Next Meeting: Tues, Nov 6 - Trident Tech Bldg 920 @ 7pm

The next meeting will be Tuesday, Nov 6 at Trident Tech in North Charleston, Bldg 920 at 7pm.

I formed this group a year ago and I'm very pleased to see what it has turned into! Thanks to everyone for making this group a success!

Directions:

Building 920 is the Culinary Arts Building. We meet in the front lobby in front of the Ballrooms.

If you take the Madeline Ave Entrance off of Rivers Ave and park in the first parking lot on the right, you will see the 920 building. This is the closest parking lot to the part of the building where we meet.

Hope to see everyone there!

Next Meeting: Tues, Oct 23 - Trident Tech Bldg 920 @ 7pm

The next meeting will be Tuesday, Oct 23 at Trident Tech in North Charleston, Bldg 920 at 7pm.

I formed this group a year ago and I'm very pleased to see what it has turned into! Thanks to everyone for making this group a success!

Some housekeeping notes:

Last week we had a little run in with a crotchety campus police officer who for some reason had his panties all in a twist about us bringing in snacks and drinks. I think we have every right to be there especially since we are just knitting for Pete's sake. However, so as to not ruffle any feathers, we should probably refrain from bringing in any drinks that might resemble alcohol like the ones I brought last week. Anything in a plastic bottle or a cardboard cup like water, coffee, etc. should be OK.

As far as the snacks goes, I see no reason for us not to keep bringing them if we are so inclined as long as we continue like we always to to leave no garbage behind. I think that dude was just having a bad day.


Directions:

Building 920 is the Culinary Arts Building. We meet in the front lobby in front of the Ballrooms.

If you take the Madeline Ave Entrance off of Rivers Ave and park in the first parking lot on the right, you will see the 920 building. This is the closest parking lot to the part of the building where we meet.

Hope to see everyone there!

Next Meeting: Tues, Oct 16th, Trident Tech - Bldg 920 @ 7pm

This week's meeting will be Tuesday, Oct 16 at Trident Tech in North Charleston, Bldg 920 at 7pm.

Building 920 is the Culinary Arts Building. We meet in the front lobby in front of the Ballrooms.

If you take the Madeline Ave Entrance off of Rivers Ave and park in the first parking lot on the right, you will see the 920 building. This is the closest parking lot to the part of the building where we meet.

Hope to see everyone there!

New Charity Project: Knit Your Bit!

I came across this website via a blog called Knitting for Charity. It is a project called Knit Your Bit through the National WWII Museum that distributes a special V for Victory scarf to veterans across the country with help from the VA Hospital.

I don't know about you all, but I grew up reading those American Girl books and my favorite was Molly, the WWII American Girl. I liked her cause she was smart and bookish. Anyway, in that series, I remember them all getting together and trying to make socks for the soldiers but ended up just making a bunch of squares. They then decided to piece them together to make a blanket.

I also like this charity because you get a nifty little certificate for sending in a scarf for the project. I like certificates too :)

The Knit Your Bit project has two patterns on their website. One for knit and one for crochet. I don't really like the way the crochet one looks so I think I might dust off my knitting needles and use up some of my stash for this project.

Next Meeting: October 9th, 7pm Trident Tech

Next week's meeting will be Oct 9 at Trident Tech, Bldg 920 at 7pm.

920 is the Culinary Arts Building. We meet in the front lobby in front of the Ballrooms.

If you take the Madeline Ave Entrance off of Rivers and park in the first parking lot on the right, you will see the 920 building. This is the closest parking lot to the part of the building where we meet.

Hope to see everyone there!


P.S. I (Dana) may not be there. My aunts and uncles are coming into town next week for a week long visit. I'll try to be there.

Next Meeting: Chicks 'n Sticks Happy Hour! YAY!

Next week in lieu of our standard meeting, we thought it would be fun to get together for a drink and some food. Bring your sticks and hooks and enjoy a nice pint.

Where: Madra Rua Pub, North Charleston
When: October 2, 6:30pm

How to get there:

Take I-26 East to the East Montague exit. Follow East Montague until you get to Park Circle. Follow the circle around until you get to the continuation of East Montague. Go past North Charleston High School(on the right). The Pub is on the the last block on the left - green building, flags, and red awning

Here is a map:


View Larger Map

There is plenty of easily accessible free parking.

Since we need to secure a table, please let me know if you plan on coming or not so I know what size table to get.

See you there!

Kniting at the Beach 2008!

