North Puget Sound LYS Tour 2013, Day 2

Hello:

Today was the 2nd day of the 2013 LYS Tour for North Puget Sound.  Eight Eastside Stitchers got together to visit the shops today.  The plan was to meet at my house by 4:15 pm and drive to downtown Seattle by 5:00 pm for the first shop where we would meet the 8th member of the day's group, Tara1682, who was busing downtown from her job.

So Much Yarn

2107 Elliott Avenue #204
Seattle, WA 98121
206-443-0727

So Much Yarn is upstairs in the Cost Plus World Market building.  There is street parking (if you are lucky), or you can park in the Cost Plus World Market Parking lot inside.  We did that last year, and if you buy something (small and cheap) at the Market, they will validate your parking, so it is relatively free.

The yarn shop is down a cute open hallway.

And, at first you might think it is going to be small.  It is small, but not the smallest shop I have been in, and they make good use of their space.  This shop has a very wide selection of yarns.  They also pride themselves on their excellent service.

I was amazed at the amount of different yarn companies represented.

The shop has been in business for over 4 years at this address.  They serve the downtown clientele, with an excellent selection of  yarn from all purpose to art.

 

Seattle Yarn

5633 California Avenue SW
Seattle, WA 98136

Seattle Yarn is located in West Seattle.  They have a nice size parking lot in front of the store.  

This in not a small store, and the size is reflected in the amount and variety of yarns on display.

The aim of the owners is to enable you to do what you want.  They want fully functional customers.  To that end, they try to carry a huge variety of yarn.  As the owner described it to me, "The good, the bad, and the ugly."

They don't always publicize their sales because they like to surprise their customers.  They want shopping for yarn to be an adventure, a surprise every time you come to the store.  Just like they want the yarn to be a surprise.  Yes they carry many beautiful "regular" work horse yarns,

but they also carry the unexpected, and that can include an unexpected Trunk Show.

Seattle Yarn has been in business for 15 years, and in September, will have a month long celebration of their 15th Anniversary with sales and activities.

Makers’Merchantile

18437 East Valley Highway, #102
Kent, WA 98032
425-251-1239

Maker's Mercantile is the home of Skacel.  It is full of their yarn

and of course the wonderful Addi knitting needles.

They shop sells more than yarn and needles, however.  they have fiber for felting,

as well as fabric for sewing,

and crafting ideas of all kinds.

In their classroom, today, they had the designs from their reality knitting competition, The Fiber Factor. on display.  I couldn't take any photos, but, yarn crawlers could see the finished items from round 1 of the competition up close.

One interesting yarn they had in the store was their TeeCakes yarn, which is made from recycled T-shirts.

 

TheKnittery

601 S. Grady Way
Renton, WA 98057

Last year, when I visited the Knittery for the first time on the 2012 LYS Crawl, I thought it had a great selection of low to mid-priced yarns.  This was the shop for projects where you wanted something better than what you could find at Jo-Ann's or Michaels, but didn't want a high end yarn that was going to be difficult to wash and would break the bank.

My estimation of this store has changed quite a bit.  I still think it is a great place to buy your regular work-horse yarns, especially if you are knitting for kids or babies and want stuff that is reasonably priced, easy to care, and still much much lovelier than anything you could find at a craft store.

However, I was pleasantly surprised to find a number of what I would call higher end yarns there, too.  They had a decent selection of Madelintosh, and quite a bit of Rowan.

In fact, when I asked the owner what her favorite yarn is, although, like any good mother, she was reluctant to choose, she said right now she is really into the Rowan Fine Art Sock they have just begun to carry.  There is also a really nice book of patterns by Rowan to support the yarn line.

The Knittery has been in business for more than 45 years in the city of Renton.  They have watched knitting cycle up and down throughout those years.

How have they lasted so long in such a crazy field?

You have to work hard at it, but enjoy it, the owner told me.  The most important thing is to have fun and don't take yourself too seriously.

Perhaps the best endorsement came from a customer who was sitting at their generous knitting table, knitting.  "This is a great shop for helping knitters, for trouble shooting."  She went on to explain that at the Knittery, the staff helps everyone who comes in.  If you are stuck in your knitting, you can be sure someone will help you, not tell you to take a class, but actually sit down and help you right there with your knitting.

This doesn't mean that their classes are neglected.  In fact, classes are so popular at this yarn store, that they are completely booked up through September.

