The Good, The Not So Great, and The Rather Exciting

As usual it's been a while since the blog post and as always lots has been going on.

At the end of June I had a stand at the 3D/2D Craft Tent at the Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh. This was a great event and it was great to meet so many people and get great feedback on my handwoven work.

At the show I had with me new cowls that are one-offs and will not be repeated in the same yarns or designs. I also had my new Rainbow scarves with me which gained a lot of attention.

Since then we've been enjoying the summer holidays and taken time to see what we need to do next at Weft Blown.

So, on to the title of this post. There are a few changes coming to Weft Blown over the next month or so and I thought it was better to explain them in a blog post.

The Good

As the schools are starting to return in Scotland thoughts are turning towards Autumn which will be here before we know it. To help you get over this fact I have lowered the prices on some of my scarves that are looking for a new home. The scarves are from my 2014 collection and are based on different clouds and the colours of Autumn.

I will have these scarves with me on my stand at the Galloway Country Fair this weekend or you can see them in my studio too, if they've not sold by then.

At the moment I am also busily working away on a mini collection for an exhibition I'm taking part in at Gallery Q in Dundee from the 10th September to 8th October 2016. I'm keeping what I'm making under wraps for now and I'll try and do a blog post soon about it all.

The Not So Great

As you may be aware there was a very important vote in the UK on the 26th June 2016 which culminated in our country voting to leave the EU. This wasn't what Rob and I wanted to happen and we've been keeping a very close eye on things as we knew it could have a direct impact on the Louët wheels and looms side of our business. 

It's had a positive effect as it means that our prices are favourable to customers living in Europe (hello to everyone from there who are now following us). 

However, it has had a negative affect on our business as the exchange rate between the pound and the euro has been impacted significantly. In real terms this means that the cost of us buying in stock from Louët has risen and we've tried really hard to absorb this but we've now reached a point where we can't.

So I'm afraid that we've taken the decision to raise our prices by 10% on the Louët spinning, weaving and carding equipment. But don't panic as we will not be raising the prices until 12am on Wednesday 24th August 2016 so you have a few days yet to grab your new Louët stuff at Summer 2016 prices.

As we are nice people and we hope that there are some of you out there who are thinking of buying from us at Yarndale in September don't worry as at Yarndale we will do a special promotion for the weekend of having our prices at the show held at the Summer 2016 prices and not at the new Autumn prices. We will also have demo wheels on the stand and for sale too so you might be able to get yourself a really good deal at Yarndale.

The price rises do not affect my handwoven products, classes, or magazines as these are unaffected by importing and exchange rates.

Speaking about classes, I have had to revise the payment policy for classes so that the full cost must now be paid at the time of booking for the class. I've been relaxed on class payments in the past but I need to bring in this policy now due to a number of recent last-minute cancellations. I am always happy for you to attend on a different date if something comes up that you can't make the date you booked on.  For any classes that are cancelled by students two weeks or more before the class date then 50% of the cost will be refunded. So do get in touch as soon as you think you can't make the class so we can sort things out.

I am also struggling to add in any extra class dates over the next few months due to my workload. I am hoping to look at class dates over the next few weeks for the rest of this year and 2017 and will let you know by newsletter and social media when the new dates are released.

The Rather Exciting

To make up for the fact that there will be a price increase on Louët products we are happy to announce that we are in the process of becoming stockists of Glimåkra Looms and Hazel Rose Looms.

Glimåkra looms have always produced great sturdy traditional style floor looms and table looms as well as shuttles and accessories. We will have in stock the full range of shuttles, warping frames, tapestry frames and also their Emilia rigid heddle looms which I can't wait to have a play on as I've read lots of good things about them on Ravelry. You will also be able to order any of the floor and table looms which we'll be able to get shipped direct to you from their factory in Sweden.

Hazel Rose Looms are at the other end of the loom size spectrum and are small wooden pin looms that you can make square, rectangle, triangle, diamond, and heart shaped woven pieces that can be used individually or sewn together. I've had one of their looms for years and it's been great to take on my travels and weave squares here and there as they're so quick to weave.

We're hoping to have Glimåkra and Hazel Rose Looms with us at Yarndale. If there's anything you'd like us to bring then do let me know and I'll see what we can do.

Finally, I know this as all looms and wheels heavy, but there are some exciting new handwoven products that will be coming over the next couple of months that I am still tweaking in development and hope to get on the loom soon. Fingers crossed I will actually get a blog post done about them soon so watch this space.

If you've any questions at all about anything I've talked about in the blog post then do get in touch and we can discuss it further.

Enjoy the rest of your summer and I'll be back soon.