Where to be?

Filling in the calendar for an Atlanta-area knitter can be a frustrating embarrassment of riches. The third weekend of April this year makes one long for appropriate technology -- such as time machines or cloning.

We have STITCHES South at Cobb Galleria Center on Thursday the 19th through Sunday the 22nd of April. By now ya'all know what STITCHES is all about -- great classes by nationally-known teachers, an awesome marketplace, fashion shows, banquets, and the endless camaraderie that comes from hanging out with other people who share your passion. This year's opening day talk includes Anna Zilboorg, Myra Wood, Laura Bryant, and Rick Mondragon. There will also be a special presentation by Nicky Epstein. And there will be plenty of yarn companies showing us their beautiful new offerings. And of course the hosts of the whole party, XRX Inc., always bring their books and samples. (Will we get to see the projects in Betsy Beads up close?)

But we also have a second choice. This year some of our northerly shops including Cast-on Cottage and Needlepoint Garden, Main Street Yarns & Fibers, and Yarn Circle are sponsoring Wool in the Woods retreat at the Athens YWCO Camp and Conference Center. For those of you who are more interested in getting away to some place quiet and beautiful, hanging out with just a few friends, and taking just one or two classes, this is an alternative. The retreat starts on Friday evening around 4 PM and runs through lunch on Sunday.

Of course this raises the question -- what are all our spouses doing that weekend?

STITCHES South Early Bird Deadline Extended

In getting ready for STITCHES West 2010, the folks at XRX forgot to put out a reminder for the January 11 deadline for Early Bird registration for STITCHES South 2010. To make up for the oversight, they have extended the deadline to Monday February 1, 2010, two weeks from today So if you haven't had a chance to register yet, there is still time to save on all the classes and events.

Click on STITCHES South for all the info.

Stitches South 2010

Stitches South is returning to Atlanta in April 2010. There will be four days of wonderful classes on a range of knitting topics, as well as exciting shopping in the Market. The brochure describing the classes is now available online - click here to download a copy. Online registration begins November 10 at 10 am EST.

Stitches Flowers Video

XRX has released a video on the Atlanta Knitting Guild's centerpiece flowers. Check it out at http://www.knittinguniverse.com/video/#6/28/3.

STITCHES memories

Robyn Putz, our outgoing VP of Communications, has graciously agreed to put together a special STITCHES South version of our newsletter. Members, if you have any stories to share -- and I know you do -- please e-mail them over to Robyn by Friday 15 May.

Also, Elizabeth Clause is moving from VP of Programs to Webmaster. Elizabeth will be organizing the photographic material and probably be putting together something grand on our website. Please e-mail photographs to Elizabeth, or e-mail to her the link to where you have posted them (such as Flickr), or send her a CD of them.

Our historian, Pat O'Grady, would like to have some photographs for the archives. If you don't mind printing a few pictures and mailing those to Pat, that would be great. Please be sure that with any photographic material, you've identified who the subjects are and where and when the photograph was taken.

As for the photograph at the top, that's our founder Whit Robbins and centerpiece designer Megan Brightwell. This picture was taken on Wednesday 22 April, the day before STITCHES. Whit and Megan are here unloading centerpiece flowers on the loading dock at Cobb Galleria Center. You can all see how glamorous behind the scenes really is.

STITCHES South 2009 links

We'll keep updating this post as new and interesting links become available. For now, here are a few to get you started.

Even before the convention began, Woofgangpug gave us ten reasons to attend. She also reminded us why the market is such a wonderful thing. And pictures on her Flickr account.
BavGirl writes about the market and dinner at Scalini's.
Knits4Bears scored well in the market, including a baby camel/silk blend, lots of Bugga, Schoppel Wolle Zauberball, a cone of alpaca/silk, Kauni, and Lisa Souza bombyx silk/merino.
The Knifty Knitter has two posts. In the first post, she reviews a class with Sandi Rosner, puchases from Indie Dyer, Malabrigo, Sanguin Gryphon, Creatively Dyed Yarns, Mass Ave. Yarn Shop, and Schaefer Yarns. In the second post, she describes vanquishing her yarn budget by acquiring Cascade Eco + from The Yarn and Fiber Company, Cascade 220 in assorted colors (including a rather nice red tweed) from Cast-On Cottage, and handmade sock blockers from Purrfectly Catchy. She also reviews a cable class with Melissa Leapman.

