tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-146688772024-03-07T00:06:48.868-05:00Stitch Your Art OutWe're a friendly knitting and quilting store in Central Pennsylvania. Here's our story.Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.comBlogger223125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-52455574772876969102014-06-18T13:45:00.000-04:002014-06-18T13:45:29.251-04:00Slow Stitching"The hurrier I go, the behinder I get."<br />
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--Lewis Carroll, from <i>Alice in Wonderland</i><br />
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Sometimes in life, things fall together just the right way.<br />
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I have been doing some creativity work with Kim, and as you all know, she is the master of creativity. As part of my work with her, I stopped designing so many patterns. I'm sitting back, and playing with ideas, rather than forging ahead with new designs. I'm revisiting some of my older patterns to improve them, and I am rephotographing them with new colors and a new vision. In short, I'm finding my "visual voice."<br />
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I admit I have chided Kim from time to time for the elaborate projects she undertakes--but now I am feeling that it is time for me to do the same. <br />
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And as I said in my last blog post, I have stopped knitting to a deadline. If I feel like it, I do it. If not, I let it go. It has been liberating.<br />
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I haven't stopped designing. But rather, I've been slowing down. I want to start making my designs more complex--or at the least, even more like my visions. I've been sketching ideas, but not really producing anything, which has been lovely--and completely out of character for me. I've even been thinking about working on smaller needles.<br />
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When I have produced a new pattern, it's been for something that felt completely inspired and exciting. Like <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/three-cheers" target="_blank">this hat</a>, modeled by this cute little guy:<br />
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I have worked only on these small sorts of things, so that I could continue to mull the big. <br />
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*****</div>
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A few weeks ago on Facebook, quilt and fabric designer <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MarkLipinskisFanPage" target="_blank">Mark Lipinski</a> asked a question: Did anyone know a person who had many knitting projects going all the time, and who possibly designed too? <br />
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I had three projects just in my purse, and <a href="http://www.reallyclear.com/">www.reallyclear.com</a>.<br />
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Mark asked me to call him, and when I did, he started explaining that he was going to start a slow-stitching movement based on the slow-cooking movement. He gave me an overview of why he thought it was important, and I resonated with every word. Then he asked me if I would be willing to be interviewed on a podcast.<br />
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Well, sure. Why not?<br />
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Want to listen to it? Go to <a href="http://www.slowstitching.com/">www.slowstitching.com</a>, click on the Podcast box, and you'll find the interview. I also encourage you to sign up for his <a href="https://theslowstitchingmovement.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">webinar</a>. I'm sure it's going to be interesting. (And no, I'm not on it!)<br />
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*****</div>
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So join the slow-stitching movement. Take your time. There's no rush. Even if you're making a little project, you can stitch slowly. Enjoy your process, whether you are making a small thing or a big thing, a simple thing or a complex thing. Be completely in the moment with your work. Stop being afraid to give it your all. Use good quality materials: Support local shops, the way you would a local farmer's market. Think of all the creativity that emanates from local! <br />
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Watch how beautiful your hands are as they glide with the needles or move fabric through the sewing machine. Relax and lower your shoulders as you work. Take a few breaths before you begin, and even more breaths as you work. Convince yourself that you're capable of anything that you want to do--because you are. <br />
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Slow stitching will give you the <i>time </i>to get better with practice and to learn new skills that take you to the next level. <br />
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Let your spirit guide your yarn and fabric choices. When you do that, the love you are showing for your craft will come through, and you will find that you have a coherent, beautiful process, which will lead to a coherent, beautiful project. <br />
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As I said in the interview, the most important thing of all is that slow work gives time for the love to come through--and that is why we are doing our craft in the first place: love. <br />
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<br />Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-245748826468479462014-02-09T15:21:00.000-05:002014-02-09T15:21:02.872-05:00StillnessI've been mentally resting for the past few months. I've had my nose to the grindstone for years now, and I decided that I couldn't work at that pace anymore. So I decided to slow way down, and see what would happen.<br />
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What happened was, it's been lovely, and I'm enjoying my work more than ever. I have sworn off knitting and quilting deadlines, I hope forever. <br />
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Getting my colors redone was also an influence for the regrouping. Since I'm basically redoing my entire wardrobe (if I didn't feel that I need to walk the walk because of my job, I would be a <i>little </i>more flexible about this!), I have been remaking many of my favorite patterns using my new colors. I'm having a ball--and I sure do have many new unfinished projects. Since I'm off of deadlines, I don't mind that. In fact, I'm enjoying the puttering as I go from one to the other. <br />
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And we're busy at the store. January and February are our two busiest months. It's hard to do anything right now other than work there. So I'm doing just that.<br />
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What I am being is still--<br />
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Well, at least compared to my normal self.<br />
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(This photo was from yesterday. I took at from an exotic National Geographic location: the parking lot behind Bosov's in Altoona.)<br />
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And I think that for winter, still is the perfect thing to be. Many mammals hibernate. If we didn't have electricity, cars, and non-agricultural jobs, we would be inside much more of the time right now, doing handicrafts, reading, and eating from our harvest. <br />
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I know that you're tired of winter--but as my dad says, "Don't wish your life away." The days are getting longer, your sap is flowing. Spring is here, even though it's not yet visible--and it will be visible before you know it. Enjoy this last little bit of stillness. <br />
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<br />Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-65449333335627905382014-01-14T11:26:00.000-05:002014-01-14T11:26:24.827-05:00Color Me! Back in the 1980s, Carol Jackson published <i>Color Me Beautiful.</i> You may have heard of it; at the time it was a huge sensation. It was a book about which colors might look best on you. She divided people into four basic, poetically named "seasons" of spring, summer, fall, and winter. Like almost everyone else I knew, a group of friends and I went to have our seasons analyzed. It was pretty cool--you were draped in the colors that represented the different seasons, and then diagnosed as to which one looked the best. You then received one of four little booklets of fabrics that were your seasonal colors. <br />
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My mother had been diagnosed as an autumn, and since I look a lot like her, I was sure that I was an autumn too. But the person who worked on me insisted that I was a summer. I insisted again that I was an autumn. She insisted again that I was a summer, placing the summer drapes over me once more to prove it. She was definitive. By then, I was confused and figured that she must be right.<br />
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I received my little booklet of fabric swatches, and for the next 30 years enthusiastically bought cool colors. <br />
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But things were never quite right. I could not wear the pale pink colors that were supposed to be classic summer. In fact, any pale color on me just didn't look right. I then wondered if maybe I was a borderline winter. Eventually, the booklet was lost, and I deteriorated into wearing only black, pink, and blue. This lasted for years.<br />
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I never really quite liked the way I looked in any picture. I often preferred back views of my knitting:<br />
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<img class="photo_image" id="photo_image_34754879" src="http://images4.ravelrycache.com/uploads/ReallyClear/187903867/Mitered_squares_medium2.jpg" /><br />
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<img class="photo_image" id="photo_image_34586718" src="http://images4-b.ravelrycache.com/uploads/ReallyClear/186578737/habitat1_medium2.jpg" /><br />
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This past fall, I wanted some change in my life. I was bored with wearing only pink and blue and black, and I decided to see if they still made color swatches. I found the <a href="http://www.colormedirect.com/colorforeveryone" target="_blank">Color Me Beautiful website</a>, and sent away for a Summer color card, thinking that maybe I could find some new colors to play with. It arrived, and I found some new colors that seemed interesting.<br />
And then I started wondering--could I become a color consultant? I thought it would fit in nicely in our shop. (People are always asking, "Which of these yarns looks better on me?") And it turned out that no one else in PA was doing color consulting. <br />
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They were delighted to have me on board. I started my training with a wonderful woman named Jill, and the first thing she did was analyze my colors. She put my picture up on her computer, and started putting drapes under it. The system is much more complex now than it was in the 1980s, with an exact analysis of your skin, hair, and eye colors along with the seasonal drapes, but as I saw her putting the drapes under my photo, a realization began to hit me long before I got her official diagnosis. I've worked every day with color for the past 10 years and could see what she was doing. I had been blind to myself before, but I could see without a doubt as she worked that I was an autumn. The official diagnosis confirmed it.<br />
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I went to bed that night, both delighted and shocked. Part of my identity had been tied to the colors I wore, and they were all gone. I felt as if my entire wardrobe and all my jewelry had been burned in a massive fire.<br />
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I loved it.<br />
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Before I got my final color palette, I got my hair recolored into a warm shade. Jill redid my colors with my new hair (the system takes into account whatever hair color you choose), and I got my new palette. It looks like this:<br />
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Teal blue, not blue. Rust, bronze, and the previously dreaded olive green. Not a pink in sight. But interestingly enough, not brown or bright orange either--which are typical autumn colors. That's what's so cool about this system: It gives you the 40 closest colors that harmonize with <i>you</i>. There are 300 million possible combinations. After the computer diagnosis, each of those colors is pulled by hand from thousands of possibilities. <br />
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Here's a nice little iPhone photo of how I look in my new colors: <br />
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Lest you think that color doesn't make a difference in how you look, I give you this previously unpublished front (wince) view, from just a few months before, when I had freshly dyed my hair in a beautiful cool color: <br />
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Notice that when your colors harmonize with you, your skin can go from looking unhealthy to looking healthy!<br />
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I admit that after a few months, I still sometimes feel as if I'm wearing someone else's clothes and makeup (although this whole thing does explain why an olive-green eyeshadow from college was such a favorite at the time). But I love it.<br />
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I can be stubborn (and even, I admit, rigid), which is why I clung to the pink for so long--but I also have always embraced change. I have never had more fun knitting, and I'm even looking forward to sewing a few new shirts as well--something I haven't done for years. There was a perfect creamsicle-orange fabric just waiting for me at the shop.<br />
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I still love pink and clear blue--just not on me so much. I have kept my Hello Kitty sweatshirt. Certain things are still sacred. <br />
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It's been fun to start to wear my childhood favorite color: RED. <br />
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There is probably no one out there who is wearing so many clothes that are so wrong as I was, but you'll find that if you have your colors diagnosed, you'll enjoy the new coherence in your wardrobe. And I bet it'll explain a lot of little color incidents for you, just as it did for me.Or that feeling of a closet full of clothes, with nothing to wear.<br />
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I never would have believed this, but I have <i>fewer </i>clothes, and <i>more </i>to wear. <br />
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If you're interested, call the shop. I have appointments on the schedule starting in March. (And by the way, if you wish, I'm doing free consultations during our retreat, since all our classes are included. You would just need to buy the palette.) Or get together with a group of up to 5 friends and make an appointment with me. (They don't need to sew or knit, and you can be sneaky and tempt them this way to join all of us.)<br />
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Let's all refresh ourselves! <br />
<br />Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-5454867925840622272013-10-12T09:14:00.000-04:002013-10-12T09:14:11.257-04:00The Green HatFirst, I want to thank so many of you for coming out to my book signing for <i>60 Quick Knits from America's Yarn Shops.</i> I wasn't expecting that many people, and we quickly ran out of books. (No worries--more are on the way!) Kim and I appreciate so many of you buying them from us instead of online--more than you can imagine. Your kind gestures keep us here! <br />
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I thought you might have fun learning about how I designed the hat that's in the book. <br />
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It started out with a call out from Cascade Yarns to yarn shops for a design. I decided to try it, and to increase my chances, I sent about six different ideas to them.<br />
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Now, as a bit of a background, I am still a little scarred from having dealt with a publisher <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Programming-Liberal-Arts-Introduction-Helix/dp/0822603918/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1381373130&sr=1-2&keywords=programming+for+the+liberal+arts" target="_blank">a long, long time ago</a>;
I knew I was in for quick deadlines. And I don't work quickly--just ask
Kim. So I kept all my ideas fairly small. I did a little sketch and description of each project I had in mind.<br />
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Here's the sketch for the hat. There was a lot of trust from the book publisher, who accepted my idea from this:<br />
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I heard back a few days before a trip to Florida. They told me that I would be getting yarn soon--after I was down there. The deadline was about 2 weeks after I returned, so I figured I was okay. That said, I also knew I had to start right away. So I took a skein of yarn down with me, and I spent days and days there fussing to get the ribbed earflaps just right.<br />
