Interning in Sunny California

Well, sunny most afternoons.  The marine layer burns off late morning and appears again during late afternoon.  I have to say I am so excited to give up my vitamin D tablets for a couple weeks!

I'm interning until June 29 in Encinitas, CA with the owner, Wendy, of Knitters Brewing Company.  So far I have made knitting stitch markers and dyed sock yarn.  It's a fun business and Wendy's a great teacher.  I've gotten so many good tips from her.  

As promised from back in May - I finished my reusable produce bag pattern and it has been a big hit with everyone who sees it.  I have just a little more tweaking to do with the pattern and it will be ready for retail sale.  Please contact me at thegreenerneedle@gmail.com if you'd like to order the pattern.

It will officially be summer in just a few days.  I hope you have a fun one with lots of sewing and knitting projects!

Still Moving......

Okay, this move is dragging on!  I figure I'm down to 4 more carloads.  That's how moves go when you don't get a truck and get it all done at once.

Anyway, some exciting things are happening!  I will be designing and copyrighting a sewing pattern this week. It's a fairly quick sewing project and will help to reduce landfill waste.  I'll post pictures when it's completed.  This will be my first pattern for sale through The Greener Needle. 

In June I'll intern with an online sock yarn store: Knitters Brewing Company.  Check out the site - it's pretty cool  http://knittersbrewing.com 
Besides filling incoming orders, I'll be working on inventory for the upcoming Sock Summit in Portland, Oregon.  I plan to help at the Knitters Brewing Company booth during the convention on July 28 - 31.  Should be a lot of fun!

Catching Up

Well, it's been a month since I've created a post.  I went through a move that took more time than I thought it would.  Good news is I found fabric and yarn that I hadn't seen for a couple years!  Now I'm really inspired to get some sewing done.

Needlecrafts for Charity finished and delivered 20 cat mats to the Humane Society.  The cats were very appreciative :)

Last week we had our final meeting as a fundraiser for next year.  We hope to make 200 sanitary pad kits for young ladies in Africa next fall.  Please contact me if you'd like to help us with this project.

More to come later........

Cats & Bears, Oh My!

Wow, the past few weeks have flown by!  I took a trip to Portland, Oregon, and started spring quarter back at Evergreen.  My hand-sewing class at UPS (University of Puget Sound) finished our two month project of sewing cats and bears for Phoenix Housing in Tacoma.  Phoenix Housing assists the homeless population in Tacoma.  Our animals will find new homes with loving children :) 

Our newest project is making cat mats for the Humane Society.  This project involves machine sewing, so some of the young ladies will use a sewing machine for the first time.  It's fun for me to see the creativity that emerges with each new project.  New fun pictures coming soon!

Trip to Ohio

I took a wonderful trip to Ohio last week with my daughter to see my parents.  This is my spring break from college (Ohio being a huge college destination for spring break) :)  This week I will be teaching my hand-sewing class on Wednesday afternoon at the University of Puget Sound.  We will finish up our hand- sewn cats, bears, and monkeys. This coming Friday I'm heading to Portland, Oregon to visit some sewing studios and fabric shops.  I'd love for you to follow me on this exciting adventure of starting my new "green" sewing lounge.

First Posting

Hi!  Welcome to my new blog. I am leading a hand-sewing class - Needlecrafts for Charity at the University of Puget Sound. I started this class on January 26, 2011.  Please check back often to see the progress of this class.  I'd love to receive your comments!