KR retreat 2010 - Sunday

Sunday morning was all about "New Beginnings". There were door prizes and there was writing: notes to thank the people who had provided the riches in our goodie bags, notes to the staff at the inn, notes on the KR retreat memory book, notes to ourselves to be opened next year. Among my knitting resolutions, I promised to knit at least 10 minutes a day (dear Fran, you're still watching over me!).

Then Clara put on her sparkly tiara and her funny glasses and proceeded with the ceremony that would unite us with our New Beginnings project. My unlawfully wedded project is Eunny Jang's Tangled Yoke cardigan in Rowan Felted Tweed. Per Ann's class, I dutifully knitted a gauge swatch in the two stitch patterns and felt quite virtuous.

And then it was time for hugs and to say goodbye until next year!

PS: I feel that I must disclose what came home with me from the stash lounge because Vicki might blackmail me otherwise!

- 2 skeins of Sundara silk sport in marigold destashed by Rosi (Wendy was nice enough to pick them for me, what a nice roommate!)

- 1 skein of green Shibui merino worsted (which I am using along with the Shibui yarns in "wasabi" from last year's destash for a blanket -- I expect to be done this week)

- 2 skeins of Rowan purelife cotton for some charity hats

- "Modern top-down knitting" by Kristina McGowan

- "The Gentle Art of Domesticity" by Jane Brocket

- 2 old issues of Interweave Knits

And I won a beautiful skein of String Theory Caper sock yarn in "Blue Hill" as a door prize!

KR retreat 2010 - Saturday

We reconvened bright and early on Saturday morning for our group picture. Above you can see our fearless leader Clara and our stash lounge tzarina Lanea. We then parted ways to go to our respective classes.

I took Ann Budd's class on Knitting Mathematics (aka Intro to Sweater Design). She might say that you shouldn't take classes with her but just ignore it! I learned a lot from her class and came out with the confidence that I *can* knit a sweater that fits me even if my gauge and yarn are totally different from what the pattern calls for. I also proved to myself that Cheryl Brunette's shaping formula is true, just because I like to figure out how mathy things work.

Cat and Melissa seemed to enjoy playing tricks on each other during their classes: here you can see Cat spying on Melissa's "Knitting with Beads" class. I think that their circular needles were separated at birth.

Saturday afternoon was all about the KR marketplace -- at least for me, the serious knitting shopaholic. I decided not to go to Storey Publishing this year since I had already bought "Toe-up 2-at-a-time socks" and "Sock yarn one-skein wonders", but other knitters came back with books for themselves and for gift recipients.

My favorite marketplace acquisitions were:

- 2 skeins of Foxfire Flock Sock in smokey plum (I had already received some Flock Sock as part of my Fall Sheep Share)

- 5 skeins of String Theory Caper Aran and matching green glass buttons for a Lady February sweater (Karen and Tanis had these button sets made to match their colorways)

- Quince Tern in various colors for a future fair-isle project bought from the lovely Pam Allen. That's the yarn I used during Cat's class and it is scrumptious for socks/shawls/fingerless mitts.

On Saturday evening, Cat told us a sweet tale and then it was time for the Knitter's Book of Yarn/Knitter's Book of Wool/Wool-along extravaganza! I just love this picture of Jane with her knitting friends and their Falling Leaves.

KR retreat 2010 - Thursday and Friday

It's hard to believe that after so many months of waiting (im)patiently for the Knitter's Review Retreat, it went by so quickly and I now find myself already waiting for next year's retreat! Here's a quick recap of the retreat that occurred November 12-14 at the Williams Inn in Williamstown, MA.

My carpool buddy and roommate Wendy and I arrived on Thursday afternoon just a few hours before dinner which was exactly the right amount of time to unpack and:

- get a great big hug from Martha at the registration desk

- hand our destash items into the capable hands of Lanea, Purlewe, and team

- marvel at the contents of our goodie bags (I was able to knit an extra charity hat during the retreat with the ball of Zara that was in my bag, how's that for instant gratification?)

Thursday evening was a good time to welcome newcomers and catch up with old friends. The lovely Kathleen gave me a beautiful red Stepping Stones scarf that she knitted with Rosi's cashmere from last year's stash lounge. Cat Bordhi demonstrated a fun way of spinning using a rubber ball and rubber bands (you can see her plying in the picture below).

I attended Cat's class on Personal Footprints on Friday morning and early afternoon. I am now the proud owner of my very own monofoot and ready to knit socks that fit me perfectly. (Unfortunately, I didn't get to snap a picture of Cat playing Prince Charming to each of us and looking into our eyes to see if we were lying about how well our sock toe fit.)

While retreat attendees were trickling in, I got a "behind the scenes" look at the KR marketplace as some of the vendors were setting up.

String Theory

(both Karen and Tanis were able to attend this year)

Briar Rose Fibers

(Chris got mobbed at Rhinebeck but she still brought some lovely things)

Foxfire Fiber and Designs

(Barb and Holly brought the new Cormo sock blend, Flock Sock)

Spirit Trail Fiberworks

(don't worry, the ladies were adequately dressed with knitted samples on Saturday afternoon)

Friday evening was "Show-and-tell". Amazingly enough, Clara was able to ensure that we would describe our favorite yarn or express our undying love for multiple yarns in 60 seconds (or less) so show-and-tell lasted exactly an hour and a half, leaving plenty of time to welcome first-timers, explore the stash lounge, or ask fellow knitters what they were knitting.

Défi 13 de novembre: couleurs fanées

Cowl from "More last minute gifts"

Les feuilles mortes se ramassent à la pelle...

Ce mois-ci ma création est un cowl qui arrive pile-poil car il commence à faire froid ici! Le modèle est tiré du nouveau livre de Joelle Hoverson, "More Last-Minute Gifts". La laine est Kashmir (80% merino, 20% cachemire, 180 metres), teinte à la main par Ball and Skein dans un beau violet sombre. La photo a été prise dans le Shakespeare Garden dans Central Park.

La galerie de novembre est par ici!