Road Trip!

Saturday night David and I hit the road to visit our niece in Saratoga Springs. She’s in College up there and we’ve been meaning to visit. It’s an amazing town full of mansions. We stayed in a great B & B just outside of town. It was gorgeous.

After strolling around town and having a little lunch, we all headed back to “our mansion” to hang out by the fire

(David)

(Alana)

I had cast off the fitted knits sweater the day before the trip. Here’s a couple of not very great photos of me by the cozy fire

I had worn the eyelet tunic from Vogue the day before, and decided it would look better on someone taller, so I gave it to Alana. Here she is looking adorable

The next day we headed over to the awsome Saratoga Needle Arts. If you are ever in the area, you have to stop by. Great selection and fantastic prices. Usually when I’ve seen a yarn store in small towns in New York, Conn, Mass, they jack up the prices because there’s no other store around for customers to compare them to. (I could say the same for one or two stores in Brooklyn that shall remain nameless). This store’s prices were really good and they had a huge selection of yarn, books, patterns and notions. The owner was really nice. Alana had gotten me a gift certificate, so I got sweater blockers – YEAH!

I’m loving the yarn I’m currently working with! It’s Classic Elite’s Soft Linen. A GREAT yarn. I’m working up the Feather & Fan Cardigan from the Make It Modern Book.

Here it is so far:

As my pal Nell would say . . .

How ironical (our favorite fake word, right in front of irregardless).  The last few days have been a crazy roller coaster.

Getting out of a funk

Last week sucked. Did I mention last week sucked?

First we got some bad news, then David got sick, then it was a long work week (spring ordering began – my first big ordering season . . . lots of work!), then I got sick. As is usually my luck I started to really get sick just at the end of my week, which for me is Saturday. For those of you who haven’t been to the Point on a Saturday . . . it is a sight to behold. It is hopping! Classes, shoppers, full tables of folks knitting and eating. Usually I tell my regulars that Saturday is my reward for the week. It’s the day I don’t pay bills, or write POs or do receiving, I just work with customers and enjoy the regulars and the general (chaotic) fun of the day. I did not get to enjoy Saturday because I felt AWFUL. Of course Sunday and Monday (my day’s off) was when I got to feel really sick.

Since I felt that I had spent most of the week feeling sorry for myself (and the first paragraph of this blog reinforces that!) I decided to change my !@#%$^ attitude and make this week better. Monday I finished David’s vest (my own design)

(the boring pictures I usually take)

(Me trying to take more interesting “Brooklyn Tweedesque” pics)

Here’s David wearing it on Tuesday. He said I had to take headless photos because he was tired at the end of a long work week

My Mr Green Jeans has taken a pause while I do some sample knitting for the shop. Here’s how it’s coming along

Here’s the sassy little one skein Misti Alpaca scarf I knit up for the store. It’s a great pattern for everyone who has (or sees one at the Point) skein of Misti and doesn’t know what to do with it.

Yarn, jet lag and chocolate

I got back this morning from a whirlwind 48 hour trip to Long Beach to attend the TNNA Winter Show. I took the red eye and got home at 6:30 am. I’m jet lagged and exhausted and left to sort through STACKS of information.

I left straight from the Point at 4:00 pm on Thursday and got into my GLAMOROUS Travelodge at 10:00 pm (1:00 am NY time). I waited way too long to book a hotel, so all the good ones were gone. The important thing is it was 5 blocks from the convention center and it had wireless and a clean bathroom.

I did get a lot of knitting done on the plane. I spent the first hour or so getting all my notes together about what vendors I wanted to visit, what books I wanted to see, and what bags I wanted to check out. After that I worked on David’s vest and my Mr. Greenjeans.

Here’s David’s vest

It looks much too blue in the first picture. It’s really more of the brown/gray in the close up.

I also got a big chunk of my Mr Green jeans in my yummy Rhinebeck yarn:

After sending a bunch of e-mails and checking my notes for the next day, I was sound asleep by 11:30 pm . . . and then wide awake at 2:00 am when the neighbor’s TV started to blare . . . sound asleep by 2:30 am . . . and then wide awake at 4:00 am when the hotel alarm clock went off (set by the last unfortunate tenant) . . . sound asleep by 4:15 am . . . and finally wide awake at 6:30 am when my wake up call came. An evening of waterboarding would have been more restful. Ah well, on to the convention floor to register by 7:45 am, and then on to my retailer’s meeting at 8:00 am. It was really interesting listening to retailers all over the country struggling with the same issues.

Next step, before hitting the sales floor, a stop at the wall of yarn & thread

Read more >> Options >>

A Jewish Christmas in Brooklyn

Just as magical as a Child’s Christmas in Wales. First David and I went out with our pal Tim to a fabulous dinner at Stone Park Cafe here in Park Slope. Then a drive to the magical christmas wonderland known as Dyker Heights Brooklyn. Here’s a small sampling of the true meaning of christmas (excess)

I made it!

Ode to surviving xmas in retail:

‘Twas two days before xmas and all through Park Slope
There was great rejoicing, and no one did mope

The alarm clock was silent, no beep did we hear
“I slept till 10:30!” I said with a cheer

There’s knitting to do and movies to see
Chinese Restaurants are where we will be

I’ve earned three days off, I’ve worked like a dog
It’s time now to celebrate and write in my blog

I was thinking of spinning and fiber and yarn
when all of a sudden an idea started to dawn

My gifts are abundant, my life is quite rich
So here in my blog is my holiday wish

Don’t take life for granted
Hug your loved ones quite tight

Be thankful for your stash and to all a good night

Okay you guys, I’m sorry you haven’t heard from me in a while, but I’ve been up to my &%$#@ in yarn. Things at The Point have been hopping. Tons of last minute shoppers, but I made it. The days have been LONG and hard, but there were some nice holiday surprises. I never expected to get gifts from my regulars, but I got a cake, some candy, cookies, a lavender sachet hand made by the fabulous Barbara Kerr, and a bottle of wine from one of my favorite regulars.
The shop is open today and tomorrow, but these are my days off.

