Extreme Knitting: 1000 Strands

This is an older YouTube post, but still interesting. Rachel John knits with 1000 strands simultaneously. It's good we have someone out there checking the theoretical and practical limits for us!

More Knitting & Cats

And for those of you with real, live, yarn-ball-chasing cats, you could also knit your own mice. In this case, the knitted mice help homeless pets.

Knitting & Cats

For those of you who have already partaken of the opportunity to knit your own dog or knit your own royal wedding, you can now knit your own cat.

Be sure to scroll all the way to the group shot at the end.

Cheer for Children Ball

Our friends at The Georgia Center for Child Advocacy, which receives the trauma bears each December, is having a fundraiser this autumn. The Cheer for Children Ball will be on Saturday 11 November 2011 from 7:30 to 11:30 PM in the grand atrium at 200 Peachtree. In addition to the other activities at the ball, a highlight will be the raffle of a 2-year lease on a Mercedes-Benz 2012 GLK350 from Atlanta Classic Cars. You do not need to be present to win this beautiful car. The Greater Atlanta Chapter of the American Culinary Federation will be providing the food, so this promises to be a feast.

Continuous Learning

Kathleen is doing a really amazing job scheduling workshops for our group! As always, you can e-mail workshops@atlantaknittingguild.org if you have any questions.

Domino Knitting
taught by Jean Kammerer
Saturday, 5 November 2011 from 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
at St. Luke's Presbyterian Church, 1978 Mount Vernon Road, Dunwoody, GA 30338
$10 for guild members, $15 for non-guild members

Domino Knitting, also called Modular Squares, is a technique that can expand the possibilities for color combinations and fascinating patterns. It is a great technique for "take-along" projects using one color yarn at a time on short needles. You will learn basic squares and how to join them into one-of-a-kind designs. The possibilities are very exciting and limited only by your imagination!

Jean Kammerer is our instructor for this class. Jean is a longtime guild member who is a Master Teacher. She has taught numerous workshops for the guild as well as several knitting courses at the Emory University Evening at Emory Program.

Do notice that the location for this workshop is different from our usual meeting location.


Gauge and You
taught by Susan Nease
Saturday, 12 November 2011 from 1:00 p.m - 3:00 p.m.
at St. Patrick's Episcopal Church, 4755 North Peachtree Road, Dunwoody, GA 30338
Fee: $10 for guild members, $15 for non-guild members

Students will learn and understand how their choice of yarn and their choice of needles affects the fabric they knit. This mini-workshop is designed for Advanced Beginners and Intermediate-Level knitters: You have knit more than scarves, maybe a few hats, a summer sweater, or some socks, and are branching out into experimenting with yarns and patterns.   Example: you see the different types of needles on the market, but which one should you buy? Or, the yarn calls for one size needle, but you look at the yarn and think, "Really?? Are they serious?"

You will begin to understand how the needle you choose affects the fabric you knit. How does cotton yarn look when knit with metal needles? Wooden ones? What about wool or a wool-blend? These are the questions we hope you will begin to answer in this class. You are also welcome to bring some yarn that calls for a needle size you have to wonder "Really? They want that size of needle? What will it look like?" Students will learn that there is no right and wrong when it comes to gauge.

Susan Nease, a long time AKG member is our instructor for this class. Susan is a Master Knitter and the owner of Nease's Needlework who has taught numerous knitting classes over the years. You will definitely enjoy this class and Susan's teaching style. She will enlighten you while you move up to a whole new level!


Embellishments
taught by Charles Gandy
Saturday, 28 January 2012 from 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
at SEFAA Center, Southeast Fiber Arts Alliance, 1705 Commerce Drive NW, Atlanta GA
Fee: $10 for guild members, $15 for non-guild members

Here is a chance to learn numerous ways to enhance your knitted creations through applied embellishments. We will learn a wide range of accompaniments from frilly ruffles to bobbles to twists and ripples, I-Cords, special finger cords and even beading. We will explore, through a hands-on sampler, how these techniques can make your projects unique and knitted with personality!

