Salem Millstream Knitting Guild

This Month

Birthdays

Happy November Birthday to

• Terri Brown
• Mary Mocklin
• Sue Munson
• Ellen Nordal

Happy December Birthday to

• Pam Dixon
• Su Fennern
• Sharon Kaminski
• Patti Locicero

If we missed your birthday or have you in the wrong month, let us know!

November Meeting

We met in person on November 13 at the Willamette Heritage Center (aka Mission Mill) in a room across from Teaselwick Yarns.

Program

We had a guest speaker – David Altman from Willamette University. He was very engaging and talked about knitting and crocheting in history and the various functions of the fiber arts. We have a copy of the presentation slideshow and a recording of the presentation on YouTube, which David gave permission for us to share.

Update on Mark Twain School project

The school will be able to provide 359 hats, mittens, and scarves to 284 students before they go home for Christmas break. The teachers were very moved by all the donations. Any leftovers will be shared with another school.

Welcome, Guests!

We had a few guests in November – Linda and Judith. Another guest – Pippin – shared a couple of cute dolls she had knitted. We hope to see you all again soon!

Membership Renewals

You’ll be receiving membership renewal forms soon. If you’re not sure if we have your correct mailing address, please let us know ASAP!

Show and Tell

So many awesome projects were shared! There were shawls, sweaters, scarves, hats, and socks. Marsha G. was inspired by the Coral Reef Project and made some items from the patterns on the site.

One of the other items that caught my eye was Cindy’s bright colored Wind Mills Hat. Mostly, it caught my eye because she noted that the bright colors were intended to bring cheer. Who couldn’t use more cheer as the days get shorter and darker?

November Board Meeting

The Board met on November 16 to discuss various topics, including welcoming Marcia Smith as our program coordinator! She’ll be working hard to set up our program for 2022 and is already working on some ideas. Please share your ideas with her (or any Board member). We’d also appreciate knowing if you can lead a discussion or teach a class on the topic or know someone who can.

During our November meeting, the idea of switching weekends for our monthly meeting was briefly discussed. The Board continued the discussion and determined that there were more downsides to upsides to changing the weekend, and we will not be pursuing a date move. We’re going to keep meeting the second Saturday of each month.

Guild Flyer

Su Fennern created this Guild flyer that will be offered to local yarn stores. Feel free to print it and share it or email it to your contacts that might be interested in joining us. Su will be bringing some copies to our December meeting.

Upcoming Events

December Meeting

Join us for a “stuff swap” and a make-and-take at Willamette Heritage Center (aka Mission Mill) on December 11 from 10 a.m. to noon.

Knitting Stuff Swap

Need to make room for your incoming Christmas presents? Have some accessories, books, yarn, etc. that you don’t need any more? Bring it along and let it go home with someone else.

Su will be bringing yarn that has been donated to the Guild for you to take home if you’d like. You can use it for charity knitting, the Coral Reef Project, or just about anything else you’d like to make!

Teresa Furnish will bring almost everything you need to make these glass ornaments, including the ornament, yarn, and toothpick “needles.” You can’t knit with the “needles,” though, so please bring a set of sock needles size 2.5 or 3.0 mm. (We have a couple of spare sets, but not enough for everyone. If you can bring extra, it would be appreciated!) If you have a preference for the color of yarn in your ornament, you may also want to bring 7-9 yards of sock weight yarn.

Join the Community Coral Reef

Coral Knit Fiber Arts is creating an installation which will allow people to walk through an underwater fiber art world. They welcome donations of healthy and bleached corals, underwater creatures, and items knitted and crocheted from reclaimed and recycled plastics. The goal is to emphasize the beauty and diversity of the undersea world while educating about climate change and pollution by maritime plastics.

The deadline is August 1, 2023. They hope to display the reef at a number of locations throughout the Pacific Northwest, starting at the Lincoln City Cultural Center in September 2023.

You can visit Coral Knit Fiber Arts and click on The Community Coral Reef Project for more information, patterns, and inspiration. All techniques and skill levels welcome! Tag your projects on social media #pnwcommunitycoralreef.

This Month

Birthdays

Happy November Birthday to

• Terri Brown
• Mary Mocklin
• Sue Munson
• Ellen Nordal

Happy December Birthday to

• Pam Dixon
• Su Fennern
• Sharon Kaminski
• Patti Locicero

If we missed your birthday or have you in the wrong month, let us know!

