​Our meeting will take place on the 2nd WEDNESDAY, February 10th, instead of our usual 2nd Tuesday.

Our February 10th meeting speaker will be Janine Bajus! She is known as the Feral Knitter and has been immersed with Fair Isle and color knitting for several years. She’s published some patterns and has a forthcoming book called The Joy of Color: Fair Isle Knitting Your Way. Janine is teaching two regular and two mini-classes at the Madrona Fiber Arts 2016 Winter Retreat and is also the Friday evening Teacher’s Gallery speaker! Find out more about Janine at www.feralknitter.com.

SKG members are asked to reserve a free spot by e-mailing [email protected] if you did not sign up at the 1/12/16 meeting. Guests and friends are welcome to attend, please also e-mail [email protected] with names, and there will be a $10 fee at the door for guests and friends to help cover the speaker’s fee. The Waltz Building is at 116 Ave B, Snohomish and there’s available street parking.

A reminder - this meeting is on a Wed rather than a Tue night.

Doors open at 6:00pm for an impromptu knit group. Seating will be theatre style without tables for this program.
The main program starts at 7pm with Announcements, Show and Tell, and program to follow.
​
Janine is excited to join the Snohomish Knitters Guild for an evening and to meet and chat with everyone!

At the 10/13 Guild meeting, members attending heard more information and had discussion about three local organizations under consideration for our Holiday Gift Giving outreach (has also been called charity knitting). There was a majority interested in again making gifts for the Evergreen Recovery Centers (formerly Evergreen Manor), located in Everett.

Here’s a reminder about their work with mothers with children. Evergreen Recovery Centers ) provides long-term residential daycare and addiction treatment and recovery support for mothers. Those with children under age 5 may keep their children with them during their treatment. While they are in treatment sessions, the children attend their state-licensed therapeutic daycare program.

The Center will appreciate any amount of handmade hats, mittens or gloves, scarves, and socks for both adult and teen mothers and children under age 5. 

Completed unwrapped gifts will be collected at the December 8 Guild meetings. Not able to attend either meeting? Contact me and we’ll arrange a convenient time to meet!

Yarn: Please use acrylic yarn—it’s washable and does not shrink. You could consider using washable or super wash wool but please attach a note with a safety pin that “washing machine OK, no dryer just hand dry!”

Patterns: Members are very welcome to use patterns that they like. Again, please consider using washable acrylic yarn for easy care.

Also, here are Ravelry links to some pattern searches that focus on acrylic yarn, usually one color, and with 150-300 yards. (You will need to be logged into Ravelry and then copy and paste the links for them to work – Ed.)

Adult-size
​Some free knit patterns for mittens
Some free crochet patterns for mittens
Some free knit patterns for scarves
 Some free crochet patterns for scarves
Some free knit patterns for socks

Children, babies and newborns
​Some free knit patterns for mittens
​Some free crochet patterns for mittens
Some free knit patterns for scarves
​Some free crochet patterns for scarves
​Some free knit patterns for socks and booties

If anyone needs help with printing any of these free patterns, send me an e-mail and I’ll be glad to mail you some free patterns—let me know which ones you’re interested in! Average meeting attendance has been about 45 lately. If everyone could try making two items, that would generate almost 100 hats, mittens, scarves and socks! And, any number of items will be welcome. I’d be glad to help with any questions! Please add them here or send me an email. 

Marion  [email protected]  

