what the?  nine days??  yikes!

Big News:  knitting thank you mousies have arrived and are the most adorable gift for that knitter who has everything.  lisa marie wilt has outdone herself with the little knitting outfits and i am happy to be the only place to get one (for now)!  

notice the details:  a necklace that matches the knitting and an adorable little skirt.  the picture doesnt really show how sweet they really are!

                         ***********

check out these two beauties!  coral is modeling a pattern she found on ravelry called bandana cowl that she fashioned with a stick pin and sheila is sporting a christmas scarf she designed using various christmas colors!  the pin on sheila's scarf is actually a skinny santa ornament she bought at a craft show.  

Lopi is flying off the shelves, as duffer fever has hit -- thanks to monte!  i have some beautiful new colors available.  There's still time to make a pair for that someone special with cold feet!  They truly are an evening project.  Another quick project (not quite as quick as the slippers but close) is cathy rosensteel's shoulder cozy.  she made one in a lovely lavender yarn with a mohair strand running through it for her daughter-in-law for christmas and i have since made two myself - one with cascade's lana bambu and a second one with colorful Gina yarn.  Our own Roz is visiting from new york and agreed to model the shoulder cozy made from the Lana Bambu:

this pattern is warm and doubles as a cowl and will be the first one i will feature on my website in january.

i also tried a new easy mitten pattern using some new fantasia yarn.  check out my sample at the shop.

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Thursday, Dec 20    noon Dolly Llamas christmas party

Fridays, December 21* and 28    shop open 10-5 as usual

*the friday before christmas i will be serving monte's hot spiced tea at the shop (yum)

beginning within the next week or two, my website will be up and running.  it is there you will be able to link to this blog. i would ask that you sign up on the blog page to be notified when it is updated, that way i will not have to send them out as a link in the email.  the group email is getting bigger and bigger (thank you very much) and now its too big of a group to send all at once.  comcast must have a maximum number for groups and i am glad to have finally surpassed it.  and if you post a comment on the blog page, a prize will be given to one lucky post(er) every month.  i learned this from the marketing class i took in NC in October - the more people visit and post, the better the page gets around and the higher it shows up on a search engine.

dont forget my raggz fiber art facebook page as well, so please 'like' it so that i will have more options.

looking ahead, my website will have a 'Term of the Month' which will feature knitting terms, common and uncommon, that you may come across from time to time.  i also plan on featuring a new pattern at regular intervals.  the first pattern will be the shoulder cozy I spoke of above.

you will see that beginning in january my hours will be friday from 10 to 5, and every 2nd and 4th tuesday will be knitter's anonymous from 1 to 5.  i'm still toying with the idea of having an evening that i will be open but you working girls know i am happy to open especially for you to work around your busy schedule. 

please remember (and tell your friends), that if anyone is looking for some last-minute, handmade gifts from local artists and that the selection is growing at my gift shop.  I have more framed scherenschnitte, cross stitch, and photographs, wooden goodies by mr. jim, NEW watercolor zentangle knitting cards by sylvie elliott, wrist cuffs by sue hrubes, christmas cards, knitting calendars, whimsical sheep, lights with nuno flowers, cotton embroidered tea towels with knitting motifs, organic vanilla, local honey, knitted and nuno felted items, electronic row counters, christmas and knitting mousie with book, gift certificates for that knitter on your list, and i'm sure a few more things which have slipped my mind. 

my plan during the winter is to expand the gift shop, upgrade the lighting at the shop, put in a railing out front, and expand the parking facilities and then finally to have my 'grand opening' in the spring.  i wanted to have one last spring but i felt i wasnt ready but i am committing myself to it so i cant get!  i also hope to have more samples made up of the yarns i carry so i will be looking for ladies willing to make a small sample.  i will barter yarn for knitting samples, so anyone interested can see me about it.

well my FriendZ, have a very merry happy christmas, happy hanukkah and a healthy new year.  thank you all for being part of my life and please remember the reason for the season.  the next time i post it will be 2013, sooooo you wont be hearing from me again til next year!

love to all

t

december 1 2012 raggz newsletter

i briefly had a new addition to the shop.  a little fuzzy orange kitten who was taken from her mother at 3 weeks (!) and was to be drowned along with her siblings if no one took them.  so  three nice people each took one to save them from death.  the lady who originally took her has 3 or 4 small dogs and kitty inadvertently scratched one in the eye and her husband was adamant about the cat having to GO after a $400 vet bill.  so this is how she came to be my shop cat.  her name was originally 'apple' due to the fact that she was adopted on the way to the delmont apple festival.  she is a soft orange color (see her photo below) and zach suggested i name her something to do with knitting.  something to do with knitting i asked?  for some reason my mind drew a blank but he suggested purl, so purl it was.

she is super playful, as all kittens are, and i'm not sure a yarn shop is the best choice for a playful, curious kitten (see below).   she was just walking on my keyboard and somehow printed something!  i will have to go see what (and how) she managed to print something. 

i did learn something - do not cut yarn while watching the kitty do her business in the litter box (her back end was precariously close to the edge of the box and i was wondering if she was going to shift) and as i was watching, i was at the end of a project and had just bound off so i was cutting the yarn but i ended up cutting the cord to one of my addi clicks!!!  lesson learned...

BUT as it turned out, purl is at her new permanent home at the mocks.  ali had been wanting an orange cat and since purl was over here by herself most of the time, it wasnt fair to her and now she has the best home a kitty could ever want!  and i get to visit her often too but i must say the shop has been extraordinarily quiet these past couple of days.

DID YOU KNOW?  december has five saturdays, five sundays and five mondays this year - this only occurs once every 800+ years!!!

thanks to everyone who stopped by the ligonier christmas market show at the Y last weekend.  it proved very successful and was a lot of fun.  as always, we appreciate your support throughout the year!  but there are other shows and open houses to go to and i am going to try to make this a handmade christmas for all of my loved ones.

