having a blast dyeing wool

I am having a blast dyeing wool for the hookers this week. I may have found my calling . Everyone knows I love to cook but I've moved on from supper to wool. 
I decided to sit down and write while I was waiting for the colours to cook. 
It's been a very busy week for Pat and I at Andjareenas.
Yarns and fabrics and notions arrive daily and I was able to squeeze in a meeting with Yvette at Pine Ridge Knit and Sew and our Spring Shop Hop is on for the weekend of March 21,22 and 23rd.
It is being held a little early this year because of Easter and shops involved having other commitments but I think that March is a great time. We are all feeling a little shut in by then and are ready to check out the latest for spring. 
I was very excited about our turnout for the Spin In on Friday. We had seven spinners and one hooker show up and there was a great deal of wool spun that day. We did miss Bad Betty. I thought Betty was coming to the Spin In but there was some concern that there could have been an altercation with an elderly man in the pool at the Y. Said man slugged her as he was swimming by and she was looking to get even. I can read the headlines now. lol. Just kidding Betty.
Back to the dye pot. 
Hope to see you all next week.
M.

Happy New Year to all of you

I'm a few days late but better late than never.

Happy New Year to all of you .

Being away from the shop over the holidays prevents me from enjoying the time with you that I would like to spend but all in all we did manage to get a pot luck off the ground with the Hookers and some of you even came to visit me at the flower shop, for which I am grateful. To see a smiling face just dropping by to wish me the best on the holidays was rejuvenating. I love working at the flower shop but when the holiday hits it becomes real work and I find myself looking to see if the end of the tunnel is getting closer. lol

Enough about me. 

We are preparing classes for the New Year and have taken a different approach to alot of things. One of the new things we will be doing this year is running a children's program. You can sign up by the month or if you sign up for an 8 week program you can claim it on your taxes. We could always do these things with sports but the arts are now included and I think it's wonderful. So if you know someone who wants to sew  , we want them to sew with us!

Hookers. Don't forget your class will start on the 16th of January. This is an open class so all are welcome.

Know your Serger. This will be a two part class. Pat has been working diligently on this class, both for your learning as well as enjoyment purposes. We want you to have a good time in this class, learn a ton of stuff and have fun too. Serger is like  a bad word to me. I persevere and stay with it but that darn machine just doesn't like me very much. One thing I do know is that after taking a class with Pat, I knew that it wasn't going to beat me. So, if you have a serger and want to love it instead of hating it. This is the class for you.

Quilters, there are fabrics, patterns and notions arriving all the time so drop in and see what's new or perhaps what you missed on your last visit. Classes will begin in late January so drop in and check us out. I have UFO days on the first and second Friday of the month so if you just want out of the house and to sew with some friends let me know your're coming and I look forward to seeing you.

Knitters. Lots and lots of yarn for sweaters, scarves and socks has rolled in over the holidays and it's finallly cold enough to be inside knitting. On those beautiful days , we all want to get outside and enjoy but it's a little chilly and the sidewalks are a little slippery and there's nothing like a pair of socks on your needles to keep you busy.

I will try to keep my blog a little more updated this year as I've noticed I've been slipping lately. 

Mary Anne

Inventory Finished!

I see by my last post that it has been some time since I have sat down and typed a post. 
We have been counting inventory and even I am amazed at the number of items we have in the shop and I bought it all. lol
Now that the counting is behind us we can move on to the more enjoyable things in life.
I have finished my poinsettia table mat. Of course when I go to find the vintage buttons that I thought would be perfect for the center of the flowers , they have gone awol.
For those of you who know me well, you will know this is not a surprize. I can't blame this on anyone, that is the sad part. I think I moved them. It is something I seem to be doing alot of lately. Moving items from a perfectly fine place to a new home. It's driving me crazy! On the flip side I have been looking for my dye spoons for about 2 months and I have found them! Woo Hoo. That means there will be some new rug hooking wool coming your way shortly.
If you haven't been into the shop lately, you will be pleasantly surprised with the new selection of sock yarns that have come in as well as some great new colours in Marble Chunky and Baby Marble. The weather has turned and winter will soon be upon us so stock up with your favorite yarn and needles or hook and settle in. 
Hookers, remember that our all day hook in will be held on the last Friday of the month. Please let me know if you plan on coming so that I can set the room up to accomodate the numbers.
For those of you who have been sending me the "Maxine" emails. Keep them coming. I laughed till I cried on Saturday morning when I finally had the time to sit down and read it.
Starting my day out with laughter is definately a bonus and makes for such a great day.

