Today was the first “real” day of Sock Summit. It looked like a very smooth launch.
My friend Anna and I had a three hour class in the morning with Star Athena, Sock Design Workshop: Know the Rules, then Break Them. This was a great class. Star is a big fan of the gauge swatch; she says that they don’t lie. I still think mine do, but I’ll keep making them. I usually make design decisions by trial and error, and keep ripping back if I don’t like what I have. I hadn’t really thought about making a long continuous swatch before, but it’s a great idea. We also went over different ways of approaching design, and worked on designs of our own. Star also went over different avenues to publishing (magazines, books, internet, self-publishing). I came out of class with several design ideas and am happy I took the class. Thanks, Star!
I peeked into the market during lunch (vendor perk!) and said hi to Shannon and Emily from Twisted. They thought they should win a prize for yarn density in the booth. That’s a lot of color packed in there.
In the afternoon, we had Hooked on Beads with Sivia Harding. This was a one hour class, so it was pretty basic. We learned how to add beads in our knitting without pre-stringing them, and learned when each method is appropriate. We also looked at some of Sivia’s amazing beaded knitting. Webs provided crochet hooks and beads for the class (thank you!) which was a very nice surprise.
I know this is not the world’s most exciting swatch, but hey, I’m just trying to get the technique down without splitting the yarn!
Where are all these people going? To the market opening, of course!
I did a quick walk through the market; I’ll be back to shop and work in the booth tomorrow. I did buy a Sock Summit tote bag from the bookstore right away, though. I didn’t pre-order swag, and I think they’ll run out of what’s left pretty quickly. The bag has organizing pockets on the front AND back. I’ll be using it tomorrow; today I had to carry two bags to bring all my class supplies, and I felt pretty disorganized.
I stopped by Lantern Moon’s booth, because Cathy and Diana are so much fun. Cathy’s in my knit group!
One of the really fun things about knitting events is meeting bloggers from far away that you “know” but have never met in person. I briefly met Jessica, with whom I’ve been chatting about our respective Tokyo adventures this summer. Carrie was working at the market information booth. I met Heather at the Knitted Wit booth. And I met Cristi in the market, too. She’s just as fun in person as she is online. Cristi was wearing her Charlotte’s Web shawl, and it is even more gorgeous in person.
And doubly fun is hanging out with the local PDX Knit-Bloggers. I saw Tami, Melissa, Bobbie, Duffy, Adam, Rachel. And maybe more, but it’s a blur!
By the way, I ran into Deb, and she had my yarn from yesterday’s lunch! I’m so happy that my wandering yarn has found its way home.
I missed the opening reception tonight; it was sold out when I registered. Some openings were available yesterday/today, but I had already booked a rehearsal with my singing buddies since I thought I was free. And we really needed to sing.
If you’re local and couldn’t get into classes, come to the market! There are demonstrations going on in the market all day long, and entry to the market is only $2 per day if you’re not a student. And the shopping is awesome, too.
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