Amanda decided to take her yarn home in a cake pan last night…we decided that this might be an innovative way to hide your stash from significant others. Other hiding options include the oven (if you don’t actually bake). In which case your portable cake pan would also be empty.

Miss Jen recently got married, and I thought I would share her “fibre space story” with you all. Jen and her then boyfriend Gilad walked up to our shop the first week we were open, a few minutes after we had closed for the night. Jen peered through the door and we waived for her to come in. (We hadn’t closed the drawer up yet and were happy for the new customer.) Jen was super excited that she had tripped across us during a visit to Five Guys. She and Gilad spent a bit of time looking around the store and then came up to the counter with a giant pile of yarn. Gilad pulled out his card and paid for it all, something that we all noted was pretty awesome…we discussed, at the time, that she should hold onto that one for awhile! Since then, Jen and Gilad have gotten engaged and married! We were all so super excited for them. Then Jen sent along these amazing bridal photos, featuring Malabrigo that we carry at the shop. The photographer is Lisa O’Quinn from Sweet Tea Photography.  I understand that this shoot made a serious mess of Jen’s Malabrigo but the photographer did help get it all wound up again.

while sitting in the window of the store

1. People walking around in large quantities of snow tend to be nicer then usual to one another. They can be seen waving and greeting complete strangers. Does walking in the middle of the street bond people?

2. Old Town has a large number of residents who believe that a baby stroller is perfectly acceptable in a foot of snow.

3. If we were selling hamburgers, we would be really busy right now. Five Guys is closed and this has upset a great deal of meat loving people.

4. Trucks with plows might benefit us more if they would put the plow down while driving down the street.

5. The horse at Hard Times needs a hat and some legwarmers

5. It is still snowing.

It is awfully nice outside. For this I am hugely grateful. But really, in January? Really?! I mean come on. I sell yarn! I can’t possibly plan on having my spring and summer yarns delivered in January. I thought I was ahead of the game with February delivery. But NO. You had other plans didn’t you.

So Phil and I had a Ford Focus hatchback. i loved my hatchback. As the girls here would learn, it was “like a truck.” We fit more Ikea furniture in that car than anyone could possibly imagine. But it is now off of its warranty and that makes me very very nervous. Then during the snow storm the car died. The person who jumped the car crossed the clamps and blew up our radio.  After getting the car to a dealer, we found that there was a problem with the alternator, and the battery, as a result, was completely dead. So over the weekend Phil and I decided to look at new cars.

When Mini was first imported into the US, I lived on the same block as a BMW and Mini dealer in Pittsburgh. At the time I settled for a Ford hatchback in a cute blue color and have been driving them ever since. It was my consolation prize since my grad school budget wouldn’t permit a Mini. Over the weekend, Phil and I decided to buy an “adult” car, one that we have wanted for a very long time. So we headed to the new Passport Mini dealer that is on Duke street now. Our saleswoman is also a knitter (and customer!), so we had lots to chat about. She was also the most professional and least pushy salesperson I have ever encountered at a car dealer. (go and ask for Kristin!)  After a day of mulling it over and a really nice offer for our Focus from the dealer, we brought home a British racing green mini.

[if only I had a photo, it would be right here]

He is so cute! But he definitely needs a cozy somewheres..thinking the gear shift handle. (Really, with some effort I think we could make a blanket for the entire car. It is really a very tiny car) Thinking of making the shifter cozy white with the Royal Air Force symbol (blue, white and red target) on the top. More on this to come…in the meantime, maybe I should focus on finishing holiday gifts? Has anyone started next year’s gifts? I am seriously considering making a plan now and starting in February. I just can’t do this last minute again. It’s not working. My father’s vest had a serious set back when I realized about four inches into the V-neck that i had positioned the V-neck off center (good job Danielle). So i had to tear back a few inches. Ripping out intarsia is just as annoying as knitting it. It’s probably worse since there is no sense of accomplishment at the end.

What are yours? I have many, but my knitting related resolutions are mostly the following:

I would like to finish the three sweaters currently sitting in my living room on needles:

• Balloon Sleeve Jacket in Blue Sky Alpacas Worsted



• Tea Leaves Cardigan in Madeline Tosh Worsted (coming in next week!)



• Little Birds in Miss Babs sock

I would also like to knit most of the Itty Bitty Nursery book. No, I am not pregnant. I just love this book and everything in it. I have visions of a corner of the shop being dedicated to adorableness from this book. The book makes me want to have a child…but I haven’t decided yet that it is a good idea to have a child just so I can decorate his or her nursery. yeah, probably not a good idea.