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I got home, thrilled with what I had come up with and excited to begin the work on the real hat. I opened the envelope of green yarn waiting for me.<br />
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Then as a quick double check, I looked at my original sketch. I realized that I had said the hat would have garter-stitch earflaps. <br />
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I decided that I'd better stick with what I had said I would do, and I began again, figuring that the perfect ribbed earflaps could be in some other hat someday. <br />
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I wasn't worried at having to re-do. I expected garter-stitch earflaps would be easy. But for some reason, I ran into all kinds of problems: They were the wrong size, they were the wrong shape, they were in the wrong place on the hatband. I spent hours and hours and hours knitting and reknitting what should have been the easiest earflaps on the face of the planet. <br />
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After I finally got the earflaps working, the cabling fell into place reasonably quickly ... after I figured out that the cables as originally envisioned were too close together and I had to rip them out.<br />
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Oh yeah, <i>baby</i>, I was on the home stretch and feelin' gooooood.<br />
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And then came the top of the hat. I started in on my original plan, but it looked lumpy at the transition between the cables and the ribbing. I showed it to Kevin, who agreed with me by frowning and shaking his head no. I kept thinking about it and thinking about it--and then I bravely changed it to a decreasing cable rather than keeping what I had sketched. And then, while I was at changing the design anyway at this point, I added a big, huge tassel to the top. <br />
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I was finished the day before it was due, and with great relief, I sent it over-night to the publisher.<br />
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And that is all that happened until the book came out.<br />
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You have now learned the behind-the-scenes exciting process of publishing! If you are on Ravelry, I would love it if you would go <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cabled-earflap-hat-7" target="_blank">make the hat one of your favorites</a>! <br />
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To summarize the easy steps of designing a cabled earflap hat: (1) do a primitive sketch of the hat, (2) make the earflaps, (3) make the earflaps again, (4) make the earflaps again, (5) make the earflaps again, (6) make the earflaps again, (7) work the cables, (8) work the cables again, (9) make the top, (10) make the top again, (11) make a huge tassel with whatever yarn you have left just because you want to, (12) write up, (13) mail out via over-night mail, (14) party like a knitter! <br />
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Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-36827143254709879172013-08-19T21:15:00.000-04:002013-08-19T21:15:25.177-04:00A Great Show of Yarn Bombing in PittsburghI love yarn bombing. I can't imagine being able to have enough time to do it, but I think it's super fun, and I'm in awe of those who cover buses, bridges, and statues. I love the idea of decorating stationary objects in colors. The one thing I wish Central PA would have is more color! (Kim and I are trying to change this.)<br />
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When I heard that Pittsburgh was doing a project called Knit the Bridge, I wanted to see it. I looked at my schedule, and it looked fairly hopeless. Until I realized that I had this past Saturday off. And that it was supposed to be sunny all day. So I called a friend who was able to go on a whim, and off we drove to Pittsburgh!<br />
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The bridge, which was the Warhol or 7th-Street Bridge, was just as wonderful as I had hoped. It was actually more crocheting than knitting, but that makes sense: Crochet is faster, and there was a lot of bridge to cover. Rather than talk about it, I'll just show you photos. I took well over 80 that I liked, so it is hard to narrow it down. <br />
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On Saturday, they were still sewing the black, knitted railing coverings on:<br />
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This is Amanda, the person who started it and put it all together. I'm assuming that she never stops hanging out at her bridge!</div>
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For more info, go to <a href="http://knitthebridge.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Knit the Bridge</a>. The exhibit will be down after September 6, so get there if you can before then! Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-81077778118963570072013-07-23T22:58:00.000-04:002013-07-23T22:58:26.357-04:00Catching UpAt the beginning of the summer, I had no energy or interest in doing anything new with knitting or quilting. I knew exactly why: I was on complete overload--or should I say, need-to-complete overload. I decided to fix this.<br />
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I made a list of all the projects in my closet. And it was long--well over 40 projects. No wonder I was feeling so burdened. <br />
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I have spent the summer tackling them. I've gotten many, many of them finished, and I'm starting to feel out of the woods about the whole thing. I don't have to be completely done to start new things in the fall, but I wanted to feel that I had accomplished enough to have some creative energy.<br />
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I divided my project list into several categories:<br />
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Super-Urgent Projects<br />
Urgent Projects<br />
Things that are Bugging Me<br />
Leisurely Projects<br />
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I started with the super-urgent projects, of which there were three. I tackled those. And every time I finished one super-urgent project, another project seemed to become super urgent. It seems as if three is the magic number of projects that one can concentrate on at a time. I had determined that several years ago, and the same thing happened by happenstance this summer. I think we need to remember this lesson.<br />
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But the project I am actually here to tell you about is a sweater that was on the list. I had started it about 7 years ago. It was called Silver Belle, and it was a gorgeous thing. It had a skirt that was cabled from large cables at the bottom to small cables toward the waist.<br />
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Now as a sidebar, I have to tell you that when I finished the skirt part (years ago), I bound it off and discovered that it was way too big. Not a big deal. I steeked it (sewed it and cut it), and then continued on my way.<br />
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The top of Silver Belle was supposed to be seed stitch, but I knew that on my figure, it would be disproportional. After stewing about this for months and months, I decided to make up my own patterns for the top. I looked in a number of stitch books and combined a bunch of highly complex cables.<br />
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And so the journey on the magnificent sweater continued. Year after year, whenever I had some spare time, I inched my way up the sweater. And by this summer, I had gotten almost to the neckline.<br />
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One day, I got it out to continue on. I happened to notice that one cable was crossed wrong on the back of a sleeve. It was crossed under a raglan decrease, and while I am pretty brave about taking out most things, I knew that it wouldn't be worth the risk. I decided to leave the cable.<br />
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I kept the sweater out, and Kevin walked in the room. I told him about the cable, and as I lifted the sweater to show him, we both saw a major problem at the same time: a dyelot difference. A big dyelot difference.<br />
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"You have to rip that out," said Kevin.<br />
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"I know," I said.<br />
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And for one of the few times in my knitting life, I was depressed. It would probably take me 2 months of fairly hard knitting to get back to that spot, and the charts, which were spread out on about 8 pieces of paper, would be a horrible pain to figure out.<br />
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I kept looking at this sweater. <br />
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Then I had an idea: What if I would get rid of the top part, and turn the lower part of it into a capelet. It would be cute! And it would be easy because I had already bound it off at the waist.<br />
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The next day, I took scissors to it and cut off the top. I held the capelet over my shoulders and decided it would work.<br />
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So the day after that, I picked it up to put a buttonband and collar on it.<br />
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And that's when I noticed a hole from the steeking.The yarn was merino and a bit slippery. I thought that I could probably repair it or at least kind of hide it.<br />
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But suddenly I realized that I didn't care about this project anymore. I didn't want to knit on it at all. Nothing was working. I had the feeling that wearing the capelet would just remind me of the problems. And you know what I did next?<br />
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I threw it in the trash.<br />
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And I instantly felt a great wave of relief crashing over me. <br />
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The sweater was finished.<br />
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I not only crossed it off my list, I deleted it from my list. I deleted it from my Ravelry page. And that was that. It is a gorgeous sweater whose design I will always love, and Debbie Bliss is a genius. I still love, love, love the way the sweater looks--but this one just wasn't working for me. <br />
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Here is the moral of the story: If you have a project that is not going well, and if you love the feeling you have when you throw it in the trash, and cannot visualize ever wanting the thing for any reason, and the yarn or fabric will not rip out well, then you have my permission to throw it in the trash.<br />
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Throwing away Silver Belle has given me more motivation than you can imagine. As soon as I did it, I was free to work like crazy on other projects, and I have accomplished unbelievable amounts. I finished many things, including....<br />
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A baby blanket I designed for <a href="http://www.madeinamericayarns.com/projects-patterns/download-yarn-patterns/" target="_blank">Made in America Yarns</a>. <br />
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Another pair of mittens made using my <a href="http://www.reallyclear.com/15701/24301.html" target="_blank">top-down mitten pattern</a> (<i>and </i>I finished writing the pattern!):<br />
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My new quilt pattern, Checkers, made from 2 1/2" strips of fabric: <br />
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The design was Kirsten's, but I finally got the pattern written for <a href="http://www.reallyclear.com/15701/42401.html" target="_blank">Antonym</a>, a double-knitted scarf: </div>
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I have the ribbing for one sock left on a pair of toe-up socks that had languished for a few years. I made a paper-pieced cat table runner that is adorable. I wrote up final versions of a number of beginner quilting patterns. </div>
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I also finished a couple of things that need to wait before I can show them to you. I made a hat that is going to appear in a book sometime this fall. (The publisher kept my original hat.) I thought it would be sad to have no hat to show the design in person when the books arrived in the shop. So the hat is now done ahead of time, ready for whenever the books arrive, which is a rather lovely feeling. </div>
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I think you'll like the hat. </div>
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And finally, I'm almost finished piecing my Black and White Block of the Month. I am so excited about it! It is a little different from what I was initially planning, and I think better. But sorry--you have to wait till December to see it in the Big Reveal! </div>
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I still have a number of projects I want to finish--you know, a couple of sweaters, some cowls, and maybe another pair of mittens--but I no longer feel overwhelmed. </div>
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And I'm starting to get excited about some new design ideas that I will work on this fall. Who knows where this all will lead, and what I'll come up with. Wherever it goes, I look forward to the journey. </div>
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I have my mojo back.</div>
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Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-66053698056884164142013-06-11T23:54:00.000-04:002013-06-11T23:55:58.028-04:00Happy Birthday to Us! Ten years ago this month, Kim and I started Stitch Your Art Out.<br />
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Many of you have been with us the whole time. Others have joined us more recently. Let me tell you about a bit of our history, and please join me in either reminiscing--or learning a little more about us!<br />
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Kim and I met in a writing class that I was teaching at Penn State. (She was taking a few classes just for fun, and serendipitously happened into mine.) She always wrote about interesting things, and often about fabric or color. For obvious reasons, I enjoyed her papers. <br />
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After the class ended, we stayed in touch and became friends. We soon thereafter thought it might be a great idea to own a knitting and quilting shop. <br />
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People often ask me if I've always wanted to own a store. The answer is that it had intrigued me for much of my life. So in the late 1980s, thinking that I wanted a gift shop, I bought a book called <i><a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=YZMrAAAAYAAJ&q=inauthor:%22Irving+Burstiner%22&dq=inauthor:%22Irving+Burstiner%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=maeuUYHwHsTE4AOYoYDQCw&ved=0CD8Q6AEwAw" target="_blank">Run Your Own Store</a>.</i> I started reading, and determined within a few pages that running my own store sounded like a horrible job. I threw the book away without finishing it, and continued teaching for the next 15 years.<br />
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***** </div>
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When we started Stitch Your Art Out, I thought that maybe I should buy that old book again to learn what to do. But I decided not to; sometimes you know in your gut that ignorance is bliss, and that bliss is a great choice. <br />
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And so we began putting together a business plan. (One detail that we never did get around to: "<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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</xml><![endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">We will keep a basket of magazines for
husbands:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>Sports Illustrated, Popular
Mechanics, Popular Science, </i>a current newspaper." Sorry, dudes.) </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Even back then, however, we wanted Kaffe Fassett fabrics and Mountain Colors yarn. We still love them both; our vision, sans <i>Sports Illustrated,</i> has remained consistent.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">The business plan took a back seat soon thereafter; we were quickly overwhelmed with simply getting our shop up and running! Things had happened faster than we expected, and on our opening day, we looked like this:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"> </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWjBdJbvQdcfUQhiwM5QHkr6b9Hgvm-Lk_7a6PxkppDQXcTyL3xQ1wM34AuZ0kdoVabTzB2lQRcTL00V5gfgH539JfgM_5om18WekbWRZBiiuNwJ8W4R9svjPQQKvPxuUbmwa5w/s1600/Early+photos+of+shop+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWjBdJbvQdcfUQhiwM5QHkr6b9Hgvm-Lk_7a6PxkppDQXcTyL3xQ1wM34AuZ0kdoVabTzB2lQRcTL00V5gfgH539JfgM_5om18WekbWRZBiiuNwJ8W4R9svjPQQKvPxuUbmwa5w/s640/Early+photos+of+shop+1.jpg" width="416" /></a></div>
