Happenings (blog)

Small Business Saturday

Small Business Saturday

Here we gooooo!

You know what time it is…. time to forget all about that corporate Black Friday madness and shop small instead!

Support your local community by coming out on Nov. 25, the Saturday after Thanksgiving, and checking off your holiday list while helping out your favorite small businesses.

Here at Rows & Roses Yarn & Fiber, we’re collaborating with other small local businesses to bring you a chance to win a HUGE gift bag, stuffed full of so many wonderful items. From handmade soap, to Magic cards, to a hand dyed learn-to-spin kit (who put that there?!) and so much more, make sure you come shop with us!

While there are still more small businesses to come, we have items from so many already that I wanted to get a picture of our prize bag so far. Above you can see books from First Chapter Bookshop, a shawl stick from World of Woodcraft, a learn-to-spin kit from Rows & Roses (that’s me!) some gorgeous handmade jewelry from Raventree Studios, and more. This is already the largest SBS giveaway we’ve had so far, and a little something from Nevermore Tattoo and Blackberry Hill Soap is on the way…

Wanna see who all is participating this year? Read on, my friend.

Meet the Businesses

Nevermore Tattoo

Brock Glenn of Nevermore Tattoo, here in Seneca, SC, is known for his soft touch and gentle rotary tattoo machines.
He specializes in black and gray tattos, as well as dotwork and text. His lettering truly looks like it’s printed from a machine!
He can design for you the perfect special piece.
Be sure to text him for your next tattoo at 864-723-6385, and find him on Facebook and Instagram.

Blackberry Hill Soap

Blackberry Hill Soap, based in Pickens, SC,  makes all of their goatmilk soap by hand at their farm. I’ve had the personal pleasure of using some of their soaps (acquired at a festival last spring,) and I can tell you firsthand that they are wonderful! I love supporting small local farms, and the couple who own it are simply delightful!

Find them on Facebook and Instagram.

Decks & Dice

For all your gaming needs, check out Decks & Dice LLC in beautiful downtown Seneca. From Magic, to Dungeons & Dragons, to Warhammer, to Yugioh and more, meet new friends while immersing yourself in the local gaming community!

Find Decks & Dice on Facebook.  Visit their shop at 115 E. North 1st St. Seneca.

Raventree Studios

Raventree Studios is one of my favorite places for handmade gifts. Summer makes resin and clay jewelry as well as fine art, but she absolutely excels at resin and wood waterscapes (in my humble opinion.) If you’re looking for a serving board for your holiday table, she’s got you there, too!

Find Raventree on Facebook and the website

World of Woodcraft

For all of your woodworking needs, look no further than World of Woodcraft. Located in Seneca, this amazing couple do all of their woodworking in a shop right beside their house to bring us lots of fantastic items such as shawl sticks, jewelry, custom signs, and more. Let them know what you need, and they’ll make it happen!

Find World of Woodcraft on Facebook

First Chapter Bookshop

I’m so excited to introduce you to the new kid in town. Taylor at First Chapter Bookshop in downtown Seneca has really filled a need for us! This little shop, located on Ram Cat Alley, is full of books, puzzles, gifts, and more. There’s a cozy sitting area, and Taylor is super helpful and a pleasure to talk to. If you haven’t been in yet, you’ll definitely need to go.

Find them on Instagram and Facebook.

Carolina Classic Canine

Does your sweet furry companion need a bit of training? The awesome coaches at Carolina Classic Canine will make short work of it. They are animal whisperers, and are passionate about what they do.
Besides training, they also offer pet sitting. They’re friendly, firm, and dogs and cats love them!

Find them on Facebook, and make sure to visit their website!

Green Heart Awakening

There is a very special shop on the square in Pendleton that is one of my favorite places to go. Green Heart Awakening offers teas, spices, handmade soaps, crocheted goods (made by yours truly,) local art, fair trade chocolates, and so much more. They also have vegan soups and casseroles made fresh each week.
In addition to all the great items you’ll find there, they have a yoga studio where they offer all sorts of lessons and workshops. It’s such a relaxing environment, you won’t want to leave!

