It was interesting to read your thoughts on getting a puppy in last week’s blog post.

1. “It’s a lot of work.” Having raised a puppy before, I do agree that it’s a lot of work. (But a lot of fun.) And I also agree that it makes more sense to train a puppy in the spring. Definitely.

2. “You and WH like to travel.” True. We do go off a bit on the weekends. Mostly we just do day trips for fun and adventure, but we do have the occasional weekend away to visit the kids. Fortunately, my folks and my brother all live in St. Louis and do great pet-sitting.

3. “You can’t leave it home all day.” Right. I would have to bring the dog to work (maybe I ought to find one that looks like Loopy?) and I know there are varying opinions on a dog in a yarn shop. This is a big place, though, so no one would be tripping over the dog. There is a dog who comes to work with one of the guys who works upstairs in our building. (Archie. He’s a Welsh Corgi, I think. The dog. Not the guy.)

4. “What would your cats do with a dog?” Gracie and Zoe like dogs. Well, Gracie would hide for a few days, but then she’d get over it. Actually, if she was out on the screen porch birdwatching when the dog arrived, she wouldn’t even notice it. She loves her birdwatching. She sits in that chair and watches the birds land on those birdfeeders a couple of feet in front of her, and her day is complete. And Zoe would put that puppy in its place the minute it walked in the house. She’s a 5 lb. bundle of  ”Alpha Cat”, which would then translate to “Alpha Pet”. No worries at all about Zoe.

But …. I’m thinking we won’t get one. At least not at this point in our lives. It doesn’t make a lot of sense and the cons still outweight the pros. (However, if I show you a photo next week of “our new dog”, please play along with me and don’t remind me about this conversation.) I really am more of a cat person, I think. Are you more of a cat person or a dog person? I know some of you are both!

Now I’m off with my knitting and my recipes, to visit Web Guy in Florida for a long weekend. (Woohoo!) We have some 2010 website planning to tackle, and I’ll be doing some cooking to fill up his bachelor freezer. I’ll be back with you next week, and will tell you how it went.

Sheri sothankfulthattheElveswillbeheregettingyourordersout
whileI’mgone!IlovethoseElves….

2. You can make them out of the finest cobweb lace or the heaviest bulky yarn.

3. Once you add one to your wardrobe, you see a need for many more in multiple colors and styles to go with everything else.

4. People always comment on them when you wear them. (This does not always happen when you wear handknit sweaters or socks.)

5. You can try a lot of different techniques with shawl knitting.

6. There are easy-peasy patterns to start with, so you can ease into it slowly. And there are amazingly complicated patterns, for those of you who need a good challenge.

7. Mini shawls often take 1-2 skeins, so there is a not a big investment in yarn.

8. Mini shawls also quicker to knit up. I might be a little addicted to them. Mini shawls like Multnomah (I made 2 of them), Traveling Woman (I made 1, so far), Mara (just finished one of these – love it), Damson (still need to try this one), etc.

9. They’re a great way to use up sock yarn in your stash. They’re also a great project for trying out new lines of yarn (whether it’s laceweight, fingering weight, worsted weight, or something in between.)

10. Knitting a shawl is our Fourth Quarter Challenge, so come participate with us!

Details on the shawl shown here:
Pattern: Traveling Woman
Yarn: Lorna’s Laces Pearl (I had to order more Pearl for the shop last Friday, when I finished this shawl. It’s so warm and luscious and lovely to knit.) The pattern calls for fingering weight, although I used the heavier Pearl. I think it would also be pretty done up in Dye Dreams semi-solids, or The YoYo String and Fluff semi-solids.
Modifications: None

Details on today’s Monday Update: It’s Re-stock Week! We have re-stocked our Knitspot patterns (ok, and added a few new ones), Heartstrings patterns, more Lorna’s Laces, and some fun Monkeypal colorways. (Note – both Knitspot and Heartstrings have wonderful shawl patterns, if you’re feeling the desire to make one. Just sayin’.)

Sheri knitaMaraovertheweekend.NowpickingoutmoreMadtoshWorsted
tomakeanother.Ilovethatpleatedruffle.