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On that same day<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">, we got our first sign. We didn't have time to go to a
professional sign maker, so we used my Kevin. He made it by printing
letters on laminated paper via a laser printer. He even found a quilty heart and some
clip-art yarn--see bottom-right corner: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaoSwaJjah0zBsEDddbos9mc5qMX1NMP_6nwgGN9snchZ_k3__8755v0BnPmmMhhALF25u-iypyVn_leKcPFtnzm82QVfom1G8EGvc78fZFhTwDrzfad-AY-Z-9TjKfguoxXdPVQ/s1600/Early+photos+of+shop+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaoSwaJjah0zBsEDddbos9mc5qMX1NMP_6nwgGN9snchZ_k3__8755v0BnPmmMhhALF25u-iypyVn_leKcPFtnzm82QVfom1G8EGvc78fZFhTwDrzfad-AY-Z-9TjKfguoxXdPVQ/s640/Early+photos+of+shop+2.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
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I knew that the store was going to look mighty bare, so I went out and bought two large vases of flowers to make things look a little more "filled in." You can see them here on each end of the table (Hi, Kim! Awesome white sneakers!): <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQfg8Qi0pztme7tR8sGcxKf-h4nkIN3lSOW8jgvpFVtJtBsg63maEbBkj0zOruvxR1Loyd5CmkvyOjOEeKqcJQIUjyCLvlQ8vM7MvL5yH9so6slm7mXDtIkv5MKiIIDzcns8yWHw/s1600/Early+photos+of+shop+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="416" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQfg8Qi0pztme7tR8sGcxKf-h4nkIN3lSOW8jgvpFVtJtBsg63maEbBkj0zOruvxR1Loyd5CmkvyOjOEeKqcJQIUjyCLvlQ8vM7MvL5yH9so6slm7mXDtIkv5MKiIIDzcns8yWHw/s640/Early+photos+of+shop+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaoSwaJjah0zBsEDddbos9mc5qMX1NMP_6nwgGN9snchZ_k3__8755v0BnPmmMhhALF25u-iypyVn_leKcPFtnzm82QVfom1G8EGvc78fZFhTwDrzfad-AY-Z-9TjKfguoxXdPVQ/s1600/Early+photos+of+shop+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">We had no phone line, and cell service was tricky in Pine Grove Mills. With my Sprint phone, which worked only on the back porch (about half the time, if the wind was blowing in the right direction) we made some phone calls to companies, and at last the yarn and fabric began rolling in. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">*****</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Remember this? </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjkT8UCYE2NvocT202R9UuCASwATdtHDlmqmiUdIGFQOoG2OTUn8AvkxDNrLR_ZW9OffwC_FijIjsEBE2as5GKa2stiJQb6VtoGk-cndapb5gWAofXU2JpYEUDm9rgsNy-qlBQ6A/s1600/DCP06816.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjkT8UCYE2NvocT202R9UuCASwATdtHDlmqmiUdIGFQOoG2OTUn8AvkxDNrLR_ZW9OffwC_FijIjsEBE2as5GKa2stiJQb6VtoGk-cndapb5gWAofXU2JpYEUDm9rgsNy-qlBQ6A/s640/DCP06816.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">This was from September 2003, when we held our first event--our grand opening! That side, which is all fabric now, was the whole store. Our office area was on the other side, where the yarn is now. There was a kitchen back in there--remember it? (Sorry, no photographic documentation.)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">'Round about November, we decided that we were getting established and should write a brochure for the Visitor's Center. We had a random customer take our picture. I'm not sure that this is the one we used, but it was the best of the bunch. Kim had checked a mirror and primped her hair right before the shot. I thought that it wouldn't matter whether I did that or not. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpcxAerGtIioL6gTjcLwqRnqJQyAXJ9AwmvwRu7uJwj2clnz_TrH9QmpWh0HNHGMTqLBA9vvw3MduCPhQQLAz_VhbmdkpxHqzM0dcTSMt9Kn3O0yZVVWUAtG_Aj5L1uvL7oRM8jg/s1600/Us+in+2003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpcxAerGtIioL6gTjcLwqRnqJQyAXJ9AwmvwRu7uJwj2clnz_TrH9QmpWh0HNHGMTqLBA9vvw3MduCPhQQLAz_VhbmdkpxHqzM0dcTSMt9Kn3O0yZVVWUAtG_Aj5L1uvL7oRM8jg/s640/Us+in+2003.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">While I am often cheerful, I had no idea that I could possibly even form such a smile. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Awesome white collar and cuffs, Kim. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">*****<u><br /></u></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><u><br /></u></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Remember how computer monitors looked in 2005? </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbZ8Tc54awaoFUfOYEDUfKDbmrIsg_oCb3AltV1t8bN5RLaTPWF4PdgB94stNUAwpY3WeAtR6Ii33VNsSZOYXP1tCVa4V5ctJcDe_HVjtBhc4_kddNw-V6K2zvFCo-teZsbsSJdg/s1600/Desk.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbZ8Tc54awaoFUfOYEDUfKDbmrIsg_oCb3AltV1t8bN5RLaTPWF4PdgB94stNUAwpY3WeAtR6Ii33VNsSZOYXP1tCVa4V5ctJcDe_HVjtBhc4_kddNw-V6K2zvFCo-teZsbsSJdg/s640/Desk.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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We had a whole handful of buttons!<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">This was also the year of the scarf craze! Kim made a particular fuzzy black scarf with colorful eyelash held in it (far left in the picture below). I can't tell you just how many balls of yarn we sold for that scarf! We used to see people wearing them all over town!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh24xgj2EPgtoH4uOvNoKmqQnkjRAMNE4pWsR1yxH-L0uVzTm13jO41tFgXZHHRxbrsANjSZp6HM-PqNJCaSNYINeFwnsgf9-YBHna9UfMg4OQvEJFcqDzudbwUcqkqUd6dJJcs7w/s1600/001_22A.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh24xgj2EPgtoH4uOvNoKmqQnkjRAMNE4pWsR1yxH-L0uVzTm13jO41tFgXZHHRxbrsANjSZp6HM-PqNJCaSNYINeFwnsgf9-YBHna9UfMg4OQvEJFcqDzudbwUcqkqUd6dJJcs7w/s640/001_22A.JPG" width="425" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">We sadly don't have pictures of it, but we held an event that year called Scarf Fest. Scarf yarn was hard to get, and we desperately called all our distributors and got whatever colors they had of whatever scarf yarn we could find. We bought bag after bag of yarn. We excitedly hid all the yarn in the back closet and made a big fuss over how we were going to surprise everyone with our huge selection the night of Scarf Fest. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Scarf Fest was to begin at 6:00. At 5:30, we locked the doors and covered all the windows to do our secret work. We took the yarn out from the back, and started unbagging it and putting it on the back table. Quickly we realized that it would never all fit nicely. So we started heaping it! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">At 6:00, we had a line at the door. We opened up, and the customers rushed in! They took one look at the heap of the yarn, became incredibly confused ... and all ran past it to buy their normal yarns that were on the shelves! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">*****</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Anyone remember the trend in hairpin lace? Lots of you took that class! Here is Kim at a trade show in 2006, wearing the hairpin-lace shawl she made:</span><br />
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(In the same picture, you can also see another great, but discontinued yarn, Oceania. And another--Sinsation.)<br />
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Our shop started to take shape by 2006 as well. Back then, we hung some of the yarn on grids. (They only fell over once or twice.) There are no words that could explain our display of a heap of fabric bundles on the floor. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtadK5AWvM6eW7TSOpWYeqfxSoblkEqxjcnH6rSri3iOCcUrlgLmHFbyfa4vYHL5Qa9srsp5WiaIq1o8HRUoZOjlJeyiOLgJMqN2B4wtKDUSqzxswBtPkWRAJi9hCS7zPMTVlUwQ/s1600/DSC00245.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtadK5AWvM6eW7TSOpWYeqfxSoblkEqxjcnH6rSri3iOCcUrlgLmHFbyfa4vYHL5Qa9srsp5WiaIq1o8HRUoZOjlJeyiOLgJMqN2B4wtKDUSqzxswBtPkWRAJi9hCS7zPMTVlUwQ/s640/DSC00245.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Kim and I started out using mainly grid-cubes to hold our yarn. Did any of you buy these hand-dyed yarns from Steadfast Fibers? Sadly, they are out of business. But their yarns were beautiful!<br />
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I feel as if I must apologize for a moment. I'm showing you discontinued things as I reminisce. </div>
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But don't be sad! I have learned over the years that there are <i>so </i>many beautiful yarns and fabrics that take
the place of the discontinued ones. It gets better and better. Our yarns and fabrics today are the best we have ever had.</div>
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By 2007, we started getting rid of the grids. What a relief! (We have always built every shelf in our store, by the way.We know our way around Lowe's and Ikea pretty well.) Behold the new Ikea Billy shelf for yarn:</div>
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And by 2007, look at all the fabric!</div>
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I like seeing this picture. By now, we're starting to take shape. But isn't it interesting how much brighter our colors are today than back then? (Compare this to the fabric in the next picture.) At the time, however, our shop was <i>radical</i>! Quilters didn't know what to do with such contemporary fabrics! </div>
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Oh, I should say here that many people have been telling me lately that they don't remember the color of the carpet before. You can see it in the above picture--kind of a brown. (If you look back through this blog entry, you'll see the many attempts I made through the years at covering the brown carpeting, none of which really worked!) </div>
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At that point, while there were certainly refinements to come, we had a store that was very much like the one we have today. </div>
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So let's fast-forward 5 years, and look at us today! If you're from out of town, this is your first glimpse of our latest incarnation! We were so happy that we were able to spiff up again just before our 10th anniversary! </div>
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And just look at all those buttons:<br />
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So that is our story. Despite all the fumbling--or actually because of it--we have had a <i>lot </i>of fun over the years. To me, that's the only thing that counts. I wouldn't change a thing about our little journey.<br />
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....Except maybe that time in New Jersey when we were driving a huge, yellow Penske rental truck, were starving, pulled up to a high-end restaurant, and Kim leaned over me to call to the valet, <i>"Is this a dress-up place?" </i><br />
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*****</div>
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Our anniversary celebration is the best we have ever had. It will run just a few more days, through June 15, so stop by soon! Be sure to pick up a Stitch Your Art Out tape measure! <br />
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Kim and I
are grateful for all of you--for all the loyalty, love, and kindness you have
shown us throughout the years. Before we owned a business, we never knew that these words were not a cliche at all--but instead, so literally true: "Without you, we wouldn't be
here." Thank you so very, very much. </div>
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We look forward to many more years with you. </div>
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<br />Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-6988982982975276142013-04-17T19:39:00.000-04:002013-04-17T19:39:27.450-04:00My Favorite Notions Pouch EverI like to try out things before we get them in. A few months ago, I saw this notions pouch on one of our vendor's websites. I thought it looked kind of neat, so I ordered it in and have been testing it ever since.<br />
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I have tried all kinds of things to hold my notions, but this one is without question the best.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkgHx1PLfDlyK4yB06r-snsUzDz-bpYNVBwX8EAyA4VHaSFACl1bt2aKNPeGxoiH9YrZwOZXVqNqQ2SIULAWBeS8pu4s7mFVIyUMg2p0ee7G8THLyT0p8B9YeQ2S-hfMG2T-NT4Q/s1600/Knit+Happy+closed.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkgHx1PLfDlyK4yB06r-snsUzDz-bpYNVBwX8EAyA4VHaSFACl1bt2aKNPeGxoiH9YrZwOZXVqNqQ2SIULAWBeS8pu4s7mFVIyUMg2p0ee7G8THLyT0p8B9YeQ2S-hfMG2T-NT4Q/s320/Knit+Happy+closed.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a> </div>
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It is the perfect size to hold everything but not be too big. It rolls conveniently and compactly to go with you in your knitting bag.<br />
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It has a number of compartments, all with see-through vinyl, so you don't have to hunt blindly for your stuff. The zippers work like a dream.<br />
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And as of yesterday, the test is over. We have them in the store for you, too. They come with green or blue trim. Stop by and pick one up, and I guarantee you'll also love it more than any other notions bag you've ever used.<br />
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Thanks, Knit Happy, for living up to your name!<br />
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<br />Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-47980101151653141702013-03-26T12:53:00.001-04:002013-03-26T12:53:44.475-04:00It's Spring at Stitch Your Art Out!I know it's cold out, and that we had a snowfall yesterday, but today is sunny, and it just feels like spring. I'm thinking about our retreat (which is less than 2 weeks away!), and I am gathering up things to take along! As usual, I'm going back and forth between sewing and knitting. There is no need to choose.<br />
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I haven't sewn in a while, so I'm feeling a strong sewing mood coming on. I have in mind two tumbler quilts that I'm planning to cut, perhaps even today! One is mainly Kaffe Fassett fabrics. The other is bright batiks. We all need bright right now! We'll shortly have kits here for them. Give me a call if you want one, and I'll put it aside for you as soon as it's ready. <br />
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And our spring yarns are here as well! Misty generously loaned us this pretty little cowl she made out of Simplicity. Simplicity is a great yarn--it's merino and nylon, machine washable, in soft, spring colors. This cowl has several stitches to keep you interested, and Misty says that it's particularly fun to make because of that!<br />
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The cowl can be made with either four different colors of yarn, as Misty did--or perhaps you'd like to make it out of a self-striping yarn. We have a bunch of new ones from several companies, just waiting for you! Here's just one: <br />
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We also have bulky yarns for faster knitting. I always love Florafil from Made in America Yarns (so much that I have designed a baby sweater and hat for them, and now I'm designing a baby blanket). We have in some new colors of their beautiful Florafil yarn. It's a bulky-weight yarn in fabulous, bright colors! You can download patterns from their website that inspire you, and then come in and choose the yarn in person! <a href="http://www.madeinamericayarns.com/projects-patterns/" target="_blank">Check out the modular baby sweater and that green bobble hat! </a><br />
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<br />
I could go on and on about our new variegated linens from Claudia, our new variegated colors of Ultra Pima, a new yarn from Ella Rae called Cozy Soft, and perhaps best of all, <i>this:</i><br />
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But I think you should stop by to see it all! <br />
<br />Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-2259920023538555052013-01-22T20:24:00.001-05:002013-01-22T20:30:55.567-05:00Creating Your Own Project(s) at the Retreat<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I had a question about the retreat
today, so in case someone else has the same one, I’ll answer it <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>here: “What if I don’t want to do the projects
that you and Kim have planned?”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">And the answer to that is, NO
PROBLEM. Come anyway! </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Whether you are sewing, crocheting, or knitting, here is the view you will see out a huge wall of windows for 3 days....</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHOAPI-RYMbSQb0O5m6FC9IUTRQQGgPsrLP7nlAGv3OI8tqgYUep-OuxqkiLYs2ZYrD4CTWfIoOMRz-bd5YzTak_XF6oGK6pF7i-5FfZj1O80Z_EroIZP-eXD7vVuQN41dw004cg/s1600/Outside+Raystown.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHOAPI-RYMbSQb0O5m6FC9IUTRQQGgPsrLP7nlAGv3OI8tqgYUep-OuxqkiLYs2ZYrD4CTWfIoOMRz-bd5YzTak_XF6oGK6pF7i-5FfZj1O80Z_EroIZP-eXD7vVuQN41dw004cg/s1600/Outside+Raystown.JPG" height="225" width="320" /></a> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Bring along your UFOs, or bring
along a new project of your own to start. Kim and I will be there all weekend.
