New Year!

This week ends my second full fiscal year! What a great adventure this has been.

Two years ago when I opened the shop I had to choose an accounting software program to 'do the books'; problem was the only one I really liked was no longer available in Canada. I settled for something, it never pays to settle. This year the software became available and I was happy. I downloaded the program and began using it again for 'The Farmer's" accounts. I had been using version 9 and the new one is version 19! It upgraded to the new version with just one click!

The shop accounts are a completely different program and the accountant suggested that it would be easier to transfer the information for the shop at the end of the year. Today we started, the task is a huge one in that everything has to be transferred manually, the two competing programs won't talk to each other.

We are taking stock, adding it to the inventory and then trying to figure out how to get the customer names and information to transfer over without re-typing all the information.

My New Years wish is to be able to spend more time knitting and less on accounting, but that won't happen soon.

The shop is open 12 - 4 pm Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Friday 10 am - 3pm.

See You Soon

1

1 Knitted Christmas Tree!





Thank-you for helping me create such a beautiful shop. Your support and kindness during the past 2 years has been such an inspiration; from knitting helmet liners for our Soldiers and making mittens as part of the 'Mitten Club' you have created a friendly creative place in Bowmanville.



We sent 173 helmet liners to our Soldiers and raised $235 for charity through the sale of mittens from the Mitten Club. We also will send about a dozen pairs of mitts to our local Women's Shelter.



Thank-you so much, Merry Christmas and wishing only good things for 2011!

2

2 kids home!

The Girl arrives home today, The Boy was home last week! Mama's happy!

They will be 'around' for about a week, next week I am open Tuesday - Thursday 12 - 4 and Friday (New Years Eve) 10- 3ish.

That means I have to get to work, there's a bunch of stuff to do!

3

3 Canadian Soldiers home for Christmas. Three of 'my' knitters had children serving in Afghanistan for the past many months. They all came home!

Take a moment and remember the Soldiers that are away from 'home' this Christmas.

Thank-you to the knitters that knit Helmet liners for Operation Santa Claus. A bit of warmth and comfort from home.

4

4 Harness Loom, maybe my next favorite thing!

I was bored and checked out kijiji and found this, turns out the seller was one of my customers. Just big enough to do something and of course my family is completely weirded out by this.

The Christmas list includes instructions on how these things work!

My list is getting shorter, hows yours?

5

5 fabulous fibers

1.Alpaca: The shop's favorite this year is Misty Alpaca. I skein, 9mm circular needles and an evening you can create a great easy cowl.

2. Cashmere/Bison: Louet Mooi, I have a couple of sample skeins in the lace weight and some stock of the sport weight, come and see the Sand Dollar shawl in the shop.

3. Silk/Merino: Diamond Luxury Mulberry and Merino. Merino and Silk lovely soft.

4. Cotton: Egyptian Cotton. smooth soft, great for babies and next to the skin projects

5. Bamboo: Sirdar's Baby Bamboo a great DK weight yarn designed for babies, but great for grown ups tool

There's 5 days.....This countdown thing seemed like a good idea at the time...the next few are a bit on the creative side.

Hope you are getting things done!

See You Soon.

6

6 Sensasional Shawls: Pimpelliese

Baktus

Gwen's Very Big Lace thing.

Sand Dollar Shawl

Citron

Alice's Angel Wing.

Shawls my new favorite thing?....maybe.

6 Sensational Shawls

7

7 shops for shopping!

Bowmanville has some wonderful Shops. These are 7 of my favorites, all owned by Women and are all unique businesses!

In no particular order:

1. Roses, right next door a cafe/floral shop. Light lunches and lovely floral designs.

2 Cathy's Gold, next door but the other side. A Bowmanville landmark, been around since forever (25 years).

3. Leisure Lady near the centre of town. A true ladies dress shop. Special occasion wear and a few surprises.

4. City Cottage; unique pieces, painted vintage furniture.

5. Gather, Ladies, girls and Infant Clothing. Great gifts, games, puzzles and unique handcrafted gifts.

6. The Glass Slipper Fabulous Ladies shoes and Accessories.

7. Scrub'n, uniforms for medical staff.

and there are many more!

