Black Sheep Knitting Guild

Well, we had a wonderful meeting this past Tuesday.  No new members at this meeting, but we had one guest. I must apologize or not taking any pictures.  I was so involved in watching Tracey K.'s trunk show (and touching and folding many of her shawls and cowls) that I just didn't think about photos.  Must try to remember to do this next time. Her trunk show was fascinating.  I love seeing the products of other knitters.  I did see many taking notes of names of patterns and yarn. We also saw many lovely items during show and share.  Please bring your finished projects to show off at the meetings.  We love to see everyone's work. Our swag was delivered at this meeting.  If you ordered an umbrella and were unable to attend the meeting, you can pay for and pick up your umbrella at the next meeting.  Or, even at Panera's, if you come to social knitting on Tuesday nights.  My trunk is full of BSKG items.   Isn't this beau...

Well, we had a great time this past Tuesday.  We had 57 members in attendance (which included 7 new members) and 5 guests!  We now have a grand total of 96 members in the BSKG.  Amazing! We had lots of fun with the Brown Bag Gift Exchange.  Many sheep participated and enjoyed themselves.  We also enjoyed some luscious cake and relaxed and talked and looked at each other's projects, etc.      And just look at the charity project toys that were turned in to Judith.  I just love them.  You guys are the greatest when it comes to charity.  And so creative! Judith spoke about another charity project, a kind of pay it forward project.   Make a hat.  Give a hat to someone who needs one.  Don't even need to tell anyone about doing this.  Just do it.  Anyone who didn't pick up a kit to do this and would like one, let us know. We had our election for the new vice president.  The r...

We had a great meeting on Tuesday.  We had about 56 knitters at the meeting.  Three knitters joined the Guild and we had ten guests attend.  Woo hoo! The Brown Bag Swap was discussed.  We will have the Swap at the next meeting.  Items should be in the $10-15 range.  Yarn shop quality yarn, knitting notions, mugs, project bags, books, etc.  Anything related to knitting.  Any questions, let us know. New membership cards were distributed.  Remember to use them when you go to a LYS (local yarn shop) or any yarn shop in any city.  Never hurts to ask if they give a discount to a guild member. We ordered swag.  Light green umbrellas with our Guild logo imprinted with the saying "A Dry Sheep is a Happy Sheep" underneath the logo.  Logo and words are in black and look great on the green background.  $15 each.  Any Guild member who didn't get to the order sheet or was unable to make the meeting can contact us (here or on ...

The BSKG October meeting is Tuesday, October 8 , at Our Shepherd Lutheran Church, 2225 East Fourteen Mile Road.  Doors will open at 6:30 to sign in and buy raffle tickets. It will be a busy night as charity items are turned in, we order SWAG [a wonderful umbrella!], we nominate our Vice President for 2014..... AND we have an educational program:  How to Use Ravelry.  A lot to fit in by 9pm! Be sure to let Heather Perrone know if there are any changes you want made on the member roster [email addresses, phone numbers, etc.].

We understand that our seating at the Tigers game for Stitch n Pitch was problematic this year and wanted to apologize for the scattering of seats throughout a number of sections. It's not nearly as fun to attend an event and not be seated near other fiber people. We spoke with the Tigers organization about the seating and they are going to work closely with us next year so that everyone can be seated together. It was still a great game and we were happy to see so many of you come out and support the Tigers and Stitch N Pitch!

Just wanted to let those who attended the game on Sunday know that the Black Sheep Knitting Guild pens that were in the goodie bag have a stylus on the tip of the pen that you can use on devices such as phones, tablets, etc.  I've used it and find it really helpful.  Sometimes your fingertip just seems too big... Hope you all enjoyed the game.  Yay Tigers!

Keep checking under the "Upcoming Events" tab for more field trip events.

September 14, 2013 Kitchener-Waterloo Knitters' Fair .  Memorial Auditorium Complex, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada September 15, 2013 Stitch N Pitch , Detroit, MI September 19-22, 2013 September 21, 2013 Shop Hop , Lansing, MI.   Tour Woven Art, Sticks and Strings, and Yarn Garden. Enter to win mystery prizes, get clues for a mystery pattern, and receive mystery discounts. Spinners Flock Fall Fleece Fair , Beach Middle School, 445 Mayer Dr., Chelsea, MI 48118 September 28-29, 2013 Mt. Bruce Station Sheep & Wool Festival.   Romeo, MI September 28-29, 2013 Northern Michigan Lamb and Wool Festival .  Ogemaw County Fairgrounds, West Branch, MI October 18-19, 2013 Third Coast Fiber Arts Festival.   McGregor Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI October 19-20, 2013 Michigan International Alpaca Fest .  DeltaPlex, Grand Rapids, MI October 26-27, 2013 Fiber Expo .  Washtenaw Farm C...

