Fiber Friday- What to pack

It is hard being a fiberista and going away for a few weeks where decent yarn is hard to come by, and tool like needles even harder to get. So what does one pack for such an occasion??

I have learned... it depends... on your schedule....and where you are going...

Packing the huge shawl that takes 16 skeins of yarn is usually not the right choice. It takes up tons of luggage room, and you feel obligated to bring all the yarn- just in case you get far enough to use it...

Packing small items like washcloths is great. They are brainless, small, easy to transport, and you only need one set of needles, and one row counter, and scissors to make them(you can weave in the ends when you get home). The skeins of cotton yarn are small enough to stuff inside shoes, so you have minimal impact on luggage room. And if they have to be crammed in your luggage on the way home, they will be ok.

Afghan squares are great too. Not too big, but a little more challenging than washcloths. No need to bring too many, especially if you bring a few more difficult ones, they will take time to conquer. It is great when you are sitting on a beach and when someone asks you what you are knitting you can answer "blanket". If they are local to the beach, they tend to look at you quizzically. Both because, why would you need a blanket in such nice weather, and they think soon it will be huge and full of sand. Doing an afghan in squares makes it easy to transport and work on.

I like bringing shawls. Especially the kind that are knit up with sock yarn. Two or three skeins are light, easy to pack, and make up quite a large project, so it can keep you busy most of, if not all of, the trip. As it gets bigger it gets harder to bring with you to the beach, but poolside, and on the balcony work pretty good. It can even keep you warm on cooler nights as you knit it. If you are lucky, you may finish it and use it before the vacation is even over. Or in my case, I may finish it and be able to give it to its intended recipient, thus not having to pack it for the flight home.

So there you have it... packing for a vacation 101, because you can almost always buy underwear and socks wherever you go, but decent yarn is hard to get sometimes and a girl has to be prepared.

Workshop Wednesdays

It has been a little while since my last post. I went to visit my mom, have a home show, and then K came to visit, so it has been pretty hectic around here.

First I visited mom, We went on a yarn crawl (kind like a pub crawl , but you buy yarn rather than booze) and visited four stores in the are around her. My favorite was the Spinning Wheel in Altamont NY. I even got a skein of yarn from a local indie dyer who names the colorway after the store- and that is the only place you can buy it. So I was pretty excited. I also got some coll stuff on sale, yarn for a shawl for C's sister, and some uber cool sock yarn I had never seen before, but I got two skeins so I can make a shawl instead.

While I was there a friend from High School hosted a home party for me. I got to meet some great new people, sell some soap, and generally have a really fun day. I wish I had more time to do home shows, but it is primarily the Spring when I have the weekends free.

That Monday was stress free (hence no post) I was at moms and we were snowed in. She got about 8 inches of snow Sunday night into Monday morning so we hung out, knit, watched movies and chilled all day.

That Wednesday in the shop was full of finishing the lotion bars and filling orders and lots of general shop cleaning and paperwork. The pile of mail when I returned was huge and it took me two days to dig through it all and do everything that needed to be done with it. I caught up on bills, made phone calls, and had to print muslin bags for soap for a store inventory.

Friday I went with C and ran a bunch of errands. We had to go into NJ to help a friend of his, so we stopped at IKEA near the Newark Airport, and then lunch, and then at Clinton Station Diner for desserts to take home, because it is impossible to go past that place and not bring home desserts. They are YUMMY!! I got to work on the shawl for his sister in the car on the way there, but I had to drive on the way back... so only a little got done.

Once again it was Monday, and K was here visiting. I ran some errands with her and generally just hung out. We did make the rest of the bath salts, so they are done (except I need to label the sample sized ones).

So that brings me back to today... Workshop Wednesday....I have finished my lotion bars, the star anise soap and one of my special orders. I have finished one of my gift baskets, got one store almost entirely stocked, and another with just a few dozen soaps to deliver.

Now I am trying to get some things done so I can leave again next week to be with C for two weeks. This blog is on my list to do, I have tax stuff to deal with, and a few other things, but nothing that is killing me like it was a few weeks ago. Mostly I am trying to finish paperwork so I don't have to haul around the lap top for two weeks. That means my taxes need to be almost done before I go.

So I am off, to get things done, so that I can relax while I am gone- knit, read a book, and enjoy.

Workshop Wednesdays

I feel like in the last week not enough things have been done. So many things started, so many things not finished.

I still have lotion bars to make and label.
I still have start anise soap to make
I still have bath salts to make
I still have two special orders to make
I still have gift baskets to make and get out
I still have to finish my taxes
I still have to get ready for a home show
I still have inventory to get ready for a store

and if I list any more I might scream.

But all of those things are partially finished, and more finished this week than they were last week. I just am not focused this week. And for me trying to multitask means everything is done slower than if I just focused on one thing at a time. But right now the shop is a mess because I am in the middle of so many projects. So I have to trudge through this week till I get a few things done and can clean up some.

Then I can focus on what is left, and then start new. AACK!!!