Knitting Daily TV Coming To KERA

Get ready to set your DVR's!  Knitting Daily TV will be airing on Dallas' local PBS station on Saturday's at 7:30 beginning September 1st.

This is a fantastic instructional series led by great teachers in the industry. This will be a show that you will not want to miss!

For information related to the program, visit their website here: Knitting Daily TV

Also, for those who are interested in sewing, It's Sew Easy will be airing at 7:00 just before Knitting Daily.

Looks like us crafters are going to have an inspirational lineup this fall!

The Weekly Stitch

Hello all,

 

Well, the Olympics continue as does the best excuse I know to beat the heat and cheer on our Olympians - while knitting and crocheting, of course. And, make sure you check out the Jo-Ann Fabrics grand opening on August 9-11! How exciting - a new place to shop for yarn and goodies!

 

Here is what is going on with YOH this week.

 

Meetings:

• Tuesday - 10AM in the Hospitality Room at FBC McKinney
• Wednesday - 6:15PM in the Fireside Room at FBC McKinney

Upcoming Events:

• Dallas Museum of Art Presents an Evening with Debbie Macomber - This event is a part of DMA's Arts & Letters Live series and is on August 15th at 7:30PM. YOH members get a special rate of $20 for tickets - just mention YOH when purchasing tickets online at www.tickets.dallasmuseumofart.org or call 214-992-1818. You can also pre-order her new book, The Inn at Rose Harbor, which is scheduled for release in August. There will be a group of us going so let me know if you would like to carpool.

• Yarns of Hope Bible Study - This fall (September 5th), Yarns of Hope will be joining with FBC McKinney's Women's Ministry and offering a bible study on Wednesday mornings (childcare is available). Please note, however, that will continue to meet on Tuesday mornings the same as always. Beginning on August 5th, you can register online at www.fbcmckinney.com or in the Connection on Sunday mornings. We will be studying the Debbie Macomber book, Knit Together: Discover God's Pattern for Your Life. This study will give us a chance to explore God's unique purpose for each of our lives while still indulging in our favorite pasttime - knitting/crocheting/sewing for those in need of hope and warmth. This will also allow us to reach a whole new set of ladies that have either never heard of YOH or were not able to attend because of lack of childcare. If you are hesitant because you don't think you have time for one more thing- I chose this book because we will be reading only one chapter each week, no study questions, and then discussing the chapter on Wednesday mornings. The books may be purchased the first day of bible study or ordered online - try Amazon or Half.com. I believe both of those websites have great prices.

Ongoing Projects:

• Same as always - hats, scarves, blankets, toys for Texas Oncology McKinney, UT Southwestern Moncrief Radiation Oncology Clinic and Medical City Children's Hospital.
• Also, preemie gowns, hats, sweaters and blankets for the LDR Unit at MCCH.

 

Take care and God bless,

Gina

The Weekly Stitch / Field Trip This Tuesday

Those of you who come on Tuesdays know and love Ms. Bessie, Lynda Moore's mother. We have decided to meet at Orchard Park Assisted Living (where Ms. Bessie lives) next Tuesday morning. This will give us a chance to see her (she hasn't felt like coming to the church for our meetings for the past several weeks) as well as meet some of her friends there. What a great chance to fellowship with a whole new group of people!

Here are the details:

ORCHARD PARK ASSISTED LIVING

3392 MEDICAL CENTER DR.

 

It is between El Dorado and the 121 access road, sort of east of Kohls and Texas Roadhouse, north of the McKinney Medical Center (or whatever it is called these days!), just to the north of the fire station behind Kohls.

We will meet there from 10-12 on the 2nd floor. The center will be providing refreshments for us.

 

Wednesday - 6:15pm in the Fireside Room at FBC Mckinney

All of our ongoing projects are the same. Let me know if you need any help, yarn, or patterns.

 

Hope to see you all there!

Gina

The Weekly Stitch

Good afternoon all! Hope you are having a great week! Here is what is going on with YOH.

