So, I know it is WAYYYYYYY past my birthday at this point, but I realized the other day that I had not shown y’all the great birthday package that I got from my friend Tini.
First off there was this great mug with sheep all over with a skein of handspun yarn in it. That is always a thoughtful thing to receive, and had that been the extent of the box I would have been a happy camper.
But, of course, it wasn’t. There was a game in it, or at least I am led to believe it is a game by both the hubby and Tini as it in German. I personally think it looks like some secret code involving leprechauns.
There was also a baggie of carded alpaca fleece in a beautiful rust color.
There were also 2 flower shaped wash clothes that made me look up the pattern so that I could make some for Sarah in Chicago.
There was some fabric with a pretty flora design as well as some chocolate (something I always forget to put into packages!). One of the chocolate bars is (if Babel Fish is to be believed) ginger sesame nougat and the other one is red pepper.
There was also lovely handmade scented soaps and a candle called “Love Passion”. Both of these are good for knitters as we love putting nice smelling soaps in amongst the stash (part of the reason that I take every soap I can from hotel rooms!) and candles, well, who doesn’t love candles?
There was also a little seaman in the box watching over it to make sure that it made it across the channel ok.
But, it was the last thing in the box that made me fan myself. I never, ever, in a million years expected to find this in a box to me. I am now in possession of a skein of Wollmeise (heavenly chorus begins la-la-la-ing). Now, for those of you who do not know this name, Wollmeise has a bit of a cult in the US and elsewhere. In fact, it is nearly impossible to get a hold of. When shops in the US that carry it get a load if it posted to their websites, it is usually gone with-in minutes if not seconds. Seriously. People stalk her website, there are forums devoted to her stuff on Ravelry and on ebay skeins regularly sell for close to $90 (it retails for something like 18 Euros). When it was announced that Claudia was going to be selling at Knit Nation there was nearly a collective gasp from everyone on the Ravelry message board (and made me seriously reconsider not getting the preview night ticket!). To get some of this is almost akin to receiving a cashmere sweater (though it is not cashmere, to be precise it is 100% superwash merino). Tini was like, “I don’t know if you have ever heard of this yarn but it’s pretty popular, check it out on Ravelry.” As if.
There is a great story about Wollmeise yarn at this blog, I would totally suggest checking it out.
In a completely unrelated thing, my Regal Geraniums are starting to bloom.
I received Teach Yourself Visually Handspinning by Judith MacKenzie McCuin as another Christmas gift (thanks Mom!) this past Christmas. Now, I do need to state the obvious up front; I already know how to spin. However, if this is also the case for you, I would still not hesitate to buy this book. Why? The book has tons of handy little tricks and tips in that even an experienced spinner can use and the photography and explanation of the equipment and techniques is absolutely top-notch. Judith MacKenzie McCuin is considered one of the best teachers of spinning in North America currently for a very good reason. Not only does she know a LOT about it, but she also can explain it in a simple, straightforward method.
The book starts out with a very short explanation of why we should want to spin then moves into a very well photographed section on spinning tools. It then moves into a brief but good introduction to the majority of fibers that one would want to spin before moving into the preparation of fibers. This area is usually where I find the majority of spinning books fall short. Judith’s book shows clear, concise photographs as well as descriptions of what is being done in them. I would buy this book for this chapter alone!
Next comes the introduction to actually spinning. I like that the book shows how to use both a drop spindle as well as wheel in all areas where technique are being shown. All of the instructions are clear, though I think that this is the one area where it is neigh-on impossible to really show a person how to do it with pictures. However, Judith a better job than anybody else I’ve seen so far!
She then goes on to show how to make various kinds of yarn, spin various “exotic” fibers and finally to dye your yarn. The book is a an excellent go-to book for even an experianced spinner as it covers so many techniques and skills that you will find yourself reaching for it again and again. I rate this 5 (yarn) balls!
So, I haven’t really blogged in a while and I have lots and lots to share with you. So, here is your disclaimer: If you are at work or otherwise at a point and time that you cannot download fifty bajillion and a half photos…. wait to read this post, ok?
