Published Finally!

To have closure is a wonderful thing!  Late Thursday evening I received word that the Simplicity Volume 3 Men's pattern book was back from the publisher.  Skacel emailed each of the designers who had patterns published in the book.  They also attached a copy of the cover (I wish I could post that but cannot) and my pieces made the cover!  I was so excited I cried.  My first design made the cover of a book!  I have been awaiting word so I could post my pics of the pieces.  So here they are.  The set is completely reversible with a Wavy Rib on one side and a basket weave on the reverse side.  I will include pics to show each side.  You can check with your LYS to order the book and the yarn.  There are also some great colorwork patterns and a couple of great sweaters by my friends Frank Wilmott and Kurt Fausset, both of whom I met at the Men's Fall Knitting Retreat in Seattle last September.   So enough with the chit/chat, bring on the pics!

Wavy Rib side of mitts

palm side of wavy rib

Wavy Rib Side of Scarf

Wavy Rib side of Beanie

Top of wavy rib side of beanie

Basketweave side of beanie

Basketweave side of mitts

palm side of basketweave

Basketweave side of scarf

Basket weave side of beanie

Top of Basketweave beanie

 All of the pics are pre-blocking. I just did not want to try this after blocking.  I can't wait to get the book.  It should delivered this week.  I will get my wife to take a pic of me holding the book so you can see the cover next week.  Enjoy the pics!

Keeping You in Stitches Retreat

Practicing Magic Loop knitting

Well folks, like my fellow blogger WillyG, I am a bad blogger.  It has been quite a while since my last blog and I have been quite busy with gift projects, a retreat, and a design to be published.  This entry will be about the retreat.  On April 29th and 30th we held the first annual (hopefully) Keeping You in Stitches Retreat.  To say it was a blast would be an understatement.  To prepare for it I have been emailing and writing to some of my Knitting Contacts for several months to get ready.  Claudia Morris of Southern Purls in Ahoskie, was our yarn and notions enabler.  Heather, my wife, and I were the teachers/planners. The Retreat was held at the Barnes House Bed & Breakfast in Murfreesboro.

My wife bought and made crowns for us to wear in honor of the Royal Wedding which took place that morning.  We felt like the princes and princesses of knitting.  I was in my element as knitting teacher.  we began with a Cabled Coffee cozy designed by me.  Click the name to get the pattern.  Some of the attendees had not done cables before, so I chose a stitch pattern which had twists in both directions.  We worked on those for a couple of hours, then retired to the parlor for some sit & stitch time.  Around 11 pm we left for the evening  to get some rest.

Blocking our coffee cozys.

The next morning Craig, our host with the most, treated us to breakfast before our knitting began.  After breakfast we felted our cozys in the washer and set them up to block. Then it was off on a field trip to the Alpaca Farm.  Three Hawk Alpacas is less than 5 miles from Main Street in Murfreesboro.  Anita our host was kind enough to give us a tour, answer questions and let us interact with Callie, the friendliest Alpaca I have met.  (I have blogged about her before when we visited with my kids.  After our Q & A session we visited Anita's shop and several attendees purchased some lovely alpaca fiber to take home and work up.  Claudia even bought a cone of brown &                  natural/white.  We are dying to see this worked up.

Callie enjoying attention.

The afternoon brought us a great lunch from Tavern 125 in Mufreesboro.  We had placed our orders the night before and Heather picked up lunch for us to enjoy after the Alpaca Farm visit.  There were Reubens and Salads, fries and more.  Lunch was wonderful.   After lunch we were joined by another participant and began our Entrelac class.  We began a scarf, Basic Entrelac Scarf, from a pattern by Lisa Shroyer.  She very graciously gave us permission to use her pattern for our retreat.  Everyone caught on quickly and was amazed at the results.  It was a fun class and easy to teach with skilled knitters.

Tom practicing Broomstick Lace.

We took a break from Entrelac and Heather tried her hand at teaching with Broomstick lace.   Again we were making a scarf, in cotton,  with a pattern from Naztazia, Broomstick Lace Scarf.  Check the link for pattern and you tube tutorials.  I decided to try my hand at this technique as well (I can crochet, but prefer knitting).  It is working very well and will be a late Mother's Day Gift for my mom.  We all finished up around 5 pm.  Some had to say good bye for the evening.  Tom, Ilene, and I went to dinner at Napoli's Italian restaurant.  I tried the Portabello Ravioli for the first time.  It was fabulous.  We all knitted until 9 and retired to our homes, agreeing that the first retreat was a success. 

