Big Pile, Little Consolation....

Here is what was in the bag that I came home with last night. It was all SMASHED into a garbage bag, and was quite heavy to haul.

At the top of the photo is a drop-stitch sweater knit from Colinette Tagliatelli wool tape. I loved this yarn from the moment we got it in the shop. I bought some for my sister. I bought some for my friend Jane. I never bought any for ME! I have loved the sweater from the day Trudy brought it in. Now it is mine, ALL MINE!

It's probably hard to tell what all is in this picture. There is Burly Spun, some of my coveted Noro Blossom, Inca Alpaca, Debbie Bliss Cashmerino, the new Plymouth Tweed, some Galway, Cherry Tree Hill baby mohair loop, some washable wool for future grandbaby knitting, lots of K1C2 Fleece, also for future grandbaby knitting (no, Kim is not pregnant, and they don't plan on babies for a few more years, but it doesn't hurt to plan ahead, right?) Jake also picked out the green Fleece...he wants to try to knit himself a blanket. Go Jake!

This second photo has some more stuff added to it. This is what I've brought home since the sale started. Added to the pile is a bag of Encore Chunky (top) for an afghan I am going to knit for my niece and her fiance. I'm HOPING it will be a shower gift, but it may end up being a wedding gift. We'll see how it goes. Also a bunch of Butterfly Cotton, Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (top left), 4 new Addi Turbos, and lots of colors of Galway (along the bottom)

Obviously I played a part in this result. Wall of yarn? Practically gone. Talk about "down to the bare walls.....The other wall had more yarn left, but still....it was hard to believe how fast it flew out the doors over the past few days, but especially yesterday.

The place was packed for just about the entire 9 hours we were open. We even sold 1 of our 2 remaining spinning wheels, so that helped too. It was exhausting...physically and emotionally. It's still hard to wrap my mind around the fact that the store is no more. I am going to stop in again today to see everything packed up and maybe that will make it click in my brain.

Here we are after having pizza and a few drinks after the shop closed last night. We've already set up a time and place for our first knitting date. I'm glad we made sure to do that...we've just got to stay in touch! In the photo are Lynne, Chris, Jenny, Me, Delphine and Amie (in the back) I wish Rebecca was there, but she left for vacation on Tuesday. Unfortunately we didn't get this photo until after Trudy had left. Drats.

I hope I can find room for all this yarn...the guest room/craft room is getting quite full! And because it is still the guest room, and we have guests coming in 2 days, I'd better get crackin' and start stashin' the stash!

Blue Morning....

Today is the last day I will get up and go to work at Ewe 'n Hook Fiber Shoppe. The store will close at the end of the day. I have been sniveling about it ever since I got up and I'm sure there will be many more tears before the day is over.

It's going to be a long day (we're open til at least 7pm) and then we are all gathering for dinner and drinks and memories. Sniff..............

Sniff.....

So this is what has been keeping me pretty busy the past couple of weeks.

The Going Out of Business Sale at the yarn store where I have worked, taught classes, and spent a lot of time, energy (and money!) for the past 2 years.

How is one supposed to feel at a time like this?

Sorrow? ... certainly.
Anger? ...yep, a bit of that....long story.
Relief? ... oh yeah, that too....(part of that same "long story" mentioned above)
Denial? ... definitely...it's hard to believe it's come to this.

Next Wednesday is going to be a hard day to get through. Seeing the doors close, knowing that so much of myself that I poured into that shop will be left to settle along with the dust on the floor.

All of us who worked (and played), taught (and learned) within those four walls have become close...kindred spirits...working against the odds to nurture something which probably never really had fighting chance to grow.

Will we find (or make) the time to seek each other out after this is over? To spend time in each others' company, now that the very thing that knit us together has become unravelled? I hope so. Will our friendships become UFOs? I hope not. I hope all the things we said we'd do together in the future really end up happening. I don't want to say good bye to my comrades on top of saying good bye to the shop.

It has been a challenging time for all of us. We have each grown in so many ways. Pushed ourselves past what we thought we could do. It was during my time at Ewe 'n Hook that I started teaching, and then designing. How rewarding it is to have someone come in and look at your pattern, or the store sample, and say how much they like it...and the words come out of your mouth ..."Thanks! I designed that!" It makes me smile just thinking about how many times that has happened.

A lot of things were just dropped in our laps, and we handled it all. Maybe not in the very best way, but in the best way we could. We all put our hearts and souls into trying to make it work, even when we knew in our hearts it would never be.

So in less than 2 weeks, I will be without a LYS job. But what hurts more than that is the fact that I'll be without a place to drop in to see Chris or Jenny or Lynne or Rebecca or Amie or Delphine or Trudy....whoever is working that day, or just hanging out... to chat, or knit...

I'll be without a LYS. All other fiber sources are "not so local". Some of them I just won't go to, because they are not places I have been made to feel welcome or embraced, so how can one feel creative or inspired in such an environment? I will go the extra (many) miles to the stores who know how to treat their fiber-hoarding customers the way we always tried to treat ours. What is it about certain LYS owners or employees that makes them think that they can keep people coming back for more by ignoring them, or treating them with open rudeness and disdain? I will never understand that as long as I live.

So yes, I will be unemployed, but I will not be idle! First and foremost, I will enjoy summer with my kids. I will also become more focused on my business...working on a new website where I can bring together my patterns, my blog, and the other goodies I have for sale, all in one place. I have had a domain name for a couple of years now but have not put it to good use. Now is the time to do so. I will need a lot help with the techy end of it all, but I am excited to move in this direction, and hopefully be able pull in a little more income once this happens. I want it to look professional, but yet with a touch of whimsy. I'm hoping that along with some teaching gigs at the LYSs that I will set foot in, and some new designs, I'll be able to sell enough patterns (etc.) to contribute to the family funds without having to do something drastic like go back to work at Target! ACK!