Remember the skein of Mini Mochi that I picked up at TNNA and showed you last week? It went from that ball to this sock during the week. As you can see, I was having too much fun watching the colors play out, and I made it long!  (I still had more yarn left from that skein.) Knit up on size 2′s with 60 stitches with a K3, P1 cuff. This will be up on the website later tonight or tomorrow, in all 8 colors currently available. It reminded me of knitting with handspun – soft and loose and very wonderful.  Yes, I’m knitting the second sock on this, because I want to wear them. What else will you find going up this week? Woolpets, Trekking (new colors and re-stocks), Panda Cotton (new colors and re-stocks), Louet, Sereknity, Beannie Baggies, Cherry Tree Hill Possum Sock, Annie Adams, and more Schaefer Nichole, plus Anne and Lola.

In the “My Accountant Cracks Me Up” category (although I know that “accountant” and “cracks me up” shouldn’t go together), I thought I’d show you the little notes he leaves on all of the different forms he has to prepare for me each quarter. (Another one of the joys of running a business.) Of course I most love the ones where all I have to do is sign them, but even the forms where I have to include a check are made a little easier because his frowny-faces make me laugh. He’s a good accountant anyway, but the faces just elevate him, in my opinion. (Another thing that cracks me up: Sneezing Baby Panda.)

We’re supposed to get a snowstorm tonight. 4-6″. Of course the weathermen here in St. Louis rarely get it right, so I’m not holding my breath. Hopeful, but not holding my breath. I figure if we’re going to have cold temperatures all winter long, which I like, we might as well have the pretty white stuff to go along with it.  I only remember one winter season where I was tired of the snow. It happened my senior year in college and we still had big snowstorms in mid-April. I remember looking out our apartment’s kitchen window and thinking I was going to have to do something drastic if the white stuff didn’t just GO AWAY soon. Fortunately, it did. Go away. Soon.

Sheri areyouinthe”pro-snow”or”no-snow”camp?

Thank you so much for ALL of your name suggestions for our new Loopy Central addition! Not only did I enjoy reading the suggestions, I also loved reading all of your grandparents’ names, and some of the stories that went along with them.  Michelle asked in Wednesday’s comments about the top five names mentioned. I wish there was an easy way to come up with that.  Having read them all, I’m sure that Lupe, Lulu and Clara were 3 of the top five.  All great names, but I didn’t pick any of those!  (Loopy said “absolutely not” on the Lupe name. He thinks there can only be ONE Loopy, no matter how you pronounce it. Although he does seem to be quite taken with her. ) Some of the names cracked me up – like “Edith …. Head”, and “Anita Knit”, and the other ones that incorporated knitting into them. Some were great names, but reminded me of people or animals already in my life. Like Zoe and Gracie – our two cats. Or Lily – Elf Susan’s cat. Roxy – a good name, but I have a good friend named Roxane.  Trudie – also a good name, but it’s Monk’s wife’s name, so it can’t be our mannequin’s name. Isabelle and Bella – I like both of those, but for some reason it reminds me of vampires…. And having been a teacher in my former life, there were also good names that reminded me of different students from the past.  Being a teacher can really wreck some good names. There was one name that, the minute I first read it, I knew it was right.  So our lady’s name is now Ava! Thank you to all of you who sugested that. I put the Ava-commenters into a lottery for one drawing, and Melissa from MA won that drawing.  Then I drew three more names from all of the comments, to also win a skein of Wollmeise.  We’ll be sending those off to Janelle in PA, Marie in RI, and Lara in MD. Congratulations to you four, and thank you again to everyone who gave us suggestions. I’m thinking that I’ll have to eventually get another one of these, because I still have a few names from your suggestions that I really liked!

Now I need your help with voting on our Q4-08 participants. The challenge was to “knit something to warm your hands” and learn a new technique while you’re at it.  Check out the Q4-08 Photo Gallery of participants and email me with your favorite one by next Friday. (sheri AT theloopyewe DOT com) The winner gets a Loopy Gift Certificate, and we also draw one name from all of the participants for another Gift Certificate. There are a lot of beautiful finished projects photoed there!

We already have boxes and boxes of things arriving from TNNA and pre-TNNA orders. Fun!  We’re unpacking and photo-ing as quickly as we can. I did forget to mention something else that I ordered for us – Annie Adams shawl pins, stitchmarker necklaces, knitting keychains and magnets.  Beautiful things, and I’m anxious for those boxes to come in the door! I’ll keep you posted as things go up on the website. The next few weeks will be busy and full.