While we are both teaching, we also both have long stretches where we don’t
have a class. (We are never teaching at the same time, in case there is someone
out there who wants to take every single class.) We will be more than happy to
help you with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">anything</i> you wish to
do. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">If you’re not normally a class-goer,
the retreat has many benefits in addition to attending classes. You can hang
out with a bunch of kindred spirits doing what you all love best. You get great
meals served to you so that you don’t have to cook. You can take walks or even bike
rides in a beautiful setting. You can get help when you’re stuck—right then and
there. You can talk knitting, crochet, and quilting. Best of all, you do this
by getting away from it all—no dishes, no laundry, no cleaning allowed. And we
grieve to tell you that the cell service at Raystown is spotty. People may not
be able to call you easily. (We have a number they can reach in case of emergency
of course!) </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The retreat is like a 3-day slumber
party for grownups! It gives you me-time, which none of us gets enough of. It
gives you quiet if you like, chatter if you like—whatever you wish. It is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">your</i> weekend! Give yourself permission
to relax and have fun! </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So spend 3 days knitting,
crocheting, and quilting with us, which I bet you never do on your own at home—and
think of everything you can accomplish! </span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHOAPI-RYMbSQb0O5m6FC9IUTRQQGgPsrLP7nlAGv3OI8tqgYUep-OuxqkiLYs2ZYrD4CTWfIoOMRz-bd5YzTak_XF6oGK6pF7i-5FfZj1O80Z_EroIZP-eXD7vVuQN41dw004cg/s1600/Outside+Raystown.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The retreat will be held April 5-7. As I said in the last post, the earlybird deadline has been extended to Saturday, February 9. (You can still sign up at the regular rates through Feb. 22.) Call us at 814-238-4151 to sign up! We'll be excited to hear from you! </span></div>
Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-10221480027230683012013-01-21T22:11:00.000-05:002013-01-22T15:38:04.020-05:00Join us for our Retreat!<br />
First, let's talk turkey--more specifically, Early Bird.<br />
<br />
By popular demand (i.e., after that all important "end of the month"), we are moving the Early Bird Deadline to Saturday, Feb. 9.<br />
<br />
So you still have plenty of time to sign up for our retreat and save a few bucks! (Perhaps between 10 and 4 during our big sale on Sunday, Feb. 3, would be a great time to sign up!)<br />
<br />
Now let's talk about how the retreat works and what we're doing.<br />
<br />
You start out on Friday, April 5. You can arrive in the morning or you can wait till after lunch. We of course recommend getting there ASAP to get your weekend started! We'll have a few projects that afternoon to get you going--or you can, as is true all weekend--bring along and your own things and we're happy to help you out with those instead. Your choice.<br />
<br />
If you do choose to work on Friday, we've got a couple of projects to choose from. Kim is going to start you on a leaf bowl. It is a very cool, 3-dimensional leaf made from fabric, thread, and a stiff interfacing that can be shaped after heating.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZYfW6GUz3WN3qLbM9W4WL2lSJSM-L96wn_8XpLIBZB65v3Qtc69SfwOy8Fs9rA_e27M-3g5eXIYQWWNzm71mjegOCmmkagTyI_HclKP78NYlPuEEKVUcR33WI-8RLU-Zkuc250g/s1600/Leaf+bowls+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZYfW6GUz3WN3qLbM9W4WL2lSJSM-L96wn_8XpLIBZB65v3Qtc69SfwOy8Fs9rA_e27M-3g5eXIYQWWNzm71mjegOCmmkagTyI_HclKP78NYlPuEEKVUcR33WI-8RLU-Zkuc250g/s320/Leaf+bowls+copy.jpg" height="320" width="274" /></a></div>
<br />
And that afternoon, I'll also teach a class on knitting a Fair-Isle mug cozy. I'm still designing patterns, but maybe something like this would be fun:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRmNb9eAU46S9nKxutcyzNZ1HYTTAhS0ZDvfHezOrcQQ1B8NaZDssSQsQtkPA3sxMiU6nfecl0OoeDs75kXW6wsjZALLbZdw-krDvuaHXnTjGa9yRzlZWV3OBXHyd5DcD_BbUsOA/s1600/cup+holder2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRmNb9eAU46S9nKxutcyzNZ1HYTTAhS0ZDvfHezOrcQQ1B8NaZDssSQsQtkPA3sxMiU6nfecl0OoeDs75kXW6wsjZALLbZdw-krDvuaHXnTjGa9yRzlZWV3OBXHyd5DcD_BbUsOA/s320/cup+holder2.jpeg" height="232" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Or maybe this:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyjvDjlO1LoKxzvXP87ew7-awDJZ2yX4K9dvrP7MrCi2kg0PopPleMmTEqcrm0bPQro6D8j0e95vNYrbkvL39DwRcAu97RarQGrwg1fPp_Wi1JL5qaBe4X8gF-1ISb_sBEPGnKuA/s1600/cup+holder+32.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyjvDjlO1LoKxzvXP87ew7-awDJZ2yX4K9dvrP7MrCi2kg0PopPleMmTEqcrm0bPQro6D8j0e95vNYrbkvL39DwRcAu97RarQGrwg1fPp_Wi1JL5qaBe4X8gF-1ISb_sBEPGnKuA/s320/cup+holder+32.jpeg" height="200" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Oh my. I like that latter one a lot. I think we definitely need to do something with it. <br />
<br />
My idea is to learn not only Fair Isle, but also steeking (cutting the work). More on that later.<br />
<br />
Friday night we'll have a chicken dinner prepared by a real chef. This is not just regular chicken. The food at Raystown is truly resort quality, and it is delicious.<br />
<br />
And after dinner, you can work until 9:00 p.m. And then you can go back to your room to relax and get ready for Saturday!<br />
<br />
On Saturday, we'll have breakfast, lunch, and dinner waiting for you. You will be served, and you will not have to do any dishes. Raystown will do all the clean up. (And the cost of the retreat also includes a generous tip for the waitstaff, so no worries!)<br />
<br />
Saturday morning, Kim is teaching her "contemporary strings quilt." It will look something like this: <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLQKFinn6Cz5dKpHG_aqcF3-IwL_2SH6Qfjcx5Jw7ohARZzKe6rTFJCQ2CTaEPZcEoBI42jt99f3L0aKFyHZp__W9cXU5oAH7m_52OpCi0uFTaougETaLUdZM3jaWsHlswdKBlTA/s1600/string+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLQKFinn6Cz5dKpHG_aqcF3-IwL_2SH6Qfjcx5Jw7ohARZzKe6rTFJCQ2CTaEPZcEoBI42jt99f3L0aKFyHZp__W9cXU5oAH7m_52OpCi0uFTaougETaLUdZM3jaWsHlswdKBlTA/s1600/string+1.jpg" /></a></div>
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Or maybe this... <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVtWHlvL0-5QPnTZpUzMgocouLuLUbUqRthKMrMbNtSuM6h6YbBK7gypaQ8y_wSRxtx5F5h0RYRyAgtWHPt-XZP6L3_kKOGe6XWKIb9gMUomqdicwpKJAHex8B4EM3KoqQbRTrxA/s1600/string+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVtWHlvL0-5QPnTZpUzMgocouLuLUbUqRthKMrMbNtSuM6h6YbBK7gypaQ8y_wSRxtx5F5h0RYRyAgtWHPt-XZP6L3_kKOGe6XWKIb9gMUomqdicwpKJAHex8B4EM3KoqQbRTrxA/s1600/string+2.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
...depending on the fabrics you choose!<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, I'll be helping people learn to make a cute skirt called Lane Splitter (many thanks to my new best friend, Carol from Toronto, for this wonderful photo):<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPAF1bL4u-_G5WbIoEhmFr3owm9d93LTf7H_wQekfqdt5cEa5cG0G-zKL5oo7N2TgSyfKNCI3DheZJKCPBaHy33lvWqAWEXt7usGEYTlRNk77Rmg0JPhyphenhyphenI4OIr5p8icXMSCNJcUQ/s1600/Lanesplitter.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPAF1bL4u-_G5WbIoEhmFr3owm9d93LTf7H_wQekfqdt5cEa5cG0G-zKL5oo7N2TgSyfKNCI3DheZJKCPBaHy33lvWqAWEXt7usGEYTlRNk77Rmg0JPhyphenhyphenI4OIr5p8icXMSCNJcUQ/s320/Lanesplitter.JPG" height="320" width="208" /></a></div>
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Saturday afternoon, one of us (or both!) will teach how to knit a beaded necklace. Beads make it special! We're looking through bead books and patterns, and still trying to choose, but we guarantee it will pretty! <br />
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And then you can work until 9 p.m. that night. Get a good night's sleep, and be back in time for...<br />
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Sunday brunch is at 10:30. (Of course you can start working before brunch if you like!)<br />
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Sunday morning, you have a choice of three classes:<br />
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Woven basket:<br />
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<br />
Or, if you crochet, learn Tunisian Crochet with this handy washcloth:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXv4mjddOFV43_-qH8MMU7-W3U_S4LTMPiOdhlpAbW6WuQ9axDHSAi1tRkGec6thmrNTK2t6l1fch9uru4S3P-0jUE1ktg6-EqzOe7d_BfGZSOYcG53fav6f6HjzKRDmx1_Ah7JQ/s1600/tunisian.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXv4mjddOFV43_-qH8MMU7-W3U_S4LTMPiOdhlpAbW6WuQ9axDHSAi1tRkGec6thmrNTK2t6l1fch9uru4S3P-0jUE1ktg6-EqzOe7d_BfGZSOYcG53fav6f6HjzKRDmx1_Ah7JQ/s1600/tunisian.jpg" /></a></div>
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It is nice and thick and wonderful to use!<br />
<br />
Or, if you are making the Fair Isle mug cozy, then it's your chance to try steeking! Cynthia will have sewing machine set up and will hold your hand while you cut your knitting and learn how to finish it neatly. Steeking will provide a nice little opening for the mug handle. After you do this, you will be able to bravely cut sweaters and make button bands. Start small, become brave! <br />
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In the afternoon, we'll have a choice of making mitered placemats or felted soap--or both!<br />
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We'll leave Sunday with only a short drive home, an evening left at home to ... well, let's not think about THAT.<br />
<br />
The thing we love best about Raystown (after the food), is that it is close to home so that we can spend more of the weekend crafting rather than driving or flying. <br />
<br />
To sign up, just give us a call.<br />
<br />
Sign up by February 9 to receive a single-occupancy price of $425, or a double occupancy price of $350 per person. Prices include two nights of hotel, all meals, all gratuities, a nice little goody bag, and all class fees (supplies are extra or you may bring your own). We will have supply lists for you in late February. <br />
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<br />Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-67814101178130536082012-12-10T12:30:00.000-05:002012-12-10T12:30:01.160-05:00My Very Own FloofyAbbey, one of our knitting teachers, has been teaching the Floofy Skirt class for a couple of years now. I have been watching with envy as one person after another made cute skirts. I don't even wear skirts very often, but I desperately wanted one. I kept making excuses--not enough time being the main one. <br />
<br />
So about a month ago (after watching even <i>more </i>Floofies start and finish) I decided that I couldn't stand it anymore and that it was simply time to start one. I found a bunch of yarns that looked good together, and I plunged in. It turned out that I was able to work on it without any thinking, so it became a great car-knitting, TV-knitting, etc., kind of project. And because I took it everywhere, it turned out to be quick.<br />
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I have no idea why I waited so long.<br />
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I feel quite certain (especially since I'm doing the scheduling) that Abbey will be teaching the class again this spring. Our newsletter will go out so that you will likely get it just after Christmas. Look for this class! <br />
<br />Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-37328205161452104102012-10-05T13:39:00.000-04:002012-10-05T13:39:01.799-04:00WorkshopAll day (from 9 to 5) on October 13, we're having a Santa's workshop. We will be offsite and have a lot of great classes planned, and we'll also be sure to feed you healthy snacks and a healthy lunch! You won't have to do anything all day except work on projects.<br />
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You may choose your own project, or you may pick any or all of these:<br />
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1. <b>Christmas stocking.</b> This simple stocking can be sewn in a jiffy! It makes a great decoration--or fill it with goodies! <br />
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2. <b>Crazy-quilt ornament. </b>You'll learn a little about crazy quilting, and you'll have a beautiful ornament when you're done!<br />
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3.<b> Felted soap. </b>It's fast, it's fun, and it makes a perfect gift!<br />
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4. <b>Knitted Necklace.</b> This is a quick project that you can do in just a few hours! <br />
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5. <b>Placemats.</b> Kim will show you how to make this great placemats. They're perfect for large-scale prints! Fast, fast, fast! <br />
