I had heard of Stitches for years, but really didn't know much about it except it was held in faraway places. Well, last spring they announced a Stitches Texas event to be held at the Irving Convention Center, and since I've taken up knitting again the last couple of years, I decided to go. I will say that the list of teachers was a big draw! It was hard to decide what to take, and I finally decided to do the Peruvian knitting, Portuguese knitting (both taught by Andrea Wong) and a Flatter Yourself class with Melissa Leapman. It was really hard, though, because there were so many other amazing instructors. I really wanted to hear Anne Berk, Marly Bird, Lily Chin, Patty Lyons, Alasdair Post-Quinn and then when I got there I heard about other great classes, too.
So how did I decide what to take, you might ask. I've been to Ecuador and saw the beautiful multi-colored knitting with rows of various designs there, and figured Peruvian knitting had to be close to the same, and right I was. SO GLAD I chose that class. I learned to do two-color work using the knitting pins I've come to love. Andrea Wong was also teaching Portuguese knitting, and I've been using that style(using the knitting pin) now for about a year, and I had some questions, so knew that I wanted that class. Andrea answered my questions, and I got to show her the short row technique I have been using for socks. Since both those were full days, it left me with one slot. I have a couple of Melissa Leapman's books, and her sweater designs are pretty darn flattering, so decided I needed to take her class as well. That was a good choice as well, so now when I read
Knitting the Perfect Fit, I'll have a better idea about the things she's sharing.
Then there was the market. OH, MY! There were over 100 vendors there and you could buy yarn and books and needles and patterns and all kinds of gadgets and hand cream and winders to create your own unique yarns and spinning wheels and lots of things I'm sure I haven't listed. There were also informational tables about guilds and groups organized around sharing your knitting to keep people warm and booths from big name manufacturers of yarns and needles and so much more. Oh, my BIG find was a wooden yarn bowl--I've been on the lookout now for a year for one, and it is now sitting in my living room by my recliner where I sit to knit. The best part, though, is that it has a dragon carved into it, and if you know me at all, you know I love the Anne MacCaffrey Pern series featuring, you guessed it, dragons.
I'm not sure if Stitches will be back here next year, but I sincerely hope they are! I love to learn and this was a well-organized, full-of-information event!
