Thursday's meeting should be fun. CEO Benjamin Levisay and Editor Rick Mondragon of XRX, Inc. will be at the meeting to give us the inside scoop on how awesome and fun Stitches South is going to be this April. This is a great opportunity to ask questions about what to expect and how best to enjoy a major convention. It is very kind of these gentlemen to take time out of their busy planning schedule to come meet with us.
Additionally, Randie will be handing out membership directories. Becky will be organizing the raffle to benefit our library. And Debra will have the information for signing up for our November superstar, Theresa Gaffey.
Gas is still a little tight here in the metro area. Here's encouraging ya'all to carpool if you have to. Rick Mondragon has a reputation for being an engaging and hilarious speaker, so the evening should be electric!
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Knitting Daily
As many of you know, Knitting Daily has a television program. The first season is available on dvd. In fact, Elyse and Bill from Only Ewe and Cotton Too very kindly donated the Season 1 dvd to our library. Many thanks! If you participated in the shop hop, then you know where Only Ewe and Cotton Too is located. If not, it is up north on GA 400 in Crabapple, a sweet little part of Alpharetta. You can use Exit 10 Old Milton Pkwy. Head west and continue as the road narrows. Turn right at the light with Broadwell Rd -- Wallace Woods subdivision will be on your left. Go about a mile and turn right at the next light, which is Crabapple Rd / Mayfield Rd. Go just a few feet and turn left into the shopping center. The shop building used to be a cotton mill! And there is a bead shop next door. So be sure to drop in and thank Elyse and Bill.
If you want to check the dvd out of the library, remember that this is one of those items that may be on a waiting list for awhile, especially because Knitting Daily is not broadcast in the Atlanta Metro Area. If you are interested in writing to our local PBS station and alerting the powers that be, the contact information is:
Dustin Lecate
Public Broadcasting Atlanta
740 Bismark Rd.
Atlanta GA 30324
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Shop Hop In Town
Picking up from yesterday:
If you turn left as you leave Cast-On Cottage and Needlepoint Garden, you are on what becomes Roswell Rd. Drive a little more than 11 miles, which includes passing over I-285. Strings & Strands will be on the left in the Sandalon complex, between the ski shop and Bellini. This is a little after the fourth traffic light, just after the crest of the hill. Make the left turn into the parking lot just in front of the blue Bellini sign and drive back, and you'll see it some ways back in the complex.
Make a right turn out onto Roswell Rd, go a little ways and turn right onto Glenridge Dr. Follow into Glenridge Conn and ultimately the signs for GA 400 South. (Note that if you don't want to cut across on the surface streets to GA 400, you can get the same effect by following Roswell Rd back to I-285, turning right onto the entrance ramp, and heading east one exit.) You'll need 50 cents for the toll booth. Exit at Exit 1, Sidney Marcus Blvd. Stay in the near left turn lane, not far left lane on this first exit ramp. You'll want to be under the "I-85" sign. Stay in the near left turn lane again at the next light. Now get in the far right lane as you go east towards Lenox Rd/Cheshire Bridge Rd., following signs for Emory Hospital and I-85 N, and turn right onto Cheshire Bridge. Go underneath I-85 and get in the left lane. Pass the light at Sheridan Rd and turn left at the next light, LaVista Rd/Lindbergh Dr. (The Tara Theater is behind you to your left as you sit at the light.) Go about a mile on LaVista Rd to the third light and turn left. (Peachtree Baptist Church is the tall spire on the right side of this intersection.) You'll need to make an immediate right into the Briar Vista Shopping Center. Needle Nook has a nice bright yellow sign.
Heading out of Needle Nook, make a left turn onto Briarcliff Rd. Follow it for a little more than 3 miles, past Emory University Briarcliff Campus and Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, both on the right. After St. Louis Pl, turn right onto St. Charles Pl. (There is a Carter Center straight ahead sign just before this light.) Put your car in 1st or 2nd gear and drift slowly down this long block -- there are several nasty speed bumps. Cross Highland Ave North at the light. Go past a few shops and turn right into the alley. Knitch usually has out a turquoise and brown sign indicating where to turn. If you'd rather not negotiate the parking in the alley, you can often find a parallel space out on St. Charles Ave. Knitch shares the parking area with Atkins Park restaurant, so there tends to be more room if you don't show up during mealtimes. Then again, maybe you want lunch or dinner?