MORE HOLIDAY SHOWS:

december 1 from 10 - 5 is an open house at raspberry hill alpacas and art studio located 1212 harrison city export road about 1/2 mile north of schramm's farm.  there will be jewelry, alpaca products, and pottery; light refreshments will be served.  for more information, contact laura tepke at 724 744 1697

friday nov 30 and saturday dec 1 from 3 to 7 each day is the annual Faith-full Calligraphy open house located at 1417 beech drive in latrobe.  for more information, contact ginny at FaithfullCalligraphy@comcast.net     Ginny was a vendor at the ligonier market this summer as well as the ligonier market christmas show last weekend.  she has beautiful cards and art designs.  for the purlin girls, this show is pretty close.

friday nov 30 and saturday dec 1 is the I Made It Market Christmas Show at bakery square in pittsburgh.  i have never attended but hear its a great show.

dont forget about the Snowflake Showcase at the Greensburg Art Center.  it runs through December 22 and there are loads of nice handmade gifts there, some from folks you know, including donna, cathy rosensteel, and myself. 

last but not least is the log cabin christmas market at 117 hay lane in murrysville which has locally crafted and handmade unique gifts and art.  november 30, dec 1 and 2 from 10 to 5.

WHAT'S NEW?

wooden goodies by mr. jim!  handmade wooden shawl pins, buttons, and adornments made locally.  just wait til you see them - they will put the finishing touches on any shawl or purse!

what else is new:  local artist lisa marie wilt wrote and illustrated a child's book entitled 'thank you notes - a young person's guide".  this wonderful little book explains to children the importance of writing a thank you note.  it is really adorable and funny.  this book is accompanied by a mouse decked in santa gear for this time of year.  i have never seen anything like it and will make a great gift for that child or grandchild in the family.

there is a possibility in the very near future the mouse will be knitting...  also a great gift idea.

new handmade christmas cards by alison mock have arrived just in time.

this week the sale bin had more goodies added to it including some Patons 100% wool yarn as well as other unique yarns.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS:(not a lot going on this month due to the hustle bustle of the holidays)

thursday, dec 13  at noon - purlin girls at the bean in latrobe

thursday, dec 20 dolly llamas at raggz

tuesday, dec 11 KA 1 to 5

tuesday, dec 11 tuesday night knit club

fridays from 10 - 5 store open 

i was also able to secure some new colors in the fuzzy lopi yarn which looks so pretty and fuzzy made up in the duffer slippers monte started us all on. one skein is all that's needed unless you do a two color pair.  this project can be done in an evening and would make great christmas gifts!

to make the bottom safe for smooth floors, i sewed some patches of suede along the bottom but my friend used 3-d paint from joann's that makes the bottom non skid as well!

my newsletter will now be bi-monthly so it isnt so long, but i dont think i did too well this time.  sorry!

Properly practiced, knitting soothes the troubled spirit.  And- it doesn't hurt the untroubled spirit either.   - Elizabeth Zimmermann

toodles!

Giving Thanks

thanksgiving day is creeping up pretty quickly and we're all getting ready figuring out what our menus will be -- well at least i am -- probably most of you have things accomplished already.  i thought i would send out a quick newsletter to wish you all a happy thanksgiving and to say that one of the things (among many, many others) i am thankful for are the friendships made through our love of knitting.  and what friends we have become - not just acquaintenances but genuine friends, here for each other through various events in our lives - good and bad.  speaking for myself, you were here for me during my mother's illness/death, the time when tom and i were separated, the death of my various pets and farm animals, sharing your love of the bible and helping me to learn how to study, venturing out in all kinds of weather to sit and knit with me at the shop so i wouldnt be there alone, birthdays, emotional support, etc - too many things to list but all stashed away in a room in my heart to stay there always. i feel i have been blessed with a most wonderful life - i wonder why i deserve it but i know i am lucky and very appreciative.  so thank you all for being included and wish you all a thanksgiving full of love.

update on the donna shawl.  well, the donna shawl has turned into the donna blanket!  we were able to present it to her thursday at the bean, at the purlin girls gathering. check out the pictures below of the gifting.

hard to tell by the photos how beautiful it turned out.  when i was handed the strips of knitting so that eugenia and i could put it all together, my first thought was 'oh no how gawdy' because i am not a very color oriented person and i thought all the colors together in the bag were not very pretty; HOWEVER, when eugenia and i were crocheting the individual strips together and i looked over at the pieces eugenia had already completed and it was in her lap, it struck me as one of the prettiest things i had ever seen!  it went together like it was meant to be and is representative of our individuality but when we come together, how beautiful it can be!

the open house at the mock's was a sensation!  they were so busy friday, they could hardly keep up and needed another receipt book!!  thanks to all of you who attended and helped make 'the work of our hands' successful and a HUGE thanks to jim, ardis, and alison mock who willingly did all the work and opened up their home to host this wonderful event.  we're hoping to make it an annual event but at the suggestion of one of the artists (and to the mock's relief), we may do a round robin where its at someone else's house each year.

remember today is my pre-black friday sale - 10% off everything in the store excluding gift shop items.  so this includes yarn, accessories, patterns, clearance yarns AND you can still use your birthday certificates!  wooohooo

reminder:  the greensburg art center snowflake showcase runs from their opening on sunday, nov 18 through december 22!  try to visit their shop and support local artists.

also in murrysville, the log cabin christmas market will be held for two weekends only - nov 23, 24, and 25 and november 30, dec 1, and 2 from 10 to 5.  another way to support local starving artists.  lots of beautiful handmade items at both shows.

signing off for now.  try not to eat too much!

love

t

RaggZ & FriendZ
knitting forever, housework whenever!!!

correction to open house

to get to the mock's for their open house, i need to clarify two things:
heading west on 22, you cannot make a left directly onto harrison city road - there is a sort of jug handle that you have to go to the right and turn left go back down to the light and then you will be heading straight on harrison city road.  sounds more confusing than it is.

after you make your left onto  torrance, they are the FOURTH house on the right.  they will have signs out for more visibility.

sorry about that!

