Quick notes--- Late Winter, 2009 Our sewing class for making great hats and bags out of old wool sweaters is set to begin the 25th of February, 12:30pm, continuing for four sessions. Collect your old sweaters now, or visit thrift stores and pick out your favorite wools....Kate Turner will be teaching us.
Kate Turner will ALSO be offering her knowledge (free of charge!) for a sewing night--bring your own wine and project (like a loose hem you've been wanting to fix, something you need help altering, buttons, etc.) and join us on February 26th at 7pm... Think of this as a refresher for that eighth grade Home Ec class you took many years ago. RSVP's absolutely necessary We are now starting a CHARITY KNITTING BIN---that will work with your participation.....bring in scraps, unused, or extra yarns and donate them to our bin. It will serve as a place for people to get yarn, free of charge, to knit for charity organizations. The only requirement will be to send in a picture when the project is completed so that we can post it for information AND inspiration. SO CLEAN OUT YOUR YARN CLOSET(S)! Now for the FAVORS And finally, I'd like to end with an excerpt from the book I am reading- Three Cups of Tea. This true life story is about Greg Mortenson, a mountain climber, who became a hero to people in Pakistani villages. He began building schools for children who had none in remote villages. And then, he was presented with this next request... I quote: "'We appreciate everything you're doing for our children,' Hawa said, 'But the women want me to ask you for something more.' All our best -from our place to talk and sew-
The Holly Trail is this Saturday, December 6th, in Mendham. Please come out and support our local businesses. Lots of us have special offerings---including free knitting help at Collective Yarns. Here is your chance to learn how to knit, fix some mistakes, start something new.... Starting Friday, Collective Yarns will have gift certificates for the holiday season ready to go. Please consider purchasing a knitting or sewing lesson for someone who has been wanting to learn. It is a perfect gift for a teacher, aunt, mother, sibling, child, etc. We can also create special knitting kits for specific projects, complete with instructions. Early in January, stay tuned for a visit from Maggie Doyne, founder of Blinknow.org. We will spend an afternoon knitting for children in need for her orphanage. Start saving and collecting your scraps of yarn now. And, finally.... Wishing you warmth and joy this holiday season-
December Handmade Whenever I look at things that I made with my hands, they bring me back to the moments of my life when they were created. I can remember the events and people around me--like viewing a photograph, but more acutely; there is a sensory element that envelopes me and any past emotions. They are handmade snapshots; a piece of suspended time, it is as if my hands secured memories in my mind. It was just recently that I had the opportunity to make a gift for someone who had played a significant role in one of my children's lives. It was coming to a conclusion, and I wanted to mark this time with something, as much as I wanted to remember and safeguard the weight of my feelings. The decision to make something always involves risk--it may not come out as I'd like, or I may have a hard time setting aside the right time. Being creative and feeling creative are fickle companions and often are like the wind. There is a sequence of practical steps that I take to encourage myself- first, I clear a space at a table, my bed or the couch. Then, I collect my things--including a cup of coffee or tea; my knitting needles, or needle felting tools, roving, yarn and instructions, or pictures of what I want to make. I try to remember the cordless phone, because if I am disrupted, and have to get up in the middle of things I run the very real risk of abandoning the project altogether. I just am not self disciplined enough to walk by clutter, laundry or dirty dishes without giving myself over to them. If I am successful at collecting everything I need, despite the unmade beds, I sit down and will myself to become absorbed in whatever I am making. It is so hard to begin, and sometimes it happens more quickly than others, sometimes it happens not at all. I think it has to do with the timing, the project, and whether or not I am happy with the beginning pieces. Maybe it has something to do with the moon. Really, I am not sure. If it works, it is like magic. I can suddenly be transported into a creative realm, able to be a part of my home, but on another level. It is almost as if I am a bystander to my own life. I hear, but don't participate in the sounds of the house, the sounds of the house that are constantly changing and evolving, making the details of daily life hard to remember--unless I am using my hands. With this project I hear a grandparent visiting and helping with homework; the four year old playing with legos amidst his own chatter of which only he is capable; the birds at the feeder, the almost teenage boys opening and reopening pantry cabinets. Even knowing me for all these years, my