• Tuesday - 10 AM in the Hospitality Room at FBC McKinney. YOH will be hosting a World Wide Knit in Public (WWKIP) event during our regular meeting. Our meeting will be at the same place and time - we just may have some additional attendees because of the event. Because of that, we were thinking that we should bring some extra breakfast goodies to share. If you are able, please bring a breakfast item, paper goods, or utensils. If you want to bring paper goods or utensils, drop me an email so we don't have too many duplicates. Also, if you are not familiar with the event, check out the website. This is a world wide event started in 2005 by one lady. It has now grown to hundreds of events and extends over a week, instead of just one day!
• Wednesday night - 6:15 PM in the Fireside Room at FBC McKinney.

Current Projects:

• Chemo caps and scarves - for adults, kids and babies. To be donated to Texas Oncology McKinney, Medical City Children's Hospital, and UT Southwestern Moncrief Center.
• Blankets and knitted/crocheted toys - to be donated to Medical City Children's Hospital.
• Bereavement Preemie Items: Gowns, sweaters, hats, and blankets to be donated to Medical City Children's Hospital Labor & Delivery Department. Items should be in pastel colors and sized for a 2 pound preemie. Also, the nurses have requested 2 or 3 gowns or sweaters in a newborn size. Let me know if you need help with patterns or sizing.

Take care and God bless! Hope to see all of you soon!

Gina

The Weekly Stitch

Hello ladies-

This may be a long one because there is a lot of info to share about the next two weeks. So, hang in there, and keep reading!

VERY IMPORTANT CHANGE FOR TOMORROW'S MEETING!! We will be meeting at my house (2512 Cayenne Drive) tomorrow instead of the church. The church building is closed because they are installing new HVAC units on the roof (this means bringing them in with helicopters and the whole bit!) So, we will meet here instead of canceling. Let me know if you need directions.

Wednesday night - 6:15 PM in the Fireside Room at FBC McKinney. (As of now, we are okay to meet there - will let you know if anything changes.)

Next Tuesday, June 12th - YOH will be hosting a World Wide Knit in Public (WWKIP) event during our regular meeting. Our meeting will be at the same place and time - we just may have some additional attendees because of the event. Because of that, we were thinking that we should bring some extra breakfast goodies to share. If you are able, please bring a breakfast item, paper goods, or utensils. If you want to bring paper goods or utensils, drop me an email so we don't have too many duplicates. Also, if you are not familiar with the event, check out the website at http://www.wwkipday.com. This is a worldwide event started in 2005 by one lady. It has now grown to hundreds of events and spreads out over a week, instead of just one day!

Ongoing Projects: Same as always - just not taking the space to list out as the email I already long enough!

Take care and God bless! Hope to see all of you soon!!

Gina

Field Trip To Fiber Circle

What a fun opportunity today for Yarns of Hope as the group had one-on-one time with Diane, the owner of our favorite yarn store in Farmersville: Fiber Circle.

In addition to browsing and purchasing some beautiful yarns for new and exciting projects, Diane also gave us a demonstration on finger knitting and how using the i-cord technique can be incorporated with other novelty yarns in new trendy projects such as scarves and wraps.

Looking forward to the next field trip and seeing all the wonderful projects come to life from these exciting yarns!

The Weekly Stitch / Field Trip

Good Monday to all of you!

I trust that all of you moms had a great Mother's Day!  I enjoyed a relaxing weekend up at the lake, even got to finish a knitting project!

Tomorrow morning is our field trip to Fiber Circle.  We will meet at the church at 10AM in the Connection (large open area just outside of the Hospitality Room).  We will caravan/carpool out to Farmersville.  Diane will have a special craft for us then we will have time to shop.  Afterwards, I suspect that there will be quite a few that want to stay for lunch at one of the restaurants in downtown Farmersville.  Should be lots of fun.  IMPORTANT - IF YOU ARE PLANNING ON GOING WITH US, PLEASE LET ME KNOW SO WE WON'T LEAVE WITHOUT YOU!  Also, my cell phone number is 972-658-0576 in case you need to call me.