Tomorrow is the giant crunch day of yarn crawling where we will head up north and try to get quite a few shops visited.  I am not sure if I will have any energy when I get home to post, but I will try.

Peace,
f1bercat
shaping the planet on a Yarn Craw.

2012 Bellingham LYS Crawl part 4

Entrance to the alley for Mrs. Hudson's Yarn and Teas

Hello!

This is the 4th and final post about the Eastside Stitchers' 2012 Bellingham LYS Crawl. 

Post 4

Mrs. Hudson's Yarn and Teas
1106 Harris Avenue, Suite 103
Finnegan's Alley
Bellingham, WA 98225

Our final stop on our mini-lys crawl in Bellingham last Sunday, September 23, was to Mrs. Hudson's Yarn and Teas.  This shop was hidden away in a little alley of stores.

We made one wrong turn, but then found the right place.

First impression:  CUTE CUTE CUTE

There are all of these kid's toys,

 and posters on the walls, and the window display was of a "bus" full of toys on the way to school.

The feel of the shop was homey, warm, and calming.  Again, there were yarns that were new to me.  And again everyone in our group went crazy over the yarn.  The biggest hit was the Swans Island Natural Colors. 

Wow, it felt amazing, and the colors were just lovely.  We spent a long time just petting it.  I had completely finished shopping for my list, and was M-A-Y-B-E looking for one skein of something variegated to give as a gift to my niece who has just learned to knit, so I did not buy any.  I feel like I deserve a medal for my self control.

There were a other yarns there that I spent a long time eying...

Like this Be Sweet, Simply Sweet Whipped Cream:

The Starry sock yarn by Dream in Color:

And Spincycle Yarns, which is a local Bellingham spinner and dyer:

There was a wonderful Tea Room

with a sitting area with books you could read!  Also there is a small area with kids' books and toys, in case you bring your children, and want to keep them happy while you shop.

Friendly, knowledgeable staff rounded out the offerings.

Also, a poster of RDJ.

Perfect!

Stay safe and well.
Yours,
f1bercat
Shaping the planet after visiting 4 amazing LYS's

the other alley, this is the wrong one!

wHeart like a wHeel

2012.03.16 Fuji Cherry

Hello!  f1beristas!

Today I rode 6.67 miles while knitting on the sleeves of the sweater for my friend, Lewk.  Remember that sweater?  The neverending sweater?  Yes, well, I knit a bit more of the sleeves while I rode my bike towards Portland.  Ok, I was not really riding a bike to Portland, I was riding an exercise bike at the Y, but thinking about my daughter, S, who is attending Portland State University.  

They are on the quarter system, and she is busy busy busy with finals right now.  BUT!  she gets a week off after that, and since she finishes next week, she will take the train home on Thursday in the afternoon, and Thursday night, S, L, the Doc, and I will all attend the midnight opening of The Hunger Games.  I got the book for Christmas two years ago, and really enjoyed the trilogy, though I thought it was a bit ... violent.  And I really didn't like that.  As a writer for children, I did not think these were children's or even really young adult books.  They are more... books about teens for adults.  But, that being said, I still enjoyed the characters, and the story was gripping.

We love to go to midnight openings.  For the last Harry Potter movie, I got to the movie theater at noon, and was THIRD IN LINE!  Of course I brought my knitting.  I sat there from noon until midnight, and wasn't bored at all.  I'm trying to remember what I was working on.  Probably the Dr. Who Scarf I made for my friend, Aelfric, who is the Enigma Legion chanter in Aion.  To tell the truth, I think I was working on that scarf all that fall.  If I do say so, it came out beautifully.  

Since I am picking S up at about 3, we won't be able get to the theater to get in line any earlier than about 4pm.  But, what ever time we get there, you can be sure that I will bring knitting.  And, a chair.

WIP's

Today I worked on the heels, or wHeels, of the socks I am knitting.  I think they all came out very nicely. 

Here is the Snuggly Socks from the Liz Marino Gift Knits Club.

I wish I had knit a bit tighter, but still, I think it looks quite nice.

And here are the Cobblestone Socks for the Doc, in the cotton/wool/nylon blend.  This pattern uses an Eye of Partridge wHeel, with a garter stitch border.  I do like that border.

