SWEATER BOOT CAMP -

We're always looking for new classes and workshops to offer at the store. Alana and I have been working together with the regular Tuesday/Thursday on-going classes, and she was mentioning how she would love to offer a class where many of the questions that we answer each week get covered. Basic but extremely important questions like how to choose size and yarn weight, how to "pick up and knit", why there are different types of decreases and increases, etc.

So in the spirit of our insanely popular Sock-In-A-Day class (the next one of these is on March 12th by the way) we came up with the idea of a SWEATER BOOT CAMP - a 3 class/2 week course where participants would begin by planning their project, get the guidance needed to complete the 5 requisite pieces for the project cardigan (shown above), and come back 2 weeks later to learn about putting it all together.

Obviously there is only so much knitting that can be expected of a person in 2 weeks which is why the project chosen is this cute little baby jacket knit in bulky weight yarn. Seriously, the back can be knit in just a couple of hours.

The idea has been extremely popular so far and seems to be offering people a chance to build their confidence by challenging them to a simple/no frills design that serves as a basis for any future sweater knitting projects.

See the second last post for date and pricing details. Do consider this class for yourself or to recommend to a knitting friend who is ready to go beyond the hat and scarf; it should be lots of fun. And as after any BOOT CAMP experience, I'm sure there will be a few weary muscles and brain cells, but it will provide some great memories and a real sense of accomplishment.

The Events- Knitting Olympics 2010

Well folks, I'm not sure about you but I'm getting geared up: 18 days to cast on! Oops, to the Opening Ceremonies I mean.

I've been a big fan of knitting while watching the Olympics since 1992 when my youngest, then 2 1/2 years old, watched the women's figure skating event and announced that she didn't like HER, pointing to Tanya Harding in close-up as she awaited the judges marks. Astute, I would say.

Below, I've listed the official 2010 Knitting Olympics events as compiled by the International Ravelympics Committee ( the IRC, not to be confused with the IOC) in which you can participate (pick 2 if you're ambitious and have lots of viewing time.)



For those who aren't familiar with the origins of the Knitting Olympics, it all began a mere 4 years ago when Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (bless her heart) mused on her Yarn Harlot blog: wouldn't it be a cool idea to challenge ourselves as knitters in the spirit of the Olympics, choosing a project to complete during the 2006 Games that would stretch us as crafters? She also (foolishly) offered to register everyone who signed up and their chosen project. From that excited little musing, thousands of knitters agreed that it would indeed be a "cool idea" and joined the cause. To hear Stephanie tell it, she spent the next several weeks in her pyjamas, half crazed, trying to keep up with the never ending supply of excited knitters who wanted to get on board.

The rest of us, who were a bit slow off the mark, have been waiting for the last 4 years to get on board this time.


So here are the events that you can choose from. Remember - choose wisely, realistically, and with a commitment to the challenge.

Aerial Unwind - Bag Jump - Beading Biathlon - Bobsled Cable - Cross-Country Charity - Curling Designer - Biathlon Designer - Original Dance Designer - Pattern Skeleton - Downhill Dyeing - Felting Freestyle - Fleece to FO Long-Track -

Flying Camel Spin Free Dance - Giant Slalom/ghan - Hat Halfpipe -

Holiday Jumpstart - Skiing Junior Olympics - Labyrinth Weaving - Lace Luge

- Mittens Moguls - Nordic Colorwork - Combined Platter Lift Samalong -

Machine Skate - Scarf Super-G - Short Track Shawls - Single Skein Speed Skate -Skelegurumi - Snow Cross Sock Hockey - Stash Compulsory Dance -

Sweaterboard Cross - WIPs Dancing.

More in the next few days about my own choice.

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