For an easy egress from the city, go south on Highland Ave North past the lights at Ponce de Leon Ave and North Ave. Turn right at the third light, Freedom Pkwy, which takes you past the Carter Center. Pass the Carter Center to the first light and turn left. This puts your squarely on Freedom Pkwy and headed back to join the downtown connector at Exit 248C. From there, you can easily catch I-75, I-85, or even I-20. Coming into the city via Freedom Parkway (bear right just after you pass under the concrete tunnel) is an easy way to get to Knitch or just the whole Virginia Highlands, Druid Hills, Decatur area.
With yesterday and today's directions, you've reached all the shops in the hop except Main Street Yarns in Watkinsville. The directions can be found here, on the July blog entry entitled "Gratitude." They involve heading north on I-85 to GA 316.
If you turn left as you leave Cast-On Cottage and Needlepoint Garden, you are on what becomes Roswell Rd. Drive a little more than 11 miles, which includes passing over I-285. Strings & Strands will be on the left in the Sandalon complex, between the ski shop and Bellini. This is a little after the fourth traffic light, just after the crest of the hill. Make the left turn into the parking lot just in front of the blue Bellini sign and drive back, and you'll see it some ways back in the complex.
Make a right turn out onto Roswell Rd, go a little ways and turn right onto Glenridge Dr. Follow into Glenridge Conn and ultimately the signs for GA 400 South. (Note that if you don't want to cut across on the surface streets to GA 400, you can get the same effect by following Roswell Rd back to I-285, turning right onto the entrance ramp, and heading east one exit.) You'll need 50 cents for the toll booth. Exit at Exit 1, Sidney Marcus Blvd. Stay in the near left turn lane, not far left lane on this first exit ramp. You'll want to be under the "I-85" sign. Stay in the near left turn lane again at the next light. Now get in the far right lane as you go east towards Lenox Rd/Cheshire Bridge Rd., following signs for Emory Hospital and I-85 N, and turn right onto Cheshire Bridge. Go underneath I-85 and get in the left lane. Pass the light at Sheridan Rd and turn left at the next light, LaVista Rd/Lindbergh Dr. (The Tara Theater is behind you to your left as you sit at the light.) Go about a mile on LaVista Rd to the third light and turn left. (Peachtree Baptist Church is the tall spire on the right side of this intersection.) You'll need to make an immediate right into the Briar Vista Shopping Center. Needle Nook has a nice bright yellow sign.
Heading out of Needle Nook, make a left turn onto Briarcliff Rd. Follow it for a little more than 3 miles, past Emory University Briarcliff Campus and Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, both on the right. After St. Louis Pl, turn right onto St. Charles Pl. (There is a Carter Center straight ahead sign just before this light.) Put your car in 1st or 2nd gear and drift slowly down this long block -- there are several nasty speed bumps. Cross Highland Ave North at the light. Go past a few shops and turn right into the alley. Knitch usually has out a turquoise and brown sign indicating where to turn. If you'd rather not negotiate the parking in the alley, you can often find a parallel space out on St. Charles Ave. Knitch shares the parking area with Atkins Park restaurant, so there tends to be more room if you don't show up during mealtimes. Then again, maybe you want lunch or dinner?
For an easy egress from the city, go south on Highland Ave North past the lights at Ponce de Leon Ave and North Ave. Turn right at the third light, Freedom Pkwy, which takes you past the Carter Center. Pass the Carter Center to the first light and turn left. This puts your squarely on Freedom Pkwy and headed back to join the downtown connector at Exit 248C. From there, you can easily catch I-75, I-85, or even I-20. Coming into the city via Freedom Parkway (bear right just after you pass under the concrete tunnel) is an easy way to get to Knitch or just the whole Virginia Highlands, Druid Hills, Decatur area.
With yesterday and today's directions, you've reached all the shops in the hop except Main Street Yarns in Watkinsville. The directions can be found here, on the July blog entry entitled "Gratitude." They involve heading north on I-85 to GA 316.
Friday, September 12, 2008
Shop Hop Northern Arc
For you folks about to embark on the shop hop, here are some potential directions to help you find your way.
There is a Northern Arc of shops from west to east: Knitting Emporium in downtown Kennesaw, The Whole Nine Yarns in downtown Woodstock, Only You and Cotton Too in downtown Crabapple, and Cast-on Cottage and Needlepoint Garden in downtown Roswell. All of these are charming shops in charming small-town Southern settings. Most of them are also in areas with many pedestrians and tight speed limits, so do be careful if you are the driver.
