Single & Fabulous fabric

Luxury yarns are just that ... made of delicate fibers and requiring extra care. They are not the workhorses of our knitting bag, but are of rare fibers with unique properties. Alpaca, silk, cashmere --- these are three fibers which we are lucky enough to be offering in our current lineup of yarns and they number among some of the most expensive fibers on earth.

Here is the Single & Fabulous yarn after being dyed and dried, and in the process of being knit into a fabric. In this case, a hat which will be lined with the same fiber in a different color before it is finished.

Single and Fabulous

On Ravelry.com a question was asked about how Single & Fabulous holds up. It is a single, not plied, yarn and many of them on the market are pilling as they wear. I dyed up a skein this morning in a steely light blue, using two of ProChem's acid dyes, Periwinkle Blue and Chocolate Brown, in a watered down pot of warm water. Then I dunked the skein in a clear warm bath and the green from both dyes separated out, leaving a nice toned down blue. Very sky-like on a hot day, which is appropriate for our Virginia summer heat wave.

Alpaca is a slippery fiber, but at only 40% of the blend, the merino (40%) and silk (20%) should hold it in place. The twist of Single & Fabulous is not loose and almost like spinning fiber but has enough to make for a definitely knittable yarn. Here is the skein out of the pot.

New knitting project bags from repurposed Interior Design samples

July Stocking by end of this week

One of my favorite things to do is to announce the estimated arrival of a new shipment; however, since my move in April, the shipping schedule has been sketchy at best. I have gone to war with the importer, and they have checked down the line with every person responsible for any delay along the way from the mountains of South America to the mountains of Virginia. People have been added in offices along the way to watch the progress of the shipment, and a couple of people have been called into someone's private office for a chat about professionalism, it is rumored.

So, now, it is with a little trepidation and a lot of anticipation that I announce the contents of the incoming shipment. If all goes well --and why should it not with so many additional eyes watching over things? -- the shipment is expected to arrive by the end of the week.

I will send copies of private reservations by eMail when we hear that the shipment has passed through Customs, and release the newsletter to registered customers at the same time. Please note that the entire quantity of Sheila's Sock has been exhausted from this shipment; however, a triple amount is coming in about 3 weeks' time. Sheila's Sparkle will be in that next shipment, too. Now, for the list, as promised (skeins, all) ...

Cash Sock MCN
Crazy Eight
Platinum Sock
Sheila's Glitter
Sheila's Gold
Silk DK 50/50
Silk Sock 50/50
Tweed Sock
Ultra Select Laceweight

Wool2Dye4's breast cancer awareness yarn: Honeysuckle

Wool2Dye4 is a Sock Summit sponsor!

Come and meet me in Portland OR at the end of July at Sock Summit 2011!

Canadian Post is back!

Even though our US Postal Service was more than a week late in instituting the freeze on shipping by any method other than Express, the notice that all services would be restored today, June 28th, was good information. And, somehow, we got many packages sent by International Priority during the Canadian strike. I am in the 'don't ask, don't tell' mode on this one. Today our local postman will be happy again. Seems his idea of a good time is staggering out the door, bumping into the gate, with a running patter the entire time about how we overwork him. He's a lot of fun when he's got a pile of orders to carry, and we like nothing better than to make him very happy.

Canadian Postal Strike causes Problems with US shippers

On Friday, we tried in vain to ship packages to our Canadian customers by US Postal Service (USPS), and were only able to access the Express International service. Today, in response, to my inquiry I have received this slightly intelligible reply:

Following 12 days of increasingly costly and damaging rotating strikes being carried out by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), Canada Post has suspended operations across the country. The accelerating decline in volumes and revenue combined with the inability to deliver mail on a timely and safe basis has left the company with no choice but to make this decision.

We have a mystery!

The status of the shipment has changed in the past few moments. The info now tells me that there was an 'airline error' and the shipment is not in Virginia, after all; however, the delivery date still shows it is scheduled to reach Wool2Dye4 by noon tomorrow, Thursday. We will have to wait and see... a mystery! and the Government is involved. Quick, grab a pen and write this down. We could write a book about it!

One Day's Delay ... Not so Bad

Now, the delivery date has been moved to Thursday, June 16th. The shipment has been released by Customs and has arrived in Virginia, so I am fairly confident that we will see it tomorrow by noon.