Sheri anyfunplansfortheweekend?It’sgoingtobecoldagainhereinSt.Louis
perfectforknittingandhangingoutwithagoodcupofcoffee

We’re back! It’s warm in California.  Seems so strange that one part of the country can be -20 degrees with the wind chill and a few hours away (ok, by plane) it’s in the upper 80′s. We were walking around outside, enjoying the sunshine and I was trying to imagine the Midwest cold.  It didn’t work very well! We did do a lot of walking (here’s the shot from our hotel room, with the convention center a few blocks down) and a lot of eating out (including one of my favorite parts of TNNA – dinner with the Veronica and Nancy from Dream in Color.)  This time, Web Guy went with me. I’m pretty sure that it was the lure of a sunny weekend in CA and not the lure of a yarn market weekend with his mom, that got him to hop a plane from Indiana to San Diego.  But that’s ok – I’ll take time with him whenever I can get it. It was fun to have him there!

I have to say, I didn’t see a whole lot of NEW at TNNA this time. There were a few things.  But I also added in some additional lines from some of our already-well-loved companies, that will be fun. I found myself picking up the yarns that would make warm and wonderful scarves and shawls, or cowls and mitts, as I walked along. (Many would also make great socks.) So, coming soon, we have:

- Ballet from Fiesta. It’s a  50% Superfine Alpaca, 50% Tencel yarn with 350 yds. per skein. I have had a skein of it in my stash for 2 years and have loved how wonderful it feels. Now I am going to pull it out and knit past the sample that I did and make something fun! We’ll have it in 28 choices of colors for you.

- Bonnie’s Bamboo from Farmhouse Yarns. I picked up two skeins of this last spring at one of the shops here in town, planning to knit a shawl or something equally drapey and wonderful.  100% bamboo, 3.5 oz, 200 yds. It would make a gorgeous Clapotis, if one was so inclined.  The colors are semi-solids, so patterns show up beautifully.  We’ll have it in 10 colors. (We also put in another order for Fannie’s Fingering while we were there.)

- Lorna’s Laces new Pearl line. Remember Amy’s Vintage Office in the special silk/bamboo blend?  It has been such a popular yarn base that they have added it in many colors and expanded the line. We picked out 13 colors to add to the Amy’s Vintage Office colorway we already have in stock. (They had a Clapotis done up out of Amy’s colorway, which was fun to see. I have had some of that yarn tucked away to make that very pattern out of that colorway. It’s just as beautiful done up as I suspected.)

- Crystal Palace’s Mini Mochi was one of the brand new fun yarns that I picked up.  It comes in 8 colors and does subtle color changes (similar to Noro, JoJoland, etc). Pictured here is Autumn Rainbow and I’m most anxious to knit it into a sock. This is 80% Superwash Merino, 20% Nylon, 195 yds. per ball. Extremely soft. They had scarves done up in all of the different colors, too.  Beautiful. Also from Crystal Palace – new colors in Panda Cotton, which we ordered.

- Skacel’s newest sock yarn was another in the line of “subtle color changes” and we all 9 colors that they had to offer in that, too. It would be nice if I could tell you the name of it, but it’s not written on my order form (only numbers) and I can’t remember! (And I saw too many yarns and names all weekend for it to have stuck in my brain, apparently.) You’ll love it for socks and scarves. I think these subtle color-changing yarns are also fun to knit up into mittens and gloves and hats as well.

- We re-stocked and added all of the new colors of Colinette Jitterbug, which I know many of you have been waiting on. I love their vibrant colors and the way that the tight-springy yarn knits up. (The only thing I don’t like about it is that they send it all in big loops – like the way you’d put it on a swift to ball it – and we have to twist it all up into skeins ourselves. By the time we’re done doing that with all of those cases of yarn, our wrists are about ready to give out…)

- New colors of Jade Sapphire Cashmere Lace, as well as a re-stock of all of the other colors. I could spend all day picking up and setting down the different cashmere skeins in their booth. Eventually I’m going to add in their heavier worsted cashmere line, too, because I SO want to knit some sweaters out of it.

- A new superwash/silk/bamboo blend from Araucania called Itata Multy, that is going to make beautiful socks, scarves and shawls. I have always loved the way that the Araucania colors knit up, and this new blend is amazing. That’s color 1007 and 1010 in the photo. We’ll have it in all 20 colors (some multi’s and some solids).

