SPRING CLASS LINEUP 2010

FAIR ISLE KNITTING

The basics of chart reading and yarn stranding and the 2 handed method to make beautiful classic designs are covered in this class.

WHEN: Sat. Feb. 27 1-4pm

COST: $35 (material list available)

SOCK-IN-A-DAY
Our most popular class. Come and learn the basics of sock knitting that can be adapted to create beautiful socks for any foot, in any yarn.

WHEN: Sat. June 12th, 10am-2pm.
COST: $45 (includes materials)




Introducing our latest class concept:
SWEATER BOOT CAMP- Parts I and II
Want to gain enough knitting confidence to create beautiful sweaters that fit?
Make this simple baby sweater in 3 classes and just 2 weeks and acquire skills that can be applied to all of your knitting!

Part I
WHEN: Fri. March 26th 7-9pm (yarn and fibre selection, gauge, choosing the right size and pattern reading). AND Sat. March 27th 1-4pm (cast on your sweater and learn how to knit the 5 basic pieces that you need).
COST: $35 plus materials (about $25)
TEACHER: Alana Baig

Part II
WHEN: Sat. April 10 1-4pm. (Return 2 weeks later to learn how to pick up stitches neatly, create button holes, the invisible mattress stitch, blocking and more.)
COST: $35

DO YOU ALREADY KNOW HOW TO KNIT BUT WANT TO TAKE

BOOT CAMP PART II TO HELP YOUR FINISHING SKILLS?

Pick up our BOOT CAMP sweater kit, knit your pieces and join us for PART II.

An Afternoon of NEEDLEFELTING

Come and play with wool fleece and other fibres to see what you can create and have crazy fun too.

WHEN: Sat. April 17th 1-4pm

COST: $35 (includes all materials)

ILLUSION KNITTING
Can you see the keyboard in this scarf? Illusion knitting is so fun. Learn to follow patterns and make your own designs.
WHEN: Sat. April 24th 1-4pm
COST: $45 (materials list available)
TEACHER: Rachel Bearse.

SPOILER ALERT for those who like little lambs.

I've just spent the morning printing up my daughter's lab manual for neuroscience at Guelph U where she will be spending part of this semester studying the brain of a sheep. I'm not sure why they have chosen the sheep brain but it did strike her as a bit close to home, as she has been surrounded for most of her life by the outer offerings of the sheep.
Ah, the circle of life!

Don't you just love this picture? Deb White passed it on to me as part of a larger review of "Computer security" products that you can knit to keep your identity safe. As you can see the needles are still on this w.i.p. around the monitor, but the final product, which created a sort of inverted turtleneck completely enclosing the user and the monitor, was a bit strange even for knitting computer geeks.

Later on this week I'll be posting the list of classes that will be offered at the store this spring but I just wanted to let you know about the SWEATER BOOT CAMP coming up in March/April. I think it's such a great idea for those who are really enjoying their knitting, but want to get a good grounding and develop confidence in the basics of sweater making or for those who are just a bit nervous about leaving the safe world of scarves and hats.

We'll be using this little bulky knit jacket as a learning tool to introduce all the different aspects of sweater knitting: yarn choice, sizing, gauge, on the 1st night, then the next day participants will return for the cast on and pattern reading part of the program. 2 weeks later they are ready with their 5 basic pieces knitted to learn about picking up stitches, button holes and the mattress stitch.

The Sock-In-A-Day class has been so popular and succesful in teaching people by giving them a good quick overview of how to get from start to finish in a project that seems a bit daunting if spread out over a longer period of time. Using those same principles, we're hoping to introduce confidence in sweater knitting to a whole new crop of participants.

Winter is here!

We've been empty nesters at our house for over a year now, which is why it seemed odd to me when my husband decided that he wanted to make a new Christmas figure to go with Santa on our lawn. I thought that he might have had something more sophisticated, more adult in mind. But no, when he showed me the options that I had to choose from, they included reindeer, elves or Mrs Claus as seen here with her sock and her knitting needles in her hand. He was a bit concerned that people would think that I looked quite old in this representation, then I reminded him that I was not Mrs Claus, she was! I think she's sweet.

I'm writing this on the evening of the most glorious winter days I can remember in years,

on the eve of the storm from hell -- although they're calling it a Colorado-low, not a Hell-low.

But heaven knows, there will be enough time to recognize the challenges of winter life before the season is out; let's just take a moment to appreciate the sun and the snow on my Colorado spruce. We bought this spruce tree when it was but a twig about 10 years ago from some students at QECVI who were fund raising. The other 3 twigs that we got have long since perished, but this guy is going like crazy and stands about 8 feet high- that's about 7 feet and 4 inches higher than when he was planted, which just goes to prove that not everything from Colorado is low. (groan)

The store is crazy these days, in the nicest possible sense. It's so fun to watch the delight that people take at coming in to escape the mall crowds, or planning their wish list, or just running in to pick up some needles, a final ball of yarn or a gift certificate. It's a good place to be each and every day.

I just wanted to remind you that a week from tonight, Tues. Dec. 15th is our Christmas open house from 7-9pm. Please feel welcome to come and bring your knitting, and some treats if you wish, and we'll have the cider and coffee on. We're all hoping that the weather will cooperate and that we'll be having a lovely evening of fun and friends.

Friday the 13th, and beyond.

On Friday, Nov. 13th about 25 people came to the store in the evening to enjoy some treats and apple cider, and some knitting time. It was a meeting of escapees from the home front. We had a great time and got to know quite a few new people.
I wish I could say that we had such a great time that it has taken me over a week to fully recover and that's why I haven't managed to get anything written here, but that would be a more than slight exaggeration. But we did have a lot of fun.
In fact we had so much fun that we are offering an opportunity to do it again, on Tuesday, Dec. 15th, everyone is welcome to join us at the store from 7-9pm for our annual Christmas get-together. Please feel free to bring some goodies and your knitting. We will supply the drinks.

