Rita Gallant, 83, from Aurora, Ontario began knitting when her grandson was born prematurely and she spent hours with him in hospital. She needed something to keep her busy so she began by knitting baby hats, and over the years has knit thousands. She donates them to hospitals she & her husband visit on their travels. Watch the CTV news piece about this amazing Canadian knitter.
Andy Noyes, an artist from the U.K. invented a “knit bot” and named her after his Grandmother…Agnes. Andy had to learn to knit before he could teach Agnes, who can complete a scarf in 5 hours. Click here to read more and watch her knit!
Beg:
A native of Toledo, Ohio, Lynn moved to Vancouver in 1978. A copy of the Vancouver Sun found at the Toledo public library helped her to find a job at St. Paul’s Hospital as a social worker when she first arrived. After a busy career in health care, Lynn is now enjoying life as a retiree!
Casting On:
Lured into a LYS by the colours of the yarn in the window, she signed up for classes at Urban Yarns about 8 years ago. She says that she still can’t believe that she’s a knitter and a continental one at that!
KFB & PSSO:
Retired from her managerial position a few years ago, Lynn can be often be found walking her dog along the beach close to her home. When not knitting, Lynn is an avid iPad gamer, reader, cook and in her own words “trailer trash” traveler! Last year she and her husband embarked on a cross Canada adventure to Newfoundland. Coming up in March 2014, they’ll be motoring down to New Orleans and then meandering north along the Mississippi River. I’m sure they’ll have some good yarns to tell upon their return!
Knit Knowledge & Know How:
A self-proclaimed slow knitter Lynn attributes her successes to her knitting coach, Mandy Moore. Mandy helps her with custom fits for her sweaters and gives Lynn advice with her colour choices. Lynn does take a look at patterns on Ravelry every now and again, but mostly knits from custom made patterns.
Cables & Lace:
Hard pressed to think of one project that she’s enjoyed more than the others, she loves all the sweaters she’s made with Mandy’s coaching. The latest one (worn in her photo) is knit with Noro Mountain mix mohair in a rusty shade for the body of the sweater and the shawl collar is Noro sock yarn, which has the long colour way that Lynn loves.
Steeks, Tinks & Frogs:
When asked whether she’s given up on any projects, she says “yes, many!”. One that comes to mind is a green vest started over 2 years ago that she’s lost all interest in completing.
Dye Lots:
No doubt about it, Lynn loves all things wool, especially Noro.
Fibre Fantasy:
“I want to be able to knit as well as Holli Yeoh!”.
Guild Guage:
Lynn knits Monday nights with a group of ladies, many of whom are members of the WCKG. She’s been a guild member for about 6 years, and is a past Vice President. Like so many members, a favourite part of the meeting is Show & Share & the speakers.
Purls of Wisdom:
“Knitting is great meditation”. “It’s okay to cry when working on a project!”. Isn’t that the truth!!
A retired teacher from China has spent 11 years knitting a jacket for herself and a cap for her husband from her own hair. To read more about this amazing project click here.
Ever wonder whether you should actually buy that knitting book you’ve glanced through? This avid knitter offers us her opinions. Read her reviews before you buy!
Gerrard Alt was a pack a day smoker for 20 years, when his roommate introduced him to knitting as a way to relieve his stress. While attempting to quit, he found knitting calmed him down. His one time hobby has now become a business. To read more please click here
Photo: Alamay
Beg:
Born and raised in Montreal, Margaret moved to Vancouver as a young bride in 1965. She and her hubby moved to the West End & she’s lived there ever since! She got a job with a family owned real estate firm shortly after her arrival to Vancouver and has been a loyal employee for almost 50 years.
Casting on:
Margaret remembers her Mother teaching her to knit, but it was a very special grade 7 teacher that got her “hooked”. Her teacher wanted the class to knit for the Red Cross, and her first donated project was a green vest. She recalls having to stretch one side of the vest to make it the same size as the other one when whipping it together. Thus began her life long devotion to charity knitting.
PSSO:
A lover of all things knitting, Margaret enjoys reading books and magazines about knitters and their craft. She is an avid follower of the blogs of Mason & Dixon as well as the Yarn Harlot.
Knit Knowledge & Know how:
A long time subscriber to Interweave Knit & Knit Simple magazines, Margaret says that if she makes something out of one of the magazines, she’s lucky! She loves them for their articles. She always has a pair of socks on the needles and can be found knitting almost everywhere…buses, restaurants, knit nights. Most of her projects are donated or given to family and her afghans are often raffled for charity. Her beautiful Lucy Neatby afghan, Dominos, donated at the December 2013 WCKG meeting, garnered a sizable donation to Nova House.
Cables & Lace:
Her most enjoyable knitting is for charity and her latest donation, mentioned above, was a pleasure to knit. Using Noro Silk Garden in beautiful variegated colours, the afghan was highly sought after & the winner is thoroughly enjoying her prize!