I would like to finish three pairs of socks. I have three pairs of socks on needles right now: my steelers socks, started a full two seasons ago, my Dragonfly Fibers socks that I started a month ago, and another pair done in a pattern and yarn that I can’t even remember its been so long. But they are almost done and it is kinda shameful that I have been knitting them for so long.

Lastly, I would like to start my holiday knitting now. I need to plan every person’s gift and start knitting them now. I have 12 months. If I budget a gift each month, 12 lucky people might actually get a knitted or crocheted gift this year. Otherwise, I have no shot of getting it done. Or I can accept that I shouldn’t knit gifts anymore and just throw in the towel.

So I couldn’t really blog about my trip this weekend because it was a big surprise for my soon to be Aunt Sandy.

My uncle tony decided to propose to Sandy in the Bahamas at the Atlantis and surprise her with all of their friends and family there!

So that this stays somewhat knitting related…I took the following projects with me:

• Dragonfly Fibers socks that still aren’t done…but I did get the heel turned!
• Little Birds fair isle sweater…wow, I am STILL knitting the bottom ribbing. I swear it never ends.
• Herbivore by Stephen West and a hank of Malabrigo Sock in a wonderful tropical color

See, here is evidence of me knitting at the first night’s reception:

Here is the happy couple right after the surprise proposal!

And here is the very nervous event planner who had to carry the Tiffany’s box the entire way down to the Bahamas while also trying to coordinate over 40 guests AND keep it all a secret from Sandy (seen here with Tiffany bag):

And just for kicks, here is an awesome seahorse:

So what did I get done between the water slides and fruity drinks? Not much. I am still in the ribbing on the Little birds project. The sock still isn’t finished. I didn’t knit a single stitch on the Herbivore…

Has anyone else worked on something other than holiday gifts?

I spent a good bit of time in Syracuse as a child and Veronica is from Chicago, so we are not frightened of the weather

Come on out!

We are open 10 am – 7 pm today.

Check out fibre space in the Washington Business Journal.

Amanda scored tickets to the National Tree Lighting ceremony last night at the White House. The sock went with us, as his friend is already complete and he needs to catch up to be done by the end of the month. When you arrive at a tree lighting ceremony around 3:30 and have to wait until 5pm for the action to start, a sock project comes in handy.  The needles also appear to be National Park Service approved, as they didn’t take them off of me when we went through the security check. (I was threatening to hide them in my pants if I had to)

How is everyone else doing on their pledge to knit a pair of socks or a fair isle project?

When the sun went down it got a little cold and Amanda whipped out her complete Traveling Woman done in Malabrigo Sock. (which we got in yesterday by the way…in the most amazing colors!)

If you think she looks cold, I assure you that the only one that was cold last night was ME. Amanda doesn’t appear to get cold.

Here is the tree, finally all lit up!

Isn’t it just like Ikea to show you one thing in the photo and then omit something incredibly important from the actual box? See that white topping? You know, the stuff that comes on the apple cake that you buy while in the Ikea cafeteria? It’s not actually included in the box. Not at all. Course, what did I expect from something labeled “Ikea Food” and “Appelkaka.”

I am almost finished with the sport weight dress. This is a good thing because knitting a dress in sport weight makes me angry. Promise an amazing finished object photo soon.

I am plotting my next sweater while trying desperately not to purchase this yarn:

It is the newest addition to our hand dye collection, a local artist – Kate Chiocchio and Dragonfly Fibers. I want all of her colorways. I have narrowed it down to three. But really, what am I going to do with three hanks of sock yarn? We know I am not going to actually knit socks with it. Maybe it is time to look for a sock knitting machine again…Our I might start yet another night of internet research on all of the projects that can be made with fingering weight yarn. Ideas on this soon…

So I have been purchasing decaf iced mocha’s from Mishas Coffee on a pretty regular basis. At around $3.50 a piece, this is really starting to add up (and its not like my new job is paying me all that well…wish my boss would give me a raise.)

Anyway, what does one need to make an iced mocha in their yarn shop?

1. espresso maker. Check. Got one of those. And a pretty expensive one at that, thanks to my Illy membership.

2. espresso. check. got that too

3. Milk. yup. fortunately La Fromagerie is around the corner and sells fresh bottled milk.

4. Chocolate. check. that one is covered  by local chocolate maker ACKC. Not even hershey’s for this gal! Nope. got the high quality stuff.

5. Ice. well, herein lies the problem. I have a very large refrigerator (large for a yarn shop). It has a full sized freezer. But obviously I can’t just put water into the freezer. nope. need ice trays. Just a couple of ice trays. So for about three weeks now I have been looking for ice trays. I went to Target on Route one south, Target on Route one North, Harris Teeter, Whole Foods, Crate and Barrel, TJ Maxx…where else. Oh! today I even tried Best Buy. They sell freezers. They have oven cleaner and dishsoap and all other sorts of stupid accessory items that no one would ever buy at Best Buy, but NO ICE TRAYS.

