Sally Melville's Visit

This icy Monday morning I dropped Sally Melville off at the airport after the most perfect weekend. Sally taught 2 technical workshops and 2 non-technical classes. We certainly are blessed to have her visit us! She can easily take complex material or techniques and break them down into simple, understandable steps. No wonder she designed the Einstein Coat. Maybe they're related.

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Saturday morning was First Choices - Basic Shapes. Students calculated the perfect length for their sweaters besides having some fun while learning from the master.

they're measuring the length of their heads!

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After lunch we dug into Stripes that Are and Stripes that Aren't

Sunday morning was all about Finishing our projects.

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And Sunday afternoon was dedicated to dealing with Emergency Measures.

All of us learned much more than we ever anticipated. We laughed, we learned, we said goodbye to this dear Canadian knitting wizard.

Sally Melville Book Signing

Saturday December 1st 4:30pm

Sally Melville will be at the shop signing her books.

Book 1: The Knit Stitch (features Einstein coat)

Book 2: The Purl Stitch

Book 3: Color

Styles

Purchase any of her books at a 10% discount (Saturday only).

Moving Mud, C*EYE*BER FIBERS and ButtonJar Knit Designs

Having recovered from our lovely B&B weekend I wanted to let you know that we now stock Moving Mud buttons, closures and shawl sticks.

Aren't they beautiful? Each one is handcrafted and makes a statement.

While the buttons are very special they are not to be outdone by the delicious new hand-dyed yarns that we recently received from Mama E's C*EYE*BER Fiber. She sent us all 48 colors in her sock yarn and spinning fiber and they are flying out of the shop. Lovely to knit with and the colors......the computer does them no justice.

We received Seasonal Solids (tonal blends ), For the Boys (pictured left) the Elements (variegated earth, wind, fire and water colors) as well as Coordinates. Couldn't snag a photo of Coordinates so this is the deal. You get a total of 430 yards in a variegated color and a second small skein in a solid color that matches for the cuff, heel, toes. Very cute!

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All are 80/20 superwash merino and nylon.

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We also received 50/50 merino/Tencel tonals (again, sock yard) and last but not least, spinning fiber in your choice of 100% merino, 100% blue faced Leicester and 50/50 merino/Tencel. All are hand-dyed by Erin in the most lovely colors.

Our own Julie Cashin has a line of patterns called ButtonJar Knits. Some of you have already knit one of her fabulous cotton or felted bags (Cotton Tote, King St., Doctor's Bag) or one of her sweet baby sweaters (Baby's First jacket, Koigu Kimono, Top Down Cardigan - think Malabrigo).

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We now have her Nutmeg (fingerless)Mitts pattern. Add a touch of pure angora to the edges and you have a very sweet gift for yourself or others.

Sorry - I couldn't figure out how to rotate it.

It's been a busy fall here at the shop. I came in early to work on the new class schedule and newsletter but as always, I got distracted. I think I'll make a cup of tea and REALLY buckle down on the scheduling task. Laura

Bn'B Knitting Retreat Weekend

This past weekend was our 2nd Bn'B Knitting Retreat weekend. The Chesterfield Inn in New Hampshire was our home away from home and 15 lovely women joined Julie and me for a couple days of knitting, relaxation, fine dining, learning new knitting techniques, finishing projects from the stash and, of course, time for friendship. Oh, yes, there was that little Saturday afternoon walk as well. You know, to build up an appetite for dinner Saturday night. The chocolate dessert was just perfect!

The weather cooperated and we didn't get any of the nasty weather that came up the coast. Just a little bonus. In fact, the weather was so pleasant that we never needed a fire in the living room fireplace. The inn is just so comfy and inviting; several asked me what the next "date" is. I'll work on that just after our big Sally Melville event December 1st & 2nd.
I promised the 2-Timers and the First-Timers first dibs on the weekend.

Julie taught the group how to make her adorable Nutmeg Mitts. You can see how attentive the group is when she demonstrated her "surround and capture" technique. We saw three completed mitts by the end of the weekend and several "in progress". I even managed to finish one for my daughter as a Christmas gift. If our Saturday afternoon stroll was a bit shorter, I might have finished the second one as well.

By Saturday lunchtime, the living room was a mass of knitting bags, yarn and needles. You would have thought we owned the palce! Most of us are in this photo to the right, although a couple folks left early to get on the road. The inn is just a wee bit over one hour from Creative Fibers but we had two adventuresome ladies from New York City.

We hope you will consider joining us for our 3rd Bn'B Knitting Retreat Weekend next spring.

Thanks to all who came, and a special thanks to the Chesterfield Inn for making us feel like we were home.

Rhinebeck: New York Sheep & Wool Festival

For those of you that missed the Rhinebeck show I have created a mini tour for you. The weather was gorgeous; the perfect day to be outside and amidst the many others who were there to enjoy the sheep auctions, sheep herding events, fiber, yarn and jewelry for sale, food, Ravelry get-together, special events and meeting cool folks.

