Voting during January's meeting

Hello all - If you have any suggestions to put on January's ballot, please email them to Becky at rhass@rclreads.org by January 4th.
A few requirements:
1. The book has something to do with knitting (up for interpretation).
2. There are at least 3 copies in the Ramsey County Library system.

Thanks for your thoughts on this. Cheers!

Notes from December's Meeting

Thanks to everyone for the snacks and yarn! Sorry Julie couldn't be with us but I'll be sure to send on our questions from the discussion. Also we've sold 33 bookmarks so far - and they're still on sale until the end of December in the Friends' Bookstore so be sure and stop in!

There were a few websites mentioned in November's meeting. One was Ravelry (www.ravelry.com), which is in beta mode but you can sign up for an invitation to join. It's really fun. I'm hoping to set up a group for Knit-Lit so be sure and check it out. The other is an online knitting magazine called Knitty (www.knitty.com). The winter issue just came out and is lovely.

A Mother Bear Note: The Mother Bear Project has one of their montly get-togethers on the third Wednesday every month at Borealis Yarns from 10-noon so I'm hoping to get there at this coming Wednesday and donate the yarns to make more bears.

January's book is Knitting by Anne Barlett. Can't wait to see you all January 8th! Stay warm and Happy Holidays!

Author Julie Jersild Roth at December's Knit-Lit!!!

Extra! Extra! Minnesotan author Julie Jersild Roth WILL be joining us for December's Knit-Lit. She will also bring copies of her book Knitting Nell in case anyone wants to do a bit of holiday shopping. Find out more about Julie and her book at her website: http://www.juliejersildroth.com/
Feel free to bring kids to this one - it's geared for ages 4 up!

Notes from November's meeting

Thank you to everyone who attended last night's meeting! What a great discussion - who knew there was so much to talk about in a beach read? I also wanted to thank everyone for the bookmarks. They are on sale now at the Friends' Bookstore. They've already been selling this morning - and I just put them out! They are lovely.

A few notes for December's meeting - It's going to be a party!
~ We'll be reading Knitting Nell out loud so no need to read it ahead of time.
~ I invite you to bring snacks to share.
~ We'll also have an optional yarn swap. Please bring unused yarn that you are willing to part with and we'll have time to exchange it. Unclaimed yarn will be donated (Mother Bear Project and the like).

December will be a great meeting for knitters and non-knitters alike so feel free to bring guests. Can't wait to see you all at the Knit-Lit party!

Bookmark Fundraiser

Remember to bring your bookmarks to our November meeting! If you don't get to starch them, that's okay - just bring them as they are. Thanks again!

Notes from October's Meeting

A BIG Thank You to Dulcie Campana and the ladies from the Mother Bear Project for sharing with us! What great bears - and a great charity.
Photos from October's meeting: http://picasaweb.google.com/burkhass/MotherBearProject

Here are the results from Voting - Part Deux:

December 11th - Knitting Nell by Julie Jersild Roth

January 8th - Knitting by Anne Barlett

February 12th - Knitting rules! by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

For next month, Knitting Under the Influence and remember to bring your bookmarks for the Knit-Lit Library Fundraiser with the Friends' Bookstore!

Claire LaZebnik's website: http://www.clairelazebnik.com/

Reading Group Guide: http://www.readinggroupguides.com/guides3/knitting_under_the_influence1.asp

Knit-Lit Votes: Part Deux!

Hello all - we'll also be voting during our October meeting.
For Decemeber we will read a children's book on knitting together outloud so no "pre-reading" is necessary.
Here are the three contenders for December:
~Knitting Nell by Julie Jersild Roth
~Martha Moth Makes Socks by Cambria Evans
~Derek, the Knitting Dinosaur by Mary Blackwood

For January: A knitting novel (one of these three)
~Knitting by Anne Bartlett
~The Shop on Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber
~Died in the Wool by Mary Kruger

For February: Non-fiction (one of these three)
~The natural knitter : how to choose, use, and knit natural fibers from alpaca to yak by Barbara Albright
~Knitting rules! by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
~The joy of knitting : texture, color, design, and the global knitting circle by Lisa R. Myers

There is more about each book in the library catalog for those who are interested.
See you Tuesday!

Mother Bear Project for October

Thanks again to everyone who made it to last month's meeting. Just a note to address something that came up in the meeting - new participants are always welcome to join anytime! And remember rule #1 - you don't have to read the book. Everyone is welcome to just come, talk, and knit.

In preparation for next month's guest speaker, Dulcie Campana, I encourage everyone who's willing and able to make a bear for the Mother Bear Project. The pattern is in October's book Knitting for Peace pages 110-116.
Here is a link for the pattern online:
http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/na_knitting/article/0,2025,DIY_14141_4826306,00.html
There is also more information available on the Mother Bear Project's website: http://www.motherbearproject.org/

The other bit of news is about our fundraiser for the library which will be for the month of December, partnering with the Friends' Bookstore to sell handknit bookmarks. The guideline for the bookmarks is to be approximately 2 inches wide by 7 inches high. I'd love for these bookmarks to be as unique as our members so have fun with it - add a tassle, bead, or charm if you want to.
Here is a link I have found for a few bookmark patterns: http://www.knittingpatterncentral.com/directory/bookmarks.php
Please bring in the bookmarks by November's meeting (Nov. 13th) so I can get them to the Friends' store for the holiday season. Thanks again to everyone for your support of these great charities! Happy knitting! See you October 9th!

The latest news

Thanks again to everyone who was able to make it, and a BIG thank you to Tami for facilitating! We also have another batch of Charmed Knit hats to send out. You all are such speedy knitters!