​October, far and away, is one of my favorite months. It always has been, but since discovering (or in my case, re-discovering) fiber arts, that love has only grown deeper. It’s cold, yes. But that means knitting and crocheting all kinds of fun, beautiful warm things to wear and give to those we love! And, more specifically, it means lots of incredible fiber art goings-on to partake of. 
This month’s meeting was a good example. In our new board’s first run, and a resoundingly successful one at that, we all came together to learn something new. Taught by our very own, no less! 
Firstly, there were announcements to be had. Georgia did a splendid job getting us all caught up with the exciting events coming up. The Retreat and Fiber Fusion, which were both spectacular successes, were both touched on. We also had an announcement and discussion relating to our annual holiday crafting drive. After some great questions and hard choices, it was decided to give as a group to the same great charity as last year, though we were all reminded that it’s not only okay but even encouraged that if we’d like, we as individuals can give to another organization, either instead or in addition to the group’s choice! 
We had another great Book Report from Georgi, as well! She always brings the most interesting choices, full of things that are not only just fun to make, but that always have some other aspect to them, as well. There was a bonus this month, too, as she brought in a great rare Barbara Walker book for us to take a peek at!  
The next part was bittersweet, as Marion gave her last Knit News presentation. It was another hit, and don’t be too sad; she is only giving up the beloved post because as you all recall, she’s now our Vice President! With the post already filled by another eager guild member, Knit News will continue to be something to look forward to each month. One of the best parts of our guild is how we are continually learning more not just about the stitches at our fingertips, but the stories and history, both ancient and modern, that have led us as crafters to where we are today. 
Before we got down to the business of learning how to make fun notions, it was time for Show and Tell! Now, as I was busily snipping away lengths of cord and sorting things for the main event that we’ll get to in a minute, I unfortunately didn’t have a hand free to take notes. But I can assure you I was awed to near distraction by our collective talents once again! Rebecca’s adorable sheep, Miss Coral, was such a cute way to lose count of what I was doing that I wasn’t even bothered. The parade of beautiful shawls was distracting, too. And there was even another hat made with the yarn from our Dye Day, which was just as awesome as could be. As the cold weather and the holidays take hold, I can only imagine how many more incredible things we’ll create and share, and can’t express enough how happily I anticipate it! 
A quick break, and it was down to business. Fun business! First up was our very own freshly former President, Katie, to teach us how to make Dorset buttons. I’ll admit, I’d never even heard of them before, so it was a real treat for me, as I’m sure it was for everyone—even those who knew what they were! It turns out, as Katie so gracefully and patiently taught us, that Dorset buttons are buttons made from a firm ring and yarn. Using different techniques, types of yarn, and even ring sizes, the possibilities for making stunning buttons to adorn your projects, or anything else, is easy enough for nearly anyone to learn, while being fun enough to make that you want to just keep making more and more of them! There was even a small contingent of us who couldn’t help but wonder if with a Hula Hoop and some pencil roving, could one not make a rug? But even if we don’t go quite that mad with the idea, being able to make breathtaking buttons to match our handcrafted wares, or even to use scraps we love to make buttons for other projects, is something I think we’ll all be doing soon, if we weren’t already! I know I, for one, have already made a few since the meeting, and hope to make more. I know for a concrete fact that we, one and all, extend a huge thank you to Katie for teaching us so well, and teaching us something so fun! 
For the second and final tutorial, I had the pleasure of showing the guild how to make just one of the many variations of handmade row counters. There are so many ways to keep track of where we are in a pattern, but there’s something to be said for making one yourself. For instance, if I make something myself rather than buy it, I’m far more likely to actually use it! I decided on teaching how to make row counter bracelets, because I love that when I’m not crafting it’s still something I can wear proudly. Everyone was so great, from Tandy and Marion and other helpers who ran supplies around the room and helped answer questions, to you all who took to what was a fairly complicated project, especially for anyone who hadn’t made jewelry before, like ducks to water. Even through a plier and time drought, there were smiles on faces and completed bracelets on many wrists by the time the proverbial bell rang and it was time to head out. So thank you, to the board for allowing me to show you, and to everyone, for being such wonderful students! 
My love for October is really like my love for this guild. It only grows stronger each year, and I look forward to so many more Octobers, guild meetings, and fiber art events to come!  

For the November meeting, Katherine shared some quick to knit or crochet gifts for the holidays. All of the projects are created using 300 yards or less of yarn. Links to the projects are below the slideshow.

   Have you always wanted to knit socks but thought it seemed too daunting a task? Do you have one started - only to get stuck? Now's your chance to get some help. I'll have a sock "help" table going on after the break at our guild meetings the next few times. 

   To get started, I suggest you get some needles, usually size 2 or 3, either double-pointed (DPNs) or a nice 32" circular needle (for Magic Loop) and some fingering (sock) weight yarn in a light color - very dark yarn can make it hard to see your stitches. You'll need about 400 yards to make a pair of socks, so check the yardage -some yarns come with enough to make a pair, others you'll need to buy two skeins. Washable is a very good quality in a sock yarn (that's a hint).

