How do you explain to non-knitters who Cat Bordhi really is? A friend of mine told her family that Cat Bordhi was a knitting rock star. Now do you sort of understand why I thought this was such a big deal? We had a lot of fun, I learned an awful lot and I loved every minute.

Those of you who follow my husband’s (McQ’s) blog (he has better pictures than I do) will know that we have a new addition to the household. Welcome George …

That is what he looked like on the day we got him (2 weeks ago). Here is what he looks like today.

Yes, he has stolen our hearts. He’s a little brat with our older dog Lucky and Lucky hasn’t done too much growling at him. They will figure it out.

George is a cuddler. He loves to fall asleep in your arms. I have tried to explain that this isn’t going to work when he’s a big boy of 75 lbs. George doesn’t seem to be listening.

And, in case we didn’t have enough going on here, I opened up the registration for Sheeps Ahoy’s annual Needlers’ Retreat on Monday. It is now full with 60 participants registered. 3 days! It’s full!

I think tomorrow I will take the day off. I’m planning a trip to Perth to visit my dear friend Janie at Janie H Knits. Of course I won’t buy a thing – well maybe just something little.

Dayton Knitting Guild’s Bergamo Retreat Weekend

Late in April I had the honour of teaching at the Dayton Knitting Guild’s Retreat Weekend. It was a very intense and full weekend: four workshops over 3 days and 50 people in the class. But I have to admit, I had a lot of fun with this group. They are all very warm and welcoming and excellent knitters as well. What’s not to like in that environment?

The first thing that I noticed at this retreat was the grounds. There are some lovely spots, many of which reminded me of the nature trails around my own home. I took advantage of a free morning to explore a bit before getting deeply involved in teaching and knitting.

As I was walking the trails I even found some white trillium – they are the provincial flower of Ontario, my home.

The classes were great, the knitters were great, the food was great, the hospitality was great – would you believe me if I told you that I did enjoy myself there? Everyone worked very hard. And at the end of the weekend a few people even had their tea cozies ready to cover a tea pot.

Downtown Knit Collective – Knitters’ Frolic

Then, this past weekend, I was a vendor at the Downtown Knit Collective’s annual Knitters’ Frolic. I didn’t take a single picture! Luckily I was with Natalie and she did take some pictures. I sold a lot of stuff (which is a good thing, it means I can do this again next year), I knit a little bit, I got to reconnect with a lot of knitting friends and I got to meet Franklin Habit of The Panopticon. On Friday, after we had driven from Ottawa to Toronto and been stuck on Highway 401 for a time, and after we had unloaded the car and set up the booth, Natalie and I decided to walk around and see where all the shops were setup. It was then that we met up with Franklin, who appeared to be doing much the same thing. I would much rather have presented a tidier version of me. But he didn’t seem too offended and he was still delightful to talk to. Of course, the fact that he knew of Natalie’s lace work left both of us completely gobsmacked.

What’s on the Needles?

So now that I’m home and the suitcase is unpacked there is a bit of time to knit. My current favourite project is Kate Davies’ Rams and Yowes blanket. It is made using Jamieson & Smith’s Shetland Supreme which I love working with and which is available in the Sheeps Ahoy shop even though it isn’t yet on the web page.

The centre portion of the blanket is worked in the round with a steek.

Once you have finished working this segment, you cut up the centre of the steek stitches.

This allows the centre portion to open up and lie flat.

You then pick up stitches around all 4 sides and work a garter stitch border. I was working on that a bit at the Knitters’ Frolic. I will confess that I didn’t get much time to knit on it. Now that I’m home, I can work on it a bit more. Stay tuned for the progress.

If cutting a steek scares the daylights out of you, the designer of this lovely blanket, Kate Davies, has just posted an excellent series on steeks and how she does them on her blog. It is well worth reading.

In our neighbourhood, we are usually the first ones to have the deck furniture out and ready for use. I take this responsibility quite seriously. So, when the weather turned unseasonably warm last week, I made a concentrated effort to get the snow off the deck. Today the temperature is a balmy 24C (75.2F) which is incredibly warm for this time of year. So, we got the deck furniture out, the bbq ready for dinner and I spent a bit of time with my knitting, my iPad and Mr. Alexander Keith.

We invited the family over and had our first feed of bbq hamburgers and hot dogs. They tasted sooooo good!

Stop laughing!

It began in January 2011. Each of us had to make a quilt block and start a journal describing our thoughts on the block we had created and any assumptions we had with regard to the quilt that it would become. Each block was then put in a box along with our journal and any fabric we wished to contribute. We wouldn’t see them again until December. Stacey devised a great schedule ensuring that each block got to each of the Quilting Divas and that no block visited us in the same order.

The rules were simple; each time you received a block you had to add a border and write your thoughts in the journal. We got together once a month and every 2nd month we passed on the blocks that were gradually growing into quilts.

I will say that for me, this was a stressful journey. It imposed a hard deadline on me – I don’t work well with deadlines. It forced me to be creative in a quilting environment without the benefit of a pattern or template. And finally, I was working on a quilt that was not my own, so there was intense pressure to not screw it up!

Last night we all got together for the Grand Unveiling. We started with a pot luck that included lots of really good food, wine, cider and laughter. And then we sat down and revealed each of the quilts in turn.

We watched as each of us reacted to the knowledge of what our little block had become.

We each identified (in order) the borders we had added.

We talked about the how’s and why’s of the borders we had added.

And we marvelled at, not only the lovely quilts that had been created, but at the creative and technical talent that was present in our little group.

We added one new Quilting Diva after our blocks started their journey in January. Since we wanted her to have a Diva Quilt too, we each made at least one block from a specified line of fabrics. We gave her all the blocks (9 in total) and she was tasked with putting the blocks together into a finished quilt.

I believe we were even successful in ensuring that no one saw their original block again until they saw the finished quilt top unveiled last night.

I have to say that I learned a lot – much more than I expected – from this year-long journey. I learned that creativity is not just a talent some people are born with. It takes time, energy and hard work to cultivate this skill. I learned that the journey is worth the effort and that if you think you can’t do something, it’s just because you haven’t focussed enough energy on it. And finally I learned that the greatest power in the universe is love – we can accomplish anything with it.

More when I return!

Hotel Room Update:

Room #1 – toilet wouldn’t flush a piece of kleenex down the drain
Room #2 – burst hot water pipe – We returned from dinner tonight to find a stranger in our room, with the door wide open, throwing all our things (including everything I bought at Rhinebeck) into a box. They were moving us to another room as the carpet squelched when you walked on it. We were gone a little over 1 hour! Damage to our stuff was minimal. Damage to this hotel chain’s reputation – Done.

So, yesterday my husband and I drove here and today we spent our first day at the Festival. I present a brief summary of the fun.

I’m Here!

An example of the buildings – we went thought about 12 today.

Serious Contemplation

Love The Mop

Love the Locks, Man

Where’s Debbie?

Yes, I found Golding

I may even have bought a spindle

Running Out of Steam – Let’s Leave the Rest for Tomorrow

Fill with tea. Don’t call me too early in the morning.

p.s. That would be my Jennie-The-Potter Knitting Camp Mug which arrived in Tuesday’s mail. It’s wonderful! The headcold is not.