- Alpaca With a Twist Socrates in new colors. We’ve had this line in for awhile (and I used it to make this scarf). It’s soft and wonderful to knit with and the price is great. Now I need to make myself a pair of socks out of it. They’d be so warm and toasty.

- New patterns from Claudia Hand Painted and Gardiner Yarn Works (including the cutest crocheted/felted bags. I need to find someone to make one for me, since I don’t crochet!)

- An intriguing little product called a “Knit Kit” that has all of the accessories you need for your knitting, and happens to be safe to take on planes as well.  The gal who owns the company has spent 2 years developing it.

And … I think that’s most everything. I placed lots of orders with our regular companies before I left, so we do have a HUGE influx of products arriving over the next few weeks.  Whee!! I hope you’re ready!

I know many of you already caught the Sneak Up this week, but just in case you didn’t, we added in: Numma Numma BabyBoo, new colors from Lorna’s Laces and Claudia Hand Painted, Schaefer Nichole, new Shibui patterns and yarn, and more Loopy Ewe clear totebags.

I have picked a new name for our mannequin! I’ll have to blog it on Friday (along with the winners) because I’m out of time and space here.  And yes, I did read every single one of the 1124 suggestions.  They were wonderful!

Sheri nowheadinghometocatchtheseasonopenerofLOST
Goodthingmyhouseisjust5minutesfromLoopyCentral!

I’m back from TNNA (and warm weather in CA) and I’ll post all of the details on Wednesday’s blog!  In the meantime, I wanted you to meet Marie of Brooklyn Handspun in today’s Limelight. I’m knitting a sock with her yarn in Aquatic and it’s amazingly soft and wonderful. I wish you all could reach through your monitors and feel this. (Web Guy needs to invent that technology….)
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Loopy: Hi Marie!  Thanks so much for being in the Limelight today. We love having your yarn here and I know that many of our Loopy customers have had fun adding it to their stashes and projects.  How long have you been a knitter, and where did you learn to knit?
Marie: Hi Loopy! My grandmother first taught me to knit when I was 10, although I didn’t really have the patience for how long each row took so needless to say I never went beyond a little square of fabric.  In 2003, I went craft supply shopping. I made a lot of wire and beaded jewelry back then, and noticed all the colorful yarn.  I wanted it all but I had no idea how to use it so I decided to try my hand at knitting again and taught myself how to knit from a book I was gifted.

Loopy: I re-learned to knit in adulthood from a book, too! I’m glad it “stuck” this time, for both of us. What is your favorite thing to knit, and what is the most challenging thing that you have knit to date?
Marie: Socks of course!  I love quick and colorful socks – I don’t have the patience for large knit items and socks are great for knitting on the subway.  I have also started to really enjoy crocheting amigurumi. I usually stick to simpler knits since I rarely have time to really concentrate on a difficult pattern, although right now I’m crocheting lots of little flowers for my wedding bouquet using a tiny steel crochet hook and embroidery thread – that has been pretty challenging.

Loopy: That will make such a unique bouquet – and one that you can keep. How did you move from knitting to dyeing?
Marie: I actually went from knitting, to spinning, to dyeing.  After knitting for a while I thought: why not make my own yarn?  So I bought a drop spindle on ebay and 2 weeks later bought my first wheel – I was hooked.  A few months into spinning I got tired of plain white fiber and decided to experiment with some koolaid dyeing.  The results were wonderful and that same week I went out and bought 20 colors of acid dyes.  I was fully addicted to dyeing fiber and my own handspun when I really got into sock knitting.  At that point, 2005, there really weren’t too many indie yarn dyers so I started to dye my own sock yarn and well, the rest is history!

Loopy: It’s nice to know that you were one of the first indie dyers out there. There do seem to be a lot of them at this point.  How do you come up with your colorways? And do you have a favorite?
Marie: I take inspiration from wherever I can get it – nature, printed fabrics, even grocery store packaging!  I keep a little book with me and whenever I see a great color combo, I take note of it for the next dye session.  I can’t say I have a favorite since my colorways are always changing.  I am drawn to deep purples and burgundy.

Loopy: The little book idea is a good one. That way you always have ideas to run with when it’s a dyeing day. What is your favorite part of your job? And your not-so-favorite part?
Marie: I love the act of creating, of picking colors and seeing them mingle on a skein of yarn – it’s very satisfying, but I think my favorite part is seeing the items knit by my customers.  I get such a thrill knowing our combined efforts will make a beautiful finished object.  My not so favorite part is accidentally dyeing my hands wild colors, you should see the looks I get on the subway when I’ve had a little “color explosion.”