November 4, 2012

hi friends

as we all know, the season is upon us. lets face it, we are all talented and want to make our loved ones handmade gifts but can only do so much.  the next best gift to give is one lovingly handmade by a local artist, usually unique and one of a kind as well. 

SO,,,,,, WHERE'S RAGGZ FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON???

FRIDAY AND SATURDAY NOVEMBER 9 AND 10

ardis and allison mock are having an open house at their home entitled 'the work of our hands'. over SIXTEEN local artists, many of whom you may have seen at ligonier country market.  see the flyer below for more specific information.  their home is located at 5807 torrance drive, export pa 15632 (murrysville).  its very simple:  heading west on route 22, turn left onto harrison city road(there is a jug handle at this light so you technically have to take the road off to the right and come back down to the light - you will be going straight across to harrison city road at this point (sounds confusing but really isn't); take the third left (torrance); it is the 4th house on the right.  plenty of parking both in the driveway and on the street.  

i may close up shop a little earlier than usual that friday, so anyone who wants can come here first and we can go to the mock's home together if you're unsure of directions.

SUNDAY NOVEMBER 11

st mary's craft show in bradenville (just outside of latrobe)

NOVEMBER 18 - DECEMBER 22

snowflake showcase open house at the Greensburg Art Center on sunday, november 18 from 2 to 4.  this event showcases artists from western pennsylvania and includes light refreshments. the show runs from nov 18 through dec 22 for those late shoppers.  some of the works for sale include watercolor and oil paintings, knitted/felted items, jewelry, cards, christmas crafts and decorations, pottery, handpainted glassware, and much more.  

the greensburg art center is located at 230 todd school road in greensburg.  yes this is the place you see the tubes of paint along route 30 just before the mall on the west side but dont know how to get to!  it's a wonderful historical one room school house that recently had an addition built for classes - if you havent been there, try to stop out.  for more info, contact GAC at 724 837 6791 or check out their website http://www.greensburgartcenter.org.  

NOVEMBER 24 (SATURDAY)

ligonier country market 4th annual christmas market

located at the YMCA, 110 w. church st, ligonier

hours are 10 to 3

i would appreciate any support you can give us. my plan for the holidays has always been what i cannot make myself, i do my best to purchase handmade items from local artists to help them support their trade or at the very least products made in the US.  

please try to stop out to any or all of the above and bring a friend.

thanks so much

November 1, 2012

hi y'all

sorry about that slip of the drawl but being in asheville, NC for 3 days has left an imprint on my mind. the southeastern animal fiber festival (SAFF) was phenomenally fun if that's correct to say.  

SAFF was quite different from maryland sheep and wool.  it was inside, which is a plus in inclement weather, had hardly ANY food vendors (booooo), and much less funky handspun yarn like we saw in maryland.  BUT there is something to say for southern hospitality.  the vendors and instructors were from all over the US but a good bit of them were from the south.  i had a hard time understanding the very deep drawls but if i wasnt exactly sure what they said, i just paid for my item and decided i would figure it out later.  my main purpose for attending was the two nuno felting classes and a marketing class and i really only wanted to find yarns i had never seen before, especially handspun.  i did find some wonderful rovings, silks, and some gorgeous felted sheep that will be for sale in the shop.  

suzanne morgan is a nationally-known felting instructor from texas. southern belles speak very softly as well and most of the ladies in the class being southern made it hard for me to hear. so as it turned out, any time anything was needed and someone needed to speak up, they elected me to do it.  now they probably think us northerners are loud and brash and forward.  maybe we are?  (you need ear muffs to attend a purlin girls meeting!)  but what fun.  i met so many new ladies with such creative ideas and now my mind is ready to explode with all this information.

my marketing class was taught by pat reisenburger, a former attorney, who decided beading was more fun than arguing in court.  she taught several classes there that i did not take due to time constraints but her marketing class was helpful and i will be employing her methods to try to get my shop up and running better.  the computer is one of the best tools in this world wide web world, so my website will be up and running soon as well as a facebook page for the shop.

i also welcome any ideas any of you may have to help me make my shop move forward, such as additional hours, classes, etc.  at the purlin girls meeting today, some ideas include more classes and possibly limited hours on saturday.  this is why the shop is called RaggZ & FriendZ and i know i can count on you for some good ideas.  am thinking of doing my first knit along if anyone has any ideas for a good project.

one of the other great things about NC was spending some time with my son and having some great southern meals.  check out this photo of our breakfast at tupelo honey:

grits with goat cheese, poached eggs in lemon hollandaise sauce and in the upper left, a sweet potato pancake with pecans  OMG!!

i am in possession of a bunch of birthday gift certificates.  the next time you stop by, please stop and pick yours up and if you havent signed up, please do.  its worth $5 in yarn with no expiration date!

on october 11, the naughty knotty knitters met at raggz and hosted dottie westerveld, a beading instructor, who makes wonderfully unusual beaded jewelry.  she taught us how to capture a button with beads, then do some free form beading to make a beautiful necklace.  eight ladies attended and every cabochon was as individual as their creators.  check out the pictures below:  everyone hard at work.  it took us almost 5 hours to make them and we were all cross-eyed at the end of the day but everyone went home with a beautiful work of art.  the naughty knotty knitters is a more structured group than i am used to and their leader, betsy, always thinks up something for us to learn.  but the drawback is there is always homework :(

i now have a tuesday night knit club which is a spin off of a beginning knitting class at franklin regional high school.  these girls are really keeping me hopping.  they not only wanted to knit and purl, they are felting, doing elongated stitches, bobbles, dpns -- you name it.  now they want to do picot edges.  really nice girls and a lot of fun seeing them so eager to learn more and more.

