own Loyal Customer Reward program. It's free, so sign up today! Details are on our website.

Christmas this year was much more relaxing for me as my kids fixed the meal for us. My son decided to grill out steaks, my daughter made a tossed salad, my son-in-law baked the potatoes, and my hubby fixed french bread, so all I had to do was make a couple of my chocolate meringue pies...a Christmas tradition at our house. This was the first white Christmas that any of my kids had seen. So they didn't quite count on it snowing when they decided that grilling out was the way to go this year. But my son was not to let a little snow stop him. Guess he figured that if he could be born with 3 feet of the snow on the ground (we were living up north of Chicago at the time), then a little bit of snow wasn't going to get in his way.

This was our first Christmas with Jasmine as well. I made her a turtleneck sweater to wear on these cold days. I think this one keeps her a little warmer than the red cabled sweater I made her earlier this fall. Jasmine is doing well on her new anti-seizure medication. We have to regulate her food a little closer or she would eat us out of house and home, but she hasn't had a seizure since we started the medication in early December. So we're thankful for that.

Want to see some finished projects that folks have made?

Susan made this Woodhouse Ribbed Ruffled Scarf using Plymouth Baby Alpaca DK yarn. This has been one of our most popular scarf patterns. Jennifer, a local designer, did a good job on this pattern. But then, who wouldn't love working with alpaca yarn.

Karla made a child's bolero (Knitting Pure and Simple pattern #275) out of Knit One Crochet Too Ty-Dy yarn and Ty-Dy Dots. Very cute, don't you think.

Linda used Plymouth Baby Alpaca DK Paint yarn to make her pair of Fetching Mitts...and a hat to match during our Project of the Month KAL. The Fetching Mitts was an online pattern and I made up the pattern for a hat to match.

And Kimberly made this afghan using yarn that was given to her. She worked on it while she was on a trip to Israel...putting Malabrigo sock yarn on the edge. This turned out beautiful!!

Don't forget to bring in your finished projects and get your photo made so that you might become the "Knitter or Crochet of the Month"!! Here's to a wonderful year of knitting, crocheting, spinning, weaving, needlepointing, tatting, etc!!

What a strange weather week...

This week has definitely been a challenge for us as we dealt with snow and ice. My grandkids, of course, loved being out of school a couple of days. Ariel could hardly stand it until she got outside to make snow angels and play in the snow. And then the ice on the trees was so beautiful...but dangerous on the roads. It made driving much more challenging for me this week. I felt I was creeping along as everyone else flew by me. Sorry, but having another accident was not what I wanted this week. I was on high alert when driving.

I wanted to share with you a finished project I completed this week. This is Stephen West's Slipped Rib scarf. I used Filatura di Crosa Aliseo yarn and it made a lovely shawlette when paired with a pretty shawl pin.

Cindy brought in several items to share. First of all, she made this sweater out of Louisa Harding Albero. The pattern is in Andra Knight-Bowman's book, "Easy Cable Knits for All Seasons.

Then she brought in a boatload of socks she had made over the summer. She used Swedish Yarns Raggi, Opal 6 ply and Berroco Comfort.

Patty's Coquille Shawl out of Crystal Palace Mini Mochi was so pretty. I need to make me one of these.

She also made a garter stitch entrelac scarf out of Skacel Opus 1. Very nice.

And Barbara's Pi Shawl from this past Summer's Lace KAL was simply breathtaking. I did the same shawl, but used a DK weight cotton. Barbara was brave and used a lace weight merino yarn.

Also I wanted to share this recipe with you. Lin brought in these yummy tasting turtles to one of the class Christmas parties. They are wonderful and quick to make. I might have to make some of these for the Gray clan this Christmas.

Sweet & Salty Turtles

Place an unwrapped Rolo candy piece on a small round pretzel. Bake for 5-6 minutes in a 175 degree oven until the rolo is melted. Place a pecan half on top of the Rolo and let it set.

And before I close, I had to share this photo of Ariel...and her Daddy...and Jasmine. Ariel had made her own set of reindeer antlers out of paper towels and a headband. I love the way she is so creative.