Wednesday - Meeting at 6:15 in the Fireside Room.  We will have childcare for the next two weeks. Childcare will resume in early August along with the regular Wednesday night activities at the church.

Current projects:

• Chemo caps and scarves - for adults, kids and babies.  To be donated to Texas
• Oncology McKinney, Medical City Children's Hospital, and UT Southwestern Moncrief Center.
•  Blankets and knitted/crocheted toys - to be donated to Medical City Children's Hospital.
•  Bereavement Preemie Items:   Gowns, sweaters, hats, and blankets to be donated to Medical City Children's Hospital Labor & Delivery Department.  Items should be in pastel colors and sized for a 2 pound preemie.  Also, the nurses have requested 2 or 3 gowns or sweaters in a newborn size.  Let me know if you need help with patterns or sizing.

God bless each of you

Gina

Get Ready For The Texas State Fair!

With only 144 days left until the State Fair, it's never too early to start craving those Fletcher Corny Dogs, plan for TX/OU weekend or even visit the women's exhibit hall to see what other crafters have proudly been working on for the past year for the rest of us to ooooh and ahhh over.

The official Creative Arts Handbook has been mailed out and has been received by crafters who are squealing with delight. For those that attended the fair last year and have decided that this is the year that they are going to submit, here is your chance!

This year the theme is Big & Bright and what a great theme it is as us Texans love to live up to the song! There are 124 pages worth of instruction and entry information; enough to make one calculate how many entries one person can submit (over 1100 categories in case you were wondering!)

As a disclaimer, more information about each category and entry forms can be found online at State Fair Creative Arts Competition Handbook but below is the breakdown for the important details and deadlines to be aware of before the fair begins.

• Entry forms and fees must be received by Friday, July 27th before 5:00. They may be mailed or dropped off in person but must arrive by the 27th.
• One entry allowed per person per class number
• Physical projects/entries will be accepted Friday - Sunday, August 17-19.
• Judging begings after August 19th
• A friend may drop off/pick up entries in your place as long as they have the ticket
• Non-winning entries are to be picked up between Sept. 12-14, Winning entries are picked up after the fair closes between Oct. 24-26.

Good luck everyone and looking forward to seeing everyone's submissions this year!

The Weekly Stitch

Hello all,

Hope you are all having a great Monday!! What a night we had at Relay For Life last Friday! Despite the gale force wind and fighting to keep everything from blowing away, we had a great time, some tears, sold lots of hats and scarves, and gave away several hats to survivors. Wonderful night! We raised about $300 that night and over $3900 overall. Record year for YOH.

Mark your calendars - our field trip to Fiber Circle in Farmersville is May 15th. We will meet at the church at 10 and then carpool out there.

Meetings this week:

• Tuesday - 10AM in the Hospitality Room at FBC McKinney
• Wednesday - 6:15PM in the Fireside Room at FBC McKinney

Summer schedule:

Our Tuesday meetings will stay the same. If you have kids, bring them along. For Wednesday night meetings, the church's regular activities are finished as of this week. We will have childcare through May 23rd. We WILL have meetings for most of the summer and I will let you know if there are any nights the building is closed. Same as Tuesdays - bring the kids along.

Current Projects:

• Chemo caps and scarves - for adults, kids and babies. To be donated to Texas Oncology McKinney, Medical City Children's Hospital, and UT Southwestern Moncrief Center.
• Blankets and knitted/crocheted toys - to be donated to Medical City Children's Hospital.
• Bereavement Preemie Items: Gowns, sweaters, hats, and blankets to be donated to Medical City Children's Hospital Labor & Delivery Department. Items should be in pastel colors and sized for a 2 pound preemie. Let me know if you need help with patterns or sizing.

God bless and have a great day!

Gina

DFW Fiber Fest This Weekend

For those who are new to the fiber experience or to the area and looking for all the local scoop on knitting, crochet, looming and spinning, there is an annual festival for all yarn crafters and is scheduled for this weekend!