at last month's purlin girls gathering, we decided to work on a prayer shawl for our friend donna, who is suffering with metastatic melanoma.  we all decided to knit a strip of whatever color, pattern, yarn etc and put them together.  cathy peters came up with the great idea of getting labels and each stripe will have a label with the knitter's name on it.  check out the picture below of all the stripes gathered today.  

i am sporting jean rosensteel's stripe since she was not able to attend and i have not made mine as of yet.  several other ladies from the dolly llamas are making stripes as well and eugenia has graciously agreed to crochet the stripes together (a job no one else wanted to do).  next month i will have a photo of us presenting the shawl (or lap robe) to donna.  i know she is going to be so surprised and happy.  the experimental drug she is taking is working wonders and shrinking her tumors but she said she is always cold so this will warm her up and be like a big group hug every time she wraps it around herself.  i'm really excited to see how it will all look put together.  stay tuned!

WHERE'S RAGGZ?

friday and saturday, november 9 and 10 is an open house hosted by ardis mock entitled "The Work of Our Hands" and features sixteen local artists and their wares.  it will be held at the mock residence 5807 torrance drive, export, pa 15632.  export is the mailing address but they live in murrysville, on the south side of route 22.  for more info contact alimock@hotmail.com or myself.  you will know many of the artists, including sally holbein, ali, ardis, eugenia, maia, me and many more.  try to pop in friday or saturday.  there will be old linn run coffee served as well as homemade appetizers and cookies.  the shop will close a little earlier than usual that day so that i may attend.

then on sunday november 11, i will be at st mary's dome in bradenville.

saturday november 24 you will find me at the Y in ligonier for the much-anticipated ligonier country market christmas show.

come and do some first or last minute christmas shopping feature all local handmade gifts at any or all of the above events!

CALENDAR

3       end of daylight savings time so change your clocks

        saturday night

15 purlin girls latrobe coffee bean at noon

29 dolly llamas at raggz at noon

13 and 27  KA from 1 to 5 at raggz

EVERY FRIDAY OPEN FROM 10 TO 5 (remember that on the 9th the shop will close at 2)

December 1 open house at raspberry hill alpacas from 10 to 5 on harrison city road featuring local artists - more details to come

WHAT'S NEW??

wisdom poem silk and plymouth gina, both similar in colorways to noro kureyon, both feltable but a little more affordable.  lamb's pride seconds in black, oregano, and catamaran seas;jumbo birch needles 19, 35, and 50 which arent very easy to find; ozark handspun;  hand made fluffy sheep; items made from recycled sweaters; and handmade fimo buttons.  paula turned me on to conni togel who paints marvelous, whimsical pictures of sheep and i have some of her 2013 calendars for sale; and last but not least, more goodies in the clearance bin on the porch.

soon it will be time to gorge yourself on delicious turkey and fixins but before you descend into the post turkey l-tryptophan coma, take advantage of my PRE-BLACK FRIDAY ONE DAY SALE on friday november 16th where EVERY yarn, pattern, and accessory will be on sale 10%, even seconds and clearance yarn.  now is the time to stock up on yarn for christmas projects as well as knitting projects to snuggle up with during the winter.  gift shop items not included in this sale but you can use your birthday certificate for an additional $5 off!

october's prize winner was newcomer carole kurek.  carol is the lucky recipient of a coveted sheep mug!

sorry this newsletter was so long but last month's was cut short.  beginning soon, my newsletter will come out twice a month or perhaps weekly to keep it short and sweet - promise!

love you guys

t

RaggZ & FriendZ
knitting forever, housework whenever!!!

October 1, 2012

"if there ever comes a day when we can't be together, keep me in your heart, I'll stay there forever." - Winnie the Pooh

my friend debbie sent this saying to me upon hearing of the death of my beloved RaggZ yesterday.  just typing that sentence has me overcome with emotion all over again and i can hardly see through my tears.  a couple of weeks ago i could see that she was declining in various ways.  but ever hopeful that she would get through it, i am still in disbelief that she is gone.  my little bff brought us so many happy memories in the twelve years since she came to live with us from the pound.  

saturday when zach came home from virginia, she and i were out on the porch enjoying some nice weather and it was the first time i had seen her wag her tail in over a week and that was totally not like her.  i hated to call deni and tell her because she is coming home for a brief visit this wednesday and raggz was the one she wanted to see the most!  she was so upset that she hadn't come home sooner to see her.  zach emailed me this morning to ask me how i was doing and he said every time he thinks of raggz he thinks of happiness.  that says it all.

now for a brief newsletter that i'm not really up to writing:

the crocodile stitch bootie class as well as the pagewood silk scarf class have been postponed to a later date.  sally has agreed to teach another 4 week sock class beginning this month.  details will be out within the week.

congratulations to kathy acita for winning this months prize - a beautifully-embroidered 'love to knit' dishtowel from town's edge farm.  

DATES TO REMEMBER

october 4 and 18 - purl n girls latrobe coffee bean

october 16 and 30 - KA - 1 to 5

open every friday from 10 to 5 with the exception of october 26 when i will be in north carolina for the southeastern animal fiber festival 

WHAT'S NEW?

recycled sari silk, banana fiber, hemp, nettle yarn and more from Darn Good Yarn; new closures and shawl pins from JUL.  also new to the gift shop are more of town's edge farm's 100% cotton knitting dishtowels.

