September 2021 knitting retreat
We have just come to the end of a great week of knitting with regular guests Nina, Mary and Sue and 3 lovely new guests from Belgium - Fransiska and her two daughters Laurie and Aurelie. The weather has been a mixture of warm sunshine, one very wet and windy day and a few autumn mists.
The projects
Sue managed to finish knitting the front of my Rockin' Robin cushion cover which is looking great, she also had a baby jacket on the go for an easy evening project.
Fransiska came armed with a variety of half finished projects.
Champagne from Mode at Rowan just needed sewing up and the rib knitting, which she would have finished if she hadn't left the last few balls of wool at home!
Her next project was the lovely Rakki top by Martin Storey from Rowan magazine no. 65. This one was proving a bit of a challenge, with a lot of ripping out on the cable panel but after a few attempts she was up and running. I think it will keep her busy for a few months but it is such a beautiful design.
Fransiska's third project was Poppet from Rowan Bloom book one by Erika Knight. This one she managed to finish apart from the buttons.
Nina is an addict to lace knitting and brought along two projects which took all her concentration. The first was a design from The Knitter (issue 160) by Emma Vining called Wistman's Wood which she is knitting in a variegated yarn in lovely autumnal shades.
Nina's second project was a lovely shawl also from The Knitter, but she needed more peace and quiet than she was getting. I managed to get a photo of it before it was ripped back, one to be finished at home in solitude.
Laurie is expecting her first baby in December so her two projects were for the baby.
The first project was Pineapple Jumpsuit by Berta Knit Store, we managed to convince her it would be easier to sew if she blocked it, so this was her first attempt at blocking. It looked great when finished.
Laurie's second project was a lovely little pair of baby pants from My Little Mailles in Cognac. Very quick and easy to do in garter stitch, just waiting for the pompoms to finish them off.
Aurelie was knitting beanies for the family for the Christmas, quite a task as there are 11 of them! The Billy Beanie pattern is from Wool and the Gang
Mary was knitting a lovely short cardigan in Noro sock yarn. This is knitted in garter stitch with a lot of short row shaping and will look amazing when it is finished.
On Wednesday morning we went into St Jean d'Angely for a wander around the town, a compulsory visit to Amalgame where Fransiska and Laurie bought some gorgeous soft toys and Christmas gifts
I went to the market for more food supplies
after coffee and hot chocolate in the square we wandered back through the market and past the little yarn shop
On Thursday afternoon we went to Cognac for yarn shopping at My Little Mailles and some fabric from Tissus Bonnet. Friday morning I had to take Nina, Sue and Mary into Saintes for their return Covid test, this was thankfully quick and easy so we had plenty of time for a visit to the fabric and yarn shop, a bit of sight-seeing around the town and coffee at La Musarderie.
Sue and Nina came dog walking with me every morning except for one wet and windy day
The grapes are just about ready for harvesting, Billie is making the most of her last chance to munch a few off the vine. On the wet day I stumbled across this little chap marching down the road, he was not impressed at having two large dogs sniffing at him
It has been another fantastic week with some lovely people, I feel so lucky that they all made the effort to get here and can't wait for the retreats and workshops to start up again next year.
The projects
Sue managed to finish knitting the front of my Rockin' Robin cushion cover which is looking great, she also had a baby jacket on the go for an easy evening project.
Fransiska came armed with a variety of half finished projects.
Champagne from Mode at Rowan just needed sewing up and the rib knitting, which she would have finished if she hadn't left the last few balls of wool at home!
Her next project was the lovely Rakki top by Martin Storey from Rowan magazine no. 65. This one was proving a bit of a challenge, with a lot of ripping out on the cable panel but after a few attempts she was up and running. I think it will keep her busy for a few months but it is such a beautiful design.
Fransiska's third project was Poppet from Rowan Bloom book one by Erika Knight. This one she managed to finish apart from the buttons.
Nina is an addict to lace knitting and brought along two projects which took all her concentration. The first was a design from The Knitter (issue 160) by Emma Vining called Wistman's Wood which she is knitting in a variegated yarn in lovely autumnal shades.
Nina's second project was a lovely shawl also from The Knitter, but she needed more peace and quiet than she was getting. I managed to get a photo of it before it was ripped back, one to be finished at home in solitude.
Laurie is expecting her first baby in December so her two projects were for the baby.
The first project was Pineapple Jumpsuit by Berta Knit Store, we managed to convince her it would be easier to sew if she blocked it, so this was her first attempt at blocking. It looked great when finished.
Laurie's second project was a lovely little pair of baby pants from My Little Mailles in Cognac. Very quick and easy to do in garter stitch, just waiting for the pompoms to finish them off.
Aurelie was knitting beanies for the family for the Christmas, quite a task as there are 11 of them! The Billy Beanie pattern is from Wool and the Gang
Mary was knitting a lovely short cardigan in Noro sock yarn. This is knitted in garter stitch with a lot of short row shaping and will look amazing when it is finished.
On Wednesday morning we went into St Jean d'Angely for a wander around the town, a compulsory visit to Amalgame where Fransiska and Laurie bought some gorgeous soft toys and Christmas gifts
I went to the market for more food supplies
after coffee and hot chocolate in the square we wandered back through the market and past the little yarn shop
On Thursday afternoon we went to Cognac for yarn shopping at My Little Mailles and some fabric from Tissus Bonnet. Friday morning I had to take Nina, Sue and Mary into Saintes for their return Covid test, this was thankfully quick and easy so we had plenty of time for a visit to the fabric and yarn shop, a bit of sight-seeing around the town and coffee at La Musarderie.
Sue and Nina came dog walking with me every morning except for one wet and windy day
The grapes are just about ready for harvesting, Billie is making the most of her last chance to munch a few off the vine. On the wet day I stumbled across this little chap marching down the road, he was not impressed at having two large dogs sniffing at him
It has been another fantastic week with some lovely people, I feel so lucky that they all made the effort to get here and can't wait for the retreats and workshops to start up again next year.