July saw an informative program put on by Nancy, in which she demonstrated her new and improved software/database program. This updated version is unlike any other knitting software on the market. Not so much a program for designing knits, as it is a program for calculating yarn usage, converting gauges, tracking yarn, content, colors and weights, and what your author could really use, a place for tracking your patterns so that they can be found again, and easily!
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| Nancy demonstrates her software |
The pattern tracking capability works in such a way that you don’t have to know exactly which pattern you want, rather what type of item you’re in the mood to make, or simply the color. For example, I want to make a sweater. If I search for sweater, every sweater pattern I’ve entered (and yes, there is a place for photos) will come up. I can narrow it down by size, sex or even color (say I wanted to make a blue sweater). Voila! Up will pop the sweater patterns I’ve entered that match the criteria of my search! Of course, databases are only as good as the information entered into them, so it would behoove us to enter as much information as is possible. This would be very time-consuming and take away from actual knitting time, but oh so worth it down the road, if you’re like me and have hundreds, if not thousands, of patterns to dig through.
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| Students listening closely to Nancy's presentation |
The yarn tracking capability works in much the same way as the pattern tracking. You can search through all the yarns by color, fiber content or weight. Again, as long as you do the requisite updating to the database, you should be able to find the perfect yarn in your stash for your project, and be able to calculate if you have enough (or enough left) for the project at hand.
If you’re interested in this software, please contact Nancy. Her contact information is in your membership book (I won’t post that information on the World Wide Web—your author believes in as much computer safety/security as is in her power to provide).
In addition to the program, there were some fun knits for show and tell:
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| Fun knits! Everyone was excited to discover that the yarn for Cindy J's lime green scarf could be used on a machine, as it was Patons Lace Sequin yarn. The sequins don't jam the machine or break off! |
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| Hats galore, made by Joann |
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| A pretty, sparkly poncho/shawl |