DFW Fiber Fest is in its 7th year of being a premier fiber event in the North Texas community. Teachers and vendors from all over the region are in attendance providing classes, showcasing yarns and materials, and providing inspiration for your upcoming project.  Fiber Fest is a non-profit organization where portions of their proceeds benefit local charities.

This is a weekend long craft-extravaganza that will be held for the 2nd year at the Grapevine Convention Center.

Several classes are currently full, however if interested, you can register and be placed on the waitlist.  If you do not want to attend classes, you can visit the vendor hall separately.  Entrance to the vendor hall is $2/day or $5/weekend.  Hours are 9:00 - 6:00 Friday/Saturday and 9:00 - 4:00 Sunday.

Fiber Fest is an event that you do not want to miss!  If you would like to carpool, please contact Jennifer Stover to coordinate (she is planning on attending Sunday afternoon, however other days and times can be scheduled.)

Hope to see you there!

The Weekly Stitch

Hey ladies,

Happy Monday to you all! Here is what is going on with YOH this week:

Meetings this week:

• Tuesday - 10AM in the Hospitality Room at FBC McKinney
• Wednesday - 6:15 in the Fireside Room at FBC McKinney

Current Projects:

• Chemo caps and scarves - for adults, kids and babies. To be donated to Texas Oncology McKinney, Medical City Children's Hospital, and UT Southwestern Moncrief Center.
• Blankets and knitted/crocheted toys - to be donated to Medical City Children's Hospital.
• Bereavement Preemie Items - Gowns, sweaters, hats, and blankets to be donated to Medical City Children's Hospital Labor & Delivery Department. Items should be in pastel colors and sized for a 2 pound preemie. Let me know if you need help with patterns or sizing.
• Relay for Life - YOH will have a Relay team again this year. The event is on April 27 and will be held at Craig Ranch ball field. Here is a link to our page - Relay For Life . You can use this link to either join our team, donate to the team, or purchase a luminaria in honor or memory of a loved one. Be sure to sign up for our team - this is one of the most fun nights of the year!

God bless,

Gina

Field Trip to Fiber Circle

The Tuesday morning YOH ladies had a fun treat in store last week. We went on a field trip to Farmersville to visit Diane at Fiber Circle! In addition to the opportunity of petting and stocking up on some great yarns, Diane had a craft for everyone to make; rosettes! With a little novelty netting yarn and a crochet hook, these cute little floral decorations were quick to stitch. Wear them on a lapel, with a headband, or even make a scarf or table runner with these floral motifs; there's no limit to the creativity!

We certainly hope to have the opportunity to make another trip to Fiber Circle soon!

Guest Designers in the Metroplex This Month!

One of the exciting perks about living in a major metroplex is that we get the opportunity to have some great guest designers visit the area: Ysolda Teague and the Yarn Harlot herself - Stephanie Pearl-McPhee.

For those new to the stitching world, these names might be new to you so don't be alarmed.  Our craft is very much an individual form of zen that we do on our own, however, there are the few that have become household names and that is when all knitters and crocheters come out of the woodwork to work our handicraft in public while listening to the more experienced ones spin a tale of love, laughter and yarn.

Ysolda Teague
Ysolda Teague is a knitting designer based in Scotland who will be visiting Plano at the Woolie Ewe on October 20th and 21st.  She will be teaching classes on toy shaping and how to make a fitted sweater.  If interested, contact the Woolie Ewe to reserve a class as space will fill up quickly.

About Ysolda: Becoming a knitting designer was a happy accident.  Although knitting since the age of six, Ysolda used her talents in college while in the classrooms studying English literature.  She found that she could recall more information by keeping her hands busy with knitting than with taking notes.  As she did not follow patterns, she posted her works online on her blog and her followers wanted to make what she had created, thus becoming a designer and learning how to write patterns became her focus.  By the time she was 19, she sold her first "proper" pattern and shortly after, she was able to make knitting and design her full-time career.  Now at the age of 25, she is able to sustain her livelihood with her knitting designs and teaching all around the world.  Her patterns can be found in her books Whimsical Little Knits 1 & 2 as well as her new book: Little Red in the City.

Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Stephanie Pearl-McPhee will be at A Real Bookstore in Fairview on Monday, October 24th @ 7:00 pm.  She will be discussing her new book: All Wound Up.  In her trademark style, McPhee talks about knitting, parenting, friendship, and--gasp!--even crocheting in essays that are at times touching, often hilarious, and always entertaining. Fans of her popular blog will adore this all-new collection of tales of the woolen and silky skein, which follow the Yarn Harlot's previous exploits chronicled inside YARN HARLOT and FREE-RANGE KNITTER.  Although there is no admission fee to see Stephanie, if you would like her to sign her book or any materials, you will need to purchase the book from A Real Bookstore.  Be sure to have receipt in hand.  A word of advice about attending: Arrive early!  Last year she was here in Dallas, hundreds of stitchers arrived and there were lines out to the back of the store.  Us stitchers have no issues about waiting in line when we have a project in hand.

You have to have a sense of humor to be able to knit and crochet.  If not, we would all be in mental institutions rocking in chairs repeating "K1, P1, YO, SSK" as a mantra.  Thank goodness for Stephanie Pearl-McPhee who brings the sane out of our insanity by writing about how we feel as stitchers and our random acts of OCD.  She is the self-proclaimed Yarn Harlot and founder of the Knitting Olympics (knitting a complex project within the timeframe of the olympics.)  A blogger, writer and designer, Stephanie gives us the opportunity to laugh at ourselves and also know that there is someone else out there who is in the same boat as us.  Turns out that we are in a pretty big boat!

I hope you get the opportunity to visit one or both designers while they are in town.  I personally plan on seeing Stephanie and look forward to a fun night of laughter and looking at lots of exciting projects on everyone's needles!

Our State Fair Is A Great State Fair

The 126^th Texas State Fair is already under way and the D/FW metroplex is alive this weekend with football fans (Texas/OU game anyone), livestock and obscure fried foods (Buffalo Chicken in a Flapjack and Fried Bubblegum were the winners.)  Of course, you should not leave the fair without having the ultimate fair-going food:  The Fletchers Corny Dog.

Aside from the food, seeing a gentle giant, the myriad of events, exhibits and shows that can overwhelm the senses, the most important exhibit space to visit is the Creative Arts building (of course, we are a bit biased seeing how we are a stitching group but all the more reason to support the arts!)  Iridescent and textured jams and jellies shelved proudly, delicate hand-crafted dolls encased in glass, the saturation of color on canvas and the ever-blending grey tones on a black and white photograph adorn shelves and walls for passer-bys to ooh and ahh.

In addition to these crafts, this category is the primary entry us stitchers flock to see:  Needlecraft.  If there isn’t enough inspiration throughout the year at local yarn and fabric shops, online patterns and other stitchers projects, this is the crème de la crème of talent in the state.   This is what many dream of one day accomplishing; to have a project worthy of hanging at the fair.  This is the time when stitchers look at a project and say to themselves “I could do better than that!”, “What were the judges thinking?!?” or even an agreed “That piece deserved to win.”  Whatever thoughts that do transpire, attending the fair creates a sense of comrade between stitchers by encouraging all to go back home and try a new technique - even a new craft altogether.  No matter who has been pinned and who was left behind, we all know that even though our crafts are time-intensive and a labor of love, we knit, crochet, quilt and stitch because this is our peace; this is what makes us happy and in turn, others as well.

I encourage all of you to try to attend the State Fair this year and view all the wonderful crafts that are in the Creative Arts building.  Be sure to be on the lookout for ribboned items from our own crafters Kelli Phelan (cross-stitch) and Jennifer Stover (knitting.)

To find out more information about the State Fair visit HERE.

For additional entrance discounts during the week visit HERE.

The fair ends October 23rd so don't miss it; don't even be late!

See y’all at the fair!

2012 Winter Fiber Fun Retreat

Just when you’re about to say to yourself “I wish I had more time to work on some of my projects and learn a new technique” the clouds part and rays of light beam down from the sky.  Behold, the 4^th Annual Winter Fiber Fun Retreat!