Peanut Butter Dessert

1 pk. brownie mix (for 9 x 13 pan)
2 1/2 cups cold milk
1 pk. vanilla instant pudding mix
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
12 oz. carton of Cool Whip
3 squares semi-sweet chocolate

Prepare and bake brownie mix as directed. Cool completely.

Mix vanilla pudding mix and 2 1/2 cups cold milk, beating at medium speed for 2 minutes. Add in powdered sugar and peanut butter and whip well. Spread on cooled brownies.

Melt chocolate squares in microwave for 1 minute (on high). Stir until all bits have been dissolved.  Put frozen Cool Whip in microwave for 1 minute (on high). Mix chocolate and Cool Whip together and whisk well to blend. Pour over pudding layer and spread evenly.

Refrigerate for several hours or overnight before serving. Store in refrigerator.

This what I had for dinner last night. Well, there might have been soup, too, but this is the thing I remember most. The chocolate and peanut butter dessert. Mmmmmm….

My Traveling Woman Shawl is done and ready to block. Now I’m on to Mara with Madelinetosh Worsted and another pair of Cabled Mitts with Lorna’s Laces Worsted. (Worsted weight – a knitter’s best friend when gift knitting must get done. And Lorna’s and Madelinetosh must have the most wonderful worsted yarns on the planet. Seriously.) I’m also contemplating Colonnade with Lorna’s Laces. Elf Donna is making one up out of LL Worsted and it is gorgeous. A Must Knit.

Sheri inthemoodtogetapuppy.Pleasetellme
whythat’sareallybadidea.WHclaimsitis.Idon’tbelievehim.

I was curious as to how this day came to be, so I did some research. Back in 1918, World War I ended with the implementation of an armistice (temporary cessation of hostilities until the final peace treaty could be signed in 1919) at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of November.  In 1919, President Wilson proclaimed the first official “Armistice Day” to honor those who had died in service to their country. The idea was that all businesses would stop for two minutes at 11:00 am on 11/11 to honor these people.

In 1921, Congress passed legislation declaring 11/11/21 a legal Federal holiday to honor all who had participated in the war. In the 20’s and 30’s, most states established 11/11 as a legal holiday, and the President gave an annual proclamation to observe this at the Federal level.

In 1938, Congress passed legislation making 11/11 a permanent legal Federal holiday, Armistice Day. In 1954, President Eisenhower signed legislation to change the name to “Veteran’s Day”. During the 60’s and 70’s, the observance varied between state to state, from the 4th Monday of October to November 11th. In 1978, the celebration was moved back to November 11th for everyone.

I’m sure that I learned about the history of this day as I went through school, but I didn’t remember how it came to be. I’m glad that we have a day to stop, remember, and honor.

Sheri includedinthisFederalholidayisnomailservice.
We’llgetbacktothattomorrowforyou.

We have another whopper one for you today because so many things arrived over this past week. One line that I’m thrilled to have back in the shop is Sweet Georgia. If you’ve been with us since the beginning, you know that Felicia’s line is one of the first few indie dyer lines that we added in here. After carrying it for quite awhile, Felicia decided a year-long dyeing break was in order and off she went to travel the world. She came back with more color ideas and a desire to dye, which was good news for all of us! We have our first shipment from her, which is her popular Tough Love Sock Yarn, in many beautiful colors.

Another new dyer that we just added in is Huckleberry Knits. I found Scarlet at Sock Summit this summer. Or, rather, her yarn found me. I was sitting in a talk by Barbara Walker and the person in front of me was knitting the brightest (happiest) colorway I had seen in a long time. Since the session had already started, I couldn’t ask her what it was. But I did walk the marketplace later that afternoon, determined to find it. Sure enough, there it was in Scarlet’s booth. Success! This is the sock that I knit up with it and I really love it. We have Scarlet’s worsted line here right now, with the fingering weight line coming sometime in January. (I wanted the Worsted line, too, because I think her colors would make some really great sweaters.)