Loopy: I would think if you had been dyeing with reds, you might look a little dangerous. Although maybe people give you a wide berth that way!  Do you do this business full-time, or on the side?  And is that hard?
Marie: I consider this to be my second job. I feel I put just as much time and effort into Brooklyn Handspun as I do my day job where I am a paralegal extraordinaire.  It’s especially apparent when I’m dyeing all day on the weekends and late into the night.  It can be difficult with 2 jobs, but I love what I do so it’s worth the sacrifice of some personal time.

Loopy: It’s probably a good outlet for the right side of your brain, after working in the left side all day long.  Does anyone else in your family knit?
Marie: I am the only knitter in my family, although my 9 year old niece has shown some interest.  I think I can turn her into a little knitter in no time!

Loopy: Are there other hobbies that you enjoy?
Marie: I enjoy most things of a crafty nature, such as jewelry making, quilting, sewing, photography – anything that involves creativity and color.  I have a weakness for fantasy novels and can spends days on end reading them if given the opportunity.  I am also a classically trained singer and when I had time I sang with a small opera company, although now I generally just annoy my cats singing arias around the house.

Loopy: So some of our yarns might’ve been sung to as they were dyeing up? I like that!  What would be your favorite way to spend a day off?
Marie: Hmm a day off?  What’s that? If a day off does exist, then I think I’d sleep in, knit for a few hours in my PJ’s listening to music, bake something sweet and sinful before sitting down with a good book.  If, after all that excitement, I still have energy, I’ll order in some dinner, cuddle up on the couch with my partner and our 4 cats, grab a WIP and watch a good movie.

Loopy: Thanks for being in the Limelight today, Marie!
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Sheri spendingaquietdayhereatLoopycatchinguponthings

We have a super easy contest for you this month. See this pretty mannequin? We need a name for her.  She’ll be modeling hats, scarves, and cowls here at Loopy Central, but so far a name has eluded us.  She looks rather 40′s-ish, doesn’t she? Or maybe not.  So the contest for the month – leave a blog comment with your name suggestion OR tell us your grandparents first names in the comments section. We might find a good name from one of your grandparents, too. (And that way, we’ll have a good man-name in case we add a guy mannequin at some point.)  We’ll choose the name that we think fits her best! If you suggested it, we’ll be sending you some Wollmeise. (If more than one person suggests the same name, we’ll draw for it.) We’ll also do a random draw from all of the comments,  for another winner of Wollmeise, just because we want to. (By the way, I missed Blog De-Lurk day on Monday, so today would be a good day to do your annual de-lurk here on the blog – and get into the contest at the same time!)

Update on things here: We all need a bit of a Wollmeise Breather. The two Customs-stuck boxes have come in, but the yarn needs to be photoed and put up and I’m heading out to CA on Friday.  So – no Wollmeise for awhile.  We haven’t decided about next week yet. And speaking of leaving, I’ll be back to the blog on Monday with another Loopy Limelight. (Thanks for all of your fun emails and comments about the Limelights. It is fun for me to share more about these wonderful dyers and knitters with you, and I’m glad you like it, too.) Next Monday’s Limelight features the indie dyer whose sock yarn I’m currently knitting into a sock. Wonderful stuff.

Monday: there’s no mail here in the U.S., so we’ll all off that day. (Me? I’ll be recovering from a very quick weekend in CA. The Elves? Spending time with their kids, who will also be off that day.)  All orders from Friday noon, through Monday evening, will begin shipping on Tuesday morning. I hope you all have a nice long weekend, if you’re lucky enough to have Monday off, too!

Sheri usingWendy’sS(p)ockspatternonmynewsock

Today we have Tricia from Earthly Hues in the Limelight. I love that Tricia uses natural dyes in the process, which makes her yarn special!  I know so many of you love Tricia’s work, and I’m happy that she agreed to be in the Limelight with us today.
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Loopy: Hi Tricia! How long have you been a knitter and who taught you to knit?
Tricia: Hi Loopy! Which time? I first learned to knit when I was about 8 or 9 years old.  I have memories of sitting with my Mom and learning very basic stitches, then getting frustrated and losing patience.  Those lessons didn’t stick. I learned to knit again when my son, Kevin, was about a year old, which would be about 3 1/2 years ago.  We had recently returned home from a trip to Colorado, where we spent a week around Estes Park and then a week around Gunnison.  We were in Estes Park (awesome farmer’s market there) during the week of the Estes Park Wool Market, but I was clueless.  I remember thinking, “That looks like it might be fun to go see . . . ,” but we went for a hike in the mountains instead.  Lucky for my husband and two boys, huh?  I probably would have gotten sucked in then and there!  Soon after we returned I investigated The Needling Yarn in Granville, my local LYS, and signed up for a beginning knitting class.  I made a felted bag that was knit in the round and all knits and purls.  I dropped a stitch and actually ripped out several hours worth of work to go “catch” it.  Now I know better and have several crochet hooks to use to catch that dropped stitch up to the current row! I’ve never not had a project on the needles since then.  It’s an addiction.  I actually need to knit.  But it’s not an unhealthy addiction, I think, because so far I haven’t done anything illegal or immoral to feed it!

