March 28th - bad blogger just lost the original!

If I sound grumpy now it's because someone with RSI in both wrists and arms and elbows really ought to at least save as draft before trying to publish blogs which then disappear into the ether.

*sigh*

I think I need a holiday.

Anyway, on with the blog.
I had a great time on Tuesday and did not want to leave, even though my dinner was waiting for me at home. Susan was back for one night only from Cambridge. I freak her out a bit with my knitting related disaster arms so she wants to knit more but tries not to.
Brooke kindly popped by with Giotto for me, Brittanys for Susan and tales of Cyrus walking for the first time.

Ann brought along her finished red alpaca silk shrug. Oh, how we stroked and coveted. She also treated us to a petting of some Nickerjac handspun she will be designing with. Ann's had a bad run of health lately so it was extra nice to catch up with her. The shrug will be in Magknits at some point and believe me, you will knit this and wear it till it is no more and then you will knit it again. It is so beautiful and soft and cloudlike.

Nikki and Josefina and Anna were engaged in a debate about the shaping of hats. Josefina's English and knitting skills are limited but she was beavering away and Nikki was scribbling instructions away.

Sian: Are you coming next week? Should I buy Simply Knitting? Is that your pattern on the front cover?

Next time, I will remember to check the camera battery

Very nice to see Anna again and our two newest regulars.

I'll be at Olympia tomorrow, along with Erssie and any of you?

Angelknits on Tuesday

Q: Hey ladies, why are you having so much fun?
A: We're at Angelknits, that's why!

Q: There's a lot of you here tonight. Why is that?

A: I think it's because of the combination of great company, food, wine and knitting.

Q: Well these ladies seem to agree with you too. Tell me, do other things happen at Angelknits?

A: Well, yes. We also make other knitting related objects.

Q: Where can I get my hands on these lovely trinkets?

A: Nikki's site The Purple Kitchen

Q: Well, thanks for your time, see you next week.

KNITTING & CROCHET TASTER WORKSHOP
North London nr BR Station
Saturday April 1st in a Craft Central Shop
Beginners and intermediate knitters/crocheters welcome
£18 for 3hrs includes yarns to practice with and needles to take home

3 more workshops are to follow on in April (tbc depending on students preference for dates)

Topics covered, all beginners stuff casting on and off, changing to new balls of yarn, weaving in ends. Also intermediate skills, understanding gauge and designing/adapting patterns, getting a better control on the size and outcome of your finished garment, Fairisle colourwork and intarsia colourwork, using graphs, working in the round on dpns and anything else anyone really wants to learn.

For more information or to book on the taster workshop
email: erssiemajor@yahoo.co.uk

New season yarns

On Tuesday, I mentioned I'd seen the new season booklets from Louisa Harding for sale but hadn't seen the yarns.

Well now you can at Knitting Fever

This website is great for sneaky looks inside pattern books before the UK gets them, even for UK designers.

KNITTING CLASSES

Yeah, you're probably going to say 'oh no not a post from Erssie again!'

I'm hoping to teach some workshops in North London. Levels will be from beginner to intermediate and will include some materials to practice with.

It should include all the usual beginners topics but also intermediate subjects such as working with colour,charts,designing, crochet adornments and hems,basic crochet stitches etc. Groups will be approx 8 students and I will try to tailor the tuition to each student's needs although there will be structure in each topic and handouts

If you or someone else is at all interested in this please email me. You don't have to book at this stage, I'll just register your interest and then get back to you with more details when I've confirmed my venue and costs. I will be keeping fees very reasonable as I'm more interested in passing on skills than raking in profits.

Erssie
www.erssieknits.com
erssiemajor@yahoo.co.uk

Hipknits Yarns

Angels,

We are selling some beautiful handspun and handpainted/dyed yarns from Hipknits, a yarn company run by Kerrie the editor of Magknits. Here's a pic I did very quickly.

There is quite a bit of recycled Sari silk available as well as 100% silk (some of it lace weight) and 100% cashmere sock yarns. Let me know if there is anything you want by emailing erssiemajor@yahoo.co.uk or visiting my website www.erssieknits.com. I can send a PayPal invoice to anyone who doesn't use cash.

We will be selling the yarns at the Craft Fayre tomorrow. Also Anne Harper (harpera@winchmore.ndo.co.uk) has crochet scarves to sell and great crochet designs if you want her to write up a pattern for you.

Nikki has stitchmarkers see her for prices (www.purplekitchen.org.uk)
Ann (pixeldiva.co.uk) has felted soaps and other goodies.

Annarella.co.uk stitchmarkers are available as well for £6 a set. We're not trying to turn the blog into a massive commercial but the goodies are so enticing we wanted to offer Angelknitters first refusal!