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6. <b>Baked-potato bag.</b> We have the special batting and the perfect fabric! Whip up a gift that everyone will enjoy all year! <br />
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7. <b>Crocheted snowflake. </b>It is not only gorgeous, but also fun to make!<br />
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8. <b>Mochiland snowman.</b> This little guy is just 1" high, but packs in more cute than you can count!<br />
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9. <b>Towel edging.</b> Everyone can always use hand towels--so make them pretty, and make them a gift!<br />
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10. <b>Beaded tree ornament</b>. Elizabeth Zimmermann knew how to knit things that are super clever. This tree is no exception. Cynthia added beads for a little sparkle! <br />
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If you are interested in signing up, please give us a call at 814-238-4151, or stop by. We'll help you pick out what you need to get going--and we'll see you on Saturday, October 13! Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-50236463265395853172012-09-18T22:46:00.000-04:002012-09-18T22:47:08.209-04:003 in 1I'm not quite sure where I got my idea, other than wanting to do a block of the month lap quilt that we could all finish before Christmas. That meant, if I wanted to do 12 blocks, that we had to do 3 blocks a month. Not just any 3 blocks a month, but 3 blocks a month during a busy time of the year.<br />
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I fiddled around with designs, and slowly one took shape. What if we did something that took about the same amount of time as making one block? The secret to that would be in easy cutting and mass-production sewing. That means that you need all the same block. Three of the same block is a bit dull, so to change it up, I figured that at least the fabrics should be different. <br />
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We had 4 months. That meant 3 blocks per month. So therefore, we would cut 3 blocks' worth of layers at the same time. I figured that we could layer different colors, and therefore come up with different blocks--in this case, 3 colors for 3 blocks. As long as you have a sharp rotary blade, cutting 6 layers of fabric is no big deal. <br />
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I wrote up the instructions, and then began cutting and sewing. I decided to do not only a Christmas one, but a bright one as well. I'm happy with both of them so far! Cutting out each one took no more than 15 minutes, and sewing all 6 blocks took a little longer than 2 hours. As I sewed, I wasn't quite sure what I would get, so part of the fun was in the mystery. <br />
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So far, here's what I have for the Christmas one:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGAhENC-S5E33BSTUl9VCxrMop34q6-MJRZucjX0mMJ2U_9JWOfG1r9ri8NrOhhsWgpHnEfTmRBjCJuVtXxAdWCC92LwJjj2gW4jxbYQw7oAIkWPo708xY27MZ9NcIZugy53hEjw/s1600/Christmas+blocks.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGAhENC-S5E33BSTUl9VCxrMop34q6-MJRZucjX0mMJ2U_9JWOfG1r9ri8NrOhhsWgpHnEfTmRBjCJuVtXxAdWCC92LwJjj2gW4jxbYQw7oAIkWPo708xY27MZ9NcIZugy53hEjw/s640/Christmas+blocks.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div>
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And the bright one:<br />
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(You'll only like it if you like pink!)<br />
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There is still time to join in, given how fast this quilt makes up. Kim and I can fix you up with the instructions and fabrics.<br />
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Stop by anytime, and we'll help you choose your fabrics! Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-21648294194814693312012-09-12T23:17:00.003-04:002012-09-12T23:17:45.306-04:00Being in a Quilty MoodI've been in a quilty mood lately. So for fall, I decided to do a quick block of the month. I was trying to figure out something that was bigger than a table runner, but that we all could get done quickly. It is fall. We are all busy at this time of the year.<br />
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I'm not sure how I came up with the idea, but I decided to do a star quilt that had an interesting element of construction: Each star would be made up of 3 colors of fabrics, and we would make 3 stars per month. To cut the fabrics, all you would need to do is layer all three, cut the pieces, and voila! Three blocks cut out in the same time that it normally takes to cut out one!<br />
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For example, if you were doing red, green, and gold as your three colors, you would layer those fabrics and cut all your pieces from them. Then after, say, you had cut out the star tips, you would have one red-tipped block, one gold-tipped block, and one green-tipped block.You choose four quarter-yard pieces of fabrics for each of the three colors; this gives you some variety and some shading. <br />
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I called it a Christmas Block of the Month, but you can choose any fabric you like. I'm actually making two of them--one Christmas and one brights. Let me remind you of the design first:<br />
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See how the star-in-star blocks on the lower left, upper right, and lower center look similar but have different colors? That's the idea. (I reserve the right to change out every star as we go along, but I promise that I <i>will</i> stick to all stars!)<br />
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While I didn't draw it this way, I thought it would be fun to have a print inner border where the red is, and to have a more plain outer border--but of course you can do it however you'd like. <br />
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Here's my Christmas one:<br />
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I substituted black as the background for the stars rather than the white of the picture above. Last-minute change today. I love black! And the birds on black will be my inner border. <br />
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And here's my bright one. <br />
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Here, the pink color is my background, the large orange print will be my inner border, and the blue will be my outer border. I'm shivering with excitement over this one. It has pink and blue in it! <br />
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I did my cutting this evening. I discovered a few cutting tricks by the second set, and it took about 10 minutes to cut out three blocks! In the instructions, I'll give cutting tips to make yours go just as fast, if not faster, then mine. <br />
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We begin Monday, and as is usual for block of the month, have sessions all day long. The class is free if you buy our fabrics, or $25 if you use yours. I hope to see you there! Give us a call to sign up (814-238-4151)! <br />
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In the meantime, I suppose I should actually sew the blocks now, huh? <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU3Aj6L7vT8i8FqhScNUhhFXHiQbpyYhKDvtiNGQyzgDBcpPQ5gLDJ3h75Hx2IRscVDODFehgOtCPoh_Ldf97k3ls5p-lWs5DmLjqRreco-q_ac30ujqwubIKAsov_aiYXZTuk-g/s1600/BOM+bright.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a>Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-12047616111224557032012-07-25T17:32:00.005-04:002012-07-25T17:32:51.397-04:00Relay RaceI have been struggling for a few weeks, trying to figure out what my big "games" project will be. As you probably know, Stitch Your Art Out is joining Ravelry for the "Ravellenics," but we are adding one thing to our own games, which is that quilters should feel free to join in. The idea is that you pick a project, start it the day that the world-wide games coming up on Friday start, and end it by the day the games end.(The world-wide games committee is not allowing businesses to use the official word for the games without permission. I do not have permission.)<br />
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My problem (so to speak) is that I am working on a number of things in anticipation of a photo shoot for my patterns that is coming up on August 9. The timing for one big project is a bit off here. <br />
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A customer came in a few days ago and said that what she needs to do is a relay, where she finishes up one project after another--and as soon as she said it, I realized that that's what I need to do as well. And so this is my commitment.<br />
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My vow is that I will work on the item until finished. "Finished" means that I must also have a good draft of a pattern completed as well as the knitted item. Most of these projects have an almost-finished pattern and an almost-finished item, and it's time to get them finished.<br />
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Fall is almost here, and the world needs new patterns!<br />
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Because it is a relay, I vow also to finish the patterns in order. (Discipline will be fierce.) I also vow not to begin anything new for 2 entire weeks, unless these projects are all complete first. I am allowed to alternate quilting and knitting, however, if I so choose. I can make my own rules, baby. <br />
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<b>Knitted Stuff</b><br />
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1. Shawl. I am working on a shawl that is knitted in sections of striped colors. Estimated time to completion: 10 hours of knitting. <br />
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2. Headbands. I have designed headbands. I even have good photos of them. But I used yarn that had too little contrast, and the design did not show up in the photos. I am making 2 new headbands, one for a man, one for a woman. I would prefer making four new ones, but I will do that only as time permits. Estimated time to completion: 7 hours of knitting.<br />
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3. Pillow. The front of a pillow I designed is finished. I must finish the back: Pillows look sad without a back and stuffing. Estimated time to completion: 6 hours of knitting.<br />
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4. Necklace. I have been meaning to design a beaded necklace for about a year. It is time. Estimated time to completion: at least 6 hours of struggling with design, 2 hours of knitting the final product.<br />
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Let's say that I knit for 2 hours/day on average.That brings us to 14.5 days. That, however, is not serious challenge, since it is probably what I do on average anyway.<br />
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So let's add a few quilting projects in here to make it interesting.<br />
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<b>Quilted Stuff</b><br />
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1. Finish the re-do of my beginning placemat for my quilting 101 pattern. I want
something a little more coherent/coordinated than what I have for the cover. Estimated
time: 3-4 hours.<br />
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2. Catch up on the blocks for the 2012 block of the month. It is SO pretty. I must have it! I cut all the blocks out a few weeks ago, so I'm going to get them sewn. Estimated sewing time: 3.5 hours. <br />
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3. Finish a Unicorn quilt I started that we are doing as kits. I just need to do some quilt quilting and then bind it. Estimated sewing time: 2 hours.<br />
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4. Quilt a tumbler quilt top I made and write up the handout.(Estimated time: 5 hours of quilting.) <br />
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So this is it. This is what I want to have finished in 2 weeks. The most difficult part of all is that rule about how I am not allowed to start anything new for 2 entire weeks unless this list is finished. That is completely out of my comfort zone. <br />
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Now this is all in writing and you are reading it, so it is real. I will let you know if there are any last-minute changes between today and Friday. <br />
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Let the games begin. <br />
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<br />Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-69245599736665541632012-07-14T21:42:00.001-04:002012-07-14T21:42:55.779-04:00Enjoying a Beautiful, Sunny Arts Fest Weekend<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Are you having fun at the Arts Fest? I have been. It's been kind of a lazy week, and we all need those sometimes. I spent Thursday knitting, walking around to see the exhibits--and taking a little peek at the Alumni Center wildlife. This turtle was enjoying the day too, sunning itself. </div>