immediate family still becomes a bit disoriented when I am sitting engaged in something-- despite my desire to knit more often, it is still unusual at our house to have me not connected to the kitchen at the moment, or at least some element of nagging or carpooling. These are my issues, I know, it can be so hard to separate from basic tasks. And, finally, when I finish the gift I am making, my kids are impressed. It came out better than I had hoped and I look forward to giving it away. And I do. And the question inevitably comes later on from this same family who witnessed my investment of time and energy into this present. "Did she love it?" "What did she say?" "That's it? "Did she call you about it?' They are the ones that feel a bit bereft when I explain that she liked it and seemed pleased. For them, it almost just isn't enough, as if maybe it wasn't a worthwhile way to spend my (or their) time. What I wish they knew, that I never can find the simplest words for, is the fact that it was all a gift for me. It was my way to suspend this moment of my life. My hands tuned me in to the lives around me, without my energies interrupting them; The process helped me protect a meaningful time in my life. I was paying attention to it at an entirely different level. The day's agenda was on hold for the moment. I was sitting still, acutely aware of the lives, the sounds, the space around me. It is only my cream scarf that can bring me back to the cold football game my son played five years ago where it was knit and completed. That memory endures whenever I where it. The sensory details of that night at dusk are sealed into it--I remember sitting on the metal bleachers, in the wind, but with a pile of soft, rustic wool on my lap......and I remember the different stretches of highway on the way to North Carolina by how far I was on a little boy's hat, and wishing the 10 hour drive could be just a little longer, since I was about to cast off..... and then there is the the needle felting project I worked on with my best friend's daughter on a vacation in Florida. I wanted to leave something for their new house, and decided on a "we are out back" sign for the front door. Her daughter, at that moment, loved mermaids--a picture perfect for a beach house door. We worked on it together, her daughter and I, and I'll now never forget that she loved mermaids when she was eight. And that warm Florida day is sealed into my mind because of a needle felted door hanger, complete with cascading blond hair. It was a day that we worked together with our hands.
Hello Knitters- Kate's Kids Sewing Class on Sundays at 1:30 has begun. If you'd like to be part of her email updates and project offerings, send me a note and I will forward it on to her. I heard they made some adorable pin cushions last week to start... Darcy will be offering the class below on Fridays, anytime between 11:30 and 2:30 And finally, Megan's Beginning Knitting Class continues on Wednesdays--feel free to pay as you go--$15/session, and drop in sporadically. All our best- P.S.
June, 2008 Ahhh, the season of Warmth is here. And it feels so healing, so warming, so good. Every year in June, the seemingly novel thought occurs to me how much I was really missing warmth in the air. And then I remember that I had the same feeling the year before, and before.... And I wonder, once again--over again-how exactly we make it through all those months of the year without that bone satisfying heat. I was under the covers a lot this winter reading some really good books. Some of you know which ones because I can never keep good things to myself. In any event, they have led me down my current path of thinking about the nature of healing and the journey of relationships, both young and old. The timing of one book coinciding with some pointed conversations, maybe coincidental, but then I think again, hopefully not. The reality is that we are all in the midst of family and friends (or even ourselves) with significant health crises or concerns. It is the nature of being alive ---and as my husband explains over and over to Charlie, my four year old concerned about aging and death--it is a part of life. It seems that healing takes place in so many ways, on so many levels. Warmth, itself, having a primary role---think about your irreplaceable warm friends who bring you tea and soup and offer you warm socks; or about the the hot sun on your back; warmth from exercise; even heat from an argument that moves your relationship forward; or from curling into the arms of someone you love. It heals. My cat knows this. I look at her with envy every day. On cloudy days she is found on Jake's bed--on the wool blanket at the end. She is tight in a ball, head under paw, simultaneously generating and protecting her body heat . On sunny days she is on our porch. There she lays on our wedding blanket --right in the sun. She is stretched out just so; the light reaches her completely--from underneath her tilted chin to the recesses of her belly. Before I leave for my day of stuff, though sleeping she stops me in my tracks. I think that there should be someway to stop my day and join