Kitchener-Waterloo Knitters' Guild Newsletter
Kitchener-Waterloo Knitters’ Guild Newsletter
Meeting: February 10, 2015 First United Church William & King Streets, Waterloo 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Knit and Chat 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Guild Meeting
A Word from the President
Donna Hancock, Wellington Fibres KWKG Executive 2014-2015: These are the people who volunteer to make your Guild the best it can be
Our speaker at our last meeting mentioned that felted mittens were used by fishermen in Newfoundland to keep their hands warm when fishing and hauling nets in the north Atlantic. A few weeks ago, I learned first hand that felted mittens do really work.
A few years ago, my son asked for a warm pair of mittens to wear when riding his bicycle in all kinds of weather. He had tried various gloves and still had cold hands, especially when it was wet or windy.
President: Carol Moogk-Soulis, [email protected] Vice President: [email protected] Past President: Dee-Anne Shillinglaw, [email protected] Membership: Iris Levine [email protected] Treasurer: Elaine Rendle, [email protected] Secretary: Kim McLean, [email protected] Programme: Stephanie Trotter, [email protected]
That Christmas I gave him felted mittens, or rather, I gave him two balls of wool and a promise of mittens to come. It was at Easter dinner at his grandmother’s who had a top loading washing machine, that we ran down to the basement every 15 minutes to check on the felting progress and to fit the mittens to his hands. They solved his cold hands problem. My son is also a sailor and a few weeks ago he added ice boat sailing on Lake Ontario to his activities. The first day was -20 degrees C with winds of 30 kph and a sunny sky. They reached sailing speeds of 50 kph. The next day it
Continued on page 2…
Goodwill: [email protected] Library: Toni Peter, [email protected] Volunteer Coordinator: Erin McKee, [email protected] Adjudicated Show: Heather Adams, Erin Wilk, [email protected] Newsletter: Ellen Lovell, [email protected]
Communications: Johanna Botari, [email protected] Fair Coordinator: Jennifer Dellow, [email protected] Website: Caroline Simpson, [email protected] Non-Executive Volunteers: Raffle Table: Alfie Galda & Melissa Keith Yarn Table: Laurie Blaikie, Leah McKeen, Selina Siu & Tabi Ferguson
Charity: Kate Seely
President’s Message Continued from page 1
rained but the temperature was just at freezing with winds of 40 kph. The sailing was even better with speeds of 70 kph. And the mittens? Graham reported that even when the mittens were dripping with water and he could feel the wind at times on his knuckles, his hands were always warm! It is good to know that as knitters, while what we produce can be fragile, complicated and breathtakingly beautiful, our knitting can also fill a very practical need using a very old technique.
Carol
Program Update: February Meeting: Donna Hancock Wellington Fibres This month we are pleased to announce that our speaker is Donna Hancock. She a local landmark and has been a part of the local fiber arts scene for more than 15 years. Donna owns Wellington Fibers, the Fiber mill and yarn store. Wellington Fibers processes both small batch fiber from local Canadian farms and their own angora from the 40 odd angora goats that they have. They also have a fiber store that sells spinning and knitting supplies made with their own mohair. Donna will give us a virtual tour of the mill and hopefully give us a bit of background on her own knitting history and her presence in the community.
Stephanie
Charity Table: Charity ties in nicely with our theme this year which is “knitting culture and community”. Why not pick up a project and help make someone’s life a little better?
2
Membership Update:
Just a quick update this month, but a big one! With the return of two long-standing members of the guild, and one new member, we’ve reached 150 members! To give you an idea of the scale of our guild; if each member knit one 8-inch square, we could make a blanket over 6 feet wide and 10 feet long. Working in pairs, we could make enough hat and mitten sets for 75 members of the community in need of a warm-up. Or, if we acted individually, each turning one friend to the dark side, we could teach 150 more people in the world how to knit. After getting side-tracked by knitting a few extra items for the Under-Appreciated Finished Object fundraiser at Shall We Knit? And giving a good effort for the Uptown Stash Down, I’m finally getting back to working on belated holiday gifts. However, I hope the rest of you are getting a chance to relax and knit something for yourself. This month’s door prize might help with that! Two skeins of Morgana (http://www.ravelry.com/yarns/library/estelle-morgana) will make a quick-to-knit, indulgent treat for you. With its metallic sheen, the peacock greens and golds, and the regal purples and blues, it will knit up into a great hat, cowl or set of mitts to get you through the rest of winter with style. Don’t forget to pick up your door prize ticket on the way in!
