All Set Up!

Well, Fibres and Fabrics is all set up and ready for the Craft and Sewing Show 2011!

Under Barb's guidance the members have the setting up of the display down pat and it's looking good. There's a really gorgeous quilt being raffled this year. The proceeds will be added to our funds for  relocating, something which is imminent. The knitting table where those attending the show can rest their legs and sit and knit, or learn to knit if they don't know how, is ready and waiting. Their efforts will contribute to the teddies being made for Backpacks 4 Aussie Kids project. Fibres and Fabrics love to be involved in charity work.

The display this year is really vibrant and interesting. The various skills of our members have been artistically combined to showcase the group's diverseness.Hope you'll come along!

Pink Tie Tea!

Once a year Fibres and Fabrics hold a morning tea to raise funds for our Sewing for Cancer group, run by Jessica, to buy the materials they need. This year Donna and Selena organised the morning and we all enjoyed ourselves immensely. There were some great prizes sponsored by PomPom Rouge and Studio 2. We were asked to dress in black and white and to wear a pink tie. Linda won the prize for the best tie closely followed by Jan and Margaret W.

A goodly amount was raised, thank you Donna and Selena for a wonderful morning.

Beanies Delivered

A grand total of 41 beanies were delivered to the Volunteer's desk at the Townsville General Hospital after our Craft Expo Beanie Knitting drive. The beanies were received with great enthusiasm and appreciation.

Thank you very much to all who donated wool, supplied needles and joined us in knitting. We were able to teach a few young people to knit, which was wonderful.

Beanie for Craft Expo Public Participation

I've been knitting beanies as examples for our public participation beanie knitting project and discovered a few mistakes in the pattern I left at Fibres last meeting. Apologies! You've probably worked things out for yourselves by now, but here's the revised version:

Beanie
Revised Version

Using 8 ply knitting yarn (not wool but something like acrylic which will wash easily) and size 4mm or 5mm needles, cast on 60 stiches (for a child), 70 (for a woman), 80 (for a man). Knit in plain garter stitch for 6 inches (child), 7” (woman), 8” (man).

At this point knitters from Fibres will take over from participants to shape the crown.

To shape the crown in any of the sizes:

1st row: For all sizes **(knit [8] stitches, knit 2 together)**, repeat **(...)** to end of row.
2nd row: knit.

Repeat these two rows reducing the number of knitted stitches [..] between the ‘k 2 tog’ each time: first repeat knit [7], then next repeat [6], next [5],and so on ... [4],[3],[2],[1],[0] until there are. 6 stitches (child size), 7 stitches (woman size) or 8 stitches (man size) remaining.

Now cast off.

Fold in half length wise and sew edges together from crown to cuff.

I suggest we knit a few examples and then knit a few with just the cast on and about 10 rows knitting to get particpants started.

Sewing for Cancer - November 26

Jessica and Fran are holding up two rugs made by the Magnetic Island ladies for locals in need.

The main work of the day was sewing turbans for people in need through Queensland Cancer.

PS: These photos were taken with my mobile phone so I apologise for the quality. Janet B.