deputyknittersblog

I am a self employed paraprofessinoal and mom of three beuatiful children. Knitting has become an absolute passion and stress buster and my true addiction! I go no where without my knitting bag and alwyas have mutliple projects in the works!

Sunday, December 17, 2006



The Needle Felting class was a huge success!!! We had 11 people who all had a great time and made BEAUTIFUL figures. Unfortunately, I was unable to get everyone together for a group photo with their sculptures though! Everyone but Lucille's mom did Santas. Each one was a beautifully different creature and they all were fantastic. Lucille's mom Lucilia did a fantastical angel full of spun glitter for a gown - she was amazing! We all had a wonderful time and it is agreed that Lorna will come again! She was surpirsed at how close we are and she offerred to come and do another beginner class as well as a more advanced techniques class. It was a difficult time to have a class right before Chrsitmas but we had a great turnout but I know there are alot of you that were interested and could NOT make it. We will do it again. I will be looking for input from all of you! Lorna said January and February are dead months for her and she would love to come then. Also in the works is a retreat weekend at Lorna's "Sunpower Farm" to learn spinning, needle felting techniques, dyeing and even sheep shearing if we are interested. Meanwhile a date of April 14th has been set for Lorna to return. The type of class she will be teaching will be dependent upon the input I receive from all of you! There was discussion about a techniques class for faces as well as a class for making woodland faries and the possibility of learning techniques of wire base sculpting. We definitely have time to plan and there will be much discussion I am sure at the next Guild Meeting of January 6th at Lula's.
This is most likely the last posting before Chrsitmas. I wish you all a wonderful holiday that is hopefully stress free and has quiet moments smattered in between the visits and wrapping and baking and as always a quiet corner to knit every once in a while too!
I wish all of you and your families a VERY Happy Holiday season and a Happy New Year. I hope to see you all at the Guild meeting in January!



Tammy and Jennie (aka "Yarnista") take a break. Lorna Tammy and Lucille for a quick pose for their Knitting album!





During break - Lorna shares with group her methond for sculpting a "quick mouse".




Lorna shares with group her background and how she came into needle felting as well as her expereince with sheep.




Jennie and Lorna McMaster chat before class starts. Lorna shared a few of her felted figures - to left "Puck steals a pumpkin".

Sunday, December 10, 2006





Eleanor and her famous grab bag gift of body butter! Some scenes from the Knit Happens Christmas Party - See below for the posting and news!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!






Scenes from Knit
Happens Christmas Party

Well, a HUGE apology to all that rely on this blog for information. I REALLY slipped! The holidays put me in a tailspin and I am now realizing it has been a LONG while since posting.

I have tons of stuff to blog that I have been hoarding. It will help to pass the time once the big snows hit! So I will limit what I post for now to save my sanity with the fastly approaching holidays. I promise good stuff coming after the holidays!


First the Guild Business:

It has been decided that the Guild will keep the current schedule of meetings: the first Saturday of every month at 3PM and the third Thursday of every month at 6:30. The NEXT MEEINTG: Saturday, January 6, 2007 at 3:00 PM at Lula's Melange. The location of all meetings after that: to be announced. Most will take place at the Glendale Community Clubhouse (the site of today's Christmas party) EXCEPT for the dead of winter (ie: January- March - we will annouce the location of those) In the summer months (June, July and August) we will only meet the Third Thursday of the month.

The Needle felting class is STILL on for Saturday 12/16 - ANYONE can come and we apprecaite you spreading the word. Anything we make over the cost of paying for the instructor will go directly into the Guild's account SO the more the merrier!


The "Knit Crawl is scheduled for February 10th with a snow date of March 24th. I will get us discount train tickets again for whoever is interested in traveling with the group. More news to follow.

I am awaiting a response from Melissa Leapman regarding a crochet and knitting class anas well as a possible weekend "retreat" and hopefully a visit from a prayer shwal expert plus MORE! I will have more news on those developments at upcoming meetings!

The prayer shawls we have been recieving from the group of sisters that had been piling up at Lucille's shop were delivered by me to the Harold Leever Cancer Center last week and they were welcomed and awed over. The Guild only played a small role in all of this but the best part is that Knit Happens is now known up there and they will keep us posted if in the future we can help them in any way! Thanks to Gerry who helped get us in contact with the right people and thank you to "the sisters" who busily knitted all of those shawls. I sent thank you notes to each one of them from all of us!


I am sure you are all very busy - Doesn't it seem like December crept in like a sneaky fast paced wind!??? Gosh, I now find myslef with a stack of yarn and projects for Christmas and VERY little time to KNIT!! ACK!!! I have a feeling that some family members MAY end up with swatches and pictures of my good intentions and I will still be knitting Christmas presents well into February or March it seems! It makes me laugh. The big debate with Ray (my husband) his year was how I was going to save us so much money by knitting all sorts of gifts and I have proudly showed him my purchses and planned projects. I purchsed the yarn for all of them and I have stated my case about how a homemade gift will be treasured by the recipient. Wellll.... for those that do not know, Ray is a CPA SO Any argument reagarding money and being economical - well, I usually lose!! When he adds up all of the purchses of yarn and then the time it takes to knit them he does NOT believe my argument about saving money. He DOES agree that the recipeints will apprecaite a handmade gift SOOO much more though and although he busts me about how insane I am for knitting - he is constantly showing off my projects and now grumbles - to whomever will listen to him - how I still have not finished his ill fated cashmere blend vest I have alreday had to rip out once ( a long story but after about 18 hours of knitting in the round I realized not only was I twisted but my gauge had changed from the test swatch - I only recently started it again only to cast it aside to knit Christmas presents!)!

