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July Greetings & Happy 4th! I'm back from my June travels. I was at our TNNA summer market in Columbus for a week (3 days of the show plus 2 days of board meetings), back for a week then off to Portland for our summer Needlework Mafia retreat. I'm glad to be home for the rest of the summer - the next trip is the fall market in St. Charles so I have a bit of time to catch up on things :-). The market was relatively quiet but still a good one. The economic situation has affected everyone in our industry from retailer to designer so there were fewer attendees and vendors from last year. Mostly there were less people because shops didn't bring as many people to market (perhaps only the owner and not any staff). So it felt less crowded but there were still a goodly number of shops there to buy and vendors happy to sell. For me going to market isn't so much about buying product for the shop as it is a chance to interact with the vendors and designers we buy from, talk to other shop owners and recharge my retail batteries. This year I got a chance to have longer visits with folks like Cece from The Thread Gatherer, Tina & Terri at Shepherd's Bush, Sharon from Crescent Colours, Patti from Just Another Button Company, Charland & Sydney from Charland Designs, Jim from The Gentle Art, Miranda and John from Weeks Dye Works, Janet from A Collection of Designs, Cathy from Alice Peterson Co. and so on. I also got to have dinner and visit more with my friends who own shops or are designers (Linda at Old World Designs, Janice at Traditional Stitches, Deb at Stitchville USA and June McKnight). We caught up on what was going on with our businesses (and families in some cases), technology stuff, ideas for the future and encouraging each other to hang in there. When times get tough it's nice to have relationships with others in our industry to help keep us all going. We are stronger together and having that chance to talk face to face helps remind me of that. |
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Christmas in July
We have 4 designer trunkshows this month to celebrate Christmas in July. These will be small Christmas designs, mostly ornaments and small stockings and they'll be quick to stitch up - so you can get them done before the finishing deadline if need be. The designers are Birds of a Feather, Cheryl Schaeffer Designs, Maggie Co./Ewe & Eye & Friends (Mosey 'n Me collection and a few others) and Rebecca Wood Designs. Each represents a unique style and between them, we've got something for every needlepointer. There are even a few other holiday designs in the mix. We'll have the canvases for the entire month so if you're looking for a small project or two stop by and take a look. If you purchase one of the Trunkshow canvases or order one during the Trunkshow you will receive our Trunkshow discount on the canvas. |
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Thread A Needle Day!There is a holiday for pretty much everything these days and we are not to be left out. July 25th is Thread a Needle Day. The Bay Area EGA Chapter is going to be at the shop during the afternoon stitching and showing people how to thread a needle (there are quite a few ways you know). We'll have some treats during the day and make a little celebration of it. Come join us or have your own celebration and show others how much fun it is to Thread a Needle! |
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What's New & Updates
As many of you know, it's been hard to come by some of the Needlepaints colors the past few months. We can confirm that the Bluish Lavenders (2001-2006) and Orchids (2007-2011) are no longer available. Marilyn has created a substitution list with Rainbow Gallery threads but you cannot mix 'n match between the two brands. So if you've started a piece with these colors and are waiting for the remaining ones, they won't be forthcoming as they are no longer being made. To see more information about this and what the color mappings are visit our Blog.
Having visited with my Needlework Mafia buddies this past weekend, Pat from Lakeside came down to see us as well and I came home with more 45 count Lakeside Linens as well as few more 40 count. I'm not normally a Lime Green person, but her 40 count Lime Green is a great color for something eye catching. I'll be updating the on-line catalog in the next few weeks with all of the colors 45 count is available in (which is increasing due to its popularity). So if you're looking for a particular color, just let us know - chances are it can be ordered. |
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2009 Series
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Summer HoursRemember we will be closed this Saturday - July 4th. We will be open our regular hours on Friday 11-5pm (the Federal Holiday) and on Sunday 1-4pm. We are continuing our late Tuesday hours through the end of August, so we're open until 8pm on Tuesdays. We do have air conditioning so when it gets hot at your place this summer, come visit us, cool off and stitch a bit. Don't forget, we have free Wi-Fi for should you or your companions need to use it. |
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I'm still catching up from being gone so much the past 3 weeks. I should have more updates on the Blog and website done in the next week or two. I have such good intentions to get it all done but time always seems to get away from me. I had such a great time visiting with my Needlework Mafia buddies in Portland last weekend. I'm very fortunate to count Jean (Attic Needlework), Deb (Stitchville USA), Jeannine and Roz (Acorns and Threads) and Pat (Lakeside Linens) as good friends. Stitching in many ways is just as much about the friendships we make as the actual stitches we put on fabric. I hope that you too are blessed with good friends (stitching or otherwise). Happy Stitching and Happy 4th of July! |
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The Sheep Scissors holder from Lantern Moon flew out the door
and we have more on order. As they are hand-made in Vietnam and have proven to
be quite popular it may be a bit before we get more. But you can put your name
on the waiting list for them as we get more of them in stock.
At the TNNA show I found these
fabulous lamps from Germany. Created by Holtkötter the lamp comes in both
a floor model and table model as well as two finishes - Satin Nickel and Hand
Brushed Old Bronze. It has a Halogen bulb that is adjustable so you can use it
for reading, needlework or anything in between. The styling is reminiscent of
Art Deco so it's a great choice for those locations where a craft lamp doesn't
fit the decor. To read more about them visit our
Blackbird Designs - 2009
Loose Feathers Club -- The first two designs have been released and we have
them at the shop. If you've not signed up for the 2009 Club you can do so by
calling the shop or
Just Nan's second release in the
Over The Top Tin Club has been shipped. We still have room on our
sign-up list for the 2009 series so if you missed signing up earlier, you can
still do so. Just call us or go to the
