kyarns: Yes, I can work from home

It's not easy, but I'm making it work. Laptop, wireless network, correct ergonomics, piece and quiet... well, maybe not the piece and quiet. Recently, I've started to come home early a couple of days each week so I can meet Helen and Sophie when they get off the bus. I used to pick them up at school and take them back to the shop for a few hours. It worked really well, but it's also nice to have them come home and do their homework... and then play with their own things while I finish up what I need to do on the computer.

Do you know that last week we started a big push to add patterns and books to the site? That's right - we added 30 more of our most popular knitting books to the site. And we're starting to add ALL of the patterns we sell as well (we're responding to your feedback!) We already had a lot of them online, but we have such a huge selection of patterns in the shop, and it takes a lot of time to put each pattern online. So I've slacked a bit... and now I'm getting my act together and putting a lot more up for you to see. In the last week we've added many patterns from Ann Norling, Yankee Knitter, Stitch Diva, Knitting at Knoon, Blue Sky Alpacas, Green Mountain Spinnery, Heartstrings Fiber Arts, Iknitiative, Monkeysuits, and more. Right now you may see that the pattern is available for sale, but there are no details regarding yardage and sizing. Don't worry, it's coming. We're taking one step at a time, and that's in the works.

I've also been working really hard on a site redesign, which will be revealed... hopefully soon. I keep testing the Beta site and seeing things that "bug" me, so I keep going back with my list of what they need to change. We're making great improvements to the color swatches - I think you're going to really like them. We're also making a few minor design changes which, once you get used to, I think you'll agree, will make your shopping experience at kyarns.com even better.

After we launch the redesign, we will be working on our advanced search function. We are already crunching the data on our side, and I've been putting myself in your shoes to come up with all the different ways you search for yarns (and other things) on our site. We're also going to fix the existing search on our site, which many of you know, acts a little funky sometimes. We know that if you are searching for something, and can't find it... well, you're not going to stick around to look for it. So we'll make it work.

All of that adds up to a number of great changes that are just around the bend, and a lot of computer work on our end. We'll let you know when it's ready.

Until then, I'm at my desk frantically typing...