Archive for February, 2008

Unsettling Happenings this Leap Year~

Michaels

Michaels Community Message Boards
 

Re: All Classes Canceled  
      02/25/08 08:28 AM

Michaels.com_Editor
Administrator
Over the past year, as part of our Consumer Insight strategy, we have asked customers what they like most about our stores, how we can improve, and what we are missing. When asked about classes they had lots to say. Currently the customers’ experience varies so greatly from store to store that we are taking their feedback to heart and implementing a class & event program that can deliver an outstanding experience in all stores, which is a good challenge for a chain of our size (nearly 1,000 stores!). Michaels is transitioning from a heavily class-driven program into a program offering more FREE demos, events, and Make-it / Take-its for all of our customers to enjoy. We are focusing our efforts on building better programs that customers have told us they would like to see at Michaels. For example, we are working closely with our vendors to create more excitement outside of the classroom and share the joy of crafting with their products with more people. This is but one way that Michaels is working hard to make certain that we offer our customers the best products, creative outlets, and overall store experience they deserve.

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 I have spoken of my employment with Michaels Crafts on this site very little, if at all, since I felt that this would be leaning to the side of creating a conflict of interest, and I didn’t want to do anything that would seem unprofessional or unethical.  I have been an Event Coordinator and Class Instructor for the last 3+ years.  I took over the position when our store could not possibly get lower on the list of class sales for the district.  For the first 2 years, we saw such an increase in our program that actually put us on the top of the list for both years.  Last year, we finished 2nd.  This progress was not accomplished without taking the program and pouring my entire self into it and creating something that we could all be proud of.  This included myself teaching  at varying times: loom knitting, beading, scrapbooking, book altering/making, birthday parties, floral design, kids camp…the list goes on to include any number of craft workshops that would be fun for the community to participate in.  It also included seeking out talented and professional instructors, making connections in the community, and just being there for everyone who wanted to be a part and feel connected to something crafty.

I am trying very hard to take the news of the cancellation of all classes at Michaels, except Wilton Cake Decorating, with the attitude that the Michaels.com Editor spoke of it above, on their website message board.  I am trying to get over the pain in my gut that happens when I think of all the hard work, and encouragement given to all my wonderful teachers…just to have to tell them they are no longer needed.  Some of these instructors have been with me since the beginning.  Yes, I am glad to say, that Michaels did authorize my manager to offer all our instructors part time associate positions, if they are so inclined…and my manager is so sensitive to how all these people feel, that she encouraged them to do so…and I hope they will.

In all this…I hope that down the line…Michaels Corporate will begin to have an inkling about how valuable the class program really was.  You cannot sever such strong ties to the community without experiencing repercussions in some way that defines who you are as a whole.  This is written to help ease what I’m feeling inside, and to help me vocalize the hope that eventually, we will see the class  program reinstated…and not just something that has to be followed “by rote”, but that can highlight the amazing talents of artistic individuals  throughout every community in a special and unique way…

…after all, that is what true creativity is all about.

Respectfully,

Bethany~

Wednesday’s What-not~

Just check out the PILE of…

Oh, all the endless possibilities!what is it?…dirty laundry?…contents of my linen closet?…

NO!  :)  This is the absolute HAUL the girls and I made at the yearly fabric sale at Walmart!  You’re looking at over 55 yards of fabric…all for only a dollar a piece!  Yippee!!! 

Okay…we went kinda nuts going around touching, and ooooohing over every design and texture.  But, we do have a sort of plan for most of the fabrics we purchased, so it wasn’t just frivolous…I’m telling myself…  ;)

The first item has already been sewn up complete…a black skirt that Megan needed for her Spring Strings Concert last night.

What girl doesn’t need a little black skirt?I whipped up this simple little thing without a pattern.  I just made sure to measure her really acurately, so it would fit correctly (hopefully) when done.  It has two slits up the sides, which Megan thinks are the bees knees…and the skirt fits to a tee!  :)

I’m at the moment trying to download a little video for you to have a peek at the concert…it’s very cute to see the young budding musical talent…kids are just cute, period, so this is just extra fun to watch.  :)

I’m having a little difficulty getting the link to show up here on my site, but you can go here to see the video on youtube.  And here’s the finale.   Enjoy!

