Camp Cattywampus News and Update

There are still spaces in Session One of Camp and we have made a bit of a change also.

Recently circumstances beyond her control ( life) has made Anna Zillboorg’s attendance at Camp uncertain.  We wish dear Anna the best, and are hopeful that these circumstances will resolve enough to let her be with us at camp.  However, we won’t know for a little while if she can be with us or not.  That’s the bad news.

The good news, is that in our search for a replacement teacher, our very first choice said yes, and we’ve been able to rope the fantastical Janel Laidman (Author of The Eclectic Sole, and The Enchanted Sole) into coming to teach you a wonderful class.

Colorful Creativity - Stranded Socks that fit with flair.  Colourwork socks are really fun to knit and wear, and we will explore how to avoid common pitfalls when knitting stranded socks, like how to keep them from having loosey goosey ladders at the needle joins, how to keep your floats floating and stretchy, how to shape the leg so you don’t end up with something that cuts off circulation at the calf while bagging around the ankles and how to combine colors for best effect.  In class we’ll be knitting a mini sock that combines all of these strategies, and we’ll discuss how to apply them to grown up size footwear.  No experience with stranding is necessary, we will discuss how to manage the yarns to achieve a smooth colorful look.

While we realize that nobody can really take Anna’s place (and frankly, we’re still more than hopeful that she’ll be able to be with us in some way for that weekend) we’re thrilled that Janel (an expert at colourwork, check out these socks) can come and work her magic.  We know you’ll love her as a teacher. 

I for one am really looking forward to Camp.  It is such a fun, happy and loving place.  It is a whole lot of work but it is the good kind where you collapse at the end of the day exhausted but completely content. The kind of days that are so full they are brimming with yarn play of all sorts and colour and stitches and turkey basters and dye and beads and lovely fun talented people. Where you have shared and learned and laughed ( there is a whole lot of laughing) and maybe even shed a tear or two. I’m not outing anyone here but some of us might be a bit emotional. Days filled with wonderful moments that you find yourself revisiting all through the rest of the year.
Sock Camp is the reason there was a Sock Summit.  We wanted to share what we felt was just the best sock knit experience with many many knitters.
I really love our sock camp and all the wonderful knitters who come to play with us.
I just can’t wait. I am now going to wake up teen girls and get them ready for their day before someone gets herself all worked up maybe sheds a tear.

Stitches West

Debbi (cockeyed the sockateer) and her trusty companion Susan (ettamea the sockateer) headed out of here on Monday, bright and early for the Santa Clara Convention Center and all things Stitches West.

Deb’s feathered companion is not EttaMae. I always feel bad that I do not get to go, so this time I went in my chicken form. Debbi was a little apprehensive, but if you check her twitter feed you will see that a clucking good time is being had by all.

Look I even got some knitting in.

Deb and Susan rock the whole booth set up thing pretty hard. All creative and beautiful and in a timely efficient manner topped with maybe some wacky fun.

See!  Makes you want to give then a round of applause, a big smooch, a drink, a cock-a-doodle-doo or hey I know, maybe a bonus.
I have to say dearest sockateers I’m am pretty flippin’ touched, thrilled and thankful in so many ways for the two of you.
Are we ready to sell some yarn??

Oh yeah!
Also on the new “hey look at these cool bags front” we have brought with us these great bags. We think these are a pretty smart design concept and they are also cute. We are lovin’ ours so we thought we would bring some with us in order to spread the word and the knit love.  Thanks for entrusting your lovely work with us Gillian.

Aren’t they cute! We were thinking the big one would be awesome for colourwork and the smaller one for just about anything sockish.

Hope everyone has a tightly plied good time. Give my lovely sockateers a cluck for me ok?

yarn dream part 2

Where the skein of yarn’s, who is now a ball of yarn, world view does a loop d’ loop right into the deep end of the stash basket.
You will recall when last we were together, I had quite the transformative shape changing experience. Now here I sit in a brand new spherical form that I am pretty sure is a little sexy, and in a new homey spot that is all warm and cozy, but is certainly not my shelf. Just between you and me I kind of miss my shelf. I am trying to be all brave and embrace the adventure of it all, but I had a great view of the kitchen from there and could watch the whole family play. Oh well, maybe I will get back for a visit sometime.
I am watching knitter root around in a really big basket with that determined yet puzzled expression she often has when she is working that I find ever so charming and endears her to me in ways I cannot describe.
I wonder what she is up to?  Her needles are right here beside me so...?
Think I’ll have a look around while knitter is busy. I have a feeling she is going to be awhile.
There sure is a lot more going on in this room. Lots of pretties and baskets and bags and hey, wait a minute.  Oh my goodness, these baskets, bags, table tops… are full of skeins and balls of yarn like me.  (Well not like me because really, I am quite the ball of yarn.) I knew I was not knitter’s one and only. I knew there were more like me. I’m not under plied, I get it. But you should see this place there are a lot more. Now that I have a good look around I see that we are everywhere.
It is one thing to know you are not alone and quite another to see you are not, in a grain of sand kind of way, alone.
Whoa, I wonder if knitter has a problem. Do you think she has a problem?  Nooo how silly of me. Of course she doesn’t how could you have too much of all of this warm cozy colourful goodness just sitting around patiently waiting to be knit. 
I wonder if all knitters homes look like this?  Hmmm… I wonder if this means that the daydream I have of a huge space with skeins like me in all kinds of colours, hanging all over the walls and from the rafters is real and not a dream after all. I wonder if that is home, where we all come from?
Ok finally, here comes knitter with that look, a book and I bet a plan… .

Yup looks like there is a part three. Sorry seems like ball who was a skein has a lot to say. I think my dream opened cracked open a door.