I know it's a little early to start thinking about this, but last year I had a great time learning how to crochet at the 2007 Knit-In on Folly Beach, sponsored by the local knitting guild, Coastal Cultured Purls.

Anyway, I check their site every once in awhile and they have a new post regarding next years Knitting at the Beach.

Here is the post:

It’s already time to start planning for next year! What classes are you interested in seeing offered? Are there any big name instructors that you would like us to invite? Do you want to teach a class or join us for the weekend? We’re looking at a weekend in near the end of February and will let you know the exact date soon. Start making plans to attend!

http://charlestonknittingguild.wordpress.com/upcoming-events/knittin-on-the-beach-2008/

I think it would be totally cool if we all went! They got a discounted rate at the Holiday Inn on Folly Beach. I don't think I would spend the night since I am local, but some of them did just as a little mini vacation even though they lived near by. Some of them came all the way from Columbia.

Anyway, if there is a technique you've been wanting to learn that would take more than someone could teach you in our meetings start thinking of them. The classes were free. Last year they had a felting class, a crochet class and a multi directional knitting class.

Next Meeting: Sept 18, Trident Tech Bldg 920 @ 7pm

Next week's meeting will be Sept 18 at Trident Tech, Bldg 920 at 7pm.

920 is the Culinary Arts Building. We meet in the front lobby in front of the Ballrooms.

If you take the Madeline Ave Entrance off of Rivers and park in the first parking lot on the right, you will see the 920 building. This is the closest parking lot to the part of the building where we meet.

Hope to see everyone there!

Next Meeting: Wed, Sept. 5th, Trident Tech

This weeks meeting will be at Trident Tech at 7pm. Since only Leah and I went last week downtown, we will discuss other options of places to meet.

Hope to see ya'll there!

Next Meeting is Aug 29th, 7pm @ East Bay Meeting House

Next Meeting is Aug 29th, 7pm @ East Bay Meeting House
We will be meeting on Aug 29th at 7pm at the East Bay Meeting House.

See below for directions.

The address of the East Bay Meeting House is 159 East Bay Street.

Basic Directions:

Take I-26 E to Meeting Street Exit

Turn Right onto Meeting Street

Turn Left onto Market Street

Turn Right onto East Bay Street

East Bay Meeting House is on the right side of the street just past Queen Street.

The closest parking garage is on Cumberland street 2 blocks before Queen St.

Here is a map that should further help you figure out where this place is.

Meters are free after 6pm, so try to snag a spot on the street before heading to the Cumberland Street garage. Also, if you don't mind walking 3-4 blocks, parking on the Battery is always free and should be plentiful.

Changes to Chicks 'n Sticks

Everyone should know this by now since I sent out an email, however just to reiterate I have discontinued the subscription to the Meetup.com site. I feel that although it has some nifty and convenient features, they are all ones we don't really need nor need to pay for. I don't want this be a group where you have to pay dues to be apart of. So with that said we will be using this blog and our Myspace page to disseminate information and use it for discussions.

Since the group is growing and rather diverse, I want to make it accessible and enjoyable for everyone. So what I was thinking was that we could meet in two different places, alternating weeks. Leah and I checked out a few places downtown today and found a great place on East Bay Street. It is a coffee shop/bar with nice couches and nice tables. The area where the couches are is a little dark, but the coffee area is nicely lit and the wicker chairs are rather comfortable. Parking is not the greatest, but I think Wednesday night around Easy bay is not a hoppin' time, so it shouldn't be too bad. Shelly also reminded us that parking is free on the Battery which is only about 3-4 blocks from the East Bay Meeting House.

What I'd like to do is alternate weeks between Trident and downtown. This way we get a little variety, and accommodate people who live in different areas. If you know of a place you think would be a cool place to meet, please let us know and we will add it in to the rotation.

We will be changing the Meeting day to Wednesday starting on August 29th. This meeting will be the first one downtown at the East Bay Meeting House. I will post directions to it next week.

If you have any questions or concerns about this, please post a comment or email me at chicksnsticks at gmail dot com.

The address of the East Bay Meeting House is 159 East Bay Street.

Basic Directions:

Take I-26 E to Meeting Street Exit

Turn Right onto Meeting Street

Turn Left onto Market Street

Turn Right onto East Bay Street

East Bay Meeting House is on the right side of the street just past Queen Street.

The closest parking garage is on Cumberland street 2 blocks before Queen St.

Here is a map that should further help you figure out where this place is.

Dare I say it...

I can't remember the last time I actually picked up a set of knitting needles. Ever since I learned how to crochet and bought The Happy Hooker book, I've pretty much abandoned my knitting projects. I started to think about it and well, other than a hat that was too small to wear and a scarf made out og fun fur type yarn, I have not completed any knitting projects.