Loopy: You passed on the Estes Park Wool Market? Oh, my! What is your favorite item to knit now?
Tricia: Anything that will keep my boys warm.  I have three: Geoffrey and Kevin are 6 1/2 and 4 1/2 years old and Andrew is the greatest Husband-Boy ever.  Can I just tell you what he gave me for Christmas?  A 5-day beginning weaving class at Harrisville Designs in New Hampshire!  I don’t think he could have come up with anything better.  I’m currently working on sweaters for all three of them, which should have been Christmas gifts but weren’t.  One of the reasons is that I married a tall man who likes things long and roomy, which translates to needing a huge sweater.  I also had a lot of fun knitting a shawl for my Grandma Mary too. It was pale grey undyed alpaca with black, white, and scarlet accents, and I used a Feather and Fan pattern from Cheryl Oberle’s book, Folk Shawls.  I shortened it though, to fit my 4 ft., 11 in.-Grandmother’s frame!  She loves it and wears it to OSU Buckeye game-day parties where all the other ladies ooh and aah.

Loopy: I like the picture of your grandma in her shawl. What is the most challenging thing that you have knit to date?
Tricia: That scarf I started when I was 9!  But that probably doesn’t count, because it lives on as an eternally-UFO somewhere.  My Mom saves everything, so it truly wouldn’t surprise me to find it in a corner of a drawer someday, in a baggie marked “Tricia, 1982.”  But that could also be my Dad’s work too.  He files things.  You’d be surprised, and I’m sure I would be too, at what can be found in old file cabinets and boxes.  Seriously though, I think the most difficult thing I’ve knit is an intarsia and fair-aisle vest I designed and implemented for my kids.  It has a raven, which, if we had a family crest would be on it.  I’ve been told that Rawnsley means “raven” in Old English, and Andrew likes the symbolism.

Loopy: And now you’re a dyer. How did you go from knitting to dyeing?
Tricia: Well, I was curious about dyeing from almost the start of my knitting career.  I started to research dyes and techniques, and to lurk on some blogs within a year of learning to knit.  One blog in particular was maintained mostly by Jacki when she and Gail ran Cider Moon.  I think it was through there I realized they were going to teach a class at Knitter’s Connection in Columbus in June of 2007.  I signed up for their class, among others, but theirs was the one I really looked forward to the most.  It was a lot of fun, and very informational, and I still have those skeins of yarn in my stash.  I bought a spare microwave from the show organizer, and started experimenting with yarns and dye that summer.  Pretty soon I decided that the acid dye powders weren’t something I could feel comfortable working with in the house (remember I have two curious little boys?) and I started to research natural dyes.  So, Jacki gets the credit for peaking my curiosity.  It’s also due to being so inspired by other talented dyers, many of whom have yarn here at The Loopy Ewe!  I still lurk on blogs and websites, and am inspired more and more every day.  Though Jacki and Gail have gone on to pursue different projects, I know that without that class it would have taken me much longer to get where I am!

Loopy: Jacki and Gail are both great at inspiring many knitters. How do you come up with your colorways, and do you have a favorite?
Tricia: Well, my by-line kind of explains it: “Divine colour inspired by nature.”  I look around at what I see and I try to replicate a little bit of it.  The wrens in my garden this winter, all black and brown and tawny gold make me
want to try something that incorporates those colours.  Similarly, the greys of Ohio in winter are also inspiring.  Then there’s Rainbow Feet, which is my favourite … unless my favourite is 1776.  Anything that has indigo is my favourite I think.  Indigo is magical and mystical.  I’d love to demonstrate Indigo at a fibre show, because it really is something that’s so easy yet produces beautiful colour.  Yarn always looks terrible when it comes out of the pot, but within seconds the blues start to develop.  It seems magical but there’s a very good scientific explanation.  It’s the perfect marriage of science and art.  I don’t think I can adequately describe it.  Come on over some day and I’ll show you!