All right, got the “official” stuff out-of-the-way, now on to the fun stuff!
So, I left you hanging in Chicago didn’t I? So I guess that would make a logical place to start! The snow was quite deep by the end of the storm. I have heard both 12″ and 14″ bandied about as the amount that fell so I will leave it at a heck of a lot of snow!
This is what it looked like a couple of sunny days after the fact…
I received a couple more packages while I was in Chicago, one was a package from my lovely in-laws and the other from Blue Moon Fiber Arts. I just realized that I forgot to take a photo of the Silk Thread II that I ordered for my Evenstar shawl before I balled it up (sigh) but I did take photos of most of the lovely presents from the in-laws!
The Sexy Red Namaste bag "Hermosa" that the in-laws gave me for my birthday!
I used that bag as a carry-on on the flight home. It was a case of “perfect present, prefect timing” on that one!
The in-laws also realized just how many post-it’s a knitter goes through and sent me a bunch! They also got me a subscription to Vogue Knitting as well as a card game to play with the hubby. A throughly lovely birthday package I must say!
Now, since I didn’t take any photos of the Silk Thread II before I balled it I give you, urm, balls! Now, you will note that these are in fact balls, not the cake-like “balls” that a yarn winder makes. The reason for this is hand-hurtingly simple. Pure silk is too slippery to stay in a nice cake, so one must wind it the old-fashioned way. By hand, into a ball.
Blue Moon Fiber Arts Silk Thread II in Winter Solstice
I also got a skein of Socks that Rock from the Raven clan in Grawk (I liked the skein that I got for Tini at Rhinebeck that I had to get another for myself!)
LOVE the colors of this! They are soooo subtle yet really quite clear to see!
I did a couple of other things while I was in Chicago while waiting for my packages. I went to a pub and watched the Opening Ceremonies of the Winter Olympics with a group of friends and friends of friends. I went to another bead store called Bead in Hand and (hopefully) got enough beads for the Evenstar. I visited Loopy Yarns and I would highly suggest to anyone visiting Chicago to go there! It is easy to get to from the “L” and it had a FANTASTIC selection of yarns! It was like a treasure trove of all the best brands and colors! Plus, they have a fun electric ball winder (I could watch that thing all day!).
My trip home was uneventful except for the worst case of jet-lag that I have even encountered. I was still off time zone a full three days later! Being up at 4 am completely awake and ready to rock is an odd and disruptive thing to deal with!
On the 21st of February we met up with some friends of ours in London to go see the Chinese New Year celebrations in Trafalgar Square and throughout London’s Chinatown. It was incredibly crowded, so crowded that it was difficult to see the big screens that were showing what was going-on on the main stage, let alone the stage itself. However, had one rather interesting experience there… I got handed a red balloon by a police officer in uniform! The London Police were one of the main sponsors of the event and thus, there were cops handing out balloons!
I just loved this little girl with her bright coat and red balloon on her dad's back watching the show.
The streets of Chinatown were decked-out for the party!
A "dragon" going from shop to shop begging for...cabbage?
After getting some yummy Chinese food at a great restaurant just outside of Chinatown, we wandered over to get some gourmet ice cream at Fortnum and Mason which is a very, very, very nice department store that sort of specializes in food and food related products. They have an ice cream parlor in it where we all got huge sundaes.
Literally, chocolate overload!
Afterwards we went to the Green and Red for a few drinks before the hubby and I headed home to some lonely pets.
This past weekend we drove up to Coventry to enjoy a mini ravelry day at the opening of Yarn Gathering, Jo Watson’s new yarn shop. Jo is organizing the Knit Camp this summer that I am so very excited about and last Saturday was a way to meet some of the folks that are helping her put it together as well as a few of the tutors! It was a very fun time and I would highly suggest that if anyone is in the Coventry area that you check out her store. It has a really solid selection of yarns (and more coming in from what I’ve gathered) as well as one of the best book selections that I have seen in this country!
Everybody outside for the "opening"!
The ribbon cutting ceremony.
I go into a yarn shop and come out with... books.