Find them on Facebook, Instagram, or visit their website.

So How Do You Win All This?

Well that’s easy: every $20 you spend at Rows & Roses, both in store and online, will earn you an entry. Shop all you want and treat your loved ones to some awesome hand-dyed yarn and fiber, fun stocking stuffers, or stash up for special handmade gifts from you. Entries can be earned from 10am to 5pm Eastern time on Nov. 25.

As usual, our Small Business Saturday is a whole party with all the fixings. So many things in the shop will be on sale, and the famous Hot Cocoa Buffet is coming back! That’s right… build your perfect cup of cocoa to sip while you shop. Marshmallows, candy canes, sprinkles, and more will be available. I’m even making cinnamon whipped cream, just for you ♥

So come join us! If you don’t, you’ll sure wish you did.

Perfectly Seasoned Holiday Edition

Perfectly Seasoned Holiday Edition

Treat yourself, or your favorite human

A seasonal surprise package from Rows & Roses

Your Perfectly Seasoned Holiday is open for pre-orders! For all of you who have been asking about an Advent package, we came up with something that we think will work better for us and delight you this holiday season.
Your Holiday Kit  will contain:

~One skein of Classical Sock in a holiday-inspired semisolid


~ 10 minis of Classical Sock in an assortment of seasonal colorways

~ 1 Top-shelf tool for your crafting pleasure

~ One knit pattern, and one crochet pattern, both from amazing designers!

~ One seasonal recipe card

~ Other fun seasonal goodies

~ All packaged up in a Holiday Rows & Roses project bag!

Each Perfectly Seasoned Holiday Edition will cost $100 with a value well beyond that.

Pre-orders end on Sunday, Oct 22. You may pre-order yours in store or online.

 

Dollar Days Fall Blog Hop

Dollar Days Fall Blog Hop

Check out my latest pattern!

Fall is here, finally! Are you ready for a new blog hop to help you enhance your pattern stash? Simply Melanie Jane is at it again, bringing together lots of talented designers with tons of great patterns. Grab each day’s featured pattern for just a buck, or skip the daily back and forth by snagging the whole bundle for a STEAL!

Featured pattern for Friday the 13th:

Sunrise Sunset Pocket Shawl

Nothing lights me up like the sun. Every season, the sun shifts a bit but keeps warming us and lighting our world. It’s amazing, isn’t it? All that light and warmth, just for us?

As a tribute to the sun, I offer you Sunrise Sunset, a crocheted pocket shawl to show our appreciation for all the beautiful colors our sun offers us.

Choose Sunrise, a vibrant pastel-going-on-bright wakeup colorway to honor the start of this beautiful day, or Sunset, a darker blend of bold colors to usher in rest after a long day of living, loving, and satisfaction.

This pattern consists of very basic stitches, perfect for a beginner. It includes a color chart for both colorways, but please feel free to blend your own five colors together to create something unique, just for you! The pockets are seamed up just how you like them, easily made to the sizes you want them to be. 


Wanna get the Sunrise Sunset pattern for only a buck? Click below for the coupon code!

Then come back and CLICK HERE to go use the code and claim your pattern.
(This is only active on Friday 13th)

 

Or…. would you rather pass on all the back and forth, and just snag the whole bundle of patterns for a steal? Well here ya go 🙂
(This is an affiliate link and I do get a small commission for your purchase.)

Summer Blog Hop

Summer Blog Hop

Summer is here and we are celebrating with everyone’s favorite thing: YARN!
June is the month for Simply Melanie Jane’s Summer Blog Hop. Here, you’ll find all sorts of gorgeous patterns by some really talented designers for just $1 each. Be sure to check Melanie’s blog each day for the daily one-buck pattern. 
On June 15, the $1 pattern is Flutter, my latest design that’s perfect for summer breezes. This shawlette is crocheted using just one skein of Rows & Roses Classical Sock. A simple 4-row repeating pattern, lightweight yarn, and a great shoulder cover that’s the perfect size for throwing into your bag on the way out the door. What’s not to love about that?
So set an alarm for June 15 and go grab the coupon code, good for that day only, over at the Simply Melanie Jane blog. Then follow me to Ravelry to snag your copy of Flutter for just a buck.

