Big shipment of yarns from Universal has arrived and is  heavy on the silk at an easy-on-the-pocketbook price. There is also a new worsted wool in gorgeous self-striping colors, which will also felt!  Tre new Skacel things on the way as well, and new funky meshes have arrived that let you continue to have summer fun with very few stitches!

I'm beginning to think about gift items, and I'm afraid that leads me into my favorite diatribe.  I don't know about you, but to me there's something inherently wrong when a battery goes dead, and a new item is cheaper than getting a new battery for the item.  Or something breaks, and there is no one, and usually no way, to fix it.  (My car drives my family crazy...it's ten years old, I love it, and I see no point in getting a new one when The Silver Bullet performs just fine.  So it needs a repair every now and then....still cheaper than a new one, and this one is not crushed and in a landfill.) So when I think about gift giving, a new plastic something doesn't even make my list, and probably doesn't make yours, either.  Handmade soap, a gourd bowl, knitted slippers, crocheted lace, homemade jelly, and my grands' favorite, homemade bath salts....all rise up to say "I love you enough to make these myself, or find an artisan who did." 

So if you're interested in the 2012 Gift Assortment, stop by The Sheep and talk about what you would like to do.  We have patterns, yarns, and ideas that will make you feel like Suzy The Gift Guru!

The "Just for Tween-Teens" knitting circle begins on Thursday morning, May 31st, at 10:30 a.m.  If you have a child/grandchild who's crafty (or who wants to be), come to the Sheep for free knitting lessons!! Moms/Grands are certainly welcome to stay, but many find this is a great hour to run to the grocery or the bank or wherever.  Or, if you'd like to stay and learn to knit as well, we're very flexible~

Check out the class section...we are doing some really fun stuff!

Summer is always a time when it is good to have a project that doesn't provoke the "I can't stand that making me hot in my lap!" reaction that some of our knitting sets off.  I know that this time of year I love to work with cotton and linen, and I begin thinking about things that will work for gifts.  I'm knitting a linen guest towel now using the new Sculana linen that just came in, and I'm soon to start a new knitted bathmat for one of the young'uns.  Patterns are free, so come in and take a look.

You all know that knitting slippers is my "go-to relax" project, and my friend Susan Z has turned me on to the "Duffers" pattern for a flat shoe reminiscent of the Papagallos we all wore years ago.  I'm working on my first pair, and I'll let you know how it goes.

We have lots of new yarns, and new ideas.  Come in and check it out!

A lot of us knitters are old enough to remember the debate in the late sixties/early seventies about a woman's right to make decisions about her own body, without any government involvement.  Whether or not we chose to use birthcontrol, or terminate a pregnancy, or NOT,  the idea was that it was not the government's business to make those decisions for us.  Most women felt that our own moral compasses should be our guides, with help from our physicians and our faith.  Certainly we didn't need the help of Congress!

So now here we are in 2012, and women's health issues are right back in the limelight.  This is a fight that we thought had been won forty years ago, but apparently we were wrong.  Some knitting groups around the country have come up the kind of protest knitters should love.  It's subtle, it's fun, and goes right to the core of what the problem may be.  Go to www.governmentfreevjj.com and read the suggestions there.  The idea is to knit a bit of the female equipment that some of our male representatives seem so interested in, and send it along to him, with a note that says, "Now that you have your own uterus, how about leaving mine alone?"  We have the pattern at the shop, if you want to stop by and get one.

Knit Night will resume on Monday, April 30, and the "new look" for The Flying Sheep should be complete.  Since our house will be spiffed up, we'll be doing a little "Martha Stewart" discussion of household items that can be knit or crocheted to really refresh your home.  Small pillows, bowls, rugs, etc., can all be turned out quickly and happily during the spring and summer, from different kinds of fabrics, to make a real statement about your craft.  Patterns will be free, and any yarn you buy that night will be discounted 10%.

Looking forward to seeing you soon!

When the courthouse renovations began, we requested that some kind of stop sign be placed at our corner. Traffic patterns had changed, there were more folks around who were unfamiliar with the corner, and a serious wreck became a daily possibility.

We asked and we immediately got the Godzilla of all stop signs, right in the middle of the right lane!  While it is interestingly placed, it DOES present some opportunities.  As a model, it can hold a myriad of knitted creations!  It is so tall that as a Maypole, it can center a street dance!  And as a conversation starter.....it is even more inspiring than the courthouse construction, which got this whole ball rolling.

So tonight, we are kicking off our week-long spring sale with a dedication and naming ceremony for our new Jasper landmark.  Most likely we'll break an obscure law or two in the process, so we're hoping that the Mayor will come to keep us straight!

