Catching Up

Wow! This winter has been a bear, hasn't it?! February 2010 was the second snowiest on record; topped only by Feb. 1900.

It's finally March, and this month seems to have come in like a Lamb, with temps reaching 40 degrees and the SUN shining! The Winter Olympics have ended, and if you participated in Ravelympics over on Ravelry, hopefully you completed your events.

If you haven't stopped by the shop, lately, Tuesday night Insanknitty sessions have been jam-packed to just about standing room only. Don't let that keep you away, though. There's always room for one more. Or two. Or three. :-) Dale Ann and Bobbie just celebrated their THIRD ANNIVERSARY at Yarn Cravin' also! Hooray for all of us! There is a new rule, though:

We just need you all to be aware of the writing on the wall!

Also, remember that classes continue to be in full swing at Yarn Cravin' on just about every day of the week, and at all different time slots. The Winter schedule is winding down, so watch for a spring schedule soon.

Would you like to see the very newest in organizational tools from Namaste? Of course you do! They just arrived at the shop today...

This little box is an accordion file for your circular needles! Inside you'll find over a dozen (I didn't stop to count them, but I'm thinking closer to 24) pockets, plus tabs for labels. The colors match all of your gorgeous knitting bags. There are countless ways to use this handly little box - maybe get one for longer lengths of circulars, and one for shorter lengths? It would make a great gift for a friend who knits exclusively on circulars. Having seen the price today (it's less than $25!!) I know they will fly out the door.

Many knitters are counting down the days until the Spring Retreat in mid-April. If you signed up, but haven't paid yet, get your $$$ in ASAP. All spots are filled, so if for some reason you cannot attend, be sure to let Dale Ann, Bobbie or Annette know right away. Others are anxious to attend.

There have been some new faces dropping into the shop recently. If you see someone you don't know or don't recognize, please say hi and introduce yourself. We want to keep it fun, friendly and informal!

What A Party!

Were you here for the Pajama Party Sale? The bravest of the brave were lined up well before 6:00AM rarin' to go!

Look at these happy early morning shoppers!

Misti was wide awake and ready to help.

Addi decided that early morning sales were for the birds.

Shoppers were packed in all the rooms looking for deals, and filling their bags full of wool.

This Yarn Cravin' Elf looks happy, considering the early hour.

Should we do it again next year? What do you think?

Pajama Party Sale! Pajama Party Sale!

Yarn Cravin’ First Annual Pajama Party Sale

Saturday January 2nd, 6:00AM-9:00AM

(yes, you read that right!)

First of all, there are a few rules! (oh, yeah, the fine print...)

• You MUST wear P. J.’s to get the discount. Not sweat suits, scrubs, etc. Pajamas are a must! NO pajamas, NO discount. (We will be in our jammies, too, don't worry!)
  



• Sale is on in stock items. Needles, special orders, yarns we are holding for you and classes are excluded. No other discounts apply.
  
  
  
• No yarns will be wound into pull skeins from 6-9, from 10-4 maybe. You may bring yarns purchased back at a later date to be wound.
  



• From 6-7 all yarns will be 40% off, everything else 25% off
  (you need to be in line by 7 to get 40% off)
  



• From 7-8 all yarns will be 35% off, everything else 25% off
  (you need to be in line by 8 to get 35% off)
  
  
  
• From 8-9 all yarns will be 30% off, everything else 25% off
  (you need to be in line by 9 to get 30% off)
  
  
  
• Bathroom Sale Yarn 75% off from 6-9 ONLY
  



• From 10-4 everything will be 25% off! (patterns, books, knitting bags!! notions, mugs)

You don't wanna sleep through this one!!! Get it on your calendar now!

NOTE: We will close from 9-10 to allow our helpers time to have breakfast and get ready for the rest of the day!!

Puppies, Ponchos and Fish

Puppies, ponchos and fish. Say what?!

You'll see!

Item number one: The Puppy.
Look at Misti! Isn't she adorable? She's growing quickly, so if you haven't stopped in to see her in her "little" stage, do it soon!

Item number two: Ponchos. Look at the adorable poncho Deb made! She took the Icelandic Sweater class with Wayne (former co-owner of Fiber Works, which we all dearly miss), and adapted what she learned to make a poncho for her granddaughter. Brilliant!!