Bundle Deal!

Wanna go ahead and grab the complete bundle of patterns at a steal of $12.99? Use my affiliate link and you’ll have a whole summer full of stitching in no time at all!
Be quick, though. This bundle expires once the hop is over.
Spring Shawl-along

Spring Shawl-along

Come stitch with us!

Let’s get into the SPRING of things at our favorite LYS! There’s nothing like wrapping up in a shawl on a breezy spring day, and even better if it’s a shawl you made yourself. Grab a copy of a fun shawl pattern you want to knit or crochet, and bring it along with your hooks, needles, and yarn to our Starty Party to kick off the spring! Once it’s finished, don’t forget to wear it into the shop on Fashion Show day. If you wear it across the catwalk, you’ll be entered to win a prize!

Schedule:
Sat. March 18, 2pm- Starty Party!
Sat. April 15- Halfway check in
Sat. May 27, 2pm- Fashion Show

Knit Patterns

How about some inspiration? Here are a few knit patterns I absolutely LOVE! Remember that you may use any pattern, no pattern, or even write your own as you go. The sky’s the limit!

Harvest Hues
by Tami Gore
(worsted)

Frosted Dogwood
by Tabetha Hedrick
(fingering)

Rewilding Shawl
by Helen Stewert
(fingering)

Legacy Park Shawl
by Cori Eichelberger
(sport)

Crochet Patterns

Our crocheters sometimes need inspiration, too. Aren’t these patterns just gorgeous? Yes, I did throw a couple of mine in there 😉

Flutter
by Sati Glenn
(fingering)

Shawl Leaf
by Santal Crochet
(sport)

Sonata Shawl
by Sharon Silverman
(lace)

Cloud Flare
by Sati Glenn
(worsted)

Great Yarns for Shawls!

Of course, picking a pattern is only half the fun. I myself prefer to pick my yarn first, and then find a pattern that goes with it. Here at Rows & Roses Yarn & Fiber, you’ll find some great yarns that are perfect for a spring shawl…

As always, I am more than happy to help you choose. Do you have a yarn you love but can’t find a pattern to go with it? Do you have the perfect shawl pattern but just aren’t sure which yarn would work best? Come in early on Saturday, March 18 (Starty Party day) and we’ll work together to get you the perfect combination for a shawl that you will love to wear.

Small Business Saturday 2022

Small Business Saturday 2022

#SBS making a comeback!

Are you ready for Small Business Saturday? Because it’s ready for you!

This year, forego the Black Friday chaos and madness, and decide to support small businesses instead. Stay home and enjoy leftovers and a nap, then rise and shine on Saturday morning to come shop small, shop local, gather your thoughtful gifts and support the little guy while doing it.

Saturday, November 26 is our day! Rows & Roses Yarn & Fiber will be celebrating with a huge sale, an amazing giveaway, free patterns with qualifying purchase, and the hot cocoa buffet that we all love so much.

Every $20 you spend on Small Business Saturday, both in store and online, will earn you an entry into the drawing for this glorious gift basket. The basket is handmade by our very own Joan, and is stuffed to bursting with all kinds of gift cards and goodies from small businesses in the area.

 
Let’s meet all the wonderful small businesses that make this giveaway possible. Click their pic, visit their site, and be sure to show them some love on facebook and instagram!

Nevermore Tattoo

Are you dreaming of your next tattoo? Let Brock Glenn of Nevermore Tattoo ink you up!

He’s been tattooing since 2016, and specializes in linework, dotwork, and black & grey.

He can design your next perfect piece completely from scratch, or use components you may already have, such as a signiture or piece of music. Gifts cards are available!

Attention to Detail

Attention to Detail is a small, local, automotive detailing business that you will definitely want to check out. I had the pleasure of working with Jade recently when she did a whole detail on my car, and let me tell you, my car looked and smelled like a new car when she was finished with it!