We’ve also added in: More Dream in Color Starry, Baby and Classy, more colors of Lorna’s Laces Worsted, Shepherd Sock, Shepherd Sport and Helen’s Laces (also from Lorna’s, the Loopy Ewe colorway in Sock and Sport), 50 colors of Madelinetosh Worsted, a new batch of Sereknity Yarn and Fiber, Mind Your Knitting Beanie Baggies, 3 AM Enchantments bags and wrist tags in the Sheep-y fabric you all love, the new Red bags and accessories from Namaste, and a new pattern from Wendy Knits that gives you fun things to do with your sock yarn leftovers. Come on over and check everything out!

And that’s why we were so busy around here last week. This week is shaping up to be the same way. We like that.

Sheri startedmyTravelingWomanShawlovertheweekend
andIhopetohaveitdonesoon.Greatpattern.

Homemade NO’s
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
3 cups sugar (plus 1/4 cup to flatten the cookies)
2 1/4 cups unsalted butter (room temperature)
2 eggs (room temperature)
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
Vanilla Cream Filling (see below)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sift together dry ingredients.

In mixer, cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add in eggs and beat well. Slowly add in dry ingredient mix and continue beating until the dough is well mixed.

Scoop out 1 Tbl.-sized balls onto baking stone (or parchment-lined cookie sheet), about 2″ apart. Dip bottom of glass into sugar and press to flatten cookies to about 1/4″ thick. Bake 10-12 minutes. Let cool on pan/stone for 2 minutes and then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Vanilla Cream Filling
1 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
1 cup solid vegetable shortening
7 cups confectioners sugar
2 Tbl. pure vanilla extract

Cream butter and shortening. Gradually add in sugar and mix until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and mix to combine.

Spread on flat side of one cookie, then top it with the flat side of a second cookie and press lightly.

Filled cookies can be stored at room temperature for up to 2 days.  Makes approximately 3 dozen sandwiches.

*Note, you can also half the recipe and get just 16 sandwiches. But why would you want to do that?

So much to get done this weekend. I’m still trying to knock off some of the half-finished items from my “to knit” list, so that when I write about it in the blog next week, it won’t look quite so bad…

Sheri madetheselastweekandtookthemtoWebGuyinOhio
NowI’mwishingIhadonetogowithmycoffee.

November Sock Club invoices went out today, so if you’re in our Sock Club, check your in-box. It always amazes me how quickly most of you find those emails and pay up so that we can get your boxes out to you! I’ve been busy working on the 2010 Sock Club and am excited about starting up the next one. We’re working with some great dyers and designers again for next year and we have added quite a few more spots for 2010, as well as a fun tweak or two. Details and signups for the 2010 Club will go up in mid-January (so watch the blog and the monthly customer email newsletter in early January).

I enjoyed reading about the things you always really really really wanted when growing up. Many of you felt the same way about Easy Bake Ovens and horses. I laughed when I read Jean’s comment: “I wanted the EasyBake oven and a horse too!  Never did get the oven – mom’s argument was that she’d let me use the big oven any time I wanted, Why did I need a tiny fake one?” That was exactly what my mom said. She was always happy to have me do any baking I might want to do in the real oven. Of course nothing really compared to baking a couple of tablespoons of cake batter by lightbulb. I was also glad to read that Helene finally got the dog she has always wanted (and named her Happy)! I love reading all of your blog comments.

Speaking of getting gifts – I’m realizing that the holidays will be here too SOON and I have much knitting to get done. I’m making a list and will share it with you next week. You know, just so you can tell me that  1) I’m nuts or  2) your list is a lot worse. Either response will probably make me feel better.

Sheri wishyoucouldseealloftheyarnboxesthathavearrived
inthepasttwodays.Holycow.Muchphotoinggoingon.

We had a great time at the wedding in Ohio this past weekend.

I worked on Sock Number One of my “if it’s going to be gloomy then the least I can do is WEAR sunshine” socks. This is out of Lorna’s Laces Sport in Butterscotch (I love the golden color), and I used the Monica Knit’s Swirl Socks pattern. Changes to the pattern: I knit them toe-up with a short-row heel and used 60 stitches instead of 70. I’ve already started the second sock. I think Swirling Sunshine Socks (say that three times) will be perfect for gloomy days, inside and out. I know that many of you said you were also going to knit some sunshine socks, so you’ll have to let us know what yarn and pattern you have chosen. It’s good to have mood-enhancing socks, don’t you think?

