Chat

I would like to thank all the exhibitors for coming to our show and taking their chance with us. We had 150 people through the doors, coming from far and wide. Thank you to all the visitors and to all our club members. They worked very hard keeping the teapot going. Also a big thank you to Iris Bishop who once again gave a fantastic talk.
Patricia Dadson

Hi
I have found a better alternative to sponge on the sponge bars. I have replaced the sponge with a row of 12 conical springs, the type found in AAA battery packs purchased from Maplins Electronics. A battery pack costs 89p and has four springs. Remove the springs are attach to the sponge bar then cove with a length of metal tape, the type found in retractable tape measures. The smaller type are usually 1 metre long and the same width as the sponge bar. Purchased from our local hardware store these are £1.29 for a twin pack.
When the tape is cut from the holder remember to put Sellotape over each end, they are very sharp. You just have to remember when inserting the sponge bar it has to be inserted upside down so that the springs are facing away from the needles. I use this method in both the main bed and the ribber attachment. The bar works perfectly and I have been using it for over a year now and the springs are still in perfect condition. Up until I created this method the sponge bar was the absolute bain of my life, very hard to find, expensive and messy to replace on a DIY basis. I hope this helps.

Having fallen in love with Tasmania on a short visit in 2001 we decided that this is where we’d like to spend our retirement and in 2003 took the giant step and moved over here. (We’re very fortunate as our son and daughter with their respective partners and children have joined us here.) I’ve been an avid machine knitter since the 80s and had accumulated a large number of magazines and yarn. I had to decide what to bring and what to leave so I selected only about six magazines and the best of the yarn (which was four very large cartons). The rest I’m afraid found its way to the local charity shop. Since coming out here we’ve made some amazing life changes and have been incredibly busy but my machines have always been there and I’ve knitted the occasional sweater.

At first we had a property with about 15 acres of pasture so with the help of a friend we purchased half a dozen cows and bred calves. I’d never have believed that one day I’d be guiding a large black bull down into a paddock with the help of just a stick! My husband unfortunately has had some health problems so in 2007 we downsized to a more manageable property so once again I found myself sitting at my knitting machines.

Then I hit a problem and didn’t know where to turn but a search on the net soon found the Hobart Machine Knitters group which I was very pleased to join. We meet once a month and exchange ideas, tips and patterns. I had a Brother 950i and a Pfaff E6000 but I decided to sell my E6000 as it seemed very heavy to use and my back didn’t like it. I found a buyer through the group but of course lived to regret selling it.

One of the other members had been lucky enough to find several machines at the recycling shops and offered me an old Pink Passap. This has turned out to be the best thing that could have happened as, although it is old and the beds are discoloured, it still knits like a dream. I must admit though, that I miss being able to program a pattern into the computer and just get on with it. I have to sit down with paper, pencil and calculator and write a pattern now. Thank goodness for the magic formulae. Unfortunately we can’t buy machine knitting yarn here in Tasmania. I’ve managed to purchase some 2/30s from mainland Australia but all the lovely yarns you have there are just not available locally. I’ve been on UK websites and drooled over all those lovely yarns, but the cost of shipping it out here makes it too expensive. In the meantime I’m working my way through my four cartons, much of which is industrial, with some Hobby and Silky plus small amounts of allsorts.

I’ve just knitted a version of the Design Line knitted blouse by Rita Rubery in the December 1994 issue! I’m really looking forward to receiving MKM soon and even if I can’t get the right yarn hopefully I’ll be inspired to make my own version of your patterns. I hope I haven’t bored you to death with the above but thought you might like to know why someone was obviously reading very old magazines. Kind regards from Anne Hull in Tasmania.

I always read my MKM from cover to cover, but I don’t have room to store the issues, so I just take out the patterns and articles that interest me and have built up quite a comprehensive file now. Keeping like with like, it’s very easy when I want to find a particular item. I keep them together under headings such as punchcards, edgings, scarves, baby, child, adult and the funny odd things that crop up from time to time. Thus I’m very grateful that the magazine has given me all this information and also keeps me up-to-date with the goings on in the machine knitting world. Thank you once again and yours sincerely, Chris Tanner

However, I went on the internet and found wwwduttonsforbuttons.co.uk who have the largest collection of buttons ever seen on my screen. I enquired and they even sent me samples for me to see. I returned the unwanted items and this is a wonderful service for us knitters who cannot find buttons. Hopefully this information maybe of help to you for others who have the same problem. Once again thank you for your help. Best wishes from Barbara Edwards

I’d like to say how much I’m enjoying MKM, it gets better every month. Beryl’s Classwise has been like a godsend to me whilst I’ve been improving my knitting. I’ve just completed the Tie Back cardigan by Alison Dupernex which turned out lovely, so much so that my daughter took one look at it and asked if she could have it. For someone who wasn’t keen on home made knitwear she seems to have acquired quite a few garments that I’ve knitted. Still, that’s kids for you! I’m now trying out my own version of Alison’s lovely design in English rib and I hope it turns out well. Keep up the good work Anne and I hope to see you at the next show. Kind regards, Shirley Marsden in Doncaster.

It’s a lot of fun to fiddle with, so look it up now at http://birrell.org/andrew/knotwork/ and enjoy!

She knitted it with six weaving sections and made a very good job of it. Next I think it will be the Ann Baker shrug, because it’s very fashionable for an 11-year old and an ideal project for her to make. Both Heather and I thank you very much for the magazine. Best wishes from Carol Cochran

Hi
I hope everyone who lives there in England is safe and well in the troubled times you have had recently. I just received my September issue and every time I look through it (which is a lot) I think about you all and say a prayer for you.

I am really excited to start the Casual Comfort pattern in the new issue. I have been looking for a pattern that would be fairly quick and easy to give to some of my loved ones for Christmas. I am planning to make several for a few of my nieces and also one for myself and another friend. I really like these kinds of pattern because with a little tweaking it can be made for a girl or a guy (me). A little shorter in length and a little less of a collar and I think it would make a great sweater for a man. I will probably also make the collar into a hood for the one for me. I always get inspired when I get my issue of MKM and love to work the patterns even if I have to change them a little if I want to make something that was originally designed for a woman.

I am also working on developing a sleepwear set to give as gifts. I am using a sport weight silk thread and plan to make drawstring pants and a Henley top to go with it. I have looked and looked for a pattern for a knitted set like this and have never found one. Sleepwear or lounge sets are very popular here in the USA and most are made of flannel or T-shirt material. I think a set knitted on my standard gauge machine would be great. I’ll send pictures if I get the pattern worked out. Sometimes my great ideas don’t work out to well if I don’t have a pattern to at least start from. LOL
Take care
Ronny

HI I live in the US and love my knitting machines. I am disabled and had a kidney transplant in 2009. I also had a lung collapse in Dec of this last year and have a lot of back problems. If it wasn’t for my knitting machines I think I would go bonkers sitting here at home day after day. I love the MKM magazine and look forward to it every month. The only thing I wish is that it had a web edition. The cost of the magazine is very reasonable but the cost of shipping it to the US makes it very expensive. It cost almost 120.00 American. If there was a web edition I could just download what I like. I would also like to see a web edition of back issues. I want a lot of the back issues but the cost makes them out of my budget. Does any one else feel this way? I have knitted quite a few of the patterns from the magazine and they always turn out beautiful.
Thanks, Ronny