Mary Jane Mucklestone

Hand Knitting Blog & Knitting Patterns

Events

Knit East!

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Algonquin_hotel_circa_1928

“A jut of land across from Maine. Sea on one side; river on the other. Far off the traveled trails; far out of the workaday world….”

Things are much the same at the Algonquin Hotel in St. Andrews, New Brunswick as they were described in that ad from 1925, far from the cares of everyday life, in a spectacularly beautiful setting, with every luxury within reach! Plus today, after a newly completed total renovation, there’s also high speed internet, an outdoor swimming pool and an indoor one – with a 3 story waterside, a spa and a fitness center, fire pits for scary stories and s’mores and it’s pet friendly…and best of all for you and me….during the last weekend in September it is the site for a Super Fantastic Knitting Event KNIT EAST- The Atlantic Fiber Festival! Hosted by Cricket Cove, it promises to be a fabulous time for all! I’m thrilled to be included.

Aside from the unbelievable location, look at the line up of teachers!

Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, Susan B. Anderson, Ann Budd, Bristol Ivy, Deb Barnhill! We’ll be joined by Rug Hooker Celia Charlton and Liz Miller for Spinning 101, Ruth Merret for Yoga and the Fleece Artist-Handmaiden team for a dying demo. Wow!

Check out the class schedule here.

So mark your calendars for Friday September 27, Saturday September 28 and Sunday September 29th! Well worth the journey no matter where you hale from. There is so much to see in the area, you might want to spend a week or more. Fall is a great time – no crowds and the leaves should be gorgeous. St. Andrews is easily accessible by car, bus, air or rail. There are three international airports in New Brunswick: Saint John (1.5 hour drive from downtown St. Andrews); Fredericton (1.75 hours) or Moncton (2.5 hours). My local airport in Bangor, Maine is a beautiful 2.5 hours drive away.

I hope to  hike the Fundy Footpath sometime in the not to distant future… but we can just take a quick stroll from the hotel grounds to Katy’s Cove to play in the sand and take a dip in the sea. The bay of Fundy is said to have  the highest tidal range in the world..17 meters or 55.8 feet.. tied with Ungava Bay in Quebec…Mi’kmaq First Nation people understand that the tides are caused by a giant whale splashing in the water. I believe this to be true, and we will see it happen. There’s 6 hours and 13 minutes between tides, just enough time to get a some stellar knitting done!

 

Join the conversation in the Knit East group on Ravelry!

AlgonquinAd

Fiber Factor Challenge Two: Color Inside the Box

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Have you been following The Fiber Factor? It’s Skacel’s new show…kind of like Project Runway except for hand knitters. Catch up HERE if you haven’t.  See the First Challenge HERE.

I was one of the judges for Challenge Two: Color Inside the Box.

I thought it was a tough challenge, take a simple absolutely plain box shape with no shaping at all and add sleeves, the proportions of box and sleeve create the drape required for an attractive garment. Ok, that is hard to begin with, but add COLOR at least two colors and up to eight. The assigned yarns HiKoo Simplicity or HiKoo Simpliworsted come in lots of color, but are perhapsnot the most forgiving yarns, requiring very careful and fastidious execution whatever technique is used.

I started a Pinterest Board, because I couldn’t even think of a garment that fell within these boundries that was attractive…granted it was my to-die-for sweater shape in the 80’s but could it still be fresh? As it turns out, YES!

The final selection was made during TNNA in Columbus Ohio. My fellow judges were:

Stephen West Designer, Author West Knits

Michelle Hunter Teacher, Designer Knit Purl Hunter

Kara Gott Warner Editor, Creative Knitting Creative Knitting

Penny Sitler Editor, Cast On TKGA

As well as Cirilia Rose, Karin Skacel and Chuck Wilmesher all of Skacel.

As judges were lucky to see the garments in real life, and even try them on! I so wish we had a video of Stephen  wearing Terri Rosenthal’s entry…I tell you he worked it! What is especially interesting to me, is that although we came at the judging from very different perspectives, we judges all arrived at the same final conclusion.

 

TracyPurtscherNatalieLarsonRachelHenry

Meghan NavoyLaurenRikerJodiGordonLucas

JennetteCrossSteveMayKatieRempe

TerriRosenthalJohnRavetTalithaKuomi

Remember, the contestants have a very limited amount of time in which to design and knit their garments. I am impressed by their work as well as their willingness to have their work critiqued on the world stage.  And also remember, they don’t just knit, design and write patterns, they have to make videos of their work and describe all the reasoning that went into their designs! As far as I’m concerned, they are all winners.

If you missed it, here are Cirilia Rose and Karin Skacel describing the rules for Challenge Two:

Oh and guess what? !! Skacel won the TNNA Business Innovations Award for 2013!   Hooray and congratulations!

Stay tuned for Challenge Number Three over HERE at Skacel.

 

Icelandic Handknits – Book Giveaway!

