SMKG Blog

This Month:

Birthdays in July:

Debbie Juul
Terry Sevold

July Program

We had a relaxing time chatting, eating, and catching up. What a wonderful abundance of food – there were many great salads, not to mention the very flavorful meat balls, the fresh home-made cheddar-walnut bread, and great desserts. Thanks to everyone for whipping up such delicious foods!

Upcoming Meetings

August Meeting

Teresa Ruch is bringing us a trunk show! Teresa has visited the Guild before with her luscious tencel and bamboo yarn in fabulous bright colors.

October Meeting

Ginny Floyd will be teaching how to make checker board slippers.
Here’s are the supplies needed for the slippers:

• Two contrasting yarn colors in worsted weight yarn. Red Heart works great as you want something durable and washable.
• Size 10 needles – longer needles preferred to get all 60 stitches on. Ginny recommends straight needles.

If you don’t have yarn or needles, both will be available at the meeting.
If you have started or made these slippers, please bring them with you to the meeting. We would love to see them.

Snacks: Mary Mocklin and Clara Stoner
Set-up crew (arrive by 9:15): Kathy Howald
Clean-up crew (stay until finished): Teresa Furnish

Hope to see you there!

NEXT MEETING IS AUGUST 10
TERRACE LAKE COMMUNITY CENTER
2120 ROBINS LANE
AT 10 AM

This Month:

Birthdays in June:

Karen Lemmon
Sue Tyvoll
(We’ll wish Janet Bubl a Happy Birthday in October!)

Welcome New Members and Guests:

Lynda (not a resident of Terrace Lake)
We hope to have her join us again soon!

June Program

Liz Lisowski of HighFiberArtz was not able to attend, but Su Fennern presented a program on knitting needles. She found a Free Guide to Knitting Needles from Interweave available for free, and she compiled some Facts About Knitting Needles. Items covered included cleaning of needles, materials needles are made out of, different types of needles, different needle points, what yarns to use with which needles, and more handy tips.

Guild Business:

The Treasurer’s Report will be presented by Sue at the July meeting.

2019 Beach Retreat (Su)

We had a great time! There were a total of 28 attendees, but due to a medical issue one did not attend. There was $1,468.55 received in donations from vendors that were used for door prizes and items for the individual swag bags.

2020 Beach Retreat (Kelli)

We will have a great time! The Retreat Committee members for 2020 are Kelli Bold, Ginny Floyd, Kathy Howald, Karen Lemon, Sandy McCause, Katie, McDougall, and Jean Weber. We currently have received deposits from 30 potential attendees. A waiting list will be established, so if you’re interested in attending, please contact Kelli Bold.

Nominating Committee (Joyce)

There are three members interested in the Secretary position: Joyce Cook, Ginny Floyd, and Debbie Juul. We will vote for one Secretary in December. The Committee is still working on nominations for the President position.

Discussion on the future of the Guild – To continue with the established Guild, the Oregon Secretary of State and the Oregon Department of Justice requirement is for at least three board members/officers. A discussion was held among members about the positions, and Kathy Goebel volunteered to run the meetings if someone else wants to do all the other presidential duties except that. If interested, please contact Joyce Cook for additional information.

Charitable Donations (Su for Kathy)

A total of 146 items have been donated between January 1 and May 31, 2019: Hats (142) – 76 to Africa, 3 to Shaken Baby, 63 to Father Taffe; 2 scarves to Father Taffe, 1 cowl to Father Taffe, and 1 afghan/blanket to Father Taffe.

Patterns for May/June

Mary has found some nice summer tops: Happy Go Yellow and Cascata.

Show and Tell:

Projects shared included:

