My Dream Job

I've worked in a variety of industries, from banking to bartending, accounting to athletic goods, and I've always made the most of all my careers, because I love to work with people. But now, every job I've had shadows in comparison to being a yarn store manager. Not only do I love the goods, but I actually like and admire my boss, my coworkers, and the customers, so my job is fun all around.

Dream job this may be, but I don't sit and knit all day. The shelves have to be organized, the internet orders have to be filled, the customers need help, the phone rings, color cards have to be made, the shop needs dusting and sweeping, the trash needs to go out, samples have to be knitted, and I'm still learning the ropes. Eventually, I'll also teach knitting classes and finishing customers' projects. I don't do all this by myself, so I do what I can, then assign duties and supervise. It can be exhausting, like last night, I made one round on my socks (only 64 stitches) and fell asleep with knitting in hand.

Since my boss has more irons in the fire, she's not there most of the day. My best mentor is my 18 year-old coworker. She's only there for the summer, and then it's back to college. She knows exactly where everything is located, who the good and bad customers are, and since her mom has been knitting for years, she knows all the techniques. I'll be sad to see her go, but in the meantime, I've been enjoying her youthful engergy, and I can't thank her enough for all her help.


Today, I'm making my first attempt with intarsia. The Vogue Knitting Book is one of the best manuals all around - I followed the instructions and whipped this up in about an hour. It's made with Jay yarn from Goddess. Though it's a little crooked, it's functional, and this will also become my first (on purpose) felted project. When I brought DD to the yarn store, she awed over the felted bags, so this one is for her. I didn't swatch it, but I figure since it's a bag, size doesn't matter. The top is Irish moss stitch, to stop the curl, and the rest in stockinette. I'm also going to make my first I-cord for the handle and the border.