MY FIRST SALE-- gotta make room for more yarns i continue to discover!

this month 25% off cascade yarns bulky leisure (50% superfine alpaca, 50% pima cotton), pima silk (85% pima cotton 15% silk) , serendipity tweed (60% cotton 40% wool), and cotton fine (80% cotton 20% merino wool).  also 20% off all red heart yarns in stock.

also the sale basket in the entry way has doubled, so come check it out.

have a wonderful october and hope to see you soon.

love

t

August 31, 2012

this is a test:  how many of you remember what i said back in the may newsletter?  well was i right?  labor day is upon us already just like i mentioned and the first day of autumn is sept 22.  tomatoes are almost done, the kids are back in school, the last of the hay has been brought in, the sheep are getting sheared - all signs of my favorite season.  cooler days reminds us that its time to start doing some cozy knitting especially for the upcoming holidays.  

students arent the only ones learning this fall! this is a great time to start that pair of socks or other project for someone special for christmas.  beginning your projects this early assures you time to finish them up in a more stress free environment. 

SEPTEMBER CLASSES

CROCODILE STITCH BABY BOOTIES:  

for those of you with new babies or grandbabies in the family, this is the perfect shower or baby gift taught by sally holbein.  see picture below!  these booties are not knitted (yes it's is the 'c' word) but i understand even for those of us who dont crochet it is a very easy stitch.  the cost for the class will be $35 and will include yarn, pattern, and instruction.  you need to bring a size D crochet hook.

FRIDAYS SEPTEMBER 21 AND 28 FROM 1 to 3 at RaggZ.  please sign up soon because class size is limited to six.

if anyone is interested in three dimensional needle felting, laura tepke, of raspberry patch fibers, will be holding a 3 day class at her shop on harrison city - jeannette road.  friday night's class will be a needle felted cat and the cost is $90; saturday/sunday class will be a pumpkin doll and the cost for the two day class is $180 but if you take the both classes, the entire cost is reduced to $225.  all materials are included and you will learn how to do armatures, attaching limbs and how to make fingers.  this class is being taught by carol messick of west virginia.  carol is a blue ribbon award winning needle felter.

OCTOBER CLASSES

pagewood farms, maker of the lovely unusual funky yarns i carry at the shop has designed a needlefelting kit called the garden path silk scarf.  

the photo doesnt do it justice - its prettier in person and is available in 7 other colors.  even if you've never done needle felting before, this scarf will be easy to accomplish in an afternoon and results in a beautiful lightweight scarf perfect for fall.  the kit includes a hand dyed habotai silk scarf (also known as china silk), wool/silk flowers, and yarn.  a sample scarf can be seen at the shop or in ligonier. class size is limited to 8.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 5 at 1 pm.  $45 class fee includes ALL materials.  if anyone is interested in an evening class, let me know.

sally has agreed to teach another sock class in october for those of you who missed the last set. watch the october newsletter for dates and times.

nancy miedel is doing a craft show october 6 and has graciously offered to take with her and sell things that any of you want to sell.  if you are interested, please get in touch with me and i will put you in touch with nancy unless you already have her email.  we can set up a date and time to get your creations to her before the show.  

DATES TO REMEMBER:

thursdays, sept 6 and 20 -- purl n girls at latrobe coffee bean at noon
tuesday, sept 6 - alzheimers fundraiser spaghetti dinner at green meadows assisted living in latrob

flax scutching festival in stahlstown september 8 and 9 (i will be there on sunday)

tuesdays, sept 11 and 25 -- K.A. at the shop from 1 to 5

mother earth festival fri - sunday september 21 - 23 in somerset

september 21 - international day of peace
shop open every friday from 10 to 5

if you havent seen knitting daily's article on the crochet cast on sent out august 13th, check it out.  it sounds really interesting and easy.  also their article on august 28 on knitting ergonomics gives exercises for knitters to relieve stress and tension in your hands and wrists was very informative.  just go to knittingdaily.com

august door prize was won by sheila mckeever.  sheila won a knitting tea towel, embroidered by debbie snyder of town's edge farm in ligonier.

what's new at the shop:

imperial yarns double stranded pencil roving - perfect for knitting a soft and lofty afghan or cowl; pagewood yarns has three new yarns out - aw knots, kimono, and amazing;  dyepot yarns from west virginia is new to the shop with hand dyed, hand spun yarns in beautiful natural colors, some with three dimensional curls; and of course several different varieties i found while in boulder including some new manos wool clasico, silk blend, and naturals - all in gorgeous verigated shades.

KNITTING TIP: when making a row of eyelets for a drawstring purse, have you ever noticed that the openings are kind of small after felting?  try this next time -- when you make the yarn over for the opening, yarn over twice!  when you come back around, knit only one yarn over and drop the other yarn over, thus making the opening larger.  i did this with two small ribbon drawstring bags that were not felted and the handles slide through much better.

friday august 24 at the shop was a day like no other -- the dollies celebrated sally holbein's birthday here and on top of that, i had two new customers all the way from indiana AND O.T. and marge brought three new friends and cathy brought a friend - i had SEVENTEEN PEOple here at ONE time!  people were waiting in line to be waited on and lucky for me linda and carol didnt need their yarn wound!  thanks to all my wonderful friendz who have helped spread the word about my little shop tucked away in the middle of nowhere - it is very much appreciated.  i hope i have enough of a selection and good enough prices and a fun place to come back to. 

i find it interesting the way things happen and how sometimes my knitting evolves into something i never imagined.  case in point:  last month i knitted up a quick 'kim shawl' with some new noro karuta in a fabulous teal color.  i chose it for the color and content but also because it was bulky!  after i finished it, it sat folded on a shelf for over a month waiting for me to weave in the ends and somehow come up with a 'finale' for it.  last tuesday i made yet another to do list and grabbed about 4 things on my 'not quite finished' shelf in my workshop and brought them downstairs, determined to check them off my list.  i put the shawl on one of my mannequins and kept glancing up at it while finishing two other felted bags that have been completed and were beginning to collect dust.  i love the added texture and interest knots give to projects so i proceeded to tie some knots on this shawl, figuring they could always be removed should i change my mind.  back to working on a purse, all the time looking at that shawl out of the corner of my eye waiting for it to tell me something.  i then grabbed some hand dyed pagewood farms silk yarn and wove it through some of the rows i had done either with an elongated stitch on or an eyelet row.  turns out i added three rows of ribbon and some long soft silk fringe at the bottom of the back only.  i put the shawl on myself to further scrutinize it in the mirror and see how it fits an actual person and to my delight i noticed that the two points at the wide end actually curved outward.  i have absolutely no idea how or why so i cannot duplicate it unfortunately but i was very happy the appearance.  kind of like life - sometimes things dont turn out as planned but end up being wonderful once all is said and done!

