Sorry I'm late this week. This week’s winning numbers are:
10% discount: 76
free shipping: 72
$5 discount: 78
Busy wrapping up a wholesale order and developing new apple colorways. I belong to a group of artisans called Universal Mama, and our August theme is apples. Right up my alley!
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Summer of Fiber Fortune, and BSG recap
Oops, I posted this on my Ravelry group but forgot to also post here. This week’s winning numbers are:
BSG was wonderful, as usual. The organizers always ensure a smoothly running show. And this year, I had rock star helpers who made my weekend completely stress-free. Kathy, Alexis and Val did a fantastic job with setup. And Alison spent most of the show helping me out in my booth, writing up sales and answering spinning questions. At breakdown time, Kathy, Alexis, and Alison got me out the door in a record 40 minutes. (Though I squandered my time savings by getting on the highway in the wrong direction after filling up my car at Costco, boo.) Thank you all so, so much!
This was my third year, and the vendor and customer friends that I've made are a huge part of what I love about it. I feel like the other vendors are basically my co-workers, and the ones who feel the same way and share their knowledge and stories really enhance the sense of community that fiber shows tend to have. Before I started doing shows, I wouldn't have guessed how much I would look forward to seeing my vendor friends on the circuit.
It was pretty soggy for most of the weekend (I was so happy that I got an indoor booth this year) and the Olympic track and field trials had incited most hotels to do a bit of price gouging, so turnout was noticeably lower than usual. Some of my vendor friends also commented that people were buying less per purchase, as well. My own sales went up a bit this year, so I am really grateful to everyone who visited my booth. Thank you for giving into temptation!
10% discount: 4
free shipping: 36
$5 discount: 90
Kiddo's summer camp schedule didn't start till this week, so I took a sort-of vacation from dyeing the two weeks after BSG. I reorganized the yarn storage/winding room, sorted through my dye jars (why on earth did I have five jars of fuchsia, two of which have never been opened?), and started sales analysis. The sadly-neglected house got some attention, too: I purged my closets, we all got rid of stacks and stacks of books, and the garage got a major overhaul. It's amazing how my mind feels less cluttered, too.
Speaking of BSG, here are some photos:
My booth, the yarn side
The fiber side(s)
A gorgeous parasol that Maiya made from some BFL/silk lace that she got from me last year. Isn't it stunning?
free shipping: 36
$5 discount: 90
Kiddo's summer camp schedule didn't start till this week, so I took a sort-of vacation from dyeing the two weeks after BSG. I reorganized the yarn storage/winding room, sorted through my dye jars (why on earth did I have five jars of fuchsia, two of which have never been opened?), and started sales analysis. The sadly-neglected house got some attention, too: I purged my closets, we all got rid of stacks and stacks of books, and the garage got a major overhaul. It's amazing how my mind feels less cluttered, too.
Speaking of BSG, here are some photos:
My booth, the yarn side
The fiber side(s)
A gorgeous parasol that Maiya made from some BFL/silk lace that she got from me last year. Isn't it stunning?
BSG was wonderful, as usual. The organizers always ensure a smoothly running show. And this year, I had rock star helpers who made my weekend completely stress-free. Kathy, Alexis and Val did a fantastic job with setup. And Alison spent most of the show helping me out in my booth, writing up sales and answering spinning questions. At breakdown time, Kathy, Alexis, and Alison got me out the door in a record 40 minutes. (Though I squandered my time savings by getting on the highway in the wrong direction after filling up my car at Costco, boo.) Thank you all so, so much!
This was my third year, and the vendor and customer friends that I've made are a huge part of what I love about it. I feel like the other vendors are basically my co-workers, and the ones who feel the same way and share their knowledge and stories really enhance the sense of community that fiber shows tend to have. Before I started doing shows, I wouldn't have guessed how much I would look forward to seeing my vendor friends on the circuit.
It was pretty soggy for most of the weekend (I was so happy that I got an indoor booth this year) and the Olympic track and field trials had incited most hotels to do a bit of price gouging, so turnout was noticeably lower than usual. Some of my vendor friends also commented that people were buying less per purchase, as well. My own sales went up a bit this year, so I am really grateful to everyone who visited my booth. Thank you for giving into temptation!
