A Tease of Tosh

I wanted to give you the first peak at a wonderful skein of yarn that I'll soon have for you from Madelinetosh. Work Sock is their sport-to-DK weight superwash merino/nylon skein and I'll soon have it for you for a limited time at a special price.

Work Sock colors shown are Scout and Calligraphy

This is two skeins of Work Sock sandwiching a normal skein of yarn. As you can see, they are huge. And if you zoom in you can see the difference in the weight between them and the fingering weight skein in the middle too. They are 200-207 grams per skein and are 400 yards of durable, soft, heavier weight sock yarn. While it's labeled as Work Sock Sport, Madelinetosh devotees often use it for DK weight sweaters. So if you want to stash it for larger projects like that, please do. It's a superb skein. For that size of a skein, you might expect to pay $46 or more. But Tosh retails this at $37 and I'll have it for you for a limited time for just $31. That's a 200 gram skein!

This stuff just arrived and it's going to take some time to photo and get up on the website. I'm unsure how much I'll be working over this holiday weekend (hoping to take a day off), as I've really been working my bottom off the past few weeks. This past week has been especially difficult timewise, trying to apply for the small business loans and help that the feds are offering. It's a whole new world for small business right now as we try and navigate a public health scare and how that may affect us and the economy in the coming months and year. I'm trying to plan the shop's future in a very uncertain time, making sure my staff continues to get paid and that small dyers have work and that we have yarn even though mills are shutting down and larger dyers can't operate. I'm doing my best to figure all this out, knowing that it could also change and upset all the planning I've done. Heavy sigh.

I'm betting a lot of you are in similar circumstances, trying to plan for something so nebulous that you can't imagine it so how can you effectively plan for it? Be it a health scare, trying to get seniors prepared for college, putting yourself in the worst of this to care for others in the hospital, wondering where you will give birth and if you'll have to be there alone with no family to support you in the hospital, sequestering yourself in a bedroom for a week because you think you might be ill or contagious.... gosh, there are so many uncertain scenarios.

What is certain is that I'm going to try and relax more this weekend. I've ordered a nice ham, and I'm going to bake bread and make mashed potatoes and maybe even a big chocolate cake.  I'm going to feed my family and snuggle on the couch and enjoy a Marvel movie. I may knit a sock or two.

We've been baking a lot of Snickerdoodles.

I'm thinking I'll take the holiday weekend off from blogging too. If we don't connect, I hope you have a nice weekend and come back here on Monday refreshed and fulfilled. I hope you find a way to connect with others, share some love. And even if we can't break bread and celebrate Easter in groups like we usually would, I hope you feel loved and cared for by an entire planet who is putting their wants and needs and future security aside to keep you and us healthy. To protect people we have never met and people. Now that's the type of love that religions and humanity are built on. This weekend we will celebrate the sacrifice we are making for everyone by staying home, and staying alone, and staying safe. 

*Just a reminder that I'm committed to blogging every day during this time (instead of the typical 2-3 times a week) to connect with others. Please do comment and share with me here if you like! You'll see the typical yarn updates and shop tidbits, but likely also a bit more family and personal stuff.

Comments

[Donna]

Thank you for adding “and humanity”. We atheists/agnostics are so often overlooked or, worse yet, treated as evil. Theists often forget they don’t have a lock on goodness & kindness. The term we often use to describe ourselves - ethical humanists - has human right in the description.
It must be exhausting to own a small business now. We have 3 very good restaurants around the corner - independently owned - & we fear that they & many other family owned restaurants in the area will be put out of business. We’ve ordered from 2 of them & will try to do so again.
I fear many yarn shops will find themselves in the same predicament. Some economists think it’ll be as bad or maybe even worse than the Great Depression.
We are in better shape financially than the vast majority of people with our reliable retirement income & our paid off mortgage. But I worry about my children & even more my grandchildren. As teenagers, they’ll be looking for jobs within the next few years. The oldest should graduate from high school in June but who knows what’ll happen with that.
All I can do now is try to spend as much of my disposable income at small businesses that have an internet presence. Hopefully I’ll also be able to make & donate masks & those little belts that can be used by medical personnel to keep the elastic on their masks from irritating the area behind their ears.
To all those celebrating Easter or Passover: I hope your faith brings you comfort & helps you cope with this crisis.

[Lisa Smith]

Happy Easter! Enjoy your Easter ( dinner sounds lovely) and your family.

[Natalie]

It will be just my husband and me this year for Easter. First time in 30 years... we were going to make a turkey and we decided to just go ahead and make it with dressing and gravy. We may be eating it for the next week but we want to celebrate in some way.

Hope this weekend is very restful for you and your family. Happy Easter

[Susan]

Hi Allison and a shout out to Donna, I hear ya, I agree. So here I am , I know someone that Died of the Virus. Southeast Michigan, let’s make it clearer, Wayne County, ya the county where Detroit is. I live in a community that boarders on Detroit. The nurse that died lived 2 streets away from my street. Now that is some scary s#it. I am old, I am doing my part and staying in. Holiday? What Holiday? Be thankful to still be ALIVE. Considering the alternative, why not try and do your part like some of us out here and STAY IN. We can celebrate double next year if we can make it to next year.
Scared and going NUTS near Detroit.

[Judy]

Thank you Allison and all your staff for being there and doing your work with very difficult circumstances.
Thank you too for your daily posts, a bright spot for everyone.
Wishing all a calm and peaceful weekend!

[Cathy]

Thank you for all you are doing, especially worrying about your employees must be so mentally and emotionally draining. I do hope you get/take time this weekend to recharge and enjoy your family. I appreciate (although my pocketbook might not) everything that is going up on the site and since my financial situation is pretty stable (knock on wood) I am trying to use some of that privilege to support local and independent businesses that I certainly make it through to the other side. Thanks again and have a beautiful weekend!

[Jessica]

I had a terrible day today. A thoughtless fool triggered my PTSD from the assault I experienced at age 14.

My friend with COVID-19 has gotten worse, she is 4 weeks into her illness.

I'm a 1099er. It's very hard right now.

I can't pick up my yarn today. Maybe tomorrow.

[sprite]

Happy Easter, Allison!