her. I plan on it. And, when all the stuff gets in the way, I think about her again and think at least someone (even if it's just the CAT) got to enjoy the soft couch in the sun today. I figure my friends who knit especially recognize the power of warmth and friendship. It's lucky to know about the sheep. My husband and I were in Nantucket this past weekend and spent some time with a new friend, Nicole, who told us about her newly acquired Fresia sheep from New Zealand (a coincidence to have met her?) We walked out to the field and there they were---yes, in the sun. The nursing lambs pressing up to the mama. There was milk on their lips just like those milk ads. Nicole, who is studying to be a vet, was sharing her observations about how between sheep and chickens---that is really all you need for survival. They provide wool, food, milk, and fertilizer for your compost---which, yes, generates the HEAT, that breaks it down into magical nutrients for our earth's soil. We've got some great things coming up at the knitting shop this summer......among them summer camp with dates listed below. Also, on Wednesdays , I offer you the opportunity to join us weekly from noon-2pm to learn about and work on a prayer shawl you may have been considering for a friend. I thought it would be nice to share ways knitters have been offering this warmth to someone in need. Let me know if you plan on joining us. Warmly, very warmly, Summer camp dates and details for July, all ages 8 and older welcome, (even adults): Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday Mornings-9:30am-11:30am, June 24th-26th : Intro to knitting, Make your first scarf.
April, 2008 Here is a bracelet I made last night--with roving--that we will make in our kids class on Sunday. (Kids are also welcome to knit and work on existing projects.)
January, 2008 Collective Yarns Update But never mind...we are just so happy to have the extra room-and the extra space to have more chairs, tables and room to grow. And there's even another bathroom! Special thanks go to Dave Petrie who has made the transition effortless on our end, and who will be making furniture that will house all our yarn and also be available for sale. Woven Floors has offered to display a rug or two, adding to our vision of a true community store. (oh, and check out my new website, http://cyiknit.com, a site devoted to the writing knitter (or the knitting writer, if you prefer). Its mission is to be a place that celebrates and chronicles the varied reasons why we knit. Although it is still in the development phase, it is finally on its way, and ready for your contributions. Please pass it on to those who you think might be interested. )
November 25, 2007 A Tale of Three Friends and Some Hats I stopped in at the shop on Thursday, just to collect some projects for a long car trip to North Carolina for Thanksgiving. I had NO time to stay---it was during a three hour window that was already filled with OTHER errands. But I walked into one of those situations that magically erases agendas in your head. Tucked into our shop were three instrumental people that propelled Mendham's tiny knitting shop into existence. I hadn't seen them (really seen them) in over a year or so. You know how it is--life constantly rearranges things and activities that take precedence during our days, probably to just keep us on our toes. Even me-surrounded by needles and yarn all the time--and I sheepishly admit to not having knit anything to completion in over six months. Most likely longer, but, well, I'll think about that later. It was a lovely hour, one that I had missed a great deal. In fact, one that I had missed SO MUCH, So after talking about missing our knitting together, our plans for the vest class and various other assorted girl details (like how middle age really feels like a bodily drought, etc), Kathy and I shared some shop news...specifically how we are going to expand! A month or so ago, we found out that the space next to us--part of Mary Mac's shop--will be available. Mary wants to be a little smaller but stay where she is. Town business, you see, is not getting busier. So we are going to cut out a little door and have another room with three more windows, bathroom, wall space, class space, etc. Dave Petrie, our builder friend, is going to take care of all these sorts of details--while also building the nice furniture that we will sit on and around. And, even happier-- if you like any of it, he probably will build it for you, too. Expansion in Mendham is not without a sequence of steps, however. First, one has to contact one of the part time employees in town hall. No easy feat. Just listen to the town hall message machine to understand what I am talking about. Everyone works different hours, at different times, and you need at least 20 minutes to hear all the options. And then, you may not be sure which option you need--which then requires consultation with the operator who is on vacation. It turned out to be a zoning issue and Mr. Price, who was really nice once I finally reached him explained the process. First we submit drawings, then if approved, building permits (and probably