The first week or so of October has traditionally been the time when the Creative Knitting Retreat class with Sandy De Master and Mary Germain is scheduled, along with the Open Knit Studio time. As it turns out, this year was no different…except in many ways. Each group was small in numbers (but not in projects!), with plenty of distance within the studios. The usual non-knitting activities like the fashion show, group dinners and attendance at Columbus Day weekend events around the island were put on hold for another time. We missed seeing so many of our friends, as we have throughout the season, but know that we will see you all again when the time is right. While the […]
August classes and beyond
For the month of August, two classes were able to be held and like last time, one was quilting (Open Quilt Studio) and the other was knitting with Mary Germain, Baltic Knitting Extravaganza. With good weather, the knitters were able to spend most of the time in the lawn outside of the Sophie Studio. With a limited number of quilters, tables and machines were spaced at more than the recommended distance. As always, each quilter brought several projects to start, finish and/or show. Some quilts in progress represented more of a traditional look and some had a modern approach. The quilt on the right is a “deconstructed” Washington Island. Note the white dots along the north shore representing Schoolhouse Beach […]
Sievers Pop-Up shop #3: Keeping warm
This pop-up Sievers Shop is looking ahead a bit to the days when we will need to keep warm! We know how cozy these items can be since we often find ourselves selling them on the hottest days of the summer, like these three pair of mittens, made from upcycled wool sweaters, lined with fleece and featuring special embellishments ($75 each). More upcycled wool mittens and hats are available in the shop along with chenille hats and knit headbands that will definitely keep the ears warm. Wearing a cowl is like getting a little personal hug. Pom-poms still rule the knitted hat scene! Warm comes in many genres, including woven scarves and shawls… …and silks and sunsets, which are just […]
A tale of two classes
Back in February, we had no idea that it would be July before the first Sievers class of 2020 would take place. In May, we weren’t sure when and if we could hold a class. Then guidelines were issued and we hoped some of our classes would work with precautions in place. Many factors are being taken into consideration for each class. Can an instructor teach from a six-foot distance? Depending on the subject, how many students can be accommodated in the studio? Are students using any shared equipment? What level of comfort is there from all involved in travelling and gathering with others? All that being said, we have so far been able to hold two classes, Quilt Design […]
Of spinning and dyeing
Since 2017, we’ve kept a Sievers calendar close by, writing in the names of students and teachers who we haven’t seen for some time that happen to stop in for a visit. Generally, we have several entries each week and during July and August, it can be several each day. We love re-connecting in this way and keeping this record has been so much fun, we wish we would have thought of it years earlier! Just a couple weeks ago, a former student stopped in while biking on the Island. She’d taken one class here in 1987, spinning with Franie Philps. Since our first year, Sievers has offered spinning and Franie was the instructor from 1982-1999. For one of her […]
Knitting with friends
Many hands were in motion throughout last week’s Creative Knitting Retreat with Sandy De Master and Mary Germain and in the Open Knit Studio. Each person was working on a different project, (actually on multiple projects!) and that made for a “stone soup” of pattern, yarn and project ideas that any knitter would savor. As always, there were new and returning projects brought to class, including lots of color work, Fair Isle knitting and Latvian or Estonian mittens. New friendships were made and returning friendships enriched. Many came to class together as established friends. Two “Sievers stories” are shared here, first from Eileen P., “My friend Cindy and I have been coming to classes at Sievers for years. These retreats […]
Wonderfully woolly
A class specifically to study the wool of different sheep breeds and their characteristics as they apply to spinning (and more) made for a wonderful woolly week. As always, instructor Deb Jones brought a wide variety of wools and other fibers for use in class. Some of the spikiest of tools are used for carding, combing and blending the softest of wools. Putting the fibers to work, the spinners had their wheels in motion, interspersed occasionally with faraway looks, contemplating which blends to combine next. Swooning over all the wools and yarns from class! Cindy R. shared her “Sievers Story” with us: “What a wonderful experience. The bunk house was fun and the class was out of this world. Deb […]
Give them a hand…
…for all the knitting and quilting and learning that took place in both Sandy De Master and Mary Germain’s Baltic Knitting Extravaganza and Ellen Graf’s Balance in Quilt Design classes! From the smallest Latvian mini-mittens to a full-size quilt, there were new and renewed projects in both studios. Following traditional designs or adapting and creating new ones were options in both classes. Both were equally wonderful! Studio visit times allow everyone to share and show the work of their hands, demonstrating a quote often associated with Walter Schutz, “Happiness is in your hands…and it keeps you young!” From the Reader’s Digest article Walter found that quote in, the last sentence reads, “We need the sense of self-confidence, self-respect, that comes […]