XRX & AKG

I'm sure there will be more posted later about STITCHES South. For this post, I just need to say a huge THANK YOU both to XRX and to AKG.

To XRX and especially Benjamin Levisay:
Thank you for coming to Atlanta. Thank you to Benjamin for being willing to take the risk on us, the risk in coming south where there "aren't any knitters," and the risk in having a new show in this tepid economy. Thank you to all his staff -- I would name names here as I know a good many of them now, but I know I'd leave out somebody by mistake. This was my first STITCHES, and the first STITCHES for many people here. And it was amazing. And when I asked if they are all like this, other people said, "Oh, yes. It is always this fabulous and amazing." That means that four times a year, you folks come out of South Dakota and go make a perfect, magical, fantastic weekend for several thousand people. I am in awe that you can do that even once. I am flabbergasted that you can do it repeatedly. Thank you so much for being willing to do that here, and for being willing to come back again next year. Know that all of you are loved here. You are family now.

To all the Atlanta Knitting Guild members:
Thank you for being the most friendly, warm, hospitable people on the planet. All weekend long, people came up to Whit and Diana and I and said how warmly welcomed they felt. I almost couldn't shop the market because so many people came up to me to pass on their compliments. Late in the day on Sunday as I was heading out, Susanna Hansson bumped into me. She said it felt as if the weekend was co-hosted by both XRX and AKG. For that, again I must thank XRX, who let us participate at such an active level. There are other companies who, I am sure, would have seen us an interlopers. Instead, we were two teams, the home and the visitors, and we played as one for the weekend.

A special big thank you and kudos for those of you who worked on the flowers. People were talking about them all weekend. When attendees entered the banquet hall on Friday, there was a bit of a traffic jam at the door because people were stopping and staring and forgetting that they needed to walk into the room. Many, many pictures were taken. Many. People were talking about which flowers they liked, and how clever this or that one was, and how this was on the same level as the big show in Italy. Benjamin very kindly arranged for the flowers to be on display in the market on Sunday, so that more attendees could see them. And XRX is now taking the flowers on the road to STITCHES Midwest and probably STITCHES East as well. There will be more information in an upcoming Knitter's magazine and on KnitTalk and elsewhere. We started this weekend with half our industry thinking that there are no knitters in the South. We will be ending the year with our industry knowing that Atlanta and the South is full of talented, creative knitting artists. You AKG members made that happen. If you are reading this, stand up and take a bow. You deserve it.

Edit: If you are on Ravelry, go take a look at the STITCHES South boards. It will warm your heart.

Loading up the GPS

Here is a list of shops that you might pass close to if you are driving to STITCHES South. Most of these are affiliated with either AKG or NGKG, but a couple are new and haven't yet joined a guild. Each has its own niche and its own sense of style. The list gives you the nearest exit to a major thoroughfare, so you can know if your route will take you close by. Please contact each shop directly for hours, complete driving directions, and to be sure the shop is still in business at that location. You can also find more shops by going to knitmap.

Inside Atlanta:
Knitch
1052A St. Charles Avenue
Atlanta GA 30306
404-745-9276
www.shopknitch.com
From I-75/I-85 in downtown Atlanta, use Exit 248C, Carter Center/Freedom Pkwy. This is the shop that is closest to city center. It is near the Carter Presidential Center, Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, and Fernbank Natural History Museum.

Sheepish
335 W. Ponce de Leon Avenue, Suite G
Decatur, Georgia 30030
404-377-6875
http://www.sheepish.biz/
From I-285 on the east side of Atlanta, take either Exit 40 or Exit 39. Follow signs to Decatur. Knitch and Sheepish are about 3 miles apart, via Ponce de Leon Avenue. Fernbank Natural History Museum is between them. Sheepish is formerly Nease's Needlework, and still appears in some navigation systems under that name.