Last, but not least, FISH! Fish hats! This is a free pattern at knitty.com and you can knit it yourself quite easily. Fishy hat can be made from Mission Falls superwash quite economically like the hat on the right. Just picture yourself at a Toledo Walleye hockey game sporting one of these hats! Too much fun, friends.

As always, Tuesday nights are open for fun and friendship, help and shopping. We would love to see you!

Remember this month there's so much to be thankful for, including our yarn, and our yarn shop and shop owners!!

Visitors and Giving Back

If you're a regular at Tuesday night Insanknitty, you may have noticed an unfamiliar face recently. Bobbie was teaching someone to knit. What you wouldn't have known is that the good sport, Bridget, was also doing research for an article she was writing for The Toledo Blade, which ran this past Wednesday. You can read the article HERE if you missed it. Ms. Tharp did her homework, visiting the three local independent yarn shops for her story. It was great to have more positive press for Yarn Cravin', for sure!

Bobbie teaching Bridget Tharp, from The Blade, how to knit.

We had the chance to check out some new yarns, like this gorgeous yarn from Mirasol.

Mary, Becky, and Annette were enjoying themselves. Great orange sweater, Becky!

These new Flat Feet arrived for October. Look at those desert southwest colors and motifs!

The Knit to Lose Group which met on Saturday mornings was such a great success that they have started another session. The last session ended with some very successful weight loss and a donation of over 75 pounds of food to the local food bank. Just "shopping" in our own pantries reminded us how fortunate we are! The food bank was so surprised to get the call to come and pick up food from our little group. Great job, girls.

Make sure you get outside to enjoy the fall colors, everyone. They will be gone in the blink of an eye.

How many days until Christmas, DaleAnn? Bobbie? I bet those ladies know how many days we have until the holidays are upon us! But no pressure. There's always a Yarn Cravin' Gift Certificate!

Celebrities

Were you watching TV at 12:30 PM today, Sunday, October 11? Our wonderful yarn shop owners were featured on "Coffee With The Fords"! Cynthia Ford found Yarn Cravin' during Harrison Rally Days and invited DaleAnn and Bobbie to be on the show. How exciting is that? I took photos of my television screen to show you all here!

Look! Here's our Jen! from Arizona, showing off Mary's completed baby blanket at the Fall Retreat. Hooray!

Julie joined Bobbie and Dale and they all showed off beautiful knitting!

The closed-captioning is referring to the running joke about tornadoes and how we all keep knitting instead of heading to the basement. hehehee Don't the ladies look gorgeous on TV?
As soon as the story is up on the CH 13 (13abc.com) website, I will post a link here.

In the meantime, are you looking for a quick and easy shawl to knit to keep you cozy this fall? I came across this free pattern recently. Multnomah is made with fingering weight yarn (or go to thicker yarn for a bigger shawl!) and is garter stich with a feather and fan edging. I know there's yarn at Yarn Cravin' with your name on it; maybe even on the porch in the sale yarn! Go check it out on Tuesday.

Editing to add the link to the show! Yarn Cravin' on Coffee With The Fords

Yarn Cravin' Has Gone To The Dogs

The current temps and humidity outside may say hot, hot, hot, but the leaves on the trees say otherwise. This photo was taken from the porch at Yarn Cravin' just last night at knitting. Yes, Fall is here. Your favorite football fan is going to need some warm mittens or a hat or scarf! Have you been in to see all the goodies?

Our resident Princess Pooch, Addi Purl, now has a playmate. DaleAnn has adopted a gremlin... er... Shi Tzu, and named her Misti (as in Misti Alpaca hehehehe). Remember I posted a while back that Yarn Cravin' is family friendly and kid friendly. I really meant it. It's a fun, playful, happy place.

The porch is overflowing with sale yarns that are just too good to pass up. Really. You won't forgive yourself if you miss out on these. And your friends won't forgive you if you don't bring them along! (We won't tell on you if you shop before bringing a friend to shop, though.) It's not all cottony, summer yarn. There are some wools and sock yarns, too. I promise!

Inside the shop, the shelves are packed to capacity with new yarns. I mean really new. Yarns you've never seen before have arrived and are filling every nook and cranny. New patterns are flying in and out as fast as they come in. Browse for sure, but ask "What's new?" when you come in the door!

Tuesday nights are still knitting nights at the shop. We would love to see you, even if it's just for a few minutes. Bring whatever you're working on. We've had spinning, crocheting and cross-stitching along with our knitters. It's all about community and looking out for each other. Come and show off what you've made. I would love to feature your project here.