a check) and we (actually Dave) will be on our way to cutting a connecting door. We are really happy about this development....we have felt for a while--well--actually since the beginning, that our shop is limited by space, no matter how cozy it feels. It would be so nice to have a space for a class ---AND-- a space for the yarn and supplies. Lots of us enjoy a yarn shop so much more when it is filled with people, conversation, and ideas. Of course, we have some reservation about expanding in the midst of Mendham's many 'for rent' signs. But, it was in the midst of this particular concern, that our three friends showed up, and well-we took that as a sign to go ahead. Every town needs a yarn shop, right? At least that's what I was thinking when I went home on Thursday after spending an hour I did NOT have with friends that always make me smile. The rest of the good news is that sometime (probably during the freakish snow storm) before I got into the car for the eleven hour trip I realized that what all my boys needed were some hats. At my
Upcoming Classes Sundays: Thursday evenings for adults: All require RSVP and three students required or class will be canceled. Vest Knit Along Come knit your holiday gifts! All Holiday Cheer,
November, 2007--introducing the "People Purse" --Sunday and Wednesday kid's class, Thursday nights for adults too.... who are the people in your life? October, 2007 Daily Hosts and Themes at your local yarn shop: Tuesday-Nutrition with Judy Wednesday-Sit, knit, and talk in Spanish, Megan & Patricia Thursday-Potluck with Kathy Friday-Karen's classes in peace (I mean knitting) Saturday-Teen knitting with Kathleen September 8th, 2007 Get ready to knit! Shop reopens today with new and expanded hours.... stop by and sign up for classes. June 5 Cheers I love living in a small town. I'm lucky to live in Mendham and think daily, that for many people, they can only read in novels what is our reality. Characters in books are real people in our daily lives. For us, we get to experience uniqueness; richness; non transferrable happenings because they are built from the individual and entrepreneurial spirit that is not generic; not franchised; but reflective of the mindful imaginings of our neighbors. It is such a luxury to share. Wayne, the crossing guard knows my children and a hundred others by name. He asks them how their day was--and listens to the answer. Once I called Derek at Peggnet, with what I thought was a major computer malfunction, for him to come right over and just plug it in. Elisa DePasquale, owner of Parall'lel, knows which types of jeans are best for making my butt look smaller. Jack, over at the garden center, walks my mulch and birdseed to my car. He tells me about his cats. Alan, over at Woven Floors, explains everything I ever wanted to know about rugs. And he lets me try them out until I finally decide-- lots of times only to bring them back. Isn't it nice to dream? Andrea, at Just Joy, helped me in January me with very last minute emergency birthday presents and delivered them to my home when I didn't have time to wait for the wrapping. Lisa, at Dante's, created that private room so families with little ones have a place to go for special events without having to worry minute by minute about their tired two year old. Every check out person at Kings knows Charlie --and they always let me run for one more thing even if the lady behind me looks annoyed. And, Leo, over at the Wicker Basket, has been serving my son coffee to bring back to the car since he was six. Dr. Howard, my vet, rescued my friend Ellen when her cashmere goat was having a no good, very BAD day. And, Tory, over at KC's, is currently working with me to get my coffee to that perfectly hot temperature. There are so many examples I could share, and when they run through my head I keep realizing HOW LUCKY I am, we are, to live here. On mornings when the town seems quiet, I get worried that small businesses will give up. It feels critical to me to support them. Partly selfish, I don't want to live in a town of banks and offices. I want to protect the heart of our community, continue to have the opportunity to walk on the sidewalks and wave to friends; to foster our fantastical reality. Hope to see you in town- June 1 Collective Yarns will hold its first session of summer camp on June 25th-29th; 10 until noon. We will experiment with several kinds of projects, not limited to knitting. Students can choose to try art, needle or water felting; plant dyeing yarn; finger knitting and more. We will also cover the basics of knitting for those interested. My goal for the students will be to have one finished project by Friday. On the first day I will show them some creative processes and projects that can be done with wool; it will then be their choice as to which they want to focus on for the week. The minimum age for this workshop is eight, although it is entirely appropriate for much older ages as well. In fact, even though the technical process of art felting is easy, it can be quite a sophisticated project for those interested.
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My Fabulous Hat! 