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And this mama had her ducks in a row. Kids sure do grow fast, don't they? <br />
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Friday I worked and enjoyed many people from out of town. (Apparently you all have out-of-town guests this weekend.)<br />
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This afternoon (Saturday), while Kirsten watched the shop, Kim and I went to the Palmer museum, where we joined with some wonderful women from the Centre Pieces quilt guild to demo quilting--thank you, Pat, Claire, and Diane for helping us! (And an added thank you to Becky, for the beautiful quilt she loaned us to display.)<br />
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Kim talked to people about how to quilt, how to put colors together, and she showed everyone some of the quilts she has made over the years.... <br />
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Claire sat next to me and showed people how she did foundation piecing. Everyone was fascinated by her 1953 Singer Featherweight. (Any number of times, she answered the question, "Is it a treadle machine?")<br />
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And I showed people how to rotary cut. (Here I am demonstrating that it is highly unsafe to look away from your work when you have a rotary cutter in your hand.) <br />
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We loved being at the Palmer. (Thanks, Dana, for asking us. And start quilting--you know you want to.)<br />
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I suggest that even though we are no longer demonstrating our work, you get yourself to the museum ASAP. There is a stunning exhibit of quilts in one of the upstairs galleries. And after you've been inspired, come on over to our store to stitch your art out.Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-39274253107478757842012-04-30T23:02:00.001-04:002012-04-30T23:02:56.981-04:00Sometimes You Need to Retreat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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People have been bugging Kim and me to have a retreat for years. We were always kind of intimidated. In our minds, we needed to have an elaborate setup with many teachers, and many more customers--possibly hundreds of both. We weren't quite sure where to have it--Europe and Montana both seemed kind of far away. We talked to all kinds of people, got all kinds of suggestions, and just spun our wheels. </div>
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Last June, however, we had a breakthrough. We took a class on how to hold a retreat. Everything seemed pretty straightforward, but we were still unsure if it was possible. And then it happened. One thing that the instructor said in passing changed us instantaneously. She said, "Decide what your minimum is--say, 8 or 10 people." </div>
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We looked at each other. That was it? You could do a retreat with just 8 people? </div>
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Suddenly it seemed possible. And during the break in the class, the instructor further convinced us that there just had to be a place near our home, given our lovely location in Central Pennsylvania. </div>
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So we started planning. We indeed found a place--Lake Raystown. It seemed like a perfect spot--just over an hour away--far enough to be away, but close enough not to eat into retreat time and energy. We spent the next 6 months organizing the whole thing. </div>
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And suddenly, this past weekend, it was time to pack and go.</div>
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Now, anyone who knows me knows that I am not exactly an early bird. Frankly, I'm not all that interested in worms. So when I had to leave the house at 6:45 to get there by 8:00 Friday morning to set up, I did not begin as the most cheerful person in the world. </div>
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But I took route 45, which is one of my favorite roads in Pennsylvania. And within minutes, my attitude changed to one of great joy. Once a year or so, when I have to get up early, I am reminded once again that there is a reason other people think morning is beautiful: And that reason is the sun. I stuck my camera out the window (with the strap around my wrist to keep it secure), and shot blind photos of random scenes. Like this.</div>
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And this.<br />
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And this. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOX_sOD8pZKjuTK79OAdTuMqLf1nFDsXicCNLwoExIgso9I2S67Y63pQT9aS-o4n1wNNLm5ffh2Ur6_Si-89JXcIIxTZbS1GqCM2nWY12ck6y_-e0ealIPy_N_mIg2WvFhpPY3hA/s1600/IMG_0283.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOX_sOD8pZKjuTK79OAdTuMqLf1nFDsXicCNLwoExIgso9I2S67Y63pQT9aS-o4n1wNNLm5ffh2Ur6_Si-89JXcIIxTZbS1GqCM2nWY12ck6y_-e0ealIPy_N_mIg2WvFhpPY3hA/s400/IMG_0283.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Cows, baby. I love me some cows. <br />
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In no time flat, we were both there. Set up went quickly, and soon Kim and I were sewing before anyone else arrived.<br />
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Surrounded by this. <br />
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By 2:00 everyone had arrived, and the room was humming with activity.<br />
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Mostly, when you take a shot of people working in a room and post it to your blog, it doesn't look great. People's expressions are weird. We've all seen those dreadful workshop pictures--right? My shots were no exception.<br />
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But Photoshop came to the rescue, turning my bad shot into a painting that gives you a real feel for the energy of the room:<br />
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The entire weekend hummed like that.<br />
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As the days went by, I loved looking at all the beautiful colors people were using.... <br />
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And seeing what they were making. Here's a basket in process:<br />
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(I nearly stole one I loved them so much.)We had cool but pleasant weather most of the weekend, and spring was in full bloom. I found this pretty little thing on one of my walks:<br />
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Okay. I admit it. I took exactly one walk. But it was an extra good one, what with the butterflies! <br />
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I did, however, eat every meal. This was my favorite meal, I think--chicken and veggies and fruits in an Asian sauce. We were each allotted 3 kebobs, but since we were a group of women, and we are all scared to eat for fear of Pounds, there were a lot left. So I ate 6. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Kim and I have stopped eating sugar. Normally we're not even attracted to it. But the smell of these cookies nearly sent us over the edge:<br />
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But best of all, by Sunday we all had some finished projects--or something darned close! There is just nothing more exciting! These are just a few of them: <br />
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And so it was a great weekend, even for Kim and me. She worked on some art quilts. I finished quilting my Jelly Roll Race (photo to come later, or stop by the shop to see it), and I finished a necklace, and I finished a headband, and I made the nametag we're supposed to have for Quilt Guild, which I have not had for NINE YEARS, and I worked on the beginning of a new quilt. And after all of that, I thought I would have time on Sunday to finish putting the buttonband on a sweater that I steeked 2 years ago. No such luck.<br />
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So I did it when I got home.<br />
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I am certain that without the retreat to motivate me, this sweater would still be languishing in a bag in my closet. Sometimes you just need to get away. <br />
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We'll be having another retreat next year. Pay attention to the fall newsletter and sign up right away. I'm already looking forward to it.Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-30672276829513103172011-12-29T22:41:00.000-05:002011-12-29T22:41:20.893-05:00Happy New Year!Did you make Christmas or Hanukkah gifts this past year? Many of you did, I know for a fact.<br />
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It seems odd, given my profession, but I never used to make gifts--I bought everything. A few years ago, however, I started making a few. I discovered that I really enjoyed giving something different and special to people. Yes, another stunning revelation comes my way. <br />
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This year, however, I didn't make as many gifts as I would have liked. Time can get away from you. <br />
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I'm not much for resolutions. They tend not to last. But this year, I think I'm making one. Every month, I am going to make sure that I make at least one gift, and.....<br />
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<i>Wait. </i><br />
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<i>Something in my head is suddenly feeling awry. I suddenly sense that I need to do actual math. [Insert muttering-type counting sounds.] Uhm.... okay. There are 23 people on my gift list. </i><br />
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<i>GPS: "Recalculating."</i><br />
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So this is the plan: Every month, I am going to make sure that I make at least <b>two </b>gifts. By December, I should have at least one handmade gift for everyone on my list. I'm planning to make most of them simple so that this plan is achievable. I have no desire whatsoever to burn out or injure myself. <br />
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So that's the goal. We'll see if it works. If it doesn't, I'll probably still have more done than this past year.<br />
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But I'm quite serious about it and have already started a list of ideas for people and am even writing them into my iPhone. For obvious reasons, I can't blog about the results of this plan very well, but, provided that you are unrelated to me and/or not on the list, feel free to ask how things are going and what I am doing. You might even get a few ideas for yourself. <br />
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Anyone out there care to join me?Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-42656454189524212822011-10-26T10:25:00.001-04:002011-10-26T10:28:06.349-04:00It's Fall!First, let me do some quick housekeeping and let you know that I now have two blogs. I'm going to talk about my Really Clear patterns only at <a href="http://www.reallyclearinstructions.blogspot.com/">www.reallyclearinstructions.blogspot.com</a>. If you use Google Reader or some such thing, start feeding that one too. (I also have a Facebook page for Really Clear. Feel free to join in.) I've been wanting to do this for a while, but it's fall, I've put a number of my patterns up on Ravelry, and the time seemed right. When I talk about other people's patterns, or store events, I'll keep it right here. <br />
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On to another person's pattern we go.<br />
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The best thing about fall (other than insects going away for a while) is that I can wear a sweater that I made and finished last March--right when it was starting to get hot. So it feels like a new sweater!<br />
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This is a great little pattern from Knitting at Knoon called Jersey Shore. (We have the pattern at Stitch Your Art Out, of course.) I modified it just slightly by adding a v-neck. I just eyeballed the shaping as I went, so I fear I can't give you the particulars on that. Otherwise, I did the pattern as written. I love the stitch pattern: You do a knit 2, purl 2 pattern for 2 rows, and then you knit a row, purl a row. It kept the knitting mind from getting bored but it was easy to do.<br />
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This pattern is great because it comes in both adult and child versions. So it is time for you to make this sweater for your entire family, and then go get a group photo taken! <br />
