November Silk Retreat

Here we go again. We had so much fun last time we’re doing it again in November.
Steph just posted all the particulars so go to her blog and read all about it.

We’ve got 45 spots and they go fast.

A bit of this and a bit of that.

So.... we’re extending the coupon code for 10% off that was in our Knitting Daily ad ( KD444) until the end of September. We’re doing this for several reasons but mostly because we’ve been buried in orders, recovering from a massive mill error and trying to catch up. We are almost there. In order to maintain some small grain of sanity and to keep team blue moon from a massive revolt I’ve not put up the fall colours or the new oranges.  Really if I had done this last week I’m sure they would’ve taken me out.  And I wouldn’t have blamed them.
We will add the new oranges that you all named and the returning seasonal ones at the end of this week, as we walk out the door for the fun and fabulous Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival. So I’m asking (begging) everyone that has yet to place and order or wants to place another to wait until the new colours are up at the end of this week.

As I said Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival is this weekend and if your in the area and have not had the pleasure you really should come. It’s my favourite festival fiber-wise in this area and is just grand fun. There are fiber animals, classes, contests, and all kinds of fiber folks sharing and selling their wares.  We’ll be there in our usual place in the 4-h building right nest to Morgaine of Carolina Homespun.

I spent all weekend in the dye barn this weekend getting prepped for OFFF.  Saturday was all about the rare gems which really rings my bell pretty loud.  I often use the rare gems as a testing ground for combining and mixing all kinds of colour craziness. No limits, anything goes.  And I mean anything.
Like maybe a bit of Scum of wonder.

A lot of goodness!

In colour and fiber and friends. As you know Debra and Debbi both became grandmums for the first time this year. The Rockin’ Sock Club campers from last April organized by Lisa Kobeck and Jen Clodious knit squares, sent notes and love for two grandma blankies. Campers from this area had a big stitch together party in August. Then Jen and Lisa put borders on them.
Last week the stars a lined to match blanky to grandma. Lisa and Jen whom were here helping to bundle pack and ship.  Debra is always here so… Debbi showed up to help and knit magic happened.
See…

To all of you wonderful knitters/campers who knit squares for our Debs look at the happiness you made with a thought, a wee bit of yarn, some needles and each other.
As you can see they were both very surprised (which is not easy to do they are both very smart women) felt cherished, cried a bit, laughed a lot and I’m sure you’ll all here thank you soon.
I especially love the shot where they are looking at each other with the, “can you believe this” look.

Lisa and Jen please take an knit organizational bow.

Today Debra’s Dylan is 3 months old.  He quite the little man.  Measuring time by the growth of a child.  Just watch it fly by.

Did ya see the crowns? Virginia I love the crowns.

Mill Rant #59304508244

I’ve been advised on occasion not to share this kind of information because it might make me look bad or give those that don’t like me (I know… right)
ammunition, make me look like a whiner… the list goes on.  Whatever.
Information helps you makes better choices and plans, right?  I also think that the best way to change a faulty system is to take it to the end user and that my knitterly friends is us.
So here it is.
This week, in the middle of a massive order crunch ( not complaining) with both sock club and Oregon Flock and Fiber looming in the not so distant future, we lost 2 days of work. Actually that’s not quite accurate,we didn’t loose it those days, I know exactly where they are. They are hanging from the rafters of my studio. Hundreds of skeins of Woobu hanging from the rafters. Skeins we can’t sell. Skeins we dyed for orders that we’re running up against our promised shipping deadline on. Skeins that are not milled to spec.  Skeins that are overweight. Skeins once we problem solved the issue we had to redye in the correctly spun yarn.

WHY? Why you ask? 

I’ll tell why. Because the mill got in a bigger order while they were running ours. So they stopped ours and ran that one. When they went back to it they didn’t adjust the specs on the machine. Now I for one certainly understand a mistake.  I run a hand painting business I get it. But this mistake could have been caught had they checked the yarn before it left the mill or checked it when it arrived at the broker.

We caught it here. We caught it before it left here. None of it has left this building. Debra and I caught it, but kept dyeing because of that whole order crunch thing, while waiting to hear from the mill. Note to self: Don’t do that next time, it creates inner turmoil.

While I find it disturbing that there are obviously no quality control standards and checks and I most certainly do. The lack of this in the US mill industry has cost me a whole lot of sweat and tears ( no blood yet).

What I find the most disturbing is the attitude I get when this kind of thing goes down with a mill or broker. I can tell from the look on their faces and tone of voice that they think I’m a picky unreasonable wing nut.  I can tell because they say things like so what it’s a bit thicker no one but you will know. The first time I heard this I was so stunned I couldn’t form complete sentences. Those of you who know me know that this is no small thing.
I now point out the error of this thinking to them. I educate them on the hand knitter and our needs. We talk about pattern support for yarn and how can that possible happen if they can’t spin the yarn to the same specs.  I explain what goes in to designing a pattern for a specific yarn.  I tell them how much we spend on promoting such a design and yarn. And then I tell them about knitting with it. I explain about running out of yarn for a project and having to buy more and how frustrating it is to get it and have it knit to a different gauge than what you were working with.  I explain all of this very patiently but firmly with maybe a hint of steam escaping every once in awhile. I explain this to blank stares. I then tell them how much it’s going to cost them to continue this way. It’s amazing how quick they tune in then.

I think about this a lot and I swear before I exit the planet there will be better mill standards in the US wool industry. 
As I was finally dyeing my last skein for the day last night I had an idea that I think would help. I think that we need to teach them to knit.  If they knew from their own two hands what it was like to take two sticks and yarn and make stitches. If they could then watch those stitches build upon each other into a sock or a shawl or sweater. If they could then put it on and feel that woolly goodness. I think they would have a much better understanding of the “why” here.

Ok I’m off to the barn to dye yet more Woobu.

Before I go I want to say that I have an awesome team here at blue moon. Debra, Becky, Paula, Rosie, Anneli, Joann, Debbi, Susan, Jen, Lisa, Tammy. All hard working lovely women to whom I an so grateful.

Have a colourfully stitched weekend.