this one time…

…there was a quiet little yarn store in daisy street, fairy meadow. one day, the three lovely ladies who owned the shop decided it might be a nice idea to run a little weekend retreat at the local scout camp for their customers and the local stitch n bitch group. and so, a legend was born.

this was the fourth year of CR&K Daisy Design’s knitting camp, and things are a bit different now. with the advent of ravelry and blogging, word of the camp has spread far and wide, which i think surprises C, R and K sometimes. i have lived in both wollongong and sydney, and attended snbs in both cities, so for me, knitting camp is a bit like where my worlds collide. i love that about camp, that my new friends in wollongong are there, and that some of my old friends from both sydney and canberra are there, and that we all get to meet people we would otherwise never know. i especially love that there is a great range of young and older knitters, and we get to mingle and learn new things from each other.

its a small camp, rustic, and not exactly four star, but we like it that way. the location is amazing, as lyn has documented so well, and this year it was warm enough to not require a fire. which was lucky, because the resident firestarter was otherwise occupied. a few traditions were maintained, however, including the ubiqitious knitters circle both inside the lodge:

and outside in the beautiful surrounds:

and of course, the saturday night themed dinner, which this year was Opshop Glam. we had great fun dressing up and tottering around on high heels (although that turned out to be a bit dangerous for some), and didnt we look a treat (thanks fee and kris for this photo!):

and no, bells is not tweeting while we waited for our bbq dinner, because we had no reception.  note the purple shoes on the table:

i aquired a little extra stash:

some purchased, some traded and some winnings (and not pictured here is the 20 balls of cleckheaton country silk i won in the trivia contest). yes, our table won, for the first time in four years!

there was lots of laughter, gossip, yummy treats, bubbles and of course, knitting. so many people making so many brilliant things. as lyn has said, its one of the best feelings in the world, to be knitting around knitters and have everyone be actively interested in what others are doing, whats that pattern, whats that yarn? there is genuine enthusiasm and passion, and the way we all just ‘get’ each other is a really precious and special thing.

personally, knitting wise, i wasnt all that productive. i got to take the arms off my featherweight and am moving down the body, and i cast on and frogged twice the malabrigo silky wool in ravelry red which i want to be a scarf, and have now settled, of course, on another clapotis.

the end of knitting camp is bittersweet. its hard work being around lots of people all that time, but its sad to see them go away again. and this time last year, the end of knitting camp brought about the end of the life i thought i had, and the beginning of this new one. i cant help but be a bit reflective, and a bit sad, but the year between camps has bought so many joys, most at the hand of the knitters i just spent the weekend with, and i wouldnt trade that for anything.

love yas all

k xx