MrB has been busy....9's

MrB has been busy, I have just not been here to report!
Also he has been working on some things I can not disclose, as it is that time of year approaching very quickly.  We ran out of women's size 9 socks, so some had to be done to added into the inventory for our next market. Here are 3 pairs with more to come, I do believe.  You can see that I have some work to do this afternoon.  I like to show some socks not yet kitchernered just to remind you that I do get a hand in the sock making process as well.  But it is MrB who does all the important cranking!  The hardest part is trying to mind-read, what colours will sell the best in certain sizes???  We got funky and bright, we got a little more conservative with more muted colours, and we got what I call nautical colours that pretty much goes with anything.  Which will be the ones to sell first?

MsB from Socks Made On 88

One Year Ago Today!

It was one year ago today that MrB took the plunge and ordered a brand spankin' new Circular Sock Machine from Erlbacher Gearhart Knitting Machine Company in Cape Girardeau, Missouri!  What a ride we have been on since.  First the waiting, then the arrival and then the learning curve for MrB and the art of sock making and the all the research and things I have learned also.  If it hadn't been for the fact that I didn't even know what a CSM was, I wouldn't have even indulged into the searching of so many things Fibre related!  Geesh I didn't even know what Fibre was, and now I own a button that says, Get your Daily dose of Fibre!  Fibre meaning Yarn!!!  I look back and I can not believe how friggin' fast that time has gone by.  It is like when you look back in your memory bank of your kids growing up. 

Last year at this time my oldest son also happened to be living with us, and he moved out the day before our Erl arrived.  He went on his merry way on his adventure and us on ours!  So 2012 was a quite a year for us and for him also.  He met his girl friend, moved to Toronto and turned 30!  I would say 2012 has been a very memorable year, a very good year.  Does one good to reflect now and again and that is what we tend to do nearing the years end for sure. I am not going to talk too much about the year ending yet for us and Socks Made on 88 as we still have a couple more monumental dates to surpass.

So back to one year ago today, November 14, 2011, we ordered our Erl!  Like I said way back when first starting this BLOG, it was like preparing for a new baby, getting the space ready, picking out a name etc. Bridadier 88 was born! We were so pumped, I mean really pumped with excitement. But it was a good decision!  We have had so much fun learning, meeting new people and just having something that the both of us could sink our teeth into, each doing what we both love to do!  MrB with cranking and adding notches to his learning curve of sock making, and Me, MsB......loving NETWORKING and KITCHENERING and all the other little creative things that goes along with making SOCKS MADE ON 88 tick and move forward.

It has been a Great Year!

And a big thank you to the Erlbacher family!
We have had the opportunity to meet both of the daughters at crank-ins and they are both lovely gals!  Someday we hope to meet the master mind behind creating these fantastic reproduction machines also.  That is on our bucket list!
And again I say:

It has been a Great Year!

This is the machine we ordered one year ago today!  This is the machine we called, Brigadier 88!  Hence the name of our venture, Socks Made On 88!

MsB from Socks Made On 88
 

Socks for MrB!

Every once in awhile MrB tries something new!  He was trying a different type of heel here and he did come across a problem or two as did I when kitchenering this new pattern also.  So the outcome of this pair is that MrB becomes the owner to put this pair into his own sock drawer.  They would be what we call a SECOND, and we wear all the seconds ourselves or MrB unwinds them and starts over.  I do like the colours and pattern of this pair and fortunately MrB liked it too, so I am glad he can now call them HIS!  Moral of our story....when we try something new the rule is to aim to make a size men's 10 or a women's size 8 so that if they do not turn out just right, they go into one of our own sock drawers! 


MsB from Socks Made On 88

More Men's socks in demand for the market!

More Men's Socks, 3 pairs of size 9 and one pair of size 11

These are from Opal Graffiti both Men's size 9

The pair to the left are Men's size 9 Opal Van gogh and the other pair to the right are size11 in an Opal option as well!

Belated photos of last Market

We get a 4 foot table and space to display our product and this seems to work out well for us!  The rack can hold 50 pairs of socks or more!

We get a space for MrB doing his demoing also.

Hello, just checking in and wanted to load some recent sock pics, and discovered I had some belated photos still on the camera from our last Market.  So why not share them said me to my blog!

Hurricane Sandy

We are fairing well so far just a little rain and wind.  Maybe we will have more rainy weather tomorrow.  I have socks to kitchener today and oh we must get out and get some Halloween treats today for the kiddies.  Just wanted to check in, hoping for our Crankin' friends on the Eastern Seaboard to be safe and sound.

MsB from Socks Made on 88

Market- over RUSH

We did the market today!  Yay!  We had a great day!
All my new little ideas worked out wonderfully today.  Everything went smooth, my apron worked out awesome too.  On the way home MrB said he was proud of me as he could hear my selling speals as we did pretty good today in sales.  I love going to this market, our product is a niche that the clientele here seem to really like and appreciate.  I had so many very good conversations today.  If I am working one good day a month I miles well love doing it, correct?  We left at 5:45am and got home a little bit after 2pm but I am still working on updating the inventory, making out orders for MrB to work on in the next month, choosing yarn and sizes to be cranked.  I typed out some more new notices of our future appearances.  I had a stack and they all went like hotcakes today.  The interest is there, wondering when we are going to back!  This is very exciting for us!  I am tired, but I am so pumped also, I call this my Market over Rush!  I am trying to get all my things done and then I then I will put my feet up and relax.  Oh and I almost forget, we got a repeat customer ( Hurray) and she plans to come back again next month too!  That puts a little bounce in our step for sure.  My basket idea also worked, I am so glad that I come up with some good ideas to improve our display each time, but honestly I think I finally got it down pat.  Right now I can not think of anything that I do need to improve for next time.  My stool was a good bonus too, works much better than a lawn chair.  Also plopped my cash only sign in the basket and it looked better and was a more subtle way of displaying it with the customers also noticing it too.  All around today was a great day with a great market outcome.  Now I am all excited to do it again next month.  MrB will be working on some more inventory to replace and to add to what you already have for sale.  And again I would like mention how many nice people I met and chatted with today.  I was a chatterbox talking all our whole time being there, and loved every minute of our Market Stint today.  That's progress.....the whole Market thing is certainly growing on me, giving me a rush, and looking good on me/us also!! I just imagine that the next 2 months will be even busier and we are both so looking forward to the experience to put our first year under our belt.  Tick tock, tick tock, that first year is sneaking up on us.......... Enjoy the remainder of your weekend folks, I know that I am going too!  Till next blog check-in...take care!

MsB from Socks Made On 88