   If you're comfortable doing so, cast on 72 stitches. I prefer a cable cast-on, but you can use any kind you like, as long as it can stretch. You'll be knitting in the round, so next, join without twisting. If you need help with joining, bring your work in and we'll get you started.

   Begin working a ribbing pattern of your choice: K2, P2 is a nice basic one, but you can also do K1, P1, or K3, P1, or K2, P1, your choice. Any of those will work if you have cast on 72 stitches. You want to knit about an inch of this ribbing. When you're happy with your ribbing length, go ahead and begin straight stockinette knitting around for this first sock. If you just have to get fancy, go with a lace or cable pattern of your choice, or just continue ribbing (I often knit a whole sock in K3, P1 ribbing). Knit it until it measures the length of your hand from your wrist to the tip of your longest finger. Now you're ready for the heel. Bring it to the help table and we'll get started on the heel flap. See you soon!

   If you'd like a good book about sock knitting, get a copy of The Sock Knitter's Handbook (available in print and as a downloadable PDF) from Martingale Press.

   ~Barb Simonds

   Last night, we were honored to have Evelyn Clark with us. She is such a dynamic person, and even if you don't really like to knit lace, she shares so much of her learning experiences, that the whole meeting is just FUN! 
   Evelyn shared with us her newest book, "Icelandic Lace Collection" and her personal history with knitting Icelandic lace. The Nordic Heritage Museum in Seattle, asked her, if she could teach a class for their Nordic Heritage Knitting Conference, about Icelandic knitting, as they were missing anyone to represent that country during their conference, many years ago. She began delving into the history and heritage of this rich culture and craft. She once thought that she could duplicate patterns from existing shawls that she saw, only to learn that most of the shawls are already patterns, so Evelyn took what she had learned and started designing her own Icelandic lace items, based on the stitch patterns used by the Icelandic knitters and now has some of the most gorgeous shawls I've ever seen. Her patterns are exquisite and I can't wait to work some of them.

   Evelyn then shared with us some of the culture of Iceland and some extremely enchanting stories of her visits there and the people she met while there. It was so much fun to listen to her talk and share her experiences. She has definitely inspired many of us to head off to Iceland, as quickly as we can.
   We were also treated to a show and tell of many of the items which are included in the e-book and my, oh, my, were they absolutely stunning and amazing to see.

    Last night at the August Guild meeting, Barb and Aleen treated us to a short tutorial on short rows. Barb showed us the method that Cat Borhdi uses on her Sweet Tomato Heel, and demonstrates in this YouTube video. You do need to be patient, since she works through the entire heel in this video, but it really shows how she picks up the 'mother' stitch and knits it together with the 'daughter' stitch, resulting in a hole-less no wraps short row heel. 

    Aleen shared with us her recommendations for short rows and we looked over will have some demos and discussions of short rows. To supplement what we’ll cover during the meeting, I highly recommend TECHknitting's blog, She very clearly demonstrates (with graphics) some of the differences between different methods as well as where each technique might be used best. Aleen also shared some additional techniques in this month's newsletter; 

    "To supplement what we’ll cover during the meeting, I highly recommend a blog post on Short Rows on Tech Knitting, one of the most complete sources of short row methods with the clearest diagrams. You will probably want to bookmark it for future reference. It not only gives details and summarizes in two different ways (regular and geek), it also says which method is best for a particular situation (stitch used or personality type as the case may be). Another great source for tips in general is the Jimmy Beans Wool website. I have never ordered anything from them but went to the website when I saw a tip listed in an ad in a knitting magazine. In this column in the past, I have mentioned the use of things like rubber bands and paper clip in a pinch when you don't have your knitting tools with you. Well, the ad tip had the same philosophy. It suggested that a knitter on vacation caught without a point protector could use the cork from the bottle of Merlot they surely must be drinking!"

    We also had several new members sign up with renewing members, so that they could take advantage of our current "Two for $50" Membership deal. So bring a friend when you renew your membership for the 2012/2013 Membership year (starting in October) and you both can save $5 off your membership fees. Be sure to check out the rules on our Membership page. 

    If you have never been to a meeting and would like to see what it is all about, come to our September meeting. We will be celebrating our birthday, so there will be cake. We will also be talking about holiday gifts for knitters and for knitters to give.