Iris
3
Library Update It's winter- there is snow everywhere, it's dark, and worst of all its cold. Just makes you want to curl up and knit something. Especially if it will keep you warm after! Here are this months books, so you can knit up some warm socks on straight needles or maybe a warm sweater.
Toni
What's new? Knitting on Top of the World by Nicki Epstein Knitting and Tea by Jane Gottelier
The Amazing Thing About the Way it Goes by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Entrelac 2 by Rosemary Drysdale
Twigg Stitch by Vicki Twigg Knit Your Socks on Straight by Alice Curtis
4
Yarn Table
Volunteer Corner
The yarn table is a great way to get rid of any yarns you don't want to make room for new stash. Just set prices and bring a list of your yarns/quantities/prices with your name on it. Bring your change and don’t forget to scope out the yarn table for new-to-you bargains, too!
Volunteering is a great way to meet fellow members. Opportunities arise from time to time for helping out at a particular meeting or event.
The Guild keeps 10% of sales and the Guild and volunteers are not responsible for lost or damaged items. Please check the website for additional information.
Other Stuff
If you are able to help out, please contact Erin McKee, the volunteer coordinator, during a meeting or at [email protected].
Erin
The website team is working on a members-only section of the website. In this section, you will be able to find executive meeting minutes, budgets, and year end reports. This information will also be available in a binder at the library. It is important for the members to have access this information, but it is not information that needs to be posted for the general public. All of the information that you are used to seeing on the website—newsletters, meeting information, etc.—will still be publically available.
Caroline
Knit and Chat Before the Monthly Knitter's Guild Meeting The hall at First United Church is open to us before our meeting. We can gather to knit and chat from 6:30 on. The membership table and library will be open at 7:00. Our meeting will take place as usual from 7:30 to 9:30.
Newsletter Have you ever wanted to submit a piece to be published in the newsletter? Send any inquiries or entries to [email protected]. All entries must be submitted by 2 weeks before the next Guild meeting date. The next submission deadline will be for the March Newsletter: February 24, 2015. Every time you send something in to be printed in the newsletter, you get a chance to win a gift certificate in May.
Ellen
5
Goodwill Do you know of a Guild member with recent news, good or bad? The Guild would like to hear about them, to send our congratulations or our condolences. Please email [email protected] or speak to any member of the executive with the news of the Guild.
December Meeting – Raffle Winners Dixie Lee Arbuckle
Pink Project bag with large stitch holders
Gail Ivanco
“PURL” stitch markers
Lisa Kennedy
Notions wallet
Aileen Kennedy
Tape measure
Cornelia Cunningham Travel pocket bag Carol Moogk-Soulis
Needle gauge
Carol Moogk-Soulis
Small locking stitch markers
Cornelia Cunningham Lavender paper soap Lisa Kennedy
Floral notions pouch
Raffle Notes The speaker or a volunteer draws the first winner, then each winner will draw the next name until all the prizes are drawn.
January Meeting – Show & Tell Stephanie Trotter
Hand spun shawl
Victoria Lewin
Out of Darkness Shawl
Toni Peter
Melody the Waldorf doll
Chris Klassen
Trio of Cables sweater
Dee-Anne Shillinglaw
Colour Grade Cowl
Barbara Kerr
Rooster mitts , That Nice Stitch cowl & mitts
Barb Dares
Knee Socks
Dixie Lee Arbuckle
Socks on 2 straight needles
Erin Wilk
Rainbow Princess Kitty
Purchase three tickets for $1.
Show and Tell Bring in an item or two and tell us all about it! We’re always excited to hear about your firsts for projects! What did you learn making your items? What funny stories can you tell us about the items you are showing us? Get the praise and attention you deserve for all your hard work!
6
Announcements: All Strung Out Due to the rising costs of yarn and overhead, All Strung Out is no longer able to continue the discount on yarn for Guild members.
Parking I would like to remind everyone to not park in the church parking lot. It is very tiny, many meetings run concurrently with our own, and there is not enough space for everyone. The Town Square lot that is right beside the church is free and spacious. Please park there.
Brentwood on the Beach The 2015 knitter's retreat is scheduled for April 17 – 19, 2015 at Brentwood on the Beach, located on a private sandy beach at St Joseph shores.
