Drum Roll Please!

FINALLY!

Finally I have some news about my whereabouts this coming Farmer's Market season. Now realize, this is still contingent upon future health recommendations, but until things change, my itinerary is as posted below.

Note that some of the locations are indoors and some outside; some full yarn store and some kits-only. Regardless, the plan is to keep rotating stock so that it is a new store each week. As mentioned in a previous blog, if you don't buy it in person one week, you can probably (hopefully) still buy it online and have it delivered any given following week.

MONDAYS - will most likely be my personal day and / or the day I teach classes at the Lacombe Performing Arts Centre. COVID has me owing them a few.

TUESDAYS - starting May 4, then every OTHER week, you will find me at the Stettler Agriplex 3-6pm.

WEDNESDAYS - I will (tentatively) be at the Ponoka Curling Club in the morning (10am - 1pm) starting June 2 but that has not yet been confirmed at the time of publication.

In the afternoon (3-7pm), I will be found at the Wetaskiwin Ag Grounds starting May 12.

THURSDAYS - I will be plying my wares in Leduc from 10am to 1:30pm (starting date TBA).

In the afternoon (4-7pm), I will be parked at the Downtown Camrose Market starting June 10.

FRIDAYS - I will be at the Lacombe Farmer's Market 9am - 1pm starting May 21.

In the afternoon (4-7pm), I will be at the Lakedell Market, in Westerose, starting May 14. They are currently at retail max.

SATURDAYS - starting May 22, I will be rounding off my week with a visit to The Market at Red Deer 8am - 12:30pm.

SUNDAYS - I don't care how many markets are open on Sunday, that is the day I and mine go to church so you won't find the store at a market.

That is a total of 9 - count 'em - 9 markets that I will be attending every week this year. (Okay, 8 every other week for those of you who were paying attention.) This year, they are all fairly close to home. Depending on the success of these markets, I may stay with this collection or I may choose to expand my reach for those of you who don't live centrally. We'll see what this year brings.

Please note that the starting dates are all over the place. I will be forever grateful for your enthusiasm but please don't show up three weeks before the market you're going to actually opens up! That's a long time to wait to be first in line. 😉

Until the market in your area opens, the best part for you, the customers, is that the online store is still available 24/7!

written by Lori, happy TCL owner, who thought she'd never use another day planner but may need one to keep up with this not perfectly consistent schedule.

When You Get SO Busy ...

 You are probably getting weary of listening to me ramble on about the progress of the pop up store renovations. Well, the good news (I guess) is that the renos are almost done. After this blog, all that is left to do is the insulation, which does nothing for the aesthetics of the retail space, but it should allow me to run the shop earlier in the spring and later into the fall, which I know you will all appreciate.

So - except for when the store is all geared up for the spring, these should be the last pictures for a while. This is everything we (meaning myself and Mom) got done this weekend, and the reason the proper blog is late this week.

Picture #1 (point of view from the cab area) shows the original layout in all its glorious RV walnut brown. Don't get me wrong. I love brown but it can be pretty dark even in the daytime. Not the best for a showroom. Also, notice the L-shaped kitchen that creates a bottleneck.

Picture #2 (Excuse this photo please. It is really hard to get a panorama shot inside an RV without it looking a little askew.) This point of view is from the house entrance (far right of photo) and let's you see how little space there was between the fridge and the sink. For those of you who have visited the pop up store already, you will recognize the sink as being the previous location for my till.

Pictures #3 (left) and #4 (right) show how just a little bit of white pegboard brightens up the place!

Picture #3 shows that by removing the L from the kitchen counter, many more customers can be in the store at one time (once restrictions are lifted). And, yes, that is a TV where the microwave used to be. It got the TV off the counter where it was in the way and who needs a microwave oven when a real oven is available?

Picture #4 shows the newly built needle/hook wall. To its right is the fridge which now has whiteboard inserts. Who knows what you might see written there when you pop in? And the yarn bins are all ready to house the squishy stuff in the spring.

        

Written by Lori, pleased TCL owner, who apologizes for the late blog this week but who likes to think that the end results of this weekend made it worth the wait.

It's Happening!

By the time you read this, the pop up store will be at Sunrise RV where Brad will be working his magic and making my vision of a dual purpose kitchen counter a reality!

At the same time, Rosanna at LPAC (the Lacombe Performing Arts Centre) will be finalizing the class schedule for this winter. The first class should be November 26! As soon as they are posted on their website, I will be sharing them here and on Facebook.

Other than those two fantastic pieces of news, I got nothin' this week. Must be the snow affecting my brain.