• Clara shared her three recently finished shawl projects: Romi Hill’s MKAL; Clara’s Rainbow Wrap; and Transient by Michelle Hunter.
• Mary finished a Camomille Shawl by London Loop.
• Kathy Goebel used one of the One Skein Wonder books and finished a Cowl, Ella’s hat and a 4×4 seed stitch scarf.
  Knitting Tip: Don’t give a knitted gift item that needs to be re-blocked after cleaning.
• Cindy is working on the Copilot cowl and didn’t know if her cast on was twisted or not until she completed several inches. (It’s not twisted!)
  Knitting Tip: When knitting an item such as a hat, cast on and knit the first row flat, and then join in the round. Close up the opening using the cast on tail.
• Karen is working on a baby hat using her new short needles made special for hats, cuffs, etc.
• Lynda (a visitor at today’s meeting) shared a recently completed dinosaur hat by Maria’s Blue Crayon.
• Marcia shared her recent experience working with magic loop and making yoga socks two at a time. She ended up making the heels one at a time.
• Teresa has a new small project knitting bag. She finished her Branching Lace Cardigan – and unknitted it all, with the yarn waiting to tell her what it wants to be.
• Ginny shared her pair of Checker Board Square slippers that she finished. Clara was the lucky recipient of the slippers. Ginny has offered to teach these slippers at an upcoming Guild meeting. There are some more free patterns on Ravelry:
  Checkerboard Slippers
  Pantoufles à carreaux avec tutoriel
  Cushy Slippers
• Joyce shared her Kindness knitalong Shawl.
• Debbie shared that she used one of Ginny’s techniques that she learned at the Beach Retreat to make a baby blanket and gave it away as a gift. She shared her poncho with a turtle neck that she finished.
• Su shared the Split Decision summer tee she tested knitted for KisDesigns – Kelly Forester.

Next Meeting

Our next meeting is scheduled for July 13. It’s a potluck, so bring some food to share, and we will mostly knit and eat.

Set-up crew (arrive by 9:15): Cindy Barrick
Clean-up crew (stay until finished): Teresa Furnish
Hope to see you there!

NEXT MEETING IS JULY 13
TERRACE LAKE COMMUNITY CENTER
2120 ROBINS LANE
AT 10 AM

This Month:

Birthdays in May:

Cindy Barrick
Kathy Goebel
Jenny Morton’s granddaughter, Zoe

Welcome New Members and Guests:

Jenny Morton, her daughter Gina, and her granddaughter Zoe
We hope to have them join us again soon!

May Program

Introduction of Theressa Silver, author of “Knitting Wild,” Argentgal Designs, and if you are into hats, “Hat Couture.” Theressa’s presentation was very informative. One could hear and feel her passion for the diverse beauty of our national parks and wildlife refuges. There are much more than patterns in the book; you get the history of many magnificent places. Theressa was signing books for those who bought them at the meeting.

Guild Business:

Nominating Committee (Joyce)

Joyce shared that there are three members interested in the Secretary’s position. Potential candidates are Ginny Floyd, Debbie Juul, and Joyce Cook. Currently, the President’s position does not have any potential candidates. If you are interested in knowing more about being on the Board, you can view our bylaws and roles on the Salem Millstream Knitting Guild website. Contact any of the committee members to put your name forward for consideration.

Charitable Donations (Sue Tyvoll)

Sue shared that the Guild members made 76 hats, which were added to 19 other hats donated, for a total of 95 hats. The hats were distributed in Kimusu, Kenya in the Anglican Hospital and Orphanage.
Sue shared that when the team arrived in Kenya, it was 90 degrees, and the people were wearing jackets and sweaters. They are more used to 120 degrees. :O
The residents of the area are very poor. A good day is when they have one meal a day. There are times that they only have one meal a week.
A question was asked, if items could be sent to the residents? Sue shared that they most likely would not get where they were intended to go. There might be another opportunity to provide items in the future; Sue will keep us posted.

Additional agenda items

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee is in need of one additional member. Current members are Mary Blossom and Janet Bubl. Marcia Smith volunteered to be the third member.

Sheep to Shawl

Today (May 12) is Sheep to Shawl at Willamette Heritage Center. This is a free event from 10 AM to 4 PM.

Non-profit status of the Guild

Su shared that the Guild received a letter from the Oregon Department of Justice indicating that the Guild needs to be registered as a Charity Organization. Both Teresa and Su read through all of the Oregon Administrative Rules and the Oregon Revised Status that were referenced. We both were undecided if we needed to compile. Teresa said just call the number in the letter. The call resulted in the answer of yes, the Guild needs to compile. The paperwork was submitted. The Guild will need to submit an annual report that recaps the Guild’s finances for the year. We reviewed the Puddletown Knitters Guild of Portland last year’s report, and it will be a fairly simple report to complete.
After the upcoming retreat, and Sue, our Treasurer has all the final figures, we will have the Audit Committee review the Guild’s finances just to be prepared for the year-end report.

