Boo!

It's that time of year again - lots of last minute desperados trying to figure out how to rig up monster-fairy-vampire-madhatter-spiderman-queen mum....costumes. We are always ready to help these folks and it's actually kind of fun. Last minute "costumers" are usually pretty easy to please, truth be told - "Wow, you can cut a cape out of felt!!!!", but every now and then there's a real challenge like rigging together a hooped skirt or finding the appropriate ingredients for a human Twinkie.
Good thing I have a college degree.

The toughest part about Halloween for me is that the next day I know I will wake up to Christmas music playing somewhere (probably Walgreens) and this will trigger a terrible panic in me. Every year - EVERY YEAR! I am not prepared for this to happen. I won't go on and on about this, but lets just say it's a glimpse into my dark side. Organized friends who know of my holiday ineptitude are always telling me "well just do something about it, make lists, get organized!!!"
I hate them.

But HA HA! I'm now going to tell you all to get crackin' with your holiday crafty gift makin'. Don't you love the irony?

I'll keep it simple for the moment and just share a few photos of groovy new things in the store. And when I've re-grouped from my post halloween shock I'll get back to you!

Love this new laminated fabric from Kokka!
(terrible photo of it, but trust me, it's cool)

Woodland Friends
by Ellen Crimi-Trent


I learned from a customer who has a pet hedgehog
(did you know this was possible??) that Norfolk Agricultural School
has a Hedgehog Festival!
cute, cute, cute
This is what the judges are looking for in a "showhog":

"The animals should be easy to play with,
and they should not be afraid.
As far as aesthetics are concerned, we look for form and flow.
The hedgehog should be almost "aerodynamic". The animal should be
shaped like a tear drop - a short, wide face with a filled out behind."

"Aerodynamic??!"
Gotta love it!



From those wonderful folk who bring us One Skein Wonders:


One More Skein!
The projects take a bit more time, but are still manageable.

Cookies!

Girl Scouts collection by Robert Kaufman.
yum, yum, yum


A small taste of new things rolling into the store:

Happy Halloween!

Mary

Red, Yellow.........Brown

Just three weeks ago I stepped out the front door
of the mill at closing time and encountered
the most perfectly crisp, blue, early evening sky.
The sunflowers FINALLY made it to full bloom and I thought:
"At last, the best part of summer has arrived!"
...and now it's gone.
I don't know why this always catches me off guard.
Could be a learning difference, but... probably just my need to deny
the inevitability of winter.
(Yes, winter does come every year after Fall).
The scenery IS beautiful though. The pond I pass on the way to
work each morning is my usual measure of the passing of the seasons.
The tiny little pale green leaves of springtime bringing the most
excitement for me, but the Autumn leaves are glorious too,
especially this year.

It's a very busy time of year here in the store.
Classes start up again: quilting, knitting, sewing,
rug hooking... a veritable frenzy of creativity.
New yarn and fabric collections are rolling in, which has
everyone here contemplating their next projects.

Foremost on the project lists are holiday gifts.
Although there are some who can "whip-up"
amazingly complex sweaters and quilts for everyone on
their lists, many of us (moi) are looking
for unique, quick and relatively easy things to make.
For those who need a little help getting the ball rolling
we'll be offering workshops to help. A few coming up:

Cute casserole carriers
to carry your sweet potatoes safely to Grandmother's house...


Aprons

Dress up your favorite chef.
Dog lovers, sports fans, polka dots, cupcakes...
makes cooking a lot more fun.

Check our website for workshop listings.


Don't forget to make something for yourself too.

Dorothy made us this fabulous outfit using
two of the new designer fabrics we have in the store.
Perfect for strolling about town on these crisp days!


More fun things...

...new patterns by our friend Jennifer at Sew Fun.
Brainy Baby Ball...


...and Grab n' Go Diaper Clutch.
Great gifts for newborns and new moms!


That's all for today.

Hope to see you in the store.

Mary