ConnieLene – KnitDesigner

I did tell you, didn’t I?

that I met the worlds fastest knitter – Miriam Tegels at a Metro Station.

I was booked to attend my first ever knit design workshop as part of the Handwerkbeurs (Craft Show), being held in Rotterdam. The teacher – Nicky Epstein.

I had to get myself to Rotterdam.

That was simple enough. You know, walk to train and catch the correct train, Walk to Metro and catch the correct Metro – that was not so easy working out where to go, finding the correct metro platform, watching and listening so I would get off the Metro at the correct station. But I did it.

The last stage was walk to the bus, catch the bus, get off the bus, then find the way to the auditorium and it all started very very badly. Lots and lots of people, a 3 level metro station with access on 2 levels to 2 separate bus stations, and rising panic. I may never ever be seen again.

All of sudden it became very easy as I met two knitters who were heading to the same workshop with Nicky, and they were happy for me to tag along all the way to the auditorium. Whew!

My good fortune:

How did I know they were knitters? Well, one was carrying a large suitcase with a ravelry badge on it. Now everyone knows the ravelry badge, don’t they? Thank goodness I did or I may still be wandering that station, a thinner version of my old self.

Brilliant.

My Good Fortune continued:

What did I find out? One of the knitters who had saved my skin and got me to the auditorium on time was none other than Miriam the World fastest knitter

My continuing Good Fortune:

Nicky Epstein had attended an exhibition in New Zealand in 2007. My Colour Play exhibition was included in the Vogue Knitters tour that she was hosting. Nicky was generous and introduced me to the participants of the workshop here in Rotterdam, and Miriam was delighted to know that I was also a knitter/designer.

and my good fortune

is that I shall be teaching at “FreeForm Intarsia” workshop at Miriams “Knitting in Nature” knit retreat in July this year.

So thank goodness for Ravelry badges, generous spirits and good fortune.

I was fortunate back in 2006 and that does seem ever so long ago now. I was contacted by Barbara from “Travelling Together Inc” to see if there was a way that the Vogue Knitters Tour could visit my studio as part of their visit to New Zealand in 2007.

The outcome was that my exhibition “Colour Play”, held at Randolph Street Gallery at the Whitecliffe College of Arts and Design was attended by the VK Knitters tour group.

And Nicky Epstein was knitting / designer expert on the tour and I happened to own the book “Knitting On the Edge” and thought that Nicky might sign it for me, but in all the excitement and drama of setting up the exhibition the book was left behind.

Now here I am living in the Netherlands, and I booked my first ever knit design workshop as part of the Handwerkbeurs (Craft Show), being held in Rotterdam, and I have purchased another book by Nicky since arriving here (my Knitting on the Edge is in NZ) “Knitting on Top of the World” and I thought I would bring it with me to Rotterdam. And you guessed it – in the excitement and drama of getting myself to Rotterdam.

Walk to train and catch the correct train – that part was easy.
Walk to Metro – not so easy as I do not know Rotterdam, and in and around the station is a huge building site and it was seriously raining.
Catch Metro – not so easy working out where to go, finding the correct metro platform and watching and listening so I would get off the metro at the correct station.
Walk to bus , Catch bus, Find the way to the auditorium, started badly – a 3 level metro station with access on 2 levels to the 2 separate bus stations – became very easy as I met two knitters who were heading in the same direction and they were happy for me to tag along all the way to the auditorium.

Brilliant. And then what did I find out – One the knitters who saved my skin and got me to the auditorium on time was Miriam the World fastest knitter

Oh yes – and I forgot to pack the book.

So I just had to buy the new book “Enchanting Collection” review of Enchanting Collection on Diamond Yarn Blog and yes Nicky has signed it for me.

Does any of this matter at all? Have I ever knitted a Nicky Epstein design? And the answer is NO to both questions – but it is like collecting art – it is eye candy seeing the beautiful knits, interesting designs, the new Aslan Trends yarns and colours, and then there are the edges and of course as I have now attended a knitting / designing workshop I have been taught knit tricks, encouraged towards those edgings and seen Nickts work up close and touched the beautiful yarns, as well as viewing an impromptu fashion parade of her gorgeous knits. The knitters were the models and it was fun watching.

from the VK Archives – Vogue Tour 2007 of Australia and New Zealand

When in the Netherlands and planning your travel using various types of public transport use the 9292 site as a door-to-door journey planner in English. The results include the walk from your accommodation to the station, platform numbers, time to walk between one form of transport and another etc. It just didn’t tell me that the Metro station at Rotterdam was 3 floors, and which door to go out, and on which level to catch the correct bus. But without it I would not have made it to Rotterdam Handwerkneurs workshop with Nicky Epstein.

Notes from Twitter extended a bit:

I purchased Noro “Kureyon Sock Yarn at the Handwerkbeurs (Craft show) in Rotterdam on Friday because I love the colour. I cast on last night for a waistcoat using feather & fan stitch and knitting from the bottom up – in one piece.

I found the formal description of the colours of my Kureyon Sock Yarn – Col 188 – Moss, Purples, Navy, Black, Pink on Knitting Fever. My own description of the colour was greens, pink to wine, grey to dark grey or purples. It’s rather hard to describe the colours because it is grey outside and inside the light is not that good. But at the Handwerkbeurs it looked great and it still looks great – the colour that is.

Before I left Rotterdam I talked to a couple of yarnie people who warned me that the yarn can be very thin and to not create socks from it even though it is a “sock Yarn”, because it will go into holes on the thin bits. Now that is a touch scary, but I bought it because I loved the colours, and as you already know I still haven’t managed to create the two pairs of red socks – my big IOUs, so I didn’t intend knitting socks with this yarn.

As you can see on the photos – my waistcoat is growing – but I have already met two nasty knots in the first skein. I am told that is not usual – so will see how it goes.

The design and shape and how to manage the feather and fan when I reach the underarms – I haven’t decided yet – so will have to keep you posted.

Life has been rather miserable since I found that the great balls of Haarlem have finally been replaced with a row of boring shiney posts.

Last Saturday, a very grey day indeed, when were feeling very very down having received sad news from home, we decided to go to Rotterdam for the day.

Why? – to see if we could get out to and see the great sea walls there, a wonder of the modern world they say. But we arrived too late in the day (at about 10.30am), and because it is quite a distance to get to the starting place (about 96k’s), and without a car all the more difficult. Yes, there were other options, but they did not really seem to satisfy – so we are going on a Wednesday soon, when we will satisfy Best Beloveds need to know and see on a special all day tour including the sea wall, gates, museum etc. They only run this specific all day tour on a Wednesday.

We must do it soon, so that with a bit of luck the sea itself will not be boiling so hard (It is the ferocious North Sea after all) that I cannot cope with the boat trip. Very soon, like, before the end of summer. Oh and I think we are there already, at the end of summer, I mean. The air has changed, the light has changed, it is dark much earlier, even the birds behaviour is changing.

But as you can see – I found another stretch of water, a safe stretch, a calm stretch – a concrete river with concrete balls – and now I am inspired once more. I have a completed ball cover, and another one 75% done – and now I may have a place to position them.

A concrete river, with round river stones – WOW!

In the heart of Rotterdam.

That is the news from Rotterdam

and the next news might be after a very busy Wednesday, I just might need some help with this.