We rolled out of bed bright and early Sunday morning to accompany Katie to her Debbie Bliss class, Shaping with Cables. It was a huge disappointment. Other than learning that the way to subtley decrease a cable is not to do it on the edge, not much else was learned in the three hour class. This was probably a result of Ms. Bliss only speaking for 15 minutes. Thankfully, she met some nice people, got two skeins of tan Rialto Aran yarn and Debbie was nice enough to take a photo with us, so the class was not a complete bust.


Next Katie and Lisa headed out for lunch at an Italian place Katie wanted to try (Pazza Notte). They were serving breakfast. So, no Italian per se, but the Belgian waffles were good and Lisa caught a picture of Katie with us and the Love sculpture on the way back.


That afternoon, both ladies took a class with Candace Eisner Strick. It was fantastic. They agreed they’d take a class on how to knit a garbage bag if she were teaching. They learned how to read Austrian charts, about the history of Austrian knitting, that is absolutely has to be done in the round, that these patterns show up best with lighter colored yarn, and that Candace was a tad crazy in the most wonderful way! They were able to see a lot of Austrian knitting and it was gorgeous. Candace also graciously agreed to be photographed with us.

The class was not without drama. One of the thirty students wanted to insist that she be allowed to knit the patterns flat. Candace tried nicely to let her know that that was not an option. The class was about Austrian knitting and it is knit in the round (always facing the rightside). She suggested the student try to get her money back or go to another class. The lady left and then returned to again attempt to knit flat. She wanted Candace to help her learn the stitches flat. Candace allowed as how that was not fair to the 29 other students that were all trying to learn the traditional way….in the round. The frustrated lady finally stomped out muttering, “all the great knitters knit flat!”….but several other ladies had to interrupt, “um, you forgot your coat.” The rest of the class passed without incident.

The girls changed and left for the Charity Dinner. It was a little disconcerting to get on a bus and have no idea where you were going and get off the bus and be milling around in what seemed like a warehouse with a hundred plus other knitters for awhile, but wine and champagne were being served, so they decided to press their luck. They did hang towards the back / exit when it seemed the knitters were being herded towards a specific direction, but they were able to get through the evening without being massacred, so that’s a win. We were in Katie’s purse just in case.

The food was DELICIOUS and the wait staff was easy on the eyes; they had a great time.
Ps. It is worth noting that Katie ran into a purse very similar to her’s at the MOMA gift shop for about $150. Her parents gave it to her for her birthday; way to go, Mom & Dad! You are far more hip than you knew!