We did a big Sneak Up for you this afternoon. Actually, some of you may have noticed that I have started referring to them as “Monday Updates” instead. A few people get all wigged out over the idea of  ”sneaking up” and think that it’s a marketing scheme. (That always cracks me up. It was simply a survival scheme. As in “let’s just put things up quietly so that the website doesn’t crash from too many people on at once” strategy. We said, “We can’t announce the exact time any more, so we’ll just sneak it up for you and then you can stumble upon it when you check the site.” This started being referred to as a “Sneak Up”.) We went to a much larger server over a year ago and so far it has handled even Wollmeise updates without completely crashing. Most of you know that we put a big batch of new things up most Mondays, so I’m now going with “Monday Update” and hoping that it’s a term that everyone can handle.

In tonight’s Monday Update: 6 more colors of Fleece Artist’s specially priced Nyoni, Dream in Color Starry (some of the colors have arrived back in stock. We’ll add the rest as they trickle in via UPS). Also, Dream in Color Baby, Perchance to Knit 24/7 Sock, Lorna’s Laces Worsted (more colors arriving as they get dyed up. This is such beautiful yarn!). We also added Black Bunny Fibers Classic, a re-stock of Woolpets (along with two new kits – Chickadees and Sock Monkey), Offhand Designs (in 2 new styles – Suzannah and Daisy, which is reversible so that you can have all of those pockets on the inside or the outside of the bag), Della Q needle cases (I love having my needles all organized in Della’s organizers), more Marie Mayhew patterns, and a re-stock of Addi Clicks in the new smaller soft-touch pack which makes it easier for traveling. Whew. I think that’s it. Come on over and check it out.

Sheri ithasbeenareallybusyMondaybuttheSUNisSHININGtoday
soalliswell!

Happy Halloween to all of you!

I have a new cookbook that arrived this week and I think it’s my most favorite ever. (Which says a lot, because I may be guilty of collecting cookbooks…) It’s called “The Pioneer Woman Cooks“. I can’t remember how I stumbled upon The Pioneer Woman’s blog, but I have enjoyed reading it over the past year. What I like about her brand new (first ever) cookbook is: great recipes (and ones that I will actually make), step by step pictures, and fun stuff to read about life on the ranch. Most of the new recipes that I have tried lately have come from her, and I was so glad when I read that she had a cookbook coming out this fall. I think it would make a great holiday gift for several people on my list. (You know, the ones I’m not knitting for. And since I’m only knitting gifts for a handful of people this year, there are quite a few on the “no knits” list.)

<– Look – pictures of horses! I always wanted a horse, growing up. I never got one. And I also wanted an Easy Bake Oven that never magically appeared under the tree. Do any of you remember “really really really” wanting some particular thing? (Because, you know, that’s the way we talked about such things at that stage of life: really really really. Like you’d REALLY REALLY REALLY die if you didn’t get it). So were there things you really really really wanted and … never did get? Or does anyone remember spending a few hours poring over the Sears WishBook, making your list of things you had to have in order to survive another year of life? Or does this whole conversation just really (really really) date me? Yes? Never mind, then.

Sheri whonolongerwantsanEasyBakeOven.
ButI’dstilltakeahorse,evennow.

Ok. I’ve always said that I like rainy, cloudy days.

This morning I woke up and thought that I really need a pair of yellow socks for a day like today. There might be no sunshine outside, but there ought to be sunshine in the knits. I found lots of options (and hey – look – they fashioned themselves into a sun!). Yellow is definitely a “Frank” color for me. I wear more “Marthas”. If St. Louis is going to pretend to be Seattle every year, then I will need to add more Franks to my sock stash. I do have a beautiful pair of red/orange Wollmeise socks that a friend knit for me. Those are my favorite Franks. But I still need to make Sunshine Socks for these cloudiest of days weeks months. And I think I need to carry them around in this sunshine-y bag. What is your most favorite BRIGHT pair of Frank socks? Or do you live in one of those near-constant sunshine areas and you need more calm/cool/Martha pairs?

Sheri goodthingitissobrightandcolorfulhereatLoopyCentral
Thatmakesthingscheerfulevenonthegrayestofdays