Did You Know?

 

 

 

We all know that the only way to knit with a heavier yarn on a standard gauge machine you have to knit with every other needle, and even then results may be sketchy at best. However, did you know that you can knit with a lightweight yarn (fingering or lighter) on the bulky machine and get a light, airy fabric?

 

With spring finally upon us we are looking for ways to knit lightweight fabrics. Tired of mittens, hats, scarves and sweaters? Try knitting a tuck stitch wrap, shawl or fashion scarf on the bulky machine (either punch card or electronic tuck) with a lightweight yarn! With plenty of weight, and good blocking, you will end up with a beautiful lacy project perfect for warm summer evenings! Experiment with this technique for other things, too, like table runners or lacy antimacassars.
 

Who knew? Now you do!

To see examples of this technique, see the previous post titled: "Show Me The Money".

Show Me The Money!

March is here, and spring has officially begun according to the calendar, but of course this is MinneSNOWta, and we’ve been getting some good snowstorms. For some reason Ma Nature just loves to hold off on the major snowstorms until the end of the winter just to toy with us. Maybe that’s where the term “March Madness” comes from? Just a thought.

 

Anyway, other than looking forward to spring, there is another March event that the MKGM now eagerly anticipates each year, and that is our major fund-raiser, the Silent Auction! This month saw our third annual Silent Auction, and there were some really fun bidding wars going on for a few of the items available. Sure, those that won those items may have overpaid a little for them, but the money all goes to a good cause: our guild!

 

There was no program for this meeting, of course, but Judy passed out different slipper patterns to every member, admonishing us not to open the sealed envelopes until we got home, and no trading allowed! Each of us is to knit the pattern in the envelope, then share the finished slippers and give our critique of the pattern at the next meeting; what we liked, what we didn’t like, what we would change, or whether the pattern was worth knitting in the first place.

 

Yarn for sale!

 

Some kits along with the yarn to knit them! And one of those teeny tiny looms. Remember those?

 

Even old magazines are good for ideas and techniques, if not patterns.

 

Lots more magazines and yarn.

 

Occasionally a knitting machine shows up for auction. This year there were three. The machines may not knit, anymore, but they are a great source for parts that might not be obtainable, anymore.

 

Auctioning off a partial can of Coke. Okay, not really, but there was a yarn winder, knitting needles, another knitting machine, patterns and even a stamping kit for other fiber-related crafts.

 

Lots of hand-knitting needles. Somebody must have decided that they don't want to take that kind of time to produce knits, anymore. Lots and lots and lots of patterns, technique books, kits and yarn.

 

More yarn. Isn't that royal blue gorgeous?

 

Assortment of different yarn remnants and a lace angel kit!

 

More yarn. That big blue ball in the plastic up front was won by yours truly! Also, that blue in the back left. Now it just needs to get up and knit itself into something. What, you mean I have to help it?

 

Perusing this year's goodies.

 

Taking a shopping break.

There were also show and tell items. The auction isn't all about shopping!

 

 

Donna made this really lovely neck-warmer.

 

And a very nice blanket.

 

Nancy made this "thinking cap". It's a brain! The knitting wasn't so difficult, just a basic hat, and many, many feet of i-cord. What took so long was tacking that i-cord to the hat! She made two of them, and decided that's enough!

 

Marilyn shows off one of the knit and fleece hats she made that Ellen had demonstrated (see previous post).

 

She also made this gumdrop hat.

 

New member, Sue, shows off a shawl she made at the knit-in. Can you believe this was knit on the bulky machine by using lightweight yarn? Look how light and lofty it turned out by doing it this way! Who'd a thunk it?

 

The other shawl Sue knit on the bulky machine. Ready for spring!

 

Bruce's take on the circular baby blanket.

 

This one in fun, suimmery colors!

 

Bruce is also a weaver, and showed off some of the weaving he has done.

 

Mar shows how you can salvage a boo-boo. This is one of Ellen's knit/fleece hats, but because it was knit too short, rather than gather the top, which would make it even shorter, she simply sewed straight across and made it a square hat. Don't unravel, get creative!

 

Mar is also working on meeting her charity hat quota. She's pretty close, already, and it's only March!