A hint for any of you in my predicament, Lucille learned from world famous knitter and crocheter Lily Chin - when we were at the Knit showin July......if you have been unable to finish a project for the time it was to be given, a copy of the project inside a blank card and a 4x4 inch swatch knitted in the fiber you are using is a wonderful way of letting the recipient know they are reciving something super special and made with love AND they get a double surprise - because they will also have the surprise when they open it up when it is finished.

Lucille and I had a hilariuos talk about my fiendish buying of yarn and making of items for Christmas. I commented on knitting for one of the children's teachers and stated that I was not sure what I would knit for this one teacher and that I was not sure she would like it. We staretd a hilarous conversation about "knit worthy" recipients and having people who were "knit list worthy" and those that were not on our Chrsitmas lists. Well, Ashby was in the shop with the two of us and we got silly hysterical. BUT all laughing and joking aside it is SUCH a great point. Some people are just not "knit worthy" I do not mean this in a horrendous derogatory way. There are poeple that may not really apprecaite the time, effort and depending on the fiber you are working on, the cost that is associated with knitting! I have talked to many poeple in my family and friends who are not knitters and they have no clue the cost associated with knitting some projects. In fact it is yet another repeating argument with Ray that often the $80 sweater I see in a catalogue or shop will be far cheaper to buy than to attempt to knit. Of course I am such a challenge person and there is nothing more statisfying than tackling a project that you never thought you'd finish!

So enough for my philospohies. You are all so talented and I love to see all of your projects. Make sure they are going to appreciative recipients this season! On that note, PLEASE ----Share your projects!!! I would so apprecaite pictures of your porjects - I want to make sure that the blog has EVERYONE's projects! It can not always be mine - you'd ALL be VERY bored of that! So please email me pictures - commetns ect. I would LOVE to post them!

Now, The TRUE reson for the posting! I have just come home after cleaning the floor and buttoning up the Gelndale Community Clubhouse! We had a FANTASTIC party! For all of you that were there - THANK YOU!!! What a wonderul way to celebrate the holidays and for those that were unable to make - we really missed you and certainly hope you can make the NEXT pary.

The BIG and VERY SAD news that was made public for the first time ( I HATED to even utter the words)... Lucille will be closing Lula's Melange. For all of you there you know how emotional it was for me to voice the news. I have been extremely upset for several weeks about it. That being said we all of course wish Lucille tons of luck as she pursues a teaching certificate. We ALL know how incredibly successful she will be. She is such an incredibly talented, patient and beautifully caring individual. We will all miss the shop BUT she is going nowhere! We will still have her incredible guidance and support of the Guild and she will still be a HUGE presence for us! I am persaonlly SO depressed and sad about it - her shop has been a refuge and escape for me and I will miss the ease of slipping into the shop and knitting for a couple of hours and chatting. Lucille will officially close the doors on December 22, 2006. The Shop will be open Monday through Friday from 12:00 to 5:00 and will have regular Saturday hours. Please stop by for her SALE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Evrything MUST go SALE SALE SLAE. Stop by and see her!!!!! Even if just to say Goodbye!

I am working on some sort of knitting clatch. I personally NEVER get a chance to just knit and chat at Guild Meetings. I am always anxious to get all of the news out and make sure anyone who has questions or ideas or needs anything is all set - I am a nervous host I guess! BUT I want to try and do an informal knitting gathering with some sort of regularity - outside of the Guild meetings - more news on that!

The party was fantastic and anyonme who left hungry - shame on them! A HUGE thank you to ALL of you - I have NEVER seen such an incredible display of food! REALLY!! I really was stuptified at the variety and the effort that you all put into your dishes. THANK GOD it was not pot luck - there was sooo much food! We ate, knitted and had a GREAT time with the "chinese" grab bag"!!! Eleanor had us HOWLING with her Body Butter and we will all be keeping an eye on her that she is not off on the streets looking for someone to "share" it with! Lori was the lucky person to pick the number 1 and had a great time keeping a running inventory on what all the gifts were. The gifts were great and a nice mix of knit and crochet related and non knitting and crocheting items! We all had fun with that!

The yarn swap went well for a group that has never done it before. Jenny was unable to make it last minute and she was the one I was hoping to guide us! I think those of us that brought multiple skeins may have had a hard time so we will improve that NEXT year! For everyone there, the Guild had handmade BEAUTIFUL stitch markers as goodies. A HUGE thank you to Lucille, Kristin and Joelle who helped to make them all up and Kim who found the gorgoues organza holiday bags to put them in! A huge thank you to Joyce who on her own made Beautiful yarn skein and needle pins. I have to admit we misplaced the box. I searched high and low during the party and was sick that they were not getting to the party goers! Joyce I am so sorry! I did finally find the box while cleaning up - Apparently someone mistakingly thought the box had baked goodies in it and it was placed in the kitchen! SOME people got a pin but there are still MANY left, I will have them at the next guild meeting and we will get them out to any party goers that did not get one. Joyce, thank you yhey are beutiful and it was VERY thoughtful of you.

Lastly a thank you to Debbie who made beautiful ornaments for all of the officers for their trees. Mine is on my tree and looks great and it is the first Knitting ornament I have owned. Deb, thank you.

I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of all of the officers: Lucille, Kathy,
Kristin, Joelle, Myself and Sue to wish ALL of you and your families a VERY Merry Christmas and Happy and Healthy New Year!

The Blog MAY be quiet from now through Christmas but I promise to blog all the news we have as it comes up. Without Lula's we will now have to rely heavily on each other to keep everyone informed. If you have access to the blog and know someone who does not PLEASE keep them informed. We will need to do that now without a "Knit Central (Lula's)"

Merry Christmas everyone and I hope to see you either on the 16th or at the next Guild meeting on Saturday, January 6th 3:00 PM at Lula's.