One potential driving route:
Note to those looking at a map: at many times of the day, it is easier to travel on Chastain Rd than on Barrett Pkwy. If you are driving north on I-75, it may be worth your sanity to go a little farther north than what a map suggests.)
From I-75 take exit 271 Chastain Rd and head west toward Kennesaw and McCollum Field. Chastain will change names to McCollum Pkwy. Travel a couple miles and be in the right lane as you pass McCollum Field. At the traffic light for Old Hwy 41/Main St, turn right. Travel north on Main St about one mile, past two traffic signals. Beware of the speed limit changes! After Main St takes a turn to the right at the odd intersection with Summers St, Knitting Emporium will be on your left as the historic downtown comes into view. The shop is located inside a house and the sign says "Antique Garden." There is a tire place across the street from them. Turn onto the driveway next to the mailbox. Parking is around back of the house.
After Knitting Emporium, make a right turn out on to Main St. Go back to McCollum Pkwy/Chastain Rd and turn left. Travel east about 3 miles. You'll need to be in the left lane to get on I-575 headed north. Travel about 5 miles to exit 8, Towne Lake Pkwy & Woodstock. Keep to the right on the exit ramp. As you turn right onto Towne Lake, you'll need to shift one lane to the left. (The far right lane goes away.) Go straight at the light. The road goes up a small hill. As it comes over the crest, you'll see a red barn to your right and a sign informing that you cannot turn left ahead at Main St. Guess what? You want to turn left at Main St. Therefore, turn right at the red barn and then drift to the left across the x-shaped intersection. You'll still be traveling east, but now you are over on Mill St, which runs one-way parallel to Towne Lake but one block south of it. Staying in the left lane, follow Mill St a couple blocks to the traffic signal where it dead ends at Main St. Turn left when the signal light permits. Go straight at the light for Towne Lake Pkwy/Arnold Mill Rd. Do not go too fast, as the speed limit is only 25 mph! Shortly after the light, Main St crosses railroad tracks. As soon as it crosses the tracks, execute a hairpin turn to the right. This will bring you into Parkside shopping center. The gazebo is across from The Whole Nine Yarns. There is parking across the front of the shopping center, around the far side of the shopping center, and along one side of City Park. If you are really stuck for a spot, there is also parking along Main St on the other side of the railroad tracks.
As you leave The Whole Nine Yarns, make a left hairpin turn at the railroad tracks and head back south on Main St to the main light. Turn left so that you are headed east on Arnold Mill Rd. Follow Arnold Mill, bearing right as it meets route 140, for about 12 miles. Near the end of the 12 miles, you'll pass a castle on the right. In about a mile you'll see capitalistic civilization, including Kroger and BP on the left and McDonald's on the right. The traffic light is at Crabapple Rd, turn left. Be careful as this is a more than 90-degree turn. Go about a mile, passing the light at Birmingham Hwy/Broadwell Rd. Only Ewe and Cotton Too is just ahead on the left. The valet parking is for the restaurant. Use the parking spaces along the building with the long porch.
Leaving Only Ewe and Cotton Too, turn right and head back down Crabapple Rd. Go a little more than 5 miles west and south on Crabapple, being sure to keep to the left at the fork with Hardscrabble Rd. Crabapple becomes Canton St at Woodstock Rd. Cast-On Cottage and Needlepoint Garden is in a house on the left about half a mile south of Woodstock Rd. (There is a cat clinic across the street from them.) Parking is available in back.
Tomorrow: In-town route.
There is a Northern Arc of shops from west to east: Knitting Emporium in downtown Kennesaw, The Whole Nine Yarns in downtown Woodstock, Only You and Cotton Too in downtown Crabapple, and Cast-on Cottage and Needlepoint Garden in downtown Roswell. All of these are charming shops in charming small-town Southern settings. Most of them are also in areas with many pedestrians and tight speed limits, so do be careful if you are the driver.
One potential driving route:
Note to those looking at a map: at many times of the day, it is easier to travel on Chastain Rd than on Barrett Pkwy. If you are driving north on I-75, it may be worth your sanity to go a little farther north than what a map suggests.)
From I-75 take exit 271 Chastain Rd and head west toward Kennesaw and McCollum Field. Chastain will change names to McCollum Pkwy. Travel a couple miles and be in the right lane as you pass McCollum Field. At the traffic light for Old Hwy 41/Main St, turn right. Travel north on Main St about one mile, past two traffic signals. Beware of the speed limit changes! After Main St takes a turn to the right at the odd intersection with Summers St, Knitting Emporium will be on your left as the historic downtown comes into view. The shop is located inside a house and the sign says "Antique Garden." There is a tire place across the street from them. Turn onto the driveway next to the mailbox. Parking is around back of the house.
