Virginia Is For Lovers

I've really been enjoying my stay in Shenandoah, Virginia. My grandma and I have been going through a lot since losing my grandpa but together we are getting through it. My heart has always belonged to the valley and I have been seriously considering a longer stay. I have the advantage of running my own business online. This means that I can pack up whatever I need to and go where ever I feel like going for as long as I desire. This freedom has allowed me to help my grandma in her greatest time of need. It makes me glad that I decided to follow my heart instead of submitting to the idea that the only way to make a living is by going to work for someone else in a retail store (or something like that).

So far I've been doing very well for myself. My collaboration with another Etsy shop is continuing, albeit with a few disadvantages with the distance but we are working it out through trial and error. There are many people that pass through this house and my grandma loves showing off everything that I make. She's my best promoter! Many of the people that I've met are interested in lessons. I'm sure that I could teach them in the house. It would be really great if I could get that part of my life back. I really miss teaching.

The landlady for the house also owns all of the buildings on the block. There are a lot of empty business spaces available in the gorgeous historic town of Shenandoah. I would very much love to open a yarn shop. It would be perfect in keeping with the aesthetic of an old train station town. She seemed to be really into the idea of having a yarn shop in the area. With all of the crafty people around, I should have no problem having people consign a few of their pieces. This will also be a great way to bring awareness to some of my favorite charities involving yarn. I really hope that this can happen!

I do have to be realistic. The chances of this shop coming to life are slim to none. I have no collateral for the bank, I have no money saved up, I don't have a business license (I would need a new one for the shop anyway), and I have no credit. There are a million things working against me right now. That doesn't mean that this dream of mine is impossible. I'll look into all of my options before I give up.

Why I Hang Out In Yarn Shops

I like to visit my local yarn shop as much as I can to say hello to the yarn. One day while I was visiting a very professional man walked through the door and started asking questions about the Cascade 220 yarn displays. It didn't take me long to figure out that he was a representative of Cascade Yarns. The ladies from the shop introduced him to me. Moments before he had walked through the door I had purchased two skeins of Cascade 220 yarn. As I was being introduced to this man I felt relieved that I was knitting with yarn from his company. 

The man's name was Mike. He watched me knitting away as we got to know each other. Mike was impressed with my ability to not only follow an intricate pattern with cables and such, but that I could do so from memory and without looking. He began talking me up to the shop owner and convinced her to utilize me in any way that they could. He asked if I could teach some classes. I already teach the speed knitting class. Then he asked if I could knit the display projects to help sell the yarn. That's when I got really excited. 

Mike left the store for a moment and came back in with some beautiful light green yarn and a gorgeous cowl that was knitted.  He started to tell the story behind the cowl and explained that the yarn that was used was the ball that he was holding. He said that the company tried to come up with several one skein projects and that this was one of them. The cowl that he brought in was actually made by the president of the company. A jolt of excitement went through me as I gave the cowl a closer look. I admired the even stitches and binding off technique used. The yarn itself had impressive stitch definition. I had to have this yarn! That's when Mike told me that he wanted to give me this yarn and even told me the name of the pattern so that I could try it out for myself. 

That was just the beginning. Mike began going through the store and was on the hunt for yarn to use for display pieces. That's when the store owner Terri presented three zip locked bags of yarn with patterns inside. All of the yarns were different styles made by Cascade. There was: 

Alpaca Lace: 

 Eco Duo:

and Ultra Pima:

 Then Mike started talking about a new type of yarn that Cascade just started selling called Souk:

So, the task was presented to me to create these beautiful designs using the patterns given to me with all of this amazing yarn. I felt like I had made it out of that store like a bandit. Not only was I given all of this beautiful yarn for free, but I was even offered compensation for my talents. This was one of those rare moments when I was in the right place at the right time. Mike even discussed an opportunity for me to sell patterns through Cascade. With all of these wonderful things happening I no longer felt bad for splurging on the other items I had purchased. I felt like I had been given a wonderful deal!