We have helping hands to get the counting and incoming process done with and will begin to ship a few orders in the afternoon, and lots more all day Friday. I thank my customers for their patience!
Sheila / Wool2Dye4

June Re-Stocking Update

I have a tracking link to the incoming shipments and see that our June shipment is still in Customs in Miami. Lately, Customs has been taking much more time than it used to, and we notice that in each shipment more boxes are opened and the contents sifted through. While I appreciate the fact that so much yarn going to one address might be suspicious in the mind of a non-knitting, non-dyeing agent, I do not appreciate it when the bags are broken open and luxurious fibers are pawed through and left looking like a rat's nest. What recourse is there, though? Those skeins are unusable and it is money lost.

But, back to the idea of giving my customers more info on this shipment: The delivery schedule is still showing that we are to receive the shipment here in Virginia on Wednesday. Tomorrow. I am going to guess that this will not happen, and that we will see the shipment on Thursday, or even Friday.

I will post more info as it becomes available.

Planning for June Stocking

We are not ready to announce an arrival for the June stocking, but I thought I would publish the preliminary list. This will allow customers to make plans, especially if restocking for summer festivals is a priority. Sheila's Sock, one of our favorites, is returning with this shipment. When we hear that the shipment is in Customs, I will make a guess of the arrival date. I am totally aware that I may appear a little shy about predicting arrival dates and for good reason. Since the move in early April, our shipments have stumbled a bit on their final leg of the journey to Wool2Dye4. There is nothing worse than fielding irate eMails from customers who need yarn! So, a little caution on my part, especially since I have not received the packing lists, but this is what I believe to be in the stocking. Shhh.... don't tell anyone, but here is the list ...........

Angel Delight Fingering, Angel Select Lace & Angel Sport Sock
Cash Aran MCN and Cash DK MCN
Platinum Sock
Sheila's Aran, Sheila's Gold, Sheila's Sock, Sheila's Sparkle
Silk DK 50/50, Silk Sock 50/50
Tencel/Merino 50/50
Tweed Aran

Retail Packing Event, May 21-27, 2011

Starting today, Retail customers will be able to purchase our yarns in half-kilo packs. The normal presentation is one kilo packs, and there are ten skeins weighing 100 grams each in a kilo pack. So, yes, that's ten times one hundred equals one thousand grams, aka one kilo. Expressed in pounds, one kilo equals 2.2 pounds, so half a kilo is 1.1 pounds. For most knitters, a pound of yarn will take care of just about any project. It's those pesky wholesale handdyers who deal in the mind boggling numbers of kilos. I often wonder how on earth some of my customers are able to put out the sheer volume of work involved in dyeing those large orders! I've tried it and found out very quickly that these artists are also strong and determined folk, and are to be admired!

But, back to the Retail Packing Event... This is a time for hobby buyers to pick up more yarns because they don't have to commit to a full kilo, and can spread the pennies around. Yarns with silk and cashmere, for instance, in the blends are more accessible. It's a great time to stock up for future projects or to tuck away a couple of fancy skeins for an upcoming dye workshop. For Christmas knitters who love to give gifts which are just about as hand made as you can get without owning and shearing your own sheep, the Packaging Event is timed just right for getting ahead of the plan. And, we all know that many of us are knitting right up to Christmas eve.

At our end, we've altered the wholesale inventory to reflect the yarn moved into these new listings on the website, and will be opening and repacking the kilo packages as the retail orders come in. It will be a week of counting, recounting, and then trying to undo all the double inventory figures at the end of the week.

It's worth it, though, especially when a month or so later there is a post on our group on Ravelry.com from a retailer who discovered a new favorite yarn, and they post a picture of their work. Many of our retail customers grow into wholesale customers. Their hobby becomes a home-based business, and this opportunity to try out new yarns could be background research for someone's business plan. We never know.

Wholesale Requirements apply to every order

Just a reminder to wholesalers: Every order must weigh a minimum of five kilos. If you have a private order and it is under the weight minimum, you will need to add in other yarns to meet the wholesale requirement. In the past, we have been nice and gentle about a little forgetfulness here and there, but some folks are making a habit of being forgetful. So, please note that every time you use your wholesale discount, you must order five kilos, and the five may be mixed between yarns, of course.

If you do not need five kilos, please create a new retail account. Do not enter your company name or tax id number in the fields as this will prompt the computer to recognize an application for a wholesale account. Use your retail account for orders less than five kilos please.