Cheers
Mary Anne

New arrivals for knitting

KNITTERS: OUR FALL ORDERS ARE FINALLY STARTING TO ROLL IN

THERE IS SOME VERY VERY COOL SCARF YARNS IN A VARIETY OF COLOURS AND STYLES SO CHECK THEM OUT. WE HAVEN'T HAD THE TIME TO UNPACK THEM AND THEY ARE SELLING RIGHT OUT OF THE  BAG. THIS IS A GOOD THING!

NEW ARRIVALS FROM CASCADE , CASABLANCA . A BEAUTIFUL HAND DYED YARN THAT WORKS TO A  ARAN WEIGHT. SOME BEAUTIFUL NEW SOCK YARNS FROM LANG AND JAWOLL. 

THE 401 RUN HAS BEEN JUST WONDERFUL. I CAN'T THANK ALL OF YOU ENOUGH FOR GETTING OUT AND VISITING ALL THE SHOPS AND I AM SURE THAT I SPEAK FOR EVERYONE INVOLVED. WE ALL WORK VERY HARD TO GET THE SHOP SHIP SHAPE AND TO MAKE THE EXPERIENCE A GOOD ONE FOR EVERYONE AND THE CUSTOMER SUPPORT WE HAVE RECEIVED HAS BEEN AMAZING. I REALLY CAN'T GET OVER THE DISTANCE SOME OF THE LADIES HAVE TRAVELLED AND HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL BACK IN THE SHOP WHEN YOU ARE TRAVELLING THE 401 AGAIN.

M.

Travis Scores

For those of you who know our son Travis, you will know that he has gone off to University in Grand Rapids Michigan. Travis has been in a bit of a drought lately with his hockey game. He has finally managed to score a goal against Oklahoma State University and it just happened to be the winning goal.

The monkey is off his back and he can now relax. lol

I wasn't sure how Travis would embrace school and once again he has surprised me. He is doing very well (except for Math) and is embracing university life. He was never ready before now and I was worried because we all know they need education.  I will never forget his grade four teacher telling me that he would changed when he was ready and over the years I have watched it happend just as she said, again and again. Don't rush them , they eventually come around.

Fat quarter bag class tomorrow

I'm doing a quick little fat quarter bag class tomorrow morning. As you know there is limited space so call before you come.
I will teach this again and again. What a great little idea for those of us who have collected fat quarters galore and really would love to use some of them up. They are great little gifts for teachers, fellow workers or someone special that you want to have a little something at the holidays.

Knitters meet tomorrow afternoon and I can only hope that the yarn arrival is in. I know it's on its way but true to form it will probably roll in at the end of the day tomorrow. There are some yarn swifts for those of you who are tired of wrapping those skeins around a chair and ball winders so that you can wind them into nice organized balls.

Fabrics are rolling in daily and I hope there will be more Christmas again this week. We all need to get hopping if we're going to be ready for Christmas. Smith Falls has already had a dusting of snow this past weekend and as soon as that happens people will be in a mad rush to get things finished.

Remember, Thursday morning group seems to be a mixed bag and we are knitting, quilting and hand stitching on that morning.
Spinners meet this Friday for a spin in. I want to soon start knitting up all that handspun I've been making.
I've been hooking with some of it but I'm spinning faster than I can hook. lol
ttyl
M.

New Arrivals

We have received a shipment of Riley Blake Christmas fabrics in the shop this week as well as new flannels to keep you warm on those upcoming winter months.

For those of you who have been waiting for kiddie flannels there are some really cute pieces that have come in. One of my favorites has ballet shoes all over it. I can see my little Peyton dancing around my living room with a ballet blankie.

I think I'll get at that right away. lol

I've been busy making fat quarter bags. Two fat quarters is all it takes and we all have those so drop in for a tutorial on these great little bags. They make great teachers gifts.

Do you be scared away on Tuesday or Wednesday afternoons. Knitters and Hookers meet on those days and our parking lot can be quite busy. They don't bite so please come on in and shop.

The first two Fridays of every month will be dedicated to UFO Fridays. Bring all those unfinished projects that have been sitting in your closet and lets get them finished and turn them into FO's. Book your spot in advance so you're sure to get a chair. There's an awful lot of UFO's out there from what I've heard.

M.