She truly does pay special attention to detail, and her prices are better than any I’ve found at the “big car places.” She offers interior and exterior cleaning for cars, trucks, boats, and ATVs. Give her a call and get something set up!

Carolina Classic Canine

Do you have a dog? Carolina Classic Canine can help your dog become the best they can be!
Every interaction with your dog is teaching them something. Concierge Etiquette Coaching helps you make the most of every teachable moment. Help your dog become confident and develop self control without intimidation or fear.
CCC tailor’s the coaching curriculum for you and your dog to help achieve your goals. From basic house manners through therapy dog coaching, we help dogs of all breeds and all life stages.
In-home pet sitting, classes, workshops, and seminars are also available.

Raventree Studio

It would appear that Summer of Raventree Studio can do it all, and so well!
Raventree specializes in fine art, boutique jewelry, and home decor, as well as graphic design and illustration.

Pick up one of her cutting boards from a local market or craft show, or commission her to design your small business logo or website. Summer will leave you feeling less stressed and much impressed!

Nell Kennedy- Yoga for Real People

Nell Kennedy doesn’t teach yoga like you’re probably imagining. She teaches yoga for regular people, and will make sure to help you get the most out of your session.

Maybe you want to become super flexible and have amazing balance? She can help you!
Or… maybe you just want to be able to comfortably tie your shoes, and rise from your seat. She’s there for that, too.

She offers stretches, meditation, and breathwork. Go get bendy with Nell!

Green Heart Awakening

Green Heart Awakening is a natural wellness store in Pendleton, SC with a large selection of organic bulk herbs, spices, and teas plus organic produce and other local products.

Green Heart Awakening offers nature-inspired wellness for mind, body, and spirit.
Come explore our store, which is filled with organic bulk herbs, spices, and teas and other natural wellness products, like local honey, CBD products, Ayurveda-inspired chocolate, essential oils, incense, natural personal care items, Himalayan salt and salt lamps, herbal books, and DIY supplies for your homemade herbal goodies. We now also carry local, organic produce and other local food items.

Gracious Living Designs

 Love your Home, from Decorating Den Interiors, is a fabulous “coffee table” sized book, which starts with the decorating basics and leads you through a personal design quiz and discussions of style and color to help you decide where and how you want to begin transforming your home – one room at a time or all at once.

Let Grace Shetromp help you design your perfect den!

THANK YOU ALL!

A huge thank you goes out to all the small businesses that make Small Business Saturday so great. A big thank you as well to all of you who are dedicated to supporting your community. Helping real people stay in business and support their families, while purchasing truly meaningful gifts (rather than mass produced “big box” items,) makes all the difference in the world ♥

2nd Anniversary Celebration

2nd Anniversary Celebration

Rows & Roses Yarn & Fiber is turning two!


Can you believe that this LYS is turning two years old? Rows & Roses Yarn & Fiber has been providing great yarns, patterns, tools, fibers, and more to our community for two whole years now. That’s something to celebrate!

Remember when this was just a tiny hole-in-the-wall yarn shop? Since opening in 2020, this shop has moved into a bigger location, become a Kromski Looms & Wheels dealer, taught over 60 classes, added a dye studio, created a hand-dyed yarn and fiber label, won the Upstate Unsung Hero award, been invited to speak at Carolina FiberFest (next year!) and encouraged so many new friendships and watched them grow. And guess what? This shop is still growing and growing and growing!

Here's how we're Celebrating


~ BIG giveaway basket full of goodies. Every $20 spent in-store AND online earns you 1 entry into the drawing.
~ 1 free ball of Coastal Cotton with every $40 spent.
~ Free R&R Y&F sticker with every purchase.
~ Yummy snacks
~ Batt blending demo on the drum carder at 2pm. Everyone gets a turn!


In addition to all of these wonderful things, I am trying to get us some new Rows & Roses Yarn & Fiber T-shirts made, and we will of course have lots of R&R hand-dyed yarn and fiber available.

Bring a friend and let’s party all day! Don’t forget your punch card 🙂

Wanna see what's in the giveaway?