If you are new to Angelknits and new to knitting I have some information packs available for 50p which come with a beginner's Fairisle hat pattern and a list of web addresses for yarn companies and magazines with free patterns.

Erssie
www.erssieknits.co.uk
erssiemajor@yahoo.co.uk

Return of the blog...(photo heavy)

Hello everyone! At last, some photos to prove we do meet and do exist. Hopefully I've got my brain in gear to make this a regular occurrence. If you want to post any of your own photos, please do.

Here is Maggie and her finished hat. Nikki and Brooke are either side - very colour coordinated.










Lovely to see Juli again. She is making some fantastic legwarmers. Supersoft merino with buttons so she can put them on over her shoes, thus minimising foot chilledness.












Hello Hilary, Marie and Sara (not shown). It's their first time on the blog. And Josefina, swatching some crochet.












Some familiar faces for you:





Again, I have escaped being photoed. Perhaps next week!

If you can make it out to Hertfordshire Nikki, Ann and Erssie have a couple of tables at a Craft Fayre held by the Hertfordhsire Knattering Knitters group.

The Fayre is open from 11 am until 6pm at St Pauls Church Hall, Cranes Way, Borehamwood, Herts. If this is too far out for you to find, you are welcome to come to the other address below and get a lift to the fayre with Erssie, we are leaving at 9am.

Designers you can still sell your patterns, just email them to erssiemajor@yahoo.co.uk as a pdf and I can print off and sell for you at the Fayre.
If you have written a pattern and not sold one before, just type it up and send it with a small photo of the garment and I'll print it properly and try to sell it for you.

Yarn companies eg Brooke at Yarnsmith, if you wish to be part of the information pack I am giving out (includes a couple of free patterns with info about fibre mags,websites and company flyers) please send your business cards/flyers to 32 Sterling Rd Enfield Middx EN2 0LN and if it reaches us by Sat we will include you in the info pack. I will be selling odd balls of yarn as well provided they are intact with a ball band so please feel free to send those to me as well. Pattern kits are also welcome.

Craft Fayre

If you can make it out to Hertfordshire Nikki, Ann and Erssie have a couple of tables at a Craft Fayre held by the Hertfordhsire Knattering Knitters group.

The Fayre is open from 11 am until 6pm at St Pauls Church Hall, Cranes Way, Borehamwood, Herts. If this is too far out for you to find, you are welcome to come to the other address below and get a lift to the fayre with Erssie, we are leaving at 9am.

Designers you can still sell your patterns, just email them to erssiemajor@yahoo.co.uk as a pdf and I can print off and sell for you at the Fayre.
If you have written a pattern and not sold one before, just type it up and send it with a small photo of the garment and I'll print it properly and try to sell it for you.

Yarn companies eg Brooke at Yarnsmith, if you wish to be part of the information pack I am giving out (includes a couple of free patterns with info about fibre mags,websites and company flyers) please send your business cards/flyers to 32 Sterling Rd Enfield Middx EN2 0LN and if it reaches us by Sat we will include you in the info pack. I will be selling odd balls of yarn as well provided they are intact with a ball band so please feel free to send those to me as well. Pattern kits are also welcome.

SALE

This is your last call to bring things on Tues night which you'd like either Ann or Nikki to sell for you on the 'Angelknits' table at the Craft Fayre next Sat. Anything knitted or crocheted welcome. Also too are your own designs typed up as patterns, 2nd hand books and patterns you no longer wish to keep or odd balls of luxury yarn you just can't afford to go unused. Please stick on a reasonable price you expect to get for it, the lowest you would expect to get rid of it and expect to part with 15% commission for those ladies who work hard all day to sell things on saturday.
I will post up the venue and times later this week if you want to come along. Of course, stitch marker and other notions designers, hand your stuff to us on Tues night as well.

Erssie

Knitting in Films

One of my favourite pasttimes before I discovered knitting was watching films. Not even different films necessarily; some films I have the capacity to watch over and over (e.g. Toy Story, The Fifth Element, Spaceballs, all very high brow).

Since learning to knit, and also to knit without looking, I've started watching films in a new light. Those of you on the mailing list might remember me mentioning this sometimes. Below is an abbreviated list of good knitting and crochet content in films:

Charlie and the Chocolate factory (2005 version): The bucket family wear a wonderful selection of handknits and Grandma Georgina crochets. The house is full of crochet blankets and towards the end GG wears a crochet hat very similar to the one in Legally Blonde.

Stuck on You: Very silly film which I find very fun and also, as the twins live somewhere very cold, some great fair isle and winter hats.

I Heart Huckabees: I've watched this three times in a row. It's only mentionable because Lily Tomlin knits in a scene towards the end.

I'm sure I'll add more as time goes by.

See you soon