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I wore my mystery stole (photo) and everywhere we went I got stopped and asked about it (mainly those who haven't completed theirs - keep going I'd say, you'll love it when you are done). I was even interviewed for a pod cast so when I know when it will be broadcast, I'll let you know.

Terry wore his " I Work So She Can Knit" shirt

(photo) and he was an absolute hit.

He must have been asked by a dozen ladies if they could take his photo.

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Terry and I started in Barn A so I could look at Golding spindles (yes, I bought one - I am almost too scared to try using it). Since we had to pass Socks that Rock (and there was no line to speak of) both Terry and I bought a skein or two. I must say the yarn is as soft as I imagined and the colors are terrific.

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Terry purchased a lambskin for the baby booties project he is working on (photo).

Let's see, I also purchased a lovely shawl pin from Moving Mud, and a bit of fiber to spin.

We toured the barns to view sheep, alpaca, goats, rabbits (photo) and then got off our feet at the sheep auction. Careful! Scratching your nose might mean going home with a ewe.

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After lunch I had the pleasure to meet "Mama E" (Erin) of C*EYE*BER*FIBERS (photo) who is shipping us her gorgeous sock yarn and spinning fiber TODAY! You will be amazed at her colorwork. Of course we ran into several friends and customers. Next time I'll remember Lisa's great idea of bringing a small cooler so I can buy cheese. And wine, organic bread, dip mixes, cookies, etc.

We got off our feet again watching the border collies herd sheep (I forgot to take a picture). If you ever watched the movie Babe, this is the real thing. The dogs are incredible, even with the most stubborn of sheep. Later, there was a dog/frisbee event but we missed that.

The drive to and from over the back roads of Connecticut was a treat as well. The foliage was delightful and just being together on a day off from work was the perfect date.

Back to work! Laura

Starts & Finishes

This has been an incredible October! I finished Matt's Christmas gift sweater (photo) made out of sock yarn on size 2 needles. I love it! I hope he does too. (I don't believe he reads my blog so I'm not worried about spilling the beans...)

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Berroco Jasper coat - I have one more sleeve seam to sew up (it's done - Deb was there) and it' s done - I'm liking it more and more. It's basically 5 rectangles sewn together; very freeform. The yarn is sooooo soft and the color only gets better and better. And I've heard that this yarn actually brightens when you felt it. But I don't think I'll be throwing my coat in the washer to see if this is true.

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Rowan Kid Classic cabled pullover - it's all put together; I just need to pick up the neck stitches and do the turtleneck. This is a winner with lovely waistline shaping and large, lazy cables. It will be a class after the holidays (are you ready Val?).

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Starts:

Ravelery! I finally received my invite and actually set up three projects before I noticed that I misspelled my username. I don't know how to (or if I want to) delete my username as I might have to get back in line and wait a kazillion months to be re-invited. So maybe I will stick with my (now) silly user name. It's amazing what a difference one little letter can make.

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Koigu, lace and wristlet - well, it was going to have beads but I couldn't find anything I liked so I knit a lace pattern instead.

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Boxy Jacket - my own design! Half the back is done; more work tonight. It needs a kicky name, not Laura's Boxy Jacket. Well, I could call it the LBJ Jacket and then folks would ask what the LBJ stands for. Any ideas (sight unseen?)

I think that's enough for one month at this point. I need to get some of it into Ravelry. And if you haven't joined, what are you waiting for?

Later, Laura

Cat Bordhi's Coriolis Sock

While I've been busy knitting the Berroco Jasper coat (blocking as we speak), I've kept busy with a couple of Julie's Nutmeg Mitts trimmed in luscious angora for that special touch and.....my second Coriolis sock.

(I'm having the darndest time getting "spacing" to work. Can someone give me a hint on how to do this in my blog?)

I used a new sock yarn, Maxime Print, from Tahki Stacey Charles which has flecks of pink scattered throughout. Since I adore bead knitting, I added rose beads to the Coriolis swirl. No, I won't wear these with shoes, they are strictly "feet feeling yummy" socks. For the first sock I used a traditional toe up cast on (figure 8). For the 2nd sock I used Cat's moccasin cast on just to challenge myself into learning something new. The second sock goes so much more quickly once you've got the hang of the design. Oh, and I did an attached Icord bind off at the top to be consistent with the swirl.

If I were to do another Coriolis pair, I think I would lean towards a more solid color; I think a variegated yarn would hide the Coriolis too much and after all, that's the beauty of this sock!

Next up! Spindle spinning.... I took the plunge and enrolled in one of our own classes. After the first session I got, well, um, very frustrated and picked it up two days later. I am proud to say that I am no longer spinning super bulky thick and thin. In face, I have a nice little lace weight strand going at the moment. So, keep tuned; I'll show you some of my progress next time.