Written by Lori, excited yet brain-dead TCL owner, who hopes everyone has a great week and drives safely out there.

No More Bottleneck!

 So last week you were all privy to the deconstruction happening in the pop up store. This week you get to see some of the reconstruction. It might not look like much but by the time the pop up reopens in the spring, I may be allowed to have multiple customers at one time and a 4' wide aisle will be appreciated by all.

The kitchen counter to the left is obviously missing a few things - a countertop, a sink, an oven, a drawer - but those will all be back in place soon enough.

What has been gained is visible in the drawing below (courtesy of SketchUp, an amazing FREE drawing app that has become indispensable in my world). The dotted line indicates where the offending peninsula was located. Aside from a few screw holes in the floor, you would never know it existed just a few short weeks ago.

I've done pretty much all I can do on this project and this fall/winter I will be handing the remainder of the work off to the professionals at Sunrise RV.

What, oh what, will I do with my 'free' time you ask? Exactly what I hope the rest of you are doing - working on Christmas projects and working, which for me means filling all my online orders.

written by Lori, happy TCL owner, who is satisfied with the progress so far and can't wait to show off the renovations in person to all my customers.

And So It Begins

I have had a few phone calls this week asking where the pop up store is and I've been telling most of the callers that it is in hibernation. If I know the caller well enough, I tell them it's winterized and I'm not sitting somewhere from 10am to 4pm with nowhere to pee.

In actuality, this is what it currently looks like.

In the background, you can see the stove and the sink/tap, and on the floor to the left, you see part of the countertop. I've managed to loosen most of the walls of the kitchen counter base but I have more work to do. By the time you read this, I will already be out in the rv trying to remove the entire counter from the wall just so I can get at the bottom screws that hold the two counter pieces together. Once that is done, the saw comes out and the walkway is on its way to becoming much wider both for customers (when the rv is a store) and for Mom, Myles and myself (when the three of us feel like taking off for parts unknown).

I am still waiting on LPAC to let me know when the classes are scheduled so stay tuned for that information. I'm looking forward to teaching again. Without the Creativ Festivals this September, I felt a little lost. As an introvert, I would find myself equally drained and energized by the rush from class to class. I guess until the schedule is set, I get to try to create that feeling by renovating the pop up.

written by Lori, TCL owner, who hopes to still have enough undamaged fingers to teach those classes during renovations.

Where's Waldo - I mean - The Crafty Lady?

Typical phone call lately - "Hi. I've come from (insert location) to shop at your store but you've moved. Where are you now?" To which I usually reply "I'm now in a pop up store in the parking lot at The Lacombe Performing Arts Centre. Do you know where that is?" The response is either "Yeah, I know where that is" or "No, could you give me the address?" Sounds straightforward enough, doesn't it?

Let me give you some background on why the results from that conversation can vary greatly.

A number of years ago, the Lacombe Memorial Centre went through an overhaul that included taking the main room, which resembled a school gym complete with the stage that swallowed your every sound if you stood 6 feet back from the edge of the stage, and used all the modern technology available to create a sound system that would prevent that in a big, blank, divisible room. I'm not sure but I believe it is still the largest room of its type in Lacombe that allows for performances to take place.

LMC

The expansive lawn that you see in front of the building has been used by LPAC for their Music in the Park summer series for a number of years already. (Sadly COVID cancelled it this year.) Whenever threatened by inclement weather, the performance would move indoors, not into the LMC but into the sanctuary of St. Andrew's United Church across the parking lot north of the LMC.

St. Andrew's United Church

Why? Those who worship, and truly pay attention to the sounds in a service, know that a traditionally built church is accoustically built. Built before electronic sound systems. Built to maximize the human voice and non-electric instruments. While it serves for a static performance such as a live band or choir, it does not allow for active performances (dance).

Much more recently, St Stephen’s Catholic Church underwent more than just an overhaul. It was completely demolished and rebuilt so that its sanctuary could also be used as a performance hall, complete with a sound system that either rivals, or is better than, the one at the LMC.

St Stephen’s Catholic Church

I have been a member of the board of directors of LPAC since the acronym stood for Lacombe Performing Arts Committee - a group of citizens who wanted a permanent home for performing arts in Lacombe. We needed a space for both static and active performances - one that would have the acoustic qualities of a traditional church and the space for a dance performance and still have room for spectators. A building that is easily accessible and with ample parking for performances. Enter the building at 5227 C & E Trail, now known as the Lacombe Performing Arts Centre.

