September - The start of another year for our Club

Ok it's not quite September yet, but it will be on Tuesday. And I know I won't have time on Tuesday to post this message, so I'm doing it now.

Our next meeting is on Tuesday 7th September. It will be our (very short) AGM, combined with a visit from the members of the Bookham Knitting Club. We will be entertaining them with a bit of history about our club, and three very short talks/demonstrations. We will also have tea, coffee and cakes and a chance to chat with them.

And whilst all that is going on Ann, who used to have a shop in Basingstoke selling yarns, and other knitting related paraphernalia, for hand and machine knitters, is coming along. She has little stock still left and now needs the space it is taking up. So come along and bag a bargain.

We welcome visitors to any of our meetings, so please do come along and see what we get up to that we don't photograph and put on our blogspot.

As soon as the programme for the next year is a bit more finalised I will post it here.

Look forward to seeing you on Tuesday 7th September, 8pm prompt as we have a very full evening.

July show and tell

Everyone was busy knitting for the challenge, but a couple of people found time to knit other things as well.

Janet has only just returned to machine knitting so these are pictures of some of the first garments she has knitted in many years. The lovely bollero above a crochet edging. Janet only just finished knitting this so hasn't had time to do the final finishing yet. She has also knitted the three little garments below as well. Knitting things for babies and children is a good way to start when you are either learning or returning to machine knitting. You get to practice lots of techniques and have some thing to show for all your efforts. Don't worry about not knowing what to do with the things you knit - there are plenty of charities out there who would be happy to receive them.

Chris has been busy again, knitting another of her beautiful shawls. All knitted by hand and in the finest yarns. She even knits in the car on a long journey - but not when she is driving of course!

And after all the pictures, what did we do at the meeting? Well lots of talk of course. Some of us had been at the Guild of Machine Knitters AGM. So we told the others what had gone on. And there were the purchases we made to be shown off. The things we had brought for the challenge and for show and tell also generated much discussion as others wanted to know how they had been made. We also talked a bit about what we were going to do when Bookham Club come to see us in September. We came up with a few ideas. Needless to say we didn't run out of things to talk about.

There is no meeting in August but we will be having a committee meeting to discuss the plans for the next year. And I will also be trying to book a few speakers and filling the programme.

Our next meeting in September 7th.

This little blanket is about the size of an A4 sheet of paper. The single motif in the middle has been backet (with knitting) so that tiny fingers and toes don't get caught in it.

Rather than knit a blanket, one member knitted these three tiny hats. They are so small they would probably fit over a tennis ball.

Well done everyone who took up the challenge. Now I'll have to think of something to challenge you to do for next July!

July meeting and the end of another challenge

For the last meeting before the summer break we set a challenge. This year it was to knit a

special blanket for a special baby. And those that wished could give them to SANDS which we have mentioned in earlier blogs.

This is a beautiful lace blanket. Knitted by hand in a fine, but unbranded, yarn.

This one is adapted from a stitch pattern from Womens Realm. It was part of a layette published at the time of the birth of Princess Anne's first baby. The edging is crab stitch, which the knitter learnt how to do at one of our Club meetings.

These four were all knitted by the same person. They are knitted to her own design and based on a patern from one of the baby books. They all have a garter stitch edging.

Another handknitted blanket, this time knitted from the SANDS own pattern. It is knitted in garter stitch and has a pretty lace edging.