There were lots of people there.
Jon from Easy Knits was there with his crew.
There were sandwiches and yummy cake to munch on next door in the social club.
I got a few things…
Some lovely yarn.
The 2 yarns on the right are from the Easy Knits booth up in the social club. The Blue one is an alpaca/silk mix sock yarn while the red and yellow one is a BFL superwash sock yarn. The blue/green yarn on the left is Malibrigo sock yarn which is a 100% superwash merino in the colorway Solis. I also got some books:
"The Haapsalu Shawl"
"Whimsical Little Knits"
and some dpns for making hats. No pictures of those as they are, well, dpns for hats. Use your imagination if you must!
Yesterday I made the swatch of the Evenstar shawl. I’m tired of waiting for my yarn to come so that I can finish my Clapotis. Here is the swatch:
Isn't it PRETTY!!!?!?!?
I’m both looking forward to and dreading starting the shawl as, well, that swatch took nearly 3 hours for me to knit. Now, mind you, a goodly amount of that was looking-up stitches that I had no idea how to do on YouTube, but still, it wasn’t the easiest piece of knitting that I have ever done in my life. Still, I want to do it and finish it in time to wear to Knitcamp (a shawl makes sooooo much sense in Scotland in the summer!).
Coming up I have some book reviews and cute photos of pets. I know you can’t wait!
you get snow. Lots of it. This morning I awoke to an odd scraping sound from outside the window of my friend Joel’s flat (God, I sound more English when I write than when I speak [oh and Darren, not one person {and most everybody I’ve been around this trip has known me since I was a teenager} has said that I sound more British when I am speaking than before I moved to the UK. So there! Ha!! Told ya so!!]). Ok, now where was I? Oh yeah, scraping outside the window. My first thought was that Joel’s upstairs neighbor must be planing the wood floors (was around a woodworker everyday for ten years, what can I say?). But then I realized that the noise wasn’t coming from up so much as out so I peeked out the window and saw, much to my surprise (and not delight) about 3 inches of snow on the ground. The scraping sound? Why some poor dude who drew that short straw shoveling the sidewalk. It is still snowing and it is around 3:30 in the afternoon. There is now at least 4 inches of snow out there now and the sky keeps on looking like a winter freaking wonderland. I am so glad that I am not flying out today as the airports here have something like 500 flights canceled or something like that.
However, I do need to leave the flat and I am using my very best procrastination skills to avoid it. I mean, it’s one thing to trug somewhere in a freezing Chicago winter to do some shopping and have your hands freeze off while carrying it all home, but it is completely a different thing when you add snow that is deep enough to go over the top of your all-terrain shoes and get your socks and pants wet and cold. Had I known that this was expected (and, of course, it is always expected in Chicago in February) I would have packed my welliebobs. Alas and alack, I didn’t, so now I will have to suffer with wet socks. Le sigh…
Anyway, enough about the snow. Yes, I am once again in Chicago. I think that this may be two of the closest back-to-back trips here that I have ever done. I spent the first part of the trip at my friend Sarah’s place. Her little guy has grown quite a lot since I was here last. Walking was still a novelty this past August and now he’s full-on mobile.
(Ok, I know I said that I was going to stop writing about the snow but I have to break in on this. It just started actually snowing harder than it was before!!! Holy crap!)
Anyway, this balls-to-the-wall mobility makes Sarah’s job of making sure that he lives to 18 so that she can take up a new hobby rather more, urm, difficult, to say the least. He can open doors. He can climb. And boy can he break stuff. The kid could be a savant in the art of breaking stuff if Sarah didn’t keep such a close eye on him. However, he’s adorable and at 1.5 years he can get away with it ok still:-)
A lot of the first few days here were spent shopping (I had nearly filled-up my extra big duffel bag by day 2!) and eating at Jimmy John’s and Chipotle. It was fun, but how Sarah manages to take a shower, let alone do something like grocery shopping amazes me. I mean, I was exhausted and I’m not even the mommy, I’m only the sherpa auntie!!