I have written before about the afghan that my Grandmother-in-law gave us which is now at least 75 years old. It's knit in pure wool, probably fingering weight as the gauge is about 26 sts over 4 inches in garter stitch. I've always been intrigued about the quality of the fabric that still looks pretty darn good even after all these decades of continual use, and about the tedium involved in knitting that much garter stitch. How much devotion would it take to complete such a project.

I kept saying that some day I was going to figure out how many stitches there actually are in the darn thing. Well Fri. Nov. 13th, 2009 was the day to do the calculations. Then everyone was invited to make a guess and the closest "guess", mathematically guided or not, would get to bring home a skein of any yarn in the store.
Kathy Broughton and her engineering brain took the prize with a bid of 210 000 stitches. There are (approximately) 232, 128 stitches according to my calculations. Now that's a whole lot of loving for a sister to make such an afghan for her sibling. I never heard if Granny Carpenter really understood or appreciated the work involved. I hope so, and I'm so glad to be the keeper of it now.




Another example of under appreciated knitting came to me the other day when I had the opportunity to put on my favourite mittens for the first time this season. I realized that they were probably celebrating their 20th birthday some time this month. The story behind these beautiful mittens and why I consider them to be under appreciated is that I bought them at a crafters cooperative in Morrisburg ON, near Upper Canada Village, as I say, about 20 years ago, for $6.
They're probably made of pure wool as they really are warm, even when wet. The pattern is flawless and because of the 2 colours, is particularly warm with the double thickness...for $6!!!
I felt like I was rescuing them from some boorish shopper who would just buy up a cheap pair of mitts and lose them, or wear them to wipe the snow off the windshield of their car. They've been my main mitts for the past 20 years, and although other hand warming accessories have filled in for shoveling duty, etc. these will always be my favourite mitts for the bond they've forged between me and the ardent knitter who was churning them out for just a fraction of that $6 price.

P.S. I never thought about it until now, but I don't imagine that it's an accident that every light winter coat that I've bought in the past 20 years has been navy, so it would go with my mitts.

Winter Class Schedule Jan./Feb. 2010

Design and Make FIMO Buttons with Carolyn Barnett

Renound knitwear designer, Carolyn Barnett will join us to let us in on her secrets of creating the perfect buttons and accent pieces for your knitted creations.
WHEN: Sat. Jan 23rd 1-4pm

COST: $45 Material Kit: $20.

Sign up early as this is bound to be a sell-out class.

Check out some other designs by Carolyn at her website:
http://www.barnett-knits.com/

KNITTING WITH THRUMS

Make these wonderful heart mittens just in time for Valentines Day. Slippers and hats too.

WHEN: Sat. Feb 6th 1-4pm

COST: $35

TEACHER: Anne Woodall

RUG HOOKING FOR BEGINNERS

Learn the techniques of this honoured crafting tradition from one of the finest teachers in the area.
This beginners kit includes cut fabric, spun and unspun wool yarn to give you a taste of all of the different media available to rug hookers today.

WHEN: Sat. Feb 20th 1-4pm

COST $45 Material Kit: $35

TEACHER: Rhonda Kellett

Thinking BIG

Although I've always appreciated style and that which I find beautiful, I would never have presumed to be ahead of the fashion curve. I do believe that this is the first time that we, at WOOL-TYME Kingston have actually come out with a featured style in our newsletter that later was to be found in VOGUE KNITTING Magazine. But here we have it...the BIG COLLAR which can be found on our pattern site as of last month and the incredibly popular Shoulder Warmer which has been up at the store in 2 variations for a few months, but whose pattern will be available on our site within the next couple of weeks. Both are examples of the Big Neck style that looks so luxurious in the Holiday edition of VKM and is as cozy as can be.

Link here to see them up close and in the round

One of the best things about each of these designs is that they are wonderful for beginner knitters and those who need the cozy wrap NOW! Quick and easy to knit in so many gorgeous yarns. There are some trends that come along that you just gotta love.

But speaking of knitting in the fashion world. I had to laugh when I was going through the latest edition of Canadian House and Home magazine and they were showing the beautiful Victorian Toronto house of a designer of high end hand crafted adornments for the home. The main colour used in this house's decor was white (do people actually live in these places???) and in the rich and cozy living room, one of the display pieces was a basket of pouffy white yarn with 2 bamboo needles strategically arranged on a covered ottoman in the middle of the living room floor. It looked lovely but I couldn't imagine any knitter visiting this family being able to leave the yarn in its decorative setting; I for one would have set myself down and ignored everyone else while I cast on a few stitches and set to making one of the big neck warmers as described above.

Why celebrate Friday the 13th?

WHY NOT?
A few years ago, I heard about the regular gathering in the small town of Port Dover, Ont. where bikers from everywhere meet each and every Friday the 13th, no matter the month or time of the year.

I really liked the idea of the unpredictability, yet the resoluteness of this non-occasion which brought old friends together on a less than regular but at least an annual basis. And again I thought, WHY NOT?

So at WOOL-TYME Kingston, I'm hoping to establish this very groundless tradition of keeping the store open on each Friday the 13th beginning this month of November to welcome one and all to a pot luck treats, knit and chat night, when we can use it as an excuse to finish those UFO's that are haunting the bottom of project bags and the backs of closets, or just to work on anything that we have going.
Now, don't waste this opportunity...in 2010 there is only 1 Friday the 13th and it falls in August when many of us can be quite busy.
Please join us at 6:30 and feel free to bring treats to share. We will provide the apple cider and decaf.