A Blizzard!

Bowmanville is located just outside of the GTA. Most of our news is broadcast from Toronto and when Toronto gets a snowstorm it's the news of the day.

We braced ourselves for some nasty weather only to find just enough snow to get out the salt trucks and a bit of wind to cause a slight drifting. Needless to say Thursday was very quiet!

Friday, we had Yarn blizzard! Box after box of orders arrived (6 in all). Needles from Addi, a new sock yarn, some linen for summer (yes its coming!), a little Marble Chunky and more baby yarn. Today we are digging out and finding room.

Come and see!

Perfection!

We watched only a little of the Olympics last night, tuned into the hockey game during the commercials and then watched the Women's Bobsleigh. The hours of practice and patience it takes to get to the Olympics is just mind boggling. Every minuet movement is analyzed over and over until it's right! Clara Hughes skated a perfect race, she said it was her very best and it would be her last.

Sometimes when we are knitting a project we seem to soar right through creating the perfect garment and other times we crash and burn over and over.

Right now I am working on a very simple shrug and it seems to be taking a toll on my patience.

I hope to finish it today so I can start fresh with something else.

Those working on the Soper Creek Yarn challenge are having a great time with their entries! We have some very creative competitors out there!

I goofed!

Yarn Challenge Alert!

Remember how I told you that I was completely out of the Yarn Challenge Kits...I goofed! I found a few carefully 'put away in a safe place'. We found them when we were tidying up from the past week's chaos.

If you were in on Saturday and I told you we were out...come and see me and I will give you a package no charge! (I know who you were!)

Come soon, Tuesday and get yours to complete by March 6th!

I am really pleased with the results so far, come join in the fun!

I am going home to watch some Olympics and work on the challenge...maybe sleep and do laundry too!

See you Tuesday!

Got Yarn?

Orders are coming in, some days I think: "What have I done!"

New this week:

• Sirdar Baby Bamboo in a few of the brighter colours along with a new pattern book!
• A lovely Egyptian Cotton from Diamond Luxury Collection.
• Sirdar Snuggly Crofter a self striping yarn in lovely 'baby' colours
• A new 'Step' sock yarn, called Step Easy in 12 new colours.

and Noro, a Lace weight Noro....if you like knitting fine and with colour this is for you!


I finally managed to reshape the Baba Tree Baskets, there is a great selection right now. (Prices are a little bit lower this time too!)

For those of you working on the Yarn Challenge: This is what I have done! I spent most of the day Sunday creating this and watching the Olympics. Monday I spent recovering from a 'sports related injury' in that I had a stiff neck from Knitting! (Hint: it's the wrong side of my project!)

Yarn Challenge entries are due back on March 6th. All the kits have been taken I am looking forward to seeing what they have become!

See you Soon!

I Love Knitting!

I love knitting, I love knitting....I am trying to remember this as I am in the process of ripping back 7 inches of RIBBING because I read K2, P2tog instead of K2tog, P2 tog....

I love knitting....really!?

more later!

Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurs...As defined by wikipedia :An entrepreneur is a person who has possession of a new enterprise, venture or idea and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and the outcome.

Sometimes at night, just before falling asleep I think to myself: "I opened a Yarn Shop! Other people do that, people who are brave and smart start businesses and run them, not me!"

Yes me!

It's been a year since my official opening. Last year we had a great three days celebrating this new venture.

Everyday is like the first day! I meet wonderful people and learn so much about business and creativity and therapy.

Once in a while I have to pinch myself to be sure its not all a dream!

Thank-you!

There's still time!

I have a few more Yarn Challange Kits available to be snapped up.

The rules are pretty simple.:

Your project should include all the five colours, but you can add more.

You don't need to use all of the yarn or you can add more yarn (stash or purchase)

Your project can be anything that can be made with yarn.

The completed project must be into the shop by March 6 th.

There are prizes....nice prizes. (Kits are $5 )

Some interesting new and old yarns made its way into the shop. If you liked the Metallic mohair that I had before Christmas...there is more.

More yarns were also added to the $2.95 sale bin....

Remembering John

Last Friday my friend K came in and her phone rang. It was her husband phoning to tell her that our friend John had just passed away, we both stood in shock as we remembered this happy man.

John was one of those glass is half full kind of guys! Always smiling, always ready for anything! John was 52. Those short years were filled!

We remember John and as we were at the visiting today we could hear lots of laughter as friends and neighbours remember stories about John. The funeral is Tuesday morning, tomorrow and I haven't decided whether to attend. If you are coming into town, come after 12:30 just to be sure I am there.

We will miss him! The world got just a little dimmer without his light...

Are you up for a Challenge!

The Soper Creek Yarn 2nd Annual Yarn Challenge has begun. Packages of 'Mission Falls 1824" are ready and waiting for your imagination.

Last year we had so much fun!

What are you waiting for, $5 gets you a package with the equivalent of $15 of Mission Falls yarn, Enough for a small project. (Thanks to the nice people at Mission Falls for donating some of the yarn!!)

See you soon!

Oh yes...there are prizes!

In with the new!

It was a crazy day of driving around on Monday. One of the trips, there were many, was to pick up my package of Baba Tree Baskets. They come in a great big bag that's more awkward than heavy. (Big sign on the bag says: "Please do not drag!") Inside the bag are 20 baskets! They come squished into a shape that allows all of them to nest together. Kind of like this: Then I separated them so you can see them all 'apart'.

Then the fun starts. You need to be brutal to get them back into a shape that looks like a basket.

After that they overfill the living room. (Notice the lovely green rug, its the original carpet from 1972!)

Next step, into the basement to soak each and then re-shape them...it may be a while before they make it into the shop.

These always make me happy! No two are the same, they are made individually completely by hand. Gregory, the basket wrangler, makes sure that they are well made and that the weaver is paid fairly for these.

The shop was looking a little empty with out them!

New things are arriving and clearance stuff is still making its way out.

Don't forget about the Yarn Challenge....starts soon!

See you soon!