All of this chasing and sherpa-ing left me little time to photograph the little guy, so forgive me, there aren’t any gratuitous cute kid pictures.
However, I will throw in a cute Meara photo free of charge!
Your bonus Meara photo, taken when I was packing to go to Chicago.
A few days before I left for Chicago, I went on a bit of a shopping spree. Since I could have it shipped here, it actually made sense for me to buy things via the internet for once. Here’s a few of the things that I picked-up:
Some "light" fiction for the plane ride back along with an African Violet book that I have been wanting for a while. All from a used bookstore
A couple of the books that I got on-line.
I found these two books in a used bookstore in Joel's neighborhood. I've been looking for both of them. SCORE!!
Some more on-line purchases.
Like I said, I went on a bit of a shopping spree....
Handy, huh?
The 2 yarns on the left are Zephyr in peacock and vanilla and the cone on the right is 2/14 ALPACA SILK, all from WEBS.
The top yarn is Misty Alpaca sock yarn in Reaggeton and the bottom yarn is Lace Wool in autumn, both from WEBS
The sock yarn on the left is Frog Prince Imagination and the 2 on the right are Lumberjack Stroll Tweed, both from Knit Picks.
Some pretty beads from Caravan Beads. I think that these are destined to be a lot of stitch markers!
Garnet and Freshwater pearls, destined for really nice stitch markers!
Miyuke seed beads destined for the Evenstar shawl
Some more Miyuke beads destined for whatever shawl I make with the autumn yarn above
Fun Czech beads also destined for stitch markers
These are AWESOME for traveling. They have the detergent and fabric softener all in one handy, non-spillable sheet.
Finally found fun scoops that would fit in my flour and sugar canisters at home! Gotta love Homegoods!
A Lands End fleece top that was a birthday gift from Sarah. I love Lands End stuff so it is a PERFECT gift.
Another cool gift from Sarah. They have Angora in them!!!
Monkey slippers bought on clearance from Target. Oh how I miss Target in the UK.....
I got a lot of other stuff too, stuff that isn’t too exciting to photograph. Like a half a dozen bottles of vanilla as well as 2 vanilla infusion kits (one was a gift from Sarah, the other I bought), about a dozen different Knit Picks needles, a couple packs of underwear, a few Eddie Bauer long-sleeved t-shirts (LOVE THEM!), and Eddie Bauer fleece vest (ditto) and stuff like that. Oh, and a BUNCH of cotton yarn. Cannot find cheap cotton yarn over there to save your life!
So, not really been doing a lot to speak of. Nothing cultural at all. Thought about going to the Art Institute today but that got put on the back burner thanks to the snow. Mostly been hanging out with Joel the past few days:
Ladies, he's single! (Crazies need not apply)
When he’s not at work of course…
When he is at work, I hang with Yo-Yo, his large and in charge cat.
(In Barry White voice) Yeah ladies, I AM large and in charge...
Ok, one last totally random picture. This is, I think, probably the coast of Nova Scotia from the airplane.
Doesn't that just LOOK cold?
Oh, sorry, I lied. Two more, of Joel’s fun neighborhood.
Since these folks couldn't seem to work on the "reduce" part, they definitely took to the "reuse" part!
So, this is the first fiction book that I am reviewing. I’m not sure that I’m going to make a habit of it or not, we’ll just have to wait and see I guess. However, this was another Christmas book (thanks mom!) and I have read both The Birth of Venus and In the Company of the Courtesan by Sarah Dunant as well. I love books that teach you about history using a fictional character to tell the story in a human way and this book doesn’t disappoint. The story in this book is a bit of a harder sell than the other two books I’ve read of hers simply because it is mostly about the politics of convent life in Italy in 1570. There aren’t the rich descriptions of the day-to-day life of the city because the nuns, for the most part, were cut-off from it. Letters and the occasional visits from family were the most that these women got.
It’s not surprising that Sarah Dunant went in this direction with this book, in the previous books, she makes it clear just how many well-bred women ended-up in nunneries against their will due to dowry pressures. However, the setting of the book causes it to drag in places. I found myself thinking, “enough with the descriptions of the kinda boring nunnery, move on the story already” but in the end, she does manage to pull through the story.
