March 2011

GROUP NEWS

• Katoomba sheltered workshop requires ponchos. They have people that must wait for the workshop bus in cold conditions. Getting a sweater or coat on and off is time consuming and ponchos are ideal. However after many washings, they are running low. Anyone who wants to help should see Noreen. They are to be knitted in acrylic as it isn't as heavy as wool and will stand up to repeated washing. All sizes are needed.


• Patterns for the puppets for Samaritans Purse boxes are again available from Terry.


• The Craft Fair was held at Rose Hill for four days. Terry had three sweaters on display which attracted lots of comment and admiration. People were very surprised that a man had designed and knitted them. One woman saw the patchwork sweater and wanted the pattern, however Terry's sweaters are not charted they just evolve. He did offer to sell it to her for $500 but she was not happy to spend that much. More than 200 memberships forms were handed out during the 3 days .

EXECUTIVE NEWS

• Our President, Merrin, talked about the AGM and thanked all that made the effort to come. The new constitution was passed and a copy will be sent with the next newsletter. The newsletter has been held up so that all the information from the AGM can be included.


• Thanks was given to Clare for her work as the newsletter editor. She is stepping down after several years.


• Terry was elected Vice President but will remain our convenor. Merrin was re-elected as President.


• A verbal diary project is underway to get memories of the original Guild members explaining the history and background of the Guild in NSW.


• A proposal has been put to the guild that group names be location rather than locale so that they are more specific. No changes will be made without extensive consultation with each group as there is a lot involved in a name change.


• The new Katoomba group hopes to open May 7th and then be run on the first Saturday of the month from 1.30. It will be held in all new rooms in the Katoomba town centre which has 2 rooms, an exhibition space and a full kitchen.

ORENBURG LACE WORKSHOP: 26th & 27th March
Those attending the Orenburg Lace workshop are reminded to bring $25 to cover yarn, 2.5mm -3.5mm needles, lunch and afternoon tea.

BUS TRIP
On 9th April, the Blue Mountains Bus Company is running a bus trip to the Farmers Markets in Orange and the Yarn Market at Molong. Pickup at Panthers and various places in the Blue Mountains.

WORKSHOP
 A workshop was held during today's meeting in which we were introduced to the techniques of entrelac knitting. The goal was a 6" share of garter stitch knitting. Participants voted to have a second workshop covering knitting entrelac "on point", in either garter stitch or stocking stitch.



some of the participants in the workshop



The raffle was won by Rhonda.

NEXT MONTH

• Retail – wooldance yarn and fibre
• Workshop - part 2 of the entrelac workshop
• Afternoon tea – Robyn M, Rosalin, Monica and Lynne

SHOW AND TELL PHOTOS

our capable MC

President Merrin with a piece of her jacket
designed by Jane Slicer-Smith

Kate's White Lies cardigan

Ambassador of Love mitten

Jo's shrug

Denise's crocheted blanket

Venetta's fair isle cardigan

March meeting

Visitors, Angie, Kay and Laurel, were welcomed.
GUILD NEWS
Merrin is now president of The Knitters Guild of NSW
GROUP NEWS
Merrin is stepping down as our convenor. We wish to thank her for her years as convenor and secretary and wish her well in her new role.
Merrin visited the Southern Highlands group and has a copy of a very clever one piece slipper pattern from them. If you would like a copy please see Merrin.
There are two extra raffle prizes this month as Evelyn and Rex Reynolds donated two balls of wool at the last meeting.
More names are needed on the afternoon tea roster.