Bethany~

 

February Loom-A-Longs…Complete! :)

Well, I’ve been knitting so much this week! 

I’ve been able to finish a super cute bag using cables, and rosettes…adorable!  BUT…at this point, it’s kinda top secret, so I can’t show a picture.  But I can tell you…I LOVE IT!  :)  I’ve been carrying it around this weekend as my purse, just to try it out, and it’s been everything I’d hoped!  It’s really roomy, too, which is a nice change from my last bag.  I kept having to cram everything in just right to get it all to fit.  Everyone I met kept complimenting me on my new purse.  That is a very satisfying feeling.  :) 

Half Fingered Cable Mitts!And today, I finished the February LAL’s I had signed up for…Isela’s Cable Mittens, and Karen’s Half Fingered Gloves.  I kinda reworked each idea into a mesh of both.  This is what I came up with.

The palm side~The fingers were knit up using the little bitty sock loom from DAlooms…I’ve had that idea for a while, and wanted to give it a shot.  It worked pretty well, except the tension needs to be kept very loose to avoid being too tight on the fingers.  I’m fairly satisfied as a whole, just a few things here and there to tweek for next time.  I love the cable cuffs…perfect touch!  Thanks to Isela and Karen for sharing their projects!  You Rock!   :)

Bethany~

Spiderwick!

Click to find out more about the movie…Another thing we did over the weekend, was to go see the new movie out…

*The Spiderwick Chronicles*

This was a great movie!  All four of us enjoyed it thoroughly, which makes it an excellent “good for most ages” kind of fun. 

*Warning:  There are some pretty tense moments, and somewhat scary beasts…so for really young ones, or scaredy-cats  ;)  , it might not be the best viewing.

Our Family Rating:  Top Notch!  We give it 5 Stars!!!  :)

Bethany~

It’s Wednesday Already?!!

Whoa!!  I can’t believe it’s already Wednesday, and I haven’t posted this week yet!  Yikes…that’s the longest I’ve gone without saying “hi!”.  But, I didn’t do it without thinking of you all…I really meant to post yesterday, but my computer crashed!  :(  I can’t tell you how nerve wracked I was when I couldn’t get the blasted thing to turn on!  All I could think of was all the things I had on there that I hadn’t backed up.  After over an hour on the phone with tech support and $80 + bucks later I had a working computer again!  Yippee!  It’s amazing how much we rely on technology.  I also made a trip to the store to pick up a 2 gig flash drive to back up my important stuff fairly easily…   so no more worries.  :)

Well, to make up for lost time…this will NOT be a wordless post!

Flaming Cupcakes…About my weekend…my little Meggyloo turned the big, but not yet “teen” 12 years on Friday.  We had a wild party planned at the roller skating rink, with family and friends, and then she had a friend over for the night.

When I say “wild” I’m speaking about the idea that my darling daughter had of wearing furry mustaches, neon gangster hats & sequined bow ties!  I couldn’t believe my ears ‘lil gangstas~when she told me she wanted to do this…and at a public skating rink…but, she took a poll with her friends and they all definitely wanted mustaches! 

Go figure! 

So, I ordered the loot, and let them have at it.  I think the idea of wearing these funky items was more fun, than the actual wearing, because most of them took them off pretty quickly after sporting them for pictures.  ;)

Treasure Trove~One of the games we played was a treasure hunt… well, it was a one person hunt…we left clues for Megan to find her presents! 