Mary Berry, the owner and proprietor of Fancy Fibers Farm located in Farmersville, created this retreat to get us like-minded yarn-a-holics together for a long weekend of stitching, spinning, weaving, felting and whatever else our fun-loving, creative minds can think of when it comes to yarn and notions! 

The exciting part about this retreat is that you can do whatever you want!  You can pick and choose what classes to attend.  If you only want to come to stitch, you can do that as well.  You can work your projects outside or indoors and away from the busyness of your house.  Heck, you might be able to finally finish that blanket that has lain dormant for so long!  In addition to the myriad of classes to choose from you can build a great network of local friends with common interests!

Here are some basic details and more detailed information can be found on Fancy Fiber’s website.  I’m posting this information early so you can get to registering for the classes you wish to attend.  Space fills up fast!

When:    February 16^th-19^th, 2012

Where:   Tally Retreat Center @ Camp Copass in Denton, TX

What:     23 Instruction-based courses to choose from (prices vary from free to $60 per

              course but mostly lie in the $15-$25 range)

Lodging: $80/night per room (max occupancy per room is 4)

Meals:     Buffet-style in the dining hall. Breakfast $7, Lunch $8, Dinner $8

Retreat Fee: $30

And if all of the above wasn’t enough to get you motivated to register, I created a Top 10 list.  If you agree to at least one of these, then you need to go! 

Top 10 reasons why you should go on a stitching retreat:

10. The cushion on the couch needs to be rotated because of the divot from sitting and

      stitching

  9. When the household pets use your project as their personal blanket and shed more fur

      than what you use yarn-wise

  8. You only know 21 ways to cast on and you know that someone else knows a 22^nd option

      but they’re holding out on you

  7. You can make a t-shirt that says: I stitched for 96 hours and all I got was this lousy

      t-shirt (and a couple of finished projects)

  6. Ravely has become your official home page

  5. The husband and kids are waiting for you to finish “one more row”

  4. You wear a button that says “I Knit So I Don’t Kill People” on a daily basis

  3. The only exercises you’re required to do are finger exercises

  2. *P1, K1, YO, SSK; repeat from* becomes your bedtime lullaby

  1. This will be the only place where you can bring your stitching to the dinner table and

      no one will object

Craft Fair Success!

9

Saturday was a great day to be outside stitching with friends and talking about one of our favorite hobbies!  There were a dozen or so gals from the group who stopped by to set up, sell, strike and visit throughout the day.

Tables and walls were filled with everything knit and crochet-related.  Hats, scarves, purses, dishcloths and toys were proudly on display.  Knitter Critter (Hillary’s custom-stitched children’s accessories) and Charmed Charms (Gina’s sister, Christine who made our great jewelry) partnered with Yarns of Hope and donated a portion of their proceeds to benefit the group and our mission.  In total, Yarns of Hope raised over $170!  In addition to the money raised to purchase supplies, we encountered several people who were interested in learning how to knit and crochet or wanted to find a group to be able to donate their time and resources.  The day was truly a blessing for YOH and we were glad to be a part of Princeton’s celebration.

Yarns of Hope is Out and About – Princeton Historic Downtown Grand Opening on 9/10/11

Princeton is celebrating the restoration of their historic downtown area and they have asked Yarns of Hope to be one of the vendors.  The event is taking place this Saturday on the 10^th from 11-6 and will be located in downtown Princeton at Memorial Park located at 322 Main Street (North on 4^th from HW 380.)

If you would like to help with setup, strike or working in the booth, please contact Gina.

Also, if you would like to purchase items from Yarns of Hope, proceeds will benefit the group by allowing the purchase of supplies and materials to knit and crochet for charity.

In addition to finding fantastic knit, crochet and loomed treasures made by all the wonderful ladies from Yarns of Hope, there will be additional artisans in attendance showcasing their wares such as artists, jewelers, antiques, boutiques, home décor, a wine tasting or two, food, raffles and an antique car show.  Also in attendance will be live music from Lauren Kent featuring Sister Grove Reunion and 97.5 KLAK.

We hope to see you there!