Scratching the Needlepoint Itch

It turns out that yarn is not the only thing I have stashed.
With the introduction of needlepoint at the Tangled Web, I took a trip in the way-back machine to the time when I used to wield a needlepoint needle instead of a knitting needle.
It was years ago and I think I was attracted by the colors of yarn and embroidery floss that needlepointers worked with (yes, I am easily distracted by bright colors). I had become an avid knitter and was not looking for yet another artistic craft. But the pull of the canvases was strong and before I knew it, I had put knitting aside for this new pleasure.
My joy didn’t last long; I never mastered the basketweave stitch. I could only do the tent stitch which tended to warp the canvas. But I tent stitched away and made several pillows including an adorable tooth fairy pillow for my niece.
And I developed the really bad habit of buying canvases that caught my eye. Therein lies my stash. I have several canvases that are totally untouched. They were stored away and truthfully I forgot about them almost as soon as I bought them.
But the Web has needlepoint and I am experiencing the old stirrings. Lovely canvases, brilliant fibers in a variety of textures. My fingers are itching to try it again.
I went to my stash and found one of my old, untouched pieces. It is the seat cushion and back for a child-sized director’s chair. It has letters and numbers and is hard enough to be challenging and challenging enough to be fun.
I bought it almost 12 years ago. This too was to be made for my niece who was then a year old. Of course, now she is nearly 13 and won’t fit in a child’s size chair.
But my new granddaughter ought to fit it just fine.
So here I am, a knitter with the needlepoint itch. What to do?
I have decided to scratch the itch. I am putting down my knitting needles and settling in to learn how to needlepoint -- seriously. This means I probably won’t knit my husband’s annual birthday sweater; I hope he doesn’t mind.
It means that my Christmas knitting list will be put off to 2010. It means that instead of teaching lessons at the Web, I will be the student as I once again tackle the basketweave stitch.
My plan is to make this a first birthday present for Jordan Marie, which means I have until May 26, 2010 to get this accomplished.
I promise this will not go back into the dusty stash.
But do me a favor: when you stop in the store, ask me how it’s going. That will keep me on point.
And stop in and see our luscious yarns and canvases; you’ll see the needlepoint bug can be contagious.
-- Lucia Herndon

Our Fall Class and Knit-Along Schedule is Up!

Believe it or not, it's almost that time of year again! Relax and enjoy your time by the pool and keep digging that sandcastle at the beach, but (pssst!) we've got our Fall Class Schedule done and posted on our website here. Registration is open!

Here are some tantalizing images to whet your appetite:

(Lady Eleanor Stole Knit-Along)



(Felted Moebius Basket)



(Easy Lace Shawl)



(Amigurumi Acorn)



(American Girl Doll Chestnut Hill Gansey)


(First Friday Manos Block-of-the-Month Club)

Call the store at 215-242-1271 to sign up!

I've Been "Dyeing" To Show You This!

On Saturday I taught one of the most fun classes I've ever taught in 7 years of instruction. It was Dyeing Your Own Yarn. Armed with a skein of sock yarn and Wilton Cake Icing Dye, my four wonderful and intrepid students got to work.

Here we have Marina, Maggie, MaryAnn and Peggy hand-painting their yarn:


MaryAnn:


Peggy:


Maggie:


Marina:


Marina and Maggie working hard:


Their beautiful skeins, in skeins-y form::


And here is the finished yarn, ready to be knit into some snazzy socks.
Left to right we have: Peggy's gorgeous Stained Glass Fantasy, MaryAnn's delicate Rose In Bloom, Maggie's patriotic Fourth of July Special, and Marina's summery Festive Fruit Salad. [I made up the names, don't blame the ladies!]

Ladies, you need to bring your socks in for show-and-tell!

We'll be offering Dye Your Own Yarn again early in the fall - I highly recommend taking it. We had a blast!

Food for Thought

Next Knit-Along Starts Friday June 19

Our next Knit-Along, the Perfect Summer Shell, starts this Friday, June 19 from 5-8 pm. We're having this Knit-Along in conjunction with our regular Friday Knit Night/Happy Hour, so it's a perfect opportunity to start a fun, easy quick project and hang out with some fabulous fun folks.

The Shell comes in three necklines, V-Neck, Boatneck, and Scoopneck, is completely seamless, and looks great.








More information here. Call the store at 215-242-1271 if you have any questions or would like to sign up.

Love (and lace) Conquers All

Finally, the baby has arrived! My first grandchild, Jordan Marie was born on May 26 weighing in at 7 pounds and 11 ounces. She is beautiful -- of course, I'm her grandmother so what did you expect.
She has an incredible wardrobe including the knitted items I made. What I'm really looking forward to is giving my daughter a lacy christening blanket.
I wrote about the blanket last month. I spent months working on the intricate pattern. And at the end it was kind of a mess -- crimped up and lifeless. But thanks to colleague Diana Jordan, the blanket is breathtakingly beautiful. With the precision of a drill sargeant, she blocked the blanket into lacy goodness. I was fearful that the thin alpaca/silk wool would snap and the blanket would unravel. But she was fearless and showed the fabric no mercy. It was pinned to the floor, stretched taut and left overnight.
When I returned the next day, the blanket had been transformed and it was a dream come true.
Now it is ready to give to my daughter and I am trying to figure out what to tell her about it without sounding certifiably crazy. Here goes:
Dear Melissa and Jordan Marie:
I have been thinking about making a christening blanket for a grandchild for at least 20 years and have been searching for the perfect pattern since then. I finally settled on this one which took some time and skill but also is very pretty. It wasn't exactly the knitting process I thought it would be -- I thought I would think about how much I love you both while I was knitting it; but truthfully I was trying to make sure I got all the yarn overs and knit 2 togethers in the right places to think about love. The reason to do it was love, but love was not in every stitch.
Sort of like life itself. If we can be motivated by love, we can accomplish a lot, even if we're beset and besieged by doubts and troubles. In the end, love won out -- won out over the difficulties, the mistakes (there are a couple), and the frustrations.
Here's hoping that when you are swaddled in this blanket that love will be the crowning glory. I have waited, fretted and worried all these years for this. And as the Apostle Paul said: The greatest of all is love.
Lucia Herndon Horning

Fashion Show Photos!!

Hold on to your hats, folks! In case you missed it, here come a billion images from our fabulous Fashion Show, held last Sunday. We had a blast!

Getting ready:


Backstage:


Our handsome Master of Ceremonies (aka Curtis!):


The cavalcade of beautiful models (my apologies to those not pictured - I was clicking like crazy and some pictures just did not turn out):

Cortez in head-to-toe knitwear she made.


Joanna in her devastatingly beautiful ruffled shrug.


Brenda, in one of her one-of-a-kind shawl creations.


Our Lucia, in a truly fabulous cabled Manos sweater.


Maria, in her beautiful Alpaca Grande Einstein Coat.


Miss Stephanie, with her fierce runway walk, wearing a gorgeous lace cardigan knit by her mom, Sharon.


Here's Joan, wearing one of her trademark beautifully-crafted sweaters!


Here's Jan, looking fabulous in her gorgeous striped wrap.

Post-show everyone relaxed, drank, ate and chatted. What could be more fun?







Frenzy at the cash register!


Our Cheryl, who modeled about 1200 items, gets a well-deserved libation.


Kim won the raffle! She said she was feeling lucky!

Thanks to all our lovely customers, who made the day possible - we had a blast and hope you did too!!