by the way, have you signed up for our birthday club yet?  keep in mind you get a $5 gift certificate from the shop for your special day.  i have several here that i've been holding for some of you so be sure to ask about it next time you're here.

Upcoming craft shows if anyone is interested in securing a booth:  

sept 29 and 30    faith united methodist church in delmont  724 468 0040

november 11       st mary's ladies guild in bradenville  724 423 7140

have a wonderful september and come have a cup of coffee and a few laughs at the shop soon!

t

"beautiful young people are accidents, but beautiful old people are works of art." (eleanor roosevelt)

Return from Colorado August 14, 2012

i'm baaaaaaack!!

A-MAZING is the word that comes to mind.  colorado is always beautiful.  even tho i only went hiking once but i enjoyed the closeness of the mountains every day.  some of the days were just entirely too hot for me so we went for an evening hike.  we were lucky enough to be there for several boulder farmers markets and i was lucky enough to meet monte's daughter, wendy, our first saturday morning at the market.  she gave me a lot of pointers about our upcoming trip to utah.

zach and i spent a day in nederland which was fun.  on the way there, there had been a rockslide closing the only road we knew how to get there on so we headed up another road to a town called sugarloaf.  no cell service so no way to find an alternate route but zach said he saw it on the map, so off we went.  it did indeed take us to nederland (the scenic route) but it was great because it had been over 90 in boulder and the higher we got the cooler.  when we arrived in ned, it was only about 70 degrees and perfectly clear and sunny.  we strolled around ned for a while and i asked a local where the best place to eat would be.  he suggested a restaurant called 'katmandoo' which was a nepali restaurant.  i wasn't sure if i wanted to try it but we did and i have to say it was one of the best meals i ever had.  we went home a different route and stopped to hike up this huge hill to see a view of the mountains.  this was the only place i have a picture of me knitting (see below).  but what a view, huh?

we decided to spend a few days in utah because i came up with the brilliant idea of whitewater rafting down the colorado river in moab.  of course everyone was excited about the prospect of it but the closer it got, the more i wondered why i ever made the suggestion.  for those of you who don't know, i am afraid of deep water. a swimming pool deep end is fine so i guess what i'm afraid of is the unknown.  my imagination gets the best of me with thoughts of snakes and fish with huge teeth just waiting to brush past my legs or take a chomp.  (yes i know its ridiculous)  when i made the reservation, i lucked out and all they had left on the rafting trips was the scenic route.  when i expressed my fear to the lady taking the reservation, she assured me that five year olds can do this trip.  ok smartie pants -- five year olds don't KNOW there could be snakes and potential monsters lurking in the muddy water, so there!

my fear was falling out of the raft but the nice lady assured me that there was not a chance of that happening, as this was after all the family/scenic route and also with the drought conditions, the water was especially low.  my good fortune again.  somebody up there likes me.

the other brainstorm we had was that we would camp....not my gig but it was actually fun.  we arrived in moab wednesday early afternoon and it was 104 degrees!!!!  when we got out of the car at our campsite, i thought i literally walked into an oven.  think of it - if you have an internal temp of 104 you could die!  so we climbed down to the river and proceeded to get wet and a little muddy.  since deni has been to moab several times, she suggested we hike the dead horse canyon.  it's a 3 mile round trip hike with the most breathtaking scenery i have ever seen.

the next day bright and early we proceeded to the moab adventure center to begin my first whitewater adventure. after checking in and signing liability forms (wha?? liability forms??) they handed us a life jacket.  i could NOT get mine to close - i'm pretty sure it was meant for a girl with a training bra, so i loosened it up.  at which time one of the female guides promptly tightened it up again, thus cutting off my breathing.  i mentioned that it was too tight and she said 'believe me, you will thank me once you're in the water because they grow.'  i said 'what do you mean ONCE I'M IN THE WATER??'  she just laughed.  so now i'm being hugged by a boa constrictor and panicking that i am indeed going in the water with this thing around my chest.  i tried to calm myself with some yogic breathing and remain positive.

off to the bus we go for a 35 minute drive up the river to the spot where we put the rafts and kayaks into the water.  i did open my vest on the bus ride to keep the blood vessels in my eyes from bursting.

now we get the safety speech from the head honcho which pretty much makes me want to turn and run.  obviously i can't - i have NO idea where i am and the bus has already left.  be brave....

now we get paired up with the rest of our raft-mates and our guide is chosen.  lucked out here too because the guide was an adorable young guy named evan who was funny and smart (and not bad to look at either).  the other mates were a fun and interesting family of 4 from somerset, england and an elderly couple named tom and liz who have done just about everything you can imagine. liz does a website of their adventures called bikenfly.org (please do check it out - you will be amazed at their experiences.)  i have a feeling our own paula and ted are a younger version of this couple.  by the way, we kept asking questions of the english family so we could listen to them talk.

