Home base

I'm trying to simplify a few things on the back end of the business, especially as we keep growing and getting busier. (Yay!) The less time spent doing other things means more time spent dyeing yarn:)

To that end, I'm switching my blogging efforts over to our website. It just makes sense to have everything in one place. And it's one less thing my little scattered brain has to remember to do. So, please join me over here...

October House Fiber Arts Journal

I'm also pretty consistent about posting to Instagram, so you can generally see what I'm up to, and what's been added to the shop over there...

Instagram

I grew this business out of this little blog, and I'm eternally grateful for it and YOU, since there wouldn't be any October House without you! So let's keep making and creating....:)

work in progress

It's been a very nice start to the new year around here. I've been concentrating on establishing some new work routines that are in line with my goals (trying to look at the big picture here!) as well as build in more personal and home care time. So far, it's going well.

But fiber show prep is starting to take place, and that can be a crazy busy time. Especially this year, since the two shows we are doing (PlyAway 3 and DFW Fiber Fest) are on consecutive weekends.  That means we have to prep for both shows at the same time. Yikes!

Things will be a little quiet around here for a couple of months while I dye up a mountain of yarn and fiber:)

end of year sale

don't miss our first annual Year-End Sale...happening now over on the website!

a knitter's sampler

Thank you so much for the wonderful response to my newest cross stitch pattern! I had a lot of fun designing and stitching this piece, and it's so gratifying that you like it too. I think a lot of us spend our non-knitting time thinking about knitting...a lot. At least, I know I do. There's always some kind of woolly thought running through my head!

We've got more knitting themed patterns coming in the months ahead! Here's a little sneak peak of what's coming up next:

I've got lots more ideas running around in my head, now the trick is to get them out and into some linen and thread:)

hello october!

Yay! It's October! My favorite month of the year. It's also the anniversary month of October House...4 years!

I've got several things planned to celebrate our anniversary this month, including special discounts, free patterns and giveaways! I'll be doing all of these through our newsletter, so if you're not a subscriber, now is the time to join!

Click on the image above to subscribe, or click here.

sneak peek

In all honesty, I've spent most of July covered in paint and sanding dust as I've been working around chez October House on several projects. And I'm not nearly done. Why is it that painting takes twice as long as I think it will?  Ah well, these walls, doors and furniture aren't going anywhere:)

I have, however, managed to get in some time designing a few new cross stitch patterns, one of which will be released next week:

A Country Day - or - if you prefer, A Summer Day. The chart includes both versions.  

I'm busy working away on a few more designs which won't be ready for a bit, but here's a sneak peek of one of them

You knew I had to design a pattern about my favorite craft!

my cross stitch designs

We've got a new thing in the shop...our own line of cross stitch designs!

I have really been enjoying my cross stitching time these days, and I had a blast getting these designs stitched, photographed and ready for you to stitch. We've got 4 designs to start us off, but there are more coming in the weeks and months ahead.

There are 2 ways to purchase our designs. You can buy an instantly downloadable PDF pattern, or you can have a print pattern mailed to you...you choose which you prefer.

Hop over to the shop and see our newest designs!

hard decisions

Being a small business owner, most of the business decisions I make are pretty easy, or at least they flow from where the business is going. And for the most part, it's usually about saying "yes" to something. Yes to adding a new yarn base, yes to doing a fiber festival, yes to wholesale accounts.

But with success sometimes comes the need to make decisions you don't really want to make. I'm at that point right now with a couple of things. Since I value my sanity, I've decided to make a couple of changes that are hard, but necessary.

First, I will be phasing out the Fiber Club this year. Everyone who has a current subscription will receive the club until their subscription is through. But I won't be renewing any Fiber Club subscriptions as they run out.

Second, we will be producing no additional spinning fiber for the shop throughout the year, with the exception of the weeks surrounding Ply Away. Our fiber focus each year will be our attendance at Ply Away, and producing a good selection for that show. Anything left over will be in the shop in the weeks after the show.

These were not easy decisions. Even though in one way, I already knew what I needed to do. Since October House Fiber Arts began, I've always made decisions based on what was in my heart, and what my gut instinct told me. And that's been pretty darn successful.

So, my heart has been leading me in a couple of new directions. There will be some new things coming (yay!), but that also means that these things have to take a back seat. I should note that there are no changes to the yarn production or the Sock Club. Our yarns are the center of October House and they will continue to have the spotlight!

I appreciate your understanding, and as always, I am so thankful for your support of our small business!

Sock Club

One of my favorite projects each month is coming up with a new colorway for the Sock Club members. It's always fun to just play around and see what comes out. Some months I have a definite idea of what I want, and other months I jump in and see what happens!

Sock Club colorways are exclusive for three months, and after that you may see a few of them become regular colorways. A few popular examples of colors that started in the Sock Club are Madeleine, Poet, Spiced Plum, Water Lilies, Seashells and Velvet.