So, if you are looking into a historically set book about nunneries in the 1570’s (and really, who isn’t these days!) I would totally suggest this book:-)
Three yarn balls up (no knitting content at all, or it would have gotten four!)
So, here is another Christmas present book I’m reviewing (y’all had better get used to this, I got a lot of books for Christmas!). So, disclaimer time, I love Martha. I have been reading her magazine since I was a teenager. Not all of the articles have always pertained to anyone except, perhaps, the very wealthy, but there is always at least one article in them that I find interesting.
So, with that caveat in place, I love this book. There are detailed instructions for many different crafts including beading, paper folding and cutting, tin punching, soap and candle making, scrapbooking and nature crafts. All of the instructions have a list of materials that are needed as well hints on ways to not, uh, mess-up the crafts in question. I am really looking forward to making some bath fizzies as well as really perfecting my stitch markers for knitting with the jewelry making instructions.
There is, however, one glaring omission and that is all of the needle crafts. There is nothing in it about crochet, knitting, embroidery, cross stitch or the like. I have heard rumor that there is another book coming out that is going to be based around these solely and I sure hope that there is as there was nary a mention of them in this book.
Most of the crafts in this book were reasonably simple though a few did require power tools to complete. There were a whole raft of crafts that I think could be done with children, so a good book to have if you do crafts with kids a lot. It is also just a generally well written and well laid-out book in general. So, all in all, 5 balls up (assuming that there is a needle craft book on the way, if not, then it’s only 4 balls!).
One of the managers where I am currently working will quite often greet us worker bees with this odd-for-an-Englishman greeting. Every time he says it it makes me laugh as it sounds so….. odd, coming from his mouth. Just think about it for a little bit….
Not a lot has been going on in my life of recent to tell you the truth. I can’t say that I’m really knitting anything right now other than a sock I have been half-heartedly working on for several weeks (and haven’t gotten past the ribbing). Most of the reason is heartbreak. One day, after having had Malcolm for only a very little while, I ran over to the neighbor’s house for something. I wasn’t gone for very long but when I came back, the little project bag that I had been keeping the lace stole in was on the floor, yarn like cobwebbing everywhere and both needles on the circulars were broken. Mal, who lived up to his name in Latin, had removed the project bag from another bag, opened the closed drawstring top, and proceeded to try to eat my lace stole. Long story short, I think that it is salvageable, but I’m just yet up to opening that bag and working on it yet (and I need to get a new pair of needles!).
This is the last picture taken with the stole before the unfortunate event. It was taken a couple of months ago when the hubby and I went into London to meet-up with some friends. At least the stole has been very well traveled!
I finished a scrapghan right before Christmas for the neighbors and I have another crocheted blanket in the works, but nothing that I can write about as it is for a gift.
However, I may not be knitting right now (and my poor spinning wheel is gathering some serious dust too!) but I certainly will be this summer! I am now officially registered for classes at both Knit NationandUK Knit Camp!!! Here’s a rundown of what all I’m going to be learning about:
THE WONDERS OF WOOL: UK with Clara Parkes (double !!!). I got into all of the classes that I wanted and I’m really looking forward to taking my Ashford Traveler on the train and tube that first morning and watching the looks on peoples faces!
Yesterday I did the sign-ups for Knit Camp and, once again, I got into everything that I wanted.
Knit Camp
The Baby Surprise Jacket with Jared Flood, Rare Breed Wools for Spinners with Deb Robson, Intro to the magic loop with Angela Davis, The Aestlight Shawl and Traditional Shetland shawl construction with Gudrun Johnston and I am also signed up for the tour of the New Lanark Mill on Wednesday afternoon. I decided on the self-catering option for the accommodations as I am usually a pretty light eater for breakfast and lunch and since it is a University town, I figure that there are probably a fair number of cheap eats in the area. If there isn’t, please don’t correct me, ok?:-) Part of the reason that I am so looking forward to all of these events is that I have friends coming to my little(ish) part of the world for both of them. Tini is coming all the way from Germany for Knit Nation and will be staying with us while she is here (since we are well within commuting distance!) and Malin is traveling from Finland for Knit Camp! If nothing else, I am looking forward to seeing both of them again!!!