October Meeting

The meeting on October 9 was held in-person at Willamette Heritage Center (Mission Mill) from 10 a.m. to noon. We sat in tables near the register for Teaselwick Yarns, and Tracey even gave us candy. It was I Love Yarn Day, so Janet and Su both came prepared with some fun trivia.

It was great to see people’s projects in person. Members shared sweaters, hats, mittens, and a two-at-a-time sock that had been placed in time-out for being difficult. (Haven’t we all been there?!)

YouTube Podcast/VLOG

Looking for something to watch while you knit in the coming months? The Ewethful Fiber Farm & Mill has a YouTube channel with a couple dozen episodes called Being Ewethful. You can find them by searching on YouTube or just click this link.

Charity Knitting Opportunity

If you’re looking for a new way to share your knitting and care for others, take a look at this article that Patty Scruggs shared from The Knitting Space newsletter: Knitters Create Gloves for Kids, Adults with Limb Differences.

Knit for a Unique Fit is a Facebook group that helps people with limb differences connect with knitters from all over the U.S. Stellan Sparks is one such boy, and having received his customized gloves from a knitter in Atlanta, he was super happy – he wore them every night for two weeks straight!

Sad News about a Local Yarn Store

Soft Horizons Fibre at 412 E 13th Ave in Eugene is closing its doors. The following was posted on the store’s Facebook page on October 16:

Time goes by and as the seasons change, so do our lives. Our thoughts reflect upon the past while we anticipate our future. Since there is no immediate family member or friend to carry on the Soft Horizons traditions it is with mixed emotions that I feel the time has come to retire and open the door to discover my “new horizons.” While I will truly miss the shop, I relish the opportunities that await me.

All of us at Soft Horizons would like to thank you for your dedicated support, friendship, and patronage for almost 42 fabulous years. We hope to see you soon!

10% off ALL Malabrigo, baskets, and alpaca teddy bears
20% off ALL other yarns, needles, notions, and accessories
40% off ALL in store books and patterns
Our garment sale continues as well as our “back room bargains.”

Soft Horizons Fibre

Join the Community Coral Reef

Coral Knit Fiber Arts is creating an installation which will allow people to walk through an underwater fiber art world. They welcome donations of healthy and bleached corals, underwater creatures, and items knitted and crocheted from reclaimed and recycled plastics. The goal is to emphasize the beauty and diversity of the undersea world while educating about climate change and pollution by maritime plastics.

The deadline is August 1, 2023. They hope to display the reef at a number of locations throughout the Pacific Northwest, starting at the Lincoln City Cultural Center in September 2023.

You can visit Coral Knit Fiber Arts and click on The Community Coral Reef Project for more information, patterns, and inspiration. All techniques and skill levels welcome! Tag your projects on social media #pnwcommunitycoralreef.

Upcoming Events

November Meeting – In Person!

We will be meeting at Willamette Valley Heritage Center (aka Mission Mill) on November 13 from 10 to noon. The address is 1313 Mill St SE in Salem. We will meet in the area by Teaselwick Yarns. Hope to see you all there!

We are excited to have a presentation by David Altman. He teaches a course at Willamette University about knitting culture and provided the following summary of his presentation:

“During the last decade, knitting, crocheting, and the fiber arts in general have experienced a remarkable increase in popularity in the U.S.  In part, this is because activities such as knitting have the ability to play many roles and serve diverse functions. Knitting can be practiced as a craft, and it can also be a medium for art and fashion. Knitting can be used to express political views, and it can also simply be a way to relax. And these various facets are not mutually exclusive. For example, if I am knitting a sweater with an American flag on the front, I may be partaking in craft, political activism, and leisure all at the same time. The goal of this talk will be to discuss. the impact and value of knitting through a multidisciplinary approach, exploring its significance through the lenses of history, fashion, politics, and science.”

This Month

Birthdays

Happy October Birthday to

• Janet Bubl
• Nelda Gill

Happy November Birthday to

• Terri Brown
• Mary Mocklin
• Sue Munson
• Ellen Nordal

If we missed your birthday or have you in the wrong month, let us know!

