Back to the cold weather

So I know it was in the 70's in Vermont the entire time I was in Florida... and I arrived back to see everyone else had been out in the sun just as I had... well, maybe not as much! Now today it is in the 40's and I am frozen to the bone.

It was a super vacation, and once I kicked my awful 2 week cold, I was really able to shut down. For many of you, a vacation means lots of extra knitting time. Sometimes it means that for me too, but my work is ALL ABOUT knitting. So when things get hectic and I am consumed by work, a vacation can mean NO KNITTING, and that can be a really good thing. I did a bit of crochet during the trip down, and off and on during a couple of the car rides. And then I did NO knitting or crocheting until the night before I left, when I picked up my Flat Feet sock. It felt really good, just to turn everything off.

We had fun at Discovery Cove - the girls loved it. I fed some tropical birds - they landed on us and ate from our hands - it was kind of freaky for me. I saw the movie "The Birds" at a very impressionable age and I'm just not really fond of flying creatures when they get that close to me. But I did manage to hide my fear (for the girls' sakes) and Helen was certainly brave! she had a kookaburra (?) on her head for about 10 minutes and she loved it.

Like me, Marc was not thrilled with birds landing on him.

So I guess the bird gave him a little gift, to make him feel more (or less) comfortable. They say it's good luck...

I tried snorkeling for the second time in my life, and the last. I realized that it's just not for me. Am I scared of fish? Possibly. Claustrophobic? Probably. After two attempts to snorkel, I was hyperventilating, so I gave up. But that's okay! Marc took some great pictures with his waterproof camera, so I don't feel like I missed a thing.

So if I am scared of little fishies, how can I be completely comfortable swimming out in the middle of a lagoon all by myself with a HUGE dolphin? That's the big question. But that was super fun, and definitely a memory. We did the dolphin swim with the girls and my parents and it was really great. We met four dolphins: Jenny, Yoko, Rose and Daisy. Pictured with me is Daisy - very sweet.

My "purse" if you will, for the vacation, was the new Lexie Barnes Jinx Hobo bag. It was great to have a bag I could sling over my shoulder. I also LOVE the fact that I could reverse it to a solid... you know sometimes when you are wearing a print, you don't want your bag to compete too much with the clothes. It was perfect as a beach bag - it kept all the sand out, and water... it's waterproof! It held my book, lotions and sun hat. The two zippered pockets were perfect for my camera and wallet.

It was also great on the plane - just the right size for a bottle of water, some paperwork, my wallet and my knitting... which I'm glad I had! I was in shorts and the air was blowing something FIERCE on the plane. Poor Helen was freezing, so she used my Flat Feet as a little lap blanket. She would give me about 1 yard of yarn to use at a time - she loved unravelling the flat.And now I'm back to work, getting ready for the big anniversary sale... on May 16th and 17th. Lots of goodies! Lots of SAVINGS!

New Lexie Barnes Fabrics... and one new bag!

It sure was fun opening the Lexie Barnes box this morning. We love the new fabrics - they're perfect for spring... and didn't that start yesterday? You wouldn't know it with the 15 degree temperatures and whipping wind this morning, but at least we can pretend it's spring by staying indoors and surrounding ourselves with all things bright!


So we got the Lady B in all three new fabrics, as well as the Betty and Kitty needlecases. We also got a bunch of the Jinx bags... This is a brand new design and they're calling it a "hobo" bag. I would call it more of an "over the shoulder messenger bag" but whatever you call it, it's really cute. AND IT'S REVERSIBLE!!! So if you're feeling in less of an in-your-face mood, and want to blend in a bit more, just turn it inside out and you've got a great looking solid bag.

Fabrics (top to bottom): Utopia, Diablo, Pacifica.

Even I need to keep a needle inventory

I have a wonderful needle size chart on the back of our business card. I recommend that all of our customers fill it out, so they know what needles they own. Do I have one of these cool cards in my wallet? No. And so every time I take yarn home to start a new project, I find I do not have the needle size needed. How can this be? I own a LOT of needles. I mean, I own a shop, how can I not?

Recently I've been doing a lot of swatching, and I've been using a size 5 needle. What I wanted to use was a 5/24", which I know I had at one point. Because I have a plastic package for a 5/24" in my needle bag. But it is now empty... I have a 5/16", but my left hand cramps when I knit for too long on a 16" needle. I have a 5/32", which is too long. With only 28-30 stitches, that's just too much cable. I don't own any straight needles - can't stand straights. I ended up suffering with the 16" for several swatches, and then I switched to the 32" for the rest. I guess I should go grab a 24" while it's on my mind...

This weekend I took home some Malabrigo Chunky to make a button band hat. Kalen had made hers out of Blue Sky Bulky, but I wanted to use the Glazed Carrot color of the Malabrigo Chunky (double stranded.) I had written up her pattern for some people who asked about it after she posted a picture of it on the blog. And since I wrote it up, well, I thought it would be nice to make a sample for the shop.

I got home Saturday after work and was excited to get started. Marc and the girls went to the big Father-Daughter Dance at school, so I had two hours to myself! I ran on the treadmill, showered, and then went down to wind the yarn. I was all set... I sat down in my comfy chair with the yarn & pattern, turned on my DVR and started watching last week's Lost. I grabbed my huge needle case, full of Addi Turbos, and opened the size 15 pouch... no 16". I had a 24", but that was it.

Okay, I can make do, I thought. I do own a Denise kit, for emergency situations like this. So I went to my desk, grabbed the Denise kit... and look what I found?

Those empty spaces? They should be filled with the size 15 tips. I started to panic. When was the last time I used size 15's? It was a LONG time ago, I know that. I spent about 15 minutes going through my desk, my 3'x3' coffee table (full of yarn), my Lexi Barnes Lady B bag, my BagSmith bag, and my front closet. No size 15/16" Addi Turbos, and no size 15 Denise tips.

My blood pressure was climbing at this point. Sure, I had other projects, but I was COUNTING on starting this hat, and I really didn't feel like knitting anything else. And the clock was tick-ticking, and my precious "alone" time was going to be over soon!

I made a last ditch attempt to find some sort of size 15 needles. I STRONGLY dislike double pointed needles (I prefer working on 2 circulars.) I own a selection of DP needles, but I really don't like using them. I will use them if, and ONLY if, I have absolutely NO OTHER OPTION. Well, I had no other option. So I opened up my double pointed needle case, and the largest size I had was

size 13.

I sat and stewed for a few more minutes, and realized that if I wanted to get any satisfaction from knitting this hat, I'd have to use size 13 Addis - which I did have, amazingly... and 2 sets, so I could work on 2 circulars!

and rewrite the whole darn pattern. So, I did.

That's a lot of chicken sratch, isn't it? I had to work the decreases about 3 times to get it to fit right, but it's done and I love it. And I think I like it better at this slightly snugger gauge!

Moral(s) of the story...

• Keep a list of what needles you own, to avoid major headaches and possible heartbreaks.
• If you find you need a certain needle size, buy it right away, before you forget.
• Put your needles back when you are finished with them.
• Don't be scared to re-work a pattern. You may just end up with a fantastic result!