In other news… The department store that I have been working for has asked to extend my contract to work for them until the end of January. I have decided to take it as it will not interfere with my planned trip to CHICAGO on my birthday. Yes, the hubby gave me a trip to Chicago for Christmas so that I could go for my traditional time with my friends there (he’s so awesome!). I’m really looking forward to the trip if for not other reason than to buy a few packages of Stovetop Stuffing which I love dearly but isn’t available here except at the costly American Food Store. So yes, the travel for this woman (and her knitting projects) is not yet over!
This was one of the books that I got as a Christmas present this year and I am so glad that I did. (However, I doreally wish that I could get onto whatever list it is that they send you free copies of books that are coming out soon [especially yarn/fiber related books!] for you to read and review. Anybody have an idea on that? [I would be willing to do giveaways!])
Laurie Perry’s skills as a writer have gotten even stronger since her last book Crazy Aunt Purl’s Drunk, Divorced, and Covered in Cat Hair which was laugh out loud funny itself. Actually, it was more like laugh-until-you-nearly-pee-your-pants funny and her newest book is even better. I guess that you would call it laugh-until-you-pull-a-muscle-in-your-side-and-then-pee-your-pants funny. The hubby looked in on me several times while I was reading it trying to discern if I was laughing really hard or crying. Seriously folks, this woman takes all that is the worst about being a single woman (and sometimes just being a woman in general) and makes you look at it, and I mean really look at it, and realize just how ridiculous it all is sometimes. Her story about getting ready for a vacation to Hawaii literally made me laugh until I cried and anyone who has ever tried to get in shape will recognize themselves in her descriptions of her forays to the gym.
I’ve been a fan of Laurie’s Blog Crazy Aunt Purl ever since I read her first book a few years ago. Since then, I’ve told anyone who would listen to me prattle about something like this (read: Happy Hookers crochet group) how great of a blog it is and how everybody should go out and get her books. Or at the very least, check them out from the library. Laurie is sort of like a much less whiny Bridget Jones (the one aspect that I always disliked about Bridget was the whiny tone she gets into often) with the much more realistic issues of cat litter (an issue that I have cussed and discussed several times myself), Target shopping (ditto) and yoga farting (haven’t hit that one yet). I love the fact that she too has been on a date where the other participant spent more of the time on their cell phone than on conversation with the person sitting right in front of them. At the end of this book there are knitting and crochet patterns which are mostly small projects that a beginner (or the obsessive, in the case of the rug) could easily do.
All in all, this book gets five (yarn) balls up (get yer minds out of the gutter!). Way to go Laurie and please, don’t make us wait as long for the next one!!!
So, it’s been a few weeks since I last wrote for you my faithful readers. I’m sure that you have also been busy with the holiday season so I hope that you don’t hold it against me too terribly much. I’ve had an interesting holiday season working in the department store. All I can say is that it makes me more glad than ever that I usually do all of my Christmas shopping super early. And for all of you out there let me tell you something. If you are rude to a store clerk, we will find ways to pay you back! (this makes me really not to be rude to wait staff as they have control over FOOD!!!!)
However, overall, it has been an uneventful Christmas. I got lots and lots of goodies and wanted to share a few of my favorites with y’all.
First up is this gem from my husband. We’ve been talking about getting one of these since, oh, well…. March. But, better late than never!
This is, what they call here, a water butt otherwise known as a rain barrel to my US friends. Really, these make so much sense here that I find it hard to understand why everyone doesn’t have one! The water that comes out of the tap here is loaded with calcium which makes it so that my indoor plants get that lovely crusty white stuff on the soil surface and on the pots. This crust isn’t just unsightly, it is also in the end, harmful to the plants. By collecting rainwater, I am hoping to avoid the whole darn issue! Oh, yeah, and save water, always a nice thing!