Needle Nook
2165 Briarcliff Road
Atlanta GA 30329
404-325-0068
www.needlenookatlanta.com
In the Briarcliff area over near Emory University. From downtown, stay on I-85 as you head north out of the city and use Exit 86, Buford Hwy. Can also be accessed from Exit 89, North Druid Hills.

Strings and Strands
5299 Roswell Road, Suite 114
Atlanta GA 30342
404-252-9662
From northside I-285, use Exit 25 Roswell Road and proceed south. This is the closest LYS to STITCHES South, about 6 miles from Cobb Galleria Centre.
www.stringsandstrands.com


Heading north of Atlanta on I-75, from closest to farthest out:
Knitting Emporium
2803 S. Main Street
Kennesaw GA 30144
770-421-1919
www.knittingemporium.com
From I-75, use Exit 271 Chastain Rd & Kennesaw State University.
You can also use Exit 269 Barrett Pkwy, but the traffic tends to be very bad on Barrett Pkwy.

Krazy Knitz
311 W. Emery Street
Dalton GA 30720
706-259-6713
www.krazyknitz.com
From I-75, Exit 333 at the Tanger Outlet Center.

Genuine Purl
140 N. Market St.
Chattanooga TN 37405
423-267-7335
www.genuinepurl.com
From I-75, follow I-24 west, then US 27.


Heading north of Atlanta on I-575, from closest to farthest out:
The Whole Nine Yarns
105 E. Main Street, Suite 126
Woodstock GA 30188
678-494-5242
www.thewholenineyarns.com
Use Exit 7 or Exit 8 and head for downtown Woodstock.

The Flying Sheep
38 Wall Street, Jasper GA 30143
706-692-5648
www.theflyingsheep.com
Follow I-575 as it becomes route 5/515 Appalachian Development Hwy/Zell Miller Mountain Pkwy. Turn right on West Church Street and head for downtown Jasper.

Strings & Sticks Yarn Shoppe
449 Industrial Boulevard
Ellijay GA 30540
706-698-5648
www.stringsandsticksyarn.com
Follow I-575 as it becomes route 5/515 Appalachian Development Hwy/Zell Miller Mountain Pkwy. Turn west at 282/US 76

Mountain Yarn
29A Highway 515
Blairsville GA 30512
706-835-1078
Keep following Route 515/US 76. Blairsville is where US 129, Route 11/US 19 intersects Route 515/US 76.

Yarn Circle
Indigo Hills Suite E
4540 Highway 64E
Murphy NC 28906
828-835-4592
www.yarncircle.com
Murphy is north of Blairsville. You can reach it by following I-575, etc. on up into the Blue Ridge Mountains and following US 19/129.


Heading north of Atlanta on GA 400, from closest to farthest out:
Cast-On Cottage and Needlepoint Garden
1003 Canton Street
Roswell GA 30075
770-998-3483
www.castoncottage.com
From GA 400, use Exit 7, Holcomb Bridge Rd

Only Ewe and Cotton Too
780 Mayfield Road
Milton GA 30004
770-740-0844
www.onlyeweandcottontoo.com
From GA 400, use Exit 10, Old Milton Pkwy

Knots of Yarn
2360 Bethelview Rd #106
Cumming, Georgia 30040
706-974-9525
www.knotsofyarn.com
Follow GA 400 to Exit 15 Bald Ridge Dr., then Route 9 west to Route 20 north.

Magical Threads
315 Church Street
Dahlonega GA 30533
706-867-8918
www.magicalthreads.com
Follow GA 400 to Route 249/US 19.


Heading north of Atlanta on I-85, from closest to farthest out:
Rare Purls
Duluth GA 30096
www.rarepurls.net
From I-85, use Exit 104, Pleasant Hill Road. On the web, with bricks and mortar shop coming early summer! Please check back!

