November 8th - 10th, 2024 - 10th Annual!
Hampton Inn & Suites, Belleville Ontario
We are having our retreat at the gorgeous 4 year old Hampton Inn in Belleville! It’s only 10 mins from the train station if you want to travel on Via Rail and grab a taxi to the hotel.
This luxury hotel has lovely spots to sit and knit and socialize in their common area, plus it even has an indoor swimming pool! Pool is open from 6am to 10pm daily.
Group Code is 91U
Group Name is Knitting Retreat 2024
You can book over the phone by calling 613-779-2000 and quoting Group code or name to receive our group pricing rate. Your own rooms costs are separate from the rest of the retreat cost.
Or you can book online and get our special pricing. Follow this link Retreat Hotel Booking.
I negotiated a group room rates for us and this rate is good until October 1st if paid in full.
King rooms with 1 king bed are $189 a night
Queen rooms with queen beds (that can be shared with another person) are $179 a night
Meals
I am working with caters, San Souci in Belleville and we are working with to make sure we have choices for dietary restrictions of gluten free, vegetarian and dairy free. I’m working on the menus with them now. The meals will be a buffet style with numerous choices.
Workshop details are near the bottom of this page.
Please note, there will be a $100 fee for cancellations before October 1st, 2024. After October 1st, 2024 no refunds will be available.
Our Instructors this year are...
Fiona Ellis is an incurable creative. From early lessons in creating knits with her grandmother, on to studying for a bachelor-of-arts degree in fashion knitwear design, and throughout almost three decades of work as a professional designer, her river of creative ideas just flows and flows. She has shared her creative concepts and designs through her books, her on-line lessons, her live workshops and in person. Fiona has developed a mindful approach to her work and teaching, rippling out of her experiences as a yoga instructor. She loves to share her passion with her students - let Fiona change your world by drawing out your own inner uncurable creative!
Fiona is the author of the books Inspired Cable Knits, Knitspiration Journal and Inspired Fair Isle Knits & is also an instructor at Craftsy.
She is also a qualified Yoga instructor.
You can find out what she is currently doing at www.fionaellisonline.com also see her extensive design portfolio on Ravelry: http://www.ravelry.com/designers/fiona-ellis
Kate is Knitty.com’s Managing Technical Editor, and a seasoned designer and teacher of all things knitterly.
She has written eight books, and edited a ninth. She is also the co-publisher of Digits & Threads, an online magazine about Canadian fibre- and textile arts, crafts and industry.
Custom-Fit Hats is a recipe for making the perfect fitting hat, for any head, from any yarn.
Custom Shawls is a full guide to everything shawls: from recipes for 20+ shawl shapes, a primer on on key techniques, a discussion of yarn and fibre and fabric, 13 patterns, and ideas and stitch patterns for creating your own.
The Knitter’s Dictionary, is an easy-to-use and friendly guide to the language of knitting. A reference book and a guide to pattern reading all in one, it covers topics from Gauge to Yarn Barf. It received a starred review in Publisher’s Weekly.
‘Knit Mitts: Your Hand-y Guide to Knitting Mittens and Gloves’, released in fall 2017, brings the same any-size-any-gauge approach as used in Custom Socks to hand coverings of all kinds. The first printing sold out in record time.
‘Custom Socks: Knit to Fit Your Feet’ was released summer 2015 by Interweave Press, to great acclaim. It takes a different approach than many sock books, teaching you how to measure your feet and providing numbers for working both toe-up and top down socks for 12 sizes and 9 gauges.
Her ‘Beginner’s Guide to Writing Knitting Patterns’ book is the industry’s first and only guide specifically written to help knit designers (and teachers) of all levels create easy-to-follow, high quality knitting patterns. It’s been called a “game-changer” and a “must-have” by designers and magazine editors.
She’s known for her attention to detail in her patterns and her classes, and she regularly teaches at stores and events across North America and the UK, including Vogue Knitting Live, Unravel and Knit City. Her work has appeared in many books and magazines.
FRIDAY
Arrival anytime after 3 pm at Hampton Inn & Suites, 784 Bell boulevard, Belleville.
Dinner is at 6 pm in the conference room on the main floor.
8 pm at the conference room - Bring your knitting and your favourite book that inspires you with your knitting or a suggested website you love. Everyone will share their books and websites so we can all find new inspiration!
SATURDAY
Breakfast 8 am - 8:45 am in the hotel front room next to the lobby on the main floor.
Saturday Morning Workshops 9:00 am - 12:00 pm (Choose one)
1A. "Cable Confidence" with Fiona Ellis
Skills Required:>Fiona would like to teach the whole world how to knit cables because she LOVES the technique! In this workshop she will show you how to twist in different ways, and how to read, not only charts, but also your own knitting. For newer cable knitters there will be time to get up close and personal with charts, abbreviations and terminology. And more experienced cable knitters will be encouraged to try their hand at CSI (cable stitch investigation) from samples that Fiona will provide.
Fiona will move onto showing you how to add your own cable ideas to simple projects for stunning details. This workshop is a must for newer knitter who love the look of texture, or knitters who need a refresher with a twist.
