I was fortunate in that I was able to spend the entire day alone in the big city. I feared I would have to take Hubbo or the mother-in-law, neither of whom enjoy knitting stores, searching for new and exciting yarn or rummaging through Ikea.
I wanted to get to Shuttleworks bright and early, so I set off from Lacombe at about 8:00 am. Father-in-law graciously loaned me his GPS, into which Hubbo dutifully programmed the addresses of all the shops I wanted to hit. The weather was perfect and traffic was light. As I was driving along the highway that links Edmonton to Calgary, the sun came through the clouds and I could see the Rocky Mountains in the distance. I'm a prairie girl but seeing the mountains always takes my breath away!
I knew that Shuttleworks was on the south side of Calgary, somewhere out in the boondocks. The GPS kept me company by squawking directions at me..."Turn right at the next exit....bear left". At this point I "bear left" and the GPS tells me I've arrived at my destination. Unfortunately, I was sitting in the middle of dirt road with no yarn to be seen! Crap!
No problem, just take that exit up there and I'm sure it's around the corner. Ummm...nope...right back where I started...the middle of a dirt road. I decide to explore said dirt road and promptly drive up the hill. Hmmm...no yarn up here. Maybe down that side road....nope...horses...yarn doesn't come from horses. I get back to the top of the hill and use my trusty cell phone to call. I get voicemail saying they don't open until noon. Hmmm...no problem. Ikea it is!
I spent a couple of lovely hours snooping around Ikea, getting my life organized and fending off mothers with giant strollers. Then I headed back to Shuttleworks. I figure that now they'll have a sign out or something to guide me on my quest. I was wrong. After a phone call and several sets of poor directions...success! I found it!
The first thing that hits me is how well organized the place is! Then I notice that they carry Lamb's Pride! Never having seen this line of yarn in person, I took the time to undertake a thorough investigation! I finally settled on 3 shades of Wilefoote sock yarn. It's so soft and yummy!
Then I spied some drawers labelled "Silk". Hmmm... Upon opening the first drawer I nearly faint at the sight of skeins of gloriously coloured silk hanks! Then the owner says that there are more in the drawers below! Well! My brain went into overload! Eventually selected these:
I also purchased a lovely set of EZ Blocker wires and a set of wool combs. Because of my decidedly large purchase, I was entitled to a free tote bag. I love tote bags! What a fun place!
Upon my return to Lacombe, I had enough time to stop at The Crafty Lady, one of the best crafts stores I ever seen.
Every trip to Lacombe necessitates a visit! She carries the most amazing selection of yarn I've ever seen! I love it there and can usually spend a couple of hours nosing around! Here are my eventual purchases:
Once again, I received a tote bag. I love tote bags!
The next day, all of us headed into Red Deer and stopped at a yarn shop called The Wooly something or other. Here are a the results:
Then we headed to a really yummy Indian restaurant. The in-laws had never tried Indian so it was quite a treat for everyone!
While I had anticipated finishing several pairs of socks, I ended up working on a scarf made from Noro Kureyon sock yarn.
Detail:
I love the colours of this yarn but don't care of the texture. It's not a plied yarn, just a single and a bit rough and not as sturdy as most sock yarn. It has to be hand washed. I don't do that when it comes to socks! I thought perhaps a scarf would be more appropriate and I think it looks quite pretty!