Twisted Skeins
124 Washington Street, Suite A (Highway 197)
Clarkesville GA 30523
706-754-7048
www.twistedskeins.com
Clarkesville is northeast of Gainesville and Lake Lanier. From I-85, use Exit 144, and take US 441 some distance north. If you are traveling in from North Carolina on US 23/US 441, use Route 385/Historic US 441.

Silver Threads & Golden Needles
41 E. Main Street
Franklin NC 28734
828-349-0515
www.silverthreadsyarn.com
Even farther north on US 23/441.

Yes Yarn
3014 N. Main Street
Anderson SC 29621
864-222-8244
www.yesyarn.com
From I-85 just inside SC, use Exit 19.


If you take the GA 316 spur towards Athens and University of Georgia:
Yarn Garden Knit Shop
159 W. Pike Street
Lawrenceville GA 30045
678-225-0920
www.yarngardenknitshop.com
From GA 316, follow either Duluth Highway or Buford Drive into downtown Lawrenceville.

Main Street Yarns and Fibers
100 Barnett Shoals Road
Watkinsville GA 30677
706-769-5531 or
866-399-YARN (toll free)
www.mainstreetyarns.com
Go about 40 miles on GA 316, turn right at Oconee Connector.


South of Atlanta on I-85:
Sugarfoot Yarns
100 N. Peachtree Parkway
Highway 54
Peachtree City, GA 30269
770-487-9001
http://www.sugarfootyarns.com/
From I-85, use Exit 47, Bullsboro Drive, and then follow Route 34 to Route 54.


South of Atlanta on I-75:
Creative Yarns
134 Speer Avenue
Macon GA 31204
478-476-5648
creativeyarns.net
Follow I-75 around Macon, use Exit 164 onto US 41.

Me and Thee
2360 Ingleside Avenue
Macon GA 31204
478-746-2223


West of Atlanta on I-20:
Ewe Knit Yarn
909 G South Park St. (Trojan Center)
Carrollton GA 30117
770-830-6480
www.eweknit.net
On I-20 west of Atlanta, use Exit 11 and follow US 27 south to Carrollton.

The Taming of the Ewe
26 Public Square
Jacksonville AL 36265
256-782-9080
taming-the-ewe.com
From I-20, take Exit 185 and follow Route 21 north to Jacksonville.


If you are along the coast:
Wild Fibre
409 E Liberty St
Savannah GA 31401
912-238-0514
wildfibreyarns.com
I-16 & I-95

The Stitchery of St. Simons
3303 Frederica Road
St. Simons Island GA 31522
912-638-3401
shopthestitchery.com
From I-95 near Florida, use Exits 29 or 36 and head to St. Simon's Island.

Food on Spring Road

If you head north on Cobb Parkway, duck under I-285, but turn left at the light, you'll be on Spring Road. Options include:

On the left:
Wendy's -- national burger chain
Applebee's -- national pub grub chain
Chin Chin Chinese -- local chain, cuisine and sushi
Panda Express -- national Chinese fast food

On the right:
Minato Japanese Restaurant -- local sushi and steak
Papa John's Pizza -- national pizza delivery chain

After the light at Cumberland Blvd:
On the right:
McDonald's -- international burger chain giant
Aldi -- grocery store
On the left:
Burger King -- other international burger chain giant
Further up on the right:
Wing Lab -- wings
Subway -- national sandwich chain giant

A couple more lights, past Argyle Elementary School and the fire station, on the left in the Plantation Pointe Shopping Center:
Smyrna Liquors -- alcohol
US Cafe Express -- burgers, wings, onion rings, fries, shakes
China Station -- local Chinese
Cobb International Farmers Market -- Asian grocery, hot wings and sushi available inside

You may have noticed by now that the street Cumberland Blvd seems to cross everything. There is both a Cumberland Blvd and a Cumberland Pkwy in the area. Cumberland Blvd crosses Cobb Pkwy north of I-285, then crosses Spring Rd, runs west of Cumberland Mall (behind it), and intersects Cobb Pkwy again but south, down by the Parkway Pointe shopping center. There is an HHGregg Crossing shopping center on Cumberland Blvd between Spring Rd and Cobb Pkwy. So if you turned left on Spring, and then right on Cumberland Blvd (just before McDonald's), up the hill on the left you would find:
Domino's pizza -- the other national pizza delivery chain
Juice and Java -- local coffee and juice drinks
Unique Indian Cuisine -- local Indian buffet
Bar-B-Q and Seafood -- local and just what it says