This giveaway’s a big one! $170+ of delightful goodies will go home with one special customer. We have:

~ 1 skein Kim Dyes Yarn on Sugar Cookies Sock
~ 1 skein Rows & Roses Hand-dyed yarn on Glam Sport
~ 1 ring of Zauberperlen
~ 1 skein Rasta
~ 1 pack heart shaped stitch markers
~ 1 Mindful sterling silver plated hook/needle gauge
~ 1 pair gold cat scissors by Twice Sheared Sheep
~ 1 Knitting Barber in hot pink
~ 1 Prym tape measure
~ “Make Wear Mend” enamal pin
~ “Wool Enemy #1” project bag


Remember that every $20 spent in-store and online on September 22 will earn you an entry!

Autumn Stitch-along

Autumn Stitch-along

It’s all about the accessories!

There’s just a bit of crispness in the air. Everyone’s home from their vacations, and the kids are back to school. It’s time for another stitch along!

Let’s take a break from the big projects for a while and get back to just enjoying the yarn! Accessories are quick, and can be used to play around with stitch patterns, colorwork, and techniques (not to mention a great way to knock out your holiday gifts.) Each accessory you complete will count as one entry for the prize drawing. This time, instead of a Fashion Show, we’ll have a big group picture of all the accessories together! Won’t that be fun 🙂

Schedule

Starty-Party: Saturday, Sept. 3 at 2pm

Halfway check-in: Saturday, Oct. 1

Fashion Show: Saturday, Nov. 5 at 2pm

Feel free to reach out or swing by the shop for help with patterns, yarn options, and books on techniques and ideas. Here are a few patterns I found on Ravelry that would be just perfect…

Crochet Patterns

Fern by Jan Power
Lattice Love by Ashlea Konecny
Backroads by Leedra Scott
Hellas Cowl by Sia Karamalegos
Rock Creek Cabled Fingerless Mitts by Darla J. Fanton
Sunday Ballet Slippers by Ashlea Konecny

Knitting Patterns

Rhinebeck Hat by Woolly Wormhead
Wanderer by Robin Peters
Wendy's Fern by Princesse Grenouille
Text(ure) Me Cowl by Jennifer Beaulieu
Forest for the Trees Mitts by Hook Mountain Handmade
Seefeld by Sabrina Schumacher

I sure can’t wait to see you on Saturday, September 3 as we get started on all of the fun things! I’ll have cookies and coffee, as usual. Please feel free to bring a friend to join in. It’s going to be such a good time ♥

Pattern Fudgin’

Pattern Fudgin’

Making it work for the crocheter

How often have you gotten to the end of a row, only to realize that your stitch count is off by one? Or maybe a few… Or hey, what about when you realize that the mistake you made is actually six rows back? Doesn’t that just burn you up?!

Heavy sigh, and maybe a bad word of two, and then I guess it’s time to frog. Or is it? Maybe not!

We all know that there is a time and place for ripping out hours of work (ugh) in order to make our finished item exactly how we want it (although I’m a huge fan of using blocking to hide a multitude of sins.) If the mistake is clearly noticeable, or if it is messing up your stitch counts in a way that can’t be faked, then sometimes we have to suck it up and get to ripping. However, it’s just not always necessary. We want to enjoy the journey of our craft, so if there’s a way to hit on a quick fix and move on where nobody would ever notice, then shouldn’t we give that possibility a day in court? Let me help you with some easy fixes so you can continue on with what you love. We’ll leave the frogs in the pond.

 

Adding Stitches

Sometimes when your stitch count is short just one or two, it’s easiest to squeeze in a couple of stitches here and there and keep going, rather than frog. However, putting two stitches into one stitch can be noticeable, especially if you’re using bulky yarn or working at a tight gauge.
My preferred method is to work a decrease as an increase. Yes, you read that right! Ready? Here we go!

  • work your next stitch as usual
  • now work a decrease in the SAME stitch as the stitch you just worked AND the next stitch
  • and now work a new stitch in the same stitch into which you finished your decrease

    Do you see what just happened? You just worked three stitches (regular stitch, decrease, regular stitch) into two stitches. I have found this to be the least noticeable way to squeeze in stitches, although it works better with single crochet than it does with double. Give it a try on a swatch and see what you think!