Next month's book is Chicks with Sticks (It's a Purl Thing), and it is a funky young adult novel with a knitting twist. It also has a few patterns in the back of the book. Here's the author's website: http://www.elizabethlenhard.com/

We'll also have a guest speaker for our October meeting - Dulcie Campana of the Mother Bear Project will be joining us. The Mother Bear Project is discussed in October's Book Knitting for Peace. I'll have more info about all of that during September's meeting.

Can't wait to see you all Sept. 11th - 6 to 8 p.m. in the Community Room!

For August: KnitLit (the book) Inspired Show-N-Tell

KnitLit offers many stories of how knitting can touch lives and goes beyond needles and yarn. For August's meeting, I'd like to spend a little time sharing some of our knitting stories, maybe recently remembered while reading KnitLit. Maybe there is a sweater that was knit for a child or some yarn that was spun with great care - whatever it is, bring it to the August meeting for a time of Show-N-Tell.

Also, KnitLit has a website with more information about their contributors and a great resource for charity knitting sites: http://www.knitlit.com

See you August 14th - 6 to 8 p.m. in the Community Room!

Photo of our first package to Warm Woolies

Here are our hats! Aren't they lovely? Check out what other people are sending on the Charmed Knits blog: http://charmedknits.blogspot.com

The Votes are In!

Thanks again for everyone who attended last night! I will never forget the story of the boy who left his handknit sweater in the mailbox. :)

Here are the results of the voting:
September 11th: Chicks with Sticks (It’s a Purl Thing) by Elizabeth Lenhard
(6 copies in the RCL system)

October 9th: Knitting For Peace: Make the World a Better Place One Stitch at a Time by Betty Christiansen (3 copies in the RCL system)


November 13th: Knitting Under the Influence by Claire LaZebnik
(5 copies in the RCL system)
If you are concerned about the numbers of copies available, I recommend putting in a request with the Ask a Librarian desk. I have also sent an email about having someone from the Mother Bear Project as a guest speaker for November. If you know of any other contacts, please let me know.

We had great success with our knit-along - 13 hats so far! You all are prolific knitters! As long as there are more coming, I'll keep sending them.

Next month's book is KnitLit: Sweaters and Their Stories…and Other Writing About Knitting by Linda Roghaar and Molly Wolf. It's a collection of short stories, a quick read for the summer.
Here is its website: http://www.knitlit.com/

It won't be long till August 14th! We'll have a guest facilitator, Tami, for the evening. She's a little shy about her knitting but just ask her about what she tried for her first sweater! Happy knitting!

Voting at July's meeting for the next three books

Hello all -
It’s time to pick our next three book selections for September, October, and November! Each person will have a chance to choice his/her top three books.
Note: Voting does not exclude books, so titles may come up again in future ballots. I wanted to give you a chance to check out the books before the meeting.

Here are the contenders:

- Chicks with Sticks (It’s a Purl Thing) by Elizabeth Lenhard

- Knitting For Peace: Make the World a Better Place One Stitch at a Time
by Betty Christiansen

- Knitting Nell by Julie Jersild Roth

- Knitting Under the Influence by Claire LaZebnik

- Mindful Knitting: Inviting Contemplative Practice to the Craft
by Tara Jon Manning

- The Shop on Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber

There are synopses available on the Ramsey County website's catalog

Fitting Article from Pioneer Press about Harry Potter and knitting!

This one is too fitting for our next meeting. It's called "Knit if you love Harry Potter." Take a look!
http://www.twincities.com/ci_5989429?nclick_check=1

It talks about Charmed Knits and has a few quotes from the author.
Can't wait to hear your feedback on this one!

Our First Meeting -- What a success!

Thank you, thank you, thank you for making our first meeting such a success! What a great group! I love that we even had a gentleman comment about how much fun we seemed to be having - and he was right! I hope he joins us next time. :)

A few housekeeping things...we will have name tags for our next meeting and start an email list to receive updates about Knit-Lit. Keep the suggestions coming! I've also added a separate link for suggested knit books:
http://knit-litbooklist.blogspot.com/.

Remember next month's book is a tribute to Harry Potter fans since July is Harry Potter month with the new book and movie coming out. So have fun catching up on Harry and knitting a hat for Warm Woolies.
Here are the two sites I mentioned during our meeting:
~ For the free patterns and more info on Charmed Knits, http://charmedknits.blogspot.com/!
~ For more info about the knit-along for Warm Woolies: http://www.warmwoolies.org/

Can't wait to see you all July 10th - we'll be meeting in the community room next month and thereafter. Thanks again for your flexibility in the lobby and for making our first Knit-Lit such fun!!

Come Knit one, Read too!

Hello there!

Maplewood is starting its first monthly Knitting Book Club called Knit-Lit! It’s going to have a monthly meeting mixing the popular craft of knitting with reading. It will include a diverse mix of reading materials including fiction, non-fiction, kids, teens, and knitting instruction books. It will also host occasional speakers, such as authors of knitting-related books and local knitting celebrities. Knit-Lit will also be hosting an annual Knit Lit fundraiser for the library, offering knit items for a silent auction.

Its regular day and time will be the second Tuesday each month from 6 to 8 p.m. starting on June 12th!

All ages are welcome!


June 12th: Knit One, Kill Two by Maggie Sefton

July 10th: Charmed Knits: Projects for Harry Potter by Alison Hansel

August 14th: KnitLit: Sweaters and Their Stories…and Other
Writing About Knitting by Linda Roghaar and Molly Wolf

Ramsey Public Library - Maplewood
3025 Southlawn Drive
Maplewood MN 55109
651-704-2033

http://www.ramsey.lib.mn.us/