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I used my favorite yarn in the whole, wide world--Harrisville Highland--as the yarn for my own version. This particular color of pink has been discontinued, but never fear, dear knitters: Harrisville still makes a gorgeous pink, and we can certainly get you all the pink Highland your heart desires so that you can make pink sweaters for the entire, extended family! And all your friends! <br />
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Because it is fall, and we are all ready to start knitting! With a vengeance!Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-91607625862092451502011-09-08T23:54:00.000-04:002011-09-08T23:54:08.033-04:00Charlotte!Kim and I were leaving the shop together after teaching tonight, and she spotted this spider in her web.<br />
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Fortunately I had my camera and was able to get a photo of it. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCq59EoLsy0Ml91o9orG9B_iomeQbim_X-GRLyhC07jijPbAVRQKdHeu6Xawr6ZLDtghX7y7zvaL68F4DhjYiJ6ka7VoUdewVjsQ4Adv-aveG9V2aHnxEuMlW2lKP62rYurHkIrA/s1600/spider+on+sign+blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCq59EoLsy0Ml91o9orG9B_iomeQbim_X-GRLyhC07jijPbAVRQKdHeu6Xawr6ZLDtghX7y7zvaL68F4DhjYiJ6ka7VoUdewVjsQ4Adv-aveG9V2aHnxEuMlW2lKP62rYurHkIrA/s320/spider+on+sign+blog.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-3638847959464538052011-08-05T07:10:00.000-04:002011-08-05T07:10:51.444-04:00Almost AmusingWhile I don't exactly hate nature, I'm not that big into it. I feel immediately rotten when I'm in the sun and avoid direct sunlight whenever possible. (When we go to the shore, I stay inside all day until just before sunset, then go on a walk on the beach. This is more than enough for me.) I never hike because I hate being surrounded by gnats and getting hot, and the bottom line is, I prefer indoor plumbing. <br />
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Really, other than evening walks around the block, I don't get out much. My day is normally this: Get up, go to the car, go to work, work, get in the car and go home, knit or sew or read if it's not too late, sleep, get up and do it all over again.<br />
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How I contracted Lyme disease is beyond me. Everyone who knows me even a little is stunned.<br />
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The only thing I can figure is that I pet the neighbor's sweet little cats almost every day on my way into the house from work. But who knows. Maybe ticks dropped from the trees that are next to our driveway. I know nothing about the lives of ticks. <br />
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This post is not for sympathy. I caught it early and am fine, and don't really care that I have it. It is to alert you to be aware of symptoms, because apparently it is a bad year for ticks, and my whole point is that <b><i>if I can get Lyme,</i> <i>anyone can get Lyme.</i></b><br />
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The symptoms are mild, and you might not think anything of them. That to me is the frightening part. Mine started with a headache and swollen glands, and a little more lethargy even than my normal self. I know that when I get sick, I need to sleep, so when my symptoms began, I spent the weekend in bed. It didn't really help. That seemed odd--sleep is normally my magic elixir. Then I decided to see why the heck was going on with a mosquito bite that had itched for 3 days. I looked at it; it was a bite with a big, splotchy patch around it.<br />
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I wondered vaguely if it was Lyme, but that made no sense. I hadn't even mowed the lawn in the past few weeks because it was so hot and dry that the grass wasn't growing. In full denial, I googled spider-bite images, thinking that, well, I've seen spiders in our house sometimes. And none of the images even remotely resembled what I had. (I did learn that spider bites are not pretty.) <br />
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The next morning I got up and decided that it seemed far-fetched, but I would google Lyme disease. I looked for about 2 seconds at the Google Images of bite areas, then ran immediately to the doctor for antibiotics. She saw my bite area and immediately gave me a 30-day run of them.<br />
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And I also went to my acupuncturist, who seems to have cleared it further. I am still a little tired, but the cobwebs seem to be finally gone from my brain. I continue to rest (which comes naturally to me). You needn't worry about me.<br />
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It is I who am worried about you.<br />
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The whole point of this post is this: Know the symptoms for Lyme and take them seriously--<i>even if you're not the outdoorsy type.</i> (I never even sit on a lawn chair to enjoy nature, which is how one of my friends thinks she contracted Lyme.) If you catch it early, it is no big deal. If you don't--well, we've almost all known someone who didn't. That is why I am feeling so very educatory today. <br />
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Learn the symptoms. Go right now and do a search on Lyme Disease, and read several sources to get a sense of them. Then pay attention, and if you have any symptoms, even without the rash, take them seriously.<br />
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Okay. That is enough lecturing for now. Next time: More knitting and quilting. I've been busy this summer with crafts!<br />
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Not hiking!Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-42237796260305341622011-06-26T22:53:00.000-04:002011-06-26T22:53:13.983-04:00My Own Long Project: FinitoI'm inclined toward the massive knitting project on small needles. I'm not sure where this comes from.<br />
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Many of you have seen me toiling for the past few years on the miniwrap--it is a sock-yarn version of the Knitting at Knoon pattern, Wrap Me Up. I loved knitting it. It takes a little longer than the original wrap, but that's because you need to adjust it to make it longer when you go to the small needles. Doing that was no big deal. I added a few random squares that we had been doing in our Zimmermania class--killing two birds and all that.<br />
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This weekend, I went so far as to line the wrap with cotton fabric, attaching the lining by hand around the edge. Then I used a sewing machine to sew the fabric down around the blocks, in the ditch, as if it was a quilt top. (A walking foot is crucial for this job.) That kept the whole thing straight. Knitting gets crooked easily, especially when you are making patches of different stitch patterns. <br />
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And then, this evening just before dinner, after I had spent the entire weekend with all this sewing of the wrap, along with almost 2 years of actual knitting, the whole thing was suddenly finished. I sat in disbelief for over 5 seconds, and then Kevin said he was hungry and wanted to get going. Since it is summer and we are a little safer from college students and their pedestrian-and-driving ways, we went downtown to eat dinner and take pictures of the wrap. Here are a few of those pictures. I have lived in State College all my life, so let's add in a little town history while we're at it. <br />
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The first picture was taken in at the side of the Tavern where they're doing some remodeling. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHtYqejEc5Xlo_WmfeOJkomSD9DSH4qqlwUKvAbF1hzF5CjugVQ8t2jVFO_P2tbIJH9IV2RmpxMUucpK3XcKmkO3yAr2v-FmFFFVSOfptiqSzyufflfbIJACwMyP9YY1vaxXWbrQ/s1600/Mini+wrap+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHtYqejEc5Xlo_WmfeOJkomSD9DSH4qqlwUKvAbF1hzF5CjugVQ8t2jVFO_P2tbIJH9IV2RmpxMUucpK3XcKmkO3yAr2v-FmFFFVSOfptiqSzyufflfbIJACwMyP9YY1vaxXWbrQ/s640/Mini+wrap+3.jpg" width="458" /></a> <br />
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When I was a kid and went with my family, I always got the lasagna. I think that their recipe has not changed in 40 years. It is still terrific. <br />
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Next is the scarf on the famous State College Pig statue. You see, apparently 100 years ago in State College, pigs were allowed to roam free in the streets. (Now it is just college students who roam free in the streets.) <br />
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Then 100 years later, in 1996, we in State College decided to remember the free-range pigs and build a statue in homage. The mother pig was named "Centennia" by a committee of townspeople, who thought that the name was appropriate for the "centennial" of the town. The piglets were named "Ed" for the education that completely surrounds us here in State College, and "Hope," for the hope that we all have that we are going to finish the rest of our projects soon, so that we can start new ones. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJsc_hENxixeCzneCBZ1vdlKWn1iHom8TssVyWFYcWf-9WgelYM0JxwwDAZ72zZQJiXI2eZ82e5v8xGt7cCZbL_d2LdTIqdGrqk4f4-3i3PxwIaIWkfOVP9RLepRx8Q4pf9CuF8g/s1600/IMG_7238.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJsc_hENxixeCzneCBZ1vdlKWn1iHom8TssVyWFYcWf-9WgelYM0JxwwDAZ72zZQJiXI2eZ82e5v8xGt7cCZbL_d2LdTIqdGrqk4f4-3i3PxwIaIWkfOVP9RLepRx8Q4pf9CuF8g/s640/IMG_7238.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">That dear little Hope seems to be hiding under the scarf does not bode well. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Or is that Ed?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In any case, we will all start new projects. </div><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcPBp9nbYWnmUIRyATe_YkXz2a7UsjIi6ncpOhnJki3qz1P-FuUFhicO7pt5WbzVXrcZOUZLpGTIznRghSF3bHysSXJ2BSes8hFTjDPiY9D5fs3xSF0fQ_Po9bTfgRM9KGj-xCQ/s1600/Miniwrap+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcPBp9nbYWnmUIRyATe_YkXz2a7UsjIi6ncpOhnJki3qz1P-FuUFhicO7pt5WbzVXrcZOUZLpGTIznRghSF3bHysSXJ2BSes8hFTjDPiY9D5fs3xSF0fQ_Po9bTfgRM9KGj-xCQ/s640/Miniwrap+1.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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Finally, those of you who live in State College will instantly recognize the mural. It is on a side street that has been beautified with Famous State College Important People that are Not You. Or at least they're not me. <br />
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Until today. Heh.<br />
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You may not know the back story of this particular section of the mural. It looks a little puzzling, I admit--but I can help you out because I am a native of State College, and therefore I know what's going on because of those important circles I'm always running around in. <br />
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Here is what is going on:<br />
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The couple on the left is kissing because they are so overjoyed that I am finished with the mini-wrap. <br />