Loopy: That sounds like a deal! What is your favorite part of your job? And your not-so-favorite part?
Tricia: My favourite part of running Earthly Hues is naming colourways.  Sometimes I know what I’m aiming for, but other times I just start throwing colour at yarn and decide later what it should be called.  My least favourite part, by far, is book-keeping.  I hate to do it.  I hate even acknowledging that it has to be done! It makes me scowl.

Loopy: It makes me scowl, too. Ugh. Well can you tell us more about your family and your farm?
Tricia: I think the only member of my immediate family I haven’t mentioned is our German Shepherd dog, Zinfandel a.k.a Zinny-Dog, Zin, and Spastic Shepherd. She’s 7 now, but as a puppy she had these crazy spasms of energy where she’d drive us bonkers, which is how she earned that nickname.  I used it on my first blog, and considered using it for my dye business but then decided not to.  So, Spastic Shepherd Knits remains the personal knitting/family blog and Earthly Hues got its own blog.  Neither gets updated as much as it should.  Have I mentioned I have two small boys?  And a husband?  A dog? Oh, right.  I did.  We live in a beautiful home on 3 acres in Granville, Ohio now, but that’s to change soon because Andrew’s job is relocating us to New Jersey.  We’ve always had a garden, which includes annuals, perennials, and vegetables, and this past year I started a dye garden that has madder and coriopsis and a few other things.  We got the news about the move around the same time I was sowing seeds last spring, so I saved a lot of them for the next house.  I did learn, though, that Indigo will not grow in Ohio.

Loopy: You have a garden specifically for growing dye plants? That sounds wonderful! I’ll bet it’s handy to have all of that yarn around, all the time. Does anyone else in your family knit?
Tricia: My sisters both knit, as does my Mom.  My sister-in-law mainly crochets.  I have several aunts who either knit or crochet, and my Grandmother also knits.  I’m trying to convince the (little) boys that knitting is fun, and have even bought a book for them and big needles, but they say it’s “too girly.”  Maybe if they knew men who knit they’d be more apt to try it too?

Loopy: I think you need to find a cool hat or scarf that would appeal to them. Then they’ll see what fun things they can make. Are there other hobbies that you enjoy?
Tricia: I love spinning yarn.  I know I’ll love weaving.  I read a lot of Elizabethan fiction and non-fiction from that era in history because it is my favourite.  I hand-stamp Christmas cards every year, but didn’t get around to it this year because of general busy-ness.  I also sew and enjoy drawing, singing, playing guitar, gardening, hiking, shopping local, volunteering in my kids’ classrooms, learning new things, baking and cooking (and eating) local foods, and writing.  I like words, which is why I got my BA in creative writing.  But you probably couldn’t tell I like words, right? Because my answers are so short, cryptic, and to-the-point?  Sarcasm is something I inherited from my Mom. My sisters have it too, and my brother.  It’s definitely genetic.  (Don’t try to deny it guys.)

Loopy: You like words? We would not have guessed. What would be your favorite way to spend a day off?
Tricia: Having fun with my boys, big and small.  We recently spent a day going to lunch and then to COSI, Columbus’ Center of Science and Industry.  There are always interesting things there to learn about and play with.  It’s a great museum and I’d highly suggest it as a place to take kids if you’re visiting the area!  Another recent day off we took the boys ice skating.  Lots of fun and only a few bruises!

Loopy: Thanks for being in the Limelight today! Anything else you’d like to add?
Tricia: “Save fuel, wear wool.”  It’s not mine – I got it from my LYS’s front window. I like it though, so that’s my final answer!  Thanks so much for the opportunity to introduce myself to all your readers. I’m honored to be a
part of the Loopy family!

Loopy: And we’re very glad to have you here!
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Sock Club Signups are up on the homepage (although most of you have apparently already found that!). Also, watch for this week’s Sneak Up, which will include our next round of Loopy Legends, The YoYo CashSport, The Alpaca Yarn Company’s brand new Paca Peds colors, a Claudia Hand Painted re-stock, and a Namaste re-stock. (Note – if you ordered a Zuma Eggplant, they shipped out to us last week from CA. We’ll be emailing the pre-order invoices sometime this week so that we can get those right out to you as soon as they arrive.)

Sheri whostartedanotherNoroScarfthisweekend
andIdon’tevenwanttotalkeaboutthisscarfissue