None of these several food posts takes you beyond exit 20. There is more food one exit West/South at Paces Ferry/Vinings, Exit 18. And there is some truly lovely upscale dining in Vinings. If you continue yet one more exit to Atlanta Rd, Exit 16, there are also some very good choices. I mention this because J. Christopher's is at the corner of Atlanta Rd and Cumberland Pkwy, just a right turn and half a mile from the exit. Sunday morning food may be a little hard to find, and local chain J. Christopher's is a good option, although crowded as it is well-known in the area. They are open at 7 AM.

For more food options check out:
The Blissful Glutton -- local blogger reviewing local restaurants
Access Atlanta -- web portal run by local newspaper
Creative Loafing -- web portal run by other newspaper
Urban Spoon -- reviews and more, try either Atlanta or if you don't want to drive too far, just Smyrna (north of I-285) and Vinings (south of I-285).

Food on Cobb Parkway North of Galleria

If you want to drive in the other direction through Smyrna 30080, here's what you'll find if you go north on Cobb Parkway.

Ducking underneath I-285, the first restaurant is Atlanta-based Waffle House, on the left, open 24 hours.

Past the light at Spring Rd. and heading up the hill you'll find on the right:
Indian Cuisine -- local Indian food
Dunkin' Donuts / Baskin Robbins -- donuts, coffee, and ice-cream
Jade Palace -- Chinese buffet and sushi
on the left:
Steak N Shake -- burgers and shakes
and in Cumberland Marketplace:
Starbucks Coffee -- coffee, pastries
blu Sushi -- local sushi, grill, seafood, bar, has a good Chrysanthemum roll
Continuing up the hill:
Taco Bell -- national chain Mexican fast food
Doc's Food & Spirits -- basic American, Sunday brunch begins at noon

At the top of the hill past the Cumberland Blvd/Windy Ridge Pkwy light, on the right:
Kentucky Fried Chicken -- national fried chicken chain
Red Lobster -- national seafood restaurant chain
The Border Mexican Restaurant -- local Mexican cuisine

And continuing down the hill on the right in Cumberland Square North shopping center:
Olive Garden -- national Italian restaurant, outparcel
Thompson Brother's Bar-B-Q -- local barbecue, worth a trip is you are unfamiliar with Southern barbecue
Yakitori Jinbei -- Japanese and sushi
Wise Ash Cigars -- tobacco
Quizno's Sub -- warm sandwiches

From the top of the hill on the left in Heritage Pavilion:
Cost Plus World Market -- chocolate and wine
Then headed down in the hill on the left in the Promenade shopping center:
Lee's Golden Buddha #7 -- local Chinese restaurant chain
Scalini's -- local Italian, location of Saturday Ravelry meet-up
and the outparcels:
Bruster's Real Ice Cream -- ice cream
IHOP -- pancakes, Sunday morning food, open 24 hours; their local link

Food on Cobb Parkway South of Galleria

If you don't mind getting in a car and driving a little, there are even more food options on Cobb Parkway / US 41. Most of these take you out of line of sight of Cobb Galleria Center, but as long as you can remember one turn to get back, you'll be fine. Going south, you are in postal code Atlanta 30339, also called Vinings.