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IcelandicHandknits_3

My mailbox has been a happy place lately! I’m a book collector and the latest addition to my library is a treasure. Icelandic Handknits 25 Heirloom Techniques and Projects, by Hélène Magnùsson is my favorite kind of book, it includes simply everything! Part scholarly treatise on historic Icelandic knitting, part pattern collection, part technique tutorials, part visual travelogue and even… part cookbook! You really can’t ask for anything more!
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The designs in the book are inspired by artifacts found in the Textile Museum in Blönduós, in northern Iceland. The book is divided by category of inspiration, Mittens, Traditional Costumes, Lace and my personal favorite, Footwear. I’ve been obsessed with the knitted shoe inserts ever since I got a copy of  Hélène’s previous knitting book, Icelandic Knitting: Using Rose Patterns. Last summer, Gudrun and I were intrepid travelers, driving all the way from Reykjavik to Blönduós just for the purpose seeing the inserts housed in the Textile Museum, quite an adventure!

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The museum did not disappoint, and Hélène has included some wonderful images of the items that served as springboards for her patterns. Here is Gudrun – wearing her Lopapeysa- at the museum, notice the grass growing on the roof!

 

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The book includes a wide range of patterns to please just about everyone; mittens, a bag, hats, lace shawls, swweaters, a throw, beaded wristletts and even a skirt based on traditional knitted slips. My favorite I think, are the colorwork socks wildly worked with short rows, so the stranded sections are topsy turvy. CLEVER! The inspiration was the woven bands used to wrap around socks to keep them staying up, which Hélène’s socks cleverly mimic.

The landscape photographs by Arnaldur Halldörsson are spectacular, and his fashion images gorgeous, many were taken during a snowstorm! Undaunted those Icelanders!

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Gudrun and I were so lucky to meet Hélène in her house in Reykjavik – taking time to see us and treat us to an Icelandic breakfast of smoked salmon and other goodies, even though she was in the middle of renovations and it was the first day of school for her kids.  Keep up with Hélène at her blog and website. Don’t miss out on her many other books. As a souvenier when we visited she gave us her sweet and funny little book  The secret of good vinaigrette revealed to Icelanders. I use it ALL THE TIME!  Icelandic Handknits  includes several recipies including a soup with moss as the main ingredient…others recipies are made with easier to find ingredients so don’t overlook this charming feature of the book.

 

Vivacious and unstoppable Hélène leads amazing hiking-knitting-workshops that I’ve always dreamed of going on. The one called Hiking and Knitting with the Elves is one I’m particularly fond of, reading the description over and over!  Best of all would be to attend Hélène’s summer workshop from July 31 – August 6, 2013,  Icelandic knitting traditions: Textile Museum and North Iceland  focusing on the 19th century Icelandic traditions covered in the book. All the designs from the book will be on exhibit at the Textile Museum, from June 1st to August 31st  and  throughout the first months of autumn by request.

The kind folks at Voyager Press are providing a book for me to giveaway to one lucky reader! Don’t miss out – leave me a comment about knitting or Iceland or even elves before next Tuesday April 30th – midnight.

The Blog Tour Continues:

April 4th, 2013: Gudrun Johnston – theshetlandtrader.com

April 11th, 2013: Donna Druchunas – sheeptoshawl.com

April 18th, 2013: Woolly Wormhead – www.woollywormhead.com/blog

May 2nd, 2013: Susan Crawford – justcallmeruby.blogspot.com

May 9th, 2013: Terri Shea – spinningwheel.net

May 16th, 2013: Alana Dakos – www.nevernotknitting.com

If you don’t win, you can buy a copy here.

We Have A Winner!

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Knit to Flatter COVER

Congratulations to Nell…maker of small things…she’s won the book that may spur her to move on sweater making with the help of our dear friend Amy Herzog!
The rest of us can pick up a copy Knit to Flatter here.

Stay tuned! Tomorrow I have another fantastic giveaway!

oxo

MJ

2013 Classes Posted

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classGrid

I’m lucky to be teaching at some fantastic events this year. It will be great to get back in the classroom, I’m really looking forward to it after these past few months of working only on books.

First class is next week right here in my own neighborhood, at the Penobscot Marine Museum, as part of their winter program “Keeping Warm”. I’m doing it as a benefit so all proceeds go directly to the museum, which has a great textile collection.

Stranded Knitting Traditions Workshop
Join me in Searsport Maine where we’ll explore the wonderful, colorful world of stranded knitting. This beautiful folkloric knitting tradition occurs all around the world from Fair Isle and the Shetland Islands to Scandinavia, South America and throughout Central Asia. Stranded knitting is using more than one color in each round of knitting. At PMM’s Stephen Phillips Memorial Library, Church Street, Searsport. $30 non-members, $25 members. All funds donated directly to Penobscot Marine Museum. For more information contact the Museum.

We’ll be practicing with a small sample worked in the round. Being thrifty Mainers, I ask you to bring yarn from your stash in at least two colors with high contrast. Bring more colors if you like, the more the merrier. Worsted weight or DK weight preferred. You will need either a 16″ circular needle, or double pointed needles that are a suitable size for the yarn you’ve chosen, a good place to look is the ball band for suggested needle sizes.

So that we can get right in knitting, for homework I’d like you to cast on 96 stitches if you’ve chosen a circular needle, or 48 stitches if you’re using double pointed needles. Join for working in the round. K1 p1 rib for one inch.

For more information for all upcoming events visit my Classes page.

I may add one or two more events so be sure to check back.

Coming up:

April 4-7

Vogue Knitting Live Seattle

My hometown!!!! Yes!

 

April 26-29    Vogue Knitting Destinations – Camden, Maine

SOLD OUT – Sorry folks !

 

May 3 &4
Color Immersion Weekend – Harriville, New Hampshire

Historic textile village – Historic mill !