June Meeting Date Change

Teresa reminded us that the June meeting date is June 15, at the usual place and time.

Beach Retreat

Kelli Bold shared that if anyone is interested in helping plan the 2020 retreat, please step forward.

Show and Tell:

• Sue Munson is finishing a child’s sweater. The pattern is from the 1960s. Kathy Goebel still uses the same pattern with some adaptations.
• Sue Tyvoll donated a couple of hats and an afghan that she made to the Guild’s charity organizations.
• Jenny Morton shared 15 knitted dish cloths that each have a different quilt pattern that she made for her daughter Gina. The patterns are from “Knit Dishcloths” book, and she’s made every one in the book.
• Kathy Howald purchased some yarn from Homespun Quilts and Yarn during their recent trip to Astoria and made a nice scarf.
• Marsha Graciosa is working on socks. She shared her recently finished winter sweater.
• Kathy Goebel is knitting items to reduce her stash.
• Sandy Galbraith shared the pattern Laughingbird Shawl published in Shelby Knits. The pattern is free in Shelby Knits’ Etsy shop.
• Marcia Smith is crocheting innersoles for boots. Marcia also shared that IKEA in Portland will have knitters in the store for Knit in Public Day, June 8, 2019.
• Teresa Furnish shared her sweater sleeve out of wonderful yarn. She shared the sleeve as we might not get to see the sweater as it might turn out to be a “house sweater.”
• Karen Rose and Liz Baker, friends of Karen Lemmon, visited our Guild today. They are getting a Guild going in West Linn. Liz shared her Brioche project and shared that Brioche is not a new thing – that history shows that fisherman’s sweaters were made using this technique.
• Joyce Cook modeled her Pincha. This is a free pattern on Ravelry. Joyce also shared that the word errata means “an error.” Joyce is working on a cowl from 2014 Creative Knitting Magazine.
• Ginny Floyd is working on a scarf pattern “Boom.” This is a free pattern on Ravelry.

Next Meeting

Our next meeting is scheduled for June 15 (the THIRD Saturday of the month). Our speaker will be Liz Lisowski with HighFiberArtz.
Snacks: Janet Bubl and Kathy Goebel
Set-up crew (arrive by 9:15): Kathy Goebel and Debbie Juul
Clean-up crew (stay until finished): Teresa Furnish and Patti Locicero
Hope to see you there!

NEXT MEETING IS JUNE 15
TERRACE LAKE COMMUNITY CENTER
2120 ROBINS LANE
AT 10 AM

This Month:

Birthdays in April:

Sally Gwynn

Welcome New Members and Guests:

Ellen and Val
We hope to have them join us again soon!

Guild Business:

June Meeting Date Change (Teresa)

Heads up that our June meeting date has been pushed back one week, from June 8 to June 15. Hope to see you there!

Treasurer’s Report (Sue)

Sue reported on both the Guild and the Beach Retreat balances:
Guild: $340.11
Beach: $6,634.04

Nominating Committee (Joyce)

Teresa introduced the nominating committee: Cindy Barrick, Kelli Bold, Joyce Cook, Sue Munson, and Marcia Smith. Joyce is the Chair of the committee. She reported that the committee is looking for members interested in becoming President or Secretary. Su Fennern will be stepping down as President at the end of this year, and we are currently without a full Secretary, although Cindy has been keeping our website up-to-date and will continue to do so. Three people came forward for consideration as Secretary during the meeting. If you are interested in knowing more about being on the Board, you can view our bylaws and roles on the Salem Millstream Knitting Guild website. Contact any of the committee members to put your name forward for consideration.

Beach Retreat (Teresa and members of the current Beach Retreat Committee)

The retreat is coming up on May 16-19. We have two spots open. We need a retreat committee for next year to be in place before this year’s retreat. We have a few interested people already, but we need more. This event has been going on for eight years, and lots of people look forward to it every year. Please consider being a part of making it happen.