On Akers Mill Road, south of Cumberland Mall and across from Sears is Quizno's Subs.
At the corner of Akers Mill Road and Cobb Parkway is a Barnes and Nobles. Inside is a Starbucks Coffee.
On the same side of the street but further south are:
Olde Mill Steakhouse -- red meat
Mykonos Grill -- local Greek cuisine, but be patient if you go

Then in the Cumberland Festival strip mall you will find:
Planet Smoothie -- Atlanta-based chain, smoothies,
Pizza Hut / Wing Street -- pizza, wings
Philly Connection -- cheesesteaks
Schlotzsky's Deli -- deli sandwiches
Haagen Dazs -- ice cream

If you continue south, past the AT&T tower on the left, you'll find Parkway Pointe shopping center with a Borders Bookstore and a movie theater. There are two outparcels:
Don Pablo's Mexican Kitchen -- Mexican restaurant
Copeland's Famous New Orlean's Restaurant and Bar -- Cajun cuisine, cheesecake, and Sunday brunch begins at 10 AM

Past the light at Cumberland Blvd and still on the left is the Cumberland Pointe shopping center. In there you'll find:
doc green's -- Atlanta-based chain, salads, grill, healthy fare
Shane's rib shack -- barbecue ribs
Moe's southwest grill -- southwest and Mexican food

A little farther south but now on your right will be:
China Moon -- local Chinese & sushi, well-reviewed in the newspaper
T. P. Cigars -- tobacco

And next to them in the Riverview Village shopping center:
Olive Bistro -- Mediterranean cafe, two Atlanta locations
Tomo Japanese Restaurant -- Japanese & sushi
Thai diner -- local Thai
Kroger -- grocery
And along the side that faces Paces Mill not Cobb Pkwy:
Vinings Bottle Shop -- alcohol
Taverna Florentina -- local Italian cuisine

Across the street back on the left side of Cobb Parkway in Vinings Junction shopping center:
Subway -- national sandwich chain
Laseter's Tavern -- nice pub grub
Pizza Construction Co. -- pizza

A little farther south puts you across the Chattahoochee River and into Fulton county.

Food at Akers Mill Square

(Stitched photo: from left to right Soup Garden, Honeybaked, Sprint, Subway, My Friends Place, & Wine Styles.)
South of Cobb Galleria Center is Akers Mill Square Shopping Center. There are several food options here:
Soup Garden -- soups and salads
Honeybaked -- the famous hams
Subway -- sandwiches
My Friends Place -- deli
Wine Styles -- wine & cigars

There are several outparcels in the shopping center. They include:
Hooters -- need I say more?
Chick-fil-A -- Atlanta-based chicken sandwich chain
Chipotle Mexican Grill -- Mexican restaurant
Longhorn Steakhouse -- red meat

Hidden at the far south end but worth finding, between the post office and Toys "R" Us, is Top Spice -- Thai & Malaysian cuisine, a local restaurant with only two locations.

Food at Cumberland Mall

One of the most obvious architectural landmarks on Cobb Parkway/US 41 is the pedestrian bridge connecting Cobb Galleria Centre with Cumberland Mall. If you don't mind walking a little, there are many, many food choices just across the street.

On the Cobb Parkway side of the mall are a number of well-known national restaurant chains.
You will see:
Jason's Deli -- sandwiches and box lunches, located between Sears and Maggiano's
Maggiano's Little Italy -- Italian, including carry out
Cheesecake Factory -- a wide assortment of foods, plus amazing desserts
Ted's Montana Grill -- red meat, founded by Atlantan Ted Turner, located between Cheesecake Factory and P. F. Chang's
P. F. Chang's China Bistro -- Chinese food
Stoney River Legendary Steaks -- more red meat, located at the end of the mall, towards Costco

Inside the mall on the downstairs level:
F2O (Fresh to Order) -- salads and sandwiches, an Atlanta-area chain, located just inside the Costco end of the mall
Planet Smoothie -- Atlanta-based chain offers smoothies, sandwiches, and soups, located in a kiosk toward the Costco end of the mall
Nestle Tollhouse Cafe -- cookies, ice cream, coffee drinks, located in a kiosk toward the Costco end of the mall
Starbucks Coffee -- coffee, pastries, and other nibbles, located in the center court, enter between Cheesecake Factory and P. F. Chang's
Haagen Dazs -- ice cream, located in the center court, enter between Cheesecake Factory and P. F. Chang's