The sale will last all week, and it is a good one!  We are just before renovating, ands we would like to have a whole lot less yarn to move around!  So come tonight, and tomorrow, and the next day, have fun, and score s

Last Sunday the choir director at a local church impressed the congregation with music, of course, but also with the pink and white lace scarf she was wearing.  Just when it seems you've got enough of these great little creations, along comes a new mesh flounce with an entirely different look.  Get in here and see the new colors and the new looks!  Still having fun with these.

Monday night at Knit Night we're having a little demonstration of a great crafty way to use up the snippets of yarn that seem to accumulate in knitters' and crocheters' stash.  Not knit, not crochet....just ingenious, so stop in at 5:30 on Monday 4/2 to take a look.  Bring your current project and sit a spell!

You'll be receiving a notice soon of a very special happening at The Sheep, so please watch your email.  We're planning a great spring festival event! So stay tuned!

Next Monday night we will begin Mysterious March Mondays, even though it technically won't be March yet.  The "mysterious" part involves a knit-around, and you will receive only two clues on how to begin.  Then the next Monday, you will get more clues...and we anticipate finishing in three weeks!

We are offering a fun time, beginning at 5:30 pm,  wine and cheese for after-work munchies, and two new patterns, as well as the knit-around clues. One is for a summer scarf, on the easy side,  and one is for the cutest little shrug you've ever seen.  This one is a bit more challenging, but certainly not hard, and we have lots of new yarn to choose textures and colors from.

We are having another hairpin lace class next Friday, at 10:30 am.  If you're still not sure you'd like to learn this new skill, talk to "Deb at the Drugstore"...she's a complete convert!  Since the fashion for fun neckwear - a new category that combines scarves and jewelry - seems to be growing, one can't have too many accessories.  Plus, think of the gift potential!  If you're getting tired of friends taking your handiwork off your person, bring them to The Sheep, and we'll teach them how to do it for themselves!

If you're sort of new at this knitting game, but you think you're hooked, you need to come in and sample the Denise Needle Kit.  The points are not so sharp that your finger will bleed, but sharp enough to keep from splitting even the most loosely-plied yarn.  Plus, they are not expensive at all, compared to buying individual needles in the sizes you need.New yarns arrived today, and more is on the way from Dark Horse!   

And now, for the work-of-the-week!  And you just thought felted purses had to be huge.  This is "Libby's Jeans Purse"!  Fabulous.  We have the pattern!

Most of you know that when it is snowy and icy we can't get up our driveway, so stay tuned here about Knit Night and Tuesday opening!

Enjoy the snap!

A quick little picker-uper is a light spring scarf...it can be the loopy scarf, the merino/silk lace, or even the mohair spectrum.  Quick to knit, can be elegant or funky, simple or complicated looking.  Come on in and get the free pattern!

I'm still not sure that there won't be an awe-inspiring winter event, so new Snowboarder hats are in the cubbies for grands who have outgrown last year's model! The Farmer's Almanac is still predicting wet snow for the end of the month, so if you have mittens in progress, get 'em out and finish them.  Great for rolling snowballs!

We are working hard to keep as much ruffle/flouncy yarn as we can get in inventory.  We just got a shipment yesterday, so come on in and grab it while the grabbing is good!

How did those handmade Christmas gifts go over?  Bet you got lots of "how do you find the time?" and "this is beautiful, did you really make this?", AND the ever-popular, "I love that!  Would you make one for me?"  If that last comment gets to be too much, just steer the speaker to The Sheep for a knitting lesson...remember that we teach for free! Bring your friends and we'll have fun doing a knit-along!

My lace-edged pillowcases were a big hit, so I recommend a stack of those in your gift closet, ready for a birthday, an anniversary, a wedding present, etc.  We've gotten new linen yarn in the shop that would be perfect for this kind of project.  The cowls were also well-received, especially by the recipients who deal with the subway and the Metro!  I've found a new, cute fingerless glove pattern that doesn't require four hundred size 2 doublepoints...I think that will be a great way to knit up some of the leftovers from Christmas Past.

Speaking of....resolutions....resolutions!  If you are like me, one of them is to "knit up that stash and stop acquiring new yarns until I do!"  So we've found several patterns at The Sheep to help you do just that, so come in and inquire!  The fingerless gloves mentioned above are always welcomed by the texting generation, and the Fibertrends clogs are just too cute made out of every wool scrap youve got.

Remember that knitting in public is great fun, and the occasional Knit Night with fellowship and fun is good for the soul!  Come see us!