I've just added a new page to Shades of Shetland....
It's titled "Personal Stash Reduction - Books & Yarn"......it's pretty self explanatory right?
So just to introduce this page, a little story.......
Back in the heyday of She Ewe Knits, when my enthusiasm for selling yarn was at it's peak......nothing, I repeat NOTHING, was too much trouble for my customers.
It became clear that the vast majority of fair isle knitters were still wanting to knit the designs of the famous Alice Starmore......they had her original publications (Pacific Coast Highway, Stillwater, In the Hebrides) and they wanted to knit those designs, in the original shades.
Fortunately, most of the shades required were still available in the Jamieson's Spinning Shetland yarn range.....most, but not all......
One shade, Marjoram, was not available to us here in North America (retailers and therefore to the knitters) and as it is a truly unique shade of green - sort of greyish, pale, not strong, but definitely nothing came close to a match.......this caused much consternation in the fair isle knitting world.
During the years that I sold yarn, I travelled to Shetland twice, and on these trips acquired direct from the Jamieson's Mill, Marjoram. Yes, Marjoram was available. It was a shade that Jamieson's produced, but it wasn't one of the shades that the North American distributor brought to the North American retailer....why not? Who knows.......
Anyway, I had some....not a whole lot, but enough to be able to offer complete, original shade yarn packs to my customers.
Obviously, if I'd posted "MARJORAM HERE" on my web site, I would have sold out of Marjoram in minutes and wouldn't have had any available to my faithful customers who came to me for their yarn packs for the designs they wanted to knit.
One day, a knitter (?) e-mailed and inquires about Marjoram. I do explain that yes I have it, and that I reserved it to be able to provide completle yarn packs for my custoners. Why can't I just sell her Marjoram -- because I have gone to extraordinary lengths (literally) to obtain it for my customers (Shetland is 4133 miles away) .
She explains that she has already purchased a yarn pack from another retailer.....that she just needs Marjoram.......why can't I sell her just the Marjoram?
Well, I've just explained why not.....
Anyway, turns out this was the author of "Sweater Quest my year of knitting dangerously".........and she wrote about this incident......
She names me....Anne (she even got the e right) of She Ewe Knits........bottom of page 51......
Well, there you go.....I've now been quoted in a book LOL!!
I had been alerted via a Ravelry conversation that I was in the book, so of course I had to buy it.........
So I've read it, I'll never read it again, it's one of those things that at the time I just had to buy, but it doesn't need to live here at Shades of Shetland......so
FIRST OFFERING ON THE DESTASH PAGE -- SWEATER QUEST - I'LL EVEN SIGN IT IF YOU WANT LOL!!!
FREE TO A GOOD HOME!
COMMENT ON THIS POST AND HOPEFULLY THERE WILL BE MORE THAN ONE NAME AND WE CAN HAVE A DRAW LOL!!!
So just to introduce this page, a little story.......
Back in the heyday of She Ewe Knits, when my enthusiasm for selling yarn was at it's peak......nothing, I repeat NOTHING, was too much trouble for my customers.
It became clear that the vast majority of fair isle knitters were still wanting to knit the designs of the famous Alice Starmore......they had her original publications (Pacific Coast Highway, Stillwater, In the Hebrides) and they wanted to knit those designs, in the original shades.
Fortunately, most of the shades required were still available in the Jamieson's Spinning Shetland yarn range.....most, but not all......
One shade, Marjoram, was not available to us here in North America (retailers and therefore to the knitters) and as it is a truly unique shade of green - sort of greyish, pale, not strong, but definitely nothing came close to a match.......this caused much consternation in the fair isle knitting world.
During the years that I sold yarn, I travelled to Shetland twice, and on these trips acquired direct from the Jamieson's Mill, Marjoram. Yes, Marjoram was available. It was a shade that Jamieson's produced, but it wasn't one of the shades that the North American distributor brought to the North American retailer....why not? Who knows.......
Anyway, I had some....not a whole lot, but enough to be able to offer complete, original shade yarn packs to my customers.
Obviously, if I'd posted "MARJORAM HERE" on my web site, I would have sold out of Marjoram in minutes and wouldn't have had any available to my faithful customers who came to me for their yarn packs for the designs they wanted to knit.
One day, a knitter (?) e-mailed and inquires about Marjoram. I do explain that yes I have it, and that I reserved it to be able to provide completle yarn packs for my custoners. Why can't I just sell her Marjoram -- because I have gone to extraordinary lengths (literally) to obtain it for my customers (Shetland is 4133 miles away) .
She explains that she has already purchased a yarn pack from another retailer.....that she just needs Marjoram.......why can't I sell her just the Marjoram?
Well, I've just explained why not.....
Anyway, turns out this was the author of "Sweater Quest my year of knitting dangerously".........and she wrote about this incident......
She names me....Anne (she even got the e right) of She Ewe Knits........bottom of page 51......
Well, there you go.....I've now been quoted in a book LOL!!
I had been alerted via a Ravelry conversation that I was in the book, so of course I had to buy it.........
So I've read it, I'll never read it again, it's one of those things that at the time I just had to buy, but it doesn't need to live here at Shades of Shetland......so
FIRST OFFERING ON THE DESTASH PAGE -- SWEATER QUEST - I'LL EVEN SIGN IT IF YOU WANT LOL!!!
FREE TO A GOOD HOME!
COMMENT ON THIS POST AND HOPEFULLY THERE WILL BE MORE THAN ONE NAME AND WE CAN HAVE A DRAW LOL!!!
Hilarious that you were quoted in the book! It is all about authenticity, right? I look forward to reading it; maybe I'll win your copy!
ReplyDeleteBest,
jeri
What a funny story! How sweet of you to go to such lengths to provide the yarns to your customers.
ReplyDeleteI heard her in an interview with Alana from Never Not Knitting. She explained how her editor suggested she spin and dye all the yarn herself if the original Starmore yarn wasn't available anymore...
ReplyDeleteI'd read the book if I won it ;-)
sorry, I didn't want to appear as anonymous, I clicked too quickly.
ReplyDelete