Beating the Odds

Last weekend I taught a toe-up sock workshop at Rumplestiltskin Yarns in Sayville, New York. Sayville is on Long Island, so it's one of those "you can't get there from here" situations (read that: no direct flights) from  Denver, Colorado. I had to take two planes to get there and three to get home two days later. Given the dreadful weather the whole country has experienced this winter, I'd been pretty certain that I'd miss one of the connections. I packed extra yarn just in case. But despite the odds, everything went smoothly and made all five flights, and got some good exercise running through airports in the process.

If you ever find yourself in Sayville, be sure to check out Rumplestiltskin Yarns. The owners, Angela and Vincent (Vinnie) D'Aguanno, have the yarn shop business all figured out. It's a comfortable, homey shop that offers an incredible list of classes (they teach 300 students per month). Vinnie likes to spin in the bay window out front and sells his handspun yarn in the shop (there was only one gorgeous skein left when I got there and I'm still kicking myself for not buying it).

I was there to teach the first day of their annual weekend workshop. When I arrived, the tables were set with flowers, Vinnie's homemade cookies, candies, and project bags for each of the 30 students. The bags contained everything needed for the classes, down to the needles and markers, as well as a copy of Knitted Gifts or Getting Started Knitting Socks. Vinnie (that's him at the end of the table), who is also a gourmet cook, provided a delicious lunch of salads, wraps, berry-infused seltzer, and the most delicious apple tart I've ever tasted.

The students were friendly, eager, and engaging (I think they're a reflection of the shop) and the class went well. Everyone learned all of the techniques necessary to knit a sock from the toe up and left prepared to knit them in a variety of sizes and gauges. I'm now preparing to teach the same workshop and host a knit-along in Arlington, Texas, next month.