Rosemary finished a pair of tweed fingerless mitts.
Louise finished a pair too in a diamond design. Her yarn is from KnitPicks.
Irene finished two alligator scarves. These are nice...
But this is awesome! Sandy stuffed the alligator and added a mouth and legs.
Diana had a big surprise to show us. This is a 20" knitter's loom that she has been eyeing for two years. She purchased it at Fibers, and she told us that she is very impressed with their new store. They have started selling their own gorgeous hand painted yarn and patterns.
Tonight's Project: Mittens/Gloves
Linda read pages 2 & 3 and showed us on her hand how to make each finger for the gloves. She also explained the bottom part on page 1 that starts with "Set thumb aside." The class decided to take one more week for this project instead of starting a new one next week.
She also passed around photos of a future project making animals out of lightly felted yarn or gloves. She will be bringing a hand crank sewing machine to class for use at that time.
Another option is to make the Four Block Hat; a handout for this pattern was given to us. She showed us the difference between the Three Block and the Four Block Hat with a 3-dimensional display.
Knitted Bead Projects
In two weeks, we will start knitting with beads. There are several mini beaded purse necklace patterns to choose from and a scarf. Here is a sample of one of the purse necklaces. Linda L made this beautiful gold one.
For the mini purse necklace, you will need to purchase the following:
one Perle cotton yarn size 8 thread (either Anchors or DMC, Auburn Needleworks carry both; Linda prefers Anchors),
0000 (quad ot) needles (Auburn Needleworks has these little ones for $5),
and seed beads either size 10 or 11 (size 10 is better; the higher the number the smaller the bead). Gypsy Wind in old town (Auburn) has a good supply of beads on hanks.
When buying seed beads for this project, get the ones already on strings. Several strings make a hank, and one hank makes several mini purses. Loose beads will take too long to string. It helps to have a big eye needle, but it is not necessary. Beverly's carries big eye needles which looks like a small, thin piece of wire with a slit in the middle. Gypsy Wind also has big eye needles, but they are too long according to Linda.
For the Susan Undulating Wave scarf, you will need to buy 4 packages of size 6 beads like the photo below. These beads are much larger than the seed beads. This package is from Gypsy Wind and costs $2. It is best to buy all four packages at one time. We will also need 2 skeins (really 1-1/2 skeins) of Cascade 220 and size 7 needles. Cascade 220 is a light worsted weight yarn.
Yarn and beads should be in contrasting color for the design to stand out, and it makes it easier to see while knitting. Linda is going to use black yarn with stain glass color beads. During the next class Linda will teach us how to string beads in preparation for the beaded projects in two weeks. So next week, bring seed beads and Perle cotton yarn for the mini purse necklace or size 6 beads, a sewing needle, and regular thread for the scarf.
It was also suggested that a magnifying glass that hangs around your neck or strong reading glasses would be helpful when working with seed beads.
Ideas for Challenges
Linda gave us a choice from three projects she came up with for the Art Walk. The choices were 1) a one-piece swimsuit representing different countries, 2) 50 State flowers, and 3) finger puppets. We decided on #2 since #1 is similar to the bra and #3 is similar to the dolls we made last year. Making 50 flowers means that we will need to make more than one state flower per person, and we would like to recruit past knotty knitters to join us in this project. Diana will compile the email list of past Knotty Knitters. A sign up list of the states and the state flowers will be passed around next week. (Louise already asked for Oregon, and Linda's daughter will make Florida.) The flowers can be knitted, crocheted, felted, beaded, embellished, etc. "Just have fun with it."
Here is an example of a flower. Linda will supply the bed spring stem for a small fee.
Finger Puppets
Stitches West
A list went around to find out which day would work out better to go to Stitches West in Santa Clara. So far, there are 5 for Friday, 6 for Saturday, and 2 maybes & 4 for Friday/Saturday (spend one night). We also talked about getting a coach from Auburn to Santa Clara. Linda will ask Lisa if she would like to work together in getting a bus since about 50 passengers will be needed.
Long Range Goal
Linda must decide by next week whether to have classes with ARD in the Fall. She was hoping to make this decision later on to see if more students will enroll or come back in the Spring. The minimum number of students needed for this trimester to make it a go for her was not reached, so she does not know what to do in the future. She can make better wages with less students through Placer School for Adults, but it would mean less sessions and higher fees for us ($88 for 10 weeks, probably one session in the Fall and one in the Spring). A couple of the students said they would join her class whatever she decides, and one said she likes the clean tables, chairs, and room at ARD. She would like our feedback so please email or talk to her personally as soon as you can.
More News
Sue came back from her trip to Seattle and gave us a great report on the yarn shop called Tricote. She has never been to a shop where you can stay for hours to browse and knit, have your measurements taken for sweaters and get advice on which patterns and yarn work for one's body type, have someone finish projects for you if you like, and feel warmth and friendliness from the staff the whole time. The shop was amazing with walls of yarn and rows of buttons. She went back to the shop for several days and showed us their first book of patterns they designed.
Sarah is recovering from her bike accident. She writes, "I am doing much better. My clavicle and scapula are healing well, I no longer have to wear an "Immobilizer" to hold my arm slammed up against my body. Now the challenge is to gain back the range of motion and strength in my arm that I lost while immobilized. Every day brings some new accomplishment, and less soreness. I am looking forward to getting back on my bike, hopefully in the next week or two after this rain stops. I have been knitting, trying to complete a sweater project that I've had around for a while. I finished off a couple of small Christmas gifts while recovering too. Say hi to everyone in class for me."
Be happy and knit on!
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