Decreasing Like a Pro

Just as there can be less noticeable increases, there is a little known decrease that is equally less detectable when done correctly. I can’t figure out why this isn’t the new standard way to decrease, as it’s super easy and almost can’t be found even when you’re looking for it later. I did not create this decrease, but you can thank me for the info when you decide that your life has been changed 😉
Let’s do it!

  • To decrease the next two stitches, insert your hook into just the front loop of the next stitch. Do not draw up a loop!
  • Now insert your hook into just the front loop of the next stitch. Do not draw up a loop! You should now have two front loops on your hook.
  • Work your stitch as usual (a regular sc, hdc, dc, or whatever you happen to be doing.)

    Yep, that’s it. Dead easy, right? Once you’ve worked a couple of rows/rounds, go back and look at that decrease. It’s almost invisible! It also uses less yarn than the standard 2tog stitches. You are very welcome.

Fudge for the win!

Are you liking how this is working? Fudging is my favorite way of getting a project back on track, as long as I can make it work. Using these two tricks can help you modify so many other stitch patterns so that your mistakes are mostly covered up without the need to rip out so much of your precious time and effort.

Sometimes we want things to be perfect (wedding dress, perhaps?) We also sometimes can’t fudge in a way that won’t be glaringly obvious (ask me about the V-stitch turned dc right smack dab in the middle front of a sweater I made…) When we can though, saving ourselves the time and aggravation tends to be our best bet for continuing to enjoy our project. As my friend Kristy says, “If they can’t see it when you’re riding by on a galloping horse, then it doesn’t matter.” 

Til next time, friends. Enjoy your stitching ♥

Summer Lace-Along

Summer Lace-Along

Don’t be scared! It’s just lace.

It’s finally summer, and you know what that means….. a brand new KAL/CAL! This season, we’re all about that lace. Be it lace-weight yarn, a lace stitch pattern, or both, summer is the time to kick back and enjoy all the light and lovely things.

So here's the plan

I want to do something a little different and you will have the chance to earn multiple entries into the prize drawing! You may choose how YOU define lace. 

You’ll get one entry into the Fashion Show drawing if you use a lace weight yarn, you’ll get one entry if you make something using a lace stitch pattern, but you’ll get THREE entries if you use both!
(As always, entries only count if you participate in the Fashion Show) 

Here’s our timeline:
Cast-on (or chain) Party: Friday, June 17
Halfway check-in: Friday, July 15
Fashion Show!: Saturday, August 13

*Yarn suggestions: Silkpaca, Findley, and Garden 10 crochet thread*



Pattern Ideas for Lace-weight Yarn *Crochet*

If you’re dying to play with some lace-weight yarn, here are some patterns that would be great!

Galatea Lace Top
by Dora Ohrenstein

 

Blithe Tank or Dress
by Laurinda Reddig

Porcelain Berry Shawl
by  Elena Fedotova

 

 

Spring Blossom Shawl
by A La Sascha

Pattern Ideas for Lace-weight Yarn *Knit*

Birds of a Feather
by Andrea Mowry

Lake Mist
by Romi Hill

Phantom Fuzz
by Park Williams

 

 

 

Lochnager Top
by Littletheorem

Pattern Ideas for Lacy Stitches *Crochet*

Not quite ready to take the plunge into lace-weight? Well if I can’t convince you to try it, here are some patterns using heavier weights with some delightful lacy stitch patterns.

Kanata Kercheif Tank
by Jennifer Ozses

Idris Shawl
by K.A.M.E Crochet

Daydream Shawl
by Adina Bucknall

Journey’s Lace Top
by Anastasia R Smith

Pattern Ideas for Lacy Stitches *Knit*

Haiku
by Knitting for Breakfast

 

 

Good Vibes
by Nadia Cretin-Lechenne

Hitofude Cardigan
by Hiroko Fukatsu

Bjayzl
by Dorothy Bulac-Erikson

I sure hope you’ll consider joining us for this stitch-along! We’re going to have a blast, for sure.

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