Christmas is Coming

It's Christmas Eve.  

In the Northern Hemisphere, the longest night and shortest day have passed and we look forward to the light staying longer in the sky -- even imperceptibly -- as we edge into a New Year and ever-so-slowly toward spring.  Our friends South of the Equator, on the other hand, have turned a corner with their Summer Solstice, and now it's their turn to bemoan the ever-shortening days and diminishing light.

An Icelandic sheep (Wikipedia)

Merino sheep (Wikipedia)

Ah well.  On both sides of the Equator there are "Yarn People" -- from the Hebrides, Shetlands and Orkney Islands of Scotland to the hardy Icelandic knitters and south to Fair Isle colour creators; to the Estonian, Latvian and Scandinavian traditions; to the fashionable knits on the runways of Paris, Milan, Rome and New York -- all drape and style; to the plain, simple, utilitarian knits of Maritime and Prairie provinces and states, and onward again south to the colours and natural dyes produced in the highlands of Peru, Chile and Uruguay...and from there across to Australia and New Zealand -- and the delicious merino that comes from their herds.

(And lest you wonder...the Japanese in recent years have come forward with developments in both quilting and knitting -- adapted in part from Western traditions, and blended with their own!)

At The Crafty Lady -- the only full-service yarn shop in the centre of Alberta, just off the Queen Elizabeth II Highway that runs between Calgary and Edmonton -- we're a bit of all of the above.

We carry cool cotton and cotton blends; and wool -- sturdy, soft and sometimes blended with acrylic or nylon for easy care.  We carry camelids like alpaca and llama.  We carry silk.  And...we carry 100% acrylic fibre from suppliers in the U.K. whose mills have the remarkable ability to turn a quasi plastic substance -- a polymer -- into something soft, easy to knit or crochet and definitely easy to care for in the way of garments and blankets appreciated by busy parents everywhere.

There is room at the table for everyone 

-- and that's what makes our work at TCL so rewarding.  

This past year we've taught new knitters from ages 8 on up.  We've helped others learn to turn heels, create thumb gussets for mittens, knit in the round with one (very short) circular needle or one longer circular needle (and a Magic Loop) -- or by juggling three double-pointed needles while they knit with a fourth.

We've given advice on various stitches in crochet.  We've started others down that crochet road with the basics -- and at our weekly Knit Nights we've watched knitters learn to crochet and crocheters learn to knit!

We moved our location so we'd have a brighter space with better storage -- and so our customers had better access to parking.

In the New Year...there's more to come!

We've got some new cottons from Katia (including a wonderful stretchy sock yarn) to look forward to in the spring.  We have more one-of-a-kind fingering yarns coming from Sweet Paprika and Zen Yarn Garden.  We're plumping up our sock yarn collection altogether, while maintaining our supply of double-knit, worsted, chunky and bulky yarns.  For those who love to felt -- whether it's wet felting or needle-felting or both -- we've found a new supplier for roving!  AND there'll be some Shetland roving for those whose felting frenzy focuses on the currently popular 'dryer balls'.

And the Really Big Deal?!

  

For the entire month of February, The Crafty Lady will be celebrating 25 years in business 

in downtown Lacombe!!

There'll be specials in the store the entire month!!

So...while during this short "Christmas Week" there's NO Super Special Sale (Awwwwwwww....😭), there's so much to look forward to, we thought we should just let you know that Lori (The Crafty Lady Herself), Anne and Margaret ALL wish you -- our dear readers and customers -- a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year -- full of family, fun, creativity, good food and good times.  

May your yarn-crafting (or embroidery or beading) make special memories for those who receive the gifts from the work of your hands.

PLEASE NOTE OUR HOLIDAY HOURS:

Monday, Dec. 24: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Tuesday, Dec. 25 (Merry Christmas!): CLOSED

Wednesday, Dec. 26 (Happy Boxing Day!): CLOSED

Thursday, Dec. 27: 9 a.m. - 9 p.m. -- Knit Night!!

Friday, Dec. 28: 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 29: 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Sunday, Dec. 30 (as ALL Sundays): CLOSED

Monday, Dec. 31: 9 a.m - 4 p.m.

Tuesday, January 1 (Happy New Year!): CLOSED

We leave you with this reminder.  Whether it's yarn-crafting, or hand-stitching, or just gathering with friends and family, it's an opportunity to Lean in Toward the Light, because "...there's room at the table for every one".  See you at Knit Night - Dec. 27 -- 6 p.m. onward.  Merry Christmas!  Joyeux Noel!  Blessings to all!