My Christmas Super Sale!

So, the other day I was thinking about having a sale over the holidays. At first I thought Boxing Day like all the big department stores, but then I thought that come Boxing Day people have begun to run out of money. So I thought a pre Christmas sale! When everyone else is having sales in January I will have already had mine and hopefully people will have spent at my shop buying gifts for Christmas as well as for themselves!

This year has been crazy and such a lot of fun! I am really enjoying having this online shop and gradually the repeat customers are coming. I have such alot of things planned for next year it is hard not to jump ahead of myself. At the moment though I am busy pricing stock for the sale and hoping that it sells so that I can have some more room when the new stock arrives.

We are having a quiet Christmas as James my eldest is overseas. Tom and Nathan will be around though and we are having dinner at my sisters on the Gold Coast. then weather permitting we will head down to the house at Eureka in the Byron Bay Hinterland. Last year it was far too wet with the prelude to the floods. This year I hope will be much better and trips to beach will be in order.

I won't post again this year so Merry Christmas and a Happy New year!

More Yarn Deliveries!

This week has been crazy busy with lots more yarn deliveries and some surprises.

A young woman emailed me from the UK looking for the BC Garn Sarah Tweed yarn. She was desperately trying to find some that she had used before in a shawl and was having trouble finding anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere that sold it. I don't think she tried the Scandinavian countries! I had sourced this yarn from Loop in London when I was there in April but they didn't have anymore. So lucky for us both she found me on the internet and her parcel has been packaged and is on its way back over to that side of the world.

Sarah Tweed

Earlier in the week my long awaited order of Knit Collage arrived from the US. I had ordered this yarn months ago and it was supposed to arrive in September in time for the October craft fair. Because of various holdups at their end delivery was delayed, but is here now. I hadn't even unpacked it and my friend from Mackay called in whilst in Brisbane and bought several skeins. It is so pretty that I have been thinking of decorating the Christmas tree with it!

Twilight Garden

Iris Blossom


Also this week after another delay my order of Alchemy arrived from the US. This gorgeous yarn had been on order for about 5 months! Once again because of delays at their end I actually never thought that my order would come through and I seriously thought about cancelling it. Just as I had that thought an email arrived telling me that my order had been posted!

The other funny thing about receiving this order was that it was delayed in customs for a couple of days while I had to fill out more forms. In the box with the yarn were some colour charts and I had to sign forms guaranteeing that is wasn't pornographic material!

Air and Fire

Resolution

In this yarn business I am learning something new everyday. I am enjoying it very much and meeting new people along the way. I have organised 2 major workshops for next year with a guest tutor and I will reveal more next year. Lots of exciting things happening!

Yarn Glorious Yarn

www.yarngloriousyarn.com.au

This is the name of my online shop. It has been slow to get started but I am positive that things will pick up as I am gradually building up a customer base and more so when people find out where I am. My yarns that I am selling are quite specialized and probably a bit more expensive than what most people are prepared to pay. I will get in more affordable brands as winter comes in but for now the European, US and UK labels that I have are really beautiful and I am enjoying stocking things that no one else has here in Australia.

The show was a great start and now I just have to keep the momentum going with newsletters and regular sales as well as classes.

Since I don't have to prepare for another craft show until next March I now have time to finish some of the projects that I have unfinished. They are many!!

Firstly I am working on the Jane Crow mystery crochet blanket. I am almost finished and then to sew together and crochet the edging. hopefully I can have it finished before the end of the month or definitely before Christmas.

This photo was taken on Nathan's 20th Birthday last month. Kirstyn, Nathan, Thomas, James and Tegan. Kirstyn is toms girlfriend and they all get along so well. Kirstyn and Nathan helped me at the craft show which was just great!

My handsome boys Tom, Nathan and James.

I have had an exciting week. My son James, who is is Nepal at the moment, found out that he has been accepted into medicine at Notre Dame, Sydney. He has worked so hard and it is fantastic news. He and Tegan will be moving there in January so it will be great for us to visit from time to time. Also its not that far to come home occasionally. After Nepal they are off to Europe for a month before heading home just after Christmas.

I'm just not sure now whether or not to finish this blog and start a new business one and link it to my shop. I'll have to have a think about it I guess?

Brisbane Craft & Quilt Fair

Beginners Knitted Bracelets
New Books Just into the Shop
The stand all set up for the Craft & Quilt Show
Noro Taiyo Slouch Hat made for Tegan

The craft fair was a great success and I was very happy meeting lots of new people and showing them the yarns. Nathan gave me a hand and together we handed out hundreds of business cards so I hope that will generate more traffic to my website.

Ten women and 1 very young woman/girl learned how to knit and the kits were a great success. The beginners bracelet was so popular that Nathan and I made up some kits on the first evening and they all sold. As a result I have made up some more and put them on the website.