I have picked up the gussets of all the socks, and am busy decreasing down to the real foot size.  It will go quickly once I am on the feet. 



Maybe all 3 socks will be finished by the end of the next week, and I can cast on the second Snuggly Sock.  I will have to order the yarn for and cast on the Snuggly Socks that are the match for my nephew, A, for his wedding.  It is too weird not to be working on 2 different sock pairs at all times.

Where in the World is f1bercat

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Since I knitted 6.67 miles today, have now totaled 60.98 miles on my trip to California.  I decided to back track just a bit, since I want to "visit" an LYS in Lynnwood, Yorkshire Yarns.  I should reach them on Monday, and can't wait to see what they are all about.  Their store isn't physically there, well, I mean it IS there, but they are moving to a new location (the address I am visiting), and so aren't open right now.  But I plan to visit them anyway.

This is my progress on the trip map:

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Have a great night.

Yours,

f1bercat

shaping the planet, one wHeel at a time

Pie Are Square

Happy Pi Day, Everyone!

For those of you who aren't Math Geeks, today's date is 3/14 or 3.14 which is the abbreviation for the magical mathematical number Π  (Pi), which is very useful for finding the area or circumference of circles.  The formula for finding the area of a circle is Πr²  or pi r squared.  Get it?

I was going to bake an apple pi for my son L, who IS a math geek, but I got hung up on Ravelry (yes I am blaming Ravelry), looking at patterns and all of the amazing finished socks on SKA for the March challenge, so I just made a breakfast pi, or a quiche for those of you who demand honesty, and of course in the spirit of the area formula, it is squared.

WIP

As I said, I was drooling at all of the finished, and wip's in SKA and also SolidSocks for the month.  This is because I am busily knitting away on my two very different sock projects.

I am ready on both to start the heels.  Finally.

The Liz Marino Snuggly Socks are knitting up beautifully. 

I have decided with some angst, regret and a spirit of true generosity, to not keep these socks.  I really really really want to keep them.  I love the feel of the Mountain Colors sock yarn.  I love the simplicity, yet interest in the rib pattern.  I love the stretchiness the pattern is giving to the legs of the socks.  But, my nephew who is also one of my Godsons, A, is getting married this summer.  I have decided to give these socks to his bride, S, and make a matching pair for him.  They can snuggle up together in their matching Snuggly Socks.  

 However!  this is such a nice pattern, that I might make it my Go To pattern for Vanilla Socks.  I mean, it would make Vanilla socks so much more than plain Vanilla, yet be the kind of sock the Doc would love to wear, and me, too!  I want a pair.

I am liking the Classic Elite Summer Sox yarn more and more.  It still feels a bit sticky as it runs through my fingers, but as I fondle the fabric I have knitted, I like it.  It will never feel like wool, or sadly like the cashmere socks I made myself in January.  But for a lighter summer sock, it is quite nice.

The big mistake was asking Doc how long he wanted the legs.  I was thinking that I might get away with knitting a shorter leg, like he could wear these golfing... but he told me that he loves the Movember Mystery socks I made him for the SKA November challenge, and he wants these to be the same size.  That means 8 in. legs.  EIGHT INCH LEGS.

 I finally finished them last night and am ready to begin the heels.  Luckily, Doc has reasonably sized feet for a man, and it should all go much faster from here.

I love how the pattern, when not stretched, looks a bit like a weird tree trunk, maybe a palm tree.

Biking to California

Today I knit 6.77 miles and about 37 minutes.  I went over the 35 minutes from hell because I was having trouble scooting the last few stitches over the join on my circular needle and up onto the actual needle.  So I was pushing at it and picking at it (broke my thumbnail!), then I looked up and I was at 37 minutes.  So of course, I stopped trying and pedaling at the same time.  Yay, I have reached 47.99 miles in my trip south to visit my family in Orange, CA.

The pink Berry Baby Hat is now big enough to add the leaf part.  I will get that started at home since I don't want to be fiddling, trying to add a second color of yarn while riding a bike through Washington toward Oregon.

Where in the World is f1bercat

Today I reached what used to be Lamb's Ear Yarn, in Tacoma.  Sadly it has closed. 

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They had what looked like a thriving group on Ravelry.  And they sold fleeces.  How nice to find a shop relatively close to home that sells fleece... for when I go off the deep end and start spinning.

It is always sad when an LYS closes.