I am not sure why this is, but I just find crocheting much more enjoyable. I think a lot of it has to do with the ability to easily fix mistakes. It is so much harder when knitting.

I'm not going to give up knitting though. Perhaps this crochet thing is just a phase. I do want to knit some socks someday, I just don't have an double pointed needles or the right kind of yarn.

I've been buying a lot of yarn though lately. It is mostly online where you can get some killer deals. My newest find is a place called The Knitting Zone.

Oh, also, I'm really starting to get into Amigarumi. Which is basically crocheting little dolls that may or may not look like anime. It's soo cute. I'll post pictures when I get some.

I finally felted

Behold-





I could have felted it longer so that the stitches would be completely gone, but I like the texture of it and it would have been too small if I had felted it any longer.

Charity Collection

Starting next week, we will be designating the last Tuesday of every month the day to turn in your finished charity projects for Carolina Hospice. I will collect them and bring them to Aly in Mt. P on Wednesday. If you can only make a meeting once in awhile, try to make this one it!

If you would like to deliver your projects directly to the patients, please let me know and I will get you in contact with our liason at hospice, Aly Greer.

I can finally Cable Knit!!!!!

Hooray! After months of yearning, I finally got up the gumption to buy some cable needles and give a cable pattern a whack! I'm using the double-cable scarf pattern from One Skein by Leigh Radford. It is nowhere near as daunting as I had thought it would be. There's not even really any "getting the knack of it". It's a little like using DPNs, only you only have three needles and one of the needles only gets used for a few stitches every 6 or 7 rows. It's actually quite easy. I'd love to show anyone that wants to learn from a human being (not everyone's a "book learner").

The pattern wants it to be a "quartet", or a half-length scarf. I'm altering the pattern so I can make it into a full-sized one. I can't wait to try some other cable patterns.

Emma

This and that and the other thing

I've been MIA for awhile, but not because I wanted to be. This doesn't mean I haven't been knitting or crocheting at all. I didn't do as much crocheting on my trip to New York as I had hoped but I did do a little bit.

I have several projects going at one time right now, so I've decided to document them so I stay on task and not pick up anothe project until these ones are finished.

Project 1

My top priority right now is to finish a baby blanket for my roommate's new nephew. I am almost finished with it. It is a pattern of my own design which I have been making up as a I go along. It is made with unknown yarn I bought in a 1 pound bulk bag at A.C. Moore. I've already made one blanket with it so far for a premie.

Project 2

Another Fat Bottom Bag from the Happy Hooker for my friend Catherine. I am making this bag extra large to fit with the huge handles I bought for it. I am not yet finished with the bag yet so I need to finish the body of the bag, line it and put the handles on it.

Project 3

I started a half assed attempt at knitting a blanket for another friend of mine that just had a baby. I am not sure they really need a blanket right now, but I might as well finish it. I am jsut knitting sqares using Lion Brand Homespun. I am not sure if I will end up giving them this. I think that at this point I would rather try making them a little cool outfit for the baby rather than a boring blanket. I can always make a blanket later for the baby when he is a little older. Toddlers probably like blankies more than babies do. So I've just decided to make Baby Miles a cool outfit.

Project 4

I need to finish the prayer shawl I am making for Carolina Hospice. I am about 1/4 complete. I am making it out of the Bernat Galaxy yarn in Neptune and Mercury. I got from Emma during the yarn swap. It is really cool yarn and my boyfriend thinks I should make one for myself as well.

Now onto the FINISHED PROJECTS!! YAY! I love when I finish stuff. I feel such a sense of accomplishment.

Finished Project 1:

This is the Fat Bottom Bag from the Happy Hooker made with Noro Kuryeon yarn and lined with a light blue and brown paisley cotton lining. I also sewed a pocket into the lining so the person I am giving it to can have a place to put her essential appendage...her cellphone ;)

Here are some shots I did last night -


This is one side of purse. Notice the turquiose handle flap.


This is the other side. The handle flap is brown.


This is the lining. Not a great picture but it was the best I could get at the moment.


This is the pocket. I ran out of the paisely, so I thought it would look cool to make a pocket out of something that matched in color, but clashed in pattern. Makes it easier to find ;)

Finished Project 2:

I actually finished this almost a month ago, before I went to New York, but I didn't manage to get some picture of it until last night.