A new one that I'm excited to add to the regular colorways list is Hopskotch.

This was one of those colors that was a complete surprise. I was just playing around with a couple of skeins and whammo! After I added the last layer, I loved it.

To get your own subscription to the Sock Club, click here. There are 3 and 6 month options available. That's 3 or 6 months of yummy yarny surprises! :)

fiber, fiber everywhere

It's been all work and not much play around here the past few weeks, what with preparing for DFW Fiber Fest (which was last weekend) and PLY Away 2 (which is in 2 weeks).  The dye pots are going full tilt, there's fiber and yarn everywhere, and I'm still trying to cram in as much dyeing as possible before we head off to Kansas City.

And really, if you're going to have work stuff laying around all over your home, yarn (and fiber) is a pretty sweet deal.

The thing is...I've got an itch to do some sewing. I'm dreaming of patchwork and paper piecing, new pj's and project bags, not to mention breaking out the embroidery and cross stitch!

Right now, I'm satisfying myself with paper piecing hexagons for this very old WIP. Which started out with a little pouch and grew because making hexagons is very addicting, albeit slow. One day it will be a lap quilt (it's larger than now, about triple the size from this old photo).

But once May is here, there will be a lot of sewing projects started around here. Like this, and this, and even this:)

getting ready

Fiber Festival season is fast approaching, and we are in full swing preparing for the 2 shows that we are participating in this April. The dye pots are going full time and the skein winder is smoking!

We'll be at DFW Fiber Fest in Irving, Texas from April 6-9 (Thursday - Sunday). This is our third year attending, and it's always a huge blast. I love meeting everybody and drooling over all the yummy yarn everybody makes. It'll be a little bit odd this year because that is also Masters week this year. Jimmy and I are both huge golf fans, so there may be some surreptitious viewing on the iPad come Sunday afternoon:)

We'll also be returning to Kansas City, Missouri for PLY Away 2 a couple of weeks later - April 27-29 (the retreat actually begins on the 25th, but the vendor hall doesn't open until the 27th). We had the best time at the inaugural PLY Away last year, and I was really excited to be invited to come back. Jacey, Levi and the whole gang did an exceptional job hosting their first spinning retreat. I'm not sure how it could be better, but I bet there will be some good surprises in store this year.

Those are the only 2 shows we are doing this year, because we have a busy summer of house renovations and remodeling planned. I'm not really looking forward to it, but it's got to be done. Then in the fall, we'll be taking an anniversary trip we've been talking about for a while.

I'm also looking forward to giving our online shop my full attention for a while. I've got gobs of ideas that I'm raring to put into play, but there hasn't been time for them this past year.

Folklore Socks

I recently updated my Folklore Socks pattern to use our Everlasting Sock Yarn. I used the Cloud Burst colorway (cause it's one of my faves), and I needed to take a new cover photo.

The only sad thing about that is it meant replacing the original cover photo that included our beloved collie, Shepherd:

I loved that picture so much, so it's still included in the pattern on another page. He loved the smell of wool yarn, but he never chewed on my projects. Oh, he'd give them a good smell, but that was it. :)

Anyway, that's just to say, the pattern has a nice, new update. It's been updated to work using any type of needle (dpn, 2 circulars, magic loop) and the toe has been tweaked for a smoother fit. If you purchased your copy on Ravelry, you get an automated update.

And now, I get to wear the new socks!

Happy New Year!

And we're back. Well that was fun, wasn't it?

We had a terrific holiday, and it was really nice to just sit back, relax, and do whatever I felt like (or not do) for a couple of weeks.

But, it's good to be back at the dye pots this week! We're gearing up to prepare for the spring fiber festivals and making plans for the rest of the year. It's kind of amazing how quickly October rolls around:)

It's always good to spend a few weeks in January planning and prepping, before things really get rolling...and roll away from me. So I'll be spending this lovely month planning, scheduling and dreaming about what I would like to accomplish this year.

What are your goals for 2017?

Sketchbook Series

Tomorrow's shop update will include a new series of hand dyed yarns that I'm calling the Sketchbook Series. These are handpainted colorways that are directly inspired from my sketchbooks and watercolor sketches.

One of the great things about yarn dyes is they behave a lot like watercolors, in that they are transparent or semi-transparent colors that you can layer and mix. I get quite a few ideas from playing with my watercolors and drawing in my sketchbook, so it seemed appropriate to have a special series of colors directly inspired from them.

We're starting with 3 colors, but I'll be adding more in the months to come!

The colorway shown is Sketchbook - sort of the namesake of the series - inspired by my many, many pages of sketches in pencil, black ink, sepia and payne's gray watercolor washes.

Stocking the Shop

Now that our travel responsibilities are over for the rest of the year, I've been able to concentrate on getting some yarn and fiber into the shop!

So, I've been adding yarn, fiber, and mini-skeins to the shop each day this week. It's starting to add up! Here's a peek:

There will be more to come in the weeks ahead, so check back each week to see what's new!

