Happy Mail Squared

You may have read my post about Minnesota Hotdish and also a guest blog of blog follower dc who was inspired to cook a Hotdish in Florida after reading the post. Fellow blogger Audrey Helbling writes and posts excellent photos on Minnesota Prairie Roots blog. Audrey and dc always leave thoughtful comments on my blog.

My post today features some happy mail I received today from Audrey and dc.

Look what Audrey sent me! I love to read cookbooks. It came in the mail today

And if you have followed me for a. while you know how much I enjoy knitting. Imagine my excitement as I opened a sheet of personalized return address labels, custom made by dc, all with different yarny and knitting themed photos.

I don’t want to put my address out there but you get the idea from this cropped photo. Take a peek.

I can’t wait to use my Custom-made Knitting themed Return Address Labels. So thoughtful of you dc!

So what a great day for happy mail! thank you Audrey and dc. Two thoughtful friends, making life nice.

Summer 1973 Throwback Thursday

Morrisonville, Illinois.

Aunt Vesta, Me, Gram Hendricks (who taught me to knit in 1956)

Ready For World Wide Knit in Public Day

Tomorrow June 10th in World Wide Knit in Public Day

“BETTER LIVING THROUGH STITCHING TOGETHER!”

“Celebrate the passion for knitting with fellow knitters around the world. You can be a beginner or maybe you have been knitting for years – everybody is welcome!

I’m headed with a friend to Millvale PA where McWalker Yarns and Abeille Voyante Tea Co are teaming up to celebrate and knit! 10-Noon

Classy Slip-Up Sock pattern by Betsy Lee McCarthy

Yarn is Regia Merino Yak from McWalker Yarns

The sweet bag stitched by a Woolswap partner’s daughter in Norway.

The Great Lakes Fiber Show in Wooster Ohio

Last week when I was visiting my two Columbus, Ohio families, I popped into 614 Knit Studio to get a sock needle and some sock yarn to knit men’s socks.  Believe it or not, I hadn’t taken enough knitting projects with me.  I ended up staying almost ten days instead of five and had completed two projects.  Thought I’d get a jump on some Christmas knitting.

When I was at the shop, a sign on the door said the shop was going to be closed Memorial Day Weekend because they were going to be a vendor at the Great Lakes Fiber Show in Wooster Ohio.  When I entered Wooster into my Maps App it was a mere hour and fifteen minutes from Laura’s house and on the way home (sort of) to Pittsburgh.

Here’s owner 614 Knit Studio Owner Andrea Panzica

I bought a merit badge pin for a couple of knitting friends. I had to tell Andrea it was because of her sign at her shop that I came to the Great Lakes Fiber Show

Look at this gorgeous Studio Dog Fibers yarn they are featuring

Here are some of the vendors I met at the show. People at Work

Do you have a Spinning Wheel that needs repair or servicing?  Here is Ed Jr.  Ed the Wheel Healer. Located in Oberlin,Ohio you’ll have to email or give him a phone call as they are not on social media.

 

Look at all these Inkle Looms! Chuck and Angie own Egill’s Woostuffs 

Here’s Chuck with a cutting board of Spalted Walnut, Cherry and ____?_____and Angie with a handmade loom.

  Chuck ELECTROCUTES some of the wood for this effect. He showed me a video of the process

Recycled Yarn Co has an Etsy shop sells cranked tubes to make socks by adding cuff, heels and toes. I’ve knit several pairs of Opal yarn socks and it’s hardy and long wearing. Thanks to my friend Terry who introduced me to the brand.

Joanna’s Boutique has the most beautiful silk scarves and clothing with nature prints.  She sells roving and fiber, buttons at her Etsy shop

 

Merino wool sneakers for sale from WOOLLOOMOOLOO

Knitting Needle Jewelry by Bur Oak Studio from Danville Indiana

I bought a basket (woven in Ghana) from Frog It Yarns I’ll use it to hold my front porch knitting

How about these custom wooden needles by Ann Carpenter? And the cotton cord is made in Poland from recycled clothing.

Watch a short Sheep Herding Demonstration on YouTube

thank you Andrea for telling me about the Great Lakes Fiber Show

The Volunteers Bronze Statue Guest Blog

Thank you Joanne who sent the article and photographs from Halifax

The Volunteers Bronze Statue in Halifax, at the Waterfront, Nova Scotia (click link for article written when the monument was unveiled in 2017)

The bronze sculpture, called “The Volunteers,” features three life-sized figures from three generations: A young girl pulling a wagon full of salvaged metal, an African-Nova Scotian woman holding a tray of coffee and sandwiches, and an older woman seated with a Mi’kmaq basket and knitting.

The sculptor is Marlene Hilton Moore

Bronze Sculpture of Woman Knitting for the WWII Effort

Location is Everything Guest Blog

Location location location. Isn’t that the rule of real estate? It’s EVERYTHING!

Maura took this photo of a brand new development, built along the active railroad tracks. She says I could sit on the porch and knit and watch the freight trains go by. Heaven forbid if there’s a derailment! What were they thinking with this plan? No occupancy yet but I can’t imagine anyone rushing to buy one of these units.

Brand new condominiums for sale

Local Yarn Store Day is Saturday April 29th

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Here’s a photo of McWalker Yarns owner Amy McCall holding the photo I took of her as she opened the store in April 2018. Standing with her is fabulous crochet artist Melissa White (who is also an employee) The photo shows how much the store’s inventory has grown!

McWalker Yarns in Millvale PA is celebrating their fifth anniversary and Local Yarn Store Day. There are special sales and prizes for shoppers this Saturday April 29th. Amy says in her latest newsletter “To celebrate this special occasion, I asked Toni at Raggz Fiber Art to create an exclusive assigned-pooling colorway for us to be named “The Yarn Shop at the End of the Rainbow.” Wow, has she outdone herself! We have, for now, a limited number of skeins of this amazing colorway in fingering weight. These will go on sale on Saturday (4/29) at the anniversary party (and are destined not to last

A solid community of fiber enthusiasts has flourished, even during pandemic times. It was during these long months that McWalker began mail order sales, curbside pick-up and hosted Zoom meetings several times a Week. There were classes and make-alongs, friendships formed, even during isolation.

Here’s the post created upon the store’s April 2018 opening Millvale Welcomes McWalker Yarns

also the First Anniversary post is here

Celebrating five years

Congratulations to Amy on bringing her dream into reality. A dream where we share in the yarny goodness and positive vibes. When entering the store there’s a welcoming spirit. It’s a wonderful local yarn store.

Wordless Wednesday

It’s Pi Day

What is pi? “pi—which is written as the Greek letter for p, or π—is the ratio of the circumference of any circle to the diameter of that circle

If you want to know how pi originated click this Scientific American article

Mixing it up. Pie on Pi Day

Rob this post is for you. Rob is a certified Pie Judge. Here’s a post of National Pie day in January 2012. Sorry I missed National Day Pie Day this year but now it’s Pi Day 3.14.

Did you know you can order Pi Day sock yarn? maybe for next year Fibernymph Dyeworks says “ all of our Pi Day colorways, the striping pattern is based on the numeric sequence of pi – 3.141592…, which is a non-repeating number. Thus, the stripe sequence does not repeat within the skein, and you will not be able to get a matching pair of socks (or anything) from a single skein. But if you’re a math geek, that’s part of the fun! We include a stitch marker affixed to the beginning of the sequence”

Pi Day at high school was celebrated in 2015

March 14 2015

Baby Roy Examines My Scrappy Sock

Six months old and checking for a dropped stitch?