Steeks, Tinks & Frogs:
Margaret describes a sweater kit from about 20 years ago that contained “mop” cotton yarn. The sweater just wouldn’t come together properly and was not terribly attractive so after frogging it about 3 times, she just gave up and threw it away…much to some fellow knitters dismay!
Dye Lots:
Hands down, her favourite yarns are Noro Silk Garden and Plymouth Encore. The Plymouth yarn, used when knitting for children, is a wonderful combination of acrylic & wool & a pleasure to knit with, she says. Challenging to find here in B.C., she gets it shipped from a LYS in Ontario. Margaret is a lover of any shade of red and to a lesser degree purple. She especially enjoys knitting with variegated yarns.
Fibre Fantasy:
“I’d love to own a yarn shop. I wouldn’t really want to work in it, I’d just drop by and visit & knit & enjoy the surroundings !”
Guild Gauge:
Nancy Vivien (a founder of the WCKG) invited her to join some time in the ’80’s. She’s been on various committees over the years & loves to come to the meetings to see what’s on everyone’s needles. It should also be mentioned that people love to see what’s on her needles too!
Purls of Wisdom:
“Read to get inspired and to see what other knitters think”.
Ladies in the U.K. knit a 9 ft. Christmas tree, complete with decorations. Eight hundred knitted squares make up the tree, on display at a Christmas festival. With hopes of raising funds for various charitable organizations, this knitted wonder is sure to amaze and delight. To read more about the tree and to view more pictures, please click here.
Photo by Keith Jones
A group calling themselves the “Knutty Knitters” knit an entire “knitivity” scene! The showstopper includes life sized figures of Mary, Joseph, wise men, shepherds and even a camel! To read more about this most ambitious pride-of-place exhibit click here.
Photo by…Matt Clark
Beg:
Born & raised in Buchans, Newfoundland, Nigel moved to Calgary to work as a librarian and stayed for 25 years. Lured by the West Coast (and a great apartment!) he moved to Vancouver in 2003 after his retirement.
Casting on:
Nigel’s Mother taught taught him to crochet at the young age of 11. Wanting to make things that were more “useful”, he learned to knit and hasn’t been able to stop himself!
KFB & PSSO:
When not knitting, Nigel can be found in the water! As a member of the English Bay Master Swim Club, he’s competed in numerous competitions. In the last BC Seniors Games, held in Burnaby, he came home with Gold & Silver medals…well done! An accomplished origamist (origami master?) he has over 100 reference books to help him fold paper into beautiful, intricate shapes. He has also challenged himself by walking several different legs of the famous Camino De Santiago pilgrimage trail in Spain. During one such 29 day walk, he purchased yarn in Portugal and knit one sock, then upon entering Spain, knit the second one. Truly an international pair. This winter Nigel will be spending five months touring South East Asia. Before he leaves, he’ll be purchasing enough yarn to make sure he can finish the lace tablecloth “Pomegranate” by Herbert Niebling. We’ll look forward to seeing it at Show & Share in 2014!
Knit knowledge and know how:
Like many of us, Nigel is a big fan of Ravelry and gets much of his inspiration and patterns from that website. His big complaint is that there are not enough really good men’s patterns, so he’s designed his own, notably socks. He credits Cat Bordhi’s book “New Pathways for Sock Knitters” as having been the inspiration for many of his designs and techniques.
Cables and Lace:
Elizabeth Zimmerman’s Hybrid Yoke Sweater has been one of his most satisfying projects. Knit out of Cascade 220 yarn in purple heather, he inserted orange for a pop of colour on the inside trim.
Steeks, Tinks & Frogs:
“I’m a cannibal”, he says! Two sweaters (one from 20 years ago…Kaffe Fassett’s heraldic dog sweater) have both been partially knit, then sat in bags for a while, until he cannibalized the yarn for other projects. The sweaters, once “eaten” could never be resurrected!
Dye Lots:
He loves “nice, good, fine wool”, most especially in orange & purple.
Fibre Fantasy:
Nigel’s hope is to publish his sock patterns in the not too distant future. He’s also got some sweater patterns that he’s hoping to share with the world. We’ll look forward to that!
Guild Gauge:
Nigel’s friend and fellow obsessed knitter, Holli, encouraged him to join. He loves to share his completed projects at Show & Share and takes great pleasure in the support and encouragement from his fellow Guild members. Nigel has been a guest speaker at WCKG, giving us insight into lace knitting…one of his passions.
Purls of Wisdom:
Nigel is encouraging of men to knit. He has participated almost every year in the Men’s Knitting Retreat, held each fall in Washington State. Organized by the Organization of Men’s Knitting Retreats (see them on Ravelry) almost 45 men from the US, Canada (and some International) come together to knit and learn. Just the guys! His final purl of wisdom is “toe up is where it’s at”.
Find Nigel on Ravelry… KnitKnigel.