October Show & Tell

There were lots of excellent show and tell items. For those of us who could stay (and maybe pick up the vice-presidential debate in reruns on CNN or download from iTunes) there were certainly some treats. Here are a few. More to be found on the guild website. This month's photos courtesy of our webmistress, Joslyn.

Debra modeled this beautiful jacket from a Knitter's magazine design. She mentioned getting the sleeves set-in properly and how much importance Rick places on that. Rick then got up and using his new AKG magnifying card, proceeded to inspect the shoulder and sleeve seams on Debra's garment. She passed!

Some members really took the suggestion to heart that you should bring items made from Knitter's magazine patterns. Margaret brought five sweaters, including three knit from the same issue. She definitely wins the prize for impressing our guests. In this image, you see her holding her finished sweater and comparing it to the example in the magazine.

XRX has also published a wonderful series of afghan pattern books. This wonderful example is worked in five different colors, each representing a different element. This type of project is a great way to experiment with new stitches and techniques. And if you don't like something, you only have to work one square of it and then you can move on to something else. A great way to enhance your knitting skills and keep warm!

Lou never ceases to amaze with his talent. In this case, he has knit an entrelac sweater for himself. This appears to be self-striping sock yarn. No one is going to lose Lou in a crowd while he is wearing this fabulous garment.

There's more but, hey, we've got to hold some of the goodies back for members. Be sure to go log in to the members' section of the website to see some great lace, Nancy's prize-winning sweater, socks, a bride's purse, and more! And thank you again to our members for making our guild look very good in front of our VIPs!

October Meeting

The guest speakers for our October meeting were CEO Benjamin Levisay and Editor Rick Mondragon of XRX Inc. These are the fine people behind Knitter's magazine, the Stitches conventions, and those great XRX Books. Benjamin (at left, in a vest knit by Rick) started out the presentation by giving us a taste of what Stitches South will be. Remember, everybody save 23-26 April 2009! Although the list is not yet finalized, there should be some wonderful teachers and awesome classes. The marketplace will also be a sight indeed. And for those of you who want/need a hotel room, the rate at the Renaissance Waverly is excellent. It is a very nice hotel and they have extended a very gracious rate to Stitches South attendees. With any luck, this could be the first of several southern Stitches events in the coming years.

The second part of the presentation was given by Rick, who gave us a sneak preview of the next issue of Knitter's magazine. There were many, many good items. Quite a few people gasped with delight at a Laura Bryant jacket. There is a sweater that looks like reverse applique -- very mod and unique. There are even a couple beaded knitted necklaces, which would be nice gifts to be appreciated by other craft people. The local shops shouldn't be surprised if the next issue of Knitter's moves just a little faster than usual. With so many wonderful projects, no wonder Rick was willing to share with us!

Other important bits from the meeting:
Debra reminds us that Theresa Gaffey will be here next month. This is an excellent opportunity to take classes from a very good teacher. I'll post more later.

Becky and Susan organized the bi-monthly raffle. This month's auction benefited our library. To that end, Lois kindly included library duplicate copies in the raffle. Our guild membership is always very generous both in what is donated to the raffle and in general participation. The raffle raised about $120 that Lois will be able to use to acquire the newest and niftiest knitting books -- maybe even some books published by XRX?

And one final bit of business, Randie handed out the new membership directories. Thank you to Randie and Debra for their hard work on the directories.

XRX

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!