Today I have been ordering some more yarns for the summer. As well I have ordered some pattern books for 4 ply cotton as the BC Garn cotton doesn't have patterns in English and I have learned that people want patterns!

The last week for me has been recovering from the build up and hard work of the show. The unpacking was the worst and it took me 2 days before I could even face it!

Next week I am not opening the shop as Dad is having a knee reconstruction and I will be taking Mum in and out of the hospital and she will be staying with us.

Now that the show has finished I may even catch up on some embroidery for a change!

The Website is Live and the Shop is Open for Business!

Kits ready to go!
Noro Taiyo
Blanketing from the Geelong Blanket Company
Tilli Tomas Symphony Lace

Can't believe it! After all these months my website is finally live and it looks fantastic! The Brisbane Craft and Quilt Fair is just over a week away and I have been busy making up kits, writing patterns and generally running around like a chook with its head chopped off!

At the Craft Fair I am sharing a stall with Prudence Mapstone and Prudence asked me to teach some Basic Learn to Knit classes. I was initially a bit nervous but now I am looking forward to it. The workshops with Arnetta from the American Yarn & Craft Council in July will be put into use and hopefully I will generate some more interest in the shop.

I have so much more stock now and I have more arriving everyday. I think it has surprised some people as to just how much stock I do have! Anyway I need to sell it now as much as I would like to keep it in my stash!

In my previous post I had made up quite a few things for the show and those are the things which I have made into kits. I am hoping that they will do well.

Nathan has the week off uni for the show (by coincidence) so he is going to come in and help me a bit. Prudence and stephen will be there and we will all help each other but it's always good to have another pair of hands.

Well here's hoping that in my next posting I will be telling you that I have sold out of all my stock and will be having fun ordering some more!

Crocheting and Knitting up a Storm!

Robyn Chachula "Beatrices' Scarf" in BC Garn Sarah Tweed

A little girls' water bottle made in 4ply BC Garn Alba.


Alpaca Wristers made with one ball of The House of Alpaca yarn
Easy Lace Cowl made from 1 skein of BC Garn Sarah Tweed



Brightly coloured cushion in 4ply BC Garn organic cotton Alba.


My life is revolving around crochet and knitting patterns, yarn, websites and making up kits at the moment. I'm a bit overwhelmed by it all at times but I am loving every minute of it! I have been having a go at writing some easy patterns too which is something that I have always wanted to do.

The website for my shop is taking so much longer than I had initially thought. That just goes to show how much I don't know about computers! Anyway it's all possitive and I should be opening formally before the Stitches and Craft show in Brisbane in October.

I have made up quite a few kits as a friend in Canberra told me that as a consumer she often doesn't know what to do with all the beautiful yarns at the shows and sometimes and kits are a great option.

So here is a quick post showing some of things that I have been making. Also my classes at the craft show were confirmed today so that's more hours up my sleeve to get my teaching certificate!

It's Been Awhile!

BC GARN Sarah Tweed Silk/wool yarn
BC Garn Allino Cotton/linen yarn
Me and Arnetta
The Group at the Teaching Convention
Stocking my shelves at Yarn Glorious Yarn

I haven't updated this blog for ages! So much has been happening since coming back from our overseas trip. I guess the most important development since my last post is that I am setting up my very own yarn shop! This is a long story but it's something that I have wanted to do for 32 years!!

When I was living in London in 1979 I was working as a childrens' nanny for a lady who got me to knit a few garments for her. She introduced me to an amazing world of yarn shops with gorgeous yarns from France and Italy and I decided that when I returned to Australia I was going to import them. At the time we only had Patons, Cleckheaton and a bit of Sirdar. I guess when I returned home other things got in the way like getting a job and then getting married and starting a family....life!

Well 32 years later I am actually doing what I wanted to do all those years ago. It is such fun and as I write, my website is being built and stock is arriving nearly every day.

I am trying to stock yarns that no one else in Australia has, such as the Danish label BC Garn and beautiful silk and beaded lace weight yarn from Tilli Tomas in America. At the moment because summer is coming I have mainly silk, cottons and linen but I already I know what I want to stock for Autumn/Winter and I am excited for next year.

I am going to be working at the Brisbane Craft Fair in October showcasing my yarns at the Prudence Mapstone stand. Prudence has also asked me to teach some beginners knitting classes. I recently did a course on the Sunshine Coast organised by Jenny King. A teaching course for knitting and Crochet with the American Craft and Yarn Council. Arnetta Kenny a professor at the New York Fashion School was the teacher and it was amazing. I met so many like minded people and made new friends and had a wonderful time.

Well hopefully when I post again Yarn Glorious Yarn will be up and running! My next goal is to have the biggest and best yarn store in Brisbane!

Hong Kong

Rome

Venice

Venice

Florence