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Then below to the right, the man has put a dog on his head so that the dog can see the wrap better. But the the wrap is at the wrong angle for the dog to see, so the dog is feeling rather distracted and looking the other way. That is the way dogs are, you know.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"></div>Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-29801268777530786932011-05-18T18:34:00.001-04:002011-05-19T09:23:44.423-04:00My Mother's Progress<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFbnetArOSOV3QnWmI8M8_elpJJf1DPew8qhUVd7297j7wY4iuQhnWZFCuzLjGAuJlEPxq3CmXV_4AwRZ-SYnhb-J0BozriKO1hl1sjzdaak_etRoTf5PUvnQSLesYDpDs4_TDpA/s1600/IMG_6829.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM-QZE4lAktJMHM4Om2j0g3dkiVapSeNRzIwP_7cvJSzy0a3Zc9GFnpJRwSEO2ejbC66OA0v2Vf9AeOLrUTuTlQd6QDWPIVuS8ggAev2BWP3_Puj5IatGNHzzmJjhUKf-lDOOh8w/s1600/IMG_6837.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM-QZE4lAktJMHM4Om2j0g3dkiVapSeNRzIwP_7cvJSzy0a3Zc9GFnpJRwSEO2ejbC66OA0v2Vf9AeOLrUTuTlQd6QDWPIVuS8ggAev2BWP3_Puj5IatGNHzzmJjhUKf-lDOOh8w/s640/IMG_6837.JPG" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">My mother <i>looks </i>pretty normal, but I have a sneaking suspicion from all my years of knowing her that on the inside, she is just a teeny-tiny bit loco. For those of you who do not know, she is knitting a bed cover in strips using size 10 crochet cotton on size 2 needles. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">She began the project about 3 years ago. With only a helmet liner in between, she has worked on this project steadily, taking only a few short breaks. When she was at full tilt, she knit on it 3 hours a day: an hour in the morning, an hour after lunch, and an hour in the evening. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">She has calculated how many stitches it is--almost 1.4 million. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidQJxOoOnmp10wNvIfSULXB4McgsBt0GSzyjX5F4Tnbk8m3162mSAuN9SvTKTdlIa72N4f12TjHJ3tpxoG5WC80vZJoOGygkJK5ow2YuPBkX87plzh0dyJirM05oZ-PPSWzX_HPA/s1600/IMG_6846.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidQJxOoOnmp10wNvIfSULXB4McgsBt0GSzyjX5F4Tnbk8m3162mSAuN9SvTKTdlIa72N4f12TjHJ3tpxoG5WC80vZJoOGygkJK5ow2YuPBkX87plzh0dyJirM05oZ-PPSWzX_HPA/s320/IMG_6846.JPG" width="320" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I have been asked many times how it is going. As of this month, the knitting part is finished.The cover is made of 15 strips, each with 20 diamonds. That was 300 diamonds to make.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinqixAHMKh8IN0Z0qkTeo7RTIWxCJfSS1hBo9qykAu5w8jCvBXMFjrRHrQCHXyFeFfPRK6-YeIBLu_cJi3folvGN_0-iuAoAShsGXqlUpZXBn8YCQpha-8YbuVcI4RiGcIHr-hXw/s1600/IMG_6838.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinqixAHMKh8IN0Z0qkTeo7RTIWxCJfSS1hBo9qykAu5w8jCvBXMFjrRHrQCHXyFeFfPRK6-YeIBLu_cJi3folvGN_0-iuAoAShsGXqlUpZXBn8YCQpha-8YbuVcI4RiGcIHr-hXw/s320/IMG_6838.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuexfdj-pLkJodC8F5YOnh_PmAPyb3rxCM5zdp_lkJisDPWZBnBEt_1NtajPIBbCfyHJ6Yl02YQEx-n0_RAWMVkeIyD8z04pAl7YMgisLWCidJ-osU32JsLaRivuCOq9UYlC9zMA/s1600/IMG_6841.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div> And the 15 strips are sewn together. Do you see the seam in between the cables?<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuexfdj-pLkJodC8F5YOnh_PmAPyb3rxCM5zdp_lkJisDPWZBnBEt_1NtajPIBbCfyHJ6Yl02YQEx-n0_RAWMVkeIyD8z04pAl7YMgisLWCidJ-osU32JsLaRivuCOq9UYlC9zMA/s1600/IMG_6841.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuexfdj-pLkJodC8F5YOnh_PmAPyb3rxCM5zdp_lkJisDPWZBnBEt_1NtajPIBbCfyHJ6Yl02YQEx-n0_RAWMVkeIyD8z04pAl7YMgisLWCidJ-osU32JsLaRivuCOq9UYlC9zMA/s400/IMG_6841.JPG" width="300" /></a> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>After the bed cover was assembled, she washed it in the washing machine. (She told me that she never left the washer's side.) It was dried on a bed, not the dryer. Do not even <i>think </i>that it went in the dryer.<br />
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And now the only thing left is the fringe. The fringe is quite an undertaking. (If you don't believe me yet that she's crazy, you will soon.)<br />
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Mom worked on several versions of the fringe before choosing exactly how many strands it needed, how it was to be knotted, and how long it would be. The final contenders are below, and the winner is the longer one on the left.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioI8H5T5i3KzjSFlW-F-fvgh2JetVG1d9vbMNadXtFce_kkWAoXZghRzZlfrGN_VCKlP1ySMuG7n5HHfF5aX0Oo6IGvV_AaDPWFO036nFVEm9vkkprXVPZE7wNDfd_fzqRhyF6QA/s1600/IMG_6824.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioI8H5T5i3KzjSFlW-F-fvgh2JetVG1d9vbMNadXtFce_kkWAoXZghRzZlfrGN_VCKlP1ySMuG7n5HHfF5aX0Oo6IGvV_AaDPWFO036nFVEm9vkkprXVPZE7wNDfd_fzqRhyF6QA/s400/IMG_6824.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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<div style="text-align: left;">She chose a book specifically for the size she wanted to wrap the fringe. (Or maybe for how you are supposed to feel about her bed cover.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_l5X05I3AG2pBlxTo5C5MspuwPjqsHqHToH7O5bvTpzx6BBenjd5NfXQ9iInNU51MgCKnIv-OeQqSa0FUe2vK0bD_n43bPIs7Crq8_dMl-kkinL2Oa8PwDtRcCO-GIisu4Hlhgw/s1600/IMG_6822.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_l5X05I3AG2pBlxTo5C5MspuwPjqsHqHToH7O5bvTpzx6BBenjd5NfXQ9iInNU51MgCKnIv-OeQqSa0FUe2vK0bD_n43bPIs7Crq8_dMl-kkinL2Oa8PwDtRcCO-GIisu4Hlhgw/s320/IMG_6822.JPG" width="320" /> </a> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyGsd-J6-OL9ODh3j7yrr6JrL4C1u4j5wGEgh9vM6TM8xJ-T8TrD6fpu_3eGAYN0ZlsOEdasxm5gaMEwHU8Y8Z1IabUkbg1At5d09DXreMA47wHvKMozxg7QnC6f38_b_6GFDqEw/s1600/IMG_6820.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyGsd-J6-OL9ODh3j7yrr6JrL4C1u4j5wGEgh9vM6TM8xJ-T8TrD6fpu_3eGAYN0ZlsOEdasxm5gaMEwHU8Y8Z1IabUkbg1At5d09DXreMA47wHvKMozxg7QnC6f38_b_6GFDqEw/s320/IMG_6820.JPG" width="320" /> </a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">And she is making hundreds of pieces, each exactly the same length with exactly the same number of strands. She puts them in a box, tied loosely, so that she can just pluck them out to attach them. This is my Dad, plucking one of them to show you:</div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5hkxsOe_nAs0z1mh8ASzWYLwCam7cpXKwTpZA0b7yU9Q_hXrRhULyy8Ce3ES7yFhKf6M69J6680GyVGuCobZF0KOdyoZ8U496kt9MOP3-5f2qphNsHTkXTIpH_o-CjFI4C0vfPA/s1600/IMG_6806.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5hkxsOe_nAs0z1mh8ASzWYLwCam7cpXKwTpZA0b7yU9Q_hXrRhULyy8Ce3ES7yFhKf6M69J6680GyVGuCobZF0KOdyoZ8U496kt9MOP3-5f2qphNsHTkXTIpH_o-CjFI4C0vfPA/s320/IMG_6806.JPG" width="239" /></a> </div><br />
(I have a strong suspicion that he is particularly impressed with this undertaking.)<br />
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A fringe pile:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY7IzN_GXxgn3572Ye-HCVV-s-6a9ENAkqfPD8u2y8ZCWJCSA2jV0qQwDjud7tUTGvepKGT4AmuXaMBY0Op9fiMO4UbHy6OFqqg_VYo4vhI84hgivmNdTi_HPjs5FVBnqeAoySNg/s1600/IMG_6813.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY7IzN_GXxgn3572Ye-HCVV-s-6a9ENAkqfPD8u2y8ZCWJCSA2jV0qQwDjud7tUTGvepKGT4AmuXaMBY0Op9fiMO4UbHy6OFqqg_VYo4vhI84hgivmNdTi_HPjs5FVBnqeAoySNg/s400/IMG_6813.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">She bought a comb that had teeth with the proper spacing she needed to comb out the fringe as she made the loops:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5hkxsOe_nAs0z1mh8ASzWYLwCam7cpXKwTpZA0b7yU9Q_hXrRhULyy8Ce3ES7yFhKf6M69J6680GyVGuCobZF0KOdyoZ8U496kt9MOP3-5f2qphNsHTkXTIpH_o-CjFI4C0vfPA/s1600/IMG_6806.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUQSIQXhyEHy2qlVD2B1G-8oNDnY0Gfj8Dy78uMVxzKveMOHe7UpB4Qx-3fUMtwMgVuFpyadkCO52DkCoP8TY_APAmqixp9fZ9hFiIiRsJaWTGb7Xg_1sNXcZZLYE78fTQu4qqQw/s1600/IMG_6818.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUQSIQXhyEHy2qlVD2B1G-8oNDnY0Gfj8Dy78uMVxzKveMOHe7UpB4Qx-3fUMtwMgVuFpyadkCO52DkCoP8TY_APAmqixp9fZ9hFiIiRsJaWTGb7Xg_1sNXcZZLYE78fTQu4qqQw/s320/IMG_6818.JPG" width="139" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyGsd-J6-OL9ODh3j7yrr6JrL4C1u4j5wGEgh9vM6TM8xJ-T8TrD6fpu_3eGAYN0ZlsOEdasxm5gaMEwHU8Y8Z1IabUkbg1At5d09DXreMA47wHvKMozxg7QnC6f38_b_6GFDqEw/s1600/IMG_6820.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKu-G9qzIZVQsqbZ2DgYEmAYn5-pxTSiIjKeSVhtcdECes_8NBXa5J7RTow4zVobKnoEGDpSn8VblKqt8SJNQA9-rRkquYCySO7Mz1JGV_pt0lPxmDXy7SjdmakPDIDbKpdyYuWg/s1600/IMG_6816.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKu-G9qzIZVQsqbZ2DgYEmAYn5-pxTSiIjKeSVhtcdECes_8NBXa5J7RTow4zVobKnoEGDpSn8VblKqt8SJNQA9-rRkquYCySO7Mz1JGV_pt0lPxmDXy7SjdmakPDIDbKpdyYuWg/s320/IMG_6816.JPG" style="color: black;" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyGsd-J6-OL9ODh3j7yrr6JrL4C1u4j5wGEgh9vM6TM8xJ-T8TrD6fpu_3eGAYN0ZlsOEdasxm5gaMEwHU8Y8Z1IabUkbg1At5d09DXreMA47wHvKMozxg7QnC6f38_b_6GFDqEw/s1600/IMG_6820.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioI8H5T5i3KzjSFlW-F-fvgh2JetVG1d9vbMNadXtFce_kkWAoXZghRzZlfrGN_VCKlP1ySMuG7n5HHfF5aX0Oo6IGvV_AaDPWFO036nFVEm9vkkprXVPZE7wNDfd_fzqRhyF6QA/s1600/IMG_6824.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div>And that is where she is. Cutting and combing. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_l5X05I3AG2pBlxTo5C5MspuwPjqsHqHToH7O5bvTpzx6BBenjd5NfXQ9iInNU51MgCKnIv-OeQqSa0FUe2vK0bD_n43bPIs7Crq8_dMl-kkinL2Oa8PwDtRcCO-GIisu4Hlhgw/s1600/IMG_6822.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div>Mom has promised me that when the bed cover is done, we can have a big party for her in the store. I suspect it will be in the fall. Look for the day and time in our newsletter. You are invited. But be warned that this will be one party with no food or beverages. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFbnetArOSOV3QnWmI8M8_elpJJf1DPew8qhUVd7297j7wY4iuQhnWZFCuzLjGAuJlEPxq3CmXV_4AwRZ-SYnhb-J0BozriKO1hl1sjzdaak_etRoTf5PUvnQSLesYDpDs4_TDpA/s1600/IMG_6829.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFbnetArOSOV3QnWmI8M8_elpJJf1DPew8qhUVd7297j7wY4iuQhnWZFCuzLjGAuJlEPxq3CmXV_4AwRZ-SYnhb-J0BozriKO1hl1sjzdaak_etRoTf5PUvnQSLesYDpDs4_TDpA/s640/IMG_6829.JPG" width="480" /></a> </div>Cynthiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16356864699754331597noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14668877.post-73469722743803021322011-05-05T16:07:00.000-04:002011-05-05T16:07:56.316-04:00Crochet Come LatelyKim has tried to convince me for years that crochet is "relaxing," "fun," and "logical," but I never took to it. Oh, I've made a couple of crocheted sweaters, and a few dishrags, but that was about it.<br />
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Until now. I think I'm hooked.<br />
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It started last week when I wanted to play with a yarn. It is Skacel's Shari, a yarn that has a strand of silver shine running through it. Who could resist such a thing? I wanted to knit it into an open, lace pattern, but nothing worked. I didn't feel like garter stitch, which is where this baby was going.<br />
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Then I realized that maybe the yarn would work in crochet. It did.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0AfWqGXgq6jfdy5m4bHjlW5fOdmBaUIUR6WA-C1Zsd4_O4LHMq1M4Uj1eewyykOK1Kg-9JNKQtVJBy-PS2s6BZREfVf0flfi5_ARbm4PT9juBXx5KuB5meE6mirsY3IxzdBfvUg/s1600/IMG_6729.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0AfWqGXgq6jfdy5m4bHjlW5fOdmBaUIUR6WA-C1Zsd4_O4LHMq1M4Uj1eewyykOK1Kg-9JNKQtVJBy-PS2s6BZREfVf0flfi5_ARbm4PT9juBXx5KuB5meE6mirsY3IxzdBfvUg/s320/IMG_6729.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdEEPtOvVYfVZ6NgSv0Dbrq6RY6Ag2on3pcBU6jhJ2z1PGPFpjpUnJ1OJIZMjIpHxAENXiaNdqwCcNcj2hlilQE5ysnYpVcjYneJ6wZfTVvK5w-du5WLyZoAOncn_TeyHlk4tO3g/s1600/IMG_6734.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdEEPtOvVYfVZ6NgSv0Dbrq6RY6Ag2on3pcBU6jhJ2z1PGPFpjpUnJ1OJIZMjIpHxAENXiaNdqwCcNcj2hlilQE5ysnYpVcjYneJ6wZfTVvK5w-du5WLyZoAOncn_TeyHlk4tO3g/s320/IMG_6734.JPG" width="240" /> </a><br />
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Oh, for fun, let's let the camera do something that our eyes would never bother with--go in even closer:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjza85yoPB1f2IUoYyDERmXmrPdYLV3Wgk3a-4iUMBd68u6OOvPrbEfYW4FkDIBo5ZmZjqSIbsiaoVl6ikmIigc_IGM_1IYhL3Qylr3i9HMniI0aK1ZJM9VIjzYM0QZ-gd6IWD9-w/s1600/IMG_6731.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjza85yoPB1f2IUoYyDERmXmrPdYLV3Wgk3a-4iUMBd68u6OOvPrbEfYW4FkDIBo5ZmZjqSIbsiaoVl6ikmIigc_IGM_1IYhL3Qylr3i9HMniI0aK1ZJM9VIjzYM0QZ-gd6IWD9-w/s320/IMG_6731.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />
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Weird.<br />
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Anyway, as you can tell by the fact that I have several "artistic" views but no pictures of myself modeling the scarf, I'm planning to make it at my leisure, just for fun, and without deadline--so when you stop by the shop, there's a good chance I'll be working on it--or at least that it will be nearby and you can see it. I'm really enjoying this project.<br />
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And my new-found love of crochet? It's actually all due to this little baby:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKMvmTPBIU5IORMHisS9EQREIWzXnYGjpCZVKmca_s8GEW6BhkuE_kxI5z70nfbg48_jjTYXQPAV5z5jQaLmX7RmXqwC7p8NgASFAZLXw6CPHhRA9cKQJkFEmm9EqJ71ntFST0Dg/s1600/IMG_6742.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKMvmTPBIU5IORMHisS9EQREIWzXnYGjpCZVKmca_s8GEW6BhkuE_kxI5z70nfbg48_jjTYXQPAV5z5jQaLmX7RmXqwC7p8NgASFAZLXw6CPHhRA9cKQJkFEmm9EqJ71ntFST0Dg/s320/IMG_6742.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />
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This is one of our new Tulip crochet hooks. Our crochet teachers swear that they help new crocheters learn faster and better. One of our knitting teachers started using them, and now she wants to teach only crochet classes. Another knitting teacher has dropped all her knitting and begun using it to crochet a series of Angry Birds characters. Misty, one of our crochet teachers, even went so far as to write a major <a href="http://www.crochetyourway.com/2010/12/comparing-japanese-crochet-hooks-with-grips-clover-soft-touch-hamanaka-rakuraku-tulip-etimo/">hook comparison</a> on her blog: The Tulip came out ahead. And I've never seen her use another hook since.<br />
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All because of this hook, I've started looking through crochet books to mull over my next project. Feel free to join me in my new obsession, and shout out ideas for projects. Kim, I have to admit that you were right all along.<br />
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I hate when that happens.<br />
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