The facility includes a indoor saltwater pool and hot tub and sauna. The cost is $295.00 inclusive. To book your spot, please contact: Bev Mawdsley, 519-634-8615 or [email protected]
Bev 7
Words from your Local Yarn Stores (LYS)
Knit and Chats
Alpaca Acres welcomes visitors to our farm and store. Call 519-625-1064 or visit www.alpacaacres.ca
Tuesday 4th Tuesday evening of the month from 7 pm to 9 pm at the Region of Waterloo Public Health and Social Services Building in room 210/211 located on the second floor. Diehard chatters meet every week. Knit Night at Chapters Waterloo, 2nd Tuesday of every month in the store at Chapters. Knit & Chat in Cambridge at the Java Garden from 7 – 9pm every Tuesday night. The Java Garden is at 2 Queen Street East. Parking is free: either on the street or in parking lots. For more information, contact Wendy at Millpond Records & Books 519658-9641. All Strung Out 6-9 pm at 36 Quebec St., Guelph .
All Strung Out 36 Quebec St., Guelph 226-820-3766 www.allstrungout.ca Shall We Knit? 11 Willow St., Waterloo www.shallweknit.com Needle Beetle - For original colourwork, intarsia, lace & texture knitting patterns www.needlebeetle.com Woolverine, downtown Kitchener 93 King Street West, 2nd floor www.woolverine.ca DocKnits 651 Goderich Street Port Elgin, ON www.docknits.ca
Monday All Strung Out 6-9 pm at 36 Quebec St., Guelph .
Wednesday All Strung Out 11 am to 4 pm at 36 Quebec St., Guelph Downtownknitmob: informal meetings, 6:30-9pm, Queen St. Commons in Kitchener. See Ravelry for details. Thursday Uptownknitmob: informal meetings, 6-9 pm, in various Uptown Waterloo locations. See Ravelry for details. Knitting Nonchalantly: We are just a small group of people who like to socialize with knitting needles in hand. We are a group that has lots of fun and never takes itself too seriously! We meet every Thursday from 4-6pm at 7 Shores in Waterloo (on Regina), though to be honest, we are often gone by 520pm. We are a diverse group welcoming of all abilities, walks of life and interests. None among us are master knitters/crocheters, but anything we do know, we are happy to share with someone who asks. We value that it is a small, quiet group and like that there is an openness to people just sitting and chatting. Not everyone feels like knitting for the entire time - or at all! We would encourage anyone interested in joining our group to stop by and check it out! Friday Shall We Knit? from early afternoon until closing in Waterloo. Saturday All Strung Out 1-4 pm at 36 Quebec St., Guelph
8
Meeting: February 10, 2015 First United Church William & King Streets, Waterloo 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Knit and Chat 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Guild Meeting
A Word from the President
Donna Hancock, Wellington Fibres KWKG Executive 2014-2015: These are the people who volunteer to make your Guild the best it can be
Our speaker at our last meeting mentioned that felted mittens were used by fishermen in Newfoundland to keep their hands warm when fishing and hauling nets in the north Atlantic. A few weeks ago, I learned first hand that felted mittens do really work.
A few years ago, my son asked for a warm pair of mittens to wear when riding his bicycle in all kinds of weather. He had tried various gloves and still had cold hands, especially when it was wet or windy.
President: Carol Moogk-Soulis, [email protected] Vice President: [email protected] Past President: Dee-Anne Shillinglaw, [email protected] Membership: Iris Levine [email protected] Treasurer: Elaine Rendle, [email protected] Secretary: Kim McLean, [email protected] Programme: Stephanie Trotter, [email protected]
That Christmas I gave him felted mittens, or rather, I gave him two balls of wool and a promise of mittens to come. It was at Easter dinner at his grandmother’s who had a top loading washing machine, that we ran down to the basement every 15 minutes to check on the felting progress and to fit the mittens to his hands. They solved his cold hands problem. My son is also a sailor and a few weeks ago he added ice boat sailing on Lake Ontario to his activities. The first day was -20 degrees C with winds of 30 kph and a sunny sky. They reached sailing speeds of 50 kph. The next day it
Continued on page 2…
Goodwill: [email protected] Library: Toni Peter, [email protected] Volunteer Coordinator: Erin McKee, [email protected] Adjudicated Show: Heather Adams, Erin Wilk, [email protected] Newsletter: Ellen Lovell, [email protected]
Communications: Johanna Botari, [email protected] Fair Coordinator: Jennifer Dellow, [email protected] Website: Caroline Simpson, [email protected] Non-Executive Volunteers: Raffle Table: Alfie Galda & Melissa Keith Yarn Table: Laurie Blaikie, Leah McKeen, Selina Siu & Tabi Ferguson
Charity: Kate Seely
President’s Message Continued from page 1
rained but the temperature was just at freezing with winds of 40 kph. The sailing was even better with speeds of 70 kph. And the mittens? Graham reported that even when the mittens were dripping with water and he could feel the wind at times on his knuckles, his hands were always warm! It is good to know that as knitters, while what we produce can be fragile, complicated and breathtakingly beautiful, our knitting can also fill a very practical need using a very old technique.
