Knitaway is On the Way

     Knitaway Session I is officially on it's way.  We had a great time talking and knitting this afternoon, getting to know each other, sharing stories about how we learned to knit, and admiring what's currently on our needles.
    We are focusing on Shetland shawls and I have a lots of wonderful information to share about one of my favorite knitting traditions.   I have a small collection of shawls from Shetland that I came across some years back while I taught knitting in Lerwick.   I just loaned the Denver Art Museum one of these beauties to be displayed in their newly expanded textile art department.  It's a hand knit stole with a beautiful play of patterns using a handspun single-ply Shetland wool.  Always such a joy to see the work of a knitter's hands.
      It's going to be a great Knitaway!

 

Knitaway® 2012: Shawls from the Center

     Have you ever tried starting a knitted shawl in the center and been a bit befuddled by all those needles and just a few tiny stitches?  You wouldn't be alone.  But there are many ways to get a beautiful start on a shawl from the center and some of them may surprise you with their ease and beauty.  The start pictured here is one I've recently "unvented" and actually needs only two needles to get going.  I've put it on double-pointed needles to turn it into a square but it could become a circle or a rectangle or a spiral just the same.  I could have chosen instead to use the magic loop or two circular needles and any of these methods would be perfect for the start of a new lacy beauty.

      I'm intrigued, rather obsessed, with alternate methods of starting and shaping shawls and have been indulging my whims by collecting ideas and experimenting with techniques.    I recently taught a one day workshop  entitled "Shawls from the Center" and while preparing the handouts I realized that I had enough material, techniques, and design ideas to fill several days, enough to fill a book.  So that's exactly what I'm doing. The new book,  Shawls from the Center,  is rolling off the needles and for the  2012 sessions of the Knitaway® in the Studio I'm inviting you to explore the many wonderful ways to begin your shawls from the center,  letting them bloom outward, from zero to lace.  The design opportunities seem endless and my fingers (and those of my test knitters) are flying as we work through the ideas.
     I'd love to have you join in the excitement.  What are the dates for the four sessions of the 2012 Knitaway in the Studio?  April 25-29,  May 2-6,  October 10-14, and October 17-21.  Registration opens very soon, Tuesday, January 10th, to be exact.  Join me for one session or stay for two, come in the spring and return in the fall.  There is a lot to learn and share.  I do hope you can come along to enjoy a Knitaway this year.  Can you tell I'm excited?   I look forward to meeting you here in the Studio for some "centered" shawl knitting.  
    And to you and yours, a very Happy New Year!

Amazing Glass

Enjoy this view of the stained glass ceiling at the Hotel Boulderado, a favorite Knitaway® in the Rockies venue.

© Gary Oberle 2011

I think I might just feel a design coming on....

Knitaway® in the Studio 2011

The dates are set for the Knitaway® in the Studio, October 12th to 16th, 2011.  Registration opens the first week of May. 

    After seventeen years of the Knitaway® on the road, I am excited to also be opening the Studio for these events.  If you are local or traveling through Denver, there are classes happening here throughout the year. The new schedule goes up this week in a couple of weeks. To borrow a phrase from one of my favorite wandering heroines, there really is no place like home. I do hope you'll join me!