Our instructor is Master Knitter Charles D. Gandy. Charles who lives in north Georgia began his knitting career at a very early age. Charles' mother, a knit-wear designer and shop owner, taught him to knit at the young age of four. He designed his first sweater three years later and continues to create today. Charles is a two-time winner in the recent Knitters Magazine: "Think Outside the Sox" contest and is the author of The Embellished Sock: Knitted Art for the Foot.


And a preview of coming attractions:
Metal Shawl Pin
taught by Judy Parody
sometime in March 2012
time & place to be determined
Fee: $35 for guild members, $45 for non-guild members

More Dates to Save

Cast-On Cottage and Needlepoint Garden has several exciting events coming up this autumn.
From their newsletter:

Pick a Noni Bag, Any Noni Bag
5 & 6 November
Nora Bellows (Noni) will be here for a 2-day workshop. We have been ordering the patterns, sparkles, beaded yarn and handles to get ready and working through the details to provide the best class experience that we can for you. The Noni Booth at Market was stunning with the beautiful bags and accessories that she had on display - we will have them here soon in advance of the workshop.

Workshop and Fashion Show with Maggi Jackson of MaggiKnits
2 - 4 December
We will have the fantastic Maggi Jackson of MaggiKnits.  There will be a Fashion Show on Friday Night and a workshop on Saturday and Sunday.

Knitbot Trunk Show
Begins 9 December
Also known to you as Hannah Fettig, the designer of the Featherweight Cardigan, Wispy, Breezy and many more, sends her trunk show to us.

Be sure to check their website or ask when you visit the shop to learn more details.

Loving Yarn

The Craft Yarn Council continues to encourage yarn consumption. (Not that any of us would require assistance.) To this end, they are promoting "I Love Yarn Day!"on Saturday 15 October. As suggested by their website, some of the things you might do that day include:

• Create an I Love Yarn Day badge
• Teach someone to knit or crochet
• Do something for charity
• Wear a knitted or crocheted item
• Give a gift of yarn
• Take your yarn to work day
• Host a yarn-a-bration party
• Knit, crochet and craft in public

Have a happy day enjoying the very stuff of our craft!

Weekend with Gwen

We hope everyone had a great weekend taking classes with superstar Gwen Bortner! One of the comments over the weekend is that Gwen has the best handouts. I can't think of anyone to challenge her.

For many of us, the highlight was Saturday, when we got to learn advanced entrelac from the Entrelac Queen herself! We learned how to start with a provisional cast-on, and then work entrelac seamlessly in both directions. When we got to the flap, we learned how to work entrelac back and forth and how to shape. Clever!

A slightly larger than most card case, but you get the idea.

Don't forget, there will be an after-Gwen knit in at the SEFAA Center on Saturday 29 October from 1-4 PM. This will be a great chance for us to share and show off our new skills. There is a limit to how many seats are available, so please e-mail workshops@atlantaknittingguild.org if you are interested in attending. There is no charge for members, but non-members will be charged $2 at the door.

Knit. Learn. Travel.

For those of you who would like to see the important places in the world (i.e. the ones with sheep, yarn, & knitting traditions), here is a lovely way to do so.

Jean Moss Knitters' Tours for 2012 are posted at
http://www.jeanmoss.com/tours.html

Lakes & York  13-24 May 2012
This includes tours of various estates and gardens, lectures and workshops with Jean Moss, shopping in various wool shops and farms, visits to fiber-related museums and galleries and mills (including Rowan), lovely accommodations and delicious food. View the amazing itinerary here.

Knit Ireland!    23 September - 5 October 2012
As you might expect, this does include opportunities to learn Aran knitting! There is sightseeing of many kinds including the land (Inishmoor) the culture (Dublin) or the art (Book of Kells). Shopping includes a visit to the Kerry Woollen Mills. And plenty of opportunities to partake of the local cuisine and brews. View this exciting itinerary here.

Jean also has a blog and at ­http://jeanmosshandknits.blogspot.com.