My cousin's wife makes cakes.  Her business is called, "The Icing on the Cake."  Well we had this made for the retreat (we ate on it all weekend).  The icing on our retreat was coming back to the B & B for breakfast with Tom and Craig on Sunday morning before seeing Tom off to the Triangle area of NC.  We are already brainstorming ideas for next year and hope to have more goodies, students, and knitting fun! 





A special thank you goes out to the following Donors for our Retreat: 

Skacel Collection, Inc
Rainy Days and Wooly Dogs -- Goth Socks Yarn
Love of Knitting Magazine
XRX, Inc.
Southern Purls
Yearning for Yarn
Beech Springs Alpacas
Three Hawk Alpacas

Each of the above companies donated prizes, patterns, or other items so that each participant left with a "swag" of items to enjoy their knitting.  Thanks for your donations.  Well, that is my update for now.  I plan to let you know about a new knitting shop and show off some Finished Objects in the next couple of Blogs.  Happy Knitting!

Long Time, No Blog

I hope that you all will forgive how long it has been since my last blog.  I have had a lot going on so I think I will do these in short entries over the next few days.   Since my last post, I lost my Granny in Tennessee.  She passed away at home on March 4th and I left the next morning for Tennessee with my parents.  While I was there, I got to see cousins whom I have not seen in 30 years.  It was a bittersweet reunion and I hope we will continue to stay in touch through Facebook, phone, and email.  I completed a swatch for Interweave Knits winter issue (now the waiting begins again). While we were driving to and from Tennessee,  I also finished a blanket for a friend who is due in April.  It is Jared Flood's "Wool Leaves."  I will post pics once it is blocked. On the trip home I visited the "Black Mountain Yarn Shop."  The shop was wonderfully stocked and I was able to get my wife some beautiful Katia cotton with long color changes.  I hope she will make something to wear in the spring.  As we were checking out and talking I was able to introduce myself and show them pictures of my soon to be published pattern for Skacel (if it would only come out soon).  When I got home I had already been friended on Ravelry by the shop.  I am so excited about this whole knitting venture.   Things are coming together nicely for the Knitting Retreat.  My wife and I are very excited.  More to follow in the days to come....

Knitting Retreat

Since I just listed our Retreat on the Lion Brand Website I suppose I should list the document for Registration.  Registration will begin this Friday (I am having early registration for my knit and crochet group this Thursday evening).  Later this week I will have info on materials needed for each class.   We are trying to keep materials at a minimum so that each the Retreat will be affordable and enjoyable.  For more information on the retreat click the link below.  If you need further information my email address is listed at the end of the document before the registration.  Thanks.

Keeping You In Stitches Info and Registration Document

Does this sound like Small Town life?

Last Thursday I took a day off from work for a Knit-a-thon on my pattern that is being published.   I worked all day long (4 am to 5pm).  I did take about an hour off to get lunch and prepare for my knit group party.  We had a small group that evening, but ate, knitted, exchanged gifts, and had a great time.  Friday was back to work (2nd grade Math teacher that I am),  lesson plans written, grades recorded, progress reports printed, papers graded, and lessons taught.  We rushed home to a quick dinner and then off to ring hand bells at the town's annual tree lighting.  It lasted over an hour.  Saturday morning brought a very chilly day for the Murfreesboro Christmas parade.  It was great to watch my children enjoy the parade.  My daughter attended an all day birthday party and I knitted and wrote on my pattern while she was gone.  Sunday morning brought a rush to be to church early as my wife and I had to play hand bells once again.  Between church and the annual Christmas at Chowan University Concert, I finished writing (I should say typing my pattern as it was written in my Knitting Knotebook  as I knitted it up) my pattern.   The concert was great and I am glad that I did not skip it.  After the concert it was off to the drugstore as my wife and I are feeling under the weather.  When I returned I printed the pattern, boxed everything up and sealed it.  Needless to say, I cried.  Over 2 months of work went into this and I have to send it cross country.  I have a lot of time invested in it, and separation anxiety, I guess.   I will feel better when I see it in print.  I wish I could share all the pics I took this weekend but I have to wait until I have a publishing date.  This week brings two more concerts:  Community Christmas concert and the NC Symphony on Wednesday.  Friday we begin to celebrate Christmas with my side of the family.   Oh, for those of you who read regularly, the Bazaar was a success.  I sold all my scarves and several other items as well.  In honor of my first pattern being published I will be working up a surprise free pattern to post here as a Christmas gift for my followers.  It will be a knit pattern and quick to work up.   Look for it over the next few weeks. 

