More Dust or Will My Family Still Speak to Each Other By Christmas?

Three weeks ago, I decided it was time for the next phase of painting in the shop.  It involved four walls, one that had yarn on or near it and three that just had stuff that had to be moved.  It ended up, as usual, being more involved than I would have thought.  They were long walls.  I figured that I could easily apply one coat Saturday night, and the second one Sunday morning.  Husband and youngest Son stopped by to move the behemoth linen press I inherited with the shop.  Husband decided that it would take me 'til 4 a.m. to paint a whole coat, and stayed to help.  (This made me suspicious, as he has only painted the front hallway in our house in the last 14 years, and I know he dislikes painting.)  This meant I got to do all the cuts, and he got to use the roller.  We finished the first coat at midnight, and the second coat the next day.  I'm very glad he helped.

This left one section of wall needing a new coat to wear.  It's only two 16 foot sections.  Not bad, right?  Unfortunately, it's also the wall with all the needles, notions and a selection of cross stitch threads. I really wanted the painting done before the holiday rush.   And so, the fun began.  Taking down the hanging items wasn't too bad, and they landed in boxes in an organized fashion.  The sections of peg board and the 2 x 4s behind weren't too bad, as most of  the screws holding them weren't actually sunk into studs.

Everything was going smoothly, until it came time to dismantle and move the cash wrap/winding counter/place for putting stuff.  It had been custom built for the previous shop owners, and while a lovely piece that was used in the original shop space, I really didn't feel it was in a good location and was eating up space better suited for cross stitch and yarn.  The Husband and two Sons concluded the wrap is three pieces screwed together and started to dismantle to move it.  To say the least, this took them the rest of the night and left me to paint in peace.

Fortunately, the counters weren't actually nailed in (but they are now!) so it was easy to move those.  All three sections were moved, but we had to decide how to reconfigure the side pieces, which of course, left ends that aren't finished on display.  We managed to solve that problem (at least for now), and after a lot of suggestions and discussion, the pieces were in place.

With the painting completed, it was time to hang more slatwall.  At least this time the studs appeared to be where they were supposed to be (or the family has become expert at this job).  Did I mention the gondolas? These are really great display pieces made of slatwall, and lets me hang a lot of yarn or threads in a compact space.  Not a difficult job for the guys to assemble these.  Now the gondolas were in place and it was getting late into Sunday evening, there was only one more item to hang...the antique fireplace mantel.

Apparently the studs in modern walls are not spaced the same as those in late 1800's/early 1900 Victorian-type mantles.  Since my husband had informed me that he was never moving this mantle again, I told them to just attach it any way possible so it would stay on the wall.  After a lot of discussion, disagreeing and grring, they agreed on a plan and attached it to the wall.  This past Sunday, dear sons came in and hooked up the fireplace part, and realized that I now had a mantle, fireplace, comfy chair, light and knitting........uh oh, she's never coming home........

It's Getting Cold!!!

It's finally getting colder here in Virginia!   I realized I needed some winter neck gear.  We have a new yarn from Schoppel called "PUR".  It's a worsted weight single that is slightly felted.  I've been in love with the colors since it came in, but couldn't think of a project for it.  Lo and behold, while going through new patterns, I found the Fancy Neck Cozy by Cabin Fever.  The pattern calls for two strands of yarn, a solid and a varigated.  Lightbulb moment!

I grabbed a skein of PUR and matched it with a ball of Brown Sheep Yarns Lanaloft in Buoyant Blue.  Size 15 needles and I was racing!  This is a great little project, would make a great gift.  Both yarns were wonderful to work with and I loved the pattern and would make it again.  I did make mine 32" instead of the suggested 27" (well, my neck is larger and I was watching a football game and not measuring.....)

The pedestal button is Cracked Coconut from Jul.  We also have the silver floral buttons.  This is a good project for a large button you may have had your eye on, but couldn't figure out what to use it on.

Finally Finished a Project

     Have you ever had a severe case of startitis?  This is when you have a number of projects going, should really finish those first, then see new ideas in a shop or on  Ravelry.com and just have to start another item!
I apparently suffer from this syndrome.  I'm afraid to count the number of things I have that are partially knit or crocheted (and let's not ever start with the fiber and fleeces waiting to be spun).  I start each project with the best of intentions, try to set goals to accomplish and wham! look at this great  sweater/ shawl/ scarf etc.  I can finish that really fast......

     Anyway, I finally sat down and finished my Wingspan model for the shop.  (I would have been done sooner if those other immediate projects hadn't cropped up...)  I really was thrilled with the Zauberball yarn. I enjoyed this project so much that I'm making one for me to wear.  Fortunately, it's an easy enough knit that I can do it while watching tv in the evening.

   
     This week we received a new model and pattern designed by Heidi Sunday.  It uses one skein of Baby Alpaca Grande Hand Dye and one skein of Baby Alpaca Ultimo from Plymouth and is knit in the round on a US size 11 circular needle.

So, of course, I had to start one.......

If you've been into the shop lately, you may have noticed we've gotten a number of shipments of new sock yarn (and several more are arriving soon!)  Could there be something afoot for the month of October?

Yes it will soon be SOCKTOBER!!!  or, Sock Yarn, Not Just for Socks!