LPAC

So why did I take you on a 'recent history' tour of these buildings? These are some of the responses that I have experienced in the five weeks that I have called the LPAC parking lot my home away from home.

From those who said they knew where they were going -

on the phone "But I'm at the LMC parking lot and you're not here."

"But you're in the wrong parking lot." as they walk over from the St. Stephen's parking lot.

From those who took down the address and almost made it -

on the phone "Yes, I can see the big bold lettering ... oh, in the parking lot to the east."

Our town has some wonderful places for performances of all types and sizes and they are all so close together I guess I can't really fault anyone for the confusion. This blog post is just here to help sort out the confusion.

And here you see my pop up store in the Lacombe Performing Arts Centre parking lot where you'll find me every weekday 10am until 4pm except this Wednesday, August 26. Every once in a while even the most dedicated of us needs to take a personal day. This is mine.

written by Lori, amused TCL owner, who has been told on numerous occasions that I need to write a book of anecdotes related to the store. I think that's what I'm doing here. 😏

The Ongoing Saga of the Pop Up Store

I got so excited last week about being able to let everyone know that I had been granted a permanent weekday parking spot at the Lacombe Performing Arts Centre and that it was effective immediately, I neglected to (initially) remember and then let you all know that I won't be there THIS Monday, July 20, because of an appointment I had booked for the RV over a month ago. If it is an easy fix, I could be back in my spot Tuesday morning. If not, I will keep you posted, daily, on the Facebook page.

Speaking of Facebook pages, I made the Rimbey Farmer's Market Facebook page as one of their Vendors of the Week! The small blurb and the pictures were awesome! And the response to the post was tangible - people came and not only squished the yarn but purchased it too because of that post. 😊

So, this week's yarn offering is going to be solids and tonals (because hand dyed's are rarely fully solid) in a number of different fibres from cotton to wool to acrylic and blends. There will be no buttons and shawl pins this week so that I can have more hooks and needles. Woohoo! Hope to see you early in the week at LPAC and should definitely see you at Rimbey on Saturday.

written by Lori, tired TCL owner, who's in for a long week this week.

The Crafty Lady has a new home!

Thanks to the Lacombe Performing Arts Centre,

The Crafty Lady has a home in Lacombe for the pop up store!

I will still be taking the store to the Rimbey Farmer's Market every Saturday morning (9:30-12:30) but now you will also be able to come squish yarn in the parking lot at 5227 C & E Trail in Lacombe Monday -Friday 10am - 4pm! The ONLY downside to this is that online orders may take a day to fill instead of a half hour. 😉 Even that has an upside. You can order online and request pickup at the pop up store. Just make sure to wait for the fulfillment email before showing up. (If you placed your order at 3am, I may not have had a chance to pick it before opening shop for the day.)

And the news just gets better.

By September, we are hoping that enough restrictions have been eased that I can start - wait for it - teaching classes! Squeee! If you haven't been in the LPAC building recently, other than because of COVID, you may not know that there are a number of different sized rooms available for a myriad of activities. The Fireplace Room provides an intimate setting for a small class, The Art Room is slightly larger and comes with its own attached washroom - which is excellent for longer classes. I can't imagine what I could possibly teach that would require using the Theatre, but I'm not going to exclude it from the possibilities. What classes would you like to see happening in the fall? Keep in mind, I don't quilt or embroider. Stick to the product I carry in the store. I can work with that.

Now for the COVID part of this announcement.

Space is limited inside the store. It's an RV, ya know, so only one person at a time (or a maximum of two if you came shopping together). Until it becomes necessary, I will not be requiring appointments. If you start lining up outside the door, appointments may become a thing.

Either you or I will be wearing a mask - preferably both of us. If you come heavily (or even lightly) scented, I may ask you to shop another day. Masks can only do so much before my allergies kick in and I'm the only person manning the store. You don't want to be the person that kept other people from shopping, do you?

You will be required to use my hand sanitizer before touching any of the product. Even if you just put yours on.

Payment by tap is provided - both debit and credit - and I TAKE CASH! Do not be offended if I sanitize it in front of you because Hooray for plastic money. 😁 I will even take eTransfers but I am not yet Paypal ready.

And, of course, if you or anyone you know has or may have COVID 19, or come into contact with someone who has it, please stay home. I would hate to find out that my customers are getting sick because one of them just couldn't wait to squish the yarn until they felt better. I would also hate to get sick and not be able to let you squish the yarn. 

So everyone stay healthy, share this post far and wide,

and see you in the LPAC parking lot at 10am, July 15, 2020

written by Lori, excited TCL owner, who won't be able to sleep tonight!