Machine Knitting Seminar in Austin, Texas

The Austin  machine knitting club, Knit Natters, is having a seminar in mid-October.  Our seminar is going to be Friday and Saturday, October 7th and 8th.  The seminar fee is only $30, if Barbara has your registration and check by September 15th.  That's our "early bird" rate.  Our limit on the seminar, based on the wonderful space we are using at Crystal Falls Baptist Church in Leander, is 35 people.

We sat down yesterday and planned the schedule for the two days.  One of the things that is rather special about our seminar is we're doing quite a bit of Passap teaching.  We'll start around 8:30 with breakfast, begin classes at 9, have lunch at the seminar, and finish around 4:30 each day. 

We are planning to have a swap meet and door prizes as well as teaching sessions.  We currently have four teachers on the schedule, and we decided on the classes by voting at club.  We may have to move a few things around, but here's the basic class lineup for Friday.:

Passap Lock Settings - What's with the mysterous letters on the Passap E6000 locks?  What is each of those combinations doing?  Barbara's going to lay this out for us in plain English!

Garter Bar Workshop - Did you know about all the terrific shortcuts that a garter bar makes possible?  I'll be showing how to increase, decrease, gather, turn cables, and flip the work (for garter and quaker stitch) using the garter bar.

Form Computer Workshop - The Passap E6000 has a very unusual and powerful charting system built right into the console - one that many people never use.  We're going to have a workshop and see how to use it for a child's sweater.

Thread Lace - Pat Tittizer does the most amazing show-it-and-explain it class on thread lace on the Japanese machines.  She uses thread lace for a number of things that you wouldn't even associate with lace, and has a marvelous variety of samples. 

Weaving - and, our very own Pat will also open up a world of possibilities with her amazing weaving samples and instructions for using Japanese machine knitting weaving techniques in unusual and innovative ways.

Passap Sock - me, again, doing the simple Passap sock that I love so much.  This one is fast, simple, and circular up to the ribbing.  It takes advantage of the Passap's double-bed advantages and makes crazy-swift work of the shortrowing part of the job.  Oh, and it has an interesting use of "industrial 2x2 rib."

Saturday is our "general interest" day.  We plan to include some very fun things and some things that are extremely useful for hand knitters.

Hands-On Seaming Session - Out come the samples and needles, and everyone can learn, stitch, and help her neighbor with Kitchener stitch, mattress stitch, and even Smiles and Frowns.  There's just no substitute for beautiful finishing and invisible seams!

Measuring Session - Our Pat has promised us her terrific handout on all the necessary measurements for knitting garments that fit.  The plan is to measure each other accurately.

Plarn - "Plarn" is plastic yarn.  It's free, it's recycled, it's colorful, and it has its own unique properties and uses.  Yes, you can recycle plastic into terrific projects!  Sara and Pat Tittizer have done this demo at our club and it is a huge favorite among our membership.

Introduction to Spinning - This is great fun - an actual hands-on drop spindle class!  Everyone gets a taste of spinning.

Sara's Fairies - Selected by Knit Natters acclamation, Sara's letting us end the day Saturday with her fairies.  Once in a while, we go right off the "normal" agenda and do something really unusual, and this is one of our club's favorite Knit Natters classes of all time.  Here's a photo of a tiny fairy from the last class.

How to Participate

To Register:  Before 9/15, send a check for $30 to Barbara Deike, 615 Deer Creek Lane, Leander, Texas 78641, and enclose a note indicating that you're registering for the seminar.  We'd like to know you name, contact information (including cell and email), how long you've been knitting, what machines you have, whether you'd like to join our Yahoo group, and which machine you'd choose if you had to be banished to a desert island.

Other Ways to Be Part of Our First Austin Seminar (and promote machine knitting)

• Send a door prize, if you'd like your business to be promoted.
• Tell folks in our area about the seminar (including hand knitters who might like to come Saturday only).
• Come as a vendor!