 

Loads more hats!

 

Carol also did Ellen's hats in a couple of sizes.

 

Polly made bags.

 

And is that not the most fun hat you've ever seen?

What To Do With Ourselves

February is here, and we’re all getting cabin fever. Winter is a long, grueling ordeal in Minnesota, lasting anywhere up to seven months. With over half of the calendar year spent buried under snow, slipping on the ice and dealing with slush, as the days start to get noticeably longer Minnesotans get antsy. MKGM guild members are no different. Sure, we can knit to pass the time until spring finally arrives, and we knit a lot (as evidenced by the plethora of photos below), but there are other things we can do, too…like bring our 50th anniversary plans to fruition!

 

Our February meeting was a productive one. Our microphone and speaker were purchased! We can now hear much easier! The business cards we discussed were finished and passed out to members, who in turn are to pass them on to prospective members. Don’t forget to write your name and your own phone number on the back before giving them out because the guild doesn’t have its own number, and we want our potential new friends to have a contact person! The brochures are ready to go to the printer, and will be available at the March meeting.

 

We have a date for our big 50th anniversary soiree! It will be held on Saturday, October 5th. It will be held in the building and room where we have our bi-monthly knit-ins. Details are being hammered out by the 50th anniversary committee, but save the date! It should be an evening to remember!

 

Even more ideas were passed around at this meeting as to how we can spread the machine-knitting word and get ourselves “out there”. There are any number of fiber fairs, county fairs, and, of course, the State Fair, which we’ve always been a part of, but it was also suggested that perhaps we become a part of World Wide Knit in Public Week. WWKiP is an annual event held specifically to raise awareness of knitting, and we figured why should the hand-knitters get all the notoriety? Your author participated in the event last year held at her friend’s yarn shop, and as the only machine knitter there, people were naturally drawn to see just what that thing was. Talk about your perfect PR moment! The hand-knitters at the event were also extremely jealous of how fast your author could whip out a pair of socks (half an hour vs. several days)!

 

Ellen did a presentation of a really nifty ear flap hat, which demonstrated how machine sewing and knitting can be used together. The outside of the hat was knit, but the lining was a piece of fleece fabric that was sewn to the knitted portion of the hat. Talk about warm and cozy, and still usable at this time of year in Minnesota, as some of our coldest weather can come in February!

 

With yarn he was given by Mar, Bruce knits up a gorgeous afghan!

 

And has enough left over to knit a small shawl or scarf.

 

Marilyn made this cute charity hat.

 

And has moved on to yet another sock.

 

Karen introduces Sponge Bob Square Hat! He's from a kit that Polly passed out at a previous meeting with her demo on squares and rectangles and what to do with them.

 

Karen has been busy meeting her quota of charity hats for the year.

 

As has Ellen. Lots of cute hats in all sorts of sizes, and all in double thickness over the ears for added warmth.

 

More hats knit with really neat tonal yarns!

 

Amanda's husband knit up this sweater for himself.

 

Amanda has been working on baby items.

 

She also knit up this shawl, which is super easy knit with short rowing.

 

And another of those popular circular baby blankets.

 

Polly made this pretty drape front cardigan.

 

And a bag. Doesn't the pattern almost look like entrelac?

 

Carol made this cute baby sweater.

 

It's really hard to make out, but this is a baby blanket with a cat pattern in it.

 

Pretty blue cardigan.

 

Felted cardigan. After her husband passed away, Carol took some of his old wool sweaters and felted them down to fit her. Reduce, reuse, recycle!

 

Mar came up with this little baby sweater.

 

And matching hat.

 

Cute felted mittens!

 

Easy-peasy stuffed bear toys!

 

Pretty scarf.

 

Mar's famous Estonian headbands with fun colors and patterns.

 

And loads of different headbands with knit flower trim.

 

Donna made this cowl/neckwarmer.

 

And a pretty lacy scarf.

 

Leg warmers! Who knew they'd come back and give us something new to knit?

 

Cindy is proud of having learned to do fair-isle.

 

Mar made this neck warmer quite some time ago, but it was too beautiful not to photograph. The colors match her shirt perfectly!