I'm feeling a bit let down.  So, I'll just post the big map.

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At least tonight is Wednesday, and I get to knit with my Eastside Stitchers Buddies!  Thank goodness for friends with sticks and string.

Now, go out and eat some pie.

Yours,

f1bercat

shaping the world one pi at a time.

The One Where I Vent About Daylight Savings Time

I hate Daylight Savings Time.

There I said it.  I love the Fall Back day, and the week that follows it where you wake up early and still feel rested.  Of course, we don't need the sun setting any earlier here.  In the winter, it is pretty dark here by 4:30 pm.  And so what if the sun doesn't rise until 8:30 am?  I mean, kids have to wait for the bus in the dark anyway. 

But the really bad part is in the Spring when we Jump Ahead 1 hour.  That happened last weekend.  It's Tuesday.  I feel like I flew to France or something.  My body just doesn't want to adjust to the new time. First of all, I overslept and missed Mass on Sunday.  Then I couldn't fall asleep Sunday night.  Then, somehow, yesterday, I got up at 7 which wasn't too bad since I usually get up at 6, but then I just couldn't sleep again last night.  I went to bed at about 11:30 pm which wasn't great but not horrible.  And I woke up at 5 am.  Ugh!  So I got up and went to the Y to knit another 35 min. (More on that later.)  I did lots of financial organizing to get ready to do the taxes. And at 11 am I was knitting on the Cobblestone Socks for the Doc.  I played a little Aion, did the pvp (player vs player) instance called Dredgion where 2 teams try to kill certain monsters on the same ship while either avoiding or killing each other) and we won.  Some of my legion got on and we did a quest together.  THEN I TOOK A NAP!  I had to go lie down.  I was falling asleep while playing Aion, and since I am the legion cleric and in charge of healing the group, that is not a good thing.

I am awake now, but have that drugged feeling you get when you sleep in the middle of the day.  UGH! So,

Where in the World is f1bercat?

Yesterday I reached 34.74 miles.  Today I again knit for 35 minutes (and they were hell, well the last 5 were for some horrible reason.  My body just does not want to exercise for 35 minutes) and 6.48 miles so adding that up, I have reached a grand total of 41.22 miles.  I feel a bit like a toddler reporting hundredths, but I need every fraction of those miles to count.

Today I reached Unraveled Yarn and Artful Gifts in Federal Way, WA.

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I love their website!  it's so welcoming and well, like a blog. The shop is owned by three sisters sharing their love of fiber and crafting with each other and the community.  Isn't that wonderful?  They have a Night Knit Night, and a day Sit and Knit time.  Some really yummy yarns, as well as specialty items like Handmade Knitting Needles.  They have a nice calendar full of really cool classes with some special projects like needle felting * note to self - Learn Needle Felting. 

After my virtual visit, I continued riding.  I need to get every bit of mileage possible.  I made it to here:

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Here is my progress on the full map:

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WIP's

I have another FO to report.  I finished another Berry Baby Hat by Michele Sabitier for the Sharing our Gifts Group on Ravelry.  This hat is the Blueberry one that I started  last week, Monday.  I love this pattern.  So cute. So fast.  It is the perfect project to knit while I ride.  I was working on the Lewk Never Ending Sweater of No Return, but I don't really like how uneven the stitch tension is.  It's... ok, but not great.  The berry hat is so small and easy and just round and round, so I can keep the tension much more even. 

I cast on another one in pink, and am already almost to the leaf part.  I think tomorrow it will be long enough to add the green.  I might be able to make a hat every week this way.  There will be lots of babies wearing berry hats.  Good thing it's so cute.

Have a great evening.

Yours,

f1bercat

shaping the planet (when she's not napping) one blueberry hat at a time

The One Where My Computer Breaks Down But I Keep Knitting

WIP

I worked on the Red Hot Lewk Sweater, but didn't get any photos, so I won't talk too much about it.

I finished another square of for the 2012 BAMCAL (Block A Month Crochet A Long) Group on Ravelry.  This is the "official" March square (they have 2 squares every month, one is the month square, the other is the filler square).  The pattern is Hint of Spring by Sally Ives, and can be found for free at this link. 

It was super easy to follow, and no mistakes or confusions in the instructions at all.  I did not really follow the color change instructions, but that is pretty much optional anyway.  In fact, I will try to do something very different with the second square I will make of this pattern.  This one is for my son L for his high school graduation afghan.  The next one will be in the University of Arizona's colors, and by for my son J, who will go there next year.  I don't want the two afghans to look too similar.

