Not quite as bare, but still sleeveless!

Can you tell I'm ready for summer? I am loving the idea of all these tops that I'm going to have ready for the warm weather. Here's a picture of #2 -



I'm really happy with the way it came out. It is made from Tartelette from Knit One, Crochet Two. There is a book called Hot Knits which has the pattern I used AND I did follow the pattern to the letter this time...at least I'm pretty sure I did. I'm going to bring it into the shop until warm weather comes. I hope to see everyone this weekend. I'll be around Friday morning and Saturday I'll be dyeing during the day and in my PJ's that night!

Books & Gadgets Arrive at the Shop

I got out of the house and visited the shop today for the first time since surgery. As always, I found it cute, cozy and in good hands!! Kim, Laura and Ann Marie got my back! What a fun few hours at the shop.

So today...we received a box of books (with a second box on the way) and some nifty knitting gadgets. There are new books and some olden goldies. Here are pictures of a few..stop by the shop to see them all!

Jo

Appendectomy

Yep, what I thought was eating too much fiber turned out to be acute appendicitis.

My squiggly went bad and had to be removed Thursday night around 10pm. With my troops by my side, I had surgery, went thru recovery and around midnight and was tucked into a private room. Too groggy to knit but too wired from anesthesia to sleep.... I pulled an all nighter with mom in room 2206! I think we got caught up on all of the big issues: politics, religion, health and fitness, drugs and how they do come in handy sometimes. Problems all solved. :)

I got home Friday afternoon and slept like a baby last night. Steve is a great snuggle buddy. The good news....my I.V. is out of my right arm and I can knit again! I am feeling much better and it only hurts when I sit, stand or laugh!!

The doc says I cannot drive for a week-not sure why-so the girls are pulling together at the shop and covering for me. I think I would feel better knitting on the red couch, with people around me, instead of staying home by myself, don't you think? That's what I'm gonna tell Steve next week.

So for now, I'm taking the pain meds as prescribed, resting, avoiding thinking about nausea because it seems like it might be a problem if I go there, and knitting when my I can. I hope to be in tip-top shape for Erin's visit (Mama E) and can't wait for the pajama party!

Oh....I asked Dr. Berger to do a little extra while he was there so here's a picture of my new belly-(Thelma, Louise...don't be jealous)

See ya'll soon!

Jo

Do you dare to bare?

Summer is almost upon us and I admit to LOVING shirts without sleeves. Tanks, halters, whatever keeps me cool. This tank is a perfect blend of halter and racerback. It was made from Lang Aura - one of the new ribbon yarns we've gotten in. I used the Coachella pattern from Knitty and it is knit in the round, so NO seaming! I'll put it on display in the shop until the my dreams of summer turn into a reality.

Cookie A Sock Patterns and New Sock Yarn

We have just recieved Cookie A's collection of sock patterns. They are awe inspiring! Some of them are more challenging than others, but they are all so pretty you won't want to cover them up with shoes. We also just got in a box full of Cherry Tree Hills Super Sock in assorted colors (all variegated and beautiful) and soft, earthy solid colors of Trekkings Pro Natura bamboo sock yarn. Its sock knitting time!

Opal's here!

New arrivals!

Opal Sock Yarn! This classic sock yarn is now available at Knit Picky.

-Uni Solids in 10 different colors (black, plum, grey, mustard, teal, grass, ecru, spice, Duke blue, sage)

-Hundertswassers (say that 3 times fast!) 425m of 4 different tropical-like colors!

-Rainforest-5 color combinations of self striping yarn....and they sent us a nice posted with sock pictures so we can see how they knit up.

Here's what I see on their labels: 75% Schurwolle superwash 25% Polyamid....anyone out there speak German??

New Colors of Sirdar Tiny Tots!

-Pink, Blueberry, Teal, Brown

Superbowl Countdown Sale!