Hope your Christmas plans are coming together nicely and that your knitting and crocheting projects get finished in time!

Show and Tell Friday...

Lots of Show and Tell items today...

But first we'll start with my sweet great-nephew. I got to see him again on Thanksgiving and I couldn't get over how much he looks like my nephew...and my brother. He was taking great delight in pulling off his socks. Hmmm...maybe that's what I should knit for him this Christmas...socks he can't get off. :~)

Jennifer made this cute hat...and a pair of mitts... out of Malabrigo yarn. It's a Ysolda Teague pattern called Snap Dragon Tam Very cute!

This was Chris' first knitting project...a fan & feather scarf made of SweaterKits Wild Silk. Not bad for a beginner!

The balloon tying creations from Skacel brought out the kid in Lisa as she made this cute tiara. There are still some kits available in the shop to make these adorable animals.

Debbie brought in several items to share with us. Her fingerless mitts were made from Noro Silk Garden.

Her scarf was made with Plymouth Baby Alpaca DK yarn using a simple 3 stitch pattern.

And her Primetime Shawl (one of Lisa's patterns) was made using Louisa Harding's Sari Ribbon.


Need a quick gift to make for someone this Christmas? Then make this shawl using one skein of Aslan Trends Litoral. It's quick, easy, and will be sure to please that special someone on your list.

If you need some time to work on your Christmas projects, come join us this evening from 6-9 pm for our Friday Night Knitting Club. Just bring a snack to share and your current project. We'll be talking about some new ideas for our FNKC in 2011. Hope to see you there!

Show and Tell...

Hasn't today been a simply gorgeous day! I love days like today. It makes me want to sit outside and knit all day.

But I have lots of finished projects to show you instead.

Linda made this pretty shawl out of Fiesta Rayon Boucle. The color was called "Carribean".

She also made a pair of socks out of Knit One, Crochet Too Crock-o-Dye yarn.

Marilyn made a cabled scarf out of Swedish Yarn Raggi.

Karen's sweater was made out Berroco Lustra yarn.

Peggy's hood & jacket were made out of Cascade 220 superwash.

Becky's child sweater was a free Berroco pattern. She used Berroco Cotton Twist to make it.

This was Debbie's first pair of socks. She learned how to make socks in one of our Weekly Classes. She chose Swedish Yarn Raggi to make a heavier sock first.

And lastly, we have Kristina's Echo Flowers Shawl out of Cascade Alpaca Lace.

Nice job, everyone. Enjoy your weekend!

Holiday at Sunset Beach...

Our holiday at Sunset Beach was a very relaxing, restful time. Melissa and I enjoyed very much being right on the ocean. We watched fishing boats go up and down the coast all day, heard lots of birds chirping as we sat on the porch, and enjoyed watching the butterflies that were all around the sand dunes. One day we even saw some dolphins swimming in the ocean. But just sitting and watching the ocean waves go back and forth all day was a treat in itself. While at the beach I accomplished a lot. I read 4 books and finished 6 projects during the week we were there. It felt wonderful to finish up some unfinished projects that really just needed a couple of more hours to complete. You'll see several of them already hanging up at the shop.

Sunset Beach is a small island off the coast of North Carolina...just north of Myrtle Beach. It's a quiet little beach with no high rising buildings and not much on the island except duplexes. You get to the island by going over a little pontoon bridge that opens up on the hour to let the boats pass by. They have just built a new permanent bridge to get you to the island. But we hope they will leave the little pontoon bridge because it has just the right feel for the island. Sunset Beach was the perfect place for us to be for our holiday. Melissa grew up going to Sunset Beach, but this was my first time. I guarantee you it won't be my last. I fell in love with the island just as she has. I love this photo at sunset.