Owl Lace Sweater - WIP/Review

I've been working on an amazing sweater with owl lace for the past couple of days. It's Ginny's Cardigan by Mari Chiba from the Unofficial Harry Potter Knits magazine published by Interweave Knits. I love their regular magazine patterns, but this collection really knocks my Narcissa socks off. I literally want to knit every single pattern. They have a few sweaters, socks, scarves, and mittens. There's over 30 patterns for me to sink my teeth into.

Here's what I have so far. You can't really see the sides, but it's all stockinette stitch. This is worked mainly in one piece from the bottom up. I love the shaping techniques used in this cardigan. Short rows were used to construct the bust line. Decreasing, then increasing stitches creates a snug fit for the hips.

The owl lace is the main focus point of the cardigan. It's really important to pay close attention to the chart as you're working. I usually can pick up on a lace pattern rather quickly and won't have a need to follow the chart after a couple of passes. This lace pattern is to intricate for me to memorize like that. You work this pattern over 23-31 stitches which means that you gain and lose stitches as you go. Regardless, it offers a challenge that I enjoy. 

I'm going to make a trip to the yarn store later this week to pick up some size 4 and 6 DPNs. I've had to buy brand new needles to do this project, but luckily the yarn was free for me. The needles are the interchangeable kind from Knit Picks. I'm really loving them so far. I can't wait to get the DPNs. 

The yarn I'm using is the Bernat Nylo Sports wool blend. It's 50% wool and 50% nylon. The colorway is Silver Mix which gives a great denim effect to the cardigan. I love how soft it is. I can't wait to put this sweater on!

Top 6 Apps I Use For My Business

Here's a quick list of apps that I use everyday for my business. I'll give a brief description of each and touch on what I like specifically. Some of these are pretty standard and some of these I've mentioned before in other blog posts. Some of these apps are available on both smartphones and tablets, some are not. For simplicity's sake, I use these apps on my Android phone exclusively therefore I will include links to each app from the Play Store.

6. Kies Air by Samsung Electronics

If you have an Android phone, then you'll need to have this app in order to share files on your phone and computer with each other. I like the Air version best because I don't have to connect my phone to the laptop and wait forever to be able to save pictures onto my laptop. Everything is organized as it is on your phone, so navigating is simple. I take most of my photos with my phone since the camera is really boss, so this makes things more convenient for me.

5. Pages Manager by Facebook

I run a business page on Facebook and a lot of the time I'm trying to share content from my phone. This allows me to keep track of how my page is doing when I'm not near my laptop. I can fulfill orders easier, communicate with customers easier, and post photos of WIPs and finished products directly.

4. USPS Mobile by the United States Postal Service

This is great for when people don't give their full nine digit zip code when placing an order. A lot of people aren't aware that they need the extra four digits when shipping something, but alas, you do. It makes things simpler for the post officers to organize the massive amounts of mail they receive daily and pin point the exact location of your address. It gets especially more necessary when shipping to a customer living in an apartment complex. Really, this is more for helping the post office than myself, but I do use this app a LOT!

Aside from finding the extra four digits, I calculate shipping rates very frequently. With the steady increase in international shipping, this helps me prepare for what I should expect when paying for the shipping.

3. Time Sheet by Florian Rauscha 

I love this app so much that I made a special blog post for it. Just to reiterate, I enjoy being able to keep track of my progress on how quickly I create an item. Also, it gives me an idea of how much I should charge for my time.

2. The Official Etsy App by Etsy, Inc

This one's a no-brainer. If you have an Etsy shop, you need the Etsy app. I can relist items, create new listings, look at other listings - the works. It has a very simple page setup that helps you keep track of new favorites and likes, sales, and how much money you've profited without having to swipe a lot or jump between pages. Plus, there is a very satisfying *cha-ching* sound every time you sell an item.

1. PayPal Here by PayPal Mobile

I sell at a lot of conventions and farmer's markets. More and more people are now coming to expect local artisans to accept credit cards at their booths and tables. Be prepared to have either the PayPal Here or the Squared Up apps. Both are relatively the same. They charge the same percentage from every transaction and have virtually identical accepted forms of payment and policies. The only main difference is that the PayPal credit card app accepts PayPal payments as far as I know.