Fall is coming fast... although it feels like summer only just got here! Many BSKG members have been together at various times throughout the summer, but I know we are all looking forward to the yarny goodness of fall and seeing everyone at guild meetings. Our first meeting of the year is Tuesday, September 10 , at Our Shepherd Lutheran Church in Birmingham. Doors open at 6:30 pm, so you can check in and socialize for a bit before the meeting starts at 7:00 pm. Should you find yourself sitting next to a new member or guest, please make them  feel as welcomed as you were at your first meeting.  This meeting is our welcome back meeting - we would really love to see what you've been knitting or been excited about over the summer. Please bring items - knitted, crocheted, maybe new yarns or fiber treasures - to show and share. We will also be having a Silent Auction of some fabulous items, so bring your money/checkbook!  Thanks to all who provided feedback through t...

Pat from the Oakland Knitting Guild has passed along this info - if anyone is available, it looks like a good time and it would be wonderful to have some Black Sheep go and mingle with our fellow knitters! You are invited to the Knitter’s Picnic hosted by the Oakland Knitting Guild. We have reserved the pavilion at Firefighters Park from 4-9 p.m. On Wednesday June 19th. The park is located on Square Lake Road between Coolidge and Crooks on the North side of the street. You will see the pavilion on your right, there is a parking lot north of the pavilion. Bring your knitting, a show and share project, a potluck dish, beverages, and a chair. We always have a lot of fun, hope to see you there. Pat

You might not consider this related to knitting, but maybe you will.  My yoga teacher this morning recited these lines throughout our class and I thought it might be interesting to some or all of you Black Sheep.  It comes from a Shabbat booklet from Shir Tikvah (a Jewish congregation in Troy), but it does not necessarily have to be interpreted as something religious, just something to think about.  I do not know who the author is. You are strong when you take your grief and teach it to smile.      You are brave when you overcome your fear and help others to do the same . You are happy when you see a flower and give it your blessing.      You are loving when your own pain does not blind you to the pain of others. You are wise when you know the limits of your wisdom.    You are true when you admit that there are times when you fool yourself. You are alive when tomorrow's hope means more to you than yesterday's mi...

Well, we had a good showing of about a dozen knitters at 12 Oaks Mall on Saturday, June 8 for World Wide Knit in Public Day.  Including our sheepie who had a nice cold drink: I'm not in any picture, as I was taking them.  We were there for several hours and had a good time.  Actually, I think this whole week is Knit in Public Week.  So, if anyone else is out in public knitting and gets some pics, let me know and we can put them on the blog. Harriet

Hello Sheepies! World Wide Knit in Public Day is fast approaching and we’d like for as many of you as possible to meet with us for some public knitting to celebrate. We’ve decided on 12 Oaks Mall on June 8th at 1:00 p.m. We’re going to sit in the area on the main floor by J.Jill and Kay Jewelers. That is right in the center of the mall - it’s likely easiest to enter from JCPenney’s, but Macy’s and Sears are also relatively close (Nordstrom and Lord and Taylor are a bit further). In case you’re unsure check the mall map . Let us know if you’re going to be joining us!

Well, the 2013 retreat at the Ralph A. MacMullan Conference Center at Higgins Lake is officially over!  We had 40 Black Sheep attend, which is the highest number so far.  The weather was a bit wonky, but no one seemed to mind.  We knit, ate, drank, had massages, got henna tattoos, walked around, and, did I say, we knit!!!  A couple of Black Sheep even went kayaking on Higgins Lake early Saturday morning. Here are just a few pictures of Black Sheep having fun.   We had a beautiful display of items making up our door prizes.  Here are just a few pictures. Saturday we had a class on color pooling with Lynn Hershberger.  Lynn taught the same class at the Sock Summit.  It was a very interesting class and a great learning experience.  Thank you Lynn! Thanks to all who helped in making this retreat the success it was.  And thank you to all who attended.  We love ya and hope to see yo...

Last meeting of the year was held  on 5/13 and lots of fun was had by all. We had fruit and cake.  Cake was so beautiful, sheep were taking pictures of it. Tables were filled with items for sale/swap. Great deals and fun, fun, fun. Judith brought lovely yarn susans to sell.  Note the stuffed animals to the right which were brought in for our charity project.  Not due til October, but knitters are having fun already making cute animals!  Keep it up.  The elephant wasn't even a pattern given out, but used by one of our sheep.  Isn't it great?  Feel free to substitute your own pattern if you like. More tables filled with items to sell/swap. Enjoyed several "show and share" projects.  Our Black Sheep are SOOO creative. Next meeting will be September 9.  Hope everybody has a wonderful summer.  See you in September.  Unless you come by Panera to knit on a Tuesday night.  If so, I'll see you there....