On the way there and back we visited 10 different yarn shops. Most were on the smaller size, but there were a couple that were larger. We saw a lot of the same yarns that we carry here at the shop, but also saw some new yarns that we'd like to introduce to our customers. We were amazed most by the customer service at many of the shops...or should I say lack of it. Many times we went in and no one even spoke to us. Sometimes they said hello, and that was all we got. But I guess the friendliest shop we went to was at Myrtle Beach. It was called "Knit 'N Purl". The owner was very kind and immediately greeted us the moment we walked in the door. Once I told her that I also owned a yarn shop, we were able to swap some ideas that had worked at our shops. I plan to visit her the next time I'm in Myrtle Beach. I hope you'll visit them as well if you're ever in that area.

On the way home as we went back over the mountains, we noticed that some of the leaves had begun to change. What a difference in only a week!

I'm glad to be back home...but there are times I long for the slower pace of the beach. It was so nice to not really have a plan for the day. We just did whatever we wanted to do at the moment. Sometimes we just sat and knitted without saying a word. At other times we talked about the shop and tried to think of ideas that would make this place the "haven" that we desire it to be. Overall, we both had a wonderful time and can't wait to go again next year.

Challenges...

I haven't been posting lately. We've been so busy with new yarns coming in that I haven't had the time to share with you some wonderful finished projects that our customers have made.

So let's get started...

Marilyn wore in her sweater she knitted with Berroco Pure Pima. I love this yarn. It's very nice to work with.

She also brought in her first pair of socks done using the Magic Loop method. She used Berroco Metallic Sox.

Julia finished her Woodhouse Knits Ribbed Ruffle Scarf out of Plymouth Baby Alpaca DK. She's done several of these scarves and each one has turned out so nice.

Kristina's German Shawl turned out just beautiful.

As did her Haruni Shawl. I really like this one.

Jayne made a UT sweater out of Tahki Cotton Classic.

Leigh made a sweater out of Berroco Weekend.

And Kemper shared with us her market bag she did in just one week.

Great job, everyone!!

Back in June I forgot to share with you that Betsy McCarthy, author of "Knit Socks", came into the shop. It was nice having one of our authors visit us.

I had another visit from a very special someone this week. My grandson came by in his Cub Scout uniform trying to raise some money for his troop by selling popcorn. Someone gave me some of the Boy Scouts popcorn last year and I've got to say, it was wonderful. So I bought a box from him and he was so excited. If anyone else wishes to buy some popcorn from his troop, just let me know. It really is great popcorn!

Jasmine has been doing well at the shop. It's hard to believe that I have only had her 5 months. She really does take her job as greeter seriously and will greet everyone who enters. I recently found her in the back office on TOP of Melissa's knitting bag. We had to laugh that she has now taken on the job of security as she was doing a great job of guarding Melissa's bag.

And now for a more thoughtful moment. Every day of our life we face challenges...some great, some small. But each day we live we will be faced with decisions to make. Sometimes we make the wrong decision...and have to face the consequences of that decision. Other times we make the right decision...but can't take credit for it because a higher power guided us along the way. Not sure why I'm being so pensive today, but I am. The past year has been hard on me...both physically and mentally. I've come a long way physically since my car accidents a year ago in June. But I still have lower back pain and I don't think it will ever be going away. It's very frustrating for me to not be able to do the things that I used to do before the accidents. Mentally I've made great strides as well. I no longer panic when getting into a car. But daily I am faced with dealing with the stress of the possibility of getting hit again. I've seen a wonderful psychologist for almost a year. She has helped me tremendously in dealing with my post-traumatic stress disorder. But she tragically died about a month ago from a horrible disease. I didn't know her medical issues were life-threatening until it was too late to have the chance to say thank you for all she did for me. So I feel like I am floundering a bit. I keep pushing forward because that's who I am. And yet something feels missing...out of place. So I'm going to take a break and go to the beach for a week with a dear friend. We're going to stop along the way at some other yarn shops to get some new and fresh ideas. And we're going to talk about 2011 and make some plans for events for our wonderful customers. And we're going to rest, and knit, and read books, and watch movies, and just sit and watch the ocean waves come in and go out. Call it a mental health vacation if you will. Sometimes we just need to get away and take time to rest. The shop will be left in the excellent hands of our staff. I know they will be able to help you find whatever it is you need. And hopefully, when we return, we'll come back refreshed and ready to take on the challenges that face us in the upcoming year.