This is the Sweet Pea Shawl from the Happy Hooker using TLC Cotton Plus in black. Althought it may look complicated, it is quite serioiusly one of the easier projects I've ever attempted. It came out much smaller than it was supposed to since I was using a smaller gauge yarn, but it is still big enough for someone with narrow shoulders. I originally made it for myself, however since it is a little too small for me, I am giving it to my mom who is much thinner than I am and has small shoulders. I was going to make her anyway so it worked out really well.






This is an upclose shot of the shell pattern.

OUR FIRST CHARITY BLANKET!!!!!

Our first charity blanket is FINISHED!!!!!! It's fun to see the amalgam of all of our hard work materialize. These work up surprisingly quick, with the exception of the five-gazillion ends that have to be woven in. Still fantastically fun, though. I'm starting on the next one this morning and should have it, and maybe another, finished by next weeks meeting. Keep making those squares, girls!

I finished it!!

I am so excited to announce that I have completed my first crocheting project. I finished the body of it at our meeting on Tuesday night. Last night I hunted around for some purse handles. I first went to AC Moore thinking they would have more stuff, but they didn't have anything I could use at all. The lady there suggested I go to Michael's. So over there I went.

They thankfully had some round plastic handles that were the perfect size.

Initially I was going to dye the purse a different color since it was sooo white. But being impatient and wanting to be finished with it, I decided to keep it white. It was such an easy project that I could make another one and dye it if I really want to.

I bought a pair of black handles and some black and white ribbon. I really wanted some ribbon that was black with pink accents, but Michael's had nothing of the kind. So, I went with white.

I think it turned out pretty okay for my first project. Since it it just cotton, it cannot really support anything with any kind of weight, so I am going to add a suspended liner to the inside so I can put my keys and wallet in it without it losing its shape.

Take a look:

New Location: Trident Technical College

Last week we discussed possible options for other places to meet. We are soon outgrowing Atlanta Bread Company for a few reasons.

1. There are only 4 comfortable places to sit. In the case that more than 4 people show up, well some one is gonna go home with a sore bum. No one likes a sore bum, so this needs to be remedied.

2. There is a group of old guys that assemble near the same time we do but seem to get there earlier and snag all the comfy chairs. Some even demand that we move. Well I won't stand for that. They can take their boring NASCAR conversations and old man smell and shove it. Okay that was a little mean, but you get the picture.

So, after some brainstorming, we came up with the lobby of the new 920 Building at Trident Technical College in North Charleston. I am hoping this will end up being the place we meet regularly. There are nice couches and chairs and it is a pretty wide open space with not too much traffic and plenty of parking.

If you need directions, email me at chicksnsticks at gmail dot com

I'm spelling out the email address so I don't get even more spam.

~Dana

Fat Bottom Bag from The Happy Hooker

I am about half way through this project. This will be one of the first projects I have ever finished. I didn't really count the number of rows for part of the body so we'll see if I can still make it look good.

Here are some pictures of my progress:

Below is what the finished product is supposed to look like:

2007 Knit - In

I attended the 2007 Knit-In at Folly Beach last weekend. It wasn't exactly what I expected but it was fun nonetheless.

It was at the Holiday Inn on Folly Beach. There were about 10 people there when I arrived. Most of them were there from a previous class on multidirectional knitting taught by the owner of Its a Stitch on Johns Island.

I was there for the crochet class and I am so glad I went! Anyone who is now interested in learning some basic crochet stitches, I am more than happy to teach you. The class was taught by Vera Hannaford. She was a great teacher and I feel I learned a lot from her. She told me she would like to stop by at one of our meetings sometime. Vera has her own blog as well.

After the class I stuck around for an hour or two picking Vera's brain about reading patterns and pretty much every other question that popped in my head.

Next year the second annual Knit In will be in the last week of February so mark you calendars now.

I'm off to crochet a handbag now. I am working on the Fat Bottom Bag from The Happy Hooker. I highly recommend picking this book up if you are interested in crochet at all. I'll be bringing it with me to the meetings so everyone can take a look at it.

First Post. Yay!!

I created this blog to have a forum for the members of the Charleston Chicks 'n Sticks knitting group that I founded.

I think in a few months I may discontinue the Meetup.com account as I see it becoming an expense I might not necessarily be able to continue to afford, but we'll see. For the time being we can use both the blog and the Meetup site as a means of communication.

Another reason I created this is to allow members a better way to document their knitting. I love looking at pictures of projects and hearing about the ups and downs of the process.

This is not intended to be a "knitting only" blog, so feel free to post about whatever. Just make sure to tag it (categorize) it properly so it makes it easier to archive.