Our Newest Yarn: Introducing Everlasting Sock

I'm excited to announce the addition of a new yarn to the October House lineup! Everlasting Sock.

Our newest sock yarn is a wonderful merino/mohair/nylon blend that is tough and durable, but also beautiful. The addition of mohair gives it a hint of halo and beautiful depth to the colors. While the 4 ply structure makes for a nice round yarn that really resists pilling. 

Everlasting Sock is available in the shop beginning today! Click here to take a look.

New Website and Shop are Open!

I'm excited to announce that our new website and shop are now up and running!

We tried very hard to keep the feel of our old website, which I loved, while adding a lot more functionality and an e-commerce system to house our own shop. We're still learning the ins and outs of everything, and there may be a few things to tweak in the next few weeks. But we're very happy with it. This blog will stay just as it is, so no changes here.

I'd love it if you'd hop on over and take a look around.

New and Discontinued Yarns

I've got a couple of new yarns in the works. I'm busy testing them out and dyeing up samples. One is a new sock yarn that I'm very excited about, and the other is a replacement for a yarn that my distributor has tragically discontinued.

It pains me to say it, but Arbor has been discontinued and I can't get anymore. I'm still broken-hearted about this...it was my personal favorite. I adored the structure of it, and it created a beautiful fabric with a lovely halo. It always dyed up beautifully, too. I've got a small amount of stock left, and to be honest...I'm still debating on whether to put it in the shop or keep it in my personal stash.

The good news is that there's a DK weight version of Arbor still available through my distributor. It has the same lovely halo and soft twist, but in a 3 ply. The picture at the top is a sample of it.

The new sock yarn is a merino/mohair/nylon blend that I'm in love with. Some of Jimmy's favorite socks were knit with Mountain Colors Bearfoot, which has mohair in it. And even though he has worn the crap out of those socks, they are still going strong. So, I've been on the lookout for a sock yarn with mohair...and I think I've found it.

I do have another fingering weight yarn I'm testing out, since I'm apparently drawn to some kind of "natural/rustic yet luxurious" sock weight yarn.

All of these will be showing up in the fall, just in time for serious knitting season:)

Small Bits of June

I've been working on a couple of small projects just for myself. It's been so hot and muggy around here the past few weeks, just the thought of handling the merino I'm trying to finish spinning makes my hands feel sticky. So I've abandoned that for the time being.

Instead I've got a couple of small knitting projects, that don't require a pile of wool in my lap:) I'm enjoying them immensely. The first is the Spindrift Shawl by Helen Stewart, which I'm knitting in Linden Sock. It feels wonderful to knit with this yarn, especially when it's very warm outside. It slides through your hands and across your needles in that wonderful way that silk blends do. The colorway is Water Lilies (which was the February Sock Club colorway this year), and though you can't tell much while it's on the needles, I'm loving how it's looking.

Second up is a pair of no-show socks, these are the Skimmer Socks by Sheila Toy Stromberg. I'm knitting them in Sojourn Sock in the "A Day at the Lake" colorway (again, it was the May Sock Club colorway this year). Very summer-ish. I'm excited to finish them and see if they work as well as I hope they do.

I'm working on several "house" projects this summer. I just finished painting our shutters. We got a new roof at the beginning of the year, and it just called out for new shutter and trim paint colors. So the shutters are now a nice charcoal gray. We'll start on the eaves and overhangs and trim and such in a few weeks...something in a nice off-white, buff kind of color to match the house. But first, I'll be painting some interior doors and yikes....the kitchen cabinets.

We painted our kitchen several years ago in a lovely cream color called Sunwashed, and I've enjoyed it a lot. But I've really been longing to have a white kitchen...really white...for a couple of years now. Since the feeling hasn't faded, I'm going to plunge in and paint the cabinets White. Pure White. We'll see if I have enough patience to re-paint the interiors in a pale gray. Maybe. Maybe not.

On top of all that, I'm busy trying to get the new website finished up and ready to go, and then it'll be time to start preparing for the fall season...so the dye pots will soon be at full capacity again. Wahoo!

Of course, some of us just want to lounge about in the a/c.

Quiet Colors - a small pattern collection

We had a terrific time at DFW Fiber Fest this year, and while we were there, our new pattern collection debuted at the Fiber Fest and on Ravelry.

Quiet Colors is a small pattern collection of accessories. They are sophisticated, yet easy to knit designs that have a classic feel. I've used my favorite yarns to knit these patterns, and they are yarns you want to knit with over and over.

Abella Stole 

Acropolis Socks

Intermezzo Shawl

Cataleen Mitts

You can find the collection in the Ravelry shop, as well as the Etsy Shop.

I'm going to cast on the Abella stole for myself in greens (Picholine & Riesling in Arbor Fingering) once we're back from PLY Away. I figure if I start now, it might be done in time for next winter:)