needless to say the trip was fantastic, swimming in the river was great and cooled you off immensely even tho the temp that day was 'only' around 100.  those doggone life jackets really do come in handy - the current is such that you just float down the river.  of course the entire time i was in the water i was flailing arms and legs to scare away anything that might want to swim up and investigate.  OMMMMMMMMMMMM

if any of you have already done this you will laugh when i say this next sentence:  the easy part was jumping in the cool water and flailing to keep the creatures away.  but once i was in the water, i realized -- oh wait now how do i get back into that raft?  turns out the guide grabs you by the shoulder straps of that previously-mentioned very tight life jacket and hoists you into the boat.  what happens next is that your jacket is now around your ears, the top buckle is in your nose, and you are bouncing off the paddles which are situated in the middle of the raft.  all you can do is lay there like a heap of wet clothes and laugh and secretly wonder if everything that is under that life jacket is in its proper position...  nothing graceful about it!

part of the package was stopping at the red river ranch for a fantastic lunch of grilled dogs and burgers, fruit, several salads...  back into the water for the other half day.  yes there were a few of what i call rapids but evan promptly corrected me and said technically they weren't even a category one because the water was so low.  hmphhhh so technically i wasn't 'whitewater rafting' it was more like the lazy river at kennywood with a few minor white bubbly water spots - but it was fine with all of us - very relaxing and much fun.

six hours later, after we arrived back at the adventure center, we were all tired and sunburned and we decided to go to arches national park.  no hiking for me this time but we did stop at a few of the formations and gawk.  of course the kids hiked a little but i laid down on a warm rock to nap (like a lizard) with tourists of all shapes and sizes and nationalities. perhaps it was better i didn't understand what they were saying because they were probably saying something about the stupid american sleeping on a rock. i probably inadvertently ended up in someone's vacation photos.  ahhh it will give them something else to talk about.

our last evening there i had dinner with wendy and her bf joe at a fantastic little mexican restaurant right on pearl street that wendy had been wanting to try.  it was extremely good - i had vegetarian enchiladas with goat cheese.  my mouth is watering as i write this remembering how good it was.  as a surprise, monte treated us to dinner as a thank you for my delivering a few things to her daughter.  thanks, monte - i got the best end of that deal.

and by the way for those of you who saw the vest monte sent out to wendy, wendy LOVED LOVED LOVED IT!  she has the most beautiful bluish/green eyes and that vest was made for her (literally!!).  will send a photo when we get one from her.

zach and i left colorado saturday morning around 10:30 mountain time after buying up loads of organic fruit, grass fed beef, borscht and home made cheese blintzes made by a german lady, etc. from the boulder farmers market and packing them into a giant cooler to bring everything back with us.  he suggested we drive straight through without sleeping so we could enjoy today being at home, as he heads back to virginia tuesday evening for his teaching job.  saturday evening found me driving straight into a perfectly formed crescent moon, almost like it was dangling on a string in front of me leading me on and sunday morning arrived in indiana with a sunrise the soft colors of the rainbow straight ahead.  how lovely it was.  the long night time drive gave me plenty of time to reflect on the wondrousness of my life filled with so many wonderful people.

(hmmm so this is why people go on vacation)

on a different subject, my plans for dolly llamas meeting at my shop this thursday have to be postponed but i will indeed be open friday.  i found a local church in my mom's hometown who is willing to come and pick up the contents!  i pretty much have no choice in the matter, as i have an agreement on the house for september 1 so it has to be emptied out now.  i am delighted to donate it all to a good cause and that they will come pick it up.  

by the way, i have some sound investment advice i would like to share with you:  buy stock in the company who makes the orange and white construction barrels... 

be in touch in a couple of weeks with the september newsletter.  plans for some new upcoming classes that i'm very excited about.

love to all

t  

Westward Ho!!! July 28, 2012

first and foremost, i will be in colorado visiting my darling daughter from monday, august 30 through approximately august 12, so the shop will be closed during this time; thus this newsletter will be short and sweet. if anyone has anything they would like me to bring back, just email me and i would be happy to do it.  colorado liquor stores sell many different kinds of beer from all over the world, so if you have a beer lover in your midst, i would be happy to look for some oddball beer for you.  don't hesitate to ask!

if you have not visited the Greensburg Art Center, August is the time.  they are holding their community art celebration the first 3 weekends in august (august 4 and 5; august 11 and 12; and august 18 and 19).  workshops from 10 to 4 and activities from 11 to 3. demonstrations on everything from painting, fabric flowers, etched glass, cooking demos, recycled jewelry, music and food.  they are a well-kept secret but are trying their best to get word out that they are there. my friend, cathy rosensteel comes to RaggZ to knit but is also a painter, jewelry maker, and paints on silk scarves (among other things) is a board member and she is always telling me about the center.  most of you have passed their location, just off of route 30 (exit before the mall heading east).  you may have noticed the tubes of paint but wondered what it was all about, as i had many times.  its actually very easy to get there.  they are all local artists trying to make a go of it and the entire place is run by volunteers!  they have what they call an artist's market where they sell items made by local artists as well.  check them out at greensburgartcenter.org for directions and more info.  i recently joined and plan on doing some volunteer work there as well as perhaps putting a few of my designs in their showcase and i encourage you to do the same.

august schedule:

purl 'n girls:  thursdays august 9 and 23 at noon at the bean

dolly llamas:  august 16 at noon here at RaggZ

knitter's anonymous:  tuesday august 28 at RaggZ from 1 to 5

shop hours:  fridays august 17, 24, and 31 from 10 to 5

the westmoreland county fair is august 17 - 25th.  all you genius, crafty knitters and crocheters out there should think about entering some of your fine work.  i strongly advise kim to enter that bag she made from cloth and curly yarn - its sure to win a blue ribbon!  entries must be postmarked no later than august 1st, so HURRY!  entries do not need to be delivered until august 16th so that gives you time to finish up that project.  go to westmorelandfair.com

what's new?

a variety of funky buttons from dill buttons as well as dream yarns containing cashmere!  too many things to mention, so come out to the shop when i return and check it all out.  by that time i should be carrying some recycled sari silk yarn as well.