This Sunday, whether your pulling for cute, young Eli Manning or sexy, seasoned Tom Brady...swing by the shop to take advantage of our end of season sale! Almost everything will be on sale as we make room for new spring and summer collections to arrive.

Here's our gameplan: 9am we'll kickoff with a whopping 25% sale. When the game clock hits 10am, the discount is 20% (still pretty awesome)! As the clock runs, the percentage decreases by 5% on the hour. And if you're checking out when the clock hits the next hour, you'll be the lucky last one to get the current discount. So come early for the best score!

9-10 25%
10-11 20%
11-12 15%
12-1 10%
1-2 5%
2-3 Our regular prices (which we think are pretty darn good)
3pm End of game-you are all winners!

Let's play ball!
Jo

Spinning wheels....

Our first Spinning Bee was a hit and I was in good company to try out my new Louet Victoria wheel. The participants were equally split: 3 knowledgeable spinners and 3 novices! After several lame attempts, my yarn begin to form before my very eyes! The experts bragged on me saying I was making beautiful "think & thin" yarn. I thought it looked a little like earthworms. Anyway, I sure had fun. Take a look at the different wheels and fibers....

Jan explained carding and combing to us...she perfers combing so all her fibers line up neat and pretty.



Everyone is invited to join us....the 4th Monday of each month. Beginner's are welcome

Next date: February 25th 6-8pm

If you'd like to "give it a whirl" we offer private lessons from one of our experienced spinners.

Still spinning earthworms,
Jo

Lots and Lots of New Yarn

This past week we got a LOT of new yarn in from Berroco! We got in new colors of some of our old favorites, like Ultra Alpaca, Cotton Rich and Touche. But what we are really excited about are all the brand new yarns that arrived, all of the new spring collection from Berroco, in fact! Comfort DK is perfect for easy care, easy wear summer basics and items for babies and children because its super soft, allergy free and machine washable! We got in two new linen blend yarns, just in time for us to start our spring and summer knitting. Linen Jeans is a tape yarn and Naturlin is a plyed yarn. Both yarns come in beautiful, earth inspired colors. If earthy isn't your thing, maybe you'd prefer Lumina-- a cotton base yarn wrapped with metalic stands in "ethereal" shades. We think they would be perfect in ladder shawls, sexy little summer tops, or for any other occasion where you want to shine! Seduce caught everyone's eye as soon as we unboxed it because of its rich colors and luxurious sheen. Light and elegant, it contains linen and silk. If you are a sock knitter, you won't want to miss Berroco's new self patterning sock yarn- Sox. We got in almost every color offered and they are GORGEOUS. Take a look at the Berroco website now so that you can see how they look knit up. Stunning!

From Lang, we got got Aura an oo-la-la ribbon yarn in pale blue and silver, and MerinoSeta a super soft merino silk yarn that you just want to cuddle up with.

I may be leaving something out...there are so many new yarns its hard to keep track of them all! We also had new shipments of both Addi and Crystal Palace needles arrive.


If you haven't visited the shop in the last week or so, come on by. We have a lot to show you!

LM Needles

After having a few defective needles returned in the past few weeks, we called Lantern Moon to see what was up.

The nice folks there tell us they had a problem with this last batch of needles-made in Vietnam, the wood shrank when going from the warm, moist climate to their cold, dry climate. As usual, they responded quickly with replacements. This is a nice company and we want to give them a chance to correct a problem.

So for now, we are returning our circular LM's and will get the new and improved version. They have upgraded their connections so this shouldn't happen in the future. For those of you who love LM, hold tight.....we will soon have them back on the shelves. AND....if you have any come apart please return them to us. We'll get you a replacement a.s.a.p!!

BTW....do you have a line of needles you'd like to see in the shop? We want to add another line this summer and would like to know what you guys like (and want)!?!

Thanks & Happy Knitting,
Jo

Mama E Yarn Dyeing Workshop Rescheduled

Mama E's yarn dyeing workshop has been rescheduled for the weekend of March 7,8,9. Sometimes, things come up and interfere with our playtime!