Before the party, I collected gems, and bobbles, special coins, some jewelry pieces (some made by me!) and created a clue that looked all old and worn, and put them all in a box that looked like an old book.  (I found this at Michaels in the home decor section…very cool find!)

hmmm…what does this mean?At the party, my eldest daughter and I created clues about each person that was there that Megan would be able to figure out, but would still be tricksy.  We gave out the clues secretly, and in order, so that each clue would lead to the next, and then to the box, and then to the big gift… which happened to be a new bike that my sister brought with her and kept hid in her truck.  ;)

My Megan…12 years and flyin’!All in all, everyone had a really great time.  Megan even said that it was one of her most favorite birthdays! 

And one of my most favorite parts…I didn’t have to clean my house extra for company… and I didn’t have to clean up after the party!  ;)  Definitely an added bonus!

**Happy Birthday Megan!** 

You were a beautiful baby, and you’ve grown into an even more  beautiful “almost teen”!

Bethany~

New on Peggin’ Pages! Felted Easter Basket/Bag~

   Felted Easter Basket Bag                                                                     

 This is one of my all time favorite bags!

I just love the colors, and shape, and of course, the all important fuzzy goodness!  :)

This project is perfect for holding all kinds of Easter treats…

 

~Or~

Basket Bag with Flower~

Felted Basket Bag just for Spring!It makes a fabulous Spring Handbag!  :)

Either way, it’s a must have pattern…

SO…

to get yours,

just pop on over to the Peggin’ Pages

to get your copy today!

 

 

*Enjoy!

Bethany~

 

PS: There’s something slightly familiar about this little bag, isn’t there?…Just look up to the very tippy top of this page, and you’ll see why!  ;)

My Beading Heart~

Happy Valentine’s Day!     

Beading Hearts!

 In honor of the occasion…

I thought I’d share one of my favorite Valentine crafts…

*Beading Hearts!*

Just click on the pic to see the tutorial on how to create these adorable little things with the ones you love most!

 

Enjoy!

Bethany~

*NEW Freebie! :) Felted Key Fobs~

Felted Key Fob~Hey, all!  I came up with this idea out of sheer necessity…both my electronic car key fobs have broken from the rest of the ring and so we have to fumble around to find it when unlocking the car doors, and risk leaving it inside the locked car, and not be able to get back in without setting the alarm on…leave it to me to just that! ;)  After looking at every store I could think of for a device to hold it in place on the ring (I swear I saw one somewhere…)…the lightbulb flashed on above my head, and I said, “Eureka!  I will knit one!”  Everyone at the car parts store then looked my way a little nervously…he he he!

Felted Key Fob…backSo, I figured if I was madly searching all over town to solve this dilemma, then maybe some of you might be doing the same…or maybe you’d just like some fibery goodness dangling from your key chain.  :)  It does sort of look like an egg…could be Easter decorations for your pocket!

So…*POP* on over to the Freebies page to download the newest pattern…Felted Key Fobs :)

Enjoy!

Bethany~

YO, Y2tog, SSK, YO~

Hey, all!  For some time now, I’ve been wanting to highlight a couple of wonderful  tutorials by two very talented loom knitters:  Stephany McElheran, of Loomy Daze & Denise Layman of Knitting Without Needles.  :)

 Stephany has a very informative video produced at this link about how to YO Y2tog, & SSK, YO.  Definitely something to put on your need to watch list!

But what purpose do these techniques have, you say?…

Well, pop on over to Denise’s post here.  She explains further what uses these seemingly mystifying techniques serve!  For knitters, and designers alike, these skills are great additions to add your knitting know-how.

And as a little by the by…you probably have seen the great to-do happening over at the Purling Sprite’s site…she’s providing wonderful video tutorials all about knitting cables!  If you haven’t checked them out…by all means!  Pop on over!   

Ladies…I’m sending a BIG thank you your way for taking the time to push our learning a little bit farther.  You’re all brilliant!  :idea:

Bethany~

Saving Knitty Gritty!

Wool Welcomed Here! cpyrt icon

 How do you like my new blog bling? 

          I think he’s so cute!  :)

 

Hey!  For all you Knitty Gritty lovers out there…

Pop on over to Denise’s blog post here  to see what you can do to help!

Bethany~

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