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Summer of Fiber Fortune: winning numbers for week #2
This week's winning numbers are:
10% discount: 71
free shipping: 8
$5 discount: 30
I've changed my comment settings for the summer, so you won't need a Blogger account to post here. :)
10% discount: 71
free shipping: 8
$5 discount: 30
I've changed my comment settings for the summer, so you won't need a Blogger account to post here. :)
Monday, July 2, 2012
news flash: you don't have to be white to be an American
This weekend, we went camping with the in-laws. This is normally
pretty fun. We were at a lovely place, Lake Wenatchee State Park, the
weather was cooperative, and our neighbors were mostly quiet.
But on Saturday night, I had the most enraging conversation that I've had in quite a while. My sister-in-law's 15-year-old stepson said something about all the "foreigners" at the campground.
Slightly unable to believe what I was hearing, I said, "What do you mean, the Canadians?"
"What? You haven't noticed all the Indians, and how they all talk in their funny language?" And he started to make some sounds that apparently he thought sounded like ones heard on the Indian sub-continent.
My blood started to boil. "Just because they're not white, doesn't mean they're not Americans," I said flatly.
"Well, yeah, it kind of does."
Full boil. I leaned over and stared at him. "You want to look me in the face and say that again?"
He stammered, "Um, well, you kind of look white to me."
Dear god. I have not been smacked in the face with such stupidity in a long, long time. I said with a certain amount of disgust, "Just keep digging yourself a deeper hole," and said nothing else to him for the rest of the evening.
He's just a kid and I certainly don't blame him for all the racial problems in this country. Hopefully he was a little shaken up and will do some thinking about his assumptions. Maybe he'll eventually realize that white does not equate better (though of course I am ever so grateful that he thinks of me as white) and that not all true Americans have to have the same color skin that he does.
But I'm pretty sure it was the first time that my son, now 7, has heard the news that white people are better than others. That some people will look at him and only see the color of his skin. And once they've neatly labeled him as Asian (when he is only half), they will then stick him in the foreign/outsider box.
(Digression: this is pretty similar to how many people look at President Obama and never see the white half, just the black half of his parentage.)
Despite being born in this country and speaking English more correctly and precisely than the average America--this grammar nerd's dog does not respond to "lay down," only "lie down"--a fair number of people will take one look at me and assume I am from elsewhere. I thought people were getting less ignorant, though. This exchange used to be pretty common when I was in my twenties:
"Where are you from?"
"Olympia." (where I was living at the time)
"No, I mean originally?"
"Massachusetts."
"No, where are you really from?"
I once got this from an African American man. I said, "Do you know where in Africa you're 'originally' from?" He half-laughed and said, "Of course not. I'm from here." Um, well, why don't you think I'm from "here"?
So really, this is nothing new. It's just that most people don't tell me to my face that I'm not white enough to be an American.
This week, my country celebrates the anniversary of our Declaration of Independence. It seems as good a time as any, and better than most, to think about what makes us Americans--and it sure as hell isn't the color of our skin.
But on Saturday night, I had the most enraging conversation that I've had in quite a while. My sister-in-law's 15-year-old stepson said something about all the "foreigners" at the campground.
Slightly unable to believe what I was hearing, I said, "What do you mean, the Canadians?"
"What? You haven't noticed all the Indians, and how they all talk in their funny language?" And he started to make some sounds that apparently he thought sounded like ones heard on the Indian sub-continent.
My blood started to boil. "Just because they're not white, doesn't mean they're not Americans," I said flatly.
"Well, yeah, it kind of does."
Full boil. I leaned over and stared at him. "You want to look me in the face and say that again?"
He stammered, "Um, well, you kind of look white to me."
Dear god. I have not been smacked in the face with such stupidity in a long, long time. I said with a certain amount of disgust, "Just keep digging yourself a deeper hole," and said nothing else to him for the rest of the evening.
He's just a kid and I certainly don't blame him for all the racial problems in this country. Hopefully he was a little shaken up and will do some thinking about his assumptions. Maybe he'll eventually realize that white does not equate better (though of course I am ever so grateful that he thinks of me as white) and that not all true Americans have to have the same color skin that he does.