Our featured Knit-A-Long for the month of October is the Wingspan.  I started the model for this project last week, and I have to say, I can't put it down.  Wingspan can be made from sock yarn or instructions are available for worsted weight, but I'm currently using the new Zauberball sock yarn.  I don't think I've ever been so entertained by a yarn while knitting.

As soon as I finish this model, I'm planning to make another one in either Zauberball Crazy or the Jawoll Magic Colors.  The shawl uses short rows, but if you've ever done them before, there is no wrapping involved.  I'm excited to see how the yarn stripes on the rest of the project.

Now, back to the other five models I'm trying to complete......

A Little Dust/Proud Mom/Owner

As I said in my very first post, I recently became the owner of a yarn shop.  The previous owners moved into the space about 3 years ago, and while updating a few things and adding carpet, didn't do much redecorating.  If you've ever moved into an older house (but new to you), there is always something that will, in time, get on your nerves.  (In our 100 year old previous house, it was the pink paint in the bathroom that annoyed me after I became pregnant with my first child, my current house it was the 1970's beige metallic with burnt orange birds-of-paradise wallpaper in the main hall and dining room....)

I bought the shop and unfortunately didn't have the ability to close to revamp.  I knew this was going to be a more difficult way to change anything, and when minor rearranging and moving things didn't quite satisfy, I decided I had to start some renovations, all the while staying open for business.

Granted, repainting the restroom a nice cheery shade of yellow to go with the gift of a new rug (thanks Donna!) was a great start.  After awhile though, you start to see so many things that need to be changed.  I also realized oldest son was close to going back to college, and youngest son would be starting senior year of high school, thus taking away my strong  and cheap labor supply (well, maybe not cheap, you have to see my youngest eat....). Middle son must have seen this all coming and wisely hid, uh, stayed in his college town for the summer.

The good thing is that by not starting right away, I learned the flow of the shop and was better able to evaluate what might work.  I found a retail fixtures place, grabbed truck and oldest son and went off to buy slatwall.  This is an amazing invention, with hooks that slide rather than stay stationary like pegboard. Six sheets and two boxes of 100 hooks later (I can't possibly have more skeins than that?), we set off back to the local home improvement center to get paint, screws and some hanging supplies.

Back at the shop, we had to move yarn to a safe place.  That was the easy part.  Then came the heavy cabinets that had been useful in the original shop, but now just took up wall space and made it difficult to reach yarn sometimes.  Fortunately, oldest and I have learned the easiest way to move these behemoths, so finished this task.

We started using the spackle.  Not too difficult, except for the wall with the window.  Did I mention it's an interior wall?  I think it may have been the quiet room for parents for the former Karate studio.  It's now one wall of my office.  After concluding that we couldn't remove it and put a huge drywall patch in, we removed part of the outer trim so the slatwall would be flat against the wall and we wouldn't have to mess with 2 x 4's to attach it.  I had to fill in the gap between the window and the studs.  Luckily, I had a 100yr old house with horsehair plaster walls, so patching for me has become an art form.  Painting went well. Now for the fun.

If you've ever watched the DIY channel, you may be familiar with the show "Renovation Realities".  This is the part where I thought we would become an episode.  Youngest son arrived, and he and oldest started using the laser level and stud finder so we could attach the slatwall. (It's now about 11:00p.m.)  Everything appears to be ready to go,  height and width marked with tape, studs marked top and bottom, okay!  Youngest and I hold panel will oldest mans the drill and starts screwing the panel.  Going well, until he tries to insert a screw at the top of the panel where it was marked, and the screw won't bite!  After this happening    up and down in several places, we conclude that the wall was put up using half studs, so it became a guessing game.  Youngest and I were able to finally let go, and panel stayed attached.

I decided to start hanging some skeins while they measured the next wall.  The challenge became, where are the electrical wires that attach to this outlet in the wall?  Wait, we have to hit the stud next to the door, not the window, it can't hold it..... I'm not a total perfectionist and told them to just make it work, and kept hanging skeins.  About 2:00a.m., we finally affixed the panel and started to clean up.

I have to say, I'm very proud of my sons' work.  The wall looks wonderful and the yarn really pops now.
Only three more walls to go.........

A Blog??? Me???

I am the new owner of a shop in Haymarket, VA called Needles in the Haymarket.  While trying to update our website, the web guru suggested that I set up a blog for various reasons.  My middle son thought this to be very amusing, as he already has a metal music blog, and I am known to be the MOST technologically inept human alive.  (Where are those letters and words when I'm playing "Scrabble"?) Anyway, here is my attempt at blogging (I'm sure Will Shakespeare is flipping in his grave over what the English language has become.....)

We just finished up with the End of Summer Sale at the shop.  Now it's time to bring out all the NEW FALL YARNS that have been hiding in the boxes for the last week.  I think everyone will be able to find a great new project to make.

Speaking of new yarns, I started a new shop model/Christmas present last evening.  It's a man's sweater, called "Men's Sailing Sweater" by Claudia Pacheco from the book Adventurous Zealana.  I'm using Zealana  Heron in Cloud Blue.  So far, I'm enjoying knitting with it.  When I tell customers we have yarn made with
New Zealand Possum, they think I'm a little crazy, however the NZ Possum looks nothing like the US opposum, and is very, very soft and warm. Will keep updating my sweater progress (as soon as I find my camera....)