Carol
Program Update: February Meeting: Donna Hancock Wellington Fibres This month we are pleased to announce that our speaker is Donna Hancock. She a local landmark and has been a part of the local fiber arts scene for more than 15 years. Donna owns Wellington Fibers, the Fiber mill and yarn store. Wellington Fibers processes both small batch fiber from local Canadian farms and their own angora from the 40 odd angora goats that they have. They also have a fiber store that sells spinning and knitting supplies made with their own mohair. Donna will give us a virtual tour of the mill and hopefully give us a bit of background on her own knitting history and her presence in the community.
Stephanie
Charity Table: Charity ties in nicely with our theme this year which is “knitting culture and community”. Why not pick up a project and help make someone’s life a little better?
2
Membership Update:
Just a quick update this month, but a big one! With the return of two long-standing members of the guild, and one new member, we’ve reached 150 members! To give you an idea of the scale of our guild; if each member knit one 8-inch square, we could make a blanket over 6 feet wide and 10 feet long. Working in pairs, we could make enough hat and mitten sets for 75 members of the community in need of a warm-up. Or, if we acted individually, each turning one friend to the dark side, we could teach 150 more people in the world how to knit. After getting side-tracked by knitting a few extra items for the Under-Appreciated Finished Object fundraiser at Shall We Knit? And giving a good effort for the Uptown Stash Down, I’m finally getting back to working on belated holiday gifts. However, I hope the rest of you are getting a chance to relax and knit something for yourself. This month’s door prize might help with that! Two skeins of Morgana (http://www.ravelry.com/yarns/library/estelle-morgana) will make a quick-to-knit, indulgent treat for you. With its metallic sheen, the peacock greens and golds, and the regal purples and blues, it will knit up into a great hat, cowl or set of mitts to get you through the rest of winter with style. Don’t forget to pick up your door prize ticket on the way in!
Iris
3
Library Update It's winter- there is snow everywhere, it's dark, and worst of all its cold. Just makes you want to curl up and knit something. Especially if it will keep you warm after! Here are this months books, so you can knit up some warm socks on straight needles or maybe a warm sweater.
Toni
What's new? Knitting on Top of the World by Nicki Epstein Knitting and Tea by Jane Gottelier
The Amazing Thing About the Way it Goes by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Entrelac 2 by Rosemary Drysdale
Twigg Stitch by Vicki Twigg Knit Your Socks on Straight by Alice Curtis
4
Yarn Table
Volunteer Corner
The yarn table is a great way to get rid of any yarns you don't want to make room for new stash. Just set prices and bring a list of your yarns/quantities/prices with your name on it. Bring your change and don’t forget to scope out the yarn table for new-to-you bargains, too!
Volunteering is a great way to meet fellow members. Opportunities arise from time to time for helping out at a particular meeting or event.
The Guild keeps 10% of sales and the Guild and volunteers are not responsible for lost or damaged items. Please check the website for additional information.
Other Stuff
If you are able to help out, please contact Erin McKee, the volunteer coordinator, during a meeting or at [email protected].
Erin
The website team is working on a members-only section of the website. In this section, you will be able to find executive meeting minutes, budgets, and year end reports. This information will also be available in a binder at the library. It is important for the members to have access this information, but it is not information that needs to be posted for the general public. All of the information that you are used to seeing on the website—newsletters, meeting information, etc.—will still be publically available.
Caroline
Knit and Chat Before the Monthly Knitter's Guild Meeting The hall at First United Church is open to us before our meeting. We can gather to knit and chat from 6:30 on. The membership table and library will be open at 7:00. Our meeting will take place as usual from 7:30 to 9:30.
Newsletter Have you ever wanted to submit a piece to be published in the newsletter? Send any inquiries or entries to [email protected]. All entries must be submitted by 2 weeks before the next Guild meeting date. The next submission deadline will be for the March Newsletter: February 24, 2015. Every time you send something in to be printed in the newsletter, you get a chance to win a gift certificate in May.
Ellen
5
Goodwill Do you know of a Guild member with recent news, good or bad? The Guild would like to hear about them, to send our congratulations or our condolences. Please email [email protected] or speak to any member of the executive with the news of the Guild.