So I’ve had it. I am fed up. I need ice trays. Obviously none of my neighbors do or our local Target would sell them. Clearly they all have automated ice makers. Not me. I am not that fancy. No ice maker here. So if you have an ice tray that you aren’t using because you have those automated ice makery thingies, please bring me your ice tray. I am desperate here. I shouldn’t have to drive to Waldorf to hit Wal Mart just for an ice tray. And there is something just plain wrong about ordering ice trays on the internet. But I will do it if I have to!

Karida of Neighborhood Fiber Co and I go way back. We started our businesses around the same time, having met at a local knit shop that we both worked. While Karida was writing her business plan for her DC themed yarn line, I was starting Knit-a-Gogo, Inc. and teaching classes all over the DC metro area.  I helped her score a job at a local non profit that I had connections to so that she would have some steady income while expanding her business. My first yarn purchase for the company was from Karida. I bought some bulky weight fiber to use for my beginner knitting classes, and I kept her yarn in the trunk of my car, lugging tubs of it into classes for students to buy.  I was a “yarn dealer” of sorts, meeting students on the side of the road at times to sell them Karida’s yarn, because so few stores had it.

I attended three national trade shows with Karida, helping her to set up and merchandise and sell to yarn shops. It was great experience for me to be on that side of things and I am really really grateful that I had already experienced the trade show by the time I was ready to open fibre space. Although organizing Karida is a little like herding cats.

Then Karida expanded really really fast…too fast for her to keep up with the demand from the many shops she sold to. She moved to Columbus Ohio to start over again right before fibre space opened. We met up for coffee in July and talked about her new business model and my new shop. She was excited about being in a new place and having a chance to get set up and dyeing again. But I never expected to see yarn this season.

Today the Fedex man arrived with this box of amazingness. Now if you know Karida, you know that even when she sent an invoice for the yarn and a fedex number, it still doesn’t mean that the yarn is actually going to show up in one piece. But it did! and I have two hanks of ten amazing colors of lace weight silk: Grant Circle, Cooper Circle, Kalorama, Sheridan Circle, Logan Circle, Ward Circle, Dupont Circle, Lincoln Park (my old neighborhood!), Georgetown and Shaw. I am really happy to be part of her business getting up and growing again and we are expecting more to arrive next month…cross your fingers! She even sent an Ishbel sample to show it off.

There are few things on this earth as heavenly as real Italian gelato. Last night after I closed up the shop, Phillip and I ventured off for our bi-annual trip to Leesburg to the Hamburg Doner. I first heard about this place on the radio and in an attempt to surprise Phil, I stuck him in the car over a year ago with a promise of something wonderful and a long car ride. He was very doubtful but when we finally arrived at our destination, he was pretty excited. Phil spent a semester in Germany and ate a lot of food from street vendors. The Doner place is Leesburg still cooks out of the street car that they started in, even after they acquired actual restaurant space (which is amazing and retro themed, by the way). Last weekend was their Oktoberfest, so we headed out to grab Phil some sourkraut and brats. He was a happy boy. On the way home, my craving for gelato started. Now, a bit over a year ago I discovered the single most amazing gelato place on earth while in Baltimore: Pitango. Their first shop is in Fells Point.  I was so excited to find out that they opened in Dupot and Reston! On the way home we jumped off the highway in Reston, and despite the cold, I scored a cup of almond and dark chocolate orange. I am working on convincing the owner that he MUST open a shop in Old Town, which seriously lacks in the way of quality ice cream. And this man knows his gelato. They source from a PA dairy farm, all organic and grass fed. They use real egg yolk as a stabilizer instead of the fake stuff our chains use. The imported ingredients are brought from all over the world: hazelnut, pistachio, vanilla. If I sound like an info-mercial, I am sorry. I really have a thing for this place!! Until you have eaten gelato or ice cream made from grass fed cows, you don’t know what real ice cream is. I am already plotting some sort of yarn and gelato tasting….I don’t know that we can wait until spring. Does everyone else eat ice cream all winter like I do?

about this two person snuggie that hit his favorite techy blog today.

He writes, “It was made of such awesome that it infected my tech blog. That and a really funny starwars parody that you wouldn’t get.”  Well gee, thanks Phil. Phil insists that I know nothing about pop culture. Which is mostly true. But when he called yesterday to ask if I had seen Perfect Strangers and I responded that I knew who Balki was, he was quite impressed. I did watch SOME tv as a child. Just not as much as him, clearly. And I certainly didn’t watch Starwars.

Anyway, back to this Icelandic wool blankie thing. It’s available from Birkiland, should you feel the need. And no, I don’t have a pattern. Should I?