SHOW RESULTS
Blacktown Show
1st prize – Shawl – Merrin
Castle Hill Show
1st prize – Aran – Merrin

2nd prize – Handspun other than wool – bamboo – Suzanne

1st prize – Garment made of alpaca fiber – Suzanne
1st prize – Specimen of handspun alpaca – Suzanne
1st prize – Handmade article made from handspun yarn – Suzanne
1st prize – Specimen of fine handspun wool – Suzanne
Annual Show champion Spinning K1-K5 – Suzanne
Well done to the both of you.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

• 11 April – Up the M4 Ravelry knitting group are meeting at upstairs The Red Cow, Jane St Penrith, 1:30pm.
• CANCELLED 14-18 April – The Stitches and Craft Show; Technology Park, Redfern. Sally will be collecting for Winter Warmers (hats for children in Afghanistan) at the Show Sunday 14th April only. Sally will also represent Winter Warmers at the in Show August at the Rosehill Racecourse.
• 17 July – workshop – Lynne Johnson – Feral knitting – all day; $40 for members; money must be paid at the April meeting.
• 21 August – workshop – Jude Skeers – Moebius knitting – all day; $40 for members; money must be paid at the April meeting.
• 17 September – The Lawson Public School P&C Art and Craft Show; submissions of work in knitting, crocheting, quilting and/or felting for exhibition and sale are invited. Please contact Cheryl Adams 47591823 if interested.
• 16 October – Members’ Annual Stash Sale; clean out your cupboards and bring unwanted fibre, yarn and books.

RETAIL VISIT
Anita from The Wool Inn showed us this year’s Jo Sharp designs. They are quite versatile. Cardigans that can be worn two ways, bustiers and coats. We can try them on and look at them in her store until the end of March.

WORKSHOP

Vicki taught us how to use our strange-looking Tunisian crochet hooks. They look like a crocket hook on the ned of a straight knitting needle. Each participant was given individual attention so that we got the hang of this strange technique. It makes quite a thick fabric that would be ideal for towels and face washers. Thank you Vicki for an interesting and informative workshop.

NEXT MONTH

Anita will be teaching us how to make a very special Hungarian rug. You need to bring 5 different colours of 8 ply yarn and a 5mm crochet hook . To finish the rug you need approx 20 balls of yarn. Anita recommends yarn made of wool for this rug and has kits of colourways in the store for $80.

Afternoon tea will be provided by Lynne, Susan, Merrin and Rosalin.

SHOW AND TELL

RAFFLE RESULTS

Wool Inn voucher - Annette

skein of wool - Merrin and Judy

We start them young at the Blue Mountains group!

April meeting

A large number of people were in attendance at this meeting.

A coordinator has been appointed to take over the newsletter for the Knitters' Guild of NSW.

The exhibition that was to be held at Dence Park has been cancelled. No word yet on what is expected for the exhibition to be held at Darling Harbour in June.

The Scarf Exchange details were handed out; finished scarves are to be ready for the July meeting.

A list of charities supported by our members was made and will be forwarded to the state executive. This included the Salvation Army, CANTEEN, Operation Christmas Child, Australian Inland Mission and Wrap with Love.

Payment of $25 was taken from those who wish to participate in the workshop with Liz Gemmell next month. The workshop will commence at 10am. Morning tea will be provided; bring your own lunch.

The second of our workshops on entrelac was held; this time involving the use of triangles as a foundation, knitting on the bias and using stocking stitch. Thanks again to our wonderful tutor, Raelene, for making what looks so difficult easy to understand. An informal discussion was held regarding the need for a workshop on casting on/off techniques. We wish Raelene all the best as she travels north for the next few months - have a great trip.

A large range of knitted and some crocheted items were displayed during Show-n-Tell.

The raffle this month was won by Lesley.

November meeting and AGM

Our new executive:
Convener - Merrin
Secretary - Cheyne
Treasurer - Rosemary

Volunteers
Workshops - David
P.R. - Rosemary
Hospitality - Yvonne
Library - Lesley
Blog - Lynne

Congratulations to all incoming executive and volunteers, thanks for taking on these roles. A big thank you to the outgoing treasurer [Merrin] and convener [Kate] - you both did a tremendous job in your respective roles, thank you.

After the official business was ended, a workshop on grafting [Kitchener stitch] for stocking stitch and garter stitch was held - thanks, Raelene, as usual you were helpful, thorough and easy to understand.

Show and Tell brought many beautiful items from knitted lace to a colourful no-pattern cardigan.

The raffle was won by Merrin, second prize by Cheyne.