The best gift I got this season?? An Assistant Manager. The shop is going strong, and it’s time to add some management back up. So all you regulars, come by after the New Year and welcome Kim. I’m really excited about her. She is the rare combination of a knitter with retail management AND food service experience. She’s going to make life and the shop great!

The last week has been full of holiday parties as well (hence me not posting last week). First there was David’s theatre company Brave New World Holiday party. Then the Sit n’ Knit holiday party. That was great! Here’s the little beret I knocked off from left over alpaca, for the holiday gift exchange:

Here I am modeling it before I say goodbye:

the party was great. 50 knitters, free food, free liquor, knitting gifts raffle, holiday gift exchange . . . what could be bad. I don’t know what the restaurant was expecting when this party was booked, but they weren’t expecting us. They weren’t expecting 50 or so rowdy, drinking knitters.

Here are some party pics:

The fabulous Anne-Marie

Liquor and knitting!

Liquor IN knitting (that’s a martini washcloth)

Holiday gift exchange – drawing names

Happy gift receivers!

Winner of my hand knit beret

A knitter’s (knitted) bowl of chocolate

The fabulous Ana Gonzolas (fellow Point employee)

After knocking out my little hand knit beret for the party, it was back to the endless K2 P2 rib of the Pin Up Queen. After I finished the back I decided the ribbing would be to tight around my sizable hips, so when I did the front I cast on more stitches and reduced every 4 rows to get back to the original amount. I will knit a little insert for the sides of the back and mattress stitch them on.

The short row shaping for the front came out pretty well. Now I just have the sleeves. The construction of the front would also make a pretty nice sleeveless tank. Maybe this summer I’ll play around with that.

I also finally finished winding the Manos Silk for the Vogue magazine “Life Aquatic” cardigan. From this photo you can’t tell how subtly fabulous the colors are:

NOT counting old stash projects, I have in my cue:

– David’s vest (my design) Alpaca from Rhinebeck
– Clapotis (Knitty.com) Silk Nylon from Rhinebeck
– Mr Green Jeans (Knitty.com) Merino hand dyed from Rhinebeck
– Gatsby Girl Pullover (Interweave magazine) Sublime extra fine merino wool dk
– Life Aquatic (Vogue magazine) Manos Silk
– Pullover (Fitted Knits) Art Yarns Superwash Merino
– ???? for my own handspun

Better start knitting!!

Knitting detour

I had almost finished the tedious, 13 1/2″ k2, P2 rib of the pin up queen when gift giving made me take a knitting detour. First David asked if I could make a baby gift in a week and a half. I told him no problem. Three days later I knocked out this cute little baby sweater knit up with the luscious SWTC bamboo

I also started to swatch for David’s vest. I’m using 600 yards of alpaca I bought at Rhinebeck held together with Filatura Lanarota Puno Alpaca. I’m writing a pattern (my least favorite thing to do), because I can’t find any pattern I like. Here’s a close up of the cable pattern.

Next . . . it’s time for the Sit n’ Knit holiday party. I finally RSVPed on Sunday, the last day that I could and got the last spot free! Yeah! There’s a holiday exchange, so I’m knitting up a little something from some pale blue Alpaca from my stash (as per the gift exchange rule, stash knitting only!).

Soon I’ll return to my sweater.

Perfect Sunday part. 2

The firewood is stacked and being used

the hot chocolate has been made. I’m FINALLY skeining, balling and counting the yardage of yarn that my mother in law gave me a year ago so I can figure out what to do with it.

and my husband just pulled a fresh loaf of bread out of the oven. His specialty, baked in the new pot my mom bought for him

Much needed

I got to spend three whole days with my family this Thanksgiving. It was a MUCH needed break. I’ve been working myself into the ground, and the weekend was the first good night’s sleep I had in months. We left Wednesday at 7:30 am. My brother in law picked us up and we just hung out all day. Except for a brief trip to the grocery store (day before Thanksgiving, wow!), it was just a day to knit, talk and chill.

Thursday was all about cooking and eating. It was a perfect day. A light snow was falling, and while the turkey was cooking we took a walk just long enough to get really cold and need to come back to some hot cider!

I finished all the pieces to David’s sweater in the morning, and now I just had to do the dreaded sewing up the sides of the body and sleeves.

Here’s a detail shot of the handspun and cables

Here’s my sister’s cat enjoying some afternoon sun and some shoes. Two of his favorite things

I finished the sweater on Thursday night in time for David to wear it the next day. Here’s David looking adorable on my sister’s porch

Friday we did our traditional, walking around downtown Ann Arbor looking at all the cute little shops. This, of course, was followed by a dinner full of leftovers. All in all, a perfect visit.

Saturday, David and I left for the airport at 5:00 am. We landed at 8:00 am and we went right to the shop. We got to the shop at 8:45 am, and David stayed with me until 10:00 am. He helped me restock all the shelves, and get ready to open. I then put in an exhausting sales day that went to 7:00 pm. I’ve never been more tired. Today I’m still recovering, gearing up for another trip into the retail world during xmas shopping time. Wish me luck!