After Knitting Emporium, make a right turn out on to Main St. Go back to McCollum Pkwy/Chastain Rd and turn left. Travel east about 3 miles. You'll need to be in the left lane to get on I-575 headed north. Travel about 5 miles to exit 8, Towne Lake Pkwy & Woodstock. Keep to the right on the exit ramp. As you turn right onto Towne Lake, you'll need to shift one lane to the left. (The far right lane goes away.) Go straight at the light. The road goes up a small hill. As it comes over the crest, you'll see a red barn to your right and a sign informing that you cannot turn left ahead at Main St. Guess what? You want to turn left at Main St. Therefore, turn right at the red barn and then drift to the left across the x-shaped intersection. You'll still be traveling east, but now you are over on Mill St, which runs one-way parallel to Towne Lake but one block south of it. Staying in the left lane, follow Mill St a couple blocks to the traffic signal where it dead ends at Main St. Turn left when the signal light permits. Go straight at the light for Towne Lake Pkwy/Arnold Mill Rd. Do not go too fast, as the speed limit is only 25 mph! Shortly after the light, Main St crosses railroad tracks. As soon as it crosses the tracks, execute a hairpin turn to the right. This will bring you into Parkside shopping center. The gazebo is across from The Whole Nine Yarns. There is parking across the front of the shopping center, around the far side of the shopping center, and along one side of City Park. If you are really stuck for a spot, there is also parking along Main St on the other side of the railroad tracks.
As you leave The Whole Nine Yarns, make a left hairpin turn at the railroad tracks and head back south on Main St to the main light. Turn left so that you are headed east on Arnold Mill Rd. Follow Arnold Mill, bearing right as it meets route 140, for about 12 miles. Near the end of the 12 miles, you'll pass a castle on the right. In about a mile you'll see capitalistic civilization, including Kroger and BP on the left and McDonald's on the right. The traffic light is at Crabapple Rd, turn left. Be careful as this is a more than 90-degree turn. Go about a mile, passing the light at Birmingham Hwy/Broadwell Rd. Only Ewe and Cotton Too is just ahead on the left. The valet parking is for the restaurant. Use the parking spaces along the building with the long porch.
Leaving Only Ewe and Cotton Too, turn right and head back down Crabapple Rd. Go a little more than 5 miles west and south on Crabapple, being sure to keep to the left at the fork with Hardscrabble Rd. Crabapple becomes Canton St at Woodstock Rd. Cast-On Cottage and Needlepoint Garden is in a house on the left about half a mile south of Woodstock Rd. (There is a cat clinic across the street from them.) Parking is available in back.
Tomorrow: In-town route.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Goodies
Four merchant members were kind enough to bring knitting goodies to the September meeting.
Only Ewe and Cotton Too had, amongst other things, a big pile of Kaffe Fassett yarn as well as plenty of sock yarn. This was plainly visible from across the room. (Katie & Elyse pictured.)
Needle Nook had some new books, including In the Mood by Jean Moss. The golden jacket in the foreground is a sample from this book. Cute and flattering on a variety of figures. (Arlene pictured seated.)
Main Street Yarns brought her goodies in those wonderful Ghanaian baskets. There were new colors of Hempathy, more sock yarn, and lovely needle cases. (Ruth pictured.)
And Sassafras Creations continues to recycle aluminum knitting needles in the most interesting of ways. In addition to the bangle bracelets, necklaces, and earrings, there were even ballpoint pens! If you have the knitting needle pen with your checkbook, will that encourage you to balance the checkbook? Or will it make it that much easier to spend money on yarn? (Nancy pictured, with Lois and the library table in the background.)
As a reminder, the second annual Atlanta Shop Hop starts this Saturday, the 13th of September. Thank you to all the shops who saved us some gas and gave us a preview of the goodies waiting to be loved.
Only Ewe and Cotton Too had, amongst other things, a big pile of Kaffe Fassett yarn as well as plenty of sock yarn. This was plainly visible from across the room. (Katie & Elyse pictured.)
Needle Nook had some new books, including In the Mood by Jean Moss. The golden jacket in the foreground is a sample from this book. Cute and flattering on a variety of figures. (Arlene pictured seated.)
Main Street Yarns brought her goodies in those wonderful Ghanaian baskets. There were new colors of Hempathy, more sock yarn, and lovely needle cases. (Ruth pictured.)