july's prize was a coveted sheep mug and the winner was eugenia ship.  eugenia was here the day her name was pulled and was very excited because earlier in the day she said she wanted to buy one and i suggested she wait til the drawing.  mind you, i did not pick the name.  maia's mother in law, roz, was here visiting from florida and i assigned her the honor of drawing a name.  eugenia has won several times this year and i assure you it is not 'fixed'!!

speaking of roz, below is a picture of her with her free-form crocheted/knitted shawl.  she told me she never knits in florida and only knits when she comes here to visit her son and daughter in law (maia) and only then when she's with the dolly llamas or at my shop.  this creation was knitted with Patons Canadienne and started out to be an afghan but then she decided to make it into a shawl.  before she left the shop we got her started on crocheting an edge with one strand of the patons and one strand of crystal palace fling in the exact same color ways!  roz was concerned with the somewhat irregular shape of it but we all agreed a free form shawl would be great and she absolutely beamed with pride.  just goes to show you that there is no right or wrong way to do anything!  hopefully when she finishes the edging i can get a photo of it and show it in next month's blog.  (do not let on that i told you but roz is over 90 years old -- you would never know it)

in mid august when i return, i will update you on upcoming classes and anything else i may have forgotten.  meantime have a wonderful couple of weeks.  i will miss you all and look forward to seeing you all again mid august!

eleanore roosevelt once said:  "a woman is like a tea bag - you never know how strong she is until she gets into hot water."

love to all

t

July 1, 2012

the berries are ripe and the cherry bombs are blasting so it must be july.  are your dogs cowering in the corner too?  i lost my dear cat this past week so i've been feeling a little melancholy, so please forgive.

as i sit writing this new post, i am furious with my computer.  i try to stay ahead of the game by writing, saving, updating, and saving my newsletter during the previous month, which i kept up with the entire month of june.  just as i was getting ready to post, i lost the entire thing, so here i am writing from memory .  so here goes...

five more chemo caps were donated by wonderful paula massa, monte peters, and carole moyer.  thanks ladies for your generosity.

this month's prize winner is diane mogul.  congrats diane - you won a hiya hiya needle case.

june's friday classes - the drop stitch shawl and maia's not your usual necklace class were loads of fun.  check out the pictures below.  shawl pictures will be posted at a later date, because sally and i were the only ones who finished and i don't have pictures yet.

july's schedule of events:
purl'n gurls:  thursdays july 12 and 26 at the bean
dolly llamas:  thursday july 5 at maia's and thursday july 19 at raggz
KA:  tuesdays july 10 and july 24 at raggz
friday july 27 from 6 to 8 there will be an art exhibit at the greensburg library called 'nothing could be fine' featuring our own cathy rosensteel (pictured above in the white tee).  cathy is actively involved in the greensburg art center and is an avid painter in addition to her other talents.  light refreshments will be served so try to stop in.
store open every friday from 10 to 5

check out this picture of some of the friendz working on their feza shawls:  notice donna's lovely needle felted zebra purse in the forefront.

well you can't say i'm not doing my part to keep the economy up and running!  loads of new beautiful yarns arrived this month including:  handspun yarns by textile artist jennifer gallentine of willow mist acres, a local farm in normalville (yes normalville is a real town).  just want til you see some of her work.  she can be found at ligonier country market on saturdays as well as on etsy.  check out some of her beautiful yarns.  obviously this photo doesn't do her work justice so check it out in person!

also new is beautiful wool yarns from imperial stock ranch in oregon.  imperial stock ranch carefully manages their livestock in ways that enhance the environment.  they harvest the soft, versatile wool from a flock of columbia sheep and transform this natural renewable resource into a wide selection of fibers and yarns.  their wool is custom milled without harsh chemicals or extreme temps, leaving it comfortable, soft, and pure.  as soon as i received my first shipment, i whipped up this shawl out of their native twist yarn (a soft spun 1 ply yarn):

as i said above, i am doing my part to make the economy more healthy (at least the wool/textile end of it) by adding yarns from jojoland (including some delightfully soft 100% cashmere), lana de grossa,
and scrumptious (that's the name of it) -- a 4 ply sport yarn consisting of 45% silk and 55% super wash wool.    also new colors of feza alp dazzle, premiere, and oriental.  feza has a line called 'exquisite' which i was able to secure a few bags of.  it is a limited edition yarn similar to premiere but more monochromatic and made of higher end fibers including cashmere and alpaca.  some new colors have arrived from pagewood in their paparazzi, glitterati, and silk ribbons; and last but not least i have added some lantern moon shawl pins.  (phew) enough already!

now, what's new at the gift shop?  some lovingly hand crocheted baby blankets and sweaters by eugenia ship; wrist cuffs from sue hrubes; handmade shawl stix; and our own cherry hollow farms raw honey.

as of this date, i don't have any classes scheduled for july with everyone so busy with vacations and all but i will keep you posted.  upcoming classes include felted sheep, wet felting a bowl of cherries, and possibly a floofy skirt class by yarns in the farms.

oh hey one last point for those of you who are allergic to wool.  i have been researching this subject because i have recently purchased a lot of super wash wool (cascade and jojoland).  the yarn rep told me that super wash doesn't bother people with a wool allergy.  my research has found that most people who think they are allergic to wool are actually allergic to lanolin and will have a reaction to anything with lanolin in it, such as creams.  super wash really is supposed to be safe for these folks because the extra processing this fiber takes to become washable takes out the lanolin.  so who wants to be the guinea pig?  cathy p??

well as far as i know, i retrieved at least most of the information from my brain (or as much as i am able to) so i will bid you all adieu for now.  happy july and happy knitting everyone!

quote for this month:  i find it helpful to organize chores into categories:  things i won't do now, things i won't do later, things i'll never do.....


t
raggz & friendz