Camp prep

Back from TNNA! What a great trip. I'll be posting about that soon! The weather in Columbus was just gorgeous. It's usually really hot and humid with thunderstorms and major downpours. This year was a treat with temps in the 70s, sun and a lovely breeze.

Back in Vermont, however, the weather forecast isn't looking quite as nice. Today is a bit damp and chilly so I'm thankful for our new Half-Crepe Triangular Shawl sample, knit with Mountain Colors Wool Crepe Halves. It keeps my shoulders warm and I can see it's going to be my go-to piece when the chill of the A/C starts to bother me this summer. (You should make one! Easy, quick, and the weight is perfect!)

So we've got our first ever Kyarns kids' knitting camp coming up in less than a month (still a few spots left!) We're putting together the daily schedule and buttoning up all the details for the week. We are so excited! It's really going to be a lot of fun for those lucky kids! (Why didn't they have this when I was a kid!?)

I'm putting together the master swatch notebook, and I'm about halfway through. I'm using the Berroco Vintage Wool because you know I love it! I picked some super bright colors - remember, we're dealing with kids, and these colors are WAY more appealing than they might be to you and I!We have kids of all different abilities coming to the camp, and as I've learned from the rec department after school knitting program I did with Suzie this past year, it's good to have lots of options for all the kids. We're focused on teaching them skills that they can use once they've left the camp, so the knitting time will really be swatching time. They'll learn how to read charts and how to read their knitting. (I know some grown ups who would benefit from this exercise!!) Kids who are beginner knitters can start at the beginning of the swatch book, and kids with experience can start in the middle, or beyond!

If you think about it, making a swatch 10 stitches wide by 10-12 rows high seems very basic. But pair it up with chart reading, and lots of casting on, binding off & weaving in ends, comparing it to other swatches to learn about gauge, and these kids will be really skilled at many techniques at the end of the week.

There are hands on non-knitting (but fiber related - of course!) activities each day. And here's an example of a felted flower that they will be making: Gorgeous! Shawn made this one, and now I want to do it!