Thursday, February 2, 2012
february RaggZ & FriendZ newsletter
2012 started with a bang for raggZ and friendZ with new yarns, new friendz, a full house for the knitter's anonymous club with loads sharing and laughing.
TIP(S) OF THE MONTH
this month's tip comes from purl'n gurl adoptee laura mcguire. when doing the long tail cast on (especially for socks), use two needles to cast on to insure that the top of the sock will be loose enough. thanks to laura for that tip. (using a needle a size or two larger will work as well)
and since we are on the subject of stretchey cast on, sally showed us a tip for a stretchy bind off, which was used for our thrummed slippers. here is the link to jeny's super stretchy cast off: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abBhe-JYmgI
FEBRUARY DATES TO REMEMBER
Pittsburgh Knit & Crochet Festival Feb 10, 11, 12*
Purl'n Gurls Latrobe coffee bean 12:30 Thursday Feb 9
Thursday Feb 23
Murrysville dolly llamas Thursday, February 16 (location tbd)
knitters anonymous tuesday, february 14 1 - 8 (valentine's day!)**
wednesday, february 29 1 - 8 (leap day!)
*a gaggle of us knitters are going to the pittsburgh knit and crochet festival if the weather is good. we can ride together and/or follow one another. here is the link again: http://www.pghknitandcrochet.com/ let me know if you want to ride along to tag along.
** sorry about the valentine's day thing for those of you who may have a hot date with
hubby/boyfriend (or both?) but at least try to pop in for a while if you can.
donna picked the winner of January's door prize - a coffee mug with colorful sheep - was none other than dolly llama ardis mock! i know there are a few disappointed groans out there, especially donna and sally who were both keeping their fingers crossed so they would win it. since it was such a popular item, i have decided to make another sheep mug february's raffle prize. (that, coupled with the fact that i wasn't prepared and hadn't decided what the february raffle prize should be....)
NEW STUFF: now available for your purchasing pleasure: a line of homemade soaps made by Jeff Holbein in two natural scents: lavender and honey almond oatmeal. i personally have used these soaps for months now and i love them. they sell for $3. wacky woollies coffee mugs are also available now for $11. supplies are limited, so get them while they last. our third new item is 100% eco alpaca yarn from raspberry hill alpacas located in jeannette.
also new this month will be a printer located in the kitchen where anyone can make copies of patterns for a nominal fee just enough to cover the cost of ink.
DID YOU KNOW?
RaggZ and FriendZ yarn shop is the ONLY shop in this area to carry the mountain meadow organic yarns from wyoming, as well as the raspberry hill alpaca yarn! also the JUL handles are only found here. other local shops carry some of the JUL accessories but as far as i know, i am the only one carrying the handles. a new shipment is due in this month, as i had ordered some long, crossover handles, which are hard to find. as you can see, the quality is impeccable and much nicer than anything carried by the local craft stores. yes they cost more but when you put so much love and time into making something, its worth having quality accessories for it, isn't it?
latte, hazel nut, lavender, cupcake, clementine, plummy, thyme, passion fruit -- am i making you hungry? these are the new colors of full 'o sheep that just arrived. their colors are so vibrant and they felt very easily, even in a front loader.
the february 1 issue of knitting daily (e newsletter) discusses how to get your stash organized. check it out at knittingdaily.com then subscribe for their daily tips.
UPCOMING CLASSES:
BUTTONS! tuesday, february 21 at 1 pm
cost $15 (includes 1# of clay, paints, glazes, and firing time)
make your own ceramic buttons at the crafty shack with laura tepke. there are rubber stamps at the crafty shack, but you can bring other materials to imprint your buttons, such as burlap or other fabric, stamps, leaves, etc. let your imagination run wild. what better way to put the finishing touches on your handmade knitted or felted item than a button you made yourself to match! please let me know as soon as possible if you would like to attend.
mark your calendars!
it has come to my attention that it might be helpful if i had some kind of regular hours. although i have been resisting this, i realize it will make things easier for you girls. i have decided that i will be open every friday from 10 to 8. (the exception being feb. 10th as that is the date we are going to the pgh knit and crochet fest.) since i will be unavailable on the 10th, that week only i will be open on tuesday, feb 7.
to recap, since i probably confused everyone, in february regular days to be open will be friday, 2/3, tuesday 2/7, friday 2/17, and friday 2/24. however, i am available most other times and can be reached via home phone 724 552 9470 or my cell 724 600 5550 -- please don't hesitate to call if you need a yarn fix!
last month's thrumming class went over well. sally taught us the art of knitting (visible or invisible) pieces of roving into our projects. the slippers turned out so soft and pretty. as always, i had to be different and i made the coco knits fleeced earflap hat pattern. i will try to attach pictures of monte and eugenia modeling it for us. maia brought along her mother-in-law, rosslyn, who was visiting from florida - she worked on a knitting project as well.
linda sent this email:
"hi toni! you will love this. the 4 year old grandson spent the night last night and i was working on my slippers. he said it was soft and comfy and that it smelled like a llama. i didnt even tell him where the fleece came from. isnt that funny!? love it!"
at january's KA meeting on the 10th nancy showed us an invention (pertaining to knitting but for now mum's the word) her husband came up with which we all marveled at. at the purl'n girls gathering on february 9th, it will be officially unveiled. i will tell you all about it in next month's newsletter.
our KA meeting on the 31st founded five(!) brand new members - toni who is a friend of ardis; ann a friend of karen (karen brought her mom along again today who is a very sweet lady from australia and fun to be around); laurel and holly holbein (sally's daughters) are now full fledged members; and kim stopped by later in the evening for her first visit too. i'm so happy, i could spontaneously combust.
btw, laurel holbein was working on a beautiful scarf out of the feza alp premiere and has agreed to make another to use as a sample at the store!
sally is making baby caps for charity and is wondering if anyone else is interested. here is the link for more info: http://cure.org/knit if you are interested, you can contact sally directly at jeffreyholbein@yahoo.com
have a great february ladies and hope to cross paths with you soon!
the following quote from helen keller conveys my sentiments exactly:
"So much has been given to me that i have no time to ponder that which has been denied."
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