Here is the back:

 You can see how frazzled I was today.  More about that to come!  But, I usually weave in all ends IMMEDIATELY.  I know if I don't, I may never do it.  But it was one thing after another today.

As I was typing this entry, my computer keyboard froze, and I had to spend about 2 hours on the phone with Dell trying to fix it.  It was so strange.  I tried rebooting the computer (my first fix for everything), but then couldn't get back in because I couldn't type in my password on the log on screen.  Wow, that was scary because I thought, how will I get this document off?  then I noticed a small icon in the bottom left corner of the log on screen.  It is the Ease Of Access icon, and led to a screen with a choice to use an "on screen keyboard."  So, by using that little keyboard, and my mouse (which worked) I could log on, bring up my blog document and the photos I had saved, and email them to myself so I could access everything from a different  computer.  Dell was able to help me in the end.  At first they thought they would have to send out a service rep to replace the keyboard in my laptop.  Then, no kidding, they had me turn the computer off, take out the battery AND unplug it.  Press the on button and hold it on for 10 seconds, then replace the battery, plug in the computer, and turn it on.  AND IT WORKED!  This was after trying about a gazillion other things.  So, if you have a similar problem, now you know! 

Where in the World is f1bercat?

Today I worked on my taxes.  Well, I didn't really get to the Taxes part.  I worked on bringing our financial records up to date so that I can then gather the information needed to work on the taxes.  Ugh.  I started at about 7 am and stopped at 10 am.  It was horrible.  I mean, it's not hard or anything, but I really wanted to go ride the bike so I could start knitting.  And as time was passing, I kept thinking, I'll finish this part tomorrow... I better stop now, or I will have to skip the bike ride... I just need to set this aside and work on it another day...  BUT, I was a good cat, and I finished the part of the job I had set for this morning AND I still made it to the Y to knit myself some exercise.  I worked on the sleeves of the Never Ending, Super Slow, Red Hot Sweater for Lewk.  I am at the small side (started with the cuffs), and still I am not making much progress.  I decided that it is because I have to worry about not only 2 yarns, but I have to think about the increases, and working the increases into the pattern, WHILE I am pedaling an exercise bike.  Honestly, I thought I might as well be balancing a pie on my head, or perhaps juggling some flaming hoops.  Anyway, I only got 5 rows finished in 34 min / 6 miles.  But still, I am 5 rows closer to a finished sweater, and 6 miles closer to California.

So, where am I?  You might have noticed that I am wandering decidedly West, instead of South.  

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That is because I noticed another LYS  (Local Yarn Store) while I was checking out the Puget Sound Yarn Crawl website.  And, well, in the spirit of all f1beristas, I had to stop!  Here I am at The Yarn Stash in Burien, WA.

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This shop is owned by a Mother/Daughter team, Bonnie is the mom, and Beth is the daughter.  They have a nice selection off classes, from Private Knitting, to Open Knitting, and quite a few in between.  I was happy to see that they have Kid's Knitting sessions, too.  At the kids' classes, they dye their own yarn with Kool-aid.  What a wonderful way to get kids excited about f1ber.  They also have some wonderful charity knitting projects that they are helping with.  They are on Ravelry, with a group called The Burien Yarn Stash Crew    If you stop by, remember to tell them that f1bercat says, "hello."

But I had a few miles more to my trip today, so this is where I ended up:

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Once again, I'm not exactly sure where I am.  I think I am still in Burien?  or is it Sea-Tac?  You can just see the corner of the airport.  I am now headed south again, towards Tacoma.  But!  I found another LYS, this one in Federal Way.  I should reach it on Monday.  I think I am going to rest my bike on the weekends.  Ha!

Here is what my trip will look like when I have finished:


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You might notice that all of the markers so far are totally squished up on each other way at the top.  At some point I will make Tacoma.  And then, Portland, where I will visit my daughter, S.  Any of you reading this, who are on the route south, and know somewhere I should virtually stop, please leave me comments with suggestions.  I would love to visit your favorite LYS, or cafe, or coffee house, or just visit with you!  We can spend some time knitting together.

Good night for now,
f1bercat
shaping the planet one crocheted block at a time