Thank you,
Sheila/Wool2Dye4

Holding Stock: BFL and new Falkland yarns

Every business needs to make changes when it is proven beyond the shadow of a doubt that the current system is not working, and that is just what we are about to do with the stock levels of our BlueFaced Leicester and new Falkland British Merino yarns. The demand for these two lines has taken off in the past couple of months, and our old habit of ordering in every week is not enough to keep the stock levels at a healthy point. What has happened is that we have a pile of backorders! I just hate backorders, so we are going to have more of both lines sent in, and have ordered new shelving too.

The thing is that we are fairly proud of how quickly we send out orders. Almost always, unless there is a published reason, we turn orders around within 24 hours, and most of the time they go out sooner depending on the hour they were placed. My customers know this and have come to expect it, in fact so much so that they think nothing of writing an eMail of complaint when an order is delayed two days in shipping! Pretty amazing, really.

So, we've asked Mr. Wool to ship enough of both lines to catch up our backorder list, and to send more in a couple of days of every one of the BFL and Falkland yarns. This includes all of the following yarns:
BFL Aran-SW
BFL DK-SW
BFL High Twist
BFL Platinum
BFL Silk Sock
BFL Silky Lace
BFL-4 Socking
and
Falkland Merino 4 Socking
Falkland Merino DK-SW
Falkland Merino/Bamboo Select lace wt
Falkland Merino/Bamboo Sock
Falkland Merino/Silk 50/50 Sock
Falkland Merino/Silk 50 50 DK
Falkland Merino/Tencel 50/50 Select Lace wt
Falkland Merino/Tencel 50/50 sock
Falkland Merino Platinum Sock

Please allow a week or so for this to work out. It will take that long to catch up and then to get ahead on the packing and shipping.

I think this will solve the minor backorder list we have right now. Even though we have published the warning that there will be a short wait for these yarns, the creation of a backorders means more places to double check an order, and basically, more work. We try to keep things efficiently organized so that we have a handle on stock and orders. It is 'demand' which is the unknown factor, of course. And that's the way of business, isn't it?

We will do what we do best and that is explain what is happening and then move to make the wait go away for our customers. I will reference this post in the next newsletter so that all of this will not be repeated there.

Do I thank you enough? I certainly do not mean to skip over that part of doing business, so here is a heartfelt thanks for making problems like this for me to figure out! Supply and demand, supply and demand....

Making Plans and Adding Names

The last time we had any yarn from the top bales of a special offering at auction, it was the superfine British Merino. That was such lovely stuff, and I still have a cone of the superwash Aran and a pound of the spinning fiber in my Secret Stash. One of those things that cannot be used for just any project, but saved until the right one comes along.

I believe that is how folks will feel about the Falkland British Merino we are about to handle. It, too, is limited in that there was only so much available, and once it is gone, it will be over and done. In my annual face-to-face meetings with Mr. Wool last week, I learned more about our share of Falkland British Merino. There are 100 kilos of each of the nine yarns made available to Wool2Dye4. The yarns will be posted on the website over the weekend. We will receive weekly shipments to fulfill customers orders, so this means that there may be a backorder of up to a week after you place your order with Wool2Dye4. It is convenient for us to work this way because we have a nice arrangement with UPS and weekly orders come in four or five days, so there is not a very long delay. I know that we usually ship within 24 hours, but since this is a special yarn of a special circumstance, a few days will only sharpen the anticipation.

Here are the nine yarns:

100% FBM
Falkland British Merino 4 Socking
Falkland British Merino DK-SW
Blend with nylon
Falkland British Merino Platinum Sock
Blend with silk
Falkland British Merino/Silk 50/50 Sock
Falkland British Merino/Silk 50/50 DK
Blend with bamboo
Falkland British Merino/Bamboo Sock
Falkland British Merino/Bamboo Select Lace weight
Blend with Tencel
Falkland British Merino/Tencel 50/50 sock
Falkland British Merino/Tencel 50/50 Select Lace weight

We will sell each of the yarns until the one hundred kilos is depleted, and delete them from the inventory as each one exhausts our supply. We will create a new category for this collection called, of course, Falkland British Merino.

This posting of the new line will be in time to be ordered with the next incoming restocking, which is expected around mid-week. Here is a list of what is coming on that shipment.

Cash Aran
Platinum Sock
Sheila's Gold
Silk Sock 50/50
Sheila's Sparkle
and ...
Honeysuckle

Honeysuckle is our only dyed yarn and it makes it's entrance next week! We are so excited to have the chance to have created a yarn to support our efforts to raise consciousness for breast cancer. Lots more on The Honeysuckle Project as we move forward ... (new website included!).