September Meeting

We met on Zoom on September 11 and learned ways of joining yarn while working in the round. Su Fennern put together a handout on how to select needles and join the yarn. Marcia Smith found some YouTube videos for us to watch. In case you missed the meeting, here are the links:

• Casting on in the round: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I295-6W0qV4
• Fixing a twist after joining: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alGQDqCCNRY

Announcements

• Marcia Smith has stepped forward to serve as our program planner. Thank you, Marcia!!
• Thank you to all who made donations for the Mark Twain School’s Christmas Tree project!

Upcoming Events

October Meeting – In Person!

We will be meeting at Willamette Valley Heritage Center (aka Mission Mill) on October 9 from 10 to noon. The address is 1313 Mill St SE in Salem. We will meet in the area by Teaselwick Yarns. Hope to see you all there!

October 9 is also I Love Yarn Day – so bring yarn to knit, yarn stories, and other yarn trivia to share.

I Love Yarn Day isn’t just an event for the purpose of increasing the popularity of knitting and crocheting as a hobby. Working with yarn is an activity that can be vital for improving health. There are studies that show it has multiple health benefits, from increasing confidence to reducing the conscious experience of stress and it’s very beneficial for keeping hands and fingers flexible. A 2019 study found that 97% of people that worked with yarn said it helped them to slow down and relax. What other health benefits are there for working with yarn? How does yarn make your life better?

Knitting Retreats

Knitting retreats at Alton Collins Retreat Center are starting up if anyone is interested. Dates are October 8-10, 2021, and February 18-20, 2022. Interested parties can contact Kimberly Wood-Soldana at rovingtoknit@gmail.com.

Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival (OFFF)

The Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival is cancelled for October 2021 but will be planned for a future 2022 date.

This Month

Birthdays

Happy June Birthdays to:

• Nancy Campion
• Karen Lemmon
• Sue Tyvoll

Happy July Birthday to:

• Debbie Juul

Happy August Birthdays to:

• Sandy Galbraith
• Kathy Holt
• Tia Purdy

If we missed your birthday or have you in the wrong month, let us know!

June Minutes

In June, Su Fennern welcomed us to her spacious yard. It was nice to see Guild members in person! Some of the ladies brought knitted and crocheted items for donation. The collection resulted in:

• 31 hats
• 5 scarfs
• 2 hat and mittens sets
• 1 pair of mittens

Thank you very much to all who contributed. If you have items you’d like to donate, please let one of the Board Members know or email us and we’ll arrange how to get them.

Our visiting vendors – Leann Bleakney of Silver Falls Fiber Company and Tonie Young of Butterfly Fiber & Yarn – sent a thank you note to Su. You all made a great impression on them!

“Hi Su,
Thank you for having Leann and I yesterday, it was nice to get out and see people! Plus they seemed to like our yarn 🙂
I had a great day and was surprised at how much I sold, it gave me a confidence boost that I needed. You have a wonderful group of ladies, they were all nice and I really enjoyed speaking with so many of them. Anytime you want us back we’ll be there!
Tonie”

July Minutes

In July, some of the group took a trip to the Alpacas at Marquam Hill Ranch in Molalla.

I heard that it was a great time, and some of the attendees gave us permission to share the following photos with you. Lovely ladies with adorable alpacas!

Upcoming Events

August Meeting – In Person!

We will be meeting at Willamette Valley Heritage Center (still Mission Mill to some of us) on August 14 from 10 to noon. The address is 1313 Mill St SE in Salem. We will gather on the front porch for announcements and whatnot, then people can spread around the grounds to knit. There are tables on the grounds that we are welcome to use, and we can visit Teaselwick Wool, too. Although there is a restaurant on the premises, the most recent information we have is that it will not be open until 4 pm, so you may want to bring your own food and drink. At the very least, you’ll probably want water – it’s supposed to be hot out.

Future SMKG Meetings

We’ll be meeting back in the clubhouse at Terrace Lake at 2120 Robins Lane SE in Salem. Looking forward to seeing you there starting on September 11, 2021.

Knitting Retreats

Knitting retreats at Alton Collins Retreat Center are starting up if anyone is interested. Dates are October 8-10 and February 18-20. Interested parties can contact Kimberly Wood-Soldana at rovingtoknit@gmail.com.

Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival in October

The Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival is scheduled for the weekend of October 23-24, 2021 at the Linn County Expo Center.

Do keep in mind that holding OFFF is still tentative, as the safety of our visitors and vendors is our highest priority. We will ultimately be heeding the guidance of the CDC and the State of Oregon as to whether or not we can hold this event.