April Program

We were pleased to finally have Stephania Fregosia with Three Fates Yarns after having to reschedule her three times for various reasons! She shared about her effort to learn more about and beginning to use sustainable methods to gather wool and turn it into yarn. She also shared about her dying processes and a kickstarter she recently ran using locally sourced Gotland wool to obtain yarn to dye. She showed a sample of the yarn knit into a Visby hat by local designer, Marie Green of Olive Knits. We enjoyed shopping from her substantial inventory.

Free Patterns for March/April:

Mary found us two patterns this month and brought in her own beautiful versions.

• Anna’s Hope Beaded Lace Shawl
• Seattle Slant Vest

Show and Tell:

Projects shared included:

• Easter basket toys and egg cozies – Eggkins pattern by Chris de Longpre available on Ravelry. Note that Patty added wings to the chick and duckling by adapting the bunny ear pattern. She also added a tail to the bunny and the sheep. The crochet egg cozy pattern is from Craftaholics Anonymous.
• Fair Isle Mitts w/lace weight yarn
• Groovy shawl (not sure this is the pattern shared) and a matching hat
• Shawl made by Clara (maybe Beautiful Solitude)
• Cowl/capelet from Creative Knitting, February 2017
• Pekhom shawl
• Lux Cowl from Galzone Knits made with three skeins of Hulahut yarn
• Mitts, using a Churchmouse pattern
• Cheyenne shawl from a library book, Cozy Stash Busting Knits
• Several scarves and hats and numerous baby hats for charity

Next Meeting

Our next meeting is scheduled for May 11. Our speaker will be Theressa Silver, author of Wild Knits.
Snacks: Jenny Morton and Pam Dixon
Set-up crew (arrive by 9:15): Marcia Smith and Teresa Furnish
Clean-up crew (stay until finished): Marcia Smith and Karen Lemmon
Hope to see you there!

NEXT MEETING IS MAY 11
TERRACE LAKE COMMUNITY CENTER
2120 ROBINS LANE
AT 10 AM

This Month:

Birthdays in March:

Mary Blossom, Ginny Floyd

Welcome New Members and Guests:

Ellen, Colleen, and Barbara

We hope to have them join us again soon!

Guild Business:

Results from the recent survey (Teresa)

Members interested in being on the nominating committee: Cindy Barrick, Kelli Bold, Joyce Cook, Sue Munson, and Marcia Smith

Review of 2019 programs (Teresa)

Website

Our Webmaster, Cindy Barrick has been updating our site and will be adding information about an upcoming Nordic Knitting event. For a list of other events that we’ve heard about, check out the Fiber Events box on our site – https://salemmillstreamknitting.com/.

Beach Retreat

We still have three spots open for the Beach Retreat May 16-19. If you’re interested, get it touch with one of the Board Members.

2019 Charity Knitting

Sue Tyvoll provided an update on the 76 hats donated by our group. They are heading to an orphanage in Kenya, Africa, for children from newborn to three years old. The team leaves the 25th and gets back on April 8. Sue is looking forward to sharing another update with us soon. As she said, “It’s really amazing that we can bless little children in Africa with our knitting skills!”

March Program

Lori Patterson (and Lou) from Abstract Fiber shared their yarn. It’s been a busy year since she purchased the company from Susan!

Show and Tell:

Cup of Tea socks: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/my-cup-of-tea-socks

Waverly Weekend Cowl: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/waverly-weekend-cowl

Seafarer’s Watch Cap: https://seamenschurch.org/christmas-at-sea for this and other related patterns. The group provides a hand-knitted item to mariners at sea for Christmas.

Stillwater Cardigan: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/stillwater-4

Clear View Sweater by Amy Herzog: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/clearview

Workday Scarf: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/workday-scarf

Houndstooth Cowl: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/houndstooth-cowl-2 There are quite a few houndstooth cowl patterns on Ravelry.

Friendship Afghan

Groovy Scarf

Christmas Stockings

Next Meeting

Our next meeting is scheduled for April 13. Becky Fetterley of Thistle and Hart will be sharing about her hand dyed yarn. Also remember, you can always check out the 2019 Guild Meetings thread on our Ravelry group (https://www.ravelry.com/groups/salem-millstream-knitting-guild) to see what we have scheduled.

NEXT MEETING IS APRIL 13
TERRACE LAKE COMMUNITY CENTER
2120 ROBINS LANE
AT 10 AM