And Sassafras Creations continues to recycle aluminum knitting needles in the most interesting of ways. In addition to the bangle bracelets, necklaces, and earrings, there were even ballpoint pens! If you have the knitting needle pen with your checkbook, will that encourage you to balance the checkbook? Or will it make it that much easier to spend money on yarn? (Nancy pictured, with Lois and the library table in the background.)As a reminder, the second annual Atlanta Shop Hop starts this Saturday, the 13th of September. Thank you to all the shops who saved us some gas and gave us a preview of the goodies waiting to be loved.
Monday, September 8, 2008
September Show & Tell
At top we have LaVonne showing off a lace blanket. It was begun by someone else by LaVonne finished it after it had a stint as a UFO.
At left we have Tina displaying her charity knitting. She is wearing a wool helmet liner for the troops, a cotton stoma cover at her neck, and she is holding a preemie baby hat. The stoma covers and baby hats are great quick knits and a good way to use up leftovers.
At right we have a close-up of Elizabeth's anniversary socks. The fifth anniversary is the wood anniversary, but as a clever knitter, Elizabeth is making her husband woodland socks out of bamboo yarn.
Lastly, we have Nancy and LaVonne holding up Becky's peacock lace. This is another project that spent a considerable period in time out. It was the Ravelympics that inspired Becky to pick it back up and finish it.More photos will be in the members' section of the Atlanta Knitting Guild website.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
The books we love
Our replacement program, which was put together on about 50 hours' notice, featured various guild members showing off their knitting creations and the books that inspired them. The initial idea for the program came from Ellen and was refined by Debra. And it was a surprisingly good program.
Linda W. spoke about Katia and other books that she enjoys as sources for knitting children's clothing. As we guild members all know, Linda W. has the best-dressed grandchildren in the Atlanta Metro Area. Linda F. knit a kilim pillow (top photo) based on ideas she got from a kilim rug coffee table book. Linda F. also designs her own garments, and recommends Designing Knitwear as a good resource. Ellen was a total stitch as she talked about Knitting Lace Triangles and Victorian Lace Today. The magic of blocking couldn't turn the red lace triangle scarf into a shawl. (photo left) Elyse gives Victorian Lace Today a thumbs up and also recommends Knitting Little Luxuries. Elizabeth loves both The Opinionated Knitter and Mason-Dixon Knitting. It is amazing how Elizabeth Zimmermann's Baby Surprise Jacket pattern can still set a room full of knitters buzzing. Our Librarian, Lois, recommends Beyond Wool by Candace Eisner Strick for its good pattern support and information about natural fibers such as angora, mohair, and qiviut.
Debra showed off her Mardi Gras cardigan from a very early (read: out-of-print, expensive, impossible to find) Alice Starmore book. (photo right) Debra also sang the praises of Alice Starmore's Book of Fair Isle Knitting. Arlene showed off her Malabrigo squares from 365 Knitting Stitches a Year. Those are part of a knit-along and will eventually become an afghan. And Jolie showed a couple sculptural scarves from Knitting New Scarves. That constituted a nice range of knitting interests. And Diana (coral top in photos) did a lovely job as "Vanna," helping to display the knitted items so that the whole room could see and enjoy.More photos will be available in the members' section of the Atlanta Knitting Guild website.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Best laid plans . . .
Hurricane Gustav's impact stretches beyond the Gulf Coast. Our September Superstar, Jackie Erickson-Schweitzer, won't be able to attend. Her home is in a suburb of New Orleans, so she and her family will need to spend time dealing with the aftermath of the storm. Our Senior Vice President of Workshops, Debra, is working hard to re-schedule Jackie. Our understanding is that Jackie and her family did evacuate to the safety of another state where they have relatives. Our best wishes go out to them.
We will still have a September meeting. Thanks to Ellen's bright idea, we'll be having a book show & tell. Several members will be showing and talking about a favorite book that has provided knitting inspiration. As we'll have a variety of speakers with a range of viewpoints, this should be an interesting program. This also means that we should have lots of time for our regular show and tell.
See ya'all on Thursday night!
We will still have a September meeting. Thanks to Ellen's bright idea, we'll be having a book show & tell. Several members will be showing and talking about a favorite book that has provided knitting inspiration. As we'll have a variety of speakers with a range of viewpoints, this should be an interesting program. This also means that we should have lots of time for our regular show and tell.
See ya'all on Thursday night!
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