Materials to bring:
• ball of light-coloured medium weight yarn
• appropriate sized needles & cable needle
1B. "Setting up for Garment Success" with Kate Atherley
A sweater project is a big commitment of time and knitting and yarn, and it can feel
like a risk. This class is about setting yourself up for success! We’ll talk about how to make sure you’re using a good pattern, you’ve chosen the right size, and have selected a suitable yarn. How to make adjustments for better sizing and fit. We’ll tackle the thorny issue of gauge head-on, showing you how you can harness this information in simple ways to make sure that you’re happy with your garment. We’ll also review some of the pattern-reading challenges that can come up in garment projects, and I’ll share tips and tricks for make the knitting less dauting, and reducing the fear of going wrong. Feel free to bring any garment patterns or projects you need help with.
skill level: adventurous: suitable for knitters ready for making a first garment, or for those who want to get better and more confident with garment-knitting.
Materials to bring:
- paper, pencil, a tape measure
- any patterns you’re considering or have questions about
- along with a notebook and pen
- a bit of scrap medium-yarn and needles to match
Lunch 12:30 pm in the conference room on the main floor. Also from 12:30 onward we will be able to check out our vendors goodies! Baad Girl Yarns (aka Lesley from Rosehaven's dye studio) will be showcasing their hand dyed yarns, accessories & tools. Plus a surprise vendor!
Saturday Afternoon Workshops 2:00 pm - 5 pm (Choose one)
2A. "Tectonic Techniques - Slipping Snowflakes" with Fiona Ellis
Fiona loves to explore the idea of “morphing” patterns - patterns that shift and change. She has recently begun to think of this as “KnitQuakes” – patterns that fracture apart, slip & slide and reform into new configurations.
In this workshop Fiona will encourage you to play with chart patterns that she will provide (or bring your own) to explore your own unique ideas and create a snowflake inspired chart suitable for a cowl or maybe even a yoke for a sweater.
Materials to bring:
- squared paper and pencil
- paper scissors
- tape / glue
- Please note you may not get to knitting your chart in class, so the following is optional: 5-7 part balls from your stash (a few yards each) of differently coloured yarn in a medium weight and yarn appropriate needle.
2B. "Intro to Garment Alterations" with Kate Atherley
Found the perfect pattern but can't find a yarn that matches gauge? Want to change the size of a pattern? Need shorter sleeves, or a longer body, or a different neckline? In addition to sharing methods for changing aspects of garments, we’ll delve deep into strategies for approaching the problem that reduce both the work and the risk. We’ll also discuss how to choose patterns that are easiest to alter, and good designs that can be leaping-off points for your own inspirations.
Materials to bring:
- paper, pencil, a tape measure and a calculator/app; any patterns they are interesting in altering
- along with a notebook and pen.
Dinner 6 pm in the conference room on the main floor.
8 pm - Show & Tell! Storytime! This is your chance to show us something you have created that has maybe a fabulous story for you, or you are super proud of what you accomplished or you just want to show us what you are up to!
We all love to see what you are creating and share with each other so here is your chance!
SUNDAY
Breakfast 8am in the hotel front room next to the lobby on the main floor.
Sunday Morning Workshop 9:00 am - 12:00 pm (Choose one)
3A: "Back To Roots" with Fiona Ellis
“A tree’s beauty lies in its branches, but its strength lies in its roots” – Matchona Dhliwayo
By going back to the basics of our knitting practice we can learn how to become more aware of stitch structure and see what is occurring in a specific technique. This in turn improves our proficiency and ability to read our work, leading to fewer errors or more confidence when fixing a mistake.
Through a series of knitting exercise Fiona will bring awareness to the humble knit and purl stitch, directional increases and decreases, how to shape “in pattern”, and create simple colour-work patterning.
Material to bring:
- 2 -3 balls of differently coloured medium weight yarn
- appropriate needles.
and even the most experienced knitters often have holes in their finishing knowledge – or simply lack confidence about them. The reason is simple: information in books and patterns is often very weak in this area, leaving knitters to try to figure it out themselves. This hands-on workshop teaches practical, useful and sensible finishing skills. Along the way we’ll dispel a lot of common myths, break down some common sources of confusion, and show you short-cuts that make the finishing task easier and improve the finished project. We’ll cover the three key seaming methods – reviewing how to do them and where to use them, including how to set in a sleeve. We’ll practice two key skills that cause problems for knitters of all experience levels: grafting (Kitchener stitch) and picking up stitches - how and where to pick them up, how to handle large numbers of picked up stitches, and what to do if you can’t match the number the pattern calls for. We’ll discuss blocking, weaving in ends and how the proper cast ons and bind offs can make your finishing work easier - and improve the finished result.
students should bring:
Material to bring:
- any projects that need finishing, the swatches below, and a blunt-tipped darning needle.
Homework: Using 4-5mm/US #6-8 needles and medium-weight yarn in a light colour, make the following squares: two 4 x 4 in squares in stocking stitch, one 4 x 4 in square in garter stitch, one 4 x 4 in square (k1, p1) ribbing; 2 15-stitch swatches of stockinette stitch – work 4 rows and leave the stitches on holders.
Rooms to be vacated by 11 am
Lunch 12:30 pm in the conference room on the main floor.
Departure following lunch