Now where did I leave my pluck? I know it’s around here somewhere. Ever have one of those days (or so many in a row you barely recognize yourself any longer) where all your get up and go, your vim, vigor and, well, your pluck just got up a left the building? Well, I’m sick and tired of having those days.

It’s the first of September tomorrow (January 1? Yeah, that marks a new calendar year for sure, but to me the true “new year” has always and will always be in September).  Summer is, for all intents and purposes, over and Fall is just around the corner.  Back to school. Change of season. Fresh start. The nest is empty. The house is getting a fresh coat of paint. Primo has arrived by the bucket full, new colors, blends and pattern ideas are keeping me up at night (in a good way for sure) and, well, the boot and baking (perfect blueberry muffins indeed!) obsessions are in full swing.  Dare I say it? I’m thinking the pluck and vim was never totally gone, just misplaced for a little while – and I most definitely feel it making its way back to me.

Thanks for bearing with me…. wishing us all a fantastic Fall full of fresh starts and crisp happy days (so we can all wear some wonderfully cozy handknits, of course!).

It’s a Fall thing indeed – this boot obsession of mine.

Gilgarran Boots – Be still my boot loving heart.

Fall accessory knitting has also begun -

Deluxe Lace Stitch Cowl  from SweaterBabe. While I love this, I’m thinking it needs to be tweaked a bit.

With the above mentioned modifications I’m hoping for something that, at the very least, slightly resembles this little number from the latest Garnet Hill catalog. It’s a fine line between a cute little capelet and an ‘all sorts of wrong’ poncho. It comes down to proportion I think. As long as you have a base layer(s) that gives a you a long visual line (say all one color underneath – black, grey, brown, etc.) with the capelet on top it would be really cute. Also, I think it’s imperative that the capelet isn’t too long, that it stops just above the smallest part of your waist (you know, accentuate the smallest part of your figure). What do you guys think? Any ideas? As a knitter and hand-dyer of yarn, it just seems wrong to go out and buy one…..

Speaking of Fall accessory knitting, I have a couple of fantastic suggestions to share with you tomorrow. Thea (the design whiz behind Babycocktails) has come up with two adorable patterns featuring Plucky yarn – not only are the patterns super cute, they are free!

So tell me, what do you most look forward to about the Fall? Is it the kids being back in school? The weather cooling off? The knitting, of course the knitting! The food? Leaves? Hayrides? To me, it really is the most wonderful time of the year.

Vintage Vernors crate was a great Etsy find. Wildflowers a lakeside find. Poison ivy on my feet? Why it’s the gift that keeps on giving!

Friends and family, of course.

Cameras, both vintage and new.

Elmer T. drove the ‘49 International KB5 – which worked out very well as the flatbed was fantastic for extra seating and coordinated nicely with tablecloths (yeah, I’m nerdy that way).

Of course there was tons of good food (very handy having a sister that loves to cook and does it very, very well) as well as cake & ice cream.

Card games

Volleyball. Can you guess how soggy the lawn was?

A little swimming, wake surfing and boat rides.

Of course Sam was in on all the action.

What a gorgeous sunset. What’s the saying? ‘Red sky at night, sailors delight……’ Of course the weather was picture perfect the next day…. all’s well that ends well, right?

After all the tiki torches were extinguished, dishes washed and tent dismantled I think I can safely say that a great time was had by all.

I truly see my customers as friends, not just customers and, as friends, they have the right to hear about the icky things as well as the nice goings-on. Therefore, I am hereby making it a goal to be more open with good, bad and ugly side of things. Which brings me to~

June, 2010. I was not a fan. So very glad it’s over. While part of the frustration I have for June was completely out of my control (medical issues/tests which made for some compressed dyeing schedules, some extended family issues, etc.) a good portion of the wonkiness was my own darn fault (it’s the people pleaser in me, while that can be a good thing, it can totally come back to bite me in the bum at times). I’ve had an epiphany – I bit off more than I could chew. Way more. And, as a result, a few things fell through the cracks. My customer service suffered and that makes me very unhappy. Customer service is of the utmost importance – you guys mean the world to me. It is my pleasure to be able to be in contact with each and every one of you.

I’m seeing things with a fresh set of eyes and have a new perspective on all things plucky and, well, life in general. I’ve made a few changes to ensure that my customers receive the sort of top notch service they deserve. Any good business should be a work in progress and like any WIP sometimes you have to frog a little bit and go back and re-read the pattern to get it right! So, in the immortal words of the pluckiest of gals, Scarlett O’Hara Kennedy Butler – “tomorrow is another day.” Here’s to July and a fresh start!

I’ll be off the grid (in a work capacity) this weekend, spending time with family, cooking, knitting and generally just re-charging my batteries. But, next week I’ll have a fantastically pretty update for you with FREE SHIPPING – a little celebration of new beginnings. In the meantime have a great weekend everyone and happy knitting!

Raspberry & cherry lemonade… farmer’s market Wednesday this week.

Just like clockwork, every Wednesday, around 3:30ish in the afternoon I make a quick get-away and head to the farmer’s market. How I love that place. Only there, in a small-town farmer’s market, can I find old friends of my grandparent’s (the Riverview Drive grandparent’s) and hear “You’re one of the Kooistra girls aren’t you! How have you been honey!?” Puts a smile on my face just thinking about it. Almost, but not quite, like a little visit from with grandma and grandpa. I miss them.

Anyway, what’s not to love about a fist full of flowers, some plump berries and fresh spinach and feta bread (and peanut butter cookies for Shelbie). Oh, and Sam loves the fresh dog treats I bring him. It’s a highlight of the week for all of us.

Speaking of Sam, the little pistol thinks the new coffee table rug is for him. Guess I can see how he’d be confused, I mean it goes so well with his coloring.

Plucky Merino SW Worsted – Sassy Sangria

Another Wandering The Moor. Shelbs has absconded with the other one. I totally saw that one coming. Speaking of Shelbie…. look who has her very own etsy site!

And, if you’d love to be entertained… do check out her flickr stream as well. I may be biased, but there are some fantastically artsy photos to be seen. Enjoy!

Tangled times like these call for reinforcements. My reinforcements of choice today are dark chocolate and roasted almonds. Tell me, what are your go-to treats? Drop me a comment and tell me what your favorite snacks, drinks, etc. are when you’re having one of those days. You’ll be entered into a drawing to win a tangled skein of yarn. Two winners will be randomly chosen.  Comments will stay open through Monday, June 21 at noon Eastern.

Getting ready for an update too! Shop update Sunday, June 20th at 8:00 p.m. Eastern followed by a small sneak-up on Monday, June 21st.

Smore Chocolate – Merino SW Worsted