Inside the mall upstairs in the food court, which is towards the Sears end of the mall:
Cinnabon -- cinnamon buns
Tokyo Express -- Japanese carry out
Farmers Basket -- chicken, vegetables, home-style meals
Mandarin Express -- Chinese carry out
A&D Buffalo's -- wings & cheesesteaks
Dairy Queen -- ice cream, burgers, hot dogs
Big Easy Cajun -- Cajun cooking
Taco Bell -- Mexican fast food
Chick-fil-A -- Atlanta-based chicken sandwich fast food, not open on Sundays
Sbarro -- pizza and Italian
Great Wraps -- wraps, sandwiches, pitas, and salads
Auntie Anne's Pretzels -- soft pretzels
Nestle Tollhouse Cafe -- cookies, ice cream, coffee drinks, in a free-standing kiosk

Additionally, there are a number of emphatically-not-Atlanta-based Pepsi vending machines and bubble gum/candy machines throughout the mall.

Food at Cobb Galleria Center

This will be the first of several posts about where to find food while you attend STITCHES South.

The convention is in the Cobb Galleria Centre and Renaissance Waverly Hotel. The Galleria does have a speciality shopping area and there are a few restaurants right there on site. You can also find more information at the official site for the Cobb County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Firstly, let's remember that there are several eating opportunities during the convention. If you are taking The Works or Almost the Works, you already have these. Other attendees can register for these as well:
Thursday lunch from noon to 1 PM, right after the spotlight with Elise Duvekot.
Friday fashion show at 6:30 PM followed by dinner at 8 PM.
Saturday student banquet at 6:30 PM and student fashion show.

Secondly, remember the basics for attending any convention -- bring a no-spill thermos/mug and pack a few granola bars. We don't want anyone surviving off Cheetos and diet Coke. If you don't keep your blood sugar at a good level, you'll be frogging your classwork. Nobody wants that.

Your choices on site:
Chow Baby -- a create your own stir fry restaurant near the main entrance to the Galleria
Jocks and Jills -- a sports bar, located near the entrance by the parking deck
Subway -- national sandwich chain, located in the mall center, near the escalator
China Sun Express -- Chinese & Thai carry out, and Asian ice cream, located in the mall center, near the escalator
Espresso Bar -- a coffee and snack stand, located in the mall center, near the escalator

There will also be concessions on site in the market and expo area.
And there is a Coca-cola machine in the downstairs hallway that leads back to the hotel.

A Sneaky Back Way in to the Galleria

For those of you driving to STITCHES South, we hope you'll find that getting to Cobb Galleria Center and the Renaissance Waverly Hotel is not terribly difficult. Basically, you just follow the interstate highways until you get to the intersection of I-75 and I-285 on the north side of Atlanta. If you are taking classes, there is a nice map with directions in your confirmation packet. That map and those directions are based on this page, direct from the Cobb Galleria Center website.

But for those of you traveling northbound on I-75 from the city, there is a sneaky back way not mentioned on the website. First off, you have to have a friend in the car, because it requires using the HOV lane. If you are driving to STITCHES South from Florida, trust me, it will be worth your time to be in the HOV lanes through downtown Atlanta. After you cross the Chattahoochee River at the Cobb County line, you'll see signs for the I-285 interchange and signs indicating that the HOV lane will end. Stay in the HOV lane past the Cumberland Blvd. exit and exit instead at Akers Mill. It is a left-hand HOV-only exit. The ramp will dead end at a traffic signal. Turn left at the end of the ramp, go to the second light, and turn right. And there you are -- the sneaky back way to the Renaissance Waverly Hotel and Cobb Galleria Center!

Putting it all Together

It is time to assemble the Stitches South flower centerpieces. If you have a kit out, do try to get it back into the hands of someone from the committee (Megan, Elizabeth C., Marian, Linda F., or Whit) as soon as possible and certainly by the end of February. If you can't get your kit done by then, at least let someone on the committee know about it so that contingencies can be planned.

