Dawn Brocco's Life & Design Blog

Designing
Working on the embellished sport weight cashmere baby sweater design. Now I never knit with sport weight, but an infant sweater is do-able at this gauge. But I decided yesterday, to do a heavy worsted weight cashmere version as well. Spring-summer / autumn-winter baby wear. Especially as no-one bitten at the 2 sales I've posted for the cashmere yarn lately. So, if no-one wants it, I might as well use it in design samples.

There's 11 hanks in Old Rose, that's 22 ozs, 1100 yards. Enough for a sweater in my size. In the back of my head, all the while I was trying to find another yarn to do the 2nd sample for this design, I kept thinking, "do it in the cashmere, do it in the cashmere", but then I'd reply to myself, "whadya nuts!". I bought it and dyed it to sell it, not use it. So, I was leaning towards either Goddess Yarns Emmanuella or Beaverslide's new Delaine Merino, or maybe their 90/10 blend. But I'll swatch the cashmere today. It's a slightly off gauge I need, which has been part of the problem of finding the perfect (smooth) yarn - 4.25 sts/1" in stockinette. And it shouldn't look loosey goosey at 4.25. The Peace Fleece in the original sweater did this perfectly. PF isn't smooth, I know. But for this 2nd sample, I wanted a more elegant sweater, not a casual sweater and yarn choice can make all the difference.

It's not urgent, yet, that I decide on the yarn, as I'm still working on those 3 other patterns. 2 are really close to be web and print ready. But I'd rather have all 3 done at the same time. It's just less work that way.

The photos I took outdoors of the 3 crochet baby sweater samples didn't work out. I spent time taking out the busy background and still didn't like it. So I was walking through the house yesterday, trying to get an idea of how to display 3 sweaters AND 3 hats all in one shot, and I found it, I think. Tomorrow, I'll post a shot.

More House Showings
Let's see - Saturday, an agent did a preview for one of her clients in the morning, made an appointment for 2:30 on Sunday - no problem. At noon, our other agent and client came through. However, on Sunday, at 1:30 the agent and client arrives, not 2:30 - the lights in this huge house weren't on yet (why would they be - an hour early!), I was still in pajamas, and the dog wasn't leashed up in my office yet.

Meaningless apology made - she didn't have our phone # (but she DID have our agent's # - duh) - then they blew through this BIG house and were on the road again all in 15 minutes. Yet another crappy RE agent experience to go onto our shit list.

I've already emailed both our agents and retracted the allowance I made for them. If another agent had previewed the house, I was allowing that one of our agents needn't accompany the other agent for the showing. Based on the assumption that the other agent was now familiar with this house AND that other agents would all act in the same professional manner as our agents.

The reality is that they don't all act as professionally, and they say stupid things when they walk through with their clients. I know, because I'm here with the dog and hear them. You'd think there'd be some kind of training for agents - not just stuff about real estate, but how to dress, how to act, what to say and not say. How to be considerate to the home owners, who, BTW, are the ones paying the 6% fee, of which you'll be getting a part of, iif you clinch the deal.

At the very least, with our agent also showing up, it might have caused that agent to call our agent and see if moving the showing up an hour would be OK OR NOT, instead of just arriving an hour early, when our agent wouldn't even have been here.

After 7.5 months, I'm losing patience with all these unprofessional people. It's not doing my state of mind any favors, and none of these people have turned out to be really interested, so I'm putting up with it for nothing.