Another thing that we got this Christmas was sort of a present from the hubby and I to each other. We got a new bed. It is a UK sized “King” which is more or less a “Queen” in the US. We went to IKEA and each of us got a different mattress given that we both have different firmness requirements when it comes to a good nights sleep.
(photo of bed)
I also got a stand mixer to facilitate all of my making of cookies and baked goods. The hubby and I went on a baking spree right before Christmas so that we could share yummies with the neighbors and friends around us (helps to solve the “what are we going to get the neighbors” issue rather well! Anyway, I’m sure that it will get lots of use, just not in the month of January as my neighbors have all said, “no more!” for a little bit as they are all having trouble getting their pants (I mean trousers) fastened!
We got lots of lovely gifts from all over. My mom sent a great care package with Campbell’s cream of mushroom soup (can’t find it over here) French’s onions (ditto) and chocolate chips (can find but not quite the same and way more expensive). I got lots of books and a wonderful gift certificate to the pub and other fun gifts, all in all it was a very fun and relaxed holiday.
Part of the fun of it was that it was the first time that I have had a white Christmas where I was actually living. This isn’t a totally good thing as British drivers do not know how to drive in snowy/icy conditions! One night it took me about 2.5 hours to get home from work. It normally takes about a half an hour. It wasn’t really the road conditions that were the issue rather the other drivers on the road and a plethora of accidents littering the main roads. But, as long as I’m not needing to be anywhere, the snow is fun and really, really pretty.
This is more or less what the whole neighborhood looked like!
Malcolm, the new dog, really loved the snow. He would go outside just to play in it, which got old for those of us who were letting him in and out all of the time!
And then after all of this playing and running we get a much needed rest…
I hope that all of you have a wonderful evening and a fantastic 2010!
So, the UK has gone from having zero (or seriously close to zero) major knitting get-aways to having two in one year. Not even in a year, in a summer! First up is Knit Nation which is being held the 29th, 30th and 31st of July this year in London. It’s three days of shopping and classes with the likes of: Cookie A, Judith MacKenzie McCuin, Clara Parkes, Nancy Bush and many more. The Ravelry team is going to be giving a talk as well in addition to an awesome market place being in the works. It’s being held at the Imperial College in South Kensington which is right by the Victoria and Albert museum as well as a bunch of other stuff. I have signed up to take a Spinning for Lace class with Janel Laidman on Thursday, the Estonian Lace Sampler class with Nancy Bush (OMG!!) on Friday and a half-day class with Clara Parkes on Saturday called the Wonders of Wool (UK). Since it is “just” in the city, I plan on taking the train with my friend Tini who will be staying with us for that weekend as well. It should be interesting taking my Ashford Traveler on the commuter train into the city that first day:-)
I’m glad that Knit Nation is so close that I don’t have to worry about accommodation as it leaves me more money to spend a few weeks later at the UK Knit Camp 2010 which is being held in beautiful Stirling, Scotland. This knitty adventure is going to be a bit longer than Knit Nation as it is going on the 6th through the 13th of August. It’s being held on the campus of the University of Stirling and the accommodation is really reasonable. To stay in one of the dormitories for 6 nights, it is 150 pounds. That’s a really good deal for a room anywhere in this country, especially in the summer! The classes that they are offering are pretty amazing, with instructors like Jared Flood, Annie Modesitt, Lucy Neatby, Norah Gaughan, Franklin Habit, and Ysolda Teague all teaching there. There are also going to be excursions to local mills and whiskey distilleries as well as much fun and craziness had by all I am sure. Just imagine, dormitories all filled with fiber freaks! I have a feeling it’s going to turn into a huge, more-or-less, slumber party at some point! Sign-up for classes for this yarn porn week open in January, though you can book your space to sleep now. My friend Malin is planning on coming over for this one and I plan on driving up there so there is sure to be lots and lots of adventures!
So, it seems that the UK has sort of gone from zero to sixty in the span of a year in terms of knitting camps. Hopefully this will become a regular thing that all of the British knitters can enjoy!
Sarah Jane Humke 