There will be a major assembling party at Whit's house this Saturday 21 February beginning at 1 PM. Some things to bring if you can:

* power strip
* glue gun and glue sticks
* wire cutters
* needle nose pliers
* corrugated cardboard or stiff poster board
* assorted knitting needles, tapestry needles, scissors
* portable Ott lights?

In the picture at top, Elizabeth is holding a very cool flower that was made by LaVonne. Whit is the one on the right, modeling a pink flower.

Knitting Flowers in Duluth

The centerpiece knit-in at Kay's house was quite a success. There were about a dozen people packed in to Kay's dining room. I should add here that Kay's home is decorated in Chinese motifs, and it is quite striking and lovely. There was a little bit of assembling of flowers going on, but mostly the usual knitting, socializing, and snacking.

Amongst our crowd, Madeline brought her granddaughter Siobhan (pronounced Sha-vaughn). Siobhan is already a competent knitter in her own right. With what she can do now, there is no telling what she'll be making in 2029!

Also at the knit-in was Melissa, who is a new guild member. It is always a delight to welcome new knitters to our group. So, if you see Melissa at a meeting, do be sure to go up to her and say, "Hello!" In this picture, you can see that she is working on a giant flower. If you haven't gotten enough experience knitting with multiple strands held together or with large needles, the centerpiece flowers are a chance to expand your range of knitting experiences.

Thank you to Kay for organizing knit-ins and for opening her home. And thank you to everyone who is participating in making the centerpieces. We hope everyone is having fun.

Giant Flowers

There will be several knit-ins over the next couple of months so that the centerpieces for Stitches South can be assembled and embellished. Some of the flowers will also be felted before they are assembled. So, there is lots to do but in typically guild spirit, we'll do it together. Thank you to our members who are opening up their homes in the coming weeks. The upcoming calendar includes:
Saturday 17 January at 2 PM at Kay's house
Friday 30 January at 5 PM potluck at Elizabeth's house
Saturday 21 February 1 PM at Whit's house

Check your newsletter for more information and personal contact details.

Thank you to everyone who is working on this project. Already, some of the kits that went out before the holiday are coming back as completed flower parts. It is so exciting to see the centerpieces beginning to come together! The picture at the top of the page is five petals knit by our secretary, Donna, and a center knit by our historian, Pat. At right, you can see two centers that Pat knit. Very colorful! Many of the flowers are using brightly-colored yarn or novelty yarns that were languishing in our stashes.

This last photo is two trumpet-shaped hanging flowers knit by Nancy W. The flower shapes and colors are very diverse. Each centerpiece will be different, which should make the whole experience that much more interesting for the attendees. It should also be making the creative experience that much more interesting for everyone who is participating.

Centerpieces or installation art?

As previously mentioned, Stitches South will be here in April. XRX Inc. is very kindly permitting us to be involved with their party. This is an opportunity for our guild to shine in front of a regional (possibly national) audience. So, credit goes out to Megan, Elizabeth, Linda F., Marian, and Whit who are off and running with the centerpiece idea. The theme is "Alice in Georgia Land." The items will be over sized fantasy botanicals, including kudzu. Thus, this is a great opportunity for creativity. Each flower can be different in shape, color, and material.



Here is the request for materials:

We Need Your Help!
Clean out a cabinet, closet or drawer and donate an item to help AKG make table decorations for “Stitches”!

Vases, Tea Kettles/Pots, Flower Pots - 7 in. diameter & no more than 1 foot high
Wool fabric to felt
“Unloved yarn” from your stash - bright colors
Feathers, glitzy trimmings, ribbons

Please bring these items to homes of Whit, Elizabeth, Megan, Linda F., or Marian as soon as possible -- i.e. before the December meeting.

This is also a chance for you to clean out the drawers and the stash. Blankets and sweaters that have been felted are very welcome. Fun fur and other odd yarns also add to the design possibilities. Non-felting yarns are very welcome, indeed.

The committee plans to "kit" these up and pass them out at the December meeting. This should be a lot of fun. And the hope is this will bring the sort of honor and glory to our guild that translates into the coolest knitting people wanting to come to our meetings.