December Meeting – Raffle Winners Dixie Lee Arbuckle
Pink Project bag with large stitch holders
Gail Ivanco
“PURL” stitch markers
Lisa Kennedy
Notions wallet
Aileen Kennedy
Tape measure
Cornelia Cunningham Travel pocket bag Carol Moogk-Soulis
Needle gauge
Carol Moogk-Soulis
Small locking stitch markers
Cornelia Cunningham Lavender paper soap Lisa Kennedy
Floral notions pouch
Raffle Notes The speaker or a volunteer draws the first winner, then each winner will draw the next name until all the prizes are drawn.
January Meeting – Show & Tell Stephanie Trotter
Hand spun shawl
Victoria Lewin
Out of Darkness Shawl
Toni Peter
Melody the Waldorf doll
Chris Klassen
Trio of Cables sweater
Dee-Anne Shillinglaw
Colour Grade Cowl
Barbara Kerr
Rooster mitts , That Nice Stitch cowl & mitts
Barb Dares
Knee Socks
Dixie Lee Arbuckle
Socks on 2 straight needles
Erin Wilk
Rainbow Princess Kitty
Purchase three tickets for $1.
Show and Tell Bring in an item or two and tell us all about it! We’re always excited to hear about your firsts for projects! What did you learn making your items? What funny stories can you tell us about the items you are showing us? Get the praise and attention you deserve for all your hard work!
6
Announcements: All Strung Out Due to the rising costs of yarn and overhead, All Strung Out is no longer able to continue the discount on yarn for Guild members.
Parking I would like to remind everyone to not park in the church parking lot. It is very tiny, many meetings run concurrently with our own, and there is not enough space for everyone. The Town Square lot that is right beside the church is free and spacious. Please park there.
Brentwood on the Beach The 2015 knitter's retreat is scheduled for April 17 – 19, 2015 at Brentwood on the Beach, located on a private sandy beach at St Joseph shores.
The facility includes a indoor saltwater pool and hot tub and sauna. The cost is $295.00 inclusive. To book your spot, please contact: Bev Mawdsley, 519-634-8615 or [email protected]
Bev 7
Words from your Local Yarn Stores (LYS)
Knit and Chats
Alpaca Acres welcomes visitors to our farm and store. Call 519-625-1064 or visit www.alpacaacres.ca
Tuesday 4th Tuesday evening of the month from 7 pm to 9 pm at the Region of Waterloo Public Health and Social Services Building in room 210/211 located on the second floor. Diehard chatters meet every week. Knit Night at Chapters Waterloo, 2nd Tuesday of every month in the store at Chapters. Knit & Chat in Cambridge at the Java Garden from 7 – 9pm every Tuesday night. The Java Garden is at 2 Queen Street East. Parking is free: either on the street or in parking lots. For more information, contact Wendy at Millpond Records & Books 519658-9641. All Strung Out 6-9 pm at 36 Quebec St., Guelph .
All Strung Out 36 Quebec St., Guelph 226-820-3766 www.allstrungout.ca Shall We Knit? 11 Willow St., Waterloo www.shallweknit.com Needle Beetle - For original colourwork, intarsia, lace & texture knitting patterns www.needlebeetle.com Woolverine, downtown Kitchener 93 King Street West, 2nd floor www.woolverine.ca DocKnits 651 Goderich Street Port Elgin, ON www.docknits.ca
Monday All Strung Out 6-9 pm at 36 Quebec St., Guelph .
Wednesday All Strung Out 11 am to 4 pm at 36 Quebec St., Guelph Downtownknitmob: informal meetings, 6:30-9pm, Queen St. Commons in Kitchener. See Ravelry for details. Thursday Uptownknitmob: informal meetings, 6-9 pm, in various Uptown Waterloo locations. See Ravelry for details. Knitting Nonchalantly: We are just a small group of people who like to socialize with knitting needles in hand. We are a group that has lots of fun and never takes itself too seriously! We meet every Thursday from 4-6pm at 7 Shores in Waterloo (on Regina), though to be honest, we are often gone by 520pm. We are a diverse group welcoming of all abilities, walks of life and interests. None among us are master knitters/crocheters, but anything we do know, we are happy to share with someone who asks. We value that it is a small, quiet group and like that there is an openness to people just sitting and chatting. Not everyone feels like knitting for the entire time - or at all! We would encourage anyone interested in joining our group to stop by and check it out! Friday Shall We Knit? from early afternoon until closing in Waterloo. Saturday All Strung Out 1-4 pm at 36 Quebec St., Guelph
8
