Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Replacement bouquet

The beautiful flowers in that first bouquet just couldn't survive the heat of the UPS delivery truck for 8 or so hours on a 100° day, and on the third day they were literally dead. At first I wasn't going to say anything, but I went to the company's web site and they guarantee their bouquets will live no less than 7 days. Knowing my daughter-in-law can't afford to throw money away, I decided I should let the company know, so I filled out a form, then sent pictures by email and a few days later they sent this replacement bouquet, that while different, is just as beautiful and after 7 days is still gorgeous. This time they sent them via Fed Ex, who delivered them early in the day which made all the difference. While ProFlowers may not have the best delivery system available, they certainly stand behind their product and are very courteous and prompt with their response to complaints, which I really appreciated.

The Blue Bamboo scarf is done, but not yet blocked. I'll do that tomorrow and then post a picture when it has dried. The Falling Water Lace pattern and 250 yards of the Vivace 100% bamboo from Yarn Place produced a 65" scarf prior to blocking. I can't wait to see how this yarn looks blocked and to find out if it will hold the blocking.

Last Tuesday afternoon my friend Celeste and I attended a knit group in Lodi. It's quite large and very friendly. I think I'll go back often, though I didn't go today as my mother-in-law is not doing well so we spent a good portion of the day visiting with her.

On Sunday we went to a street fair, where hubby found several treasures to add to his collection. After the street fair we drove to Lafayette, CA, which is about a half hour drive from San Francisco. We went because there are two yarn shops there and I wanted to see if I could find some interesting yarn. When we arrived in town about 11:00 am neither was open yet, so we decided to find a local eatery and have an early lunch. We spotted a small local diner called Squirrels, and opted for that as we tend to like plain old-fashioned American food. It has a very simple menu, and we each chose omelets, his with potatoes and toast and mine with fresh fruit and toast. The servings were generous, the help friendly, and as is often the case in popular local diners, there wasn't an empty seat in the house most of the time we were there. Prices were reasonable, service was quick, with the food served while it was still hot, and everything was delicious.
The downtown area is quaint with lots of small shops catering to nearly every thing one could want. We saw lots of ethnic restaurants, along side some of the chain type eateries. They've done an admirable job of incorporating some landscaping without eliminating on street parking. But we also found plenty of off-street parking.

After lunch we visited Big Sky Luxury Yarns. I should have taken a hint from the word Luxury. Lafayette is a rather moneyed area, and the prices in the yarn shop reflected it. Still I did buy two skeins of Mountain Colors Twizzle yarn. Though I was disappointed to come home and find it $8.00 per skein less at most internet sites. There is no doubt in my mind that the overhead for this store warrants the high prices, still I'm not wealthy and I feel like I didn't shop well. However, they will make lovely scarves and someone will feel very special when they wrap that wool/silk blend scarf around their neck. Then the money won't matter any longer. Plus, now that I've seen the beautiful colorways it comes in I can purchase on line and be comfortable that I'll like the color when it arrives. We never did make it to the second store, though we did find it's rather hidden location. But they didn't open until 1:00pm and we left just before that. I was happy with my Mt. Colors yarn, and didn't feel the need to put any more strain on the budget or the confines of my very full yarn/computer room. I really must re-organize the yarn, but I have to admit that before I do I need to determine how I want it organized. By color, by projects (all the scarf yarn together, sweater yarn together, etc) or by fiber? Maybe later.

3 Comments:

At 9:14 AM, Blogger AmyS said...

Sounds like you had a fun day! Bummer about the prices, though Lafayette is what it is, LOL.

Now I've got the song "Stuck in Lodi Again" in my head!

 
At 12:20 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Sounds like they 'rose' to the occasion for you!

 
At 6:21 AM, Blogger Sandy said...

Blog walking this am and found my way to your Scarfs from the Heart and would like to help.

Was a bit unsure of:
The type of yarn you prefer
Whether or not scarfs should be washed before being sent
Where and how to mail
Are these adults only, or do you also need smaller scarfs for children?
Are the scarfs all sent to St. Joseph's or are they distributed to other locations? Somewhere I read first donation sent to which made me wonder where the others went.

Lots of questions, sorry; but like to know what I'm doing.

Wonderful cause, please pop over to my blog and let me know.

Thanks and have a great 4th of July Wkend

Sandy

 

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