News

We’ve another fabulous idea worked out on the machine by Dianne Bunyan and you’ll find her pattern for a scarf and hat on page 24. Diane has produced a fascinating stitch design that shows on the right side and is completely hidden on the reverse. This means that the beanie can be pulled down and worn as a plain navy hat, or have the brim turned back to show the intricate eyelet holes with a navy backing. Any small pattern repeat of six rows can be used and it really is a new technique to try. Our packed issue has meant we’ve had to hold over news from Anne Reid about Undy YarnCrafts’ move to a country park outside Lydney. We’ve also had to postpone Norman Whitfield’s return to our pages, but they’re both waiting in the wings.

Our cover design this time is from Clair Crowston and knitted in a gorgeous DK acrylic yarn from James C Brett. Marble is 100% acrylic in 15 marled and variegated colourways. Texere is selling it online, so it’s sure to be a website winner as well. At just £1.75 per 100g ball, you’ll just go into the third ball and there can be no grumbles at looking as good as our cover girl for £5.25!

Finally, don’t miss Carl Boyd’s easy-to-make clutch bag on page 16. You need just 100 grams of yarn plus a few bits and bobs to be bang on trend. There’s still time to check if there are any vacancies for Carl’s Hands On week at Metropolitan. The date is Monday 23rd to Friday 27th November, from 10.00 am to 4.00 pm each day, at a fee of only £175. Call Carol Hocknell now on 01270-628414 to see if she can fit you in. Carl will be with them for the whole week as a tutor. It’s a unique opportunity to absorb and put into practice his innovative ideas. If you wish you can make this bag or any of his designs, with his special finishing touches and expert guidance.

I’ve included a lovely story from Irene Krieger in this month’s magazine. A friend of hers was inspired to create an amazing four-panel mosaic, by a tea set given to her parents. When she was small she’d been fascinated by the picture on it and wanted to preserve the spirit of her childhood memory. I remember when Carl Boyd was giving lectures a while ago that he talked along similar lines. To create something original for yourself, find something that you love for the colour and it may be some china, a birthday card or picture. Whatever it is, match as best you can the colours in the object and then use those colours for your knitting. You’ll find it really does work and next time you need some inspiration, why not take a leaf out of Irene’s friend’s book? On similar lines, do look at Ann Matthew’s Alpaca designs in Newsline. Ann is a Knitting Buddy and she worked with a breeder to develop the yarn. Ann loved the warm, natural colours as well as the texture and feel. That, in turn, inspired her to make some gorgeous garments. It wasn’t easy going and Ann had to switch between standard gauge and chunky machines, as well as fiddle around a lot with the tension. However, her hard work has paid off and she’s produced a fabulous collection.

A couple of weeks ago I was thrilled to receive an e-mail from Susan Guagliumi. As you’ll read on Page 6, she’s back in print with Hand Manipulated Stitches for Machine Knitters. It’s one of the best source books of all times for machine knitting and I have one of the original hardback editions. It seems that Bond USA had the reprint rights for the book back in 2001 and it came to Susan’s attention two or three years ago that it was out of print. Bond USA was acquired by a very big outfit, but they only bought the assets. The original film was lost, so Susan spent months re-assembling photos and drawings and putting the book back together again. It was a huge amount of work and she’s republished through Book Surge, an arm of Amazon.com. She’s also had the video switched over to DVD. If you didn’t buy the book the first time round, then it really is one not to be missed. My hardback version is 210 x 260 mm and has 250 pages crammed with masses of ideas. This is the only book you’ll ever need on a desert island with your machine and a stash of yarn, I promise! I spent many happy hours with Susan when lots of us visited the States in the heyday years of machine knitting. It was around the time of the Bramwell Expos and I also joined in the fun with Susan and lots of American knitters and tutors at Camp Tuckanitslip. Her e-mails have brought back many happy memories for me and I hope we can meet up again.

I’m finishing this issue a little earlier than usual, because I’m having a few days off to go back up North. One of the reasons is to check out an alternative venue for Machine Knitting LIVE! in Bury. For a few years now, parking has been difficult and there’s been no room available for us to have talks. Things are looking very promising and I’ll let you know how I get on next time. When you read this, Machine Knitting LIVE! at Croydon will be just round the corner, so do come and join us for a lovely day out.