Come and See!!

8

8 Great Gifts!

1. Baba Tree Basket, handmade in Ghana beautiful.

2. Yarn Swift, handy...literally takes place of someone holding the skein.

3. Ball Winder, goes perfectly with the swift, but on its own will keep your leftovers tidy!

4. Offhand knitting bag...you just have to see them!

5. Addi Turbo inter-changeable needle set. Perfect for the knitting enthusiast.

6. Beautiful Books, the Mitten book by Vogue is fabulous.

7. Yarn, one skein of Manos Maxima. One will make a hat or mitts! Soft and smooshy!

8. Gift Certificates, for those that can't choose!

(Wow! nice list if I do say so my self, put them all together and it would be the most Awesome gift.)

See you Soon

9

9 nifty notions:





For the Knitter on your Shopping list:



1. Folding Scissors

2. Stitch Markers

3. Row Counters

4. Knitters note book and pen.

5. Knitting Needle case

6. Cute labels that Say: 'Handmade by ......'

7. Sheep China Mug

8. Namaste Buddy Case. (Magnets hold sewing needles and notions in place!)

9. Measuring Tapes!





See You Soon!

10

10 things I know:

1. If you get a tree and no one comes with you, it's easier to choose.

2. Getting the tree before the 22nd of December gives you more than 2 choices.

3. If I use the toaster and the microwave together it trips the breaker.

4. Mice are sneaky!

5. Mousetraps hurt when you pick up the wrong end.

6. The most popular yarn in the shop is never in the shop very long.

7. Yarn companies like to make promises and then don't live up to them!

8. When you start to move things in the shop, it gets busy and you can't find stuff.

9. I have too much stuff.

10. It's 10 days till Christmas, but who's counting....?

A non knitting post:

4 guys, 2 pails, 1 shovel and a big pile of spilled grain. The Boy is in this video, he doesn't read the blog so I am safe to post it. This was his big adventure last year. The crew owner is the guy in the striped shirt, he doesn't look to pleased with whoever was responsible for making the pile, but they cleaned it up and things were up and running again pretty quick. (They are putting the grain back into the combine to be reprocessed.)

Stuff happens with every job!

I went into the shop today a few surprised customers came in, ordered some new patterns and the 'square circulars' could be in by the end of the week!

See you soon.

And now with Pictures!

My camera is still at the camera hospital but Gwen kindly loaned me hers.
A little while ago I received these lovely buttons from a new supplier, unusual shapes and colours, so I got a few to start. The mittens have been well received and we have raised over $100 to go to a couple of charities.

This is my Travelling Women shawl, I love the pattern and I may have had enough on one skein to do an extra repeat of the lace pattern but I couldn't face ripping back if I didn't. (I was too cheap to purchase another skein to finish, yet I am prepared to purchase enough to make another one slightly bigger with the leftovers and another skein! Sounds like knitter logic to me!)

I am not sure why I took this picture, I think I was just happy to be able to get some shots of the shop. Notice the Namaste knitting bag and the new Vintage Chunky, lovely chunky yarn wool/blend and machine wash!

We just unpacked a huge shipment of Marble Chunky and new patterns from Lopi, there is a great mitten pattern! Going to go choose the 9 colours it requires.

See You Soon.

Getting Ready!

Preparations began last week when the Mitten Knitters began making Pom Pom snowflakes.
Wednesday I started hanging them in the window, just as we were having a lovely 'snow globe' looking snowfall. The actual snowflakes were almost as soft and fluffy as our 'fake' ones.

It took 3 days to get them all made, strung with invisible thread and then attached to the ceiling.
Thanks to Gwen for helping me out with this, and for the use of the camera!

Needless to say the rest of the shop suffered!

Are we Ready?

Sort of!

Tonight is Moonlight Magic, the beginning of the Christmas Shopping season for the Downtown.

The street is closed to parking, but it makes a lovely community event. Hope you can come.

See you soon.