But I'm pretty sure it was the first time that my son, now 7, has heard the news that white people are better than others. That some people will look at him and only see the color of his skin. And once they've neatly labeled him as Asian (when he is only half), they will then stick him in the foreign/outsider box.
(Digression: this is pretty similar to how many people look at President Obama and never see the white half, just the black half of his parentage.)
Despite being born in this country and speaking English more correctly and precisely than the average America--this grammar nerd's dog does not respond to "lay down," only "lie down"--a fair number of people will take one look at me and assume I am from elsewhere. I thought people were getting less ignorant, though. This exchange used to be pretty common when I was in my twenties:
"Where are you from?"
"Olympia." (where I was living at the time)
"No, I mean originally?"
"Massachusetts."
"No, where are you really from?"
I once got this from an African American man. I said, "Do you know where in Africa you're 'originally' from?" He half-laughed and said, "Of course not. I'm from here." Um, well, why don't you think I'm from "here"?
So really, this is nothing new. It's just that most people don't tell me to my face that I'm not white enough to be an American.
This week, my country celebrates the anniversary of our Declaration of Independence. It seems as good a time as any, and better than most, to think about what makes us Americans--and it sure as hell isn't the color of our skin.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Summer of Fiber Fortune: winning numbers for week #1
This week’s winning numbers are:
10% discount: 52
free shipping: 3
$5 discount: 6
10% discount: 52
free shipping: 3
$5 discount: 6
the Summer of Fiber Fortune begins
It's summertime--the season for fun and games! At Black Sheep Gathering last weekend, I kicked off my Summer of Fiber Fortune game. On the
back of each yarn/braid label, you’ll find a fortune cookie-style
message and three random numbers. All yarn and fiber purchased between
now and August 31 will have these labels.
Each week during the summer, I’ll be drawing random numbers for little prizes, like free shipping, $5 store credit, 10% discount, etc. If you’ve got a label with a winning number, send me a photo (or you can post it as a comment on my blog, my Facebook page, or in my Ravelry group), and claim your prize!
All prizes and discount codes must be redeemed by the last day of Oregon Flock and Fiber, Sept 23. They cannot be applied retroactively.
Other fine print: Each winning number can be used once. If a number gets drawn for more than one type of prize, the customer will be able to choose which prize to redeem, but won’t be able to use both (e.g., either free shipping or 10% off, but not both). If she has two winning numbers with different prizes, she can use both. Discounts are not additive, so if you have two numbers for a 10% discount, you can only get 10% off a transaction, not 20%--but you can use your second discount for a second transaction.
Each week during the summer, I’ll be drawing random numbers for little prizes, like free shipping, $5 store credit, 10% discount, etc. If you’ve got a label with a winning number, send me a photo (or you can post it as a comment on my blog, my Facebook page, or in my Ravelry group), and claim your prize!
All prizes and discount codes must be redeemed by the last day of Oregon Flock and Fiber, Sept 23. They cannot be applied retroactively.
Other fine print: Each winning number can be used once. If a number gets drawn for more than one type of prize, the customer will be able to choose which prize to redeem, but won’t be able to use both (e.g., either free shipping or 10% off, but not both). If she has two winning numbers with different prizes, she can use both. Discounts are not additive, so if you have two numbers for a 10% discount, you can only get 10% off a transaction, not 20%--but you can use your second discount for a second transaction.
Sunday, June 17, 2012
getting ready for Black Sheep Gathering
BSG is this week, and I'm in the homestretch of prep work. In an effort to get more than nine hours of sleep during the 72-hour period before the show, I quit dyeing a few days earlier than normal, in order to do labeling and pricing. It feels utterly unnatural but I'm glad I did it. If I end up with some extra time, I'll dye a little more.
Because I'm already packing, I've taken down the fiber listings from my Etsy store. If you've had your eye on any of the yarn listings, those will be taken down on Tuesday.
I have a super fun game that I'll be launching at BSG. Details this week!
Because I'm already packing, I've taken down the fiber listings from my Etsy store. If you've had your eye on any of the yarn listings, those will be taken down on Tuesday.
I have a super fun game that I'll be launching at BSG. Details this week!
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