When we left the meeting,  it was pouring rain, with thunder and lightning. Will we ever have spring? Good thing the swag was distributed – the vests were very nice, and kept us warm. Our annual (6th!) Sneaky Sheep Exchange was the focus of our April meeting. As usual, the creativity and variety of our members was phenomenal.  (this purse was from last year's sneaky sheep) As you can see, a variety of items were created under the "cozie" umbrella. A s urvey on the future of the guild was conducted . I f you didn't get a chance to fill out a surve y, not to worry, we will send out an e-mail with the particulars. We had many raffle prizes generously donated by Stacey T., Diane D., and Coralee. And the winners were:  Sue S. - Book 1: The Knit Stitch, Martha (lucky guest!) acquired the Little Box of Knits for Baby, Heather P. - a gorgeous skein of Mango Moon with a Scood pattern, Tanya received 8 skeins of Kathmando Aran by Queensland ...

Hello Sheepies! Just a quick reminder that we are meeting next Tuesday, April 9. Doors open at 6:30 and the meeting will begin at 7:00. There are a few special things happening this month, so be prepared and bring your pennies! Sneaky Sheep - all of our sneaky sheep swap efforts will be revealed! If you have ever participated in Sneaky Sheep in the past and didn't have the opportunity to give your gift, now is the time - bring it in and present it to the person it was originally intended for. Swag will be passed out - if you ordered swag, payment on that will be due. For those going on Retreat with us in May, the final Retreat payment will also be due.  If you paid the $75 deposit and are in a twin room, you owe $110.  If you paid the $75 deposit and are in a single room, you owe $145. We will be holding our last special Raffle for a Retreat registration. Raffle tickets will be $5. We will be kicking off our Charity knit for the year - kits will be avai...

Hello all you Black Sheep! This is my first attempt at posting on the blog.  Just wanted to let everyone know how great a time we had at the Black Swamp Spinners Guild Market Day in Bowling Green, OH yesterday.  We had an extremely large group of Black Sheep who ventured south - 17 in total!  We had a wonderful time there, going from vendor to vendor, trying not to spend our entire bank accounts. We chatted with Amy of Bad Amy Knits - bought her yarn and lots of her bags. Across the aisle from Bad Amy was one of our favorites - Briar Rose.  I got to show Chris (Briar Rose) the lovely sweater I made from her yarn and pattern.  Her yarn is so lovely. And finally, we had our yearly group photo taken by a friendly knitter. I know , I know.  The number of Black Sheep in this picture is only 15.  Wylie and Judith had left before we took it. Oh, and Michele won a beautiful knitting book in one of the raffles they had. We did manag...

Here it is again two months past. Spring is bounding towards us and Black Sheep have been busy! Our February meeting was extending your craft: non-knitting activities that extend or complement our love of fiber and stitches. Have you ever made a sweater and had trouble finding the perfect button? Make your own Dorset buttons with leftover yarn. Other activities included needlefelting on thick industrial felt to create a little sheep keychain, and making a pipe cleaner and roving sheep mascot to guard your yarn stash. Harriet's trunk show featured shawl after lovely shawl...I'm sure she inspired some people to sign up for the Anne Hanson beginners lace class in March. Feeling the love, the February meeting also gave us time to socialize and visit while enjoying a lovely black sheep decorated cake--yellow cake with a lovely raspberry filling. Rita, who is that baker? It was delicious! Door prizes donated by Kim T, Joan D, Noreen S and Kate P. were a great varie...

Our January meeting had special guests and special moments... Special guests Rita, Laura and Maureen shared with us their enthusiasm for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure Detroit and the fight against breast cancer. A heartwarming video, presentation and a great Q and A period made their visit with us an inspiring opening to the meeting. Race for the Cure is May 18. Pat K. followed by speaking about Knit Michigan, the fundraising annual event dedicated to bringing awareness and support to local cancer patients, their families and the organizations that support them. Under the guidance of Judith D. the guild has long supported the event with volunteers at the Learn to Knit table. Knit Michigan is coming up fast...the first Saturday of February. The program in January ushers in the new year by welcoming the new president and vice president and ends the current president's term, allowing us the opportunity to thank them for all they have brought to the guild in that positio...