Those of you scheduled to attend we hope you can join us in March. If not, we'll be glad to give you a refund. For others who wanted to join us but the timing wasn't right, here's your opportunity to dye yarn in March! We will post exact details soon.

Oh....this also means our Pajama Party will be delayed. This may be for the best since our little house doesn't always stay so warm when the mercury dips so low. (Watch us have snow in March!)

Keep wearing your warm, knitted woollies! I love seeing the display of sweaters coming in and out of the shop!
Jo

Cassie heads to sunny California!

I've got good news and bad news. The good news is....Cassie's fiance' accepted a terrific job offer with Google in San Francisco. The bad news is obvious. Cassie is going with him (imagine that) and won't be with us at the shop. Despite my begging, she won't consider just visiting him on weekends and continuing to work at Knit Picky.

I'm gonna miss her so much! I am happy for them, though. In fact Ann Marie, Kim and I were saying tonight that we were slightly envious about this new, fun adventure in their lives. I wish them the very best. Maybe we'll see them back in Winston-Salem when they visit their alma mater, WFU, and their friends at Knit Picky.

Hugs to you Cassie-girl!
Jo

New Blue Sky in the shop...

That cute little alpaca grinned, and so did we, as we unpacked a big box of yarn! Here's what we got today...

New for us...Suri Merino in seamist, crimson and earth. This is 60% baby suri and 40% merino.

More Melange in cornflower, huckleberry, and relish (their names are the best)!

Worsted Hand Dyes in green, light blue and cranberry.

BSA Organic cotton in orchid, flamingo and azul.

And Alpaca Silk in white. This yarn is amazing.

The month of men!

What fun I had meeting and talking to the men in your lives! Our Christmas wish list worked like a charm as we helped hubbies, fiances, sons (and daughters) and friends shop for gifts. From the young ones to the shy ones....they each came in the shop with the look of excitement!

Thanks for sending your guys to Knit Picky.
Jo

The Countdown is On...

The end of the year is fast approaching and 2008 is only hours away! Where does the time go? We've just finished a long day at Knit Picky. As with any retail business, inventory is a necessary chore. But as tedious as it was, it was not a chore at all. The team worked hard but laughed a lot, too.

And in the end, we were tired, yarn drunk and silly.


Ann Marie walked by, "Be sure the Beadles are right". Sitting on the floor, Kim said, "I like the Beatles...some of their stuff". I thought, "what??". In the far corner, Laura replied, "I've never knit with the Beadles....... but I'd like to have them on my coffee table. Kim looked up....WHAT?? her confused look was priceless! I lost it as I pictured a tiny Ringo Starr in a vase on Laura's coffee table! It was our spaghetti junction of tired conversation! And no wine today, I promise.






As I entered numbers over and over, I daydreamed about the new yarn arriving in January. Imagine Noro Kureyon Sock Yarn....462 yds of sock yarn dyed in those amazing colorways we've all come to adore. Sublime has a new, soft organic cotton in beautiful, new colors (arriving in January). Silk Garden, one of our best sellers, is being delivered in "lite" weight version and has terrific pattern support just in time for cool spring days.


Now that Laura's back in town we'll soon be getting some new yummies from Unique Sheep. And, of course, Erin...Mama E....is busy dying some originals to bring with her on her visit to the shop. She'll reveal these new colorways dyed especially for Knit Picky customers!! And, she'll need your help naming the few that will become standards in her cEYEber Fiber Line!

Remember, each workshop participant gets first dibs on the new yarns & goodies that Mama E unveils during her visit!

So tonight I rest so I'll have enough energy to watch the ball drop tomorrow night. Family party at my house....margaritas first....wine as we wind down.....strong coffee around 9:30 to help us keep our eyes open to see the big event. Who says life in your 40's aren't rip, roarin' good times??!!

HNY,

Jo