THE END OF AN ERA

For the past seven years, I have been sewing and trading bee blocks with wonderful on-line ladies.  It has been a lot of fun. and i have sewn some blocks that I never would have otherwise.
The other night, I mailed my last three blocks away. It was such a relief, but I also know that I'm going to miss doing it, and getting them in the mail.
This coming year will be weird as I will be sewing just for me. Imagine  : )

I have been busy finishing up some stocking stuffers. As usual it's the last minute...........

For my grand daughters I decided on a first pair of skates for Christmas. Of course they will need some accessories, so I made mittens.  Those two are all about the sparkle, so I have done the cuff out of some 'tinsel' yarn

Little miss 'J's are nearly done. Her hands are no bigger than her baby brother's so I had to adjust the pattern some.  They are so tiny!

Their mom and dad have built a doll house and are trying to furnish it.  My daughter in law asked me for a duvet cover for a twig bed they have built.  She wanted 'soft'. I really had to dig for this fabric as most of my stash is now modern.

I tied it with embroidery floss and added some buttons across the top.  I hope she likes it

I have wanted to make this little pot holder all year!  My son moved out and I had intended to make him a bunch of stuff.  I hope he's forgotten...............

This is why I haven't been sewing. Ever since I opened the shop, my sewing room has become a dumping ground.  I'll give you just a peek

It is soooooo overwhelming that I can hardly breathe when I go in there. So I don't.  This Christmas day and boxing day my hubby works, so I plan on spending two days in there shoveling.  That is going to feel so very good.

Merry Christmas to me!!!!

I'll leave you with something that's not a mess.  A picture of one side of my little shop.

We moved a couple of displays to make room for more inventory that is coming.  I'm pretty full now and things are going great. So very blessed : )

Merry Christmas to all of you dear readers.  I will see you in the new year !

Carla

COMING FULL CIRCLE

I was eight.  My grade three school teacher taught me how to knit by making slippers.  Recently, I saw some very similar slippers posted on Instagram and had all the memories come flooding back.

I've been teaching beginner knitting at my shop and thought, ''wouldn't it be fun to teach others to knit making the same project I learned some 45 years ago'' ?  (  45!!!)

 So I cast on

I just love this yarn!  It's called Rhubarb by Lichen & Lace from Sackville, NB

This little slipped stitch edge adds just the right touch.  My next beginner class starts this Thursday and I'm looking forward to telling them all about how I started knitting on slippers almost exactly like this : )

Enjoy your week.  It's going to be a busy one!

Carla

A SHOP UPDATE

In less than two weeks, I'll be opening the doors to Knit2 Yarns.  Can't believe it's really going to happen.

Yesterday we were working on the barn doors.  Hubby was building and I was painting

Now it all needs to come down so I can paint the header and finish the back. I love the white against the dark grey wall.

I couldn't resist finding out how the bright yarns would look against the grey too, so I took a few skeins to hang up and see

I may or may not have bought a vintage pink scooter for a window display ...........

Hexie shelves?  Yes please.  This little corner and all it's potential

......and needles.  From tiny sock needles to giant ones, we will have them : )  For those of you who don't know, my hubby's name is Bliss. When he made the first set of these needles for me, I knew I wanted a name for them and 'Bliss' needles just had a ring to it.  I knew that somewhere in my sewing room I had a stamp from way back in the day so I hunted it down  : )

We are having so much fun with this shop!

Enjoy your day,
Carla

A BIG ANNOUNCEMENT

Where to start. This is a blog post that is not easily written. I've sat down more than once to write it, but just couldn't find the words....

I have so many emotions going on inside me right now. After nearly 14 years of working at Katja's Quilt Shoppe, I am resigning.  This is a decision that didn't come easily.  Working there has been a lot of fun and a great challenge.  Katja has been so amazing to work for and I will truly miss her and my co-workers.  Having said that, I'm not going far.

In my last post I mentioned a project that was both exciting and terrifying.  Just a few doors down from Katja's, a retail space has become available and I have leased it.

I'm opening a yarn shop !  Knit2 will open it's doors early spring and I am so excited !
The knitters in town, me included, travel quite a distance to buy yarns we can't get here. So many people have expressed their wishes for a yarn shop, so I thought "why not?"

Things are coming together and I'm officially in freak out mode.  To settle my nerves, I've been knitting of course.  I want to open with samples to inspire : )

a finished pair of work socks that my daughter wants SO bad

Just a little sampling of some of the yarns I will be carrying. My goal is to support local artisans as well as those from farther abroad.  Suppliers have been sourced and meet-ups arranged.

Now comes the fun part of designing the space.  Oh the possibilities !  I'm so looking forward to showing you before and after photos  : )  Squeeeeeeel

This huge project will be a window display.  I want to make sure people know it's a yarn shop : )

Thanks for reading today.

 If you are local, do you have a favourite yarn?  Is there a particular one you think I should know about?  Let me know in the comments or e-mail me the info.
Also, I hope you will pop in and say hello !