The December meeting will be a Christmas party; everyone is asked to bring a small plate of food. Ainsworth Books will also be present for some retail therapy - please bring cash only as Ainsworth Books does not take debit/credit cards.

October meeting

We had a visit from Jenny Dunn from Virginia Farm Wool Works - some retail therapy was involved! Jenny also gave us an inspirational talk on needle felting and dyeing.

Some lovely items were displayed in Show'n'Tell: David's "Henry VIII" is progressing well. Perhaps some photos at the next meeting! Lynne's lace wrap was much admired. The surprise jacket from the front of the last Guild newsletter was shown by Jo - very cute and so small!

The raffle of a gift voucher from The Wool Inn [Penrith] was won by Lois.

Members and guests are reminded that next month's workshop will be on grafting [Kitchener stitch]. Please bring two samples of stocking stitch [2in x 2in - 5cm x 5cm] and two samples of garter stitch to the workshop with you. Make sure all four samples are still on the needles [i.e. four needles - one for each sample]. You will also needs a wool sewing needle and some yarn.

Members are also reminded that next month is our annual general meeting - the position of treasurer is vacant; please consider putting yourself forward - it is not a time consuming task but some mathematical acumen and computer skills would be helpful!

July meeting

Congratulations to Merrin on a well-run meeting in the absence of our leader, Kate, who was sick at home.

Members were reminded that the Begleys in Victoria are not accepting any more donations of jumpers for AIDS orphans; however, Denise, who represents Operation Christmas Child, is accepting the jumpers for inclusion in the shoe-boxes.

After the general business of the meeting, some members offered their favourite knitting tips. One, learnt from Liz Gemmell, is to weigh a finished article if you need to knit a second article and can't remember how much yarn you actually used. Of course, this only works if knitting in a similar yarn; one can't compare 8ply mohair with 8ply pure wool. An extension of this idea would be to weigh the first sleeve to determine if you have enough yarn to complete the second sleeve. Also, if knitting small items, like babies' jumpers, using odd balls, weigh the original garment to determine if you have enough yarn to complete another! You can mix and match odd balls of yarn to create the right weight! Digital kitchen scales are ideal for weighing yarn as they weigh as little as 1 gram.

Another tip: use corks from wine bottle (some non-alcoholic wines also use corks) as point protectors for your needles and to keep the knitting from sliding off the needles while travelling. One member has been using the same cork for over 30 years!

A workshop was held on the use of two circulars for knitting in the round. Each participant who didn't bring two circulars was given two to practice with - great preparation, Margaret. The technique, while relatively simple, was much easier to understand when practised rather than observed. Margaret also gave a demonstration and practical help to anyone wanting to try knitting in the round on one circular, also known as the magic loop method. Thank you, Margaret, for simple and clear instructions on both methods.

Many interesting items were shown during Show 'n' Tell, including a pair of knee high socks knitted on two needles that have been on the needles for over thirty years! No raffle was held due to unforeseen circumstances.

Our condolences to Merrin on the recent loss of her father.

June meeting

We had a very inspirational talk from Wendy Townsend - the work she showed us inspired us and amazed us!

Wendy used to knit and crochet. She designed her own jumpers although she didn't always knit them - she had a team of knitters working for her (as many designers do). Here is a jumper she designed for one of her daughters. And this is what you do with those dozens of tension swatches you've made over the years.

Wendy has now turned to felting - this lovely summer blanket is made from felt.
Wendy's felt is made from roving, not knitted items which are then felted. After the afternoon tea break, Wendy gave a demonstration of felting - the blanket must have taken hundreds of hours because it is not a quick technique!

More of Wendy's work can be seen at this webpage.

Show and Tell revealed the usual array of style and items, including Diane's steeked fingerless gloves.

The raffle winner for this month was Janette Strong. Her prize was a voucher from The Wool Inn, Penrith.

Thanks to Susan for taking photos at this meeting.

Members reminders:
* if interested, please register for the camp (long weekend Sept/Oct)
* bring your favourite knitting hint/tool to the meeting next month to share with other members