Private milling of Falkland Merino

To mark the visit of Mr. Wool to our U.S. shores, Wool2Dye4 is going to offer 100 kilos of a private milling of superfine merino from the Falkland Islands. Some knitters and dyers may recall a gorgeous and creamy soft Falkland Bulky we had about two years ago. That yarn just few out the door.

Once someone bought a kilo of it, they came back and stocked up for more, and easy to understand as it has such unique properties to it. Just imagine, for a sec, the unique climate in the Falkland Islands, and what it takes to survive there in the open. These sheep are an example of survival of the fittest in the most refined sense of the word.

All I can tell you at this writing is that the 100 kilos of this new Falkland merino will be in more than one weight, and will be a finite amount of yarn available. We will have samples available, but by request this time. Usually we send out samples of new yarns with all orders, but these samples will be sent by request only.

We will be sending out a special newsletter with details within the next day or two, and also will add more details here, and on Ravelry.com, as well.

Cannot wait to get my hands on this lovely stuff!

Old Stand-By Favorites are back in stock

Today I have not been happier to see that truck backing up to the door! We welcome back some of our favorite Wool2Dye4 merino yarns. These yarns have already been posted on the website and are available now.

Cash Sock MCN (skeins)
Ultra Merino 3Ply (skeins & cones)
W2D4 Merino DK-SW (skeins & cones)
W2D4 Merino Worsted-SW (skeins & cones)

Yarn Stats on the Website

I frequently have customers write and ask me about yardage per skein. All of our yarns are put up on 100 gram skeins, and should have the yardage on the package label; however, if you cannot put your fingers on that info, there is a place on the website where it is listed.

Go to the Home Page of www.Wool2Dye4.com and look at the tabs at the top of the page, just under the picture/banner. On the right is one called Yarn Stats, and it is a chart which lists yards per 100 grams, the industry standard. If you need yards per kilo, then multiply the 100gr skein figure by ten and you will have yards per 1,000 grams (which is one kilo).

If you are working with yards per pound, then figure the yards per kilo.
Then, divide by 2.2 pounds to get how many yards per pound. (Because there are 2.2 pounds in a kilo.)

So, even if a yarn is not showing on the website === and they do not generally show if there is not stock === you can still find out basic information on all of our yarns. Also, if a yarn is not showing, it simply means that we have no stock of it at the present and NOT that it has been discontinued. Seems that every time a yarn is out of stock for a little bit, I get frantic letters about it going out of stock.

We all have to stock up when we can, and this goes for customers who may be expecting Wool2Dye4's stock to be solid and robust when they need to order, but this is not always possible. So, my advice is to start in a small way to stock up, a kilo here and there, on your best sellers so that when we are low, you will not suffer.

Believe me, I know what it is to suffer when you want a yarn very badly! I am right at this moment suffering fivefold for Sheila's Sock, Sheila's Gold, Silk Sock 50/50, Silk DK 50/50, and Platinum Sock. They will be back, all of them (see published lists of earlier posts), I promise. In the meantime, there are so many wonderful yarns to work with!

Mr. Wool is Coming to Town

My wool broker, fondly known as Mr. Wool,has actually bought an airplane ticket and is flying in from England at the end of the month to work with me. We plan a whirlwind three full days and will make the most of the last morning, probably, on the drive to the airport. Over the mountain, and through the woods, talking wool all the way.

He comes over once each year and we find ways to fine tune our work, plan future releases, talk about market trends, the economy, etc. He brings samples and European knitting magazines for me to consider after the visit, and we remind ourselves, in person, tha we really work and think and plan very well together.

We may try to do a Chat or RoundTable on Ravelry.com on my group, Friends of Wool2Dye4. Or come up with another idea to mark his visit with my mostly US market. (No offense, please, to my friends in Canada and Australia, who's numbers are certainly growing.) There will be an announcement closer to the end of the month of how we will celebrate his visit.

I am thinking that because Wool2Dye4 is his exclusive Bluefaced Leicester dealer in the States, that maybe it's time for a 3-day sale. While he's here, that would be a nice gesture, but watch for an announcement here, on the home page of the website, on the Ravelry.com group, and also in the newsletter. Whew! May as well post it on FaceBook, right?

So exciting!!! Now, I have to spiffy up the new studio, and maybe even get those posters of rare sheep breeds finally laminated and hung! He sent them five years ago and they languishing in a cabinet. SSShhhh....