Seattle-Day 4-with surprise news

Franklin Habit and me

Needless to say by Sunday, September 19th, I was pretty tired but still ready to go and knit with the guys.  I took my last knitting class that morning.  It was the sock yarn blanket with James, who is from New Zealand.  I could not wrap my needles around this project.  I got the general idea and thank goodness a pattern was included, but I think I was too tired, it was too early, and the yarn was just too tiny for me that morning.  I am anxious to try this idea again, maybe with a worsted yarn and when I am not exhausted, and with no distractions.  The concept is not difficult or new to me, I just don't think I was prepared for the class that morning.  I also think I was on yarn/knitting overload.  After class we all said our good-byes and many headed on their way back to their homes.   Lots of hugs were shared.  I got to take a picture with my knitting hero, Franklin Habit, although, after attending the Retreat I have a roomful of knitting heroes now.  Those of us whom were left at the retreat center, sat around and discussed LYS snobbery against male knitters.  We also discussed which shops were very welcoming to us.  If I am ever in California, I know which yarn shops to visit.  I finished a hat (I'll include an in progress pic as I haven't taken a FO pic yet) as we talked.  Kerry and I headed out around noon and went to Kent to visit Renaissance Yarn.  We got lunch and went back to RY and knitted until just before they closed.  Kerry's flight was scheduled for around 9 pm and mine was scheduled for 10:20 pm.  We did some airport shopping getting last minute gifts for family.  I got my wife a Forks, WA/Twilight travel mug and my son a Bigfoot (the myth not the monster truck) cap.  Kerry and I said our goodbyes and I went to the Alaska Airlines area of the airport and found dinner.  After dinner I took out my knitting (I still had around an hour and 20 minutes to wait).  A woman came and sat by me and I found out that we were both headed back to Raleigh.  We talked about my knitting and I continued to knit until the flight was boarding.  I took a pill to help me sleep before I got on the plane.  Alaska Air is wonderful.  They have bigger seats (leather with and adjustable headrest), personal DVD players to rent, and more room than you'd expect.  The flight would have been the best I had ever take, but the older woman who was sitting behind me had an annoying voice.  When she finally settled down for the night, she kicked me in the back all night long.  I was exhausted by the time I got to Raleigh.  I got a large coffee and a sausage biscuit for my 2 hour wait.  I took out my knitting and knitted incorrectly because I was so tired (thank goodness for lifelines).  I rested a little on the last flight and in the car ride home with my dad.  I have never had such a great knitting trip.

The hat I mentioned working on and completing while in Seattle.

My first design packet, submitted to Skacel.

Have I mentioned that Skacel gave us a letter which basically commissioned us to design something using their new yarn.  If they liked our submission, it would be published (we write the pattern and knit a prototype to send in.)  The design, swatches, and letter were due on October 4th.  I sent mine out Priority Mail, and it arrived on time.  The decisions were to be made on October 6th.  When I got home from church on October 6th, the email arrived and Skacel liked my design and will publish, pending my completing the pattern and getting everything in by December 10th. 

Seattle-Day 2- More Knitting

Me-Knitting my hat

the needle room

Orange yarn, my favorite

the doors to yarn heaven--Skacel

So, I think that I forgot to tell you that on Wednesday when I left, I was so very worried about my knitting needles getting through security.  Well my knee replacement set off the sensor and they ran all my stuff through the machine twice I think while I was getting the pat down.  Knitting and needles made it through safely.  On to day 2.   Breakfast was French Toast, bagels, bacon, sausage, cereal, and the list goes on.  My first class that morning was Photographing your Fiber with the very knowledgeable Franklin Habit (whom I have been waiting to meet since I saw his picture in an Addi Turbo needle ad).  I learned a great deal from him and was able to take some of the best pictures ever after his class.  Immediately following his class I took Nigel's sock class.  He taught us the yarnover increase, which I need to practice because I ended up with some holes.  I think I will be able to figure it out and use it on some socks in the future.  We had a quick lunch then were off to "Yarn and Needle Heaven," the Skacel office and warehouse.  We took a tour of the facility, warehouse, offices, needle room, and were able to see samples of yarns knitted and crocheted.  It was fantastic.  I think we scared the UPS delivery guy, he just had a look on his face like, "do you need me to call someone for help?"  They assured him it was alright and we went into the warehouse to shop.  Yarn bags were flying everywhere.  Several people shared bags.  I could have bought more yarn, but opted for the ultimate Addi Turbo Click interchangeable needle set.  We then went back to Dumas Bay and had dinner before a wonderful party.  Karin Skacel invited us over to her house for dessert and drinks.  I had the most wonderful gourmet cupcakes and a "blueberry tea" which was warm and had liquor in it (must look up the recipe for that one).  We all had a great time at her beautiful house overlooking the water.  Then it was back to Dumas Bay for more knitting and sharing.  Two more days to come.