Saturday, April 12, 2008

Yarnover 2008

I was at the very fun, highly motivational, incredibly awe-inspiring Yarnover today! The Yarnover is the Minnesota Knitters' Guild's annual one-day workshop. It's loaded with classes taught by many of the superstars of the knitting world: Sally Melville, Joan Schrouder, Melissa Leapman, Chris Bylsma, Beth Brown-Reinsel, Lucy Neatby, etc. Plus, there is a market of local and not-s0-local vendors. Of course, 3 Kittens had a booth, so we were there by 7 am unloading cars and setting up our table, and we didn't start breaking everything down and packing up until 5 pm. It was a long day!

I was lucky enough to take a class in the morning from Sally Melville. She's a fun and energetic teacher who makes sure that everyone in the class gets the help they need. The class I took was called "Stripes and Stripes that Aren't." The first half of the class was all about stripes - whether to cut the yarn at the end of each stripe or carry it up along the edge (carry up); how to line up stripes from body to upper arm on a set in sleeve; how to do stripes so it doesn't make you look heavier (make sure that you don't do the following: have wide stripes and [not or] have stripes that match up and have high contrast between stripe colors); how to weave in ends as you work, etc. The second half of the class - and where I got most excited - was basically on slip stitches and how to carry colors up your work from your previous stripe color (clear as mud, I know...) Now, I've worked with slip stitches before, and I could have figured most of the info out on my own, but one of the best things about it was having Sally show her garments from her Knitting Experience 3: Color book and talk about the design process and the use of these stripes that aren't in garments - I came away with two garments I want to make. Which, of course, means that I will be buying the book at the store tomorrow, and seeing if I can use my Fiesta Rayon Boucle for one of them.
Luckily, in the process of the day, I just about finished my last sleeve for my Mobius. I think I have about 5 rows to go. Then I can put it all together, block it, and maybe by the end of the week, I'll be able to wear it! I also almost finished my Regia Bamboo socks - just the toe shaping left. I haven't worn knit socks in a long time, so I'm excited to get them done. No photos tonight, because I don't have my camera. You'll have to wait until tomorrow...

Also, I had a great experience being one of Franklin Habit's 1000 Knitters. I had no idea that he was going to be there, so it was a thrill to be photographed by him (you can see what a good photographer he is in the self-portrait at right). If you're a listener of the Cast On podcast, you'll know Franklin by his funny, funny essays. At first, I couldn't find him - he was not in the room where all of his equipment was set up, and I went back to the market. But, as I was walking back to the booth, I heard his distinctive voice and went towards it. He was quite generous to allow me to come to the photo shoot even though I didn't have an appointment. We chatted while he took the picture, and I got maybe 6 rows done on the 1000 Knitters' scarf. I was pretty soon after Lucy Neatby. I did my section in plain ol' garter stitch - Lucy put a nice big, on-purpose hole in her section. That's why she's the designer - she